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THE EPISCOPAL CHURCH, USA
AND HOMOSEXUALITY
LEAD-UP TO THE
YEAR 2003 GENERAL CONVENTION
Sponsored link.
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"The election in New Hampshire of a man who openly
confesses an active homosexual relationship to be Bishop Coadjutor,
and the inclusion of a measure affirming the blessing of same-sex
unions on the agenda of the upcoming General Convention, both serve as
symbols of a desperately confused, errant and disintegrating Anglican
province. Open letter by 24 Episcopal bishops to the worldwide
Anglican Communion. 1 |
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"The major question before this General Convention is whether
or not the Episcopal Church has any right to make decisions contrary
to the commonly accepted (read: traditional) interpretation of
Scripture. Do we have the authority to vote to do something we
understand to be right and just--even if contrary to or not addressed
by Scripture?" Rev. Mark Harris, reporting on the Convention
activities for Beliefnet.com 2 |
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"May you live in interesting times." Anon. An ancient Chinese
curse. |
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2003-MAR: Committee rejects marriage ritual for gays and
lesbians: A committee of the House of Bishops for the Episcopal
Church concluded an 18 month study into whether the denomination
should recognize same-sex partnerships with a church ritual. Many
churches have performed such rites recently, although none apparently
were performed with the approval of a bishop. The committee rejected the
concept. 3 | |
2003-MAR-7: Episcopal church supports overturn of Texas anti-gay
law: The Episcopal News Service reported that the Most Rev. Frank T.
Griswold III, presiding bishop of the Episcopal Church filed an amici
brief with the U.S. Supreme Court in opposition to a
Texas law which criminalizes certain sexual
activities by same sex couples which are legal for opposite-sex couples.
4 | |
2003-MAR-18: At the House of Bishops' spring meeting
at Kanuga, NC, the bishops discussed and
received an 11 page report "The Gift of Sexuality: A Theological
Perspective," written by the House of Bishops Theology
Committee. The authors acknowledged that "...there is a range
of sexual identities among human beings and a portion of the
population experiences itself as having a homosexual orientation. As
Christians, we affirm that persons of all sexual orientations are
created in the image of god and they are full members of the human
family." wrote: "We believe it is
imperative that the Episcopal Church refrain from any attempt to
settle the matter legislatively. For a season at least, we must
acknowledge and live the great pain and discomfort of our
disagreements."
Conservatives in the denomination generally supported the report.
Liberals were critical; they faulted it for being thin on theology
and short on insight. The report recommended against rites of
blessings for same-sex unions and the ordination of sexually-active
gays and lesbians. The bishops did not adopt the report. They simply
offered "...it to the Church for study and reflection."
12 | |
2003-JUN-8: Church elects its first gay bishop: Episcopalians
in New Hampshire elected Rev. V. Gene Robinson, 56, to be their next
bishop coadjutor on only the second ballot. This is the first time that an openly gay person has been
elected bishop in the denomination. He succeeded over three other
candidates for the position. Otis Charles, former bishop of Utah,
announced in 1993 that he was gay. However he had waited until he
retired to make the information public. After his election, Robinson
said: "We will show the world how to be a Christian community...I
plan to be a good bishop, not a gay bishop." 3
Some reactions:
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Rev. David L. Moyer is the president of Forward in Faith,
an Anglican group which opposes the ordination of women, said the
election will cause a greater division within the Episcopal church. He
said: "They are leading with their chin....I think either they
aren't concerned with their legionship with the ... larger church or
they're asking to be dismissed by the Anglican community." He said
that the election is an open rebellion against God's created order and
the teachings of the Church. 4 |
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Lawrence Knapp of Pittsburgh is a church administrator for the
Diocese of Pittsburgh. He favors Robinson's election, but said:
"I think it will be very painful for many people. I'm in a very
conservative diocese and I know there will be a lot of unhappiness
here." He predicts that Robinson's election will be confirmed in
2003-JUL at the General Convention. He continued: "The revisionists
are certainly in control of the leadership in the Episcopal Church."
4 |
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Rev. Ian T. Douglas, a professor at the Episcopal Divinity
School in Cambridge, MA said he thinks Robinson's election will
motivate many church members to make fundamental decisions about the
role of gays and lesbians in the denomination. He said: "We are no
longer talking about some hypothetical or some disembodied discussions
about liturgy. This is a discussion about a real live person called to
a real live leadership position in the church." 5 |
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Barney Zwartz, Religious affairs writer for The Age, an Australian
newspaper, wrote that: "It is likely that if the national church
ratifies the election, most of the world's 38 national Anglican
leaders will consider the US out of communion and withdraw
recognition, as has happened with the Canadian diocese of New
Westminster." 6 |
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In an interview on the PBS station WNET during the week of
2003-JUN-13, David O'Reilly, the religion reporter for the
Philadelphia Inquirer, suggested that a week previously he would have
said that Robinson was a shoo-in to have his consecration upheld. "But
things have been heating up in the past week. conservatives in the
United States and even outside the United States are saying 'It's
time to take a stand!' And they are vowing to see Robinson's
election overturned." 7 |
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According to webmaster Lionel Diemel,
"...because the
election occurred within 120 days of the triennial General
Convention (which begins on [2003-]July 30), the House of
Deputies and House of Bishops each has to consent to the election.
(Procedures are set forth in Canon 22 of
Title III. Note that only current diocesan bishops—bishops
'exercising jurisdiction'—are allowed to vote on this matter.)"
His web site also contains selected quotations from bishops and para-church
organizations on the Robinson election. 8
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Only those potential new
bishops who are elected fewer than 121 days before a General
Convention must have their positions approved by the Convention. In
Robinson's case, he was elected bishop coadjutor, which means
that he will only take over as bishop some time in the future, after
the present bishop resigns. There appears to have been no real rush
to elect Canon Robinson on JUN-8. The election probably could have
been delayed by two months and a few days in order to have it fall
after the Convention. Then, there would have been no requirement
that his election be confirmed by the Convention. It may be that
some elements in the New Hampshire diocese wanted to time the
election in order to make it a test case at the Convention. |
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2003-JUN: Statement on same-sex blessings: A group of fourteen
concerned conservative Primates of the Anglican Communion issued a
statement condemning: "The recent action of the Bishop of New
Westminster [which] displays a flagrant disregard for the remainder of
the Anglican Communion. The Bishop's decision to proceed with same-sex
blessings is at variance with the witness of Holy Scripture and the
recently concluded Primates' Meeting where the Primates as a body,
issued an unambiguous statement on the subject....The unfortunate
situation at New Westminster has taken the diocese far beyond the
generally accepted teaching of the church and a declaration has
already been made that communion has been severed as a
result....Bishop Ingham's action has brought the Anglican Communion to
a defining moment in which the clear choice has to be made between
remaining a communion or disintegrating into a federation of
churches....The Anglican Communion cannot ignore the blatantly
divisive course of action initiated by Bishop Ingham and the Synod of
New Westminster within the Anglican Church of Canada. Consequently, we
urge all Anglicans who love their communion to join us in the call to
action." 9 | |
2003-JUL-15: Twenty-four bishops issue an open letter: Two
dozen conservative bishops of the Episcopal Church who are affiliated
with the American Anglican Council issued an open letter directed to
the primates of the worldwide Anglican Communion. Three of the bishops
were from the Pittsburgh diocese; the rest were mainly from the
southern U.S. states. They represent about
8% of the total number of active and retired bishops in the U.S. The letter
said, in part, that: "The election in New Hampshire of a man who
openly confesses an active homosexual relationship to be Bishop
Coadjutor, and the inclusion of a measure affirming the blessing of
same-sex unions on the agenda of the upcoming General Convention, both
serve as symbols of a desperately confused, errant and disintegrating
Anglican province. At stake are the fundamental doctrines of
apostolicity and of marriage. The confirmation by national synodical
vote of the bishop-elect or the adoption of any same-sex marriage
provisions would be unparalleled departures from received church order
and universal church teaching." 2 | |
2003-JUL-22: Presiding bishop of the Episcopal Church issues
letter: The Episcopal News Service reported that: "Presiding
Bishop Frank Griswold wrote to the primates... asking for their
understanding of the difference in context between their provinces and
the American church over the understanding of human sexuality. 'Over
these last five years I have continually reminded our church that we
are part of a larger reality called the Anglican Communion, and that
what we do locally has ramifications both positive and negative in
other parts of the world,' Griswold said. 'At the same time I am
mindful that each of us has to interpret the gospel in our own context
and within the particular reality of our own Province; there is no
such thing as a neutral reading of Scripture. While we all accept the
authority of Scripture, we interpret various passages in different
ways'." 2,10 | |
2003-JUL-23: Conservative leaders of the Anglican Communion
issue statement: Sixty two conservative Anglicans -- including 15
bishops of the Episcopal Church, USA, seven primates, and
some canons of the worldwide Anglican Communion -- met in a secret
meeting at Fairfax, VA to prepare a statement in response to the
possible affirmation of bishop-elect Robinson's election, and the
addition of a church ritual to bless same-sex unions. It is called the
"Truro Statement," and is named after the Truro Episcopal Church
where the meeting was held. They claimed to represent "a majority
of the world's 75 million Anglicans." According to the Anglican
Communication Secretariat's data, the seven primates represent
about 26% of all Anglicans. The ten active Episcopal bishops represent
9% of the American church. The statement said, in part: "The
proposed actions by General Convention…would shatter the church...The
American bishops at this meeting have prayed, planned and are prepared
to respond as faithful members of the Anglican Communion. Should these
events occur, the majority of the Primates anticipate convening an
extraordinary meeting at which they too will respond to the actions of
General Convention." Preferring to maintain the element of
surprise, they refused to indicate what action that they might take.
Archbishop Peter Akinola of the Church of Nigeria said that a
response would be triggered if either Robinson's election is
confirmed or if the Episcopal church decides to bless same-sex
unions. 2,19 | |
2003-JUL-23: Archbishop of Canterbury issues statement:
Archbishop Rowan Williams sent a letter to all Anglican primates
asking them to maintain "mutual accountability" on emerging
controversies such as equal treatment of gays and lesbians, lay
members presiding at the Eucharist, and "alternative episcopal
oversight" for dissenting parishes. He wrote, in part: "We do
not have a central executive authority in our Communion; this means we
are quite vulnerable in times of deep disagreement, and need more than
ever to pay attention to one another...This is not to recommend a
refusal to face circumstances or to avoid conflict at all costs. It is
to acknowledge that who we are as Christians is connected to the
worldwide fellowship to which we belong. Within a living Communion, we
should never find ourselves in the position of saying, or seeming to
say, to each other, 'I have no need of you' (I Corinthians 12.21)."
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Episcopal information:
References used:
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Rev. Mark Harris, "A Sense of Impending Struggle.
Notes from the front lines of the Episcopal Church General Convention,"
Beliefnet, 2003-JUL-29, at:
http://www.beliefnet.com/ (This report was subsequently removed)
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"Group ‘prepared to respond' if General Convention affirms Robinson,
blessing rite," Episcopal News Service, 2003-JUL-24, at:
http://www.episcopalchurch.org/
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Anne Saunders, "Church elects its
first gay bishop," Associated Press, at:
http://www.washingtontimes.com/
- Al Dobras, "Action Contradicts Stance of
Worldwide Anglican Conference," Concerned Women for America,
2002-MAR-12, at:
http://www.cwfa.org/
- "Election of gay bishop could cause
church rift," The Associated Press, 2003-JUN-09, at:
http://www.ajc.com/news/
- Barney Zwartz, "Anglican turmoil over
gay US bishop," The Age, 2003-JUN-9, at:
http://www.theage.com.au/
- "Impact of gay issues on Episcopal
church policy," WNET, week of 2003-JUN-13, at:
http://www.pbs.org/wnet/
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Lionel Deimel,
"Positions on the Election of V. Gene Robinson," at:
http://deimel.org/church_resources/vgr.htm
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The Most Rev'd Drexel Gomez, "Statement issued by a group of concerned
Primates," 2003-JUN, at:
http://www.anglicancommunion.org/
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Frank T. Griswold, "For the Primates of the Anglican Communion,"
Episcopal News Service, 2003-JUL-22.
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"A Statement from the Gathering of Worldwide Anglican Mainstream
Leaders," American Anglican Council News, 2003-JUL-23, at:
http://www.americananglican.org/
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Theology Committee, "The Gift of Sexuality:
A Theological Perspective," at:
http://www.ecusa.anglican.org/
Copyright © 2003 & 2004 by Ontario Consultants on
Religious Tolerance
Latest update: 2004-AUG-01
Author: B.A. Robinson
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