Dear People of Christ Church,Our bishops and deputies have continued to meet in Anaheim this week, and General Convention (the every-three-year gathering of representatives from all over the Episcopal Church) ends tomorrow. The big ticket news items have, as usual, been on issues of sexuality. In 2006, General Convention voted in the controversial "BO33" resolution, which essentially initiated a moratorium on consecrating gays and lesbians as bishops. Even with that provision, though, we've continued to see the self-proclaimed "orthodox" leave the Episcopal Church and ally themselves with other provinces. At the time it was passed 3 years ago, Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori spoke of BO33 in terms of a time of fasting: a fast, it had to be pointed out, only undertaken by some of our brothers and sisters. But any fast must be only for a temporary period; if you continue to fast, you starve, and with this General Convention, it has come to a close. The bishops and deputies both voted by a margin of 2:1 to officially open the ordination process at all levels, to all individuals are selected in accordance with diocesan discernment processes and the canons of the church. It also reaffirms the Episcopal Church's participation in the Anglican Communion, while acknowledging that the communion is not of one mind on this matter.
In a resolution that affects us closer to home, the House of Bishops also voted (by a 3:1 margin) that bishops, "particularly those in dioceses within civil jurisdictions where same-gender marriage, civil unions, or domestic partnerships are legal, may provide generous pastoral response to meet the needs of members of this Church." The House of Deputies will vote later today, and will likely approve it as well. This acknowledges what is happening already, but it also gives us some breathing space to have more open discussion and reflect honestly about what we are doing and what we are about. At the next General Convention in 2012, the Church will consider rites of blessing for same gender marriages and unions and whether to have one single liturgy. As Anglicans, of course we have to have an authorized liturgy for everything!
It feels a little odd to celebrate things that have already been happening for some time, but I think the sense of breathing room is what's most important. Bonnie Anderson, the president of the House of Deputies (the body which represents lay people, priests, and deacons), said of the ordination process resolution "It's not an attempt to fly in the face of the Anglican Communion; it's an attempt to deepen relationships with the rest of the communion, because real relationships are built on authenticity."
There's also authenticity in acknowledging that even all Episcopalians aren't in the same place. Change came to the Diocese of Massachusetts first, but there can still be a wide variety of opinions nationally and locally. None of the resolutions adopted mean that any priest, parish, or bishop has to do anything. It is unfortunate that some have left the Episcopal Church, but we can't keep looking back as though it should have been (or even could have been) prevented at any cost.
As for the Anglican Communion? Interestingly, this year there are more international visitors than at any other time--a good corrective to the notion that the American Church just wants to go it alone. One commented that if more people internationally understood how decisions are made in the Episcopal Church that recent tensions might be calmer. Sometimes we pick up on a final stage and don't understand the process," said Archbishop Henri Isingoma, newly elected primate of the Anglican Church of the Congo. For more, see the links listed below and please continue to keep the Bishops and Deputies in your prayers as they wrap up their work.
Blessings,
Sara
+ps:I will be on vacation for three weeks, beginning after Church this Sunday. Please contact our wardens, Jonathan Duce and Marcia Luce, in case of an emergency. The Rev Cathy Venkatesh is on call for pastoral matters; she can be reached through the parish office or Jonathan and Marcia. The E-Crier will continue to be mailed out an announcements-only; please let Kristina know if you'd like her to include anything: office@christchurchwaltham.org.
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