The Episcopal Church looks forward

by John Dart

“It is not our desire to give offense,” says a letter hand-delivered to Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams last week and e-mailed to other leading figures in the global Anglican Communion, many of whom have called for the U.S. church to repent for its defense of LGBT rights. The missive was written by the two Episcopal church leaders who presided over the breakthrough Episcopal General Convention in Anaheim, California, which declared overwhelmingly that baptized gay and lesbian Episcopalians have long had the right to serve as priests and bishops, and may serve in the future.

“Nothing in the resolution goes beyond what has already been provided under our Constitution and Canons for many years,” wrote presiding bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori and Bonnie Anderson, who chaired the clergy-lay House of Deputies. The text of their letter was not released publicly until the last hours of the ten-day convention. Jefferts Schori and Anderson noted that they “remain keenly aware of the concerns and sensibilities” of fellow Anglican churches but added that honesty is essential within the 77-million-member world body to which they are “genuinely committed.”

Gay rights advocate Susan Russell details a “virtual clean sweep” at the convention on LGBT-related issues. Conservative blogger David Virtue expects more fallout from U.S. churches and dioceses and a hardening of divisions at the international level. Yet some bishops perceive that many in the U.S. are willing to live with their differences.

Perhaps hoping to soften the impact, Jefferts Schori and Anderson took issue with press reports of what happened in Anaheim. Their points:

• This convention “has not repealed” its 2006 appeal for restraint against electing another gay bishop (such as New Hampshire’s V. Gene Robinson, who was affirmed as bishop at the 2003 convention). It is generally agreed that what many call a moratorium will continue to be observed in many conservative U.S. dioceses.
• The key resolution says the Episcopal Church “has called and may call” any baptized member to ordained ministry, including gays and lesbians. Jefferts Schori and Anderson said they understand the resolution “to be more descriptive than prescriptive in nature.” In my Century article, I quote Ian Douglas explaining that it all depends what “may” means.

Centrist bishop Peter J. Lee of the Diocese of Virginia makes a good point about what’s next. Noting that “the ordination process is under the control of local bishops and dioceses” and that severe budget cuts were imposed by this convention, Lee predicts that church ministry will properly shift to local initiative rather than looking to the national church for support and direction.