Blog Homepage
Members: Login | Register
Click here if you're having trouble getting registered.
| July 2008 | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| S | M | T | W | T | F | S |
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | ||
| 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 |
| 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 |
| 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 |
| 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 | 31 | ||
click on a date to see all the day's entries
About TitusOneNine
Old Titusonenine site (Jan04-May07)Kendall's Bio
Kendall's e-mail (replace -at- with @)
"Elves" e-mail (blog admin)
A free floating commentary on culture, politics, economics, and religion based on a passionate commitment to the truth and a desire graciously to refute that which is contrary to it….
"He must hold firm to the sure word as taught, so that he may be able to give instruction in sound doctrine and also to confute those who contradict it."
--Titus 1:9, Revised Standard Version
Blog Tips & Info
Info to help you learn your way around the new blog, and posts where you can report problems or offer suggestions
Mobile-friendly view (blog headlines): Click HerePrint-friendly view of all articles: Click Here
Recent Comments Page:
Click Here
Registration & Login Help
Blog Tips Series
Categories
The above list is limited to "parent" categories. To see the entire category index and select specific sub-categories, click on "Full Category Index"
Full Category Index
Monthly Archives
July, 2008
June, 2008
May, 2008
April, 2008
March, 2008
February, 2008
January, 2008
December, 2007
November, 2007
October, 2007
September, 2007
August, 2007
July, 2007
June, 2007
May, 2007
Anglican / Episcopal RSS Feed
©2008 Kendall S. Harmon. All rights reserved.
TitusOneNine Links Page
I. Anglican / Episcopal Resources & Links
1. Important Documents
documents are in chronological order, most recent first
Also, don't miss:
2. Websites & Blogs
A. Official websites
B. Anglican / Episcopal News
C. Anglican / Episcopal Blogs
By no means exhaustive. Let us know what we've missed
Previous versions of Titusonenine:
NORTH AMERICAN ANGLICANS:
Reasserters' Blogs:
Reappraisers' Blogs
INTERNATIONAL ANGLICAN BLOGS & BLOGGERS
BLOGGING BISHOPS (US & Overseas)
II. General Resources & Links
YET more links coming soon...! including Non-Anglican links
Archbishop Rowan Williams has tried to take the issue of gay marriage off the table at the Lambeth Conference, which begins in three weeks. But the celebration of a gay relationship at one of London's oldest churches last month, and the well-publicised gathering of anti-gay Anglicans in Jerusalem this week, suggest the controversy must eventually be faced squarely.
Conservative Christians say opening marriage to gay couples would undermine an immutable institution founded on divine revelation. Archbishop Henry Orombi, the primate of the Church of Uganda, calls it blasphemy. But, theologically, support for same-sex marriage is not a dramatic break with tradition, but a recognition that the church's understanding of marriage has changed dramatically over 2,000 years.
Christians have always argued about marriage. Jesus criticised the Mosaic law on divorce, saying "What God has joined together let no man separate", but even that dictum appears in different versions in the Gospels, and was modified in the letters of Peter and Paul. Christians had to square the ecstatic sensuality of the Song of Songs with Paul's teaching that marriage was a fallen estate, useful primarily in saving those who could not be celibate from fornication.
Read the whole piece.
Conservative Christians say opening marriage to gay couples would undermine an immutable institution founded on divine revelation. Archbishop Henry Orombi, the primate of the Church of Uganda, calls it blasphemy. But, theologically, support for same-sex marriage is not a dramatic break with tradition, but a recognition that the church's understanding of marriage has changed dramatically over 2,000 years.
Christians have always argued about marriage. Jesus criticised the Mosaic law on divorce, saying "What God has joined together let no man separate", but even that dictum appears in different versions in the Gospels, and was modified in the letters of Peter and Paul. Christians had to square the ecstatic sensuality of the Song of Songs with Paul's teaching that marriage was a fallen estate, useful primarily in saving those who could not be celibate from fornication.
Read the whole piece.
Filed under: * Anglican - Episcopal • Episcopal Church (TEC) • TEC Bishops • Sexuality Debate (in Anglican Communion) • Same-sex blessings • * Culture-Watch • Marriage & Family • * Theology • Ethics / Moral Theology
The question we must ever face is not “What errors do we see in our opponents position?”, but “What values do we discern in our opponents position, values that our
own position may not be stressing as fully?” And we need to see these questions not as ones simply to be asked in a formal way, but as expressing an attitude of a path of shared discovery on which we are willing to embark, within the debate in which we are participating.
And so concerning the current ‘troubles’ in our communion:
· We might ask that the debate be shaped in terms of values rather than policies or strategies
· We thus ask each Province to express the values it sees being expressed in it present position, relating these to values within our scriptural and traditional
inheritance
own position may not be stressing as fully?” And we need to see these questions not as ones simply to be asked in a formal way, but as expressing an attitude of a path of shared discovery on which we are willing to embark, within the debate in which we are participating.
And so concerning the current ‘troubles’ in our communion:
· We might ask that the debate be shaped in terms of values rather than policies or strategies
· We thus ask each Province to express the values it sees being expressed in it present position, relating these to values within our scriptural and traditional
inheritance
Filed under: * Anglican - Episcopal • Anglican Provinces • Scottish Episcopal Church • Lambeth 2008 • Sexuality Debate (in Anglican Communion) • Same-sex blessings
Read it all.
Filed under: * Anglican - Episcopal • Sexuality Debate (in Anglican Communion) • Same-sex blessings • * Religion News & Commentary • Sexuality Debate (Other denominations and faiths) • * Theology • Ethics / Moral Theology • Theology: Scripture
The Episcopal Diocese of San Diego took another step toward the full acceptance of gays with the ordination of its first openly gay deacon.
During a month in which thousands of same-sex couples were able to marry in California, Thomas Wilson was ordained to the transitional diaconate by San Diego Bishop James Mathes at St. Paul's Episcopal Cathedral. Wilson, who moved to San Diego eight years ago with his partner of 20 years, is expected to serve as a deacon for six months to a year before becoming a priest, Mathes said.
Yet the bishop downplayed the significance of Wilson's sexual orientation.Mathes said he was not aware that a press release had been sent by the diocese with the headline: “Openly Gay, Partnered Deacon Ordained! First One in This Diocese Ever!”
“The Episcopal Diocese of San Diego calls and ordains gifted people,” Mathes said. “That's all this is.”
Read it all.
During a month in which thousands of same-sex couples were able to marry in California, Thomas Wilson was ordained to the transitional diaconate by San Diego Bishop James Mathes at St. Paul's Episcopal Cathedral. Wilson, who moved to San Diego eight years ago with his partner of 20 years, is expected to serve as a deacon for six months to a year before becoming a priest, Mathes said.
Yet the bishop downplayed the significance of Wilson's sexual orientation.Mathes said he was not aware that a press release had been sent by the diocese with the headline: “Openly Gay, Partnered Deacon Ordained! First One in This Diocese Ever!”
“The Episcopal Diocese of San Diego calls and ordains gifted people,” Mathes said. “That's all this is.”
Read it all.
Filed under: * Anglican - Episcopal • Episcopal Church (TEC) • TEC Bishops • TEC Conflicts • Sexuality Debate (in Anglican Communion) • Same-sex blessings
...the resolutions passed at our Episcopal Diocesan Convention concern appropriate clergy behavior. The Episcopal Diocese of Albany does not discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation in allowing men or women into the ordination process. But that does not mean, for example, that a man of heterosexual orientation would be a suitable candidate for ordination if his behavior included adultery. He is to be an example to the flock.
If he or she is single, he or she is called to be celibate by the church as an example to the faithful and to the youth. The diocese does not discriminate on the basis of orientation but only on the basis of actual behavior.
This accords with both the teaching and canon law of the whole Episcopal Church, not simply the Diocese of Albany.
Read the whole letter.
If he or she is single, he or she is called to be celibate by the church as an example to the faithful and to the youth. The diocese does not discriminate on the basis of orientation but only on the basis of actual behavior.
This accords with both the teaching and canon law of the whole Episcopal Church, not simply the Diocese of Albany.
Read the whole letter.
Filed under: * Anglican - Episcopal • Episcopal Church (TEC) • Sexuality Debate (in Anglican Communion) • Same-sex blessings
"What I and others on the conserving side of the Episcopal church represent is this clear vision that the church can never be anything other than under God's Word and can never be anything other than submitted to the Lordship of Jesus Christ," [Bishop Robert Duncan] says.
The last straw for many came with the ordination of openly gay bishop Gene Robinson in 2003. Since then, the splinter churches have sought refuge in the worldwide Anglican church. They're now under the authority of churches in Africa and South America. These Third World congregations are also theologically orthodox. And they're growing. Today more than 43 million Anglicans attend church in Africa alone -- that's more than half of all Anglicans worldwide.
"Isn't it staggering" says Duncan, "that God would lift up the church in Southeast Asia instead of the church in Britain -- or the church in Uganda instead of the church in America?"
The phenomenal growth and the split are rocking the Anglican church worldwide. This summer, the church's "Lambeth" conference, held only once every 10 years, will be boycotted by many Third World Anglicans. They'll attend a rival event, The Global Anglican Futures Conference or GAFCON in Jerusalem. Duncan says this represents the shift between two eras.
"Some thing is about a world that once was and one thing is about a world that is emerging," he said.
[Theologian Edith] Humphrey predicts, "I think the real business of the church is going to go on at GAFCON because there we have an opportunity to move on without impediments."
Read it all.
The last straw for many came with the ordination of openly gay bishop Gene Robinson in 2003. Since then, the splinter churches have sought refuge in the worldwide Anglican church. They're now under the authority of churches in Africa and South America. These Third World congregations are also theologically orthodox. And they're growing. Today more than 43 million Anglicans attend church in Africa alone -- that's more than half of all Anglicans worldwide.
"Isn't it staggering" says Duncan, "that God would lift up the church in Southeast Asia instead of the church in Britain -- or the church in Uganda instead of the church in America?"
The phenomenal growth and the split are rocking the Anglican church worldwide. This summer, the church's "Lambeth" conference, held only once every 10 years, will be boycotted by many Third World Anglicans. They'll attend a rival event, The Global Anglican Futures Conference or GAFCON in Jerusalem. Duncan says this represents the shift between two eras.
"Some thing is about a world that once was and one thing is about a world that is emerging," he said.
[Theologian Edith] Humphrey predicts, "I think the real business of the church is going to go on at GAFCON because there we have an opportunity to move on without impediments."
Read it all.
Filed under: * Anglican - Episcopal • Episcopal Church (TEC) • TEC Bishops • TEC Conflicts • TEC Conflicts: Pittsburgh • Global South Churches & Primates • Sexuality Debate (in Anglican Communion) • Same-sex blessings
Divisive as it all may sound, conference organizers are quick to reject the charge that they are trying to upstage the upcoming Lambeth Conference, the official meeting of Communion bishops held in England every 10 years under the auspices of the archbishop of Canterbury, now the Most Rev. and Right Hon. Rowan Williams.
But many attending the Jerusalem meeting, including the Most Rev. Peter Akinola of Nigeria, have said that they will not attend the Lambeth gathering in mid-July. And GAFCON attendees admit they have lost patience with Anglican and Episcopal church leaders, who conservatives say have refused to take clear or decisive stands on such issues as gay marriage and openly gay clergy.
"The traditional power brokers of the Communion are being challenged," says the Rt. Rev. Martyn Minns, missionary bishop of the Convocation of Anglicans in North America, a group of about 60 American congregations that have cut ties with the U. S. Episcopal Church and are now incorporated under Archbishop Akinola's Nigerian province. Minns charges that the Communion's leadership in the global north continues to ignore demographic and theological reality: that the church in the global south is not only the largest part of the Communion (with more than 40 million of the 70 million Anglicans and Episcopalians) but also the most committed to orthodox Christian teaching.
Read it all.
But many attending the Jerusalem meeting, including the Most Rev. Peter Akinola of Nigeria, have said that they will not attend the Lambeth gathering in mid-July. And GAFCON attendees admit they have lost patience with Anglican and Episcopal church leaders, who conservatives say have refused to take clear or decisive stands on such issues as gay marriage and openly gay clergy.
"The traditional power brokers of the Communion are being challenged," says the Rt. Rev. Martyn Minns, missionary bishop of the Convocation of Anglicans in North America, a group of about 60 American congregations that have cut ties with the U. S. Episcopal Church and are now incorporated under Archbishop Akinola's Nigerian province. Minns charges that the Communion's leadership in the global north continues to ignore demographic and theological reality: that the church in the global south is not only the largest part of the Communion (with more than 40 million of the 70 million Anglicans and Episcopalians) but also the most committed to orthodox Christian teaching.
Read it all.
Filed under: * Anglican - Episcopal • Global South Churches & Primates • Sexuality Debate (in Anglican Communion) • Same-sex blessings • * International News & Commentary • Middle East
In an attempt to try to lower the rhetoric, Archbishop Williams has left a few names off the list of invitees, notably Bishop Robinson (who plans to go anyway to speak to the media) and three or four conservative bishops who had been visiting other dioceses without local permission. Also, the bishops of Uganda and Rwanda disclosed that they will boycott the sessions to protest what they see as the Anglican Church’s liberal “drift.”
Here in Rhode Island, Bishop [Geralyn] Wolf notes that she has long maintained a policy of not allowing the blessing of any same-sex relationships to take place on any Episcopal Church property. She also supports continuing the moratorium on ordaining any new homosexual bishops, arguing that the measures are important to the unity of the Anglican Communion.
Frankly, she says, she doesn’t know what will emerge from next month’s meeting. She says she is very keen on holding the Anglican Communion together.
She said she suspects that, even though no votes are to be officially taken, some sort of decision will come “through the back door.”
Read it all.
Here in Rhode Island, Bishop [Geralyn] Wolf notes that she has long maintained a policy of not allowing the blessing of any same-sex relationships to take place on any Episcopal Church property. She also supports continuing the moratorium on ordaining any new homosexual bishops, arguing that the measures are important to the unity of the Anglican Communion.
Frankly, she says, she doesn’t know what will emerge from next month’s meeting. She says she is very keen on holding the Anglican Communion together.
She said she suspects that, even though no votes are to be officially taken, some sort of decision will come “through the back door.”
Read it all.
Filed under: * Anglican - Episcopal • Abp of Canterbury Rowan Williams • Episcopal Church (TEC) • TEC Bishops • TEC Conflicts • Lambeth 2008 • Sexuality Debate (in Anglican Communion) • Same-sex blessings
But in churches that have not resolved their stance on homosexuality and same-sex marriage, the court decision is likely to provoke even more confusion. In the Episcopal Church, bishops in different parts of the state have issued different directives to their clergy members.
Bishop J. Jon Bruno of Los Angeles has authorized clergy members to perform same-sex marriages, said the Rev. Susan Russell, associate pastor at All Saints Church, and president of Integrity, a gay and lesbian advocacy group in the Episcopal Church.
Bishop Marc Handley Andrus of the Episcopal Diocese of California, which covers the San Francisco Bay Area, is urging all couples, heterosexual and homosexual, to first be married in a secular service and then come to the church for a blessing. Since the Episcopal Church does not allow rites for same-sex marriages, he said, this is a way to treat all couples equally.
“Sometimes the church is not quite caught up with the civil society, and this is one of those times,” Bishop Andrus said.
Read it all.
Bishop J. Jon Bruno of Los Angeles has authorized clergy members to perform same-sex marriages, said the Rev. Susan Russell, associate pastor at All Saints Church, and president of Integrity, a gay and lesbian advocacy group in the Episcopal Church.
Bishop Marc Handley Andrus of the Episcopal Diocese of California, which covers the San Francisco Bay Area, is urging all couples, heterosexual and homosexual, to first be married in a secular service and then come to the church for a blessing. Since the Episcopal Church does not allow rites for same-sex marriages, he said, this is a way to treat all couples equally.
“Sometimes the church is not quite caught up with the civil society, and this is one of those times,” Bishop Andrus said.
Read it all.
Filed under: * Anglican - Episcopal • Episcopal Church (TEC) • TEC Parishes • Sexuality Debate (in Anglican Communion) • Same-sex blessings • * Culture-Watch • Law & Legal Issues • Marriage & Family • Sexuality • Civil Unions & Partnerships
Read it all.
Filed under: * Anglican - Episcopal • Anglican Provinces • Church of England (CoE) • Sexuality Debate (in Anglican Communion) • Same-sex blessings
From here:
"We have heard the reports of the recent service in St Bartholomew the Great with very great concern. We cannot comment on the specific circumstances because they are the subject of an investigation launched by the Bishop of London.
On the general issue, however, the various reference points for the Church of England's approach to human sexuality (1987 Synod motion, 1991 Bishops' Statement- Issues in Human Sexuality- , Lambeth motion 1:10, House of Bishops' 2005 statement on civil partnerships) are well known and remain current.
Those clergy who disagree with the Church's teaching are at liberty to seek to persuade others within the Church of the reasons why they believe, in the light of Scripture, tradition and reason that it should be changed. But they are not at liberty simply to disregard it."
"We have heard the reports of the recent service in St Bartholomew the Great with very great concern. We cannot comment on the specific circumstances because they are the subject of an investigation launched by the Bishop of London.
On the general issue, however, the various reference points for the Church of England's approach to human sexuality (1987 Synod motion, 1991 Bishops' Statement- Issues in Human Sexuality- , Lambeth motion 1:10, House of Bishops' 2005 statement on civil partnerships) are well known and remain current.
Those clergy who disagree with the Church's teaching are at liberty to seek to persuade others within the Church of the reasons why they believe, in the light of Scripture, tradition and reason that it should be changed. But they are not at liberty simply to disregard it."
Filed under: * Anglican - Episcopal • Anglican Provinces • Church of England (CoE) • Sexuality Debate (in Anglican Communion) • Same-sex blessings
The Church of England is facing a turbulent General Synod after two gay priests were married at the weekend. The issue of the ordination of women bishops will also cause dispute. Paul Eddy, a lay member of the General Synod explains the disputes.
The audio link is here and the segment is 2 hours and 42 minutes in.
The audio link is here and the segment is 2 hours and 42 minutes in.
Filed under: * Anglican - Episcopal • Anglican Provinces • Church of England (CoE) • CoE Bishops • Sexuality Debate (in Anglican Communion) • Same-sex blessings • * Christian Life / Church Life • Liturgy, Music, Worship • Parish Ministry • * Culture-Watch • Marriage & Family • Sexuality • Civil Unions & Partnerships
The Church of England has been plunged into fresh turmoil by the “marriage” of two gay clergymen and threats of an exodus of priests opposed to the consecration of women bishops.
The Times has learnt that up to 500 Anglo-Catholic priests are ready to resign after failing to secure the concessions that they had sought over women bishops.
Church of England bishops have rejected plans for legal safeguards for those who had hoped for the introduction of extra-geographical dioceses as havens for traditionalists. Instead, plans to consecrate women bishops will be put to a vote at the General Synod in York next month, with the safeguards for opponents enshrined in a voluntary code.
Read it all.
The Times has learnt that up to 500 Anglo-Catholic priests are ready to resign after failing to secure the concessions that they had sought over women bishops.
Church of England bishops have rejected plans for legal safeguards for those who had hoped for the introduction of extra-geographical dioceses as havens for traditionalists. Instead, plans to consecrate women bishops will be put to a vote at the General Synod in York next month, with the safeguards for opponents enshrined in a voluntary code.
Read it all.
Filed under: * Anglican - Episcopal • Anglican Provinces • Church of England (CoE) • CoE Bishops • Sexuality Debate (in Anglican Communion) • Same-sex blessings • * Christian Life / Church Life • Liturgy, Music, Worship • Parish Ministry • * Culture-Watch • Marriage & Family • Sexuality • Civil Unions & Partnerships
The New Zealand priest whose gay wedding ceremony has fuelled a row that threatens to split the Anglican Church in Britain has surrendered his own licence to officiate.
The Reverend David Lord – a former Hamilton emergency room doctor ordained as a deacon in December 2005 – angered conservative Christians by exchanging rings and vows with his partner in a church ceremony for his civil partnership in London last month.
But Dr Lord, who tied the knot with English clergyman Peter Cowell, a hospital chaplain, "felt it appropriate to lay down his clergy licence", according to a statement jointly released with the Bishop of Waikato, Rt Rev David Moxon.
His decision will bar him from officiating as a priest.
Read the whole article.
The Reverend David Lord – a former Hamilton emergency room doctor ordained as a deacon in December 2005 – angered conservative Christians by exchanging rings and vows with his partner in a church ceremony for his civil partnership in London last month.
But Dr Lord, who tied the knot with English clergyman Peter Cowell, a hospital chaplain, "felt it appropriate to lay down his clergy licence", according to a statement jointly released with the Bishop of Waikato, Rt Rev David Moxon.
His decision will bar him from officiating as a priest.
Read the whole article.
Filed under: * Anglican - Episcopal • Anglican Provinces • Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia • Church of England (CoE) • Sexuality Debate (in Anglican Communion) • Same-sex blessings • * Christian Life / Church Life • Liturgy, Music, Worship • Parish Ministry • * Culture-Watch • Marriage & Family • Sexuality • Civil Unions & Partnerships
A vicar accused of conducting a gay 'wedding' at his historic church is a controversial figure who has previously married his former mistress to another man, it has emerged.
Dr Martin Dudley performed a ceremony for two homosexual priests at the church where he is the rector, St Bartholomew the Great in the heart of the City of London.
The 12th century church, which once featured in the romantic comedy Four Weddings and a Funeral, was the setting for a traditional liturgy from the Book of Common Prayer, with confetti and exchange of rings.
But it is not the first time Dr Dudley, 54, a one-time contender for the position of Mayor of London, has performed a controversial ceremony.
Read it all.
Dr Martin Dudley performed a ceremony for two homosexual priests at the church where he is the rector, St Bartholomew the Great in the heart of the City of London.
The 12th century church, which once featured in the romantic comedy Four Weddings and a Funeral, was the setting for a traditional liturgy from the Book of Common Prayer, with confetti and exchange of rings.
But it is not the first time Dr Dudley, 54, a one-time contender for the position of Mayor of London, has performed a controversial ceremony.
Read it all.
Filed under: * Anglican - Episcopal • Sexuality Debate (in Anglican Communion) • Same-sex blessings • * Christian Life / Church Life • Liturgy, Music, Worship • Parish Ministry • * Culture-Watch • Marriage & Family • Sexuality • Civil Unions & Partnerships
The first gay "marriage" to be held in an Anglican church has reignited controversy over homosexual clergy and same sex civil partnerships.
The Reverend Peter Cowell and the Rev Dr David Lord exchanged vows at St Bartholomew the Great in the City of London last month.
Church of England guidelines say gay clergy can enter a civil partnership if they provide reassurance that they will abstain from sex.
Couples who ask a priest to bless their union must be dealt with "pastorally and sensitively" on an individual basis.
This is the first time a full ceremony has been held for a same sex couple.
Reverend Martin Dudley, who led the ceremony, said he disagrees with the official guidance.
He added: "I was asked by a friend and colleague to bless their civil partnership. I said 'of course I will'.
Read it all.
The Reverend Peter Cowell and the Rev Dr David Lord exchanged vows at St Bartholomew the Great in the City of London last month.
Church of England guidelines say gay clergy can enter a civil partnership if they provide reassurance that they will abstain from sex.
Couples who ask a priest to bless their union must be dealt with "pastorally and sensitively" on an individual basis.
This is the first time a full ceremony has been held for a same sex couple.
Reverend Martin Dudley, who led the ceremony, said he disagrees with the official guidance.
He added: "I was asked by a friend and colleague to bless their civil partnership. I said 'of course I will'.
Read it all.
Filed under: * Anglican - Episcopal • Anglican Provinces • Church of England (CoE) • Sexuality Debate (in Anglican Communion) • Same-sex blessings • * Christian Life / Church Life • Liturgy, Music, Worship • Parish Ministry • * Culture-Watch • Marriage & Family • Sexuality • Civil Unions & Partnerships
Read it all.
Filed under: * Anglican - Episcopal • Anglican Provinces • Scottish Episcopal Church • Episcopal Church (TEC) • TEC Conflicts • Lambeth 2008 • Sexuality Debate (in Anglican Communion) • Same-sex blessings
The bishop of London said Sunday he would order an investigation into whether two gay priests exchanged rings and vows in a church ceremony, violating Anglican guidelines.
The priests walked down the aisle in a May 31 service at one of London's oldest churches marked by a fanfare of trumpets and capped by a shower of confetti, Britain's Sunday Telegraph reported.
The bishop, the Right Rev. Richard Chartres, said such services are not authorized in the Church of England. He said he would ask the archdeacon of London to investigate.
A call placed with the archdeacon was not immediately returned.
Britain officially recognizes civil partnerships but the Church of England's guidelines say clergy should not bless such unions.
Read it all.
The priests walked down the aisle in a May 31 service at one of London's oldest churches marked by a fanfare of trumpets and capped by a shower of confetti, Britain's Sunday Telegraph reported.
The bishop, the Right Rev. Richard Chartres, said such services are not authorized in the Church of England. He said he would ask the archdeacon of London to investigate.
A call placed with the archdeacon was not immediately returned.
Britain officially recognizes civil partnerships but the Church of England's guidelines say clergy should not bless such unions.
Read it all.
Filed under: * Anglican - Episcopal • Anglican Provinces • Church of England (CoE) • CoE Bishops • Sexuality Debate (in Anglican Communion) • Same-sex blessings • * Culture-Watch • Marriage & Family • Sexuality • Civil Unions & Partnerships
Read it carefully and read it all.
Filed under: * Anglican - Episcopal • Anglican Provinces • Church of England (CoE) • Sexuality Debate (in Anglican Communion) • Same-sex blessings • * Christian Life / Church Life • Liturgy, Music, Worship
Tory MP Sir Patrick Cormack, a prominent Anglican, said: ‘This is extraordinary. I am surprised the rector of such an important church should act in apparent defiance of his bishop.’
Alison Ruoff, a member of the Church of England’s General Synod, said: ‘It is incredibly sad that people are prepared to sin against God and the Church.’
Liberal clergy have flouted the rules by including prayers for same-sex couples during ordinary services, but full-length ceremonies are unprecedented.
Although not recognised in law or authorised by the Church, the service will be seen by many to be a spiritually valid blessing.
It will stoke the fury of conservatives who are threatening to split the worldwide Church if liberals are not brought to heel.
Mr Dudley said he was unrepentant. He said he had written to Bishop Chartres 18 months ago for guidance on blessings for same-sex couples in civil partnerships, but was told the Church’s House of Bishops had not approved them.
‘Bishop Chartres asked me not to offer them and I do not offer them,’ he said.
‘But if close friends ask me to bless them, I do not say no.
‘It would be an act of hypocrisy to do anything else.
Read it all.
Alison Ruoff, a member of the Church of England’s General Synod, said: ‘It is incredibly sad that people are prepared to sin against God and the Church.’
Liberal clergy have flouted the rules by including prayers for same-sex couples during ordinary services, but full-length ceremonies are unprecedented.
Although not recognised in law or authorised by the Church, the service will be seen by many to be a spiritually valid blessing.
It will stoke the fury of conservatives who are threatening to split the worldwide Church if liberals are not brought to heel.
Mr Dudley said he was unrepentant. He said he had written to Bishop Chartres 18 months ago for guidance on blessings for same-sex couples in civil partnerships, but was told the Church’s House of Bishops had not approved them.
‘Bishop Chartres asked me not to offer them and I do not offer them,’ he said.
‘But if close friends ask me to bless them, I do not say no.
‘It would be an act of hypocrisy to do anything else.
Read it all.
Filed under: * Anglican - Episcopal • Anglican Provinces • Church of England (CoE) • Sexuality Debate (in Anglican Communion) • Same-sex blessings • * Culture-Watch • Marriage & Family • Sexuality • Civil Unions & Partnerships
Traditionalists in the Anglican Church have been angered after two gay clergymen exchanged vows in a version of a marriage ceremony.
The service, at St Bartholomew the Great Church in the City of London last month, used formal rites.
The Reverend Peter Cowell and the Reverend Dr David Lord were already civil partners.
Critics say the ceremony flouted guidelines, but the vicar who conducted it said church rules were not broken.
The couple are said to have exchanged vows and rings in front of hundreds of guests in the event thought to be the first of its kind in the Anglican Church.
Read it all.
The service, at St Bartholomew the Great Church in the City of London last month, used formal rites.
The Reverend Peter Cowell and the Reverend Dr David Lord were already civil partners.
Critics say the ceremony flouted guidelines, but the vicar who conducted it said church rules were not broken.
The couple are said to have exchanged vows and rings in front of hundreds of guests in the event thought to be the first of its kind in the Anglican Church.
Read it all.
Filed under: * Anglican - Episcopal • Anglican Provinces • Church of England (CoE) • Sexuality Debate (in Anglican Communion) • Same-sex blessings • * Christian Life / Church Life • Liturgy, Music, Worship
Now, while the activists will emphasize that we should send the toasters and gift cards, the point remains that this was a direct political action. It's goal is political.
It was timed to coincide just as GAFCON is convening and a month out before Lambeth. Last weekend we had Gene Robinson's wedding in the Episcopal Church. Looks like the brethren in England did not want to let him hog all the limelight.
But what it means is that the COE activists have borrowed the infamous TEC activists' playbook of recent years. When there is organized opposition to their marketed strategy of prophetic inclusion, then it's time for drama. Now that drama is crossing the Atlantic from Minneapolis to London on the eve of the Lambeth Conference.
We remember that Bishop John Spong had a meltdown in a letter to the Archbishop of Canterbury where he accused Rowan Williams of ecclesiastical treason, that Rowan Williams was picked because he endorsed by word and action the inclusion of men marrying men and women marrying women. When Dr. Williams made several key decisions that undermined those activist goals, the street activists in the Episcopal Church were outraged.
They were emboldened when Rowan Williams was appointed the new Archbishop of Canterbury. They threw all caution to the wind and flew forward at an accelerated pace, confident that Canterbury would not blink but look the other way. The Episcopal activists were very worried that their momentum had peaked at Denver's General Convention and if they did not move fast, they be set back decades. Their base of support was aging - who could guarantee that they would have sufficient numbers in another 20 years to achieve their political goals? It did not look good....
Read it all.
It was timed to coincide just as GAFCON is convening and a month out before Lambeth. Last weekend we had Gene Robinson's wedding in the Episcopal Church. Looks like the brethren in England did not want to let him hog all the limelight.
But what it means is that the COE activists have borrowed the infamous TEC activists' playbook of recent years. When there is organized opposition to their marketed strategy of prophetic inclusion, then it's time for drama. Now that drama is crossing the Atlantic from Minneapolis to London on the eve of the Lambeth Conference.
We remember that Bishop John Spong had a meltdown in a letter to the Archbishop of Canterbury where he accused Rowan Williams of ecclesiastical treason, that Rowan Williams was picked because he endorsed by word and action the inclusion of men marrying men and women marrying women. When Dr. Williams made several key decisions that undermined those activist goals, the street activists in the Episcopal Church were outraged.
They were emboldened when Rowan Williams was appointed the new Archbishop of Canterbury. They threw all caution to the wind and flew forward at an accelerated pace, confident that Canterbury would not blink but look the other way. The Episcopal activists were very worried that their momentum had peaked at Denver's General Convention and if they did not move fast, they be set back decades. Their base of support was aging - who could guarantee that they would have sufficient numbers in another 20 years to achieve their political goals? It did not look good....
Read it all.
Filed under: * Anglican - Episcopal • Episcopal Church (TEC) • TEC Conflicts • Sexuality Debate (in Anglican Communion) • Same-sex blessings
The marriage calls into question the authority of the Archbishop of Canterbury – one of four fundamental points of unity for the worldwide communion – and tears at the very heart of Anglicanism.
Only three years ago, Dr Williams flew to meet the African archbishops to reassure them that the Church's teaching on sexuality would not be compromised by the introduction of the Civil Partnerships Act. The Church issued guidelines allowing clergy to register their relationships on the condition that they assured their bishop that they would abstain from sex. It said homosexual couples should not be given formal services to celebrate their relationship.
The archbishop stressed that priests who broke these rules would be disciplined. However, a number of clergy have since performed so called "blessing services" for homosexual couples. These are significantly different from wedding services: they involve no wedding rite; there is no exchange of vows, no bridesmaids or pageboys. Most are carried out quietly. Despite being controversial, not one has resulted in disciplinary proceedings.
The fact that one vicar has actually conducted a proper wedding service, using such traditional liturgy and furthermore, between two priests, makes the issue impossible to ignore.
Read it all and there is yet another article to read here.
Only three years ago, Dr Williams flew to meet the African archbishops to reassure them that the Church's teaching on sexuality would not be compromised by the introduction of the Civil Partnerships Act. The Church issued guidelines allowing clergy to register their relationships on the condition that they assured their bishop that they would abstain from sex. It said homosexual couples should not be given formal services to celebrate their relationship.
The archbishop stressed that priests who broke these rules would be disciplined. However, a number of clergy have since performed so called "blessing services" for homosexual couples. These are significantly different from wedding services: they involve no wedding rite; there is no exchange of vows, no bridesmaids or pageboys. Most are carried out quietly. Despite being controversial, not one has resulted in disciplinary proceedings.
The fact that one vicar has actually conducted a proper wedding service, using such traditional liturgy and furthermore, between two priests, makes the issue impossible to ignore.
Read it all and there is yet another article to read here.
Filed under: * Anglican - Episcopal • Abp of Canterbury Rowan Williams • Anglican Provinces • Church of England (CoE) • Sexuality Debate (in Anglican Communion) • Same-sex blessings • * Culture-Watch • Marriage & Family • Sexuality • Civil Unions & Partnerships
Although some liberal clergy have carried out "blessing ceremonies" for homosexual couples in the past, this is the first time a vicar has performed a "wedding ceremony", using a traditional marriage liturgy, with readings, hymns and a Eucharist.
Both the conservative and liberal wings of the Anglican communion expressed shock last night.
The Most Rev Henry Orombi, the Archbishop of Uganda, said that the ceremony was "blasphemous." He called on Dr Rowan Williams, the Archbishop of Canterbury, to take decisive action if the Anglican Church were not to "disintegrate". Archbishop Orombi added: "What really shocks me is that this is happening in the Church of England that first brought the Gospel to us.
"The leadership tried to deny that this would happen, but now the truth is out. Our respect for the Church of England will erode unless we see a return to traditional teaching."
The Rt Rev Michael Scott-Joynt, the Bishop of Winchester – a powerful conservative figure – said that the service represented a wedding "in all but name". He said: "Strictly speaking it is not a marriage, but the language is clearly modelled on the marriage service and the occasion is modelled on the marriage service. This clearly flouts Church guidelines and will exacerbate divisions within the Anglican Communion."
The bishop said that it was up to the Rt Rev Richard Chartres, the Bishop of London, to act, adding that it would become a high-profile test case of Church authority.
Read it all.
Update: Episcopal Cafe helpfully provides the bulletin from the service here.
Both the conservative and liberal wings of the Anglican communion expressed shock last night.
The Most Rev Henry Orombi, the Archbishop of Uganda, said that the ceremony was "blasphemous." He called on Dr Rowan Williams, the Archbishop of Canterbury, to take decisive action if the Anglican Church were not to "disintegrate". Archbishop Orombi added: "What really shocks me is that this is happening in the Church of England that first brought the Gospel to us.
"The leadership tried to deny that this would happen, but now the truth is out. Our respect for the Church of England will erode unless we see a return to traditional teaching."
The Rt Rev Michael Scott-Joynt, the Bishop of Winchester – a powerful conservative figure – said that the service represented a wedding "in all but name". He said: "Strictly speaking it is not a marriage, but the language is clearly modelled on the marriage service and the occasion is modelled on the marriage service. This clearly flouts Church guidelines and will exacerbate divisions within the Anglican Communion."
The bishop said that it was up to the Rt Rev Richard Chartres, the Bishop of London, to act, adding that it would become a high-profile test case of Church authority.
Read it all.
Update: Episcopal Cafe helpfully provides the bulletin from the service here.
Filed under: * Anglican - Episcopal • Anglican Provinces • Church of England (CoE) • Sexuality Debate (in Anglican Communion) • Same-sex blessings • * Culture-Watch • Marriage & Family • Sexuality • Civil Unions & Partnerships
When I interviewed Missionary Bishop Martyn Minns of the Convocation of Anglicans of North America (CANA) this week, he was already in Jerusalem a week before the Global Anglican Future Conference (GAFCon) which will gather 300 conservative bishops representing 35 million Anglicans, more than half of those in the world.
Most are from the "Global South," such as Africa, Asia, South America, Australia. However, many are "missionaries" from those countries to the U.S., such as Minns, who has attracted 55 conservative congregations, most of which have fled the increasingly liberal Episcopal Church. Another 250 have left for such groups as the Anglican Mission in America.
The gathering of GAFCon bishops is almost revolutionary, because only weeks later, the Archbishop of Canterbury will preside over Lambeth, a conference for the world's Anglican bishops. The Global South bishops decided not to attend Lambeth, but to hold their own gathering instead.
Does this mean there will be split in the Anglican Communion?
Minns thought not: "We are in a process of realignment. When children grow up, you have to re-do your relationship, and begin to relate as equals. They are no longer kids and want to share in the leadership of the family. Institutional change is difficult."
Read it all.
Most are from the "Global South," such as Africa, Asia, South America, Australia. However, many are "missionaries" from those countries to the U.S., such as Minns, who has attracted 55 conservative congregations, most of which have fled the increasingly liberal Episcopal Church. Another 250 have left for such groups as the Anglican Mission in America.
The gathering of GAFCon bishops is almost revolutionary, because only weeks later, the Archbishop of Canterbury will preside over Lambeth, a conference for the world's Anglican bishops. The Global South bishops decided not to attend Lambeth, but to hold their own gathering instead.
Does this mean there will be split in the Anglican Communion?
Minns thought not: "We are in a process of realignment. When children grow up, you have to re-do your relationship, and begin to relate as equals. They are no longer kids and want to share in the leadership of the family. Institutional change is difficult."
Read it all.
Filed under: * Anglican - Episcopal • CANA • Global South Churches & Primates • Lambeth 2008 • Sexuality Debate (in Anglican Communion) • Same-sex blessings
Listen to it all (about 17 3/4 minutes).
Filed under: * Anglican - Episcopal • Episcopal Church (TEC) • TEC Conflicts • Lambeth 2008 • Sexuality Debate (in Anglican Communion) • Same-sex blessings
Pilgrims to the mount of olives late this month may be startled to see a couple of hundred Anglican divines kitted out in purple toiling up the slope. Most of the faces will be black. Back home these men are princes of the church; their followers run into tens of millions. But somewhere among the bishops, dressed incongruously in civvies, will be the humble, smiling face of Peter Jensen, the Archbishop of Sydney.
What's afoot in Jerusalem is the destruction of the Anglican Communion, the worldwide church loosely aligned to the Archbishop of Canterbury. It spread with the empire and has so far survived, despite all its contradictions, for about 450 years, guided by the tart good sense of its founding monarch, Elizabeth I: "There is only one Jesus Christ and all the rest is a dispute over trifles."
Read it all.
What's afoot in Jerusalem is the destruction of the Anglican Communion, the worldwide church loosely aligned to the Archbishop of Canterbury. It spread with the empire and has so far survived, despite all its contradictions, for about 450 years, guided by the tart good sense of its founding monarch, Elizabeth I: "There is only one Jesus Christ and all the rest is a dispute over trifles."
Read it all.
Filed under: * Anglican - Episcopal • Anglican Provinces • Anglican Church of Australia • Global South Churches & Primates • Sexuality Debate (in Anglican Communion) • Same-sex blessings
The synod of the diocese of the Arctic, meeting in Iqaluit, Nunavut from May 27 to June 3, passed a motion criticizing decisions by four dioceses of the Anglican Church of Canada that support blessing same-sex unions.
“Synod expressed great disappointment as some diocesan synods have decided to move forward with approving the blessing of same-sex civil marriages, after General Synod 2007 (made) it clear that this would not be allowed until the Lambeth Conference had time to discuss the issues this summer,” said a press release issued by the diocese of the Arctic synod. “This then indicates that Canadians are not serious about unity elements that hold the church together.”
It also passed a motion expressing “strong support … for those in the Southern cone dioceses, recognizing them as members of the Anglican Communion.”
Read it all.
“Synod expressed great disappointment as some diocesan synods have decided to move forward with approving the blessing of same-sex civil marriages, after General Synod 2007 (made) it clear that this would not be allowed until the Lambeth Conference had time to discuss the issues this summer,” said a press release issued by the diocese of the Arctic synod. “This then indicates that Canadians are not serious about unity elements that hold the church together.”
It also passed a motion expressing “strong support … for those in the Southern cone dioceses, recognizing them as members of the Anglican Communion.”
Read it all.
Filed under: * Anglican - Episcopal • Anglican Provinces • Anglican Church of Canada • Sexuality Debate (in Anglican Communion) • Same-sex blessings
The Windsor Report invited the Episcopal Church in the US to explain "from within the sources of authority that we as Anglicans have received in scripture, the apostolic tradition and reasoned reflection, how a person living in a same gender union may be considered eligible to lead the flock of Christ" (§135). Among many other things, the Episcopal Church's careful response lists a number of issues-stewardship of creation, usury, slavery, just war, abortion, capital punishment, contraception, marriage and divorce, evolution, labor laws, and property rights among them-with respect to which "the Church's appropriation of Scripture has been complex and in many cases ... at odds with the most obvious sense of the biblical text."
Like "the threat of schism over the role of women in [ordained leadership of] the Churc
Like "the threat of schism over the role of women in [ordained leadership of] the Churc