http://www.epicenter.org/edot/Bishops_Column1.asp?SnID=1843987088

Bishop of Texas

From Atlanta - just received it.  Billy
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ!

Having just returned from a week in New Orleans for the fall meeting of the House of Bishops, I would like to offer a few brief reflections.  You will find links to the post-meeting comuniqué and to another statement from the House of Bishops that responds to the Primates of the Anglican Communion. I urge you to read both of them.

At our meeting we were blessed to have with us the Archbishop of Canterbury and the General Secretary of the Anglican Communion, together with members of the Joint Standing Committee of the Anglican Consultative Council and the Primates of the Anglican Communion. The Joint Standing Commitee is composed of laypersons, priests, bishops and primates from around the world.  They came both to listen and to speak. The mutuality that implies was honored by all. The speaking and listening was not always easy, but it was a gift to be able to communicate directly with one another and not through the media, the Internet, or by way of intermediaries.  The Archbishop was quite clear that there is no ultimatum on the table. The members of the Joint Standing Committee seemed hopeful that there is a way forward for the whole of the Anglican Communion joined together in mission and ministry in the name of Jesus for the sake of the world.

I believe the two statements from the House of Bishops speak for themselves and do not require extensive commentary.  The statement in response to the Primates of the Anglican Communion was crafted after several days of prayer, conversation, honest speaking and careful listening. The bishops were nearly unanimous in their support of this statement. I do not believe that any bishop of this church is happy with every detail, but we found a place where the vast majority of us can live together. From my perspective, the statement honors the immediate concerns of the Primates of the Anglican Communion while being faithful to the fullness of the life of our church. I wondered before the meeting began if we could find such a place without losing our soul as a good and faithful church centered in the Gospel of Jesus. I believe that, with the prayerful support of our people and the aid of the Holy Spirit, we found just such a place.

A new consensus has emerged in the House of Bishops for the sake of the church’s mission. It is not a consensus built upon agreeing on all matters (that’s never been an Anglican charism!), but a willingness to give and take for the sake of the church’s larger mission.  I believe that every bishop present gave up something - and not without considerable pain and agony at points - but we were able to arrive at a place where most of us can live together faithfully if not altogether comfortably. The depth of the conversations, arising as they did out of much prayer and contemplation, will sustain and enrich my own ministry for some time to come. 

In the days to come, there will continue to be dire predictions from some corners about the state of The Episcopal Church and our life as a part of The Anglican Communion.  Most of that will come from folks who have predetermined the outcome they desire. My counsel is that we delight in the ministries we share in the name of Jesus, be about the work of the church’s mission to a world in need, and rejoice in all that God has given to us in Jesus Christ our Lord!

Faithfully, in Christ,

The Right Reverend J. Neil Alexander

Why?  Who cares?  What does it matter?  It was a faithless and worthless statement.  It did NOT do any one of the things the HOB was called upon to do.  Why waste anymore time with it or the spin trying to make it what it isn’t?  Let’s move on!

Oops, I just sent you the URL for Ohio, shoulda read the post first. Sorry.

Jeffrey A. Roberts

http://www.ang-md.org/    Bp Rabb, in charge while the diocese seeks a new diocesan, said this about the HoB mtg.  If you cd guess what he meant, w/o being aware ahead of time of the Big Issue(s), you’d be clairvoyant:

On the matter of the concerns before us from the Primates and the rest of the Anglican Communion, I want to offer a few reflections. The Archbishop of Canterbury, the Most Rev. Rowan Williams, was with us to both hear from us and to share with us. In addition were members of the Joint Standing Committee of the Anglican Consultative Council and the Primates. They listened to us, were fully a part of our work, and spoke to us. I believe that we came away with a better understanding of one another. Of greatest importance, is that we understand what it means to be in communion, and on an even deeper level, what it means to be the Church. We are in challenging times, and also times of great opportunity, if we can truly listen to one another and walk together. My analogy is that when people are trying to walk and talk it is often the case that one is walking ahead of the other which makes it impossible for the other to hear or be heard. My hope and my prayer is that this meeting will make it possible for us to walk together and to truly listen, one to the other. Some of you may feel that we gave up too much; others may feel that we did not go far enough. I understand these feelings. It is critical that you know I have never seen the House of Bishops work more respectfully or more prayerfully. All bishops were engaged, across the theological spectrum.

#5

You mean they forgot to issue you a “Secret Decoder Ring"tm?

This is neither but I do think if you read it is has important comments from Father James Massa, executive director of the U.S. bishops’ Secretariat for Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs concerning the HOB statement.

Episcopal bishops vow not to bless same-sex unions; interfaith questions remain
By Nancy Frazier O’Brien
9/28/2007

http://www.catholic.org/national/national_story.php?id=25529

“The emergence of two distinct Anglican networks (would create) an ecumenical problem for the Catholic Church, as for other ecumenical partners: With whom do we have dialogue?”.....

“Without any final arbiter in these struggles, including Scripture or a magisterium, the unraveling of the bonds of communion seems almost inevitable,” he added. “And that is tragic from the standpoint of Catholic ecumenical partners who love and care about our Anglican sisters and brothers.”

Besides the significance of the timing of the response I don’t think he would ask this question if the response was automatically TEC and he surely suggests it will not be both.