Of interest to my fellow Episcopalians
As someone who leans towards the Anglican Communion's slant, I feel that finally something positive may be coming out of the whole rift in the church:
Writing Group Presents House of Bishops With Draft
The House of Bishops went into open session late Monday morning for the first time during its Sept. 20-25 meeting in New Orleans. The open session began with the draft of a lengthy mind-of-the-house statement which attempted to incorporate many of the concerns raised in the many resolutions submitted for consideration.
Bishop Wayne Wright of Delaware, chair of the writing group, spoke first. He was followed by six other bishops who read portions of the statement in the following order: Thomas Breidenthal, Southern Ohio; Nathan Baxter, Central Pennsylvania; Joe Burnett, Nebraska; Thomas Ely, Vermont; Victor Scantlebury, suffragan, Chicago, and Dena Harrison, suffragan, Texas. It is unknown whether the seven comprise the entire writing group.
Aside from a brief positive reference to a pastoral scheme based around delegated pastoral episcopal oversight (DEPO), the statement offered few new proposals with respect to the three requests made of The Episcopal Church by the primates in their communique last February. The statement noted that the Windsor Report had commended DEPO and suggested that this could form the basis for a way acceptable to the bishops for ministering to minority groups that are unable to accept the current direction of The Episcopal Church on issues of human sexuality. The statement also noted that the church’s position on same-sex blessings has not been well received by a significant number of Anglicans worldwide, but no details on how the situation might be improved. It was largely silent on the possible consecration of additional partnered homosexual persons as bishops.
Although I reject the idea that the conservative side is a "minority" position, I think that DEPO may be the best we can get in terms of peace for both sides. Both sides have acted horribly towards each other even though both have said they respect the dignity of homosexuals, and it's nice to think that the name calling and pettiness might be put aside to bring us back into fellowship.
Writing Group Presents House of Bishops With Draft
The House of Bishops went into open session late Monday morning for the first time during its Sept. 20-25 meeting in New Orleans. The open session began with the draft of a lengthy mind-of-the-house statement which attempted to incorporate many of the concerns raised in the many resolutions submitted for consideration.
Bishop Wayne Wright of Delaware, chair of the writing group, spoke first. He was followed by six other bishops who read portions of the statement in the following order: Thomas Breidenthal, Southern Ohio; Nathan Baxter, Central Pennsylvania; Joe Burnett, Nebraska; Thomas Ely, Vermont; Victor Scantlebury, suffragan, Chicago, and Dena Harrison, suffragan, Texas. It is unknown whether the seven comprise the entire writing group.
Aside from a brief positive reference to a pastoral scheme based around delegated pastoral episcopal oversight (DEPO), the statement offered few new proposals with respect to the three requests made of The Episcopal Church by the primates in their communique last February. The statement noted that the Windsor Report had commended DEPO and suggested that this could form the basis for a way acceptable to the bishops for ministering to minority groups that are unable to accept the current direction of The Episcopal Church on issues of human sexuality. The statement also noted that the church’s position on same-sex blessings has not been well received by a significant number of Anglicans worldwide, but no details on how the situation might be improved. It was largely silent on the possible consecration of additional partnered homosexual persons as bishops.
Although I reject the idea that the conservative side is a "minority" position, I think that DEPO may be the best we can get in terms of peace for both sides. Both sides have acted horribly towards each other even though both have said they respect the dignity of homosexuals, and it's nice to think that the name calling and pettiness might be put aside to bring us back into fellowship.