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Reflections on The 76th General Convention (Part I of II)
By Bishop William Love
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
It is wonderful to be home. The Albany Deputation and I returned home late Saturday night, July 18th, after having spent 13 days (including travel time) in Anaheim, CA, attending the 76th General Convention of The Episcopal Church. I am very thankful for and appreciative of each member of our Deputation, all of whom did an outstanding job representing not only the Diocese of Albany, but also the conservative orthodox voice still in The Episcopal Church. Although clearly in the minority, we spoke with conviction, but also with love and charity. The Albany Deputation was represented by Fr. Scott Garno, The Rev. Canon Robert Haskell, Mother Ellen Neufeld, Fr. John Scott, Dave Beaulac, Debbie Fish, Sue Ellen Ruetsch and Beth Strickland. While not part of the official deputation, Fr. Chip Strickland (our Diocesan Chancellor) and Sarah Garno also attended and were a real blessing, supporting the team in a variety of ways. Fr. Chip did an excellent job in his daily updates, helping to keep each of you informed about what was occurring at General Convention.
In writing this, I have struggled with knowing how much detail to add versus just giving my reflections. Recognizing that not everyone will have access to as much information as others, I have decided to err on the side of those who may need more background information. For those who don’t need as much information, please forgive me if I am covering things you already know. While I encourage you to read this in its entirety, the last couple of pages contain my thoughts about the potential impact some of the actions of the 76th General Convention may have on the Diocese of Albany and the larger Church.
For those who may not be familiar with the legislative process of the General Convention, it is made up of two Houses, The House of Bishops and the House of Deputies. Currently any bishop active or retired has a seat, voice and vote in the House of Bishops. The House of Deputies is comprised of eight representatives (4 clergy and 4 laity) from each of the 110 dioceses (foreign and domestic) making up The Episcopal Church. For any piece of legislation to be enacted, it must receive a majority affirmative vote in both the House of Deputies and the House of Bishops.
By the end of the tenth and final day of General Convention, if the report I heard is accurate, (personally I lost count), we had dealt with over 400 separate resolutions. Many were passed, some defeated, and all the rest referred back to committee either to die in committee or be brought back at some future time. Many of the resolutions, although important to those who moved them, in the grand scheme of things will have little if any impact especially in areas of national and international affairs. Consequently we spent a great deal of time debating and voting on resolutions that will do little more than provide a written record in the Convention Journal of the mood and opinion of the majority of those attending the 76th General Convention.
With that said, there were resolutions and pieces of legislation that do impact us as a Diocese, as well as impacting The Episcopal Church at large and the wider Anglican Communion. While I can’t reference each of them, I will try to touch on some of the more significant resolutions. The two resolutions that ultimately captured the most headlines and will most likely have the greatest impact on The Episcopal Church’s relationship with the wider Anglican Communion are D025 and C056. Both resolutions deal with different aspects of the ongoing debate concerning those individuals living in homosexual relationships. The text of these two resolutions, B033 from the 75th General Convention in 2009, and the Anaheim Statement (House of Bishops minority report on D025 and C056) is included at the very end of this statement.
The first three resolves of D025 speak of The Episcopal Church’s desire to remain part of and “live into the highest degree of communion possible” with the wider Anglican Communion. The fourth resolve reaffirms the value of “listening to the experience of homosexual persons,” and The Episcopal Church’s commitment to that process. Unfortunately, based on the actions of this church, I believe we don’t seem quite as committed to listening to our brothers and sisters in Christ within The Episcopal Church, the Anglican Communion, and the wider Body of Christ who in good conscience cannot support or embrace homosexual relationships (making a clear distinction between individuals of homosexual orientation and homosexual relationships or lifestyles). The fifth and sixth resolves speak of the part homosexuals living in life long committed relationships have played in the life and ministry of the Church, stating that “God has called and may call such individuals, to any ordained ministry in The Episcopal Church.” The final resolve acknowledges the ongoing division over these issues within The Episcopal Church and the Anglican Communion, stating that we “are not of one mind, and Christians of good conscience disagree about some of these matters.”
Unlike B033 (passed at the 2006 General Convention) which urged The Episcopal Church to “exercise restraint” in giving further consents to any bishops “whose manner of life presents a challenge to the wider church,” D025 makes no mention of “exercising restraint” and essentially opens the door for the election and consent of future bishops “whose manner of life” would present a challenge to the wider church, as has already been witnessed by the repeated requests of the vast majority of the Primates of the wider Anglican Communion not to ordain individuals living in homosexual relationships or to bless such relationships.
Resolution C056 calls for the “Standing Commission on Liturgy and Music, in consultation with the House of Bishops [to] collect and develop theological and liturgical resources” for the blessing of same gender relationships, and report to the 77th General Convention. In addition it states, “That bishops, particularly in dioceses within civil jurisdictions where same-gender marriage, civil unions, or domestic partnerships are legal, may provide generous pastoral responses to meet the needs of members of this Church.”
There is great concern by many to include myself, that D025 and C056, while not officially calling for the repeal of B033 (as some had wanted), does in effect repudiate B033 by allowing for the ordination of individuals living in homosexual relationships; calling for the development of liturgies for the blessing of homosexual relationships; and for officially authorizing bishops to “provide generous pastoral responses” i.e. allow for the blessing of homosexual relationships in whatever form that might take. All of these are in direct opposition to that which was asked of us in the Windsor Report, not to mention by the four Instruments of Communion (the Archbishop of Canterbury, the Primates of the Anglican Communion, the Anglican Consultative Council, and Lambeth Conference). While proclaiming our desire to remain part of the Anglican Communion, D025 and C056 make it clear that it will be on our terms. Actions speak louder than words.
B033, as imperfect as it was, offered enough to keep the Archbishop of Canterbury from breaking ties with The Episcopal Church. It is still yet to be seen, what impact the passage of D025 and C056 will have regarding The Episcopal Church’s future relationship with Archbishop Rowan Williams and the wider Anglican Communion. Addressing the 76th General Convention, the Archbishop cautioned against making “decisions…that could push us further apart.” Unfortunately, with the passage of these two resolutions, The Episcopal Church has done exactly what the Archbishop cautioned us not to do. Twenty two of the 37 other Provinces of the Anglican Communion have already declared themselves to be in a state of impaired or broken communion with the majority of The Episcopal Church. Others, to include the Archbishop of Canterbury, may very well follow as a result of the above actions. Time will tell.
There has been an ongoing call throughout the Anglican Communion, for The Episcopal Church to provide “clarity” as to what it truly believes and its response to that which has been asked of it by the wider Anglican Communion regarding the issues which divide us. The passage of D025 and C056 would seem to provide the clarity that many have been asking for. However, the spin from some deputies and bishops concerning these resolutions continues to muddy the water and send mixed messages. It was stated by several bishops during the debate on D025, that while the resolution does allow for a person living in a homosexual relationship to be elected and serve as bishop, until such a person is elected and ordained, B033 has not been overturned. Unfortunately, I believe such mixed signals will only add to the growing charge of hypocrisy aimed at The Episcopal Church, as a result of our saying one thing, but doing something different.
So what does the passage of these two resolutions mean for the Diocese of Albany? In the sense of providing clarity, it clarifies what we already knew – the theologically conservative and orthodox views of the two-thirds majority of the Diocese of Albany are clearly in the minority when compared to the current leadership of the rest of The Episcopal Church. I believe it will make it more difficult for some who have contemplated leaving The Episcopal Church over these issues to stay, thus jeopardizing the stability and health of our parishes and the Diocese as a whole. I believe it will further frustrate those in the Diocese who favor D025 and C056 wishing that Albany would go in a more liberal direction – something that I cannot and will not support as your bishop because I do not believe it is in accordance with God’s will or in the best interest of His Church. I believe it will tempt some on both sides of these issues to withhold financial support, out of protest, thus negatively impacting the life and ministry of the local parishes and the Diocese. Ultimately, I believe it is going to make my job as your bishop all the more difficult as I try to discern God’s will in knowing how best to lead the Diocese during these difficult and confusing times, sharing “in the leadership of the Church” with my fellow bishops in The Episcopal Church and the wider Anglican Communion as “one with the apostles…called to guard the faith, unity, and discipline of the Church.”(BCP 517). I value and ask for your continued prayers. Finally, I believe it could jeopardize the Diocese of Albany’s communion status with the wider Anglican Communion, if our Anglican brothers and sisters in Christ fail to differentiate between those in The Episcopal Church who have honored and upheld that which has been asked of us by the Anglican Communion and those who have gone in a different direction.
Admittedly, I have just painted a less than favorable, but what I believe to be an honest assessment of what could happen as a result of the passage of D025 and C056. The good news is that what could happen, DOES NOT have to happen. Ultimately, the impact D025 and C056 has on each of us individually; our parishes and the Diocese will be dependent upon how we choose to respond. While both resolutions open the door for The Episcopal Church to continue to go in a direction that I believe is problematic for all the reasons listed above, neither resolution changes the Constitution or Canons of The Episcopal Church, nor do they require us, as the Diocese of Albany, to be anything other than who and what we are.
By the grace of God, the Diocese of Albany will: continue to uphold the traditional orthodox teachings of the Church; fulfilling the Great Commandment and the Great Commission, moving from membership to discipleship, equipping, emboldening, and sending disciples to make disciples; proclaiming Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior of the world – the Way, the Truth and the Life, the only One through whom salvation is possible; recognizing the authority of Holy Scripture; continuing in the apostles’ teaching and fellowship; upholding the Apostles’ Creed and Nicene Creed; teaching that marriage was designed and intended by God to be a life long covenant relationship between a man and a woman and that it is only within the confines of marriage between a man and woman that the gift of sexual intimacy is appropriately shared; reaffirm our constituent membership in the Anglican Communion, our communion with the See of Canterbury, and our commitment to preserve these relationships; reaffirm our commitment to the three moratoria requested of us by the instruments of Communion; and reaffirm our commitment to the Anglican Communion Covenant process, with the hope of working toward its implementation once completed. In addition, I will be talking to the Standing Committee about ways in which the Diocese of Albany can be intentional about working more closely with those dioceses that share similar conservative, orthodox theological views. While we may be in the minority, we are not alone. It is important that we support and uphold one another, sharing God’s truth as best we understand it, in order that we might be an instrument of His love and healing grace in this broken and hurting world in which we live.
I realize that what I have put forward is not going to be easy, given the current state of crisis within The Episcopal Church and Anglican Communion. I don’t pretend to know how everything will turn out, or whether The Episcopal Church and Anglican Communion will even survive as we now know them. What I do know, is that what we are experiencing now is nothing new. As I have often said in the past, if you study Church history, you will discover that the Church has had problems from the very beginning. If you are looking for the perfect Church, you won’t find it this side of heaven, because the Church is made up of imperfect people. There have always been times of conflict resulting from arguments about theological understandings, false teaching and other concerns introduced by Satan through our fallen human nature. Satan is delighted with the division and fighting going on within the Church. The more he can distract us and turn us against one another, the less effective we will be in sharing the Gospel and bringing people to know Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. Despite the brokenness found in the different parts of the Church down through the centuries, there has always been that faithful remnant in which the Holy Spirit has and will continue to work until our Lord returns. My prayer is that the Diocese of Albany will be part of that faithful remnant, in whatever form that might take. If we are to do so, it is essential that we stick together and keep our focus on Christ and Christ alone. In so doing we will get through to the other side. If we focus on the storm, it will destroy us. The decision is ours! It is imperative that what ever decisions we make in response to the current crisis within The Episcopal Church and Anglican Communion, be done in prayer, truly seeking God’s will and the grace to respond in obedience to His will. Ultimately, our wants and desires are of little consequence. What matters most is what God wants. It is only when we are acting in accordance with His will that we will find true peace and fulfillment.
There were other resolutions and actions taken at the 76th General Convention that I need to briefly comment on, however, I will save those for Part II of my reflections on General Convention, to be issued later this week.
Faithfully Yours in Christ,
+Bill
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