Email to Friend
Reader responses to Episcopal Life's coverage of the 76th General Convention
B033-related legislation to move to House of Deputies
It is of great concern to me that priests espousing respect and equality for all would even consider a glass ceiling in a God-centered context. Those who flaunt the Bible as the instrument for rejection are not truly reading the Bible nor listening to their hearts. We are all born into this world as human beings and thus equal in the eyes of God. Bigotry must have no standing. Open hearts and open minds do not discriminate.
In Maine, we are in the middle of a gigantic struggle in this regard. Those who use the Bible against gay and lesbian marriage on the basis, for example, that God's goal is procreation lose sight of what the Jewish world was like then versus what the world is like now. It was important at that time for the Jews to increase in number. Truly, if God's word were enacted today, then wouldn't we disallow even heterosexual women over the age of, say, 50 or heterosexual couples who have no intention of having children to marry? Of course not.
My God is an inclusive God, not one that separates people based on sexual orientation, be it in the priesthood, the workplace, marriage, or any other situation. We only go around once in this life. Let's do it together, not with simply being tolerant, but with respect and inclusively.
May God be with us in these important decisions.
- - - - -
It baffles and saddens me that some of our bishops still do not "get" the fact that their positions on this are doing great damage to members of their own flocks. I also find it very disturbing that some women bishops seem to have forgotten the struggles that got them elected and consecrated bishops in our church. The issues are the same in both cases. Males could not bring themselves to share power, control and authority with others. Ultimately we moved past that barrier. Yet some of the women then turn around and create the same barriers based on sexual orientation. For all practical purposes they have learned to behave like men! A frequent excuse is that we have not done our theological homework. I have to wonder what they think we have been doing for four decades. The only ones who might legitimately claim that excuse are those who refused to participate in the work that has been done. I pray that the House of Bishops will have the integrity to do what they know in their hearts is the right thing to do: Remove the barriers to full inclusion in our church.
Testimony is overwhelmingly in favor of moving beyond B033
YES! Be done with this. Move forward towards the creation of a beautiful, holy service blessing persons in committed relationships; giving children of GLBT couples an example of the importance of the sacrament of marriage -- let them feel good about their families. Then let me enjoy a Church that is not hypocritical. Let me feel I may encourage all to be a part of my Church because they will be welcome. Let me benefit from the gifts of gay and lesbian priests and deacons as I have from women in the Church. Let's move on to the concerns of hungry people, both spiritually and physically. I love my gay music director and his partner of 20 years. It's not right that they serve us, yet are not wholly a part of their Church.
Resolution B033 continues to spark passionate debate
As a GLTB person; as a priest who was ordained 18 years ago openly in my diocese (Minnesota) respectfully and with full knowledge of my bishop, standing committee, commission on ministry and seminary; and now as a person in discernment for bishop in a diocese in the U.S., I feel that there should be no distinction made for anyone seeking ministry based on sexual orientation or relationship status. I have been a faithful priest for all these 18 years, and if I were ever elected a bishop would continue to be faithful in the same manner.
I love my church and have worked hard for it and its people from all walks of life (people with HIV, Native Americans, Hispanics, the seminary and people from all classes and states of life). It has been a privilege to be a priest, and my sexuality has enhanced my ministry and compassion for others, not hindered it. It is what GLTB persons bring to enrich the lives of others ... a compassion for those who like them have lived with discrimination, sometimes hate, and have been marginalized by society in general. This has blessed many of us with hearts that break at the sight of any kind of discrimination and alienation of those inside and outside the church. All the best to the delegates in their deliberations, and you are all in the prayers of the people of the church in Mexico.
- - - - -
We profess to be a world-wide catholic church of Anglican obedience, which, if it is true, would reduce the prominence and final authority of the provincial system which seems to have motivated the world-wide Anglican reaction to the [2003] General Convention's decision to go ahead with the consecration of the Bishop of New Hampshire in spite of Canterbury's request that this not be done until the whole world-wide Anglican Communion could meet and debate the matter. The autonomy of the provincial system won and we all know the rest of that story. The matter of homosexuality in this part of the world is a matter of justice. In other parts of the world-wide Anglican Communion it warrants the death penalty by law. How does a world-wide Catholic Church function under such different circumstances? The need for the whole Church to meet and debate it, as the Archbishop asked, is imperative.
- - - - -
I am concerned for the GLBT communities, but I am also very concerned that the Episcopal Church remain in full membership with the Anglican Communion. Losing our membership in the Communion will greatly weaken and isolate us, damaging our mission and ministry. Patience and time should be allowed for both the Anglican Communion and the Episcopal Church to come to full acceptance of what is meant by "The Episcopal Church Welcomes You." In the meantime, members of the GLBT communities are welcome to all levels of life in the Episcopal Church, except partnered persons to the episcopacy. I suggest both they and we live with that until the Anglican Communion can accept how we feel.
- - - - -
It is my desire to see that all members of the Episcopal Church receive equal pastoral care in following a God call to ministry, whether they live in a same-sex relationship or not. I desire to see gays and lesbians elected as bishops as well as priests and their partners recognized. I'm gay and a member of this great denomination.
Bishops adopt mandatory pension plan for lay workers
I am profoundly grateful to those bishops who spoke in favor of guaranteeing pension benefits to lay employees of the Episcopal Church, and especially to Gene Robinson and Chilton Knudsen who recognize - and have named -this issue as one of justice, and of fairness.
It saddens me to hear the bishops of Springfield and Albany, leaders whose spiritual discipline regularly includes inflicting insult and hurt upon members of the church, have decided to extend that disrespect and lack of Christian charity to the non-ordained staff members who support their leadership. If Beckwith and Love feel that a mandatory lay pension system, as proposed, is going to cause "heartburn," then perhaps they should work to find a way for the new system to treat all lay people with dignity, rather than seek to scuttle it. Only then might we see that their words are not a thinly veiled attempt to preserve their clerical privilege at the expense of all the thousands who serve the church faithfully without benefit of an 18% mandatory clergy pension contribution. (When did we last hear of a priest or bishop complain about THAT causing "heartburn"?).
Again, my thanks to our advocates in the House of Bishops.
- - - - -
Sounds like socialism to me. I would feel discriminated against. I never needed to be a primary wage earner and taught in a parochial school for five years. It enabled them to have a teacher, I was able to teach part time, which was what I wanted, and everyone was a winner. Why do we even consider a "one size fits all"?
- - - - -
I have worked in the Episcopal Church for over 30 years and have no pension. My employment has been half-time -- 20+ hours per week. Thank God for my father's investments.
- - - - -
Thanks to those opposing bishops for their eloquent "I've got mine, you're out of luck" attitude on their refusal to support lay employees with health coverage. I guess those employees who are watching their shops during convention are out of luck, and the Episcopal Church can remain well behind the curve of secular coverage policies. Fortunately they are well within the minority.
Young adults' message: 'We ARE here!'
My adult daughters and I find the age grouping of 18 to 30 as "young adults" absolutely ridiculous. Despite the age grouping, they have participated in church through college and after; now in their early 30s, late 20s, they are often bemused by the church's expectation that they would be akin more to 19-year-olds than 35-year-olds in church. Ageism!
- - - - -
We debate issues of homosexuality to satisfy a vocal and energized minority and ignore the future of the church. We need to stop looking to change the world and start looking to minister to the needs right in our back yard.
I was born in the 70's and I have watched the church struggle with social justice issues by people who think they have the right to this or that that. All the while no one noticed that the youth and young adults of the church did not feel welcome and that the young adults today do not feel welcome. We never took the time to teach them how a relationship with Jesus would affect their lives. We never taught them why the theology of the Episcopal Church was unique and precious. We assumed they would always be there. We were wrong.
My home church where I grew up consists today of a group of dedicated World War II-generation people. All of the baby boomers have gone and all of the kids that grew up in the 70's and 80's have gone. Myself and one other are the only two from my Sunday School days who still attend the Episcopal Church. And we have had to move away to find jobs.
We had better start teaching our parishes how to attract and keep members. We had better start looking at our ministries in our local parishes with a mind on how to evangelize and minister to a couple of generations who have grown up with better things to do than go to church on Sunday. The young adult leaders we have will have to lead us. The middle aged-plus do not understand the needs of the young adults (myself included). We need to spend our time, energy and resources looking to the young adult leaders God has provided for answers. The role of the wise among us is to listen, learn to welcome a group with very different values, and accept and love all those who God calls to our parish. This may even mean changing our music, service, or tradition. If we don't, the next couple of generations will stay home or go to the denomination down the street. Then the debates of today will seem fairly petty and unimportant. It is time to wake up, folks.
Church unity, Moravians celebrated at General Convention eucharist
I'm nearly ninety and am an unrepentant liberal. Bonnie Anderson's talk was intriguing and I'm anxious to see how our efforts on unity develop. I've always been pro-ecumenical. However, when I flip through the alumni photos of Moravian College, I find a paucity of dark-complexioned faces. That gives me concern.
- - - - -
Have we forgotten the Lambeth Quadrilateral as the basis for ecumenical unity? Ordination via the historic episcopate is essential to our Anglican identity.
- - - - -
This article excited my soul. Bonnie Anderson's references to what others might learn from the Moravian Church nearly brought tears to my eyes. Tears of joy.
Budget committee asks for ideas to meet funding gap
Stop spending millions on litigation! The PB should stand by her statements way back at the Primates meeting in Dar es Salaam and stop filing lawsuits.
- - - - -
Bethesda, Maryland
Selling goods on E-Bay is raising a white flag. Cutting expenses is predictable; solving global warming and ending addiction to fossil fuels requires innovation to make the Episcopal Church relevant to people hungry to see credible and relevant spiritual leadership.
I am a member of St. Patrick's Episcopal Church in Washington, D.C. I respectfully ask that the Committee's recommendations to the national church include committing resources to help local parishes to make their physical plants and vehicles more energy efficient. Furthermore, as all of us are called to be stewards of the earth, the national church staff should be moving out of nonperforming investments in the current portfolios to investing in green energy technologies that are going to restart our economy and make our means of transportation and production environmentally self-sustaining.
One area to consider is to approach Native American enterprises regarding combining economic growth with continued reconciliation to past exploitation. Native American nations control vast natural resources that can deliver green sustainable energy. Our church has bishops from Native American backgrounds who would have keen insights on how to move from business as usual to expanding the resources of the church to fulfill its mission more effectively.
Reader responses to Episcopal Life's coverage of the 76th General Convention
So many of the letter writers who oppose "moving past" BO33 say that declining attendance and declining revenues are signs that God no longer blesses the Episcopal Church -- or that, at the very least, it no longer serves the Body of Christ, which is voting with its feet and dollars.
By this criteria, therefore, Fox's reality show "American Idol" would be the most successful "church" in American history. I wonder if Archbishop Seacrest, or Bishops Abdul or Cowell, have expressed their views on same-gender marriage and Biblical inerrancy?
Integrity Eucharist celebrates church's diversity
I agree wholeheartedly!
If we, as GLBT people, are baptized, then we should be allowed to be true members of our church, as God wants us to be! Deacons, nuns, priests, bishops and archbishops!
If that is not the teaching of the church, then let us know now!
- - - - -
For the first time I had the pleasure and privilege of attending the Integrity Eucharist last night. It was one of the most holy experiences in my 73 years of being an Episcopalian. As a straight married male, I celebrate the opportunity to worship with so many incredible people who are also Episcopalians. God speed TEC to full inclusion NOW.
- - - - -
For the first time I had the pleasure and privilege of attending the Integrity Eucharist last night. It was one of the most holy experiences in my 73 years of being an Episcopalian. As a straight married male, I celebrate the opportunity to worship with so many incredible people who are also Episcopalians. God speed TEC to full inclusion NOW.
- - - - -
So typical of leftists with social agendas to wrap themselves in the cloak of diversity while at the same time banishing anyone who doesn't see things exactly according to their narrow agenda.
The Episcopal Church has kicked out more people under Jefferts Schori than at any time in her history.
Deputies delay approval of Central Ecuador bishop election
I believe that the Rev. Lourdes Inapanta has placed her integrity and reputation on the line as well. As also have all the other folks from this diocese who have put forward the resolution to not consent.
It is obvious that the healing that TEC sought with the ministry of provisional bishop Wilfrido Ramos-Orench has not occurred. If TEC imposes a bishop on this diocese in this situation, it will never heal. It will be a slap in the face of the Ecuadorians.
Better to lay aside this election, begin the process again, with observers, local and visiting, and elect someone these people can accept and love and from whose ministry they can prosper.
Search
Browse by Topic:
Multimedia »