The five pages of guidelines advise clergy on how to plan an act of worship, including offering those in “stable committed same-gender relationships” the option of a euÂcharist. The guidelines specify that there should be no exchange of consents, or signing of a register, and that no prayers of nuptial blessing from any marriage liturgy used anyÂwhere in the Anglican ComÂmunion should be said over the couple.
The Archbishop of Toronto, the Most Revd Colin Johnson, said that he expects that between five and ten parishes will wish to move towards using the guidelines for same-sex blessings. Consensus will need to have been reached in the parishes before permission to carry out blessÂings will be granted.
The Archbishop said: “Not all will welcome this development: some because it goes too far, some because it is not nearly enough. You will note that there are strong affirmations in these guidelines assuring a conÂtinued and honoured place in all aspects of diocesan life for those who do not agree with this resÂponse.”
You will note that there are strong affirmations in these guidelines assuring a conÂtinued and honoured place …
..yes and many Anglo-Catholics in the C of E noted those same words in 1992 and we all know what happened next!
rugbyplaying, You said it!
You will note that there are strong affirmations in these guidelines assuring a conÂtinued and honoured place …
Sit over there, shut up, and give money to us to support all this. Oh, and LIKE it!
Note the use of the Middle Ground Fallacy:
“Not all will welcome this development: some because it goes too far, some because it is not nearly enough.”
It’s a rhetorical device commonly used to convince its audience that if two “extremes” are equally unhappy, it must mean that we have reached the correct position.
If it were valid, however, it would mean that (for example) that the Jim Crow laws of the 40s and 50s were good and right, since they equally were disliked by the KKK (who favored slavery, lynching) and civil rights activists. In fact, however, there was only one right position, and that was the extremist view of the civil rights activists.
The Middle Ground Fallacy is being used a LOT in these debates over what TEC is going.
“a continued and honoured place…”
General Synod adopted a conscience clause to protect opponents to women’s ordination when that passed in Canada, but that was later rescinded. So no one so opposed is permitted to be ordained. My ordinary ignored that, but his successor was determined to block every traditionalist he could. That’s how it works here. I guess a lot of our bishops are hosers, eh?
So, I guess this means that as long as it’s only practised locally we are not as a province in violation of any moratoria.