Finally, I was astonished by your declaration that ECUSA and the Anglican Church of Canada have satisfied the requirements of the Windsor Report. I note that you acknowledge that this is merely your personal view but where is your evidence? In our Dromantine Communiqué we said that “there remains a very real question about whether the North American churches are willing to accept the same teaching on matters of sexual morality as is generally accepted elsewhere in the Communion,” and that because of this, “the underlying reality of our communion in God the Holy Trinity is obscured, and the effectiveness of our common mission severely hindered.” [12] I have seen no change in this and no willingness to fully embrace Lambeth 1.10 as our current agreement on matters of human sexuality ”“ as you know this is the underlying assumption of the Windsor Report.
I was present in Nottingham for the recent ACC meeting and heard both Presiding Bishop Griswold and Archbishop Hutchinson, and their teams, try to justify their innovations. They failed. They made clear that there is no turning back and they did so with little or no reference to the plain teaching of the Holy Scriptures or the devastation that their actions have brought on us all.
While I am grateful that “regret” has been expressed and a temporary moratorium on Episcopal consecrations has been established, same-sex blessings continue to be authorized in some dioceses in both Provinces. And we all know that this is no more than a brief cessation of provocative actions and that no permanent change of mind is intended.
—Archbishop of Nigeria Peter Akinola in an open letter to Archbishop Robin Eames in 2005, highlighting the central problem which existed then, exists now, and which the report about the September 2007 House of Bishops meeting evaluated incorrectly, as Gene Robinson said at the time. It must be addressed this week in Lambeth if the huge breach in the communion is to move toward healing–KSH.
Thank you for the history lesson one more time. The truth is that cessation of the one issue – ordaining those in coflicted sexual relationships – has only ended because the election attempts have failed. (Who knows how it would have ended had a candidate been elected.) While continuing to ordain those living their same sex attraction it cannot be but only a moment away, so to speak, before the next challenge and I wouldn’t wager on the election being diapproved, would you? The issue of SSB is a joke. Those doing it are now flagrant and will continue to be. As the good Archbishop who will speak tomorrow said, he doesn’t think they will stop. I ask, “Are we any further along, really, since 2003?” You’ve summed it up exactly, Kendall.
And this is why, frankly, I’m thankful for Jim Naughton and Susan Russell in the note and comments below. While it appears that most of the Bishops in ECUSA are notoriously and obnoxiously prevaricating – they are speaking with clarity about the majority position in ECUSA today. Let ECUSA decide if they are going to follow the same Gospel as the rest of the Anglican Communion or follow this “new thing” which they are so proud of. But don’t lie to everyone about it. Don’t insult the rest of the world – you just look like fools when you do.
If I were ++Akinola, I’d be embarrassed to have to even put this down on paper, so obviously true it is. It’s only the willingness, nay eagerness, to be lied to that lets those like ++Eames say these foolish things.
This is great. I pray that TEC will openly and honestly declare where it stands.
[blockquote] Let ECUSA decide if they are going to follow the same Gospel as the rest of the Anglican Communion or follow this “new thing†which they are so proud of. But don’t lie to everyone about it. Don’t insult the rest of the world – you just look like fools when you do. [/blockquote]
Amen, Mr. Sulik (#2). Honesty would go a long way in all of this. Just admit what you want to do and get on with it.
[blockquote]While I am grateful that “regret†has been expressed…[/blockquote]
The quotation marks around the word regret are certainly justified. What kind of regret is it, when a kid says, “I am sorry that I stole the bubble gum from the five and dime but I plan to do it again tomorrow”?
And Rowan used this “regret” to justify the invitations to the consecrators of Mr Robinson knowing full well that the GS bishops had declared that it would cause them to absent themselves (and Rowan knew that these were people of integrity).