The idea of a covenant itself was mainly accepted by Episcopal Church bishops, said Bishop Charles Jenkins of Louisiana. “I did not find any American bishop who was unable to accept the idea of covenant,” he said. “I think that there is a strand amongst us that ”¦ is not necessarily going to be happy about it.”
Jenkins added that “part of the sacrifice most American bishops are willing to make is that we will accept a covenant and accept the moratoria.” Aspinall said that one American bishop told him that he came into the conference opposed to a covenant, but his support is growing day by day.
However, Bishop Marc Andrus of Diocese of California — where the Supreme Court recently ruled that marriage is open to gays — said that a moratorium “is a non-starter for me.” He also noted that in relation to the other part of the moratoria — ending incursions into other churches — “the main perpetuators of the incursions are not present so [it’s difficult] for me to make an agreement on moratoria on that basis.
“The [main] reason I am committed to continuing blessings is because it’s a justice issue,” he said. “While we defer and wait, there are many gays and lesbians, transgendered and bisexual people all over the world who continue to be denied their civil and human rights.”
Although Jenkins said he believed “it is possible to make a sacrifice without selling out,” he said that it is “a moral dilemma for me” if gay and lesbian Anglicans have a sacrifice imposed on them. He added that the covenant proposals represent “a commitment to minimize the impact of something I do upon another person.”