Bishop Robert Duncan is once again the diocesan bishop of The Episcopal Diocese of Pittsburgh.
Clergy and lay deputies to a special convention of the diocese on November 7 voted to invite Bishop Duncan back into leadership of the diocese 50 days after the House of Bishops of The Episcopal Church voted to remove (“depose”) him.
“It is good to be back. God has clearly watched over the diocese and watched over me and Nara as we have walked through these challenging days together. God willing, I look forward to many years together sharing the good news of Jesus Christ,” said Bishop Duncan.
Welcome back, Bishop Duncan. I hope you had a nice sabbatical. Now we have work to do.
It’s great to be able to say “Bishop Bob Duncan of Pittsburgh” but is he still the 8th bishop, the 8.1 bishop, the 9th Bishop, or is he in fact the 1st Bishop of Pittsburgh (non TEC).
Last month when he was in England, he said something about being the first bishop elected to serve the same diocese twice: that is, he sees himself as the 8th and 9th bishop. At first it sounds quaint. Upon reflection it is a profound statement: he has upheld the rules and not in the name of rightness overrode the rules. Namely, he submitted to the discipline of the HOB, and accepted the new and canonical call to serve again as bishop of the diocese. He has proceeded in an upright and above board manner.
Bishop Bob Duncan is back where he should be, in the diocesan seat in which he was placed by the clergy and laity of his diocese, and the leadership of ECUSA has further tarnished its episcopal (small ‘e’) reputation and further diminished its standing in the Anglican Communion throught its unilateral, despotic, non-Anglican, non-church Catholic and schismatic actions.
As these actions by ECUSA’s leadership accumulate over time, ECUSA will be increasingly seen as a spouse who has abandoned his/her partner, a spouse that is no longer a member of a valid marriage as the result of his/her own deliberate decisions and actions.
My customary summary for those who like more detail:
[url=http://catholicandreformed.blogspot.com/2008/11/work-goes-on-cause-endures-diocese-of.html]Convention report[/url]
Thanks Jeremy for an excellent report on the Convention
DDW+
And here’s the Post-Gazette story.