The resolution affirmed the status quo of the Episcopal Church, both theological conservatives and liberals said.<\/p>\n
It states, for example, that it \u201creconfirms\u201d\u009d a call to bishops \u201cto exercise restraint\u201d\u009d by not consenting to the consecration of a partnered gay bishop. It also says the bishops promise not to authorize \u201cany public rites of blessing of same-sex unions.\u201d\u009d Still, some bishops allow such blessings to occur in their dioceses. Both positions have been stated in past meetings of the governing body of the church, the General Convention.<\/b><\/p>\n
The resolution also calls for an \u201cimmediate end\u201d\u009d to the practice of foreign bishops\u2019 consecrating conservative Americans to minister to breakaway congregations in the United States, a trend that church leaders believe undermines their authority.<\/p>\n
The Bishop Martyn Minns of the Convocation of Anglicans in North America, a prominent conservative group supported by the Archbishop of Nigeria, responded to the bishops\u2019 resolution: \u201cThey\u2019re offering business as usual. The communion asked them to make a change, to embrace the teaching of the communion about homosexuality, and there\u2019s no change at all.\u201d\u009d<\/p>\n