Episcopal leaders instead affirmed that they will “exercise restraint” in approving another gay bishop and will not approve prayers to bless same-sex couples. The leaders were in New Orleans for the church’s House of Bishops’ semiannual meeting.<\/p>\n
The statement mostly reiterated previous pledges made by church leaders and did not satisfy officials at the Episcopal Diocese of San Joaquin. The local diocese would have considered pulling back its bid to split from the U.S. Episcopal Church if the bishops agreed to the Anglican Communion’s demand to stop consecrating gay bishops, said the Rev. Van McCalister, the diocese’s spokesman.<\/p>\n
“I think they have used the exact terminology in the past, and it doesn’t change anything,” McCalister said. A change in doctrine was “what a lot of people were hoping and praying for.”<\/p>\n