In our statement\u201d\u201dA Response to Questions and Concerns Raised by our Anglican Communion Partners\u201d\u201dwe were able to accommodate concerns of our more conservative members by reconfirming the charge of the 2006 General Convention (Resolution B033) for bishops and standing committees to \u201cexercise restraint\u201d\u009d in giving consent to episcopal elections in which the candidate\u2019s lifestyle would pose a challenge to the wider church, and by acknowledging this charge applies to non-celibate gay and lesbian persons.In addition, we pledged not to authorize public rites of blessing for same-sex unions until a broader consensus emerges in the Communion.<\/p>\n
Both of these declarations conflict with my understanding of an open and inclusive Church, a conviction that informed my vote against B033 in 2006 and one I reconfirmed in my message to our diocese following the Primates communiqu\u00c3\u00a9 last February. However, from what I witnessed this past week in New Orleans, I realize these compromises are necessary at this point in our Communion\u2019s discernment to ensure the fullest participation in our ongoing conversation. It is important to note that while our General Convention has acknowledged that blessings of same-sex unions have occurred in response to local pastoral needs, the Convention has never authorized the development of such rites. Our Church is likely to revisit both these matters at our next General Convention in 2009.<\/p>\n