Times: Archbishop of Canterbury in intensive efforts to combat Ugandan anti-gay death law

Ruth Gledhill, a conservative religion columnist for the Times, reported on December 3 that Abp. Rowan Williams is in intensive efforts to engage the Anglican Church of Uganda against the proposed anti-homosexuality law.

The Archbishop of Canterbury Dr Rowan Williams has been criticised widely for failing to speak out against the new anti-gay law in Uganda that could see some homosexuals being executed. But there is method in his silence. Today, Lambeth Palace told me: 'It has been made clear to us, as indeed to others, that attempts to publicly influence either the local church or political opinion in Uganda would be divisive and counter productive. Our contacts, at both national and diocesan level, with the local church will therefore remain intensive but private.'

In fact, we can take for granted that Dr Williams is against the draconian new law. But speaking out publicly to this effect could indeed, as he says, have the opposite effect to that intended. It would almost certainly be seen as white-led colonialism of the worst possible kind, as a misguided attempt to impose western liberal values upon traditional African culture. It would not help the local Anglican Church, which has yet to come out on either side. But we can assume that the word 'intensive' in his statement today indicates that he is as distressed as the 2,000 who have signed a petition against it.

Washington Times: New Anglicans split on women

Julia Duin of the Washington Times reports that the breakaway Anglicans are split on the ordination of women, with the majority of US Anglican dioceses not ordaining women. It is my hope that our sisters and brothers in Christ will come to a just resolution (i.e. all ordain women) but I'll be hard pressed to be sympathetic if they later split over this matter.


Last week's birth of a new Anglican province in the dusty plains of north-central Texas left the question of women's ordination dangling in the air.

Of the 800 people attending the founding of the Anglican Church in North America, 368 were priests and deacons. Of that number, about 10 percent, or 36, of the clergy were female.

The new province is a mishmash of former Episcopalians, ranging from almost-crossing-the-Tiber Anglo-Catholics to low-church charismatics, and it's a mystery as to how they're all going to get along. Many are against ordaining women. Others are just as adamant that females be given access to the diaconate, priesthood and the episcopate. The Episcopal Church approved female priests in 1976 and elected its first female bishop in 1988.

The ACNA's new canon laws state women can be deacons and priests, but not bishops.

I queried retired Eau Claire, Wis., Bishop William Wantland, an old friend and an ardent opponent of ordaining women. He reminded me that 22 of the ACNA's 28 dioceses do not allow female priests. It's a system known as "dual integrity," dioceses that differ on a question where Scripture can be read both ways agree to respect and live with each other's views.

I asked him if he wanted the ACNA to eventually outlaw ordaining women entirely.

"Of course. That's our mission," he said. "Christ is the bridegroom and the church is the bride. The priest at the altar is an icon of Christ. What image is that if the person at the altar is a woman? It's a lesbian relationship."

Not much room for negotiation there.

Archbishop Robert Duncan, the new head of the ACNA, pointedly had a woman, the Rev. Travis Boline, at his right hand during legislative sessions. She reminded me that even the conservative African provinces are split on the question. Although Nigeria forbids female priests, Kenya and Uganda allow them.

"The global south has shown us a model of keeping to the main thing, while not being of one mind," she said. "Bishops serve the whole church, and if the church is not of one mind, then it's not appropriate for women to be bishops." [Editor: How ironic.]

The other women I talked with were trying to put a good face on it all.

"It's more important to be part of an organization preaching the Gospel as the Word of God," one cleric said.

"We're trying to be servants," Katherine Martin, a cleric from Auburn, Ala., told me. "I'm not being welcomed to consecrate [Communion] in Quincy [Illinois] or Fort Worth [Texas]," which are two dioceses that don't ordain women, "but both the bishops of those dioceses couldn't be more kind."

I wondered if the men would take a similar position, agreeing to be "servants" while limitations were placed on them.

"I'd be lying if I'd say I wasn't disappointed," said Canon Mary Hayes of the Pittsburgh Diocese. "I've been a priest 25 years. I'm delighted to be in a body of people who have different views. It's not about getting my way."

Other women told me they hope men will see the light.

"They'll wake up," predicted the Rev. Joy Vernon, a Canadian priest ordained in 1989. "Jesus Christ ministered to women way beyond the culture of His day."

"We're not going to go away," a female priest told me. "Women have been patient since the beginning of time."

Anglican news: SSPX asking to buy unused CoE church

The very conservative Catholic group, the Society of St. Piux X, has asked to buy an unused church from the Church of England.

Anglican Church of Nigeria continues to persecute LGBT people

Same sex marriage, apart from being ungodly, is unscriptural, unnatural, unprofitable, unhealthy, un-cultural, un-African and un-Nigerian. It is a perversion, a deviation and an aberration that is capable of engendering moral and social holocaust in this country. It is also capable of existincting [sic] mankind and as such should never be allowed to take root in Nigeria. Outlawing it is to ensure the continued existence of this nation. The need for doing this is urgent, compelling, and imperative.
--Archbishop Peter Akinola of Nigeria, in a position paper linked on Thinking Anglicans

Additionally, the Episcopal Cafe links to evidence that the Church of Nigeria is busing people to hearings in Abuja.

This needs to be said plainly: what Peter Akinola and the Church of Nigeria are doing is evil, is not Christian and is not sanctioned by God.

Even if God condemned homosexuality, God would not sanction violating the human rights of LGBT people.

A sign of hope for Anglicanism: Burundian and Canadian provinces continue joint activities, oppose border crossings

The Anglican church of Burundi opposes same-sex marriage. The church of Canada is considering it, and several of its Dioceses clearly support same-sex marriage. Other African provinces have engaged in border-crossing, having ordained priests in Canada or having poached Canadian churches that have defected.

However, Anglican Journal reports that Canada and Burundi are increasing their mission-related ties. They have also agreed that there will be no unauthorized border crossings between their churches.

I believe Jesus calls us to work with those with whom we disagree.

Lutheran Church in Great Britain consecrates first woman bishop, Church of England dithers

As reported in the Telegraph, the Lutheran Church in Great Britain will consecrate the Rt. Rev. Jana Jeruma-Grinberga this weekend. The LCGB has only a few thousand worshipers, so I'm not so surprised that they've taken this long.

The Church of England, however, has hundreds of thousands of worshipers, and they're still dithering about how to introduce women bishops. Conservative Anglo-Catholics are threatening to walk if proper provisions of pastoral oversight aren't made. As I recall, there are some liberals who would rather not make such provisions. Indeed, making them would interfere with church unity.

In any case, the UK has had female monarchs and prime ministers before. One wonders why have they had to wait this long for a woman bishop.

In fact, a lot of Episcopalians should have problems with Rick the Warmonger

Rick Warren has publicly supported Archbishops Peter Akinola and Henry Orombi, of the Anglican provinces of Nigeria and Uganda respectively, in their efforts to fracture the Anglican Communion. Both are notorious homophobes. Orombi has made several outrageous statements about gay people detailed in Episcopal Cafe's article. Warren publicly supported Orombi's decision to boycott the Lambeth Conference.

It is very disappointing that it's still OK to associate with folks who compare gay people to pedophiles, as Rick did in an interview with Beliefnet.

Oh , I do. For 5,000 years, marriage has been defined by every single culture and every single religion - this is not a Christian issue. Buddhist, Muslims, Jews - historically, marriage is a man and a woman. And the reason I supported Proposition 8, is really a free speech issue. Because first the court overrode the will of the people, but second there were all kinds of threats that if that did not pass then any pastor could be considered doing hate speech if he shared his views that he didn't think homosexuality was the most natural way for relationships, and that would be hate speech. We should have freedom of speech, ok? And you should be able to have freedom of speech to make your position and I should be able to have freedom of speech to make my position, and can't we do this in a civil way.

Most people know I have many gay friends. I've eaten dinner in gay homes. No church has probably done more for people with AIDS than Saddleback Church. Kay and I have given millions of dollars out of Purpose Driven Life helping people who got AIDS through gay relationships. So they can't accuse me of homophobia. I just don't believe in the redefinition of marriage.

Jeremiah Wright's harsh words stem from a desire to see his country follow God's law. Rick the Warmonger's words show he is in denial about his homophobia (plus he's a warmonger). It would be better to pick Jerry to do the invocation.

Anglican Anti-Communion being formed

Anglican conservatives in the United States, led by the former Bishop Robert Duncan of the Diocese of Pittsburgh, are attempting to form a separate Anglican province in the United States. Beliefnet's Religion News Service has a report.

In Anglican polity, provinces are analogous to countries. Churches following episcopal polity have not, broadly speaking, recognized multiple provinces existing in the same geographic location. Among Anglicans, there are no clear mechanisms to recognize a competing province in the U.S. A number of conservative provinces and Anglican leaders will recognize the new province. However, it is likely that the Archbishop of Canterbury will not. It's also likely that a two thirds majority of the Anglican Consultative Council will not. Those are two of four instruments of unity. If the conservatives could get those two to recognize a new province, they would win.

At this point, it seems likely to me that Anglican conservatives will form an Anti-Communion. Except that there are fracture lines (Evangelical vs Anglo-Catholic, women's ordination), and the Anti-Communion may well start falling apart as well.

If our friends in the Anti-Communion face such difficulties, I will have little to no sympathy. However, Anglicanism is one of the major global churches. These repeated fractures may weaken my tradition's ability to witness to the world. It may inhibit the church's financial commitment to development and its connections to people doing important work on the ground in Asia and Africa. By choosing to fracture the Communion, the actions of the schismatics make us all poorer. They diminish our church's diversity and moral standing.

All this begs the question: when the Anglican Communion and the Anglican Anti-Communion meet, will they annihilate in a flash of gamma rays?

Possible rift among Anglican conservatives

Thinking Anglicans reports that the Diocese of Sydney has voted to allow deacons to preside over the Eucharist. All other Anglican churches and most (maybe all?) mainline denominations only allow ordained priests to preside.

The Diocese of Sydney is very conservative as to the ordination of women and on matters of sexual orientation. They are also probably the most Evangelical diocese in the whole Anglican Communion.

For those readers who aren't Anglican, the Anglican Communion is a confederation of churches that embraces a diversity of theological viewpoints. One of the areas on which Anglicans disagree is churchmanship. High church Anglicans prefer liturgies very similar to Roman Catholic ones. Low church Anglican liturgy will incorporate many Evangelical elements.

In the US and Canada, the churches that have broken away from the Episcopal Church and the Anglican Church of Canada have often splintered along lines of churchmanship. Continuing Anglican churches in the US, such as the Anglican Catholic Church, are high church. The United Episcopal Church of North America left the Anglican Catholic Church over alleged discrimination against low churchmen, although they have since reconciled. The Reformed Episcopal Church left the main Episcopal church because of concerns over the "loss of Protestant and Evangelical witness".

We may soon see similar fracturing among Anglican conservatives. I find it hard to be sympathetic, honestly. An article in Episcopal Life Online mentions that Archbishop Peter Jensen is reluctant to license lay people to preside at Eucharist at present because of his affiliation with GAFCON, a group of conservative Anglicans.

Interestingly enough, a number of liberal readers of Thinking Anglicans strongly disapprove of Sydney's move. My sense is that the majority of Anglican liberals in the US tend to be Anglo-Catholic (high church). I've come to appreciate high church liturgy, but my outlook is fundamentally low church. English conservatives, I believe, tend to be low church.

That said, my opinion is this. Jesus was not ordained and he was not a Christian. Jesus specified to the disciples that they were to break bread and share wine in his memory. The church specified requirements as to who may administer what sacraments. However, those requirements have the weight of tradition only. Tradition shouldn't be discarded lightly. Our friends in Sydney decided to modify tradition substantially in light of their own needs. The Episcopal Church decided to modify tradition substantially when it consecrated Gene Robinson. As such, we shouldn't condemn Sydney on this issue. We should condemn them for their homophobia.

Interestingly enough, while Sydney refuses to ordain women, they do license women as deacons. This is a step forward for women in the Diocese. And I hate to sound condescending, but even a small step forward is a step forward.

What are Anglicans doing about the LGBT people who are being raped and murdered?

Cain Murders Abel

Cain said to his brother Abel, ‘Let us go out to the field.’ And when they were in the field, Cain rose up against his brother Abel and killed him. Then the Lord said to Cain, ‘Where is your brother Abel?’ He said, ‘I do not know; am I my brother’s keeper?’ And the Lord said, ‘What have you done? Listen; your brother’s blood is crying out to me from the ground! And now you are cursed from the ground, which has opened its mouth to receive your brother’s blood from your hand. When you till the ground, it will no longer yield to you its strength; you will be a fugitive and a wanderer on the earth.’

Genesis 4:8-12, NRSV

For my money, the most important aspect of the "fringe events" was the presence of the LGBT folk and their straight allies from Nigeria, Kenya, and Uganda. Some of them risked personal harm when they return home because of their truth telling. You can read about one example - a printed statement by Rose Ngeri which she personally handed out to African bishops and their wives - on my blog.

When Rose was asked if she feared reprisals she said, with a chilling calm, "Oh, they will just rape me, but they will torture and kill my brothers. Do you not understand? They will torture and kill my brothers. I have to do this." And so, she did.

Rose Ngeri, as told to the Rev. Elizabeth Kaeton

As the Lambeth conference in Canterbury was drawing to a close, Michael Causer died. He was not an Anglican bishop, but an 18-year-old hairdresser, a popular lad described by his family as "definitely a 'people's person'. Our world will never be the same without him." He was the victim of a homophobic attack.

In other countries too, during the conference, virulent hatred of gays and lesbians continued to take its toll – sometimes in spectacular fashion. A gunman in Tennessee shot two people dead during a children's performance in a Unitarian church he thought too "liberal" before being overpowered. A Ugandan gay and lesbian rights activist was kidnapped by police in Kampala and tortured. A wave of homophobia swept Indonesian capital Jakarta, and arrests were reported.

In many countries, repressive laws fuel bigotry. All too often in schools and workplaces, temples and churches worldwide, people learn to hate or despise lesbians and gays. To Christians, this is tragic, not just for the victims: those who do not love their neighbour are spiritually dead. Yet talk among Anglican Communion leaders about homosexuality seemed oddly disconnected from the world in which most of us live, and the challenge to make it more just and loving.

...

Meanwhile, at the Lambeth conference, the Archbishop of Canterbury appealed for a "covenant of faith" that would "promise to our fellow human beings the generosity God has shown us", and suggested "a Pastoral Forum to support minorities". But to him, those needing greater generosity and pastoral care were mainly Christians with strong objections to same-sex partnerships. While he is a humane man, his priorities seem strange. If Anglicans are to remain relevant, and a force for good, bishops need to listen more carefully to people like Michael Causer's family.

Savitri Hensman, writing for the Guardian

Folks, the Anglican churches of the Global South who stand by while such things happen are spiritually dead. They question whether the Western churches are still visibly Christian; the same should be asked of them.

However, the same was not asked of them at this Lambeth conference. There is ample evidence that the human rights of LGBT persons are being violated in the Global South. Why were they not asked to repent?

Cain came to murder Abel over petty jealousy. God asked him where Abel was. Cain lied. God called BS.

The blood of our LGBT sisters and brothers is crying out to God from the ground. We should call BS.

Archbishop of Canterbury may be forced to do fundraising tour for Lambeth

The Lambeth Conference ran a deficit of about £1m. The Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church, Katharine Jefferts Schori, disclosed that the US bishops had been approached for funds, and that Rowan Williams, the Archbishop of Canterbury, had asked to come to the US to do fundraising (although oddly enough, Lambeth Palace later denied that).

Rowan's timing is a little poor. The dollar has severely depreciated against the pound, the US is in a bit of a financial crisis, and he has openly disrespected an American bishop, Gene Robinson, by excluding him from the Lambeth Conference.

Another crack in the stained glass ceiling

Ship of Fools has a first-hand account of the historic consecration of Bishop Kay Maree Goldsworthy of Perth, in Western Australia.

Yes, she's a woman.

Which part of the service was like being in heaven?
Where do I start? Mostly, this was history in the making and the moment where the mitre was placed on Bishop Goldsworthy's head wasn't so much heavenly as electrifying. In a different sense, the address by the chancellor when the Archbishop of Perth called for the authority for consecration to be read was quite captivating. The chancellor, a QC, explained in great detail the legal and constitutional basis for the consecration, especially the amendment to the Constitution of the Anglican Church of Australia which allowed the consecration to proceed. Normally it would have been laboriously tedious, but behind the legal dryness was a clear sense of quiet revolution, as the chancellor explained the legal means by which a woman could become a bishop. It was all very momentous.

Scotland leads on tolerance - will the Church of England follow?

This article was written for The Scotsman.

PS, the Anglican Communion has failed to fall apart.

THE VERY REV KELVIN HOLDSWORTH Provost of St Mary's Cathedral, Glasgow
THE bishops of the Anglican Communion are all gathered at Canterbury this weekend. It is the last weekend of the Lambeth Conference, the once-a-decade jamboree for bishops hosted by the Archbishop of Canterbury.

Well, all the duly consecrated bish
ops of the Communion are there except one: the Rt Rev Gene Robinson has been in Canterbury, but with no status in the conference. He was frozen out of the official programme by the Archbishop of Canterbury – presumably his presence was too much to stomach for some potential participants. In the end, they did not turn up anyway.

Gene Robinson was refused a place at Anglicanism's high table because he is the only bishop to live openly with a gay partner. The rest of the gay bishops of the communion presumably keep the details of their relationships firmly under their mitres.

The Anglican Communion was really started, if you believe any Scottish Episcopalian, by the Scottish Episcopal Church. It consecrated a bishop for Connecticut when the Church of England would not dirty its hands dealing with the Colonies. Yet the Communion remains a strangely English place. No-one really gets excommunicated from the Anglican Communion for being naughty or indeed for being gay. You just don't get an invitation to sup with the Archbishop of Canterbury at the Lambeth Conference; no garden party with the Queen.

Bishop Robinson has also been refused permission by the Archbishop to celebrate the Eucharist while he is in England. However, the Archbishop of Canterbury has no jurisdiction here in Scotland. When it became apparent Bishop Robinson was inhibited from celebrating communion in England, it was inevitable he would be invited by someone to do so in Scotland. That someone was me. Tomorrow, Bishop Robinson will celebrate communion and preach in St Mary's Cathedral, Glasgow.

I invited Bishop Robinson to spread good news. Not just the Good News of the Gospel, which inspires all preachers, but the good news that churches are changing. At one time, gay people were expected to pretend they were not doing anything with anyone in order to be acceptable on Sunday. Those days are gone, at least for some of us.

They are certainly gone in the Scottish Episcopal Church, which has many serving gay clergy and in whose churches clergy may offer, if they so choose, prayers of blessing for gay couples.

The character of the Scottish Episcopal Church is more pragmatic than the Church of England. No-one seriously believes there are no gay clergy in the Church of England; their presence has been the subject of snide innuendo for decades. However, their presence has also been witness to the kind of faith often prepared to go places others find most difficult.

A couple of Lambeth conferences ago, the church made a compromise over polygamy that is worth re-examining. It was decided where the church had a mission to local polygamous cultures, if a family were converted to Anglican Christianity, then it would be better to keep it intact than to dump all but one of the women in a culture where women had no power and little value. It was a liberal compromise to ensure women did not suffer as the news of the gospel spread. It meant different standards of behaviour were being worked out in different cultures.

But now many from those cultures are turning the tables on us in the West and demanding we take our cue on morality from their local interpretation.

At such a time as this, I'm proud to invite Bishop Gene Robinson to share bread and wine and preach Good News. He is a symbol of positive change. He represents the fact churches can once again be worth belonging to, preach about a God worth believing in and contribute to a world worth living in.

Wow, we're $*&@ing backward: Russian church alarmed at Anglican decision to "ordain women"

Interfax got something lost in translation and reported that the Moscow Patriarchate has expressed alarm at the Church of England's decision to ordain women. Really, they mean to consecrate them as bishops.

The Vatican also expresses regret, and they get the translation right, too.

Never, ever trust the media to report on church polity issues. They always mess some word or phrase up.

I understand that the consecrate women side won by quite a large margin. The International Herald Tribune reports that the debate to do so was "fractious", as was the debate over ordaining women (this time, I really mean ordaining). Here, we see Archbishop of York John Sentamu apparently pulling his hair out. But wait, he's already bald.

Perhaps it's the stress over the accelerating disintegration of the Anglican Communion and the Church of England that's made him go bald. The Church of England is already showing the strain over the gay debate. The consecration of women will allegedly drive a large number of conservative Anglo-Catholics out of the CoE.

The ordination of women in general may also have an effect on the GAFCON crowd, the conservatives who are trying to destroy the Anglican Communion. My chaplain speculates they may yet divide along lines of churchmanship. The conservative Anglo Catholics will not ordain women. The evangelicals may. Once you've got past the first division, it becomes a lot easier to purge the infidels in a neverending quest for purity.

On the other hand, if we eliminate the possibility of schism, then you must either do doctrine in the way that only the Romans do, complete with thought police (e.g. the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith), or put up with increasingly loud caterwauling.

There is allegedly an ancient Chinese curse, which translates to "May you live in interesting times." This curse is probably an urban legend as reported by Wikipedia; if someone tries to use it on you, ask for the original Chinese. But anyway, these are certainly interesting times for the Anglican Communion. For sure, there's lots of caterwauling to come.


EDIT: I apparently glossed over one major issue. The Catholic perspective in Christianity seeks unity; after all, in the Nicene Creed, we profess believe in one holy catholic and apostolic church. The Roman and Orthodox churches are far less likely to continue ecumenical dialog with the Anglicans now that the mother church, the Church of England, will have women bishops. This is distressing to many.

The coalition of vicious homophobes that is trying to make the Anglican Communion fall apart is itself falling apart

Father Jake, a prominent Episcopal blogger, has the story.

Meanwhile, "an infamous Dominionist" was spotted at GAFCON, the anti-Lambeth conference run by the vicious homophobes. Howard Ahmanson is a notorious financier of ultraconservative causes in the US, such as the Institute on Religion and Democracy. A quote from Howie by Episcopal Cafe:

"I think what upsets people is that Rushdoony seemed to think - and I'm not sure about this - that a godly society would stone people for the same thing that people in ancient Israel were stoned," [Ahmanson] said. "I no longer consider that essential.

"It would still be a little hard to say that if one stumbled on a country that was doing that, that it is inherently immoral, to stone people for these things," Ahmanson said. "But I don't think it's at all a necessity."

Lastly, GAFCON was to be held in Jordan. However, Big Pete (Akinola) was banned. He is likely to be complicit in the organized murder of Muslims in Nigeria. Admittedly, this was in response to equal violence by Muslims against Christians. But the act, which I covered earlier, went way beyond self defense, and is inexcusable.

Mugabe wins elections by violence, Anglicans in Zimbabwe resist

Robert Mugabe, the vicious dictator of Zimbabwe, has run opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai out of town, and will likely declare victory as the sole candidate.

The world once believed better of Mugabe. When he took power in 1980 after defeating the white minority regime of Ian Smith's Rhodesia, Mugabe surprised many by embracing capitalism, democracy and reconciliation with his former oppressors. Still, a vicious authoritarian streak quickly became visible in the early '80s, when he sent his army's notorious Fifth Brigade into the southern strongholds of his then chief rival, Joshua Nkomo, where they killed more than 10,000 ethnic Ndebele. When economic decline turned the electorate increasingly against Zanu-PF during the late '90s, Mugabe once again cloaked himself in the mantle of revolutionary socialism, defending his people from the ravages of Western imperialism. And imbued with that messianic vision, Mugabe is not shy about his use of force; he once boasted that he had, in addition to his seven academic degrees, a "degree in violence."

Episcopal Cafe links a story that details how Anglicans in the country have resisted Mugabe's predations ... despite the collusion of such quack clergy as Nolbert Kunonga.

ANGLICAN-INFORMATION observes that Central African Provincial Bishops, Sebastian Bakare of Harare and Peter Hatendi of Manicaland remain bravely in the front line in Zimbabwe with their priests and people, replacing renegade and now excommunicated ‘Archbishop’ Nolbert Kunonga and Bishop Elson Jakazi.

The Central African Anglican Province is at a critical juncture as world opinion at last moves into condemnation of the atrocities committed by the Mugabe regime: In the United Nations Security Council even China, and Russia have shifted to condemn Mugabe and more significantly surrounding African nations including, Botswana, Angola, Senegal and even South Africa are now beginning to criticise the Zimbabwe regime.

However, a significant problem for the Central African Bishops remains in that some of their number, especially those associated with former Archbishop Bernard Malango, have been very close to the Mugabe administration and that taint is hard to shake off. Strictly speaking, under the terms of the recent excommunication Malango should also be defrocked and certainly suspended from any priestly activities which he still seems to be conducting. Instead, Malango still appears to be exercising dubious political influence and interference in the Province both personally and through his protégé acting Dean Albert Chama.

The Provincial House of Bishops cannot continue indefinitely to appear to be moving in two opposing directions by, on the one hand, resisting the Mugabe regime and denouncing its mouthpiece Kunonga, whilst, at the same time, tacitly supporting it through the continuing active legacy of Bernard Malango.

A message to the House of Bishops: ‘Get rid of Bernard Malango and his supporters, they are ruining your good work and brave resistance and seriously damaging your credibility!’

Pray for Zimbabwe, and for the church there.

Church of England falling apart - two gay priests marry each other

The Revds Peter Cowell and David Lord engaged in a civil partnership ... and had their relationship blessed in church afterward by the Rev. Martin Dudley, who explains his decision here.

It is not we who have whipped up the whirlwind, replacing words of love and inclusion with those of hatred and exclusion. We set out to express, experimentally, pushing at boundaries, a love of a type which is not unusual or perverse but which is perfectly ordinary and accepted outside the Church. Why, then, can it not be accepted inside the community that is based, not on law, but on the loving presence of God in Jesus Christ?

Those who cannot ever accept same-sex unions and would rather divide from those who do, branding them as blasphemous and unchristian, have inevitably turned on us, and especially on me. I am clearly not naïve, so I must have been malicious, politically-motivated, intent on pushing forward my ungodly agenda. Every aspect of my life and ministry is being raked over, the Daily Mail’s old allegations of sexual impropriety, my failure to be elected as an alderman, my writing a book on clergy discipline, even the complaint from neighbouring flats that I will not silence the church clock which chimes at midnight and again at seven as it has for centuries. First discredit your opponent, then defrock him, and, as he is Rector of Smithfield, why not the stake?

I did not seek the role, the interviews, the publicity, but more than thirty years ago I began a journey, a process of becoming, that focuses on Jesus the Christ, not as lawgiver and judge but as the one who loves us and holds us and will not let us go until we know ourselves as loved by him despite our foolishness and imperfections, and because of that, when Peter Cowell asked me, I did not hesitate, not even for a moment to answer “Yes, I will.”

The service took place in St. Bartholomew's, a prominent church. However, there are those who say that these ceremonies have happened in England before.

The shouting and screaming has already started, with their bishop calling the act reckless and self-indulgent (wow!). Bishop Chartres has started an investigation, I believe.

It's really too bad there isn't this much shouting and screaming over, say, the genocide in Darfur.

Pray for the people of Darfur. And for Peter and David.

Rescuing the faith once delivered to the saints

I encourage readers to read this very good article by a friend of Katie Sherrod's, which was presented at a parish meeting. As background, they are Episcopalians in the Diocese of Fort Worth, the bishop of which is a misogynist and homophobe who wants to leave the Episcopal Church. Sherrod's friend deconstructs the myth of the "faith once delivered to the saints," a common conservative formula.

Sherrod is also a member of the Texas Women's Hall of Fame, having come to prominence as a journalist.

Church of England falling apart - women bishops to be debated in Synod

The Church of England will debate whether to allow the consecration of female bishops in July.

There is already much shouting and screaming, with some predicting a mass exodus of disaffected male clergy.

The Brits are also debating what sort of provisions to make for those not in agreement with female bishops. Their Bishops are backing some sort of voluntary code of practice.

Respecting people's consciences is all well and good. However, by the same logic, couldn't a country ban discrimination against women, and still allow men to, for example, beat their wives if their consciences demanded it?

I exaggerate, of course, but it does place the church in an odd spot to consecrate women as bishops, and to make provisions for some to not accept the authority of those bishops and still be part of the church. There are limits to church unity; this sort of thing will create a schizophrenic church down the road, and perhaps it's best to make no provisions and let the misogynists leave if they choose.

Last comment on Paul Moore

I don't like to over-analyze someone's sexual behaviors in or out of marriage. However, some things do bear re-examination.

I stated earlier that Mark Sisk had missed the fact that the closet can be a place that induces people to self-destruct. Mark is, in fact, a staunch advocate for his LGBT clergy. He is likely to know how destructive the closet can be. On reflection, I doubt that he missed this. He is on 'our' side. If he weren't, I don't think he'd be elected the Episcopal Bishop of New York.

Elizabeth Kaeton asserts that Paul's actions were an open secret in the Diocese. He had been inhibited on several occasions, for the (very valid) criticisms that Mark raised in his letter to his clergy. I interpret her words at the linked post as saying: if you participated in the keeping of an open secret, don't consider yourself to be entirely blameless when the truth comes out.

Again, it is clear that God will be the final judge. And it is clear to me that the Episcopal Church must continue to let its clergy and laypeople live closet-free lives.