Wednesday, August 06, 2008

Reflections are Meant to be Broken



h/t to StandFirm

One interesting "reflection" coming from Lambeth 2008 was the "Moratoria"
From Lambeth Indaba Reflections of August 3, 2008:

"145. The moratoria cover three separate but related issues: ordinations of persons living in a same gender union to the episcopate; the blessing of same-sex unions; cross-border incursions by bishops. There is widespread support for moratoria across the Communion, building on those that are already being honoured. The moratoria can be taken as a sign of the bishops’ affection, trust and goodwill towards the Archbishop of Canterbury and one another. The moratoria will be difficult to uphold, although there is a desire to do so from all quarters. There are questions to be clarified in relation to how long the moratoria are intended to serve. Perhaps the moratoria could be seen as a “season of gracious restraint”. In relation to moratorium 2 (the blessing of same-sex unions) there is a desire to clarify precisely what is proscribed. Many differentiate between authorised public rites, rather than pastoral support. If the Windsor process is to be honoured, all three moratoria must be applied consistently."


Now this from "August 3, 2008 NY Times,
"Rebecca Anne Binder, the daughter of Dr. Martha Connell and Dr. Jack Binder of Scarsdale, N.Y., was married on Saturday to Amanda Elizabeth Laws, the daughter of Oneida Méndez-Laws and the Rev. Thomas Laws of Montclair, N.J. Ms. Binder’s father, who was authorized by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, officiated at St. John’s Episcopal Church in Charlestown, Mass., where Ms. Laws’s father, an Episcopal priest, participated in a blessing ceremony."


And this from jolly old England on August 4, 2008,
"A retired vicar has 'married' his former gardener in a civil partnership ceremony after receiving the blessing of his bishop.

The Reverend Canon Rodney Bomford, 65, and Paddy O'Neil invited friends and family to the celebration at the home they share.
The couple were said to have been given approval by the church after convincing officials their relationship was not sexual.
The union will be seen by many members of the Church of England as an embarrassment, coinciding with a call yesterday by the Archbishop of Canterbury for an Anglican rulebook to keep the Church of England and its warring sister churches together"


And lastly, Bishop Andrus' open refusal,
"In not abiding by the moratorium on same-sex blessings I take it as incumbent on me and on us in the Diocese to actively labor to both understand the position of those to whom that moratorium is important, and to convey the reality of our life together to the world. I must redouble my efforts at inhabiting a deeper unity."


Reflections are meant to be broken, but remember the 7 years of bad luck you get when you break a mirror.

8 comments:

  1. Great post!
    How about adding a YouTube video of Stevie Wonder singing Superstition?
    For example
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wDZFf0pm0SE

    ReplyDelete
  2. Or maybe I can use the comment section to add to the post as the Bishops show their "reflections,"
    For example Riazat Butt reports,

    "But Jon Bruno, the Bishop of Los Angeles, said calls to stop blessing same-sex relationships would be received with "fear and trepidation" in his diocese"

    ReplyDelete
  3. Dear Underground,

    Is all lost?

    It seems so.

    Peace,

    BG

    ReplyDelete
  4. Bill, todays psalm for the morning is Psalm 97.

    10 The Lord loves those who hate* evil;
    he guards the lives of his faithful;
    he rescues them from the hand of the wicked.
    11 Light dawns* for the righteous,
    and joy for the upright in heart.

    Where He is, there is Hope.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Dear Pewster,

    Thank you!

    Peace,

    BG

    ReplyDelete
  6. Another one weighs in, (h/t SF)

    Bishop Beckwith, on 08/07/2008 (read it here) "the spiritual leader for North Jersey Episcopalians said Thursday he will continue supporting the blessing of same-sex couples."

    And on ordaining another Gene Robinson clone he says,

    "I hope we could do this again and raise up another gay or lesbian, but there are a lot of things in play, and it is unclear."
    "That's not an issue as far as I'm concerned," Beckwith said. "We continue to ordain anyone who has a passion for ministry."

    ReplyDelete
  7. Moratoria More-a-Schoria,

    Another glass shard hits the floor,

    See it here

    h/t Matt Kennedy

    ReplyDelete
  8. Dear Pewster,

    "Not everything in a relationship is amenable to logic."

    But there is "emotion involved in it, too."

    Another great example of classic irony.

    (Is there anything less logical than a man with a man, a woman with a woman?)

    Crying on my prayer book,

    b.

    ReplyDelete