Anglicans United & Latimer Press

Although I regarded these bishops (both honourable and good men) as ‘irregularly’ consecrated, there was no question about the validity of their consecrations.

This, of course, was before 2003 when the Episcopal Church clearly signalled its abandonment of Communion norms, in spite of warnings from the Primates that the consecration of a practising homosexual bishop would ‘tear the fabric of the Communion’.

It is not too much to say that everything has changed in the Anglican Communion as a result of the consecration of Gene Robinson.

The Archbishop of Canterbury’s prerogative to invite bishops to the Conference is a lonely, personal and important task. Before each Conference a number of careful decisions have to be taken, with the focus being on the well-being of the Communion. The circumstances facing each Archbishop of Canterbury will vary according to the needs of the hour. For these reasons, I believe, that Dr Rowan Williams should not regard the advice he has evidently received that this matter is ‘fixed’ as necessarily binding on him in the very different circumstances of 2007. He and all his colleagues will be in my thoughts and prayers.

Lord Carey of Clifton

London

The criticism will come as a blow to Dr Rowan Williams, who last week attempted to placate the Church's conservative wing by snubbing the Church's first openly gay bishop.

Dr Williams announced that Bishop Gene Robinson will not be invited to next year's Lambeth Conference, the 10-yearly gathering of all the Church's 850-plus bishops in Canterbury.

But conservative leaders remain unimpressed. At least a handful of them - who represent a huge swathe of the 70-million strong Church - are still proposing to boycott the conference.

The Primate of the Southern Cone in South America, Archbishop Gregory Venables, told The Daily Telegraph: "It is a mess. Unless there is a major shift there are going to be significant absences from Lambeth."

The conservative "Global South" primates, who are mostly from Africa and Asia, are furious because they believe Dr Williams has been unduly lenient with the liberal leadership of the American branch of Anglicanism.

Many of them had expected that all the liberal American bishops would be excluded from the Lambeth Conference unless they reversed their unilateral pro-gay agenda.

The US bishops were given until September 30 by the Anglican primates to declare a moratorium on the consecration of gay bishops and same-sex blessings and to approve a "parallel" Church scheme for American conservatives.

So far the Americans have rejected the scheme and seem unlikely to fulfil the other requests. Dr Williams, who begins his extended leave on Friday, appeared to offer them unconditional invitations to the Lambeth Conference last week.

Archbishop Venables, who is a leading member of the Global South group's steering committee, said: "The fact that Gene Robinson isn't going to be at Lambeth is important. But the gesture towards the liberal American bishops is far, far more significant."

He said that although the statement issued by Lambeth Palace last week did contain a veiled threat suggesting that Dr Williams might still withdraw the invitations he had extended to the Americans, in reality it would be almost impossible.

The chairman of the Global South group, the Primate of Nigeria, Archbishop Peter Akinola, warned he may boycott Lambeth.

Archbishop Akinola was enraged that Bishop Martyn Minns, who leads a conservative group in America, was also excluded from the conference by Dr Williams last week.

The Archbishop, who consecrated the British-born Bishop Minns into the Nigerian Anglican Church, said in a statement: "The withholding of an invitation to a Nigerian bishop, elected and consecrated by other Nigerian bishops, will be viewed as withholding invitations to the entire House of Bishops of the Church of Nigeria."

British-born Dr Deirdre Good, now Professor of New Testament at a leading Anglican seminary in New York, has already caused waves in the USA with her book Jesus' Family Values, which argues that Jesus replaced his family of origin with differently configured communities and households.

You are invited to hear Professor Good, from the Episcopal Church's prestigious General Theological Seminary, at Ste Ethelburga's Centre for Reconciliation and Peace (78 Bishopsgate, EC2N 4AG) at 11am on Thursday 31 May 2007. Interviews are available immediately afterwards.

The subject is highly topical. Churches are embroiled in angry arguments about adoption, sexuality and the future of marriage. The latest British Social Attitudes survey says traditional family structures are under pressure. And the government is highlighting family policy as a major focus.

Additional information for editors
Professor Good will also be available for additional allotted (and possibly some impromptu) media interviews.
For a map of the venue, please go to http://www.streetma p.co.uk and type in the postcode EC2N 4AG. Near to Liverpool Street tube.

For further details, appointments and book review information, please contact Simon Barrow on 07904 376514 or ekklesiaeve nts@gmail.com

Refreshments will be provided. An RSVP by email would help us.

Ekklesia is a leading think-tank, founded in 2002, which promotes transformative theological ideas in public life.

Bishop Rodgers is dean and president emeritus, having served as dean of Trinity from 1978 to 1990. He is also a trustee emeritus at Trinity and a former member of the faculty at Virginia Theological Seminary.

In 2000, Bishop Rodgers and the Rt. Rev. Charles H. Murphy III were consecrated bishops for the Anglican Mission in America (AMiA), part of the Anglican Church of Rwanda. Bi shop Rodgers previously retired from active service with the AMiA.

“The board voted without hesitation to appoint Dr. Rodgers to this post,” said the Rev. Canon David H. Roseberry, chairman of the board of trustees at Trinity. “He is the perfect person to help guide our school through this transition, and he has the full support of the board and the faculty.”

Fr. Roseberry noted that Trinity has been accepting students who do not plan to pursue ordination in The Episcopal Church for more than 10 years, and the appointment of Bishop Rodgers is reflective of the multi-denominational character of the seminary alumni.

On 9th December 2006, the House of Bishops of the Church of Uganda, meeting in Mbale, resolved unanimously to support the CAPA Road to Lambeth statement, which, among other things, states, “We will definitely not attend any Lambeth Conference to which the violators of the Lambeth Resolution are also invited as participants or observers.”

We note that all the American Bishops who consented to, participated in, and have continued to support the consecration as bishop of a man living in a homosexual relationship have been invited to the Lambeth Conference. These are Bishops who have violated the Lambeth Resolution 1.10, which rejects “homosexual practice as incompatible with Scripture” and “cannot advise the legitimising or blessing of same sex unions nor ordaining those involved in same gender unions.”

Accordingly, the House of Bishops of the Church of Uganda stands by its resolve to uphold the Road to Lambeth.

The Most Rev. Henry Luke Orombi
ARCHBISHOP OF CHURCH OF UGANDA.

Akinola, Primate, Church of Nigeria (Anglican Communion) said he would lead some 122 bishops in Nigeria to stay away from the Lambeth Conference of Anglican bishops, held every 10 years, because of the failure to invite Minns.

"The withholding of invitation to a Nigerian bishop, elected and consecrated by other Nigerian bishops, will be viewed as withholding invitation to the entire House of Bishops of the Church of Nigeria,'' Akinola said.

The Director, Communication of the Church of Nigeria, Venerable Tunde Popoola, conveyed Akinola's position to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja yesterday.

Popoola said Akinola's response came on the heels of invitations sent out to more than 800 Anglican bishops asking them to attend Lambeth Conference in July and August 2008 in Canterbury, South-East of England.

Popoola said the invitation which was sent out from the office of Archbishop Rowan Williams left Minns out and no reason was given for withholding the invitation to a duly elected Nigeria serving bishop.

Meanwhile, Minns, in a swift reaction said: "It should be remembered that this crisis in the Anglican Communion is not about a few individual bishops but about a worldwide Communion that is torn at its deepest level.'' Mr Abraham Yisa, Board Chairman of CANA, who was in the U.S. three weeks ago to attend the enthronement of Minns told NAN "that Canterbury had no right to choose who goes to the Lambeth or not''.

The vote, tallied Saturday, showed 93 percent of 370 voting members approved of the plan to leave the Episcopal Church, Crippen said. It capped an ongoing period of uncertainty that began March 26 when parish rector, The Rev. Don Armstrong, and a majority of the church’s governing board, declared they were each individually leaving the Episcopal Church and the Diocese of Colorado.

Because the schismatic act was so unusual, the breakaway parish leaders said they would set up a vote to determine what parishioners wanted to do.

Armstrong has been under an ongoing investigation by the diocese of misusing hundreds of thousands of dollars in parish funds. He denies the charge and says is an act of revenge by the diocese and Bishop Rob O’Neill because of his conservative beliefs.

In a second ballot question, 78 percent of the voters declared they wanted the breakaway leadership of Grace Church to continue fighting to hold on to the church property at 601 N. Tejon St. The 135-year-old property, which occupies a city block, is now embroiled in a legal dispute with the Episcopal Church in El Paso County District Court.

Crippen said he believed the "no" votes on both ballot questions came from Grace Church members loyal to the diocese and to Bishop Rob O’Neill, even though the Episcopal loyalists had said all along that they would refuse to legitimize Armstrong’s cause by participating in the vote.

Crippen said the will of the voting majority was indisputable, "and showed clearly a very strong mandate to affirm the vestry decision of March 26 (to leave the Episcopal Church)."

The parish leaders set up a weeklong voting process which they assured parishioners would be conducted with the rigor of a municipal election. It was complete with voting booths, an official ballot, and overseen by El Paso County Clerk and recorder Bob Balink, who is also a parishioner.

In a statement Saturday, senior vestry member Jon Wroblewski called the vote the most important in the church’s 135-year-old history and said, "we have decided to remain true to the faith of our ancestors." (See link to full statement of Grace Church and St. Stephen's)

Meanwhile, the Episcopal Diocese of Colorado argues that Grace Church’s mutiny from its historic moorings has less to do with theological differences than with its decision to side with Armstrong, its rector of 20 years.

"The seizing of property rightfully belonging to the Episcopal Church is nothing more than a sadly misguided effort to restore to a position of public trust a priest who is currently under ecclesiastical indictment for the misappropriation of church funds," said Beckett Stokes, the dicoese’s communications director, in a statement.

Stokes said the voting process was illegitimate because in the Episcopal system, "parishes are not established by a vote of the congregation but only by actions taken by a diocesan convention and ecclesiastical authority." (See link to full statement of the Episcopal Diocese of Colorado)

Between 200 and 400 members of Grace Church members are estimated to be loyal to the diocese, according to Stokes. They are currently worshiping at First Christian Church, 16 E. Platte Ave.

Although the Episcopal Diocese doesn’t recognize the vote’s legitimacy, the parish’s leadership say the balloting gives them the go-ahead to bring the parish into the Convocation of Anglicans in North America (CANA), a network of conservative parishes from around the country who have left the Episcopal Church because they believe it’s strayed far from traditional Christian doctrines on sexuality and scriptural authority.

CANA is under the authority of the Anglican Province of Nigeria, one of 38 provinces - as is the Episcopal Church -- of the worldwide Anglican Communion.

Historically, the parish at 601 N. Tejon St. has been regarded as one of the largest and most influential Episcopal churches in Colorado. Both the Armstrong loyalists and the Diocese of Colorado estimate it to have about 800 regular weekly attendees, on par with St. John’s Episcopal Cathedral in Denver, the diocese’s flagship parish and home to the bishop.

Crippen said he didn’t consider the 370 votes to necessarily represent a low voter turnout or distinterest, because there may be elderly, younger members and travelers who may not have been able to participate.

However, Stokes interpreted the "no" votes and the voter turnout to possible "ambivalence" on the part of many parishioners to leave the Episcopal Church and to follow Armstrong, who remains under church investigation.

During the 9 a.m. and 11 a.m. services Sunday, Crippen said, the parish will celebrate its official departure from the Episcopal Church. In a symbolic gesture, in place of the Episcopal flag, they will fly the Anglican "compass rose" flag, a sign of the worldwide influence of the 77-million member Anglican Communion, which has its roots in the Church of England, established in the 16th century by Henry VIII.

Jackson will be installed as the bishop coadjutator of the Virginia Episcopalian Diocese on Saturday. Then a small boy living in the Jim Crow stronghold, the Very Rev. Shannon Johnston paid close attention to sit-ins and freedom rides unfolding around him, as well as resistance by bristling segregationists.

"I saw how those who stayed in the middle, and tried to keep people together and talk and understand ... set a strong example of how to build up community," said Johnston, 48, who spoke to The Associated Press from the diocese's Richmond headquarters. "That was a witness I think I've never forgotten."

The former Mississippi rector will rely on those lessons of cooperation as he steps Saturday into a new role as bishop coadjutor of the Episcopal Diocese of Virginia - the nation's largest Episcopal gathering, and a flash point in a conflict over gay rights that's shaken the faith worldwide.

Back in Tupelo, Miss., Johnston used his centrist theories to smooth congregation quibbles.

In Virginia, where the church is split between those who support gay-friendly policies and others who feel the church has flouted biblical texts, Johnston hopes to again sweep people from both sides into the peaceful middle.

"Being in the center means finding a place and the ways in which people who are on either side of an issue can come together," Johnston told The AP. "Virginia has been known for decades, if not centuries, for being just such a place."

As bishop coadjutor, Johnston will be next in line to lead the 195-congregation diocese when the Rt. Rev. Peter James Lee retires.

By church law, Lee must depart within three years of the election of a bishop coadjutor, and it must happen by age 72.

The diocese tapped the former rector of Tupelo's All Saints' Episcopal Church in January; Lee is 69.

For now, Johnston will share duties with Lee while learning the ins and outs of a diocese that's changed dramatically in the last two decades.

"We had just authorized the ordination of women eight years before, so the diocese was still getting used to the idea," Lee said, recalling his 1984 ordination as bishop coadjutor. "We've certainly gone beyond that."

A schism has split the faith since the 2003 consecration of the first openly gay bishop, New Hampshire's V. Gene Robinson. Conservative Episcopalians - mostly overseas - have called the American church's growing acceptance of gay relationships a "satanic attack" on the denomination, and organized to form a rival denomination in the U.S. under Anglican Archbishop Peter Akinola of Nigeria.

Several Virginia churches have voted to break away from the U.S. church, including two of the most prominent and largest Episcopal parishes in Virginia: Truro Church in Fairfax and The Falls Church in Falls Church.

Truro rector Martyn Minns has been tapped to lead Akinola's Convocation of Anglicans in North America.

The split is not unlike what Johnston encountered when he arrived at All Saints'.

"Anything there could be divisions about, there were divisions," said Bishop Duncan Gray III, head of the Episcopal Diocese of Mississippi.

Johnston offered unbiased and consistent guidance on matters from leadership to liturgy, Gray said. The church flourished.

"I could very easily see him function that way - with a clarity of vision - in Virginia," Gray said. "Not in an oppressive way, but just saying 'This is where we need to go.'"

Yet he's going from a 20,000-member diocese with strong roots in the civil rights era, to a 90,000-member gathering that traces its origins back to the original English settlers. In Mississippi, he wrangled one church split largely over pastoral leadership; here, he'll manage an entire diocese debating a fundamental tenet of faith.

"I do not believe that the issue is homosexuality in and of itself," he said. "I think that's the way that many tensions have come to be expressed."

Johnston pointed back to the once touchy subject of ordaining women.

"The communion found a way to stay in communion with each other," Johnston said. "It was in other words, not a deal breaker. It was agree to disagree.

"I continue to be confident that we're going to find that ability."

Johnston, who is pro-choice and rallied to have a Confederate symbol removed from the Mississippi flag, said he will also work to boost youth involvement in the faith and diversify the largely white diocese.

Sitting near a portrait of the first Virginia bishop, James Madison, Tuesday, Johnston balanced excitement over Saturday's ceremony at the Washington National Cathedral with anticipation of his new role.

"Christians and churches are at their best when we are challenged."

The design for Lambeth 2008 "is not driven by production of reports and enabling resolutions building out of the reports, and that's a significant departure from previous designs," the Rev. Dr. Ian T. Douglas, a member of the Episcopal Church's Executive Council and of its delegation to the Anglican Consultative Council, told the Episcopal News Service. "The focus here is on transformation, the building of communion and the engagement with each other, the goal of which is to equip the bishops to be more effective and faithful servants to the 'Missio Dei' [God's mission]."

The 2008 Conference has been in the news this week since the Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr. Rowan Williams, announced May 22 that a small number of bishops have not been invited to attend.

New Hampshire Bishop Gene Robinson and Martyn Minns -- the latter chosen by the Anglican Church of Nigeria to be the "missionary bishop" for its Convocation of Anglicans in North America (CANA) -- were among the bishops whom Williams did not invite. Only serving diocesan bishops, suffragans and assistants, as opposed to retired bishops, were invited.

Douglas was first named to the Conference's eight-person design group when the intention was to have both the Lambeth Conference and an "Anglican Gathering" at the same time in South Africa. Budget issues forced the postponement of the gathering and movement of the Lambeth Conference back to England, Douglas told the Executive Council in November 2006.

However, the Archbishop of Canterbury kept the design group together so that the gathering's "vision and passion" could guide the Lambeth meeting, Douglas said at the time.

"As it has been pointed out, spending that much time and money to come together to draft reports that collect dust on a shelf or pass resolutions that are simply used to divide us one from another might not be the best use of the gifts that God has given us at this time," said Douglas, who is the Angus Dun Professor of World Mission and Global Christianity at Episcopal Divinity School in Cambridge, Massachusetts. "But coming together to encounter one another and God's word, engage the hard issues at a deep level of conversation, and then be equipped to serve God's mission in the world, I think, does offer hope, possibility and new life for the leadership of the Anglican Communion."

The Lambeth Conference, so named for Lambeth Palace which has been the official London residence of the Archbishop of Canterbury since 1200, will take place July 16-August 4, 2008 at the University of Kent in Canterbury, England.

Douglas explained the anticipated design for the 2008 Conference during the November 2006 meeting of the Executive Council. The basic design has remained the same.

The last two Conferences featured four issues-related groups that developed resolutions for the entire group of bishops to consider. Instead, in an effort to equip the bishops as leaders in God's mission, the 2008 Conference will begin with groups of eight bishops from different provinces meeting in what are being called "ndaba groups" to begin the practice of encountering God's Word and encountering each other through sharing their stories and God's story, Douglas said.

The word "ndaba" is Zulu, which Douglas said can be translated as a gathering for conversation for the sake of conversation.

Groups of five ndaba groups will be combined for discussions of issues. Douglas told the Executive Council that some of those issues could well include the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), global economic justice, environmental concerns, interfaith dialogue (especially between Christians and Muslims), how to include voices not normally heard at Lambeth (such as women, young people and other parts of the laity), Anglican biblical hermeneutics, Anglican identities, the Listening Process, and "human sexuality writ large."

The bishops will also receive "very practical and hands-on opportunities" for learning about a range of mission and ministry issues, from how to develop a communications strategy for their diocese to the latest epidemiological information about HIV/AIDS, he suggested in November. Those opportunities will come by way of "self-selecting" groups, he said.

"If we can help bishops encounter one another and encounter God's word, engage the issues in a deep, meaningful way, and then be equipped and resourced to serve their vocation as church leaders, then that will be very important for the current and future Anglican Communion," Douglas told ENS.

He acknowledged that the 2008 Lambeth Conference will take place during a time of tension in the Anglican Communion.

"Now, I am not naïve. I know there will be people who will come with specific concerns and agendas," he said. "The hope and expectation is that Lambeth can be a time of encounter and deep listening across our differences for the sake of discovering the larger communion that God has already given us as Christians and as Anglican Christians in the world."

Douglas said that "bishops who choose to come to the Lambeth Conference are coming because they want to be a part of perhaps something larger than their own local experience in their diocese."

"They're coming to learn from each other and share with each other, and there will be some articulated norms as to how people will be in communion and how conversations will be facilitated," he said.

Douglas cautioned that there are misconceptions about what any Lambeth Conference is intended to be, especially the 2008 gathering. He said it is important to understand that the invitations to come to a Lambeth Conference have always been the domain of one person -- the Archbishop of Canterbury -- and that they are personal invitations to individual bishops.

"As a result, it's a gathering of bishops in communion with the See of Canterbury," he said. "That gathering of bishops is nothing more, nothing less than that. In other words, it's not some grand episcopal synod that is to effect policy for a global, unified singular Church.

"Having said that, I also emphasize it's very important for bishops to come together to take counsel as the recognized leaders of Churches of the Anglican Communion. So, I neither want to minimize the importance of it nor do I want to make Lambeth Conference something that it has never been designed to be. We need to be careful neither to make it a global episcopal synod or just another gathering of faithful Christians."

Williams, noting in his letter of invitation that the Conference "has no 'constitution' or formal powers," wrote that "the Conference is a place where our experience of living out God's mission can be shared."

"It is a place where we may be renewed for effective ministry. And it is a place where we can try and get more clarity about the limits of our diversity and the means of deepening our Communion, so we can speak together with conviction and clarity to the world," Williams wrote. "It is an occasion when the Archbishop of Canterbury exercises his privilege of calling his colleagues together, not to legislate but to discover and define something more about our common identity through prayer, listening to God's Word and shared reflection."

Douglas said that the tendency to think that invitations to Lambeth Conference are addressed to the member churches of the Anglican Communion plays into "a perception that the Lambeth Conference is some kind of legislative, global, decision-making body."

"I think that's an erroneous understanding of what the conference has been and particularly will be in 2008," he said. "Rather it's an important gathering of bishops to take counsel together, worship together, talk together to see how together they can better serve God's mission in the world. Thus, those who would want to make the Lambeth Conference some kind of legislative grand line in the sand, I think, are mistaken as to what the Conference historically has been and particularly what the 2008 Conference will be."

While some observers expected Williams to issue the Lambeth invitations after he meets with the Episcopal Church's House of Bishops in September, Douglas said there is no link between the two events.

"Some have assumed that there is link between the Primates' communiqué [issued from Dar es Salaam] addressed to the bishops of the Episcopal Church with the September 30 deadline and invitations to the Lambeth Conference," Douglas said. "If you look at the Windsor Report, the communiqués from the Primates Meetings both in Dromantine and in Dar es Salaam, and the resolutions of the Anglican Consultative Council, in fact, that link has never been made."

Douglas said he was glad that the invitations had been issued this week because it is very important to the group's planning to know how many and which bishops will be attending.

The Lambeth Design Group still has work to do before the Conference convenes, Douglas said. The group has met three times or more a year since late 2003 with each meeting lasting from Monday through Friday. There are at least three more meetings planned.

"The design is done," he said. "We have a lot of logistical questions we need to address."

Those questions range from working with the Lambeth staff to arrange rooms and transportation to looking at the topics for the expanded groups and the content for the self-selecting groups.

"We have a whole lot of filling in the blanks, if you will," Douglas said.

The other members of the group are Ellison Pogo, KBE, archbishop of Melanesia and bishop of Central Melanesia, Church of Melanesia; Ian Ernest, archbishop of the Indian Ocean and bishop of Mauritius, Province of the Indian Ocean; Colin Fletcher, OBE, bishop of Dorchester, Church of England; Thabo Makgoba, bishop of Grahamstown, Anglican Church of Southern Africa; Miguel Tamayo, bishop of Uruguay, Province of the Southern Cone, interim bishop of Cuba; James Tengatenga , bishop of Southern Malawi, Province of Central Africa; and Ms. Fung-Yi Wong, registrar, Hong Kong Sheng Kung Hui.

-- The Rev. Mary Frances Schjonberg is national correspondent for the Episcopal News Service.

The introduction to this 117-page document states that "the publication of this Cyprus Agreed Statement concludes the third phase of the Anglican–Orthodox international theological dialogue. It began in 1973...[and] the first phase of the dialogue was concluded by the publication of the Moscow Agreed Statement in 1976. The publication of the Dublin Agreed Statement in 1984 brought its second phase to a conclusion."

Episcopal Bishop Mark Dyer and Greek Orthodox Metropolitan John (Zizioulas) of Pergamon have been co-chairs of Commission and write in their preface that this statement "is offered to the Anglican and Orthodox churches in the hope that, as it is studied and reflected upon, it will help Christians of both traditions to perceive anew the work of the Triune God in giving life to His Church, and draw us closer to that unity which is His will for all the faithful."

Sections of the book are titled The Trinity and the Church; Christ, the Spirit and the Church; Christ, Humanity and the Church; Episcope, Episcopos and Primacy, Priesthood, Christ and the Church; Women and Men, Ministries and the Church; Heresy, Schism and the Church; and Reception in Communion.

Bishop Christopher Epting, deputy for ecumenical relations for the Episcopal Church, said: "I believe many will be surprised at the level of agreement reached over the years between our two families of churches. There is much to reflect upon in this little book which will be helpful to us, not only ecumenically, but within our own Anglican Communion in these days."

The statement will be offered for consideration at the 2008 Lambeth Conference of Anglican Communion bishops.

Copies are available through the Anglican Communion Office in London or the Office of Ecumenical and Interfaith Relations at the Church Center in New York.

New Hampshire Bishop Gene Robinson and Martyn Minns -- the latter chosen by the Anglican Church of Nigeria to be the "missionary bishop" for its Convocation of Anglicans in North America (CANA) -- were among the bishops Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr. Rowan Williams, did not invite. Only serving diocesan bishops, suffragans and assistants, as opposed to retired bishops, were invited.

Robinson is one of the few duly elected bishops who did not receive an invitation, but Williams will explore how Robinson could be present as a guest to the conference, according to the Rev. Canon Kenneth Kearon, secretary general of the Anglican Communion.

Robinson and Minns issued statements after learning of the decision.

Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori issued a brief statement that same day calling for "a calm approach" to the announcement and noting that aspects of the matter could change in the 14 months leading up to the July 16-August 4, 2008 gathering at the University of Kent in Canterbury, England. She said that "the House of Bishops' September meeting offers us a forum for further discussion." Williams and members of the Joint Standing Committee of the Primates and the Anglican Consultative Council will attend that meeting.

On May 23, Minns sent a letter to CANA members criticizing Williams and his decision.

He wrote that Williams "faces an impossible task -- he is confronted by two irreconcilable truth claims."

"What Archbishop Rowan has chosen to do now, however, is to ignore the underlying issue and elevate process over principle," Minns wrote. "The Lambeth Conference has been reduced to a meeting where bishops and their spouses simply gather for group bible study, prayer and shared reflection. These are significant activities but hardly justify the enormous expense of such an extended and world-wide gathering."

California Bishop Marc Andrus criticized Williams' decision on May 22 in his blog, saying "the tactic of exile and isolation has been among strongest tools of oppression against the human spirit."

"We were created to be in communion, and there is a deep-seated intuition on the part of those who wish to hem in human freedom that the best way to do this is to separate us, one from another," he wrote.

"The isolation and exile of Bishop Robinson rebukes the bright vision of the unity of the Church, and substitutes the mechanism of the diabolic, the shattering of communion and integrity," Andrus wrote. "I cannot overemphasize how important it is to meet this action on [William’s] part with the weapons of the spirit. I will be praying that my response and our response will be in solidarity with Bishop Robinson, mindful of our relatedness worldwide, full of shalom, and creative, in the manner of Jesus Christ."

Ohio Bishop Mark Hollingsworth wrote in a letter to the diocese on May 22 that Minns and the Bishop of Bolivia were in the Diocese of Ohio the previous week to participate in an ordination in Akron. Neither bishop had "sought or received my permission to perform episcopal acts within the ecclesiastical jurisdiction for which I am responsible," Hollingsworth added.

Robinson's presence at the Lambeth Conference "might be awkward or difficult for some of the other participants, but that is hardly uncommon in Christian community," he said. "There are plenty of bishops whose presence in the councils of the Church I find difficult, and doubtless plenty who find mine the same. However, Bishop Robinson, throughout his ministry, has been unfailingly honest and open, consistently establishing and maintaining trust within the diocese he has faithfully served and throughout the Church. Time and time again he has been an instrument of reconciliation and resolution."

Hollingsworth wrote that he concurred with both Jefferts Schori's "sense of patience and her hope for productive conversations with the Archbishop of Canterbury in New Orleans this autumn."

Hollingsworth, who became a bishop the same year as Robinson, is meeting with him and the other members of that class this week in a previously scheduled gathering.

"Of course we will consider this recent news thoughtfully and prayerfully...seeking not to be reactive, but faithfully responsive," he wrote.

Washington Bishop John Chane wrote in a May 23 letter to his diocese that he was "saddened" by the news that Robinson would not be invited to the Lambeth Conference in his status as Bishop of New Hampshire.

Chane wrote that Williams' failure to invite Robinson "will be a high priority in our time together" when the House of Bishops meets with Williams in New Orleans in September.

Chane wrote that the "real issue" facing the Communion is leadership.

"Until we are able to separate ourselves from our fixation on human sexuality as the root of our divisions and address the dynamics of power and leadership in the Communion, we are doomed to fail in Christ's call to engage the world in the act of inclusive love and a mission-driven theology that claims justice, the rule of law and the respect for human rights as the core of our work as a Communion," Chane wrote.

The Diocese of Utah issued a statement May 23 calling the decision to withhold invitations "an extremely rare historic occurrence" and a "very serious and sensitive matter" which left the diocese "deeply saddened and much distressed."

Noting that the Communion is "exploring how we may best listen to one another across our provincial boundaries regarding issues of human sexuality and our churchwide structures," the statement said that "to exclude any voice from our discussions is to impoverish our collective wisdom and to imperil our future as a Communion committed to the inclusion of all persons who exercise the ministry of Christ to which we are called in baptism."

The statement said the diocese finds Robinson's exclusion "deeply hurtful."

"To single him out because of his sexuality shows a regrettable lack of respect for his diocese, the process of The Episcopal Church that confirmed his consecration as a bishop, and previous calls by the Lambeth Conference and other working groups within the Anglican Communion for a time of listening which will incorporate the voices of gay and lesbian Anglicans," the statement said.

"We will continue to pray for the Archbishop of Canterbury, for Bishop Robinson and his family, and for every person who faces institutional and personal discrimination because of their sexuality," it concluded.

The statement was not posted on the diocese's website as of midday (EDT) May 25.

-- The Rev. Mary Frances Schjonberg is national correspondent for the Episcopal News Service.

Perhaps wisely, the Archbishop of Canterbury has sent invitations to every single Anglican Bishop. He does so with certain caveats. Firstly, he writes: “I have to reserve the right to withhold or withdraw invitations from bishops whose appointment, actions or manner of life have caused exceptionally serious divisions or scandal within the Communion.”

He reveals that there are one or two cases on which he is seeking advice. He continues, “...we need to know as we meet that each participant recognises and honours the task set before us and that there is an adequate level of mutual trust between us about this. Such trust is a great deal harder to sustain if there are some involved who are generally seen as fundamentally compromising the efforts towards a credible and cohesive resolution.”

The Archbishop has in mind Bishop Gene Robinson of New Hampshire, as well as Martyn Minns recently consecrated by the Archbishop of Nigeria, the ‘irregular but valid’ bishops of the Anglican Mission in America. and former Bishop of Recife who was maliciously defrocked in the Province of Brazil alongside 32 of his clergy. It could also be that Dr Williams is considering the scandalous case of Bishop Nolbert Kunonga, one of Mugabe’s cronies, who is in any case debarred from travelling to Britain because of an EU travel ban.

Another caveat in the letter is the Archbishop’s counsel to the Bishops that their invitation is not a “certificate of doctrinal orthodoxy”. He adds, “Coming to the Lambeth Conference does not commit you to accepting the position of others as necessarily a legitimate expression of Anglican doctrine and discipline, or to any action that would compromise your conscience or the integrity of your local church.”

There’s a sense in which the Archbishop is right. It’s been some years since the ordination of women introduced ‘impaired communion’ in the Anglican family. So certainly there has been some acceptance on the part of traditionalist Anglicans that they can continue to meet even with women bishops, despite the gravest doubts about the ministry and integrity of others.

However, the question some will be asking is whether it is possible to meet when there are two entirely different conceptions of Christianity.

Under these circumstances it’s pretty tough to see how the ‘trust’ that the Archbishop talks about can possibly be achieved. Last week’s reports about the ‘crisis’ at Wycliffe Hall reveals how far the erosion of trust has gone.

In nearly two decades of religious affairs reporting I’ve come across numerous situations where college communities have temporarily divided after the appointment of a new principal. A new style of leadership often causes great discomfort. Yet, there’s something fishy about the situation at Wycliffe. The anonymous document circulating at the college uses language which resonates with the wider crisis of Anglicanism. Accusations of fundamentalism and homophobia simply wouldn’t make it into even the bitterest anonymous rantings a few years ago.

I suspect that there’s less to the troubles at Wycliffe Hall than meets the eye, but more to them as well. The ongoing Anglican crisis is poisoning community relationships within Anglican churches and colleges, and leaving us with mutual suspicion and recrimination.

This signals how we need to take last Sunday’s lectionary Gospel (John 16) to heart, where Jesus prays for the unity of the Church:

“That they may be one”. And the reason for this prayer, “that the world may believe”.

In this sense the Archbishop is right to try and get all Anglican bishops together at the next Lambeth Conference, to wrestle with the issues that divide us. To walk away now before every avenue is exhausted is just not in line with Jesus’ prayer. But it must be said, to stay together in a state of constant warfare is not a sustainable option. Our Anglican crisis could go on for years.

The 2008 Conference is intended to comprise nearly three weeks of shared retreat, common worship, study and discussion. It differs from previous gatherings in that the bishops will begin the conference with a period
of retreat and reflection. It is planned that much of this retreat time will be held in and around Canterbury Cathedral.

The first set of invitations are being sent today to over 800 bishops of the provinces of the Anglican Communion. In his letter of invitation the Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams, pays tribute to the Conference Design Group whose members, led by the Archbishop of Melanesia, have, with his full support, proposed a programme with an emphasis on fellowship, study, prayer, the sharing of experience and discussion, all aimed at equipping bishops for their distinctive apostolic ministry:

"Their vision and their advice has been an inspiration at every stage so far. I am hugely excited by the possibilities the programme offers for a new and more effective style of meeting and learning, and for greater participation, which will help us grow together locally and internationally. ... it will also be an opportunity for all of us to
strengthen our commitment to God's mission and to our common life as a Communion. In connection with this latter point, we shall be devoting some time to thinking about the proposals for an Anglican Covenant, and about other ways in which we can deepen our sense of a common calling for us as a coherent and effective global Church family."

"The Conference is a place where experience of our living out of God's mission can be shared. It is a place where we may be renewed for effective ministry. And it is a place where we can try and get more clarity about the limits of our diversity and the means of deepening our Communion, so we can speak together with conviction and clarity to the world. It is an occasion in which the Archbishop of Canterbury exercises his privilege of calling his colleagues together, not to legislate but to discover and define something more about our common identity through
prayer, listening to God's Word and shared reflection. It is an occasion to rediscover the reality of the Church itself as a worldwide community united by the call and grace of Christ."

Mindful of the speculation that has surrounded the issuing of invitations to the Conference Dr Williams recalls that invitations are issued on a personal basis by the Archbishop of Canterbury and that "the Lambeth Conference has no 'constitution' or formal powers; it is not a formal Synod or Council of the Communion", and that invitation to the
Conference has never been seen as "a certificate of doctrinal orthodoxy". Nevertheless Dr Williams recognises in his letter that under very exceptional circumstances an invitation may be withheld or withdrawn. Under this provision, there are a small number of bishops to whom invitations are not at this stage being extended whilst Dr Williams takes further advice.

Other invitations - to ecumenical representatives and other invited guests - will be sent out in due course. Bishops' spouses are being invited to a parallel conference; invitations for this will be sent later in the year by Mrs Jane Williams, who is the host.

The text of the Archbishop's invitation is below:

'Dear Bishop,

I am delighted to invite you to the Lambeth Conference of 2008 and I very much look forward to our gathering together as bishops of the Anglican Communion. The dates of the Conference are 16 July-4 August 2008 and I trust you will already have heard something of the vision for the Conference as it has been unfolding. It will focus on our equipping as bishops for leadership in mission and teaching, and it will also be an opportunity for all of us to strengthen our commitment to God's mission and to our common life as a Communion. In connection with this latter point, we shall be devoting some time to thinking about the proposals for an Anglican Covenant, and about other ways in which we can deepen our sense of a common calling for us as interdependent members of the body of
Christ.

This will be my third Lambeth Conference and I am very confident of the quality of the programme being developed for it. I want to offer my warm public thanks to all those from across the world who have worked so hard
at planning this - especially the devoted Design Group under the Archbishop of Melanesia, those who attended the St Augustine's Seminar last year, and our Conference Manager, Sue Parks. Their vision and their advice has been an inspiration at every stage so far. I am hugely excited by the possibilities the programme offers for a new and more effective style of meeting and learning, and for greater participation, which will help us grow together locally and internationally.

Because there has been quite a bit of speculation about invitations and the conditions that might be attached to them, I want to set out briefly what I think the Conference is and is not.

The Conference is a place where our experience of living out God's mission can be shared. It is a place where we may be renewed for effective ministry. And it is a place where we can try and get more clarity about the limits of our diversity and the means of deepening our Communion, so we can speak together with conviction and clarity to the world. It is an occasion when the Archbishop of Canterbury exercises his privilege of calling his colleagues together, not to legislate but to discover and define something more about our common identity through
prayer, listening to God's Word and shared reflection. It is an occasion to rediscover the reality of the Church itself as a worldwide community united by the call and grace of Christ.

But the Lambeth Conference has no 'constitution' or formal powers; it is not a formal Synod or Council of the bishops of the Communion, which would require us to be absolutely clear about the standing of all the
participants. An invitation to participate in the Conference has not in the past been a certificate of doctrinal orthodoxy. Coming to the Lambeth Conference does not commit you to accepting the position of others as necessarily a legitimate expression of Anglican doctrine and discipline, or to any action that would compromise your conscience or the integrity of your local church.

At a time when our common identity seems less clear that it once did, the temptation is to move further away from each other into those circles where we only related to those who completely agree with us. But the depth and seriousness of the issues that face us require us to discuss as fully and freely as we can, and no other forum offers the same opportunities for all to hear and consider, in the context of a common waiting on the Holy Spirit.

I have said, and repeat here, that coming to the Conference does not commit you to accepting every position held by other bishops as equally legitimate or true. But I hope it does commit us all to striving together for a more effective and coherent worldwide body, working for God's glory and Christ's Kingdom. The Instruments of Communion have offered for this purpose a set of resources and processes, focused on the Windsor Report and the Covenant proposals. My hope is that as we gather we can trust that your acceptance of the invitation carries a
willingness to work with these tools to shape our future. I urge you all most strongly to strive during the intervening period to strengthen confidence and understanding between our provinces and not to undermine it.
At this point, and with the recommendations of the Windsor Report particularly in mind, I have to reserve the right to withhold or withdraw invitations from bishops whose appointment, actions or manner of life have caused exceptionally serious division or scandal within the Communion. Indeed there are currently one or two cases on which I am seeking further advice. I do not say this lightly, but I believe that we need to know as we meet that each participant recognises and honours the task set before us and that there is an adequate level of mutual trust
between us about this. Such trust is a great deal harder to sustain if there are some involved who are generally seen as fundamentally compromising the efforts towards a credible and cohesive resolution.

I look forward with enthusiasm to the Conference and hope you will be able to attend, or your successor in the event that you retire in the meantime. My wife Jane will be writing with an invitation to the Spouses Conference which will run in parallel to the Lambeth Conference. Further communication to bishops will follow soon from the Lambeth Conference Office, including details of the costs and a reply slip on which you can respond formally to this invitation. It would be a great help if these replies were received by 31 July 2007. In the meantime, should you have any queries about the Lambeth Conference itself, or if you will be retiring before the Conference, please contact the Lambeth Conference Manager at invitations@lambethconference.org or consult the Lambeth Conference website www.lambethconference.org.

I trust you and your diocese will join with me in praying for God's gracious blessing of our time together.

Yours in Christ,

Rowan CANTUAR:

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From: The Press Office - Lambeth Palace
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In front of about 50 people, the Rev. Liz Stedman, chaplain at Northwestern's Episcopal Campus Ministry, led the discussion titled "Beyond Us and Them: How the Episcopal Church's embrace of LGBT people is invigorating its proclamation of the Gospel." The event was sponsored by Rainbow Alliance as part of its series of Rainbow Week events.

Stedman, an ordained Episcopal priest and a lesbian, said the church's public acceptance of gay clergy has brought both spiritual benefits and controversy.

"The Episcopal Church is moving from a position of charity to one of identity," she said. "Rather than feel sorry for them, the problems of gay men and women are really being taken into account."

Stedman said the conflict between the Episcopal Church and other Anglican denominations began in 2003 with the selection of openly gay clergyman Gene Robinson as a bishop. Since then, disagreements over the proper position on homosexuality have divided Episcopalians in the United States and abroad.

The other panelists ranged from a doctoral student of philosophy to an NU professor of religion.

One speaker, Ruth Meyers, academic dean and professor of liturgics at Seabury, said the tolerance of gay leaders in the church reflects a change in how Episcopalians view homosexuality in the context of Christianity.

"God is at work in (homosexual) relationships," she said. "The church is coming to recognize that. That becomes a witness and a testimony to us as people of faith in the United States."

Kelby Harrison, a doctoral candidate in philosophy, said a faith must not denounce or reject homosexuals if it wants them to find it meaningful. By making a gay man a leader in the church, the Episcopalians become more inclusive toward all sexualities, she said.

"In order for gay people to feel divine, they must see themselves in the divine," Harrison said. "That gives gay people the right to think through the sacred."

Yet panelist and Music senior Katie Nakamura said she sees little consensus within the church as she prepares to become a seminary student at the Episcopal Diocese of Alabama.

"The question of ordaining gay men or women in Alabama is not a question," she said. "It won't happen."

In response to an article on the Gene Robinson controversy, Prof. Richard Kieckhefer, a panelist and chairman of NU's religion department, said he wrote a letter to The New Yorker.

"In the letter, I argued that perceptions shape reality," Kieckhefer said. "A society, which can be supportive of gay and lesbian relationships, in a way enables those relationships. All of the responses I got for the letter were positive."

One audience member, Weinberg sophomore and Rainbow Alliance executive board member Jason Eby, said the event highlighted positive developments for the gay community.

"A big part of our initiative for Rainbow Week was visibility," he said. "I think this event really took our sentiments and made them clear - that a body as large as the Episcopal Church is not only accepting but affirming the gay and lesbian community is a great victory."

In the question-and-answer session that followed the panel's discussion, Stedman said outward hostility toward different sexualities could hurt not just her church, but other churches also.

"Christianity could get stalled in Victorian notions of the body and sex and marriage," she said. "It could die, Christianity could die."

Rowe, 32, is rector of St. John’s Episcopal Church in Franklin, Pennsylvania, in the Diocese of Northwestern PA.

Rowe was elected on the first ballot from a slate of four candidates. He was elected with 64 lay votes and 29 clergy votes. An election on that ballot required 51 votes of 101 cast in the lay order and 24 of 47 votes cast in the clergy order. The election took place at Cathedral of Saint Paul in Erie, Pennsylvania.

Under the canons the Episcopal Church (III.11.4), a majority of bishops exercising jurisdiction and diocesan Standing Committees must consent to Rowe’s election and ordination as bishop.

If consented, Rowe will be the youngest member of the House of Bishops.

The consecration is scheduled for September 8.

The case has amassed numerous court filings involving 11 churches, two dozen lawyers, 107 individuals, the 90,000-member Diocese of Virginia, the 2.3 million-member Episcopal Church and the 18.5 million-member Anglican Province of Nigeria.

The Episcopal Church and its Virginia Diocese are suing 11 churches, their clergy and lay leaders for leaving the diocese last winter in order to join the Nigerian province. Since the 2003 consecration of the openly homosexual New Hampshire Bishop V. Gene Robinson, conservatives have been fleeing the denomination.

Some of the nation's top law firms are involved in the fight, including the 750-attorney firm Goodwin Procter. One of its partners, David Beers, is chancellor for the Episcopal Church. Hourly rates for partners at the firm go as high as $475, according to filings in a 2006 case in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.

The defendants are having to pony up huge amounts as well. The Falls Church, oldest of the 11 churches, has announced it will have a special collection June 10 to defray $342,576 in unpaid legal expenses.

Virginia Theological Seminary historian Robert Prichard said that in terms of the number of individuals and fair-market value of the historic properties, this may be the Episcopal Church's largest lawsuit ever.

He declined to predict the winner of the dispute. "I've got better sense than that," he said.

Circuit Judge Randy Bellows, no stranger to high-profile cases, will preside. He's the former assistant U.S. attorney who was the lead prosecutor on the "American Taliban" case of John Walker Lindh, and the investigator called upon to examine how the FBI bungled its espionage probe of Taiwanese-American scientist Wen Ho Lee.

The plaintiffs' main complaint is not that several thousand people have exited the diocese, but that they took millions of dollars of church property with them.

The suit also charges that members who wanted to stay Episcopalian -- mostly tiny minorities, but in two cases, one-quarter of the parish -- were not granted separate services on church property.

"There were people who wanted to worship as Episcopalians," diocesan spokesman Patrick Getlein says. "They were denied that. That was really quite something for the bishop and the diocese to hear, that there were Episcopalians turned out of their churches."

Leaders of the departing churches say no one has been made to leave and that the diocese has made it impossible for 21 departing clergy -- all under an ecclesiastical "inhibition" order -- to function as Episcopal priests.

Mary McReynolds, chancellor of the Anglican District of Virginia, the new ecclesiastical body for the 11 churches, said the diocese and the churches hammered out a "protocol" allowing conservatives to leave.

The diocese then appointed a property commission to look at the assets of each church and levy an amount each church must pay in order to leave. Then on Jan. 31, the diocese filed lawsuits against each of the 11 churches.

"The members of the property commission were embarrassed by this situation," she said. "It was such an about-face. It took 13 months to negotiate that protocol."

Leaders of the departing churches, she added, suspect the diocese was pressured by church headquarters in New York to fight for the property.

"The curious thing is, not only did [Virginia] Bishop [Peter J.] Lee do a 180-degree turn," she said, "but the Episcopal Church had a policy of all property matters deferring to the diocesan bishop."

Mr. Getlein said the diocese never agreed on the protocol. "It was a work product given to the [diocesan] executive board and the standing committee, but they never agreed to it," he said. "It was nothing official."

Opening briefs filed by both sides are expected to take up the summer. Oral arguments may not start until the fall.

The crux of the case is a state law that spells out that in a division within a denomination, the congregation can retain its property if a majority votes to disassociate.

The diocese's position is that the properties are owned by the trustees as long as the congregation remains Episcopal. If it leaves the denomination, it forfeits ownership.

On the basis of those statistics can I say how very pleased I am to be with you here today given that statistically speaking in about 40 years time you won't be here to celebrate your achievements and I won't be here to congratulate you upon them.

Such doomsday statistics as I believe they are, highlight that tendency to extrapolate the worst case scenario from the most celebratory of times. Just as it seems unlikely to me that there is no future for the Church when I experience the vibrancy of faith amongst the young people in our churches so it seems ridiculous to contemplate a world without newspapers as we come together to celebrate the achievements of those who have demonstrated excellence in their chosen field of the media.

Even in P.D. James' The Children of Men, the birth of a child, baptised in tears of joy, thereby overcomes years of sterility and infertility and gives real hope to the dawning of a bright future.

In his book, My Trade, Andrew Marr noted that one of the first Northcliffe Editors, Kennedy Jones, said his perfect newspaper could be contained in four words: "crime, love, money and food." If this were to be the case then the Gospel accounts of the Last Supper would certainly qualify - the crime of betrayal, the thirty pieces of silver, the bread and the wine and Christ's love for his disciples, would be not only the stuff of sermons but also that of editorials.

But Andrew Marr adds two more ingredients to Jones' recipe, that of "power" and "disaster".

Which leads me naturally to the story of a jumbo-jet that developed serious engine trouble in mid-Atlantic. The captain told the passengers and asked them permission to open the hold and dump all their luggage in the ocean. "Yes, yes, yes", they all cried. It was done.

Thirty minutes later the captain said, "We are still losing altitude. We must get rid of all your hand luggage. The cabin crew will collect them and when we have dropped to a safer height they will throw them out." "But of course", the cries went out. And it was done.

An hour later the captain said, "We still need to lose more weight. Fifty people will be safely dropped into the water with their life-jackets. This airline operates an Inclusive Equal Opportunities Policy. And we shall now put it into operation. We shall use the alphabet to guide us.

A - are their any Africans on board? Silence.
B - are their any Blacks on board? Silence.
C - are their any Caribbeans on board? Silence.

A little black boy turned to his father and said, "Dad, what are we?" The father replied, "We are Zulus!"

But it would be ill-judged to be here today and speak about the media and its achievements without also calling to mind those who cannot be here with us today - and I do not mean just those who have had to stay
in the office or go to Sedgefield to cover Tony Blair's announcement. No. Rather I mean those journalists who cannot be here because they are unwell. And we remember especially Alan Johnston, still held in captivity in Gaza.

Last week marked the fiftieth day of captivity for Alan Johnston, and on that day I was able to pray together with the clergy from the Diocese of York at our conference for Alan's safe return and release. Fifty days is a long time to be away from those you love. Speaking from personal experience, though from a totally different environment and context, the temptation to give up hope of release is always present, but the prayers and concerns of others are instrumental in being able to survive each day in captivity.

Last week also marked World Press Freedom Day, when the Committee to Protect Journalists published a worrying report highlighting those regimes whose records on arresting, jailing and even murdering journalists is quite atrocious. Countries such as Ethiopia, China, Russia, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Egypt, Pakistan and Zimbabwe have all demonstrated those totalitarian tendencies where the right to question and to criticise is met with the full force of the state's brutalising power.

To such States the response must be the words of Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights: "Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes the right to hold
opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers."

In his sermon at St. Martin in the Fields last year on World Communication Day, Tim Martin, the Director of the World Media Trust, noted that "Free societies are built on the old truth that intellectual, religious, and press freedoms are inextricably linked - and are vital for individual and community liberties to flourish. So both the faith communities and news media have a proper vested interest in ensuring each others freedoms are jealously guarded. Such freedoms don't exist for their own sake, but for the building of open communities."

One only has to look at the development of totalitarian regimes whether in the then Soviet Union, Nazi Germany or Amin's Uganda to see that in their oppression of their own peoples the state first sought to subject those independent voices of opposition, the Church, the intelligensia and the Press. For all three the desire to educate and inform according to different sets of values both feared by the state, meant an unacceptable opposition to totalitarianism.

And whilst the recent report of the Committee to Protect Journalists highlights this continuing trend in states which seek to repress journalists who question, so organisations such as Christian Solidarity Worldwide, Release International and Amnesty International continue to work for those individuals whose Christian faith has led them to be held as prisoners of conscience.

My continuing prayers for Alan Johnston's freedom are grounded in the belief that the journalistic enterprise is a noble and worthy one. As Tim Martin also noted journalism at its best is always undertaken in service of the reader, listener or viewer and in the common cause of human rights and personal liberty, and therein lies the moral
responsibility of the media. Journalists, whether imprisoned or not, deserve the supportive prayers of the faith communities and the critical solidarity of all lovers of freedom. It is also true to say that those people persecuted for their religious faith or laudable opinion deserve the attention of journalists.

The Hungarian-American newspaper publisher, Joseph Pulitzer, once remarked that the purpose of a newspaper was to "Put it before them briefly so they will read it, clearly so they will appreciate it, picturesquely so they will remember it and, above all, accurately so they will be guided by its light."

My prayer for all of you this day is that you will be guided by the light that shines in accuracy and truth. That through truth you may inform and educate and that through education and information we may together build a better society where the way of truth and the light of truth becomes valued above all else.

It's for freedom under the law that you entered into journalism. Do not give away the birthright of helping to preserve the rule of law for the very thin stew of so called "social justice" - the contents of which can
be rarely agreed upon. As guardians of the rule of law you must be at the same time, political philosophers, jurists, historical and moral theologians. And dare I suggest, biblical scholars, insofar as the issue of freedom under the law is extensively treated in the Sacred Scriptures, a solid dictum of experience which we have to take seriously
- the journalist cannot afford to ignore it.

I salute you all. Continue to be sojourners after truth. God Bless. Thank you for listening.

When Congress passed the ban in 2003, abortion supporters complained that it ignored maternal health, including mental and emotional health. Pro-lifers replied that such an exemption would be interpreted so broadly that it would negate the ban entirely. It's the proverbial truck-sized loophole.

Now pro-choicers are complaining that Justice Anthony Kennedy's majority opinion in Carhart puts too much emphasis on mental and emotional health.

"Some women come to regret their choice to abort the infant life they once created and sustained. Severe depression and loss of esteem can follow," Kennedy wrote. "It is self-evident that a mother who comes to regret her choice to abort must struggle with grief more anguished and sorrow more profound when she learns, only after the event, what she once did not know: that she allowed a doctor to pierce the skull and vacuum the fast-developing brain of her unborn child, a child assuming the human form."

Critics attacked Kennedy as paternalistic and worried that such a concern potentially negates a woman's right to abortion entirely. If Congress can ban the partial-birth procedure in order to protect women from potential grief, anguish, and sorrow, they asked, can't it use the same logic to ban other abortions? There's that truck-sized loophole again, but now the truck is driving the other direction.

In her dissent, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg similarly criticized Kennedy's ruling: "This way of thinking reflects ancient notions about women's place in the family and under the Constitution—ideas that have long since been discredited."

You might expect Ginsburg to have followed this with a passionate defense of Roe v. Wade and a woman's right to privacy. But she's no fan of Roe, either. Instead, she offered a critique of Roe's logic and an alternative.

"Legal challenges to undue restrictions on abortion procedures do not seek to vindicate some generalized notion of privacy," she said. "Rather, they center on a woman's autonomy to determine her life's course, and thus to enjoy equal citizenship stature."

Ginsburg made this argument more than two decades ago as an appeals court judge, but it's new to the Supreme Court's abortion jurisprudence. Ginsburg complained that the partial-birth abortion ban "cannot be understood as anything other than an effort to chip away" not at Roe, but "at a right declared again and again by this Court—and with increasing comprehension of its centrality to women's lives."

Ginsburg's dissent should remind pro-lifers that their target is not Roe, but the widespread view of children as a burdensome infringement on autonomy—a burden that can be acceptably lifted by killing the child, even as he or she emerges from the birth canal.

The strength of the partial-birth abortion ban is that it works toward changing that view. As Ginsburg correctly noted, "The law saves not a single fetus from destruction, for it targets only a method of performing abortion." But it has already changed the conversation about abortion, horrifying even the pro-Roe Kennedy with the procedure's near equivalence to infanticide. Hadley Arkes suggested in National Review what may come "once legislators get used to legislating again": government encouragement of pre-abortion sonograms, bans on gender-based and disability-based abortions, perhaps eventually a ban once the child's heart is beating.

Carhart, "a decision so narrow, so begrudging and limited, may invite a series of measures simple and unthreatening, but the kinds of measures that gather force with each move," Arkes said.

Such a strategy is often called "chipping away." But these laws are really about creating, not destroying. Ginsburg's dissent shows that Roe has few supporters left. The question is: What will replace it? Absolute personal autonomy? Or justice and mercy?

Copyright © 2007 Christianity Today.

The event marked the first Family Day in Italy, convoked by 450 family and Christian associations as part of a campaign to defend heterosexual marriage in the face of proposals to give legal recognition to same-sex couples. The proposal would not, however, legalize homosexual "marriage."

The event drew an unexpectedly large crowd. Organizers estimated that nearly 1.5 million attended the event, reported the Associated Press.

The theme of the day was "More Family." Signboards visible in the square said "Family, an invention of God," and "Family, hope of the world."

The rally counted on support of various Catholic lay organizations and movements, Christian churches and associations, and representatives of the Jewish and Muslim communities of Rome.

The demonstrators were entertained by singers, speakers and a brief video featuring Pope John Paul II.

In the final address of the rally, Giovanni Giacobbe, president of the Forum of Family Associations, said: "We are here today to make the voice of Italian families heard with more force."

Savino Pezzotta, a spokesman for the day, said that the rally is not meant to divide the country or stir up conflict.

He added: "Here there is no manipulation of religion, but neither is religion prohibited from illuminating the consciences of people -- believers or nonbelievers.

"For a believer faith is not irrelevant to the construction of society."

There has never been a known case of an orthodox rector, either Evangelical or Anglo-Catholic, who stood at the church door on any given Sunday morning and asked people, as they came through the doors, if they are gay or straight, what their sexual proclivities are, and then refuse entrance when told they were homosexual.

It is has never happened. Had there been such a case, it would have made the national news. One can see the headline: EVANGELICAL EPISCOPAL RECTOR BARS GAYS FROM CHURCH.

You have never seen it and never will. Orthodox priests have never barred anyone from coming to church. Only on very rare occasions have homosexuals been denied Holy Communion by an orthodox priest. I have seen with my own eyes, Dr. Louie Crew, the church's leading sodomite, receive Holy Communion from the Rt. Rev. Bob Duncan (Network Moderator) in the cathedral in Pittsburgh. The two men do not agree but Duncan has never denied the Eucharist to Crew who is free to damn himself.

It is statements like Smalley's, along with the statement that they are inclusive bishops ministering in an inclusive church to anybody, that are attempts to make them look good and make the rest of us look bigoted.

Inclusiveness is the new buzzword of liberals and revisionists. It is a deliberate attempt to make orthodox folk appear to be exclusionary, fundamentalist and homophobic when, in point of fact, they are teaching and preaching what The Church teaches about human sexuality. It is not the orthodox who have moved away from Holy Writ; it is liberals and revisionists.

This misuse of language must be seen for what it truly is - a watering down of the church's teaching on sexuality, the open embrace of sexual sin, and a fundamental denial that Jesus, Paul, the Early Church, and the Church Fathers all spoke decisively and with extreme clarity about how we should behave with our bodies.

The leadership of the Episcopal Church has affirmed its inclusion of active non-celibate gay and lesbian members and rejected the demands of conservatives to turn back from their wicked ways. This is not the doing of the wider Anglican Communion. It is the fault of those like Bishop Smalley who will not repent and would rather watch the church dry up and die before they ever admitting they are wrong. Bishop Charles E. Bennison has said as much to his people in Philadelphia. He doesn't care if the church dies it will somehow be reborn looking like Spong's Twelve Theses.

Smalley raises a second issue that "Everyone is welcome in our church. We are an inclusive church and welcome anyone..."

When has an orthodox rector ever made anyone feel unwelcome? The truth is; I have been to gay-friendly churches that, when they have learned who I was, have made me feel very UNWELCOME. Inclusivity applies to homosexuals and lesbians, but lo and behold, if you dare suggest that you have another point of view, (straight white male who believes sex is reserved for a husband and wife in marriage) it is you who are made to feel unwelcome.

Smalley's statement tries to make orthodox folk feel like bigots for not being inclusive of sexual sin.

It never cuts both ways. Louie Crew once advocated that "Inclusion" signs be put outside all those Episcopal parishes in the U.S. affirming sodomy. By implication, he was saying that those who would not put out such signs were homophobic and not inclusive. This is neither fair nor accurate.

The truth is orthodox folk have never denied entrance to any one. What they have said, and will continue to say, is that the issue of sexuality is an issue of proscribed behavior, not the denial of persons. They also say, and will continue to say, the church's message is come as you are, but not stay as you are. Come a sinner (all are sinners, no exceptions) and find salvation. That is the church's message. If it changes, there fundamentally is no message. The Episcopal Church will not be saved by a combination of Millennium Development Goals and affirming (LGBT) sexual sin.

Smalley then makes a third point: judgment. He said, "Judgment belongs to God." Indeed it does. Ministers of the gospel don't necessarily judge persons. In truth the church must judge how we live and call us to repent. Finger-pointing fundamentalist preachers are a lot closer to the mark than those like Smalley who would excuse certain behaviors based on a faulty premise that God winks and nods at how we behave.

The Pope is presently in Brazil blasting abortion as morally unacceptable. He is not pointing the finger at those who do abortions although he has said they are excommunicating themselves by performing them. On the basis of Smalley's worldview the pope is not inclusive of women's feelings and their right to do with their bodies as they please. The Pope should shut up. The Roman Catholic Church has also said homosexuality is a "morally disordered" behavior. I have never heard the Pope or a priest say that homosexuals were not welcome in the church. Neither have orthodox Episcopal priests.

Ultimately judgment is left to God.

It is interesting to note that Marcus Hyde was charged with a hate crime for throwing a pie at the Rev. Don Armstrong. The Police blotter said he "was passing judgment on Father Armstrong for his fellow parishioners."

So who is passing judgment on whom? Have you ever read of an orthodox priest or lay person throwing a pie at V. Gene Robinson? Of course you haven't. The orthodox go into their closets to pray for Robinson's conversion.

The giant fiction perpetrated by Robinson and Griswold at Robinson's consecration in New Hampshire was that they both needed to wear bullet proof flak jackets for fear of being shot, (presumably by a fundamentalist Episcopal priest). Admission to the auditorium required an official invitation and a level of personal bodily examination that exceeded going through an airport. (My wife could not join me and had to sit in our car the whole time.)

When Nigerian Archbishop Peter Akinola defied the top bishop of the Episcopal Church and the Archbishop of Canterbury by installing his own bishop on U.S. soil this past week, he blamed "insulting and condescending" Americans for the continuing controversy embroiling the Anglican Communion. When Frank Griswold met the African Primates he commented that they (the primates) will catch up to us when they understand homosexuality better. That is judgment pure and simple.

Mrs. Schori recently said she understands that some people feel that the primates' recommendations are a "hard and bitter pill for many of us to talk about swallowing." She also said that worldwide attitudes about the inclusion of gay and lesbian people are changing and "I don't expect that to end. We're being asked to pause in the journey. We are not being asked to go back. Time and history are with this Church."

False. Time and history might be on the side of culture and certain failing mainline liberal Protestant denominations, but it is not on the side of the church. There are as many as 80 million Evangelicals in this country who do not that believe sodomy is good and right in the eyes of God. Their voices are rarely if ever heard by the liberal mainstream media because they have been deemed homophobic and not inclusive.

Goring the ox of orthodox clergy and laity has become the sport of liberal and revisionist bishops like Bishop Smalley and Mrs. Schori. In time it will catch up with them. September 30 is the deadline. We will see then just how "inclusive" liberal and revisionist bishops feel when they are told that their day is done in the Anglican Communion. Being united around Millennium Development Goals and sodomy will not be enough to save the Smalley's and Schori's of this world or The Episcopal Church.

Hosted by Honduras Bishop and Province 9 president Lloyd Allen, the visit will highlight the commitment of local Episcopalians and ERD supporting primary health care initiatives, food security programs, and in addressing the HIV/AIDS pandemic in Honduras, one of the Central American nations with high rates of infection. These initiatives serve more than 200,000 people, leaders say.

"Our diocese is looking forward to welcoming our new Presiding Bishop," Allen said. "We hope that the visit will give her a chance to observe first hand the vitality of the ministry being carried out by our people for our people, and how they are able to accomplish so much in our diocese, a local context that, it is fair to say, is far removed from the domestic American experience of the Church. While it is being reported that membership is declining in some dioceses, in ours, and in fact, in all of Province 9, our church is growing fast."

The visit will emphasize "the effectiveness of the outreach programs being carried out with ERD's support, our vast needs and the scarcity of our resources," Allen said. "We hope the visit will encourage increased support for our ministry among the neediest."

While in Honduras, Jefferts Schori and Radtke will visit Siempre Unidos, the Diocesan HIV/AIDS project supported by ERD, will hear a presentation by the Anglican Agency for Development in Honduras (AANGLIDESH), and observe the Copan Health Infrastructure Project.

On Sunday, May 13, Jefferts Schori will preside and preach during a Eucharist at the Catedral del Buen Pastor, San Pedro Sula, Honduras. This will be the first time since her 2006 election as Presiding Bishop that Jefferts Schori will celebrate Eucharist in one of the dioceses of the largely Latin American and Caribbean Province 9 of the Episcopal Church.

The Presiding Bishop said she is very much looking forward to the visit, which will reflect the importance of achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) to reduce poverty, hunger and preventable disease, and to protect the environment, among other efforts.

The MDGs are a good frame for the Anglican Communion's mission and ministry because they are "real evidence of what it means to love your neighbor as yourself," Jefferts Schori has said.

"They are concrete images that people can wrap their minds around," she added. "They are a specific way of addressing the Gospel challenge to care for our neighbors. They're achievable in our own day if we have the will to do it and, increasingly, this church is vested in that."

"This will be my first visit to Honduras to observe programs there," said ERD's Radtke. "I am pleased that the Presiding Bishop and I will have a chance to see first hand the result of the hard work the Diocese of Honduras is carrying out as they work towards achieving the Millennium Development Goals. ERD's partnership with the people of the Diocese and the Bishop are among our oldest and best established and we look forward to learning more about their many accomplishments."

Episcopal Relief and Development is the international relief and development agency of the Episcopal Church of the United States. An independent 501(c)(3) organization, ERD saves lives and builds hope in communities around the world. ERD's programs work toward achieving the Millennium Development Goals, providing emergency assistance in times of crisis and rebuilding after disasters, enabling people to climb out of poverty by offering long-term solutions in the areas of food security and health care, including HIV/AIDS and malaria.

In order to follow our Canons, it is necessary to re-convene the Diocesan Convention of November 2006, which according to the minutes was recessed, not adjourned. This means that the delegates from the November 2006 Convention are still in place. The date for convening this Convention is June 9, 2007. At that Convention, it will be necessary to suspend Rule 21; because it would require an entirely new election process duplicating the process we used in the first election. Rule 22 gives us the authority to suspend the Rule 21 by a 2/3 vote. After its suspension, the Convention can then call for an Electing Convention. This would then require our congregations to elect new delegates for this Convention. The former Electing Convention cannot be re-convened. It was called for the purpose of electing a Bishop for the Diocese, and this work was done.

The re-convened convention of 2006 will also be asked to affirm the appointment of Wade Logan as Diocesan Chancellor as required by the Canons. Due to reasons of health, Mr. Eugene N. Zeigler has resigned as Chancellor of the Diocese. He will remain as Chancellor until the Convention approves a new Chancellor.

This Electing Convention will then be convened later in the summer of 2007 for the purpose of re-electing Fr. Lawrence. This date will be announced when the Electing Convention is created.

Following the election, the Standing Committee will implement an intensive effort to receive the consents during the 120 day period. Since a majority of Standing Committees intended to approve in the first election, the Standing Committee has a clear field in which to work.

This process will allow a consecration date to be set so that when consents are in, we may proceed to consecrate Fr. Mark Lawrence as the 14th Bishop of South Carolina.

Yours faithfully,
Edward L. Salmon, Jr.
Bishop of South Carolina XIII

Rickel, 43, rector of St. James' Episcopal Church, Austin, Texas, was elected on the third ballot from a slate of five nominees. He was elected with 224 lay votes and 106 clergy votes. An election on that ballot required 185 votes of 369 cast in the lay order and 104 of 207 votes cast in the clergy order. The election took place at St. Mark's Cathedral, Seattle.

"It's a hot day in Austin," Rickel said via cell phone after his election was announced. "We're looking forward to being with you all in the Diocese of Olympia. The blessings we received while we were with you on walkabout we carry with us today."

Under the canons the Episcopal Church (III.11.4), a majority of bishops exercising jurisdiction and diocesan Standing Committees must consent to Rickel's election and ordination as bishop.

The consecration is scheduled for September 15, 2007 at Meydenbauer Center in Bellevue, Washington.

Rickel will succeed Vincent W. Warner, 66, who will retire at the time of the consecration after 18 years as diocesan bishop.

Three nominees -- the Rev. Richard A. Burnett, the Rt. Rev. Bavi Edna (Nedi) Rivera and the Rev. Angela Shepherd -- withdrew after the second ballot. The complete ballot results are available here.

Since 2001, Rickel has been rector of St. James', "an inclusive, multicultural community" and historically African-American Church started in east Austin in 1941. He has been a consultant for the Stewardship Office of the Episcopal Church Center in New York since 1997. He has consulted in Texas, Mississippi, Arkansas, Alabama, Michigan, Oregon and Kentucky as well as in other denominations on topics such as initiating comprehensive stewardship programs, working better as a team, diversity, communications and evangelism. Rickel has been married to his wife, Marti, for 22 years and they are the proud parents of Austin Morris, age 11.

Minns wants his convocation to replace a U.S. Episcopal Church that he and other conservatives oppose for its acceptance of Gene Robinson, an out gay man, as bishop of New Hampshire and for allowing the blessing of same-sex unions by some dioceses. But Minns has attracted just 30 of the 7,000 Episcopal congregations to their convocation thus far, the New York Times reported.

Rowan Williams, archbishop of Canterbury and leader of the worldwide Anglican Communion, including the U.S. Episcopal Church, tried to dissuade Akinola from his incursion into American Church politics as did Katharine Jefferts Schori, the presiding Episcopal bishop. But Williams and his fellow primates have given Schori until September 30 to end the practices conservatives object to or risk expulsion from the wider Communion.

Several U.S. bishops have already indicated that they will not go along with the anti-gay ultimatum.