THE WINDSOR REPORT:
IMPORTANT STUFF, BUT "EASY DOES IT, NOW
Please note the announcement on the front of this newsletter about my special "Rector's Forum" on Sunday the 16 (7:00 pm) which will be a presentation on the Windsor Report. This document was written by the Lambeth Commission on Communion. The Archbishop of Canterbury established the Commission in October 2003 at the request of the Primates of the Anglican Communion. Essentially, there are two broad issues at stake, which have produced strong divisions among the various Anglican Churches throughout the world. For most people, the primary issue (and the most controversial) is the nature and place of homosexuality in the life of the Church— specifically, the consecration of a gay man to be Bishop of New Hampshire and the authorization by the Diocese of New Westminster (Anglican Church of Canada) of a public Rite of Blessing for same sex unions. But the Commission is specifically clear that a second issue is just as pressing: bishops who involve themselves in Provinces other than their own to perform episcopal ministries without the incumbent bishop's consent. This second issue is related to the controversies over homosexuality, but in fact it is much broader and it actually precedes the actions of New Hampshire and New Westminster. At first, this may seem to be less weighty and important (e.g. for those who believe that truth is being compromised), but make no mistake—a bishop's right of oversight for a diocese has been a fundamental principle for the Church's theology and order since the second century.
The Commission's mandate was to explore the problems being experienced as a result of these two basic issues and to present findings and recommendations which would encourage ongoing communion among Anglicans all over the world. The Commission was neither asked nor authorized to pronounce judgment on sexuality issues. Rather, the report was to consider "ways in which communion and understanding could be enhanced where serious differences threatened the life of a diverse worldwide Church" [from the
Report's Foreword}. My Rector's Forum will summarize the content of the Windsor Report and will present the Commission's recommendations.
I have been most disappointed (but not at all surprised) that there are many across the national Episcopal Church, including persons in our own Diocese, who have jumped to the fore in order to put their own highly-slanted spin on the Report. This has been done by those both "Left" and "Right" who are quick to point out aspects which agree with their own agendas but then ignore other points that challenge them. Some liberals (for want of a better word) who don't like much of what the Report has to say have gone so far as to dismiss the Commission's authority and the Report's value. Some conservatives (ditto above) have raced to promote the Windsor Report as an indictment that requires immediate legislation and disciplinary actions. What is needed is not such reactivity but a mutual respect and openness that will allow discussion to produce some perspective. I insist that the answer will not come from one of the two "sides" but rather will be found in the Center. This is not to say, "anything goes," but argues that the two sides are themselves the problem!
Be sure to read Bishop Gray's article in the January 2005 issue of the Mississippi Episcopalian about the Windsor Report and his decisions regarding how the Diocese of Mississippi will proceed. You'll also find Presiding Bishop Griswold's letter (enclosed with this newsletter) to be both interesting and insightful. Remember—easy does it! The bottom line is (as the Report begins), "What do we believe is the will of God for the Anglican Communion?" That kind of discernment will require steady minds and hearts and the unwavering conviction that Emmanuel—"God With Us"—is indeed present to us all. Most of all in our faithfulness, we need not fear.
In Christ,
Shannon+
