Jesuit priest Thomas J. Reese, Senior fellow at the Woodstock Theological Center and former editor of the Catholic weekly magazine America, has thoughts on the California Supreme Court decision on same sex marriage and the efforts to put the issue on the ballot:

The California Supreme Court, like the Massachusetts Supreme Court, has ruled that the state constitution requires that the state recognize same-sex marriages. The court specifically said that churches would not be required to perform such weddings.

Many, even some who support gay marriage, believe that this was an unwise decision on the part of the court. California already allowed domestic partnerships with most of the rights of married couples. By rejecting what had been a political compromise, the court has made it inevitable that a state constitutional amendment will be put on the ballot in California. The amendment will not only overturn the decision but may also eliminate domestic partnerships.

I agree with those who believe that the California Supreme Court’s decision was unwise, but I would oppose a constitutional amendment that would forbid gay marriages. I believe that this issue should be dealt with by state legislatures, not by the courts or referendums.

Homosexual relationships exist in American society in not insignificant numbers. Even if you consider such relationships immoral, it can be argued that the state has an interest in encouraging these relationships to be stable and long term rather than multiple and short term. State legislatures are used to coming up with compromises that are acceptable to most of the people. They can also return to legislation to adjust it based on experience and future circumstances.

Some argue that gay marriage is a threat to marriage as a heterosexual institution. I have never understood this argument. In an apartment building filled with unmarried couples, both gay and hetero, if all the gay couples got married, it would seem to me that their example would inspire the heterosexuals to think about marriage. I would prefer to reserve the word “marriage” to heterosexuals, but I don’t think it is worth fighting over.

I think it is foolish for churches to expend their political capital opposing the legalization of gay marriage. There are many other issues of greater importance: abortion, hunger, global warming, peace, health care, etc. Pro-life churches and organizations should especially be suspicious when gay marriage is given more prominence as an issue than abortion. Money and resources that would have gone to pro-life work are being siphoned off to oppose gay marriage.

Read it all here. As you might expect, these comments have not been well received by more conservative Catholics such as Richard Neuhaus.

The American Association for the Advancement of Science recently released this very interesting video, which features Dr. Francis Collins and AAAS CEO Alan Leshner discussing the compatibility of science and religion, including a focus on evolution.

Washington Post columnist Michael Gerson (with whom we often disagree on the issues now dividing the Anglican Communion) had a column this week that makes a challenge to the religious right. It responded to those who assert that the Gospel opposes government programs for the poor:

"Common sense and the Scriptures," argues Sen. Tom Coburn, "show that true giving and compassion require sacrifice by the giver. This is why Jesus told the rich young ruler to sell his possessions, not his neighbor's possessions. Spending other people's money is not compassionate."

It is not my purpose to pick on the senator from Oklahoma (once again); he is a man of principle. And he is merely restating a fairly common view: that compassion is a private virtue, not a public one, and that religious conscience concerns the former and not the latter.

But this is a theological assertion, not a political one. And as theology, it is flawed.

It is true that Jesus was not a political activist; he joined no party and issued no Contract With the Roman Empire. But it is a stretch to interpret his personal challenge to the rich young ruler as a biblical foundation for libertarianism.

The Jewish tradition in which Jesus lived and taught demanded that just rulers make a minimal provision for the poor, including no-interest loans and the distribution of agricultural commodities. (Look it up: Exodus 22:25-27 and Deuteronomy 24:19-21.) The apostle Paul held a high view of government's role in promoting justice and urged the willing payment of taxes -- a biblical demand more severe, for some of us, than all those sexual prohibitions. And Jesus's followers, fanning out along Roman roads, eventually expressed strong views on slavery, infanticide and the debasement of women -- political views that followed naturally from their belief in a radical equality before God.

The great evangelical reformers of the 18th and 19th centuries -- from John Wesley to William Wilberforce to Lord Shaftesbury -- certainly believed that the teachings of Jesus had implications for enslaved Africans and children toiling in mills. Shaftesbury, a lifelong Tory, focused in Parliament on the plight of the mentally ill, on young chimney sweeps who often died of testicular cancer, on the 30,000 homeless children of Dickensian London. One biographer wrote of Shaftesbury: "No man has in fact ever done more to lessen the extent of human misery or to add to the sum total of human happiness."

This, one assumes, is a historical judgment a conservative politician would covet.

. . .

Private compassion cannot replace Medicaid or provide AIDS drugs to millions of people in Africa for the rest of their lives. In these cases, a role for government is necessary and compassionate -- the expression of conservative commitments to the general welfare and the value of every human life.

For millennia, artists, thinkers and politicians have shaped their image of Jesus, often into a mirror image of themselves. But the goal of Christianity is to allow Him to shape us, not the other way around. And just as Jesus the leftist revolutionary is a distortion, so is Jesus the libertarian.

Read it all here.

The Religion News Service reports new evidence that tithing is on the decrease, which is affecting churches of all types:

A recent poll by pollster George Barna shows that only 5 percent of Americans say they tithe, or give at least 10 percent of their income to religious congregations and charitable groups. According to other studies on church giving, congregants give an average of 2.58 percent of their income to their churches. That's down from 3.11 percent of their income in 1968, according to studies published by Empty Tomb, a ministry that studies church finances.

"Tithing is in decline," said the Rev. William Hull, a research professor at Samford University and a Baptist minister. "The older generation was taught to tithe. It's not being taught very much any more."

In addition to evidence of a drop in charitable giving, churches also appear to be losing "market share" to other charities:

Decades ago, the church was a focal point of philanthropy. Now parachurch ministries, schools and charitable agencies compete for those dollars, he said.

"The church has been losing market share," said Sylvia Ronsvalle, executive vice president of Empty Tomb. "That concerns us. There could be a crisis in the very heart of the church."

Many major mainline denominations are suffering budget shortfalls. "The churches don't get enough money to send on to headquarters," Hull said.

Read it all here.

From Bishop Jerry Lamb:

I received great news three days ago from the office of the manager of the Lambeth Conference [Sue Parks]. The e-mail says "we are expecting you at the Lambeth Conference". I was wondering when the invitation would arrive or even, some days, if it would ever come to Jane and me. Well, it is here and we are making plans to attend....

I am pleased to be going, but I am more pleased because this a clear sign from the Anglican Communion that the Episcopal Diocese of San Joaquin is the only Anglican Diocese in all of inland Central California. I received this invitation because I am your Bishop and, therefore, entitled to attend the Lambeth Conference as the Bishop of the Diocese of San Joaquin recognized by the Archbishop of Canterbury.

Read the rest. Has former Bishop Schofield's invitation been sent? Retracted?

Today the Café begins a week-long examination of the St. Andrew's draft of the proposed Anglican Covenant. On each of the next five days, a member of the Episcopal Church's House of Deputies will discuss a section of the proposed covenant on Daily Episcopalian.

A study guide from The Executive Council of the Episcopal Church is also available.

In today's installment, Tobias S. Haller considers Section One of the covenant.

Related stories:

Christian Century describes the work of the Rev. Troy Perry, founder of the Metropolitan Community Church and a former Pentecostal minister, who worked over four decades to establish legal and religious rights for gays and lesbians before the California Supreme Court decided to give the "right to marry" to same-sex couples.

The idea of legal marriage for gays was too politically volatile in the mid-1990s for the MCC to make it a priority issue. But by early 2001, Perry and his church were fully committed to the fight. Perry and his longtime partner, Phillip Ray De Blieck, were legally married July 16, 2003, at an MCC congregation in Toronto.

"Today the California Supreme Court legally recognized our marriage," Perry, 67 and now retired, exulted on May 15, saying that "our marriage is equal in the eyes of the law to all other marriages."

A sociologist of religion who has studied the MCC movement credited Perry's leadership for the changes. "He has had the audacity and the tenacity to claim for gay and lesbian people the religious and civil rights that most Americans have the privilege to take for granted," said Steven Warner, professor emeritus at the University of Illinois-Chicago and immediate past president of the Society for the Scientific Study of Religion.

Warner said the movement led by Perry was "reformist" in seeking change and "conservative" in affirming the value of "two conservative institutions—the church and marriage." Many people in the gay community say "nuts to marriage" and reject all churches as homophobic, he said. But Perry and other plaintiffs "don't want to overthrow marriage; they want to be part of it."

While the recent California Supreme Court ruling opens the way for marriage for gay and lesbians, the issue is not resolved as opposing groups seek to change California's constitution.

Churches are not required in the ruling to perform same-sex unions, but each denomination will have to figure out how to apply their teachings in light of it. Some denominations came out four-square against the ruling, such as the Roman Catholic Bishops in the state. Others are finding ways to implement it.

The United Church of Christ, which joined a brief in the California case, approved overwhelmingly in its 2005 convention a resolution supporting legalization of same-sex marriages. Bill McKinney, president of the UCC-related Pacific School of Religion in Berkeley, said the seminary "celebrates this historic decision."

Episcopal priest Susan Russell, the national president of the gay-advocacy group Integrity, indicated that supporters for gay union rites should raise these issues at the 2009 triennial Episcopal General Convention in Anaheim, California. She told Episcopal News Service that it is time for the church to "be as prophetic as the state of California has been."

Bishop Jon Bruno, who heads the Los Angeles Episcopal Diocese, said the court decision resonates with the church's baptismal vows to strive for justice and respect for all. "To paraphrase St. Paul," Bruno said in a May 15 statement, "there is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, gay nor straight in Jesus Christ our Lord."

Read the rest here.

While Archbishop Gregory Venables was predicting the end of the Anglican Communion as we know it, a former Bishop of the Anglican Church of Canada now licensed by Venables describes how he went about picking his new primate.

Bishop Donald Harvey, formerly of the Diocese of Eastern Newfoundland and Labrador, said that

“We did talk to a couple of primates of different colours,” but, according the Anglican Journal, Archbishop Venables was willing to take on the job because of his connections with other primate and because he "brings few cultural barriers and no language limitations."

In the same article, Venables says that his vision of a post-Anglican Communion world is a federation of parishes, dioceses and provinces who gather across geographical lines linked by common interests.

“We’re no longer living in a world where everything is done locally,” Archbishop Venables said. “The church is a little late in coming to that.” Instead of insisting on geographical church provinces, “hopefully, this will be resolved so we can realign or restructure so everyone can follow their concerns.”

Imagine a church where what where we only worship and pray with the people just like us.
Imagine a Church comprised of voluntary networks linked by doctrine. Or culture. Or race.

Read: Anglican Journal: Venables predicts end of Anglican Communion

The ministry division of the Church of England has released a report indicating that as many as half of the current parish clergy are unable to cope with the demands of ministry.

The Sunday Telegraph reports:

A survey of diocesan bishops found that one-third believe that more than half of current clergy - as many as 6,000 - are unable to cope with the demands of the job.

In addition, 90 per cent of the bishops believe that a third of the new intake of clergy do not have the necessary gifts and abilities.

One bishop, who is unnamed, offers a damning verdict on the ability of priests entering the Church.

“Most candidates have little or no skills in working co-operatively, or knowing how to share, as distinct or delegate, ministry,” he says.

“Truthfully, it is deeply depressing. Egotism rules. Contemporary worship is feeble, 'sweet’, and leads no one to the Majesty of God.”

Dave Walker summarizes blog responses to the report, which generally question either the methodology of the report or the quality of some bishops.

More discussion may be found at Thinking Anglicans.

What do you think? How does one evaluate the preparation and the quality of the work of clergy (including bishops) in a way that is both descriptive and useful?

Bishop Jane Holmes Dixon was on CNN-Europe discussing the recent Vatican decree that any Roman Catholic participating in the ordination of a woman would be automatically excommunicated.

While not discussing the particulars of Roman Catholic teaching or discipline, she describes the experience of women in the Episcopal Church and some of the theology behind our understanding of ordination that leads our Church to accepting the ministry of ordained women.

See it here.

The Anglican Church in Canada wants to have a video present wrapped and ready in time for Christmas. Anglican congregations all across Canada are being asked to sing "Amazing Grace" on Sunday, November 23rd and to record it on video. Gathered videos will be put together and posted on the web.

The idea behind the Amazing Grace Project is simple: all Canadian Anglican congregations are invited to sing the hymn “Amazing Grace” on Sunday November 23rd 2008. You can sing at a time that works for you, either within the regular service or at a separate event that day. This is a time to get creative! Why not host an Amazing Grace community party, or invite a harpist, a banjo player, or liturgical dancers to join in?

The best part about the Amazing Grace Project is that we’re doing it together. All parishes are encouraged to videotape their rendition of “Amazing Grace” and to send that video to the national office of the Anglican Church of Canada by December 1, 2008. The tapes will be edited together into one big, amazing “Amazing Grace” video and put up on the web for all to enjoy by Christmas.

Some groups have already been recorded, according to the Anglican Journal.

“While filming at native gatherings, I often feel the Holy Spirit right there,” said Anglican Video senior producer Lisa Barry. “It felt like that this time – that the Holy Spirit was lifting this project up.” After the meeting, a group of staff and committee members inspired by the idea started making plans.

Already, national indigenous Bishop Mark MacDonald and the Council of the North bishops have taped their renditions of the well-known hymn. These can be seen on the Amazing Grace Web site, which can be accessed via the Anglican Church of Canada Web site as of mid-May.

See The Amazing Grace Project.

Read more at the Anglican Journal: 'How sweet the sound' of Anglicans on YouTube'

The lawsuit against John-David Schofield, deposed bishop of the Diocese of San Joaquin, seeking recovery of diocesan real estate and financial assets, has been amended to add Merrill Lynch and the "Anglican Diocese Holding Corporation" as defendants.

"The main reason for the amendment is that we have obtained information that John-David Schofield has actually been transferring both real property and investment accounts (the latter held by Merrill Lynch) to non-Episcopal entities, including specifically a new corporation known as the Anglican Diocese Holding Company," said Heather Anderson, an attorney with the Goodwin Procter law firm based in Washington, D.C.

The San Joaquin diocese, along with TEC, sued Schofield and several Episcopal legal entities that he asserts the right to control on April 24 "to establish who is the true incumbent of Corporation Sole, which owns most of the real estate of the diocese and accounts such as the investment fund and trust fund" containing more than $4 million in cash, diocesan chancellor Michael Glass told a gathering in San Joaquin on May 31.

He said Merrill Lynch was named as a defendant because it "is the institution which holds the accounts for the diocese. We are working with Merrill Lynch, even though they are a defendant," he said.

On the subject of attendance at the Lambeth Conference, The Living Church reports John-David Schofield has been invited to the conference.

“Bishop Schofield received and accepted his invitation to Lambeth shortly after the invitations were first issued,” Canon Gandenberger said. “Shortly thereafter he received the study material common to all the bishops.”

Canon Gandenberger said he had no knowledge of any further correspondence from either Archbishop Williams’ office or the Lambeth planning committee.

The Lead previously reported on the invitation sent to Bishop Jerry Lamb, the current provisional bishop of San Joaquin.

Episcopal News Service reports Province I President Marge Burke has announced two initiatives for prayer and dialogue during this summer's Lambeth Conference of bishops, meeting July 16-August 3 in Canterbury, England. Province I is made up of Episcopal dioceses in the Northeast of the United States.

One initiative is for Province I bishops to hold two gatherings during the Lambeth Conference to introduce New Hampshire Bishop Gene Robinson to other bishops from around the Anglican Communion and to create a forum for dialogue. These receptions are for bishops only and will not be open to the public.

The other activity will be:

a prayer vigil ... to support the 12 bishops in the province's seven dioceses (Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Western Massachusetts and Vermont) while they are at the once-a-decade gathering.

"I feel it is very important that our bishops know their sisters and brothers back home are offering themselves to God through prayer, on their behalf," Burke said.

The Rt. Rev. Barbara Harris, retired bishop suffragan of Massachusetts, wrote the prayers, which are available on the Province I website. The prayers are appropriate for use by congregations as well as individuals. Burke said she hopes the prayer will be used in all congregations in the province on the Sundays during Lambeth, and at weekday services, Bible study and prayer groups. Two specific times are suggested to pray each day: 7 a.m. Eastern (12 noon in England) and noon Eastern (5 p.m. in England).

A reminder to check out the essays on the Covenant on Daily Episcopalian this week here.

The bishops of the Church of the Province of Central Africa have issued a pastoral letter on the crisis in Zimbabwe. In the letter released by the Anglican Communion News Service (ACNS) the bishops write:

We the Bishops of the Anglican Church of the Province of Central Africa,
comprising Botswana, Malawi, Zambia and Zimbabwe, "called to share in Jesus' work of sanctifying and shepherding his people and of speaking in God's name". As shepherds of our people we are deeply concerned and dismayed at the escalation of violence in Zimbabwe since the post election of 29th March 2008.

We are alarmed that a government can perpetrate irresponsible acts against its citizens by destroying people's homes, torturing and killing for the simple reason that they did not vote "correctly". We fear that the Presidential Run-Off elections on 27th June 2008 could witness a repeat of retribution of those who would have not voted "correctly".

As bishops our mission has been and will be to preach the gospel of peace and justice for all. Therefore we are distressed at what the people of Zimbabwe are experiencing in an environment devoid of any resemblance of justice and peace.

We call upon the perpetrators of these immoral and criminal activities to respect the rule of law which safeguards and preserves human life and dignity. The reports that people are being maimed, killed, and denied decent burials, paints a contrary picture to our African understanding of Ubuntu.

All these point out to the leadership of these perpetrators that they have lost a sense of nationhood.

The Independent UK reports outrage at the arrival of President Mugabe of Zimbabwe at the United Nations meeting on the international food crisis.

President Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe is back in Rome, staying in five-star accommodation for the duration of a United Nations food summit while his people starve as a result of his disastrous farm policies.

Complete letter follows below:

Read more »

Police are investigating three threatening telephone calls received by an immigrant advocacy group in Montgomery County, Maryland, including a voice-mail message that warned one official that he could be shot for "being stupid and helping illegals." According to the Washington Post:

One was left in a voice mail to [the Rev. Simon] Bautista on a Washington number he uses for his work as the Latino missioner of the Episcopal Diocese of Washington (DC). "Don't be surprised when there's a [expletive] bullet in the back of your [expletive] brain," the caller said, according to a recording made available by CASA staffers.

Leaders of the World Jewish Congress (WJC) have endorsed a call by King Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz of Saudi Arabia for more dialogue between Jews, Christians and Muslims worldwide to reinforce common values among the Abrahamic faiths. Ecumenical News International reports:

"It is the duty of all religions to restore respect for humanity," the WJC said in a statement on 27 May. "Such an initiative demonstrates optimism that dialogue involving representatives of different faiths can help the peoples of the world during difficult times. Discussion can help in finding ways to approach the crisis of ethical values facing our societies."

In March, while speaking at a conference in Riyadh on culture and religion, King Abdullah said, "The idea is to ask representatives of all monotheistic religions to sit together with their brothers in faith and sincerity to all religions as we all believe in the same God."

The king was referring to three Abrahamic or monotheistic faiths - Christianity, Islam and Judaism - which are said to account for more than half of the world's population.

In other interfaith news Ekklesia reports:

An interfaith television game show, believed to be the first in Britain, in which Buddhist, Christian, Hindu, Muslim and Sikh contestants compete against one another for cash prizes is to be broadcast weekly from the London studios of the Islam Channel from mid-June 2008 - writes Martin Revis.

The producer of the show says that two teams of four will answer rapid and multiple choice questions testing both general and religious knowledge, posed by the Muslim comedian Jeff Mirza. There will also be a home-or-away round in which contestants can answer questions on their own faith or the opposing team's for further points.

Abrir Hussain, who is producing the show called "Faith Off", told Ecumenical News International, "I wanted to do something to promote good relations and bring a new approach to the interfaith debate other than that of the usual consultative round table format."

A new web site for Bonnie Anderson, President of the House of Deputies is available at the Episcopal Church's online presence. In her welcome statement Anderson says:

General Convention meets once every three years, but the work and ministries of the deputies continue throughout the triennium. On these pages, you can keep up with my ministries on behalf of the House of Deputies and hear from other deputies about their ministries. Whether a deputy or not, I hope you will find useful information on these pages. This website is a place that will continue to inform you about how the House of Deputies carries out its unique role in empowering all of us to continue to live into our Baptismal Covenant.

Click here to explore the offerings for all the members of The Episcopal Church.

Story from Episcopal News Service is here

The fourth annual conference of the American Friends of the Episcopal Church of the Sudan took place in Chicago last weekend. The gathering brought together the many partnerships between American and Sudanese dioceses and congregations. These missionary partnerships proclaim Christ in both the Sudan and in the United States and is a signal about how shared mission in Christ's name can overcome the differences between the two cultures. These relationships both save lives and transform them.

Recently enthroned Archbishop Daniel Deng Bul spoke about how after two decades of civil war, Sudan is enjoying "relative peace" following the signing of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) in January 2005 between the Government of Sudan, based in the north, and the people of southern Sudan. Although the political situation in the country is very fragile, he reported that hundreds of thousands of refugees displaced by the war are starting to return home.

The conference participants came from around the Episcopal Church, representing dioceses and congregations with companion relationships with the Episcopal Church of the Sudan (ECS) and those seeking to explore new relationships. One quarter of those attending were Sudanese refugees now living in the United States.

And...

A significant part of the conference was devoted to the "nuts and bolts" of companion relationships in Sudan. A series of plenary and small-group sessions provided an opportunity for those already involved in Sudan to share experiences and resources that can lead to effective partnerships. This included the sharing of some remarkable success stories.

Following trips to the Diocese of Kajo Keji in southeastern Sudan by Bishop Paul Marshall, Connie Fegley and others beginning in 2002, the Pennsylvania-based Diocese of Bethlehem launched the "New Hope Campaign." Most of the funds raised will go to building schools and the Canon Benaiah Poggo College. The campaign has now exceeded its $3.6 million goal and is now striving for a $4.1 million dollar "stretch goal."

Fegley, speaking on behalf of Marshall, said the project and the diocese's relationship with the church in Sudan has been exhilarating and energizing. She also noted that Bethlehem has "the same diversity in issues" that other diocese have, but that the mission work in the Sudan "has helped to knit us together."

"Many people believe this is the most vital aspect of our diocese," she said.

And

Throughout the conference, given the fragile state of peace and the intense humanitarian need in Sudan, there was a constant theme: take action now. Many presenters said that the Episcopal Church in the Sudan is turning to the Episcopal Church in the United States, with its vast resources, for help at a crucial time.

Jackie Kraus reminded participants that Deng has said that help is needed more now even than in time of war.

"The American church needs to listen to the cries of our brothers and sisters in Sudan," said Kraus. "We need to give of our resources and become the foundation so they can become self-sufficient."

Episcopal Life Online: American Friends of Sudan hear challenge to act for peace, basic human needs

Lionel Deimel covers a forum on realignment held in the Diocese of Pittsburgh:

What was striking was the contrast, particularly in the question-and-answer period, to the dialogue that took place at a similar meeting in the same space. One of the aforementioned district meeting (that for District VII) was held at St. Andrew’s. It, too, was well attended and was similar in format, though the presentations were even more weighted in favor of realignment. The audience was almost uniformly opposed to this point of view—only one of the questions could be considered at all sympathetic or neutral—and the session became progressively more acrimonious as it wore on, with questioners angrily hurling charges and posing questions designed to embarrass the presenters.

The mood on June 1, however, was one of resignation to some sort of division of the diocese. The first question, in fact, was about whether there is a way to part gracefully. The consensus was that there likely is not, an answer disputed by no one. Some perfunctory words were said about being gracious to one another and possibly sharing projects and resources, but the words seemed to lack conviction.

Perhaps most surprising was the absence, both in the initial presentations and in the subsequent questions, of discussion related to the canonical or legal propriety of realignment. There was little concern expressed for the effect realignment might have on the Anglican Communion, and no talk at all of the likely effect on The Episcopal Church. These concerns had seemingly become irrelevant, as if everyone was part of a Greek tragedy, and no one had control over his or her fate.

Via epiScope:

In a letter to the Episcopal Church, Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori has called for a day of prayer for the Lambeth Conference.

June 4, 2008
To the people of The Episcopal Church:

As we move toward a great gathering of bishops from across the Anglican Communion, I call this whole Church to a Day of Prayer on 22 June. The Lambeth Conference represents one important way of building connections and relationships between churches in vastly different contexts, and reminding us of the varied nature of the Body of Christ. I would bid your prayers for openness of spirit, vulnerability of heart, and eagerness of mind, that we might all learn to see the Spirit at work in the other. I bid your prayers for a peaceful spirit, a lessening of tension, and a real willingness to work together for the good of God’s whole creation.

As many of you know, the Anglican Communion is one of the largest networks of human connection in the world. Churches are to be found beyond the ends of paved or dirt roads, ministering to and with people in isolated and difficult situations. That far-flung network is the result, in part, of seeds planted by a colonial missionary history. The fruit that has resulted is diverse and local, and indeed, unpalatable to some in other parts of the world. Our task at the Lambeth Conference is to engage that diverse harvest, discover its blessings and challenges, and commit ourselves to the future of this network. We must begin to examine the fruit of our colonial history, in a transparent way and with great humility, if we are ever going to heal the wounds of the past, which continue into the present. With God’s help, that is possible. I ask your prayers. I can think of no better starting place than the prayer for the Church (BCP p 515):

O God of unchangeable power and eternal light: Look favorably on your whole Church, that wonderful and sacred mystery; by the effectual working of your providence, carry out in tranquility the plan of salvation; let the whole world see and know that things which were cast down are being raised up, and things which had grown old are being made new, and that all things are being brought to their perfection by him through whom all things were made, your Son Jesus Christ our Lord; who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.

I remain
Your servant in Christ,
+Katharine Jefferts Schori

NYT:

Hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of Zimbabweans — orphans and old people, the sick and the down and out — have lost access to food and other basic humanitarian assistance as their government has clamped down on international aid groups it says are backing the political opposition, relief agencies say.
...
Zimbabwe’s president, Robert Mugabe, speaking on Tuesday at a United Nations food conference in Rome, accused nongovernmental organizations of interfering in politics and contended that the West had conspired “to cripple Zimbabwe’s economy” and bring about “illegal regime change.”

“Funds are being channeled through nongovernmental organizations to opposition political parties, which are a creation of the West,” he said. “These Western-funded NGOs also use food as a political weapon with which to campaign against government, especially in the rural areas.”

On Friday and Monday, representatives of aid groups were summoned by administrators in four districts and instructed to cease all work in the field until a bitterly contested presidential runoff was held on June 27 between Mr. Mugabe, in power for 28 years, and the opposition leader, Morgan Tsvangirai.

Zimbabwe's opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai was detained Wednesday at a military roadblock, a day after President Robert Mugabe suspended the work of foreign aid groups on which hundreds of thousands of Zimbabweans depend for food. In what appeared to be an acceleration of repression ahead of a presidential run-off election on June 27, Mugabe's challenger was "unlawfully detained" at a checkpoint north of Bulawayo, a spokesman for the opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) told TIME.
...
Foreign ministers from Britain and Australia branded as "obscene" the fact that Mugabe was attending a food summit while so many Zimbabweans were on the bread-line as a result of his policies.

Tiseke Kasambala, a Zimbabwe expert at Human Rights Watch, added that the government's suspension of independent aid operations was merely a tactic to influence the upcoming vote by leaving it up to the government to allocate food. The suspension of aid could have immediate effect on the millions of Zimbabweans who rely either entirely or partly on it for their daily bread. Unemployment stands at 80%, the inflation rate is more than 100,000%, and average life-expectancy is in the mid 30s. "The decision to let people go hungry is yet another attempt to use food as a political tool to intimidate voters ahead of an election," said Kasambala. "President Mugabe's government has a long history of using food to control the election outcome."

ELO:

Merrill Lynch has frozen the financial accounts it manages for the Episcopal Diocese of San Joaquin until the courts decide the rightful owner of those accounts, an attorney for the financial institution said June 3.

"Merrill Lynch has placed an immediate freeze on those accounts held in the name of the Diocese and related entities," according to Eric J. Glassman of Mennemeier, Glassman & Stroud, in a letter to diocesan chancellor Mike Glass, and to Russell VanRozeboom, who represents former bishop John-David Schofield.

The San Joaquin diocese, along with The Episcopal Church (TEC), on June 2 amended an earlier lawsuit against Schofield, "on the basis of new information gathered about recent transfers of real and personal property and assets to entities formed by Mr. Schofield and his attorney sometime in early April of 2008," Glass said.

According to the amended complaint, Schofield had been transferring real property and investment accounts into a non-Episcopal entity called the Anglican Diocese Holding Company. The holding company was also added as a co-defendant in the June 2 amended complaint.

The original lawsuit, filed April 24 in Fresno County, seeks to recover from Schofield control of the diocese's "Corporation Sole," which holds title to most of the real estate of the diocese along with liquid assets valued at between $4-5 million in cash, as well as other diocesan entities such as the Diocesan Investment Trust.

Merrill Lynch has frozen the accounts indefinitely until the Court issues a ruling on these issues. This freeze will not affect any of the Episcopal Diocese of San Joaquin's assets, accounts or operations.

The Diocesan Office in Stockton, California announced that it is seeking an arrangement with Merrill Lynch that would allow staff purportedly working for Mr. Schofield to continue to be paid in hardship cases.

Robert F. Kennedy was killed 40 years ago today, on the day he had won the California primary.

On April 4, 1968 -- the day of the assassination of Martin Luther King -- he made an extemporaneous speech in a poor, black district of Indianapolis. In it he said,

For those of you who are black and are tempted to be filled with hatred and mistrust of the injustice of such an act, against all white people, I would only say that I can also feel in my own heart the same kind of feeling. I had a member of my family killed, but he was killed by a white man.

But we have to make an effort in the United States, we have to make an effort to understand, to get beyond these rather difficult times.

My favorite poet was Aeschylus. He once wrote: "Even in our sleep, pain which cannot forget falls drop by drop upon the heart, until, in our own despair, against our will, comes wisdom through the awful grace of God."

What we need in the United States is not division; what we need in the United States is not hatred; what we need in the United States is not violence and lawlessness, but is love and wisdom, and compassion toward one another, and a feeling of justice toward those who still suffer within our country, whether they be white or whether they be black.

Archbishop of Canterbury, News:

During the discussions church representatives from around the globe, including Iraq, Lebanon, Nigeria, Malaysia – alongside those from Western countries where Christianity is the majority religion - shared their experience of engagement.
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A great emphasis was placed on the need to ensure that the results of these encounters were more widely disseminated and influenced the education and formation of young people. The Archbishop agreed to take forward further work, particularly in response to A Common Word.

The Consultation began with a meeting of the consultant scholars on 1 June and continued, with church representatives and under the chairmanship of the Archbishop, for a full day on 2 June. The Consultation took place at Church House, Westminster and concluded with the participants being welcomed at Evensong in Westminster Abbey followed by a reception and dinner at Lambeth Palace.

The Consultation was resourced by a group of more than 20 scholars from Africa, Asia, Australia, Europe, UK and USA. The church representatives represented the full denominational spread of Christianity with the majority of the leaders addressed in A Common Word sending representatives and including a large number representing churches in countries where Christians are in a minority.

Paul Eddy, a lay member of the General Synod, said his Private Members' Motion [on the missionary role of clergy] should have been on the agenda at next month's meeting in York as more than 100 other members had supported it including three bishops.

He believes it has been shelved because it would have shown up wide divisions in the Church over its attitude to converting believers in other faiths, at the same time as it faces schisms over the appointment of women bishops and homosexuality.

The debate would have taken place just 12 days before the once-a-decade summit of Anglican bishops, the Lambeth Conference. It would have piled more pressure on the embattled Archbishop of Canterbury, who earlier this year sparked a storm by claiming some parts of Islamic law would be adopted in Britain.
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A spokesman for the Church of England insisted the debate on the missionary role of clergy had only been dropped because the other Private Member's Motion had more signatures.

He said: "Owing to time constraints, the Business Committee has been able to schedule only one such motion for July, on the subject of Church Tourism, which heads the list in terms of the number of signatures from members."

USA Today:

Six in 10 Americans say the government should not regulate whether gays and lesbians can marry the people they choose, a survey finds. As same-sex couples line up to get marriage licenses in California on June 17, the USA TODAY/Gallup Poll found that 63% of adults say same-sex marriage is "strictly a private decision" between two people.
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After Massachusetts legalized same-sex marriage in 2004, 11 states voted on similar questions.

But these poll findings "suggest caution" to conservative activists who think this will mobilize voters, he says. "People were warned, with lots of overheated rhetoric, about the consequences of gay marriage in Massachusetts. They didn't see it affect their own lives. Now, most people have let loose a collective yawn about the issue."
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A majority of respondents at every level of education and income say same-sex marriage is "strictly private." This was true:

• In every region: East (71%), West (64%), Midwest (63%) and South (56%).

• Among all ages except "65 and older": 18 to 29 (79%), 30 to 49 (65%), 50 to 64% (62%) and 65 and older (44%).

• Among people who also say they have a favorable view of any of the three leading presidential candidates. For those holding favorable views for John McCain, 55% say marriage is a private decision; for Barack Obama, 75% say so; and for Hillary Clinton, 69% do. All three oppose same-sex marriage. Both Democrats both favor civil unions.

The Eldorado Hills Telegraph has a story on how the California ruling affects churches, or not:

Area churches are divided on whether they face an ethical issue around discrimination after a court decision struck down California’s anti-gay-marriage law.

Folsom residents interviewed tended to support churches’ legal exemption from the May 15 ruling, which is binding on civil marriage only. State Supreme Court justices ruled the California Constitution’s equal protection clause prohibits discrimination against same-gender couples.
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Exemption for churches from the ruling May 15 ruling is based on the doctrine of separation of church and state, and a church's status as a non-public institution.

The doctrine of separation of church and state, and a church’s status as a non-public institution, combine to base an exemption for churches from the ruling.

Residents’ support of the exemption was guarded and in some cases tinged with irony.

“A church is the one place you can get by with discrimination,” said Rich VanDusen.

Rescue Baptist Church Pastor Gene Harmon said his church’s no-gay-marriage policy finds sufficient ethical grounding in Biblical scripture. He noted his church doors are open to all people for worship.

“I’d say it is moral not to allow same-sex marriage,” Harmon said. “The word of God has the final word.”
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Brian Baker, dean of the cathedral at Trinity Episcopal Church in Sacramento, noted that no area Episcopal church can decide for itself on the marriage issue.

“We’re part of the Diocese of Northern California, and the bishop doesn’t allow same-sex marriage,” Baker said. “In Roman Catholic churches, the decision would come from a higher ministerial -- the pope.”

Baker said denominations vary in considering “paramount” either of two of Jesus Christ’s outstanding human or quasi-divine virtues -- purity and compassion.

“I disagree there’s no moral issue around discrimination,” Baker said.

Rescue Baptist Church’s Harmon said, “My calling from God says compassion cannot enter.”

Thomas Bartlett of The Chronicle of Higher Education writes:

One of the seven million people who watched the National Geographic documentary was April D. DeConick. Admittedly, DeConick, a professor of biblical studies at Rice University, was not your average viewer. As a Coptologist, she had long been aware of the existence of the Gospel of Judas and was friends with several of those who had worked on the so-called dream team. It's fair to say she watched the documentary with special interest.

As soon as the show ended, she went to her computer and downloaded the English translation from the National Geographic Web site. Almost immediately she began to have concerns. From her reading, even in translation, it seemed obvious that Judas was not turning in Jesus as a friendly gesture, but rather sacrificing him to a demon god named Saklas. This alone would suggest, strongly, that Judas was not acting with Jesus' best interests in mind — which would undercut the thesis of the National Geographic team. She turned to her husband, Wade, and said: "Oh no. Something is really wrong."

The Anglican Communion has been keen to insure that conservative Episcopalians have "alternate" episcopal options that allow them to minimize contact with liberal bishops. But to date, Rowan Williams, Tom Wright and company have shown no such pastoral sensitivity to liberal church members in conservative dioceses--or, for that matter, to gay Christians in provinces that actively persecute them. Bishop Michael Smith of North Dakota, however, understands that accommodation is a two way street. He writes to his diocese:

June 4, 2008

Dear Friends:

*I beg you to lead a life worthy of the calling to which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, making every effort to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace *(Ephesians 4:1-3).* *

I am pleased to announce that Bishop Carol Gallagher has accepted my invitation to assist in providing episcopal pastoral care in the Diocese of North Dakota. She has agreed to reach out especially to congregations and clergy who feel alienated and hurt by me due to different understandings of human sexuality. I am most grateful for Bishop Gallagher's assistance. .... View her blog at mamabishop.blogspot.com.

We find ourselves in the midst of a discernment process, seeking the mind of Christ, about whether the Holy Spirit is leading us to new understandings of human sexuality or not. As this discernment continues through the canonical processes of The Episcopal Church and the conciliar processes of the Anglican Communion, I urge patience, kindness and respect in our dealings with one another. I also pray our energies will be focused on
engaging the mission of the church as we are sent into the world to serve the poor and to share our faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. I am,

Yours in Christ,

+Michael Smith

From The Washington Post

The nation's campaign to get more teenagers to delay sex and to use condoms is faltering, threatening to undermine the highly successful effort to reduce teen pregnancy and protect young people from sexually transmitted diseases, federal officials reported yesterday.

The new figures renewed the heated debate about sex-education classes that focus on abstinence until marriage, which began receiving federal funding during the period covered by the latest survey and have come under increasing criticism that they are ineffective.

"Since we've started pushing abstinence, we have seen no change in the numbers on sexual activity," said John Santelli, chairman of the department of population and family health at Columbia University. "The other piece of it is: Abstinence education spends a good amount of time bashing condoms. So it's not surprising, if that's the message young people are getting, that we're seeing condom use start to decrease."

Proponents of abstinence programs dismissed the criticism, blaming "comprehensive" sex education that emphasizes contraceptive use.

"Contraceptive sex education does not provide practical skills for maintaining or regaining abstinence but typically gives teens a green light to activity that puts them at great risk for acquiring STDs or which serve as gateway-to-intercourse activities," said Valerie Huber, executive director of the National Abstinence Education Association.

Others blamed the onslaught of movies, books, advertising and cultural messages that they say glamorize sex.

"The No. 1 movie that all teenage girls want to see right now is 'Sex and the City,' " said Charmaine Yoest, a spokesman for the Family Research Council. "Our culture continues to tell them the way to be cool is to dress provocatively and to consider nonmarital sexual activity to be normative."