#GC78: General Convention round-up for July 1st
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Today began the seventh day of business at the General Convention (GC), but it was far from a day of rest.
The biggest item came near the end of the day, when the House of Deputies (HoD) passed a pair of canons related to marriage equality in the church. A054 and A036 had already passed the House of Bishops (HoB) earlier in the week and if the HoD concurred, they would be fully approved.
A054 was a resolution approving a trial rite for marriage. As it stood until today, the only marriage rite approved for use was the one in the Book of Common Prayer (BCP) which was written and worded with the assumption of a man and woman marrying one another. This resolution also approved rites originally created prior to the 2012 GC, “I Will Bless You and You Will Be a Blessing.”
A key section of A054, unlike the 2012 resolution, was to not allow a diocese by diocese application but stipulated that all bishops would need to make efforts to provide the rites for any couple that asked; “Bishops exercising ecclesiastical authority or, where appropriate, ecclesiastical supervision will make provision for all couples asking to be married in this Church to have access to these liturgies.” What this may mean in practice is unclear as Bishops still decide how it will be used. Examples offered in earlier HoB debate was contacting priests in neighboring dioceses to lead the ceremony.
A036 changed the marriage canon (the church’s laws) to eliminate gendered language, thus opening the meaning of marriage to include all couples.
Each of the motions engendered impassioned debate from opponents and supporters, and in both cases the vote was taken by orders, which means that the lay deputies and the clergy deputies from each diocese vote as a bloc. This allows a record of how each deputation voted, similar to the roll call vote in the HoB.
In the end, it wasn’t even close, with both resolutions passing by overwhelming margins. Understanding the gravity of the decisions taken, voting was punctuated by prayer and the deputies did not react to the results with celebrations and Twitter was filled with tweets to calling for graciousness in response, no matter how one felt about the decision.
In other business, the HoD also continues its work on resolutions pertaining to changing the structure of the governing bodies of the church. First up was A004, which was a complete restructure of Executive Council (EC) which serves as the board which governs the church between GC’s. According to the resolution’s own explanation, it would “implement TREC’s proposals to reduce the size and enhance the effectiveness of the Executive Council while retaining the Council’s balance of Orders and Provincial representation and promoting a constructive framework for shared decision-making. Adoption of these changes would result in a more nimble and accountable governing structure to undergird the mission of the Church between General Conventions.” Several amendments were offered, but all were eventually defeated.
Next up was A006, which would dismantle the current Standing Committee and Continuing Board structure and replace it with only two Standing Committees of the church; Structure, Governance, Constitution and Canons and Liturgy and Music. Other issues would be handled by Task Forces whose remit would expire. An amendment was offered to add a third Standing Committee on Mission, but it was defeated, and the resolution passed easily.
The third structure resolution for consideration today was D013, which redefines the budget process calling for close cooperation between the EC and the Budget and Finance committees. This change actually is meant to document the process created after the budget debacle at the 2012 GC which has been being refined in the past three years. This one too passed easily.
There was also a joint meeting of both houses to discuss the draft budget. Key items presented were a reduction in the diocesan asking assessment, which would not be voluntary. Enforcement seems unclear, but one mechanism discussed was blocking grants and assistance to dioceses not paying the 15% without a waver, though that requirement wouldn’t take effect until 2019. Deputies seemed unhappy that amounts voted on in resolutions for church planting and Mission Enterprise Zones were less in the budget. Also concern was expressed about amounts for Youth formation. Expect substantive debate and amendments when the budget comes up for a vote.
An historic day for the Episcopal Church, but GC has more work to do. You can follow along on Twitter at @episcopalcafe.
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This comment is from David Dale, but got lost in our comment queue somehow so we are posting on his behalf - Editor
You have done a great service to the Catholic community. By forcing American priests to marry LGBT couples against their will in many cases, as in England, which is where the head of your church exists, you will add to the growing number of Catholics (who are seeing a rise in individuals seeking confirmations from your church into the Catholic church). So many of us are not against but actually are for civil unions of LGBT couples but to sanctify such a union with a priest within the church itself is not right. Period.
Shame on the American Episcopal Church, and thank you for we will have many converts headed to the Catholic church which is an institution that is actually going to have to distance itself from your church now that this has taken place...Your church has shown its colors and how it is easily swayed by public opinion. The Catholic church is the true reflection of the word of God and what your church has done in America, not in England, will be devastating to your community.
David Dale, I need to make sure that you understand that no priest in the Episcopal Church is being forced to marry same sex couples against their will.
David,
First a little clarification on the polity of the Episcopal church. The head of our Church isn't in England, but in New York. The Archbishop of Canterbury is head of the Church of England and the lead Primate in the Anglican Communion. The Communion, of which the Episcopal Church is a member, is a confederation of 38 separate churches who share a tradition and are in full communion with the Archbishop of Canternbury. The Archbishop isn't like the Pope, his authority stops at the borders of England (he's not even in charge in Wales)
Second, there's no such thing as an American Episcopal Church. There is an Episcopal Church which is in the US, but it also has dioceses in places like Taiwan, Haiti, Honduras, Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic, etc. It's a bigger church than just the U.S.
As to the substance of your comment, there has long been fluidity between the Roman and Anglican churches and it is a busy road in both directions. If you have some specific source of statistics, please share. But if all you can offer is personal experience let me share that my experience is that many Catholics leave their church and join the Episcopal Church because they are unhappy about things like divorced people being refused communion, the inability to recognize the leadership gifts of women, and, of course, the church's stance on GLBTQ issues.
I suspect that given that its been 12 years since the first openly gay bishop was elected (elected by the people BTW, not appointed by some far away prelate) that most people who were so adamantly opposed to inclusion of GLBTQ person have largely either made peace or sadly left that I do not expect a mass exodus.
Dear Episcopal Cafe: I'd ask for a bit more honesty in the description offered of the Cafe. Cafe writers states that the site is not devoted to advocacy but then goes on to indicate that the Cafe is rooted in Progressive Christianity. Dear friends: Progressive Christianity is Not a neutral or "objective" viewpoint. If you will, keep the Progressive but please: don't lead readers to believe that this viewpoint is advocacy-free. A little honesty is in order.
No media is value free or unbiased, here at the Cafe we're willing to own our biases and try to be up-front about that. You know from where we're looking when we post our stories. What we seek to avoid is advocating for any particular organization or political action. We share what we think is important, but shy away from telling you to think the same.
So is there any way to see how the deputation from a particular diocese voted?
It'll be in the journal released after convention, but not officially posted before that. Many deputations have posted their actions, especially on Twitter.
Thanks be to God for Marriage Equality in the Episcopal Church!