In the spirit of “Singing a New Church into Being,” as those of us who attended the just-completed General Convention in Indianapolis promised to do, we designate today Festivus Inverted, a day for gracefully letting go of grievances, writing ’em down on little slips of virtual paper, gathering all that paper in the middle of a virtual field and setting the whole pile ablaze.
We have an opportunity to begin this triennium with a clean slate, if we can all agree to forgive each other for wounds inflicted intentionally and unintentionally in the legislative cycle we just completed. Maybe we can go a step further and reach out to folks whom we typically disagree with, about one issue or another, and thank them for some specific aspect of their ministry.
In that spirit, I’d like to thank the Communion Partner bishops for the dignified statement they released in Indianapolis after the General Convention approved a trial liturgy to bless same-sex relationships. Regular readers won’t be surprised to learn that I don’t agree with the statement, but I appreciate the grace and discipline required to issue such a direct, yet measured piece of writing in the wake of a difficult (even if long anticipated) legislative defeat.
If you’d like to contribute to the bonfire, please leave a comment.
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Regarding the General Convention’s resolution B005 to form a task force to continue engagement with and study of the proposed Anglican Covenant process and not to give a definitive Yes or No answer at this time, because The Episcopal Church isn’t ready to do so, I listened and I heard.
So, I’ll be gearing up to join the study at Executive Council, and if dioceses are also asked to join the study, I’ll gear up for that also as a diocesan leader. I will participate fully, continue to listen, and help hold the space open for ongoing dialogue. Being in community means submitting to communal discernment even when one has held a different point of view. Pax cum nos omnes.