From The Living Church-As a 12-member task force begins studying whether Christian marriage will incorporate same-sex couples, observers say it’s not certain what the panel’s report will ultimately recommend. The panel’s appointment, announced Feb. 14, honors instructions from the same 2012 General Convention that sanctioned a new rite for blessing same-sex couples. Still, it’s unclear whether the panel will endorse gay marriage or perhaps just create more room in the tradition for those who regard gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender relationships as holy.
“The only bombshell would be if they backed off” the church’s growing support for same-sex relationships, said historian David Holmes, author of A Brief History of the Episcopal Church.
The panel consists of seven men and five women from dioceses in California, Kansas, Massachusetts, Mississippi, South Carolina, and Vermont.
When asked what the panel can accomplish and whether there’s a chance it might not endorse same-sex marriage, the Rt. Rev. W. Andrew Waldo, Bishop of Upper South Carolina, offered only a brief statement.
“Any time there are significant questions in our Church, it is critical that we engage in thoughtful, intentional dialogue,” Bishop Waldo said via email. “It is an important time in the life of the Church for us to address a host of biblical, theological, historical, pastoral liturgical and canonical questions on Christian marriage that face us.”
More here-
http://www.livingchurch.org/revisiting-marriage
No comments:
Post a Comment