ON 11 JUL 2012
Without dissent, and after a debate that at times included displays of raw emotion, the synod passed a resolution that ¢â‚¬Å“asks Episcopal Units to hold conversations in our church and with the wider community about the nature of marriage ¢â‚¬ .
It ¢â‚¬â„¢s clear that the mover of the resolution, the Rev. Glynn Cardy, of St Matthew-in-the-City, in Auckland, hopes this will lead, eventually, to the possibility of gay and lesbian couples getting married in Anglican churches.
The resolution includes the request that dioceses and hui amorangi ¢â‚¬Å“explore how the Church might theologically and liturgically respond to gay and lesbian Anglican couples who request this rite. ¢â‚¬
Much of Glynn ¢â‚¬â„¢s speech turned on his claim that ¢â‚¬Å“marriage in the Bible is not restricted to one man and one woman ¢â‚¬” or in fact to any one model. ¢â‚¬
He quoted a number of examples, from both testaments, as proof that ¢â‚¬Å“the biblical models for marriage include a range of relationships and combinations, and these evolve with the culture. ¢â‚¬
Glynn pointed, for example, to Peter who commended ¢â‚¬Å“the holy women ¢â‚¬ of former times ¢â‚¬” including Sarah, who obeyed Abraham, calling him Lord (1 Peter 3: 5-6).
¢â‚¬Å“Since this is the biblical model to which Peter turns, we might benefit from looking at it ourselves.
¢â‚¬Å“Sarah was Abraham ¢â‚¬â„¢s half-sister (Genesis 20:12).
¢â‚¬ËœWell, that ¢â‚¬â„¢s not the point ¢â‚¬â„¢, one might say.
¢â‚¬Å“Exactly: who the two parties were in relation to one another was not Peter ¢â‚¬â„¢s point. ¢â‚¬
He claimed, finally, that ¢â‚¬Å“heterosexuals do not have a monopoly on Christ-like love, on the love we hold up as an ideal in matrimony. So, we need to have a korero about this. ¢â‚¬
Synod members queued up at the microphones to affirm the motion ¢â‚¬“ and none was more moving that Bishop Apimeleki Qiliho.
He and his wife are caregivers to victims of HIV/AIDS, and Bishop Api is also the chairperson of Fiji ¢â‚¬â„¢s AIDS association.
And his voice cracked, and he had to pause and regather himself as he talked about how people living with HIV/AIDs felt rejected by the church.
¢â‚¬Å“This is not theology. This is not liturgy. This is humanity we are talking about ¢â‚¬ ¦ and this is what hurts me the most. ¢â‚¬
But even some of those in the Synod who are not normally seen as standard bearers for gay rights welcomed a back-to-first-principles look at the Church ¢â‚¬â„¢s involvement in marriage.
Mr Fei Tevi, from the Diocese of Polynesia, was one of those.
¢â‚¬Å“I ¢â‚¬â„¢m not giving you an opinion, ¢â‚¬ he said. ¢â‚¬Å“But I support this, because it provides us with a process, and a way forward to discuss issues of great importance to us as a church. ¢â‚¬
Bishop Kelvin Wright recalled the days of his curacy at St Mary ¢â‚¬â„¢s Merivale. Not a Saturday would pass without two weddings being held in the church.
But society had drastically changed since then. Christendom was dying, and the church was not longer ¢â‚¬Å“the moral wing of the Empire. ¢â‚¬
¢â‚¬Å“I can ¢â‚¬â„¢t remember the last time I had a couple come for marriage who had different addresses.
¢â‚¬Å“We are still in the wedding business ¢â‚¬” but confused about it.
¢â‚¬Å“What are we doing here? We need to have a look again at what marriage is. ¢â‚¬
So everyone, it seems, was willing for the church to begin this conversation.
But a number suggested lines in the sand that they would not cross.
Archdeacon Tim Mora, of Greymouth, took issue with Glynn Cardy ¢â‚¬â„¢s exegesis.
¢â‚¬Å“Let ¢â‚¬â„¢s have a deeper reading of the texts, ¢â‚¬ he said, ¢â‚¬Å“and see what they really say. ¢â‚¬
The Rev. Dr Andrew Burgess, of Nelson, said he hoped that the discussion would not ¢â‚¬Å“remain around the issue of same gender sexuality. ¢â‚¬
But it ¢â‚¬â„¢s clear, too, from his remarks that liberal theologians don ¢â‚¬â„¢t have a monopoly on compassion where sexuality is concerned.
¢â‚¬Å“I ¢â‚¬â„¢m profoundly aware of pain.
¢â‚¬Å“Just pain. It ¢â‚¬â„¢s enormously painful. ¢â‚¬
¢â‚¬Å“People do matter, people matter enormously.
At times, he said, ¢â‚¬Å“every single one of us is caught up on a most challenging, painful, exceptionally difficult journey ¢â‚¬” with a God who does not let us go.
To talk deeply about being human is necessary ¢â‚¬” but the talk can ¢â‚¬â„¢t stop there, he said.
Experience is not simply experience, beyond any questioning or interpretation.
¢â‚¬Å“The experience of pain is real, but how I understand that pain can change.
¢â‚¬Å“To do theology is to locate our experience in the story of God, the God who is with us, around us, within us ¢â‚¬“ but also against us. ¢â‚¬
Here’s the full text of the resolution:
Moved: Rev ¢â‚¬â„¢d Glynn Cardy / Seconded: Mr Peter Bargh
Nature of Marriage
That this General Synod/ te Hinota Whanui resolves:
That given the long-held mission of our Church to challenge and support couples to publicly commit themselves to each other,
Asks Episcopal Units to hold conversations in our Church and with the wider community about the nature of marriage,
And to explore how the Church might theologically and liturgically respond to gay and lesbian Anglican couples who request this rite.
Further, it asks General Synod Standing Committee to support and resource the Episcopal Units in this endeavour ;
And for Episcopal Units to demonstrate progress to General Synod Standing Committee and, where appropriate, the Commission ¢â‚¬ËœMa Whea ¢â‚¬â„¢, in advance of the next General Synod / te Hinota Whanui in 2014.
http://anglicantaonga.org.nz/Features/nature
http://www.insights.uca.org.au/news/church-to-debate-nature-of-marriage
~~
United Reformed Church votes to host same-sex civil partnerships
The move was described as “wonderful” by Rev Adrian Bulley of City URC in Cardiff, a church that has long supported Christian blessing for same-sex partnerships.
The decision on whether to host the ceremonies will be left to each URC congregation. No church or minister will be obliged to be involved if they do not agree.
Many churches within the URC have been blessing same-sex partnerships since 2005, but these have not been recognised in law. When civil partnerships were introduced in 2005, the law prevented the inclusion of religious elements.
The situation changed – but only in England and Wales – in December 2011, when the law was ammended to allow civil partnership ceremonies to take place in religious premises. The first civil partnership ceremony in a religious building took place in May at Ullet Road Unitarian Church in Liverpool.
Christian denominations who already plan to host civil partnership ceremonies include the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers) and the General Assembly of Unitarian and Free Christian Churches. The move has long had the support of Liberal Judaism, and the larger Movement for Reform Judaism has recently joined them. The URC are the largest group so far to add their name to the list.
The URC’s General Assembly heard both sides of the argument before reaching the decision which will take effect immediately. A URC spokesperson said it was not possible to say how many of the denomination’s churches will choose to register their premises for a civil partnerships, but a number have already expressed interest in doing so.
Adrian Bulley made clear that his church would be among them.
¢â‚¬Å“For many years this church has been hosting services of blessing for those who have entered a civil partnership,” he explained. “How sad that these couples have had to go through two ceremonies to enable their union to be blessed by God in the context of prayer and worship”.
He added, “How wonderful that General Assembly has now opened the door and enabled those local churches that wish to do so, to register their premises in order that same-sex couples may have a single ceremony ¢â‚¬“ both religious and legal ¢â‚¬“ to mark their commitment to each other”.
Kirsty Thorpe, a former Moderator of the URC, said that the resolution would help those congregations who are on a “journey” towards greater support and acceptance of same-sex couples. But she acknowledged that not everyone in the Church would be happy with the decision.
She said, “There are other congregations in the United Reformed Church for whom the possible recognition in church of same-sex relationships would be a total contradiction of their theological understanding and identity. I hope and pray that we can continue to respect one another ¢â‚¬â„¢s diversity on this matter, as we do in positive ways for other issues in our denominational life where we don ¢â‚¬â„¢t all share the same views. ¢â‚¬
The URC’s decision was warmly welcomed today by the General Assembly of Unitarian and Free Christian Churches, one of the first Christian groups in the UK to bless same-sex partnerships.
Derek McAuley, Chief Officer of the Unitarians, described the move as ¢â‚¬Å“another step forward towards full inclusion of LGBT [lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender] people within the churches. This goes a long way to breaking down barriers between people of faith and the LGBT community. ¢â‚¬
But he warned that there could be trouble ahead. Faith groups in some areas have found that local authorities are charging widely varying rates to register religious premises for civil partnerships. The cost has proved prohibitively expensive for some. In June, a same-sex Quaker couple in Birmingham were prevented from registering a civil partnership at Bournville Friends’ Meeting House because it would have cost the Meeting thousands of pounds.
Derek McAuley said that he hoped the URC would join Unitarians, Quakers, Liberal Jews and Reform Jews in helping to ¢â‚¬Å“strengthen the pressure to ensure these concerns are addressed ¢â‚¬ .
The United Reformed Church was formed in 1972 by a merger of the Presbyterian Church of England with most of the churches in the Congregational Union of England and Wales. They were later joined by other groups within the Reformed Protestant tradition.
The URC has about 60,000 members in 1,529 congregations.
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