The "long story short" from Atlanta

Lord it is night. The night is for stillness. Let us be still in the presence of God. It is night after a long day. What has been done has been done; what has not been done has not been done. Let it be.

What a great prayer to end a greatly blessed day. Much to say ... process ... share ... report: and too pounded to make ANY of those things happen.

So I'll let this great blog from Integrity's Caro Hall do the job for me ... and come back with more tomorrow from Atlanta.

My hat’s off to the SCLM who seem to have left no stone unturned. Commissioned by the last General Convention to collect and develop resources for the blessing of same-gender unions, they identified four areas that needed work; theological principles, liturgical resources, pastoral and education resources and finally legal and canonical aspects. Then they convened groups to work on each of the four areas and set about to use all the resources available to create the widest possible conversation.

Read the rest here ... and stay tuned for "Part Two" tomorrow.

And the arc continues to bend ...

This just in from ABC.News:

Support for Gay Marriage Reaches a Milestone
More Than Half of Americans Say Gay Marriage Should Be Legal

More than half of Americans say it should be legal for gays and lesbians to marry, a first in nearly a decade of polls by ABC News and The Washington Post.

This milestone result caps a dramatic, long-term shift in public attitudes. From a low of 32 percent in a 2004 survey of registered voters, support for gay marriage has grown to 53 percent today. Forty-four percent are opposed, down 18 points from that 2004 survey.

Interesting data to find in my "inbox" as we finish four final preparations here in Atlanta and gear up to to begin the Church-wide Cosultation on same-gender blessings. Stay tuned ... either to this blog or literally "tuned" to the live webscast coming from the Nat'l Church website.

Bishop Robinson @ Vanderbilt

When Lambda's Jon Davidson and I were at Vanderbilt University last month, they were already anticipating the upcoming visit of the Bishop of New Hampshire. Delighted to read this report in the student newspaper:

Openly gay bishop talks big issues in the LGBT Movement

Speaking to the Vanderbilt community Monday night, The Right Reverend Gene Robinson Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of New Hampshire said life is getting better for the homosexual community, but there is still work to be done.

Robinson is best known for being the first openly gay priest to be ordained Bishop in a major Christian denomination when he was elected in 2003.

Hosted by the Vanderbilt Medical School Gay-Straight Alliance as part of their annual LGBTQI Health Week, Robinson spoke to a room of around 300 people in Langford Auditorium about the Church’s turbulent relationship with the LGBT community.

“I know the Church is responsible for most of the pain in the lives of gay and lesbian, bisexual and transgender people, we just have to admit that, and at some point we will repent of it the way we repented of our support of slavery using the bible,” Robinson said.

“I think what you’re seeing is God at work liberating God’s people in this LGBT movement, and the Church scrambling to catch up, not fast enough in my humble opinion,” Robinson said.

Robinson said that in his opinion, the issue of homosexuality has been settled in the Episcopal Church, but he pointed to the Evangelical position against homosexuality as a deterrent for the younger generations.

“Most young people don’t want to belong to a Church that is condemning their gay and lesbian friends,” Robinson said.

During the question and answer session of the event, a self-identified Southern Baptist took issue with Robinson’s position on homosexuality and religion, citing verses in the bible that some interpret as condemning same-sex activity. Robinson responded by explaining his interpretation of scripture.

“The way I go about scripture is I have to ask ‘what was that context’ and ‘what did those words mean to the people who wrote them and the people who hear them’ before I can ask whether it has some binding authority on me,” Robinson said.

“I believe the bible to be the word of God, and not the words of God,” Robinson said. “I don’t believe God dictated those words, but I do believe the authors sat down to record as best they could and in an inspired way this dynamic relationship with the living God.”

Robinson also discussed same-sex marriage, citing the Obama administration’s decision to cease legal defense of the Defense of Marriage Act and the President’s changing attitude about same-sex marriage as turning points in the LGBT movement for equality.

The issue with marriage in general, according to Robinson, is the confusion between the secular and religious ceremony.

“It is very clear that marriage is a secular institution. The clergy is there to bless the union,” Robinson said. “If you get married without benefit of clergy, you’re still married.”

Recalling the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s, Robinson Movement of the 1960s that changing the laws is important but not the endpoint of the LGBT movement.

“When we get all the laws around LGBT people in place, it won’t mean all of the hate will go away,” Robinson said. “So there is going to be plenty of work to be done.”
Speaking about the big picture, Robinson said that the most threatening part of the LGBT liberation is the threat is poses to traditional society.

“What I think this is really about, the big picture, is the beginning of the end of patriarchy,” Robinson said. “For a very long time, straight, white, educated, wealthy, western men have been making most of the decisions for most of the world, and that jig is up.”

What we're doing in Atlanta, what we're NOT doing in Atlanta and why I think it all matters

Due to the marvels of modern technology I'm blogging from somewhere between Burbank and DFW ... on my way to Atlanta for the two day "churchwide consultation" hosted by the SCLM (Standing Commission on Liturgy & Music) of the Episcopal Church.

Here's what we're going to do:

Our task will be to consult with representative deputies (two from each diocese; one lay/one clergy) on the resources we (the task forces charged with the task by the SCLM) have been gathering and developing in response to Resolution C056 ... passed in 2009 by General Convention and calling for "an open process for the consideration of theological and liturgical resources for the blessing of same gender relationships."

That work has been delegated to four different task groups:

● Theology
● Liturgy
● Teaching & Pastoral Care
● Canonical Implications

And in a VERY packed day-and-a-half we will meet in plenary sessions to hear updates on the process and context of the task groups and their work; break into small groups for conversation and feedback; and then charge the deputies to go back to their deputations and continue the conversation.

Here's what we're NOT going to do:

We're not going to debate whether or not we should be gathering these resources. That conversation already happened. In Anaheim.

And we're not going to debate how we should use the resources we've gathered. That conversation is yet to happen. In Indianapolis.

Why I think what we're doing matters

Whether or not to take the resources we've gathered and authorize their use for the blessing of same-gender relationships is an important step for the Episcopal Church. Obviously I think it's the right step to take and it's one I will be working hard to see that we take in Indianapolis. But as important as I think that is, what we're doing together in Atlanta is even more important.

Resolution C056 specifically asked that

"... the Standing Commission on Liturgy and Music, in consultation with the House of Bishops, devise an open process for the conduct of its work inviting participation from provinces, dioceses, congregations, and individuals who are engaged in such theological work, and inviting theological reflection from throughout the Anglican Communion"

... and this work we are doing together in Atlanta was described by my colleague Heidi Clark as "the holy privilege ... of being in this particular moment of the life of the church. listening deeply, and reflecting together on what the SCLM is developing to bring to the whole church."

Does everybody think that's the best idea they've ever heard of? A great way to spend the time of a couple of hundred deputies and other church leaders? Heck no.

One correspondent wrote that "there isn't a lot -- not a lot that's important anyway -- for the deputies to do." And yesterday I had a phone conversation with a diocesan colleague who declared the whole process a misguided effort to create second class liturgies for gay people -- and until we have marriage equality in the prayer book we're not "there."

My answer to the first was "I guess 'important' is in the eye of the beholder" ... and my answer to the second was ... "You're absolutely right ... and that's not the conversation C056 charged us to have."

I think ... I hope and I believe ... that what we're doing together in Atlanta both can and will be a new model for how the whole church comes together for consultation and reflection in an intentional way in preparation for the legislative work we do together when we gather for General Convention.

Make no mistake about it ... I consider the political work we will do in Indianapolis as holy as I do the consultative work we will do in Atlanta -- because I think it is all part of how we live out our call to continue to discern God's will and the Holy Spirit's direction in community. And I think we have a chance to break new ground in Atlanta by modeling a transparent collaborative process involving the whole church in creating these resources in response to the church's request for them via C056.

So prayers invited -- for good travel karma. For a productive time together. For ears to hear and hearts to listen not only to each other but to the One who calls us together to do this work. And most of all in thanksgiving for the love that calls us into community and into relationships -- and then sends us out into the world to love it as God loved it.

Film -- as they say! -- "at eleven!"

JESUS SAVES ... us from the blindness of literalism

It's my week to write for the All Saints "Lenten Toolkit" ... a series of reflections we write on the Lenten Lessons and offer to the congregation for reflection during this season of reflection. So I've been spending some time thinking about Nicodemus and thought I'd share here what I came up with for the "toolkit."

I'm still mulling the irony that the very pericope that includes the object lesson of Jesus "healing" Nicodemus of the blindness of literalism is one that ends up being used as a blunt instrument by the "Our Way Is The Only Way" crowd -- and as signs in the end zones at football games. Go figure! Here's the lesson for Sunday:

Lent II -- John (3:1–17)

A certain Pharisee named Nicodemus, a member of the Sanhedrin, came to Jesus at night. “Rabbi,” he said, “we know you are a teacher come from God, for no one can perform the signs and wonders you do, unless by the power of God.” Jesus gave Nicodemus this answer: “The truth of the matter is, unless one is born from above, one cannot see the kingdom of God.” Nicodemus said, “How can an adult be born a second time? I cannot go back into my mother’s womb to be born again!” Jesus replied: “The truth of the matter is, no one can enter God’s kingdom without being born of water and the Spirit. What is born of the flesh is flesh; what is born of the Spirit is Spirit. So do not be surprised when I tell you that you must be born from above. The wind blows where it will. You hear the sound it makes, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.” “How can this be possible?” asked Nicodemus.

Jesus replied, “You are a teacher of Israel, and you still do not understand these matters? The truth of the matter is, we are talking about what we know; we are testifying about what we have seen – yet you do not accept our testimony. If you do not believe when I tell you about earthly things, how will you believe when I tell you about heavenly things? No one has gone up to heaven except the One who came down from heaven – the Chosen One. As Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert, so the Chosen One must be lifted up, so that everyone who believes might have eternal life. Yes, God so loved the world as to give the Only Begotten, that whoever believes may not die, but have eternal life. God sent the Chosen One into the world not to condemn the world, but that through the Only Begotten the world might be saved.

Nicodemus is one of my all time favorites. The story we have for the Gospel this second Sunday in Lent is a perfect example of someone of good faith with great intentions and a sincerely seeking heart utterly missing the point Jesus was trying to make by falling into the trap labeled “literalism.”

And even more than I love Nicodemus, I love how graciously and patiently Jesus works to move him beyond the limits of literalism that trap him into failing to see the wideness and abundance of God’s love, justice and compassion. Jesus does not give up on Nicodemus -- even after he asks one question after the other … even as he seems determined not to “get” that being born from above (other translations call it “born again”) has nothing to do with a physical birth but with a spiritual re-birth.

This conversation we have here in the third chapter of John can’t be the only one Jesus and Nicodemus had. The others aren’t preserved for us – by John or by anybody else. But there are two reasons I’m convinced that Nicodemus continued to learn from Jesus – and those two reasons are the two other places Nicodemus shows up in John’s gospel. We encounter him again in chapter seven during a debate between Pharisees and the temple guards about what to do about this radical rabbi from Nazareth:

Nicodemus, who had gone to Jesus earlier and who was one of their own number, asked, “Does our law condemn a man without first hearing him to find out what he has been doing?” They replied, “Are you from Galilee, too? Look into it, and you will find that a prophet does not come out of Galilee.” Then they all went home.

So Nicodemus – a teacher and political leader – has gone from meeting with Jesus under the cover of darkness to standing up in the Sanhedrin (think Senate or House investigative hearing) to defend him.

But wait – there’s more! The third and last time we encounter Nicodemus is in the nineteenth chapter of John … just after the crucifixion:

Later, Joseph of Arimathea asked Pilate for the body of Jesus. Now Joseph was a disciple of Jesus, but secretly because he feared the Jewish leaders. With Pilate’s permission, he came and took the body away. He was accompanied by Nicodemus, the man who earlier had visited Jesus at night. Nicodemus brought a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about seventy-five pounds. Taking Jesus’ body, the two of them wrapped it, with the spices, in strips of linen … and since the tomb was nearby, they laid Jesus there.

Quite a transformation! From missing entirely the point of the Good News Jesus had come to proclaim to standing up and speaking truth to power in his defense at the Sanhedrin to courageously seeing to it that Jesus was properly buried after all the disciples had fled in fear, terror and disappointment.

Nicodemus may not have grasped what Jesus meant by “born from above” when first they met but by the end of the story he is a living example of what that re-birth looks like: of someone who both stepped out and spoke up. He is an icon of transformation.

And it seemed to me – mulling this text this year – that the first step on that transformational journey for Nicodemus was moving beyond the limits of literalism and being open to what Jesus so patiently tried to teach him … and us … in this third chapter of John. “The wind blows where it will,” Jesus said. And that is as true for us as it was for Nicodemus, for that wind is still blowing. The wind of change. The wind of challenge. The wind of the Holy Spirit.

• Where are we being called – like Nicodemus was – to look beyond what we think we know in order to become what God would have us become?
• When have we – as individuals, as a church, as a community – been challenged to give up literalism in order to embrace new understandings?
• How can we – like Nicodemus – be “born from above” and empowered to speak truth to power in our own “Sanhedrins” as he did in his?

Holy God, heal us – as you healed your servant Nicodemus – of being so blinded by literal words on paper that we cannot see the Living Word in our world. And help us, we pray, to follow Nicodemus by boldly proclaiming your Good News to all as we speak truth to power and stand with the marginalized and oppressed. Amen.

Yes, the Anglican World (Still) Turns

It does seem to have been pretty quiet on the "Anglican Front" ... and that is (in my mind) a good thing. My hope is that the "lull" indicates that the various churches that make up the Communion are spending more time going about the business of being the Body of Christ in the world in their part of the world than they are worrying about how other churches are living out the Gospel in theirs. Meanwhile, we come together -- as we should -- through the "bonds of affection" that unite us as members of the same Anglican family when an earthquake strikes New Zealand or diaster strikes Japan. (And if you haven't yet donated to Episcopal Relief & Development you can do that here.)

There was one bit of Anglican news I thought worth passing on this morning ... and that's this bit from the letter the Archbishop of Canterbury to the Primates posted to the Anglican Communion Office website last week:

The recent Primates’ Meeting in Dublin did not set out to offer a solution to the ongoing challenges of mutual understanding and of the limits of our diversity in the Communion. But it is important to note carefully what it did set out to do and what it achieved. In recent years, many have appealed to the Primates to resolve the problems of the Communion by taking decisive action to enforce discipline on this or that Province. In approaching the Dublin Meeting, we believed that it was essential to clarify how the Primates themselves understood the nature of their office and authority.

It has always been clear that not all have the same view – not because of different theological convictions alone, but also because of the different legal and canonical roles they occupy as Primates. Some have a good deal of individual authority; others have their powers very closely limited by their own canons. It would therefore be difficult if the Meeting collectively gave powers to Primates that were greater than their own canons allowed them individually, as was noted at the 2008 Lambeth Conference (Lambeth Indaba 2008 #151).

You can read the rest here ... but I for one was gratified to see that there seems to be a genuine and articulated move away from attributing to the Primates more power than would be either wise or helpful. And now, back to your regularly scheduled Lent.

Report from the Inclusion Front: Santa Clarita CA

A couple of weeks ago there was an ordination at St. Stephen's in Santa Clarita and the church celebrated two brand new priests -- Sue Bek and Cynthia Jew. The local paper ran a nice feature piece entitled "Lifelong callings finally realized" on February 26 with some great pictures as part of the celebration.

One reader took exception to the feature and the paper ran his comments ("St. Stephen's wrong to ordain gay priest") on March 6. I understand from folks in the community that he's also taken to protesting outside the church.

So here's the op-ed response in Sunday's "Santa Clarita Valley Signal" by Santa Clarita rector Lynn Jay:

‘There will be no outcasts in this church’
Rev. Canon Lynn Jay, rector
St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church
March 13, 2011

The words that follow are from a prayer that is always used at ordinations in the Episcopal Church:

“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...”

I would like Mr. Miano (“St. Stephen’s wrong to ordain openly gay priest,” March 6) to know that St. Stephen’s, a congregation of the Episcopal Diocese of Los Angeles, is proud to convey to the world the inclusive love of Jesus — “that things which were cast down are being raised up” — women, people of color, the poor, the homeless, as well as gay and lesbian people.

And things that have grown old are being made new — not an old wrathful God who desires the death of sinners, but the new incarnate son of God, Jesus, who comes that all may be freed and made whole.

A former presiding bishop of the church said, “I think the Church has a role in being both prophetic in holding up issues, and using all its influences to try to bring about better conditions for the poor, the hungry, both in this country, as well as in the global village. There will be no outcasts in the church.”

The overwhelming power of God: father, son and holy spirit are evident in the all encompassing love at St. Stephen’s. There will be no outcasts in this church.

=============

1 - Let the people say "AMEN!"

2 - Let the people send Letters to the Editor and/or add some comments to the online feature in support of St. Stephen's.
3 - Let the people take a minute to click here and send an email of thanks to Lynn+ for her powerful witness to God's inclusive love!

PS -- Here's the comment I posted on the Santa Clarita Valley Signal website:

"This piece by Reverend Jay AND the comments that follow should, in my opinion, be required reading in American Government classes to impress upon students the importance of our First Amendment. Mr. Miano's right to read the Bi...ble and come to whatever conclusion he chooses to about who should or should not be ordained is protected -- just as Reverend Jay's congregation & denomination's right to read the same Bible and come to different conclusions is equally protected. And equally protected is their right to express those opinions. God bless America!

AND God bless St. Stephen's, the Episcopal Church and all who work to proclaim the Good News of God's inclusive love. Reverend Jay's witness to love, justice and compassion is exactly the antidote we need to those who preach the kind of exclusion, judgment and condemnation that has convinced so many people they already know enough about being a Christian not to want to be one. Keep up the good work, St. Stephen's. You Rock!"