The opening video features Bishop Tom Shaw telling the camera, “I am really quite conservative” flanked by an African bishop who is also “conservative” but simply has a “different viewpoint.” Fortunately for the Communion, the nice African bishop tells us, Bishop Shaw and he “are brothers despite our disagreements”
The assorted press snickered.
Canon Paul:
The theme for the day is: Listening to God and to each other: The Bishops and Human Sexuality
The spouses are working on the theme: caring for God’s people.
It is a standard pattern in terms of the way the day is operating. There is another Reflection hearing from 2:00pm to 3:30pm. We will give you copies of the third draft Reflection document at the end of the 1:30pm Press Conference in the afternoon.
There has been one new self-select group created. It is intended to focus on “hearing initiatives” based on ++RW’s challenge to listen to one another in his Presidential Address, chaired by ++Clive Hanford
The press conference this afternoon will include
1. ++Ian Ernest
2. +Colin Johnson
The closing service, we are following the rules of the cathedral. If you want to go please email him and let him know.
That is it for normal announcements.
We have Ian Douglas+ with us this morning. He will share the o of what the bishops are doing this morning
ID: A few notes about the Indabas as they are planned for today so you know the shape of the conversations as they have been recommended, remembering that each indaba has its own life and often they do not follow the recommendations we give them and that is a natural process. One group as already begun to talk about human sexuality, they took it up yesterday, a day before our recommendations.
Basically the indaba groups, for those who do not know, are made up of 40 bishops, 5 groups of eight. Sometimes they separate into 8 person bible study groups and then come together again. The aim is to enable listening and understanding in relationship to the impact that the Anglican Communion’s engagement with same sex issues has had on our participation in God’s mission.
It is important in stressing that aim; that it is not designed to be a conversation revisiting Lambeth 1.10. It is not a conversation about anthropology or moral and ethical understandings of same sex sexuality, the focus is on how has the way the Anglican Communion has engaged in these conversations been consistent with participation in God’s mission.
Basically the indaba groups, for those who do not know, are made up of 40 bishops, 5 groups of eight. Sometimes they separate into 8 person bible study groups and then come together again. The aim is to enable listening and understanding in relationship to the impact that the Anglican Communion’s engagement with same sex issues has had on our participation in God’s mission.
It is important in stressing that aim; that it is not designed to be a conversation revisiting .Lambeth 1.10. It is not a conversation about anthropology or moral and ethical understandings of same sex sexuality, the focus is on how has the way the Anglican Communion has engaged in these conversations been consistent with participation in God’s mission.
The specific question given to the bishops in indaba group is: How have the same-sex initiates impacted my diocese’ part in God’s mission?
The indaba will see a short 10 minute video of faces of people around the communion speaking to that question. The point is that it is good for the bishops to be together but let’s not forget the wider body of Christ and how these conversations effect their lives in the Church
The bishops it is then suggested will move to the bible study groups where they can begin to answer this question for themselves…this is what this initiative has meant in my diocese
There will be an extension at the end of the indaba session where the bishops will be asked to consider: 1. what do I need from my fellow bishops to enable me to be true to my role in God’s mission. And what am I prepared to offer to help them?
That is the question to be dealt with in the 8 person bibles studies and then we come back to the plenary of 40 and share what has been learned. That is the day.
At the conclusion the 8 page report on the listening process will be available.
We have the video here. The people who are in the video, we have assured then that this it is a private video so we’ve kept their names secret and we will only play the sound…we’ll let you hear a two minute setting, just the audio respecting their participation
Audio playing:
Woman’s voice: homosexuality would seem like abnormality because in Genesis 1 we are told that God made them male and female
Man’s voice: as a traditionalist I believe that marriage is only between a man and a woman who are joined together for life
Man’s African voice: this fight over homosexuality does not effect the parish at the grass roots and it is a diversion. We need to do more in terms of reaching out to people who want to come back to the Christian faith instead of fighting
Woman with African voice: it is difficult because these people are also human, we recognize that but some would say to them that their behavior is wrong.
Woman (American voice). I am not gay but I attend a church that welcomes gay people and I believe the marginalized are to be accepted
Woman (Irish voice): as soon as a story comes out about this crisis it effects us in parishes because it is about our reputation and the way we are percieved
Man (English): one of the concerns that have arisen from what the ABC was saying is not the fact that VGR was ordained but that TEC was not willing to take the time to discuss whether he could. The decision came about through democracy rather than theology
We will play it all for you at the end.
Note:I was in the back and it was very difficult to hear the questions:
Q: Rowan Williams says that is he not the one directing this conference…who are the decision makers who decide what will be released and what will not? Williams disclaims any knowledge, you are not the decision makers, who is?
A: Maybe you are caught up in the indaba process…the design group does meet with the ABC every day. There are two staff meeings including the ACO, the staff of Lambeth palace, the design group, and security.
Sugden: You outline the questions that the indaba groups may discuss today. At the beginning we were told hat the indaba groups were going to try to get to the root issues. These questions, however, seem to be implementation questions? Listening to the video we are wondering whether the discussion will include those who have through the gospel come to a different approach to unwanted same sex attraction? I have not heard a substantive address of the root issue
ID: Well, what is the root issue for you?
Sugden: You said the reason for indaba was to get to the root. How does the gospel engage with same sex attraction? I do not see that engaged here’
ID: I would respond that with 650 bishops meeting in so many venues, to speak as to whether they speak to the root issue is beyond my control. In the indaba yesterday, it sounded like root questions were addressed. The issues that are addressed are really the ultimate purview of each indaba. We cannot control this process.
Rosenthal: the book published before the conference on the Anglican Communion and homosexuality deals with those issues Chris, and I am sure that you’ve seen it.
Q: With regard to today’s process: to what extent are people aware of their actions on the mission of their church and the effect of their actions on the LGBT people? For example if a mom decides to stop going to church because of the churches attitudes toward LGBT people, what is the effect on the child?
A: The invitation is for the bishops to bring those sorts of stories forward and I think they will do that.
Q: You said the conference is not revisiting 1:10, is that because that stands as the mind of the communion?
ID: I think you have to take the ABC’s word on that, that is as authoritative voice we have on that.
Q: will there be any discussion of the impact the embrace of homosexual behavior has on the evangelization of the pan-arabic world?
A: With bishops in the indaba groups, that is the burden, to share that side of the story. That is a root or key to this process
….missed this next question
A: my hope is that the bishops speak openly and honestly with each other and to see if they can come to some sort of harmony. I do not think this will be resolved, but I pray that there will be a deep and impassioned sharing of vision within the context of human sexuality.
I believe this process is an exercise of communion and it is something that in the AC, instead of becoming isolated, we are given the opportunity to speak across the divide, we can see if there is not a common place that we are being drawn toward.
Q: you said these questions were set in the context of the bible studies but if we cannot even agree on how to study the bibles how can that help?
A: each indaba has 5 bible studies. The recommendation is that to begin to engage these questions that the bible studies be used as the context to address them.
Q Could you clarify the added self-select session? What is the mission of this new session?
A: Following the ABC’s second presidential address and building on the movement of the Spirit at the conference, there have been different groups where bishops have been saying what would it look like if we tried “this” or “that”. The addition of the self-select session which will be chaired by ++Hanford is to allow bishops to speak among themselves in keeping with the ABC’s speech
end
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Prediction: Rowan Williams and the organizers of Lambeth are going to do their level best to convince everyone that matters of sexuality are adiaphora and that disagreements are not anything to get excited over. This will not fool those that have already taken a hard-line orthodox stance. What effect it will have on the fence sitters remains to be seen.