Riazat Butt of the Guardian spent the weekend in the Diocese of New Hampshire, and her report is titled Gay bishop’s mission to unite.
… The Guardian spent the Easter weekend with Robinson as he battled the winds and blizzards on a 400-mile road trip around his US diocese. But the conditions were nothing compared with those he has encountered trying to make it to the Lambeth conference, the 10-yearly gathering of the world’s Anglican bishops, which takes place in Canterbury, Kent, from July 16 to August 3.
Two weeks ago Robinson was told he would not be allowed to take part in the event – the only bishop out of 880 to be excluded. He will still go to Canterbury, but with no official status and the same access as a member of the public. Yet he will, inevitably, be one of its star attractions. Robinson will not go into detail, but says he has his own events planned, including one with award-winning actor and gay rights campaigner Sir Ian McKellen, who will perform a reading…
Thanks to Riazat B for doing what Canterbury and conservative realignment campaign leaders still largely fail to do, give us a portrait of church life in New Hampshire at Easter Day as the real context for VGR and TEC. Good to see that, obviously, these are all just the sorts of awful, dirty people that nobody in their right minds would ever intentionally invite to Lambeth tea time. You go, Rowan Williams. Are we scapegoating yet, ooops. But you can’t actually keep queer folks out of the church for real, any more than you can really wish them out of… Read more »
I thought that the telling comment in the article was “As the first bishop to speak openly about having a homosexual relationship…..”
The Church is about truth. Yet the bishop who is truthful about how God created him gets excluded, but bishops who are in same-sex relationships behind closed doors are therefore not truthful get invited. This provides a great model for us laypeople about how to be Christians!
Gene found out two weeks ago that he was the only one not invited?
Does mean that those invitations did come from Lambeth? We were getting conflicting advice two weeks ago:
http://www.thinkinganglicans.org.uk/archives/002950.html
So no press release to clarify the truth? Pontious Pilate didn’t have to explain himself to the masses either.
Rejoice and be glad, +Gene—for great is your reward in Heaven! 0:-)
After the applause for Gene Robinson has died down I will only say it seems this cause also needs a martyr (so all actions will be dramatized and even action according to expected norms and long agreed standards will be interpreted as “against the dear bishop”). This case has not become either my great concern or celebration (I thought Easter was about something much more than that!). Coherent thinking might lead one to ask here if a bishop acknowledged he was living in an “open marriage” with two women (until yesterday that was called adultery) would we want to applaud… Read more »
“Coherent thinking might lead one to ask here if a bishop acknowledged he was living in an “open marriage” with two women (until yesterday that was called adultery) would we want to applaud that?”-Ben W.
Then let us marry. That’s coherent thinking. That’s fighting bigotry, by expanding and allowing a stabilized life style to be offered to all people.
Offends your reading of Scripture? Then stop reading it as such.
But there are parts of the Communion that accept polygamy. There are other parts that accept existing polygamous marriages, but ask that souls refrain from taking on more wives once they are part of the Communion. There’s been several threads on TA reminding us of this. Sometimes with unfortunate glee as they are often from the countries whose leadership is agressively homophobic. The phrases “Physician, heal thyself” or “Remove the log from your own eye before you take the splinter out of your neighbours”. Isaiah 42:16 “I will lead the blind by ways they have not known, along unfamiliar paths… Read more »
“stop the slander”. Missed that one. Yes please. Sick of accusations, destruction and death? Stop accussing, destroying and killing. Or is it that accussations are okay as long as they are directed and women/GLBTs? Destruction is okay, as long as it is directed at non-Christians? Death is okay, as long as it is not in your family? Malachi 2&3 ““…I have sent you this admonition so that my covenant with Levi may continue… a covenant of life and peace… this called for reverence and he revered me and stood in awe of my name… you have violated the covenant with… Read more »
Cheryl, You and others want to talk about people who spout Bible verses, often unrelated to context, and I have seen a lot of that but you take the prize for it of all I’ve seen! If you want to say we need to stand up for the thoughtfull independence of people whether they be women or Christian leaders in Africa I am with you. Meanwhile, after all the bravado and blatant talk we have had from you and others, I am still hoping that I might get an answer to the actual question I asked? “Do you really think… Read more »
Ben
You cannot expect Cheryl, or anyone else here, to out Bishops who for perfectly valid reasons want to remain closeted.
As you said on a different thread “is the Anglican tent big enough to include a measure of understanding or even generosity?”
“Do you really think and want to say that RW knows specific people who are living as homosexuals behind closed doors but invites them to Lambeth anyway? Then show it. Otherwise stop the slander.”
We won’t. It would put their future career, not to mention the slight possibility of their lives in jeopardy. Look at Jeffrey John. You should know this. Stop asking questions that you surely know the answer to.
Cheryl, It is not a question of exposing people, but of stopping empty talk or even the slander. Easy enough to say all kinds of things and then say “but we can’t show it.” Some are quite willing to make outrageous accusations that cast people in terrible light?! And against people who are trying to lead and care for the church (RW is not trimming roses in a garden!). As I understand the case of Jeffrey John, he was living a celibate life and wanted to go on in that way as he served. R W was seeking to deal… Read more »
Uh, it would seem to me, Ben, that when it comes to “outrageous accusations that cast people in terrible light?!” conservative homophobes have cornered the market. There’s the ‘gays are pedophiles’, ‘gays live 30 years less than straights’, ‘gays can choose their sexuality’, ‘homosexuality can be ‘promoted’ (as though heterosexuality is so unstable), ‘TEC is being taken over by people of no faith whose only concern is to court public approval’, ‘the PB of TEC is Unitarian’ ‘she denies the Trinity/Gospel/Resurrection(pick an accusation this week)’. The list is quite long. I could cite some pretty horrible lies made against the… Read more »
“It is not a question of exposing people,….” Ben W.
YES IT IS!!!! Thanks to “loving” your ilk in Nigeria, people are being beaten up for this. Stop trying to re-set the parameters. You are wrong. Now stop asking questions that you d— well know the answer TO!!!
Ford, Stop for at least a minute, you are on this track where you can not think or hear what anyone else is saying. I suppose if you are looking for garbage you can dig it out. On this list stuff has been said against people all the way up to abc RW that can only be called slander. The question is have you seen that from me? (We have been around this bush before, you love to go to Africa and find examples of stuff. Could we stay with things that we are responsible for right here and can… Read more »
choirboy, It’s not only being beaten up in Nigeria. They want to jail us, and given the state of prison life anywhere, and the hysteria this kind of behaviour is fuelling in places like Nigeria, how long would anyone jailed for homosexuality expect to live? I really get upset when those who claim to have “listened” talk about us as though there is no threat to us, even in Western society, as though what the average gay person goes through WRT self acceptance and the threat of violence is simply non-existent. It shows the superficial “understanding” people have. I wonder… Read more »
“R W was seeking to deal with him in a caring manner. That showed his shepherd’s heart. We can affirm that.”
It showed his wolf’s teeth, Ben.
Can’t you think before you speak?
The context is showing justice for ALL of creation. One prophetic role is to break down barriers and restore what has been lost. “The authorities” aren’t going to lead to the forgotten ways, are they? When was the last time you heard a sermon including these passages? Malachi 4:6 A prophet is meant to turn the hearts of parents to their children, and the hearts of the children to their parents. John the Baptist ““Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for him. Every valley shall be filled in, every mountain and hill made low. The crooked roads… Read more »
Ford, what is truly dis-heartening is to read about a teen suicide in the paper, and have it revealed that the kid knew he was gay and had broken up with his girlfriend. The parents then continue to live in their biblically-oriented denial dreamworld and blame the poor girl (You’re a “northern” American, go read “Dear Abbey” a few days ago). Then on tonight’s hews comes the story of a child born with Juvenile Diabetes dying because her parents wanted to “just have a prayer vigil” for her and not properly take care of her medically. What is it that… Read more »
Amen Choirboy Revelation 3:9 “I will make those who are of the synagogue of Satan, who claim to be Jews though they are not, but are liars—I will make them come and fall down at your feet and acknowledge that I have loved you.” God’s love being demonstrated for women, GLBTs, non-Christians and non-humans. See also Jesus’ words at Matthew 23:15 ““Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You travel over land and sea to win a single convert, and when he becomes one, you make him twice as much a son of hell as you… Read more »
Oh grow up Ben , please ! Of course Robinson is not the only gay bishop. As the media, including Church media constantly say, without shame, ‘the openly gay bishop.’ His crime in Anglicans eyes lies in the word ‘openly’.
For heavens sakes the bishop who ordained me was gay –and hardly the first.
You slander Robinson and slander some.
‘After the applause for Gene Robinson has died down…’ Ben W
The applause will never die down. He will be commemorated in the Kalendar along with Newman, Keble and all the brothers, ans sisters.
Sorry, Ben, I thought I’d responded to this. My point was, given the amount of bile, half truths, out and out falsehoods, reviling, and on and on coming from the Right, it is a bit much to have a conservative claim it is outrageous to suggest the Church turns a blind eye to closeted gay bishops. I admit to not having read every one of your posts, so I missed your opposition to the things I mentioned. I apologize. But even on this list you can see the kind of half truth, untruth, and pseudoscience against which we have to… Read more »