Updated Saturday morning and Monday morning
Both suffragan bishops recently elected in Los Angeles have now completed the process of church-wide consents.
Los Angeles diocesan announcement: Episcopal church consents to Glasspool’s ordination
Los Angeles Bishop-elect Mary Douglas Glasspool has received the required number of consents from diocesan standing committees and bishops with jurisdiction to her ordination and consecration as a bishop, according to a March 17 statement from Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori’s office.
Statements from the Los Angeles bishops-elect: Consent process complete for Bishop-elect Mary Glasspool
ENS report: Los Angeles Bishop-elect Glasspool receives church’s consent to ordination
Some initial press reports:
Los Angeles Times Episcopal Church approves ordination of openly gay bishop in Los Angeles
Associated Press Episcopal church approves 2nd gay bishop
New York Times Episcopalians Confirm a Second Gay Bishop
Update
Living Church Lambeth Regrets Consents for Canon Glasspool
…This is the full statement from Lambeth Palace:
It is regrettable that the appeals from Anglican Communion bodies for continuing gracious restraint have not been heeded. Following the Los Angeles election in December the archbishop made clear that the outcome of the consent process would have important implications for the communion. The Standing Committee of the Anglican Communion reiterated these concerns in its December resolution which called for the existing moratoria to be upheld. Further consultation will now take place about the implications and consequences of this decision.
Living Church Communion Partners on Bishop-elect Glasspool
Fulcrum Fulcrum Response to Consents being given to the Consecration of Mary Glasspool
Further update
It could hardly have been otherwise given her total suitability. Good news nonetheless.
Hopefully she will be subject to less hysteria than Gene has been.
Probably Mary Glasspool will receive far less objection–
For one thing, being a woman, those who think women should never be bishops simply won’t consider her one anyway and thus ignore her; for another, the homophobes seem to have a lot more problem with male homosexuality than female, probably due to the “ick” factor among so many of them.
Hopefully, the more gay/lesbian Bishops there are the less they will be subject to the outrageous protests and calumny of the pioneers. Good luck to them.
I see the AAC and the Archbishop of Sydney have put out statements. +Peter Jensen suggests this is a decisive moment…but its not clear to me what exactly he thinks/hopes/wishes will happen.Any guesses folks?
As someone said, “in LentI don’t use the A word, but it is ringing in my heart.” She and her fellow Suffragan will be consecrated in Long Beach on May 15. May 14-15 is the annual Long Beach gay pride weekend. I, too, hope she has an easier time than +Gene. The sad thing is, in the last year and a half, our secular politics have become angrier and louder, and sometimes downright scary. I hope that doesn’t slop over into the church. Some of TEC’s most vigorous anti-gay people are no longer TEC. Despite all of that, the A… Read more »
I too hope that this is the beginning of the end for this nonsense of attacking TEC. I think any reasonable person aware today should see the “intrinsically disordered” affairs of another large denomination that is in retreat in the dailies, covered in lies and scandal, and hopelessly defending an outdated and ridiculous dogma. This consent of election is a refreshing breath of fresh air of overall stale Christian religion, and we should be thankful for it.
Five reasons to Time to rejoice and give thanks. (Two posts, because I do go on.) First, Mary Glasspool is a person of great skills, and remarkable faith and character. In Los Angeles we are so happy to have both Diane and Mary as our new bishops suffragan. Second, obtaining the consents to Mary’s election from the majority of standing committees and bishops with jurisdiction represents a strong stand that TEC will not discriminate against candidates for any office in our Church on the basis of sexual orientation. Third a clear message is being delivered by TEC to the Anglican… Read more »
Fourth, the moratorium that our House of Bishops accepted was for a “time of listening” to the experiences of LGBT persons. During that time the only known gay bishop in the Communion was barred from the Lambeth Conference and silenced in the Councils of the Comunion. The Churches referred to above have refused to “listen”. The materials that TEC presented for the “listening process” have been derided and cast aside by those who most need to “listen”. Fifth, we have seen the gifts of the Holy Spirit in the persons of LGBT members of TEC. We have seen the fruits… Read more »
“Hear what the Spirit is saying to the Church!”
I’d have to agree with Karen+, adding only NUFF SAID!!
Someone posted to one of my lists that the ABC had issued a statement – true? If so, where may it be found? And Karen+, thank you for a cogent and tempered commentary. After a cold and snowy winter here in Virginia, the sun is out, the snow is gone, and crocci are bustin’ out all over. There is indeed an “A” in my heart!
“Third a clear message is being delivered by TEC to the Anglican Communion and the ABC: we do not accept injustice and oppression of LGBT people as the basis for unity in the Communion.” – Karen macqueen+ – This confirms my understanding that TEC is a truly prophetic voice for the whole of the Communion – on the issues of gender and sexual discrimination in the Church. Whatever the Opposition may try to put in place to prevent the episcopal ordination of two legally elected and affirmed candidates for service in the Los Angeles Diocese of TEC, my prayer (and,… Read more »
Joy! Joy! Ineffable Joy! Gloria in Excelsis Deo!
Thank you, karen macqueen. Anything I could say, you’ve said better.
I’m in the TEC Diocese of Colorado. I can’t get a simple answer to whether the diocesan standing committee or the diocesan bishop here has given an assent, has voted “nay”, or has done nothing so far. When I ask, the diocesan office here acts like Sargeant Schultz of the old American comedy show “Hogan’s Heroes”: They see nothing, they hear nothing, they know nothing. Is there an official site that shows who has given assents, who has voted “no”, and who hasn’t acted?
Kendall Harmon’s website has trumpeted a statement from Lambeth Palace, which has been repeated in the usual places. He has been asked to provide a link to the statement, but has failed to do so, instead writing that he has ‘verified’ it with Lambeth Palace. I have written to Lambeth Palace and asked them to verify the statement – it does not appear on their website.
One post on a conservative blog states that the Lambeth announcement is not quite a public thing – at least not yet – apparently it is available by request only – a rather odd way to disseminate information of this type. Wonder if a broader distribution channel will open up….
Canon Godsall, over on the primary other “usual place”, Greg Griffith notes that Lambeth Palace is only providing this statement to those who request it which means it was likely via email. Do you really believe that Canon Harmon made up the statement and then falsely attributed it?
I don’t believe or dis-believe anything about this matter Charles, I am simply seeking clarification of a confusing series of posts on Kendall Harmon’s website. I am a former journalist and was taught to check my sources very carefully. I have accordingly written to Lambeth Palace, but as yet have received no response.
Quite right, Karen MacQueen, well said. Thank God for the Episcopal Church and its stand for authentic Anglican Christianity. I repeatedly feel embarrassed by the failure of English prelates to come up with a pastoral, intelligent or decent way to deal with their own gay faithful. Please don’t think they represent the view of many of the 25 million English people who call themselves Anglican: the bishops are certainly already on the extreme weird edge of British society vis-a-vis gay people, and becoming ever more so, one fears. Before long, the C of E bishops will have only the BNP… Read more »
” …apparently it is available by request only – a rather odd way to disseminate information of this type…”
Well it is odd. More like the way the Vatican behaves. I suspect that since the announcement of the election, His Fuzziness has been on the phone to Africa a lot, trying to tamp down incendiary responses. Do we not yet have thunder from Uganda, Nigeria, and the rest of the gang?
Karen: “…a clear message is being delivered by TEC to the Anglican Communion and the ABC: we do not accept injustice and oppression of LGBT people as the basis for unity in the Communion.” Thank you. Discrimination is discrimination is discrimination. There is no way that people should be side-lined or marginalised, or have their gifts and skills set aside for others to exercise, simply because of their orientation. I think TEC is a prophetic voice and a beacon, in a world with too much dark homophobia and transphobia and fear. May God bless others through the gifts, faith, and… Read more »
I also have noticed an eerie quiet; very little of the usual thunder from the usual sources.
I think everyone involved realizes that this time, whatever it is, it’s for keeps.
The Episcopal Church does not answer to Lambeth and never has, since its founding more than 200 years ago.
Why does Rowan Williams think he’s suddenly entitled to tell Episcopalians what to do?
He’s not. And if he tries, he will fall flat on his face, and he will be ignored. So he shouldn’t try.
Why should Canterbury pretend to possess a degree of influence that it does not have now and never did have?
Before you read this comment, please read the Fulcrum comment, which makes it clear what will happen next. What will happen next is not under TEC’s control, and there is no point in saying anything about it. My post is concerned only with the response I believe TEC should make to what is going to happen next. Fulcrum’s statement makes it clear that we have only two choices: * Remain in the Communion at the price of sacrificing our consciences and consenting to do what we believe to be wrong, * Or allow the Communion to expel us, while pursuing… Read more »
Charlotte, you are giving Fulcrum et al far too much authority that they simply don’t have. Fulcrum is nothing more than a pressure group of the (relatively speaking) moderate right. In that respect, a Fulcrum statement has no more authority (and usually less coherence) than a statement from Changing Attitude, Integrity, Stand Firm or any other pressure / advocacy group associated with either side. It would be a betrayal of the Gospel for your hurch or mine to walk away. Let the extremists try to expel us. I think they will find that the moderates are simply not prepared to… Read more »
Rather than being expelled, aren’t these actions really more along the lines of expelling oneself? Afterall, the instruments of Communion have articulated again and again that this action is outside the minimal limits of maintaining Communion.
Accordingly, Schori should step down from the Standing Committee. The really big question: Will Williams (or the rest of the cmte.) ask her to step down if she has the temerity to try to retain her post?
A couple of points: 1) If TEC is “expelled” from the Anglican Communion, then communion will have to be impaired with the Church of Sweden too, I guess, since they have a lesbian bishop in Stockholm. 2) The Episcopal Church has too many old and dear friends in the Anglican Communion for some fit-fueled fiat from Cantuar to make much of a difference, even if it is a sort of expulsion declaration. Scotland, New Zealand, South Africa and Canada come directly to mind as whole Provinces, and of course many dioceses and bishops in other places will continue to declare… Read more »
‘Rather than being expelled, aren’t these actions really more along the lines of expelling oneself?’
Posted by: Rob+ on Monday, 22 March 2010 at 9:03pm
Well, no. In actual fact No. So glad to have cleared that up for you. Now was there anything else ?
When it comes to temerity, I would nt put the PB ahead of the field at all RobX.
@ Rob+
To paraphrase: The Archbishop of Canterbury has no authority in the Episcopal Church.
Nor for that matter in the many other autonomous churches in the Anglican Communion. Nor does the Lambeth Conference. Nor do the Primates as a group.
Much as those who mutter about “ecclesial deficits” might wish the Anglican Communion were like the Church of Rome, it is not and never has been.
Thank goodness!
I understand that most people posting on Thinking Anglicans will tend to preach to the choir on this one, as Karen most certainly does – I guess we can all tend to that. But I struggle with the fact that a goodly number of posters here seem to do so with a spirit of such aggression and denigration to sisters and brothers who think differently. If it’s wrong to be prejudiced against LBGT people (and it is) – then what makes it right to be gratuitously rude to those who differ from us? And please don’t tell me that it’s… Read more »
Probably Mary Glasspool will receive far less objection–
For one thing, being a woman, those who think women should never be bishops simply won’t consider her one anyway and thus ignore her; for another, the homophobes seem to have a lot more problem with male homosexuality than female, probably due to the “ick” factor among so many of them.