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Although there were
earlier hints, the passage of
resolution I.10 at the 1998 Lambeth Conference signaled
that future conflict over human sexuality among the
Anglican Communion provinces was inevitable. The
authorization of a liturgy for blessing same-sex unions
in the Anglican Church of Canada’s New Westminster
diocese and the vote to consecrate Gene Robinson Bishop
of New Hampshire sparked a conflict that threatens the
very existence of the Anglican Communion as we have
known it. The
resources listed below all relate to the ongoing
conflict between The Episcopal Church and certain
elements of the Anglican Communion.
Note: Recently added items are
marked “New.” Use “Next” and “Previous” links to move
easily between entries. To view a document, click on
“View.”
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| TITLE |
Unity and
Diversity in the Lambeth Conference |
| AUTHOR |
The Rev. Christopher L. Webber |
| DATE |
2/16/2008 |
| ADDED |
2/16/2008 |
| TYPE |
Essay |
| FORMAT |
PDF |
| DESCRIPTION |
A brief history of the Lambeth
Conference, describing all conferences to date. |
| COMMENT |
A version of this essay first
appeared as a four-part series of posts on
The Episcopal Majority Web site. The version presented here has
been reformatted and corrected, but pictures from the original posts
have been omitted. This is hardly a definitive history of the
Lambeth Conference, but it is a quite useful introduction. It
emphasizes how attitudes toward the conference have changed over the
years. It also points out that the bishops have taken very different
positions on particular topics at different conferences. |
| TITLE |
The death of
liberal Anglicanism? |
| AUTHOR |
Lynda Patterson |
| DATE |
Winter 2007 |
| ADDED |
9/18/2007 |
| TYPE |
Magazine article |
| FORMAT |
PDF |
| DESCRIPTION |
Patterson, writing in a New Zealand
publication, argues that the center of Anglicanism is being squeezed
out, and she suggests what liberals should do about it. |
| COMMENT |
Current church controversies are
most often portrayed as a battle between conservatives and liberals.
This model ignores the fact that the “conservatives” are both
Evangelicals and Anglo-Catholics, who share only some of the same
views and have usually been considered opponents of one another.
Patterson offers a more useful model, suggesting that the
traditional Anglican via media represents a liberal middle,
the preservation of which requires immediate action on the part of
liberals. Anglicanism in the abstract is being analyzed here, but,
because the analysis applies specifically to The Episcopal Church,
even thought that is not the author’s primary concern, we have
placed this entry in the “Episcopal Church” category as well. |
| TITLE |
Anglican schism?
Archbishop Rowan Williams strives to preserve the communion |
| AUTHOR |
John Wilkins |
| DATE |
9/14/2007 (cover date) |
| ADDED |
9/14/2007 |
| TYPE |
Magazine article |
| FORMAT |
PDF |
| DESCRIPTION |
A profile of Archbishop of
Canterbury Rowan William, this is the 9/14/2007 cover story in
National Catholic Reporter. The original version on the Web can
be found
here. |
| COMMENT |
On the eve of the Archbishop’s
meeting with The Episcopal Church’s House of Bishops, National
Catholic Reporter has published this portrait of Rowan Williams
from a Roman Catholic perspective. Wilkins paints Williams as a
spiritual, thoughtful, scholarly, non-politician committed to unity
in the Anglican Communion and the wider Christian Church. |
| TITLE |
Windsor is the
Middle Way |
| AUTHOR |
The Rev. S. Greg Jones |
| DATE |
8/31/2007 |
| ADDED |
9/1/2007 |
| TYPE |
Blog post |
| FORMAT |
Web page |
| DESCRIPTION |
Plea for The Episcopal Church’s
House of Bishops to “bend over backwards to seize this moment, not
to dictate terms, but to engage in the costly relationship mending
and building with our brothers and sisters in Christ overseas.” |
| COMMENT |
Jones, on his blog, “The Anglican
Centrist,” assumes that the “Separatists” are ultimately going to
leave the Anglican Communion, and he urges The Episcopal Church to
stay engaged in the reconciliation process. He does not offer advice
to the bishops as to what, exactly, they should say at their
September 2007 meeting. |
| TITLE |
Rewriting
History: Scapegoating the Episcopal Church |
| AUTHOR |
Savitri Hensman |
| DATE |
7/16/2007 (approx.; the document is
undated) |
| ADDED |
8/23/2007 |
| TYPE |
Essay |
| FORMAT |
PDF |
| DESCRIPTION |
(From the introduction) In this
essay, she [the author] laments recent developments in Anglicanism,
where she says: ‘Genuine interdependence, respect and a common
understanding across theological and cultural divides are under
attack not from “liberal” America but from a new “tidy minded
ferocity” within the “conservative” and puritan wing of this family
of churches.’ She urges that ‘what is of value to the church and
world in the Anglican heritage should not be lightly discarded.’ |
| COMMENT |
This 82-page document offers a perspective from
outside The Episcopal Church. (The author is originally from Sri
Lanka.) The essay is extensively documented. |
 |
| TITLE |
Bishops’ ‘Mind of
the House’ resolutions |
| AUTHOR |
Episcopal Church’s House of Bishops |
| DATE |
3/20/2007 |
| ADDED |
8/26/2007 |
| TYPE |
House of Bishops resolutions
(embedded here in news story) |
| FORMAT |
Web page |
| DESCRIPTION |
Three resolutions address to the
Executive Council, Archbishop of Canterbury and Primates’ Standing
Committee, and to The Episcopal Church |
| COMMENT |
The House of Bishops recommended to
the Executive Council that it reject the Pastoral Scheme proposed in
Dar es Salaam by the primates as being contrary to the polity of the
church. The bishops urged the Archbishop of Canterbury and the
Primates’ Standing Committee to meet with the House of Bishops. (It
was later arranged that such a meeting would happen at the regularly
scheduled House of Bishops meeting in September 2007.) The bishops
also explained their actions to the church. |
| TITLE |
The Communiqué of
the Primates’ Meeting in Dar es Salaam |
| AUTHOR |
Anglican Primates |
| DATE |
2/19/2007 |
| ADDED |
8/25/2007 |
| TYPE |
Communiqué |
| FORMAT |
PDF |
| DESCRIPTION |
Statement from Primates’ Meeting |
| COMMENT |
A major item on the agenda of this meeting in
Tanzania was the response of General Convention to the Windsor Report and the Primates’
Meeting of February 2005. Although a committee reported suggested
that The Episcopal Church had done a conscientious job of responding
to Communion concerns, the final communiqué was draconian. |
|
|
| TITLE |
Report of the
Communion Sub-Group |
| AUTHOR |
Sub-group of the Anglican Communion
Joint Standing Committee of the Primates meeting and the Anglican
Consultative Council |
| DATE |
2/15/2007 |
| ADDED |
8/26/2007 |
| TYPE |
Report |
| FORMAT |
PDF |
| DESCRIPTION |
Report evaluating the adequacy of
the response of General Convention 2006 to requests by the primates.
(The group that prepared the report met in September 2006. It is not
clear exactly when the final report was prepared.) Included in the
report are the relevant resolutions passed by General Convention. |
| COMMENT |
This reported was presented to the
primates at their meeting in Dar es Salaam. It admits that The
Episcopal Church “took the Windsor Report and the recommendations
adopted by the Primates extremely seriously.” Moreover, it declares
that “[t]he response of the 75th General Convention to the Windsor
Report as a whole in its resolutions was positive,” while
admitting that General Convention could have been clearer regarding
same-sex blessings. Although it seemed, for a time, that the
moderate tone of the report would be translated into similarly
moderate language in the communiqué released at the end of the
meeting, heated, eleventh-hour discussions resulted in a much more
radical statement from the meeting (see above). |
| TITLE |
Saving
Anglicanism: An Historical Perspective on Decisions Facing the 75th
General Convention of the Episcopal Church |
| AUTHOR |
Lionel Deimel |
| DATE |
May 31, 2006 |
| ADDED |
8/26/2007 |
| TYPE |
Essay |
| FORMAT |
PDF |
| DESCRIPTION |
A review of the condition of the
Anglican Communion and a plea that General Convention 2006 make “a
more principled,
straightforward, and courageous response” to the requests by the
primates than was recommended by the Special Commission on The
Episcopal Church and the Anglican Communion. |
| COMMENT |
The author argues that it is not the
Anglican Communion that we must save, but Anglicanism. He asserts
that the Communion is headed in the wrong direction and that the
Windsor Report does not represent the only way forward. |
| TITLE |
One Baptism, One
Hope in God’s Call |
| AUTHOR |
Special Commission on The Episcopal
Church and the Anglican Communion |
| DATE |
4/7/2006 |
| ADDED |
8/25/2007 |
| TYPE |
Report |
| FORMAT |
PDF |
| DESCRIPTION |
Episcopal Church report recommending
a response to the Windsor Report and Primates to be adopted at
General Convention 2006 |
| COMMENT |
The Special Commission recommended a
set of resolutions for adoption by General Convention. The
resolutions actually passed were greatly influenced by this
report—it formed the basis of discussion by the legislative
committee—but they were certainly different. The final outcome was
influenced by many factors, including insufficient time to fully
consider what General Convention should have done. |
| TITLE |
To Set Our Hope
on Christ |
| AUTHOR |
The Episcopal Church |
| DATE |
6/2005 (see ENS story of 6/21/2005
here) |
| ADDED |
8/24/2007 |
| TYPE |
Book |
| FORMAT |
PDF |
| DESCRIPTION |
Paragraph 135 of the Windsor report made this
request of The Episcopal Church: “We particularly request a
contribution from the Episcopal Church (USA) which explains, from
within the sources of authority that we as Anglicans have received
in scripture, the apostolic tradition and reasoned reflection, how a
person living in a same gender union may be considered eligible to
lead the flock of Christ.” This book is the church’s response to
that request. |
| COMMENT |
Whether or not one agrees with the decision to
consecrate Gene Robinson, the church here succeeds in making clear
that its decision was not made lightly or offhandedly. |
|
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| TITLE |
The Communiqué of
the Primates’ Meeting at Dromantine |
| AUTHOR |
Anglican Primates |
| DATE |
2/24/2005 |
| ADDED |
8/25/2007 |
| TYPE |
Communiqué |
| FORMAT |
Web page |
| DESCRIPTION |
Statement from Primates’ Meeting at
Dromantine Retreat and Conference Centre, in Newry, Northern Ireland |
| COMMENT |
The primates received and discussed
the Windsor Report at this meeting. In the communiqué, they endorsed
the report, with some reservations. Notably, the primates requested
that The Episcopal Church and the Anglican Church of Canada absent
themselves from meetings of the Anglican Consultative Council until
the Lambeth Conference of 2008. |
| TITLE |
Presentation of
the Windsor Report 2004 |
| AUTHOR |
Archbishop Robin Eames |
| DATE |
2/2005 |
| ADDED |
8/26/2007 |
| TYPE |
Presentation |
| FORMAT |
PDF |
| DESCRIPTION |
Presentation of the Windsor Report
prepared for the meeting of the Anglican primates |
| COMMENT |
This can be considered something of
an executive summary of the Windsor Report |
| TITLE |
The Windsor
Report |
| AUTHOR |
Lambeth Commission on Communion |
| DATE |
10/2004 |
| ADDED |
8/25/2007 |
| TYPE |
Report |
| FORMAT |
PDF |
| DESCRIPTION |
Report requested by the primates in
their special meeting in October 2003 |
| COMMENT |
This report, written by a commission
chaired by Archbishop Robin Eames, pointedly avoided discussion of
human sexuality issues, concentrating instead on how the “highest
degree of communion” could be maintained “both within and
between the churches of the Anglican Communion.” The report has
widely been viewed as outlining the “best way forward” for the
Communion, but no one outside the Commission seems seriously to have
considered alternatives. |
| TITLE |
A Statement by
the Primates of the Anglican Communion meeting in Lambeth Palace |
| AUTHOR |
Anglican Primates |
| DATE |
10/16/2003 |
| ADDED |
8/25/2007 |
| TYPE |
Communiqué |
| FORMAT |
Web Page |
| DESCRIPTION |
Statement from Anglican primates at
emergency meeting called by the Archbishop of Canterbury after
General Convention 2003 |
| COMMENT |
The primates responded both to the
actions of General Convention and to developments in the Diocese of
New Westminster. The primates warned against consecration of Gene
Robinson and called for the writing of what would become the Windsor
Report. (The consecration of Gene Robinson proceeded.) |
| TITLE |
Consider Blessing
Committed, Same-Gender Relationships (Resolution 2003-C051) |
| AUTHOR |
General Convention 2003 |
| DATE |
8/7/2003 |
| ADDED |
8/26/2007 |
| TYPE |
Resolution of General Convention |
| FORMAT |
Web page |
| DESCRIPTION |
Resolution declaring that “local
faith communities are operating within the bounds of our common life
as they explore and experience liturgies celebrating and blessing
same-sex unions.” |
| COMMENT |
Although the originally proposed
resolution would have authorized a liturgy for the blessing of
same-sex unions to be included in the Book of Occasional Services,
the resolution passed only allowed “exploration” of the use of such
liturgies. |
| TITLE |
Pastoral Letter
from the Primates of the Anglican Communion |
| AUTHOR |
Anglican primates |
| DATE |
5/27/2003 |
| ADDED |
8/25/2007 |
| TYPE |
Pastoral letter |
| FORMAT |
Web page |
| DESCRIPTION |
Statement from Anglican primates
meeting in Gramato, Brazil |
| COMMENT |
This statement was issued before
General Convention 2003 and shortly before the election of Gene
Robinson in the Diocese of New Hampshire. This statement is
sometimes construed as having delivered a “warning” to General
Convention. What the primates actually said was this: “Therefore, we
as a body cannot support the authorisation of such [public] rites
[for the blessing of same sex unions].” General Convention
subsequently passed a resolution tolerating, but not authorizing,
rites for blessing same-sex unions. |
| TITLE |
Resolution I.10:
Human Sexuality |
| AUTHOR |
1998 Lambeth Conference |
| DATE |
7/18/1998 – 8/9/1998 |
| ADDED |
8/26/2007 |
| TYPE |
Resolution |
| FORMAT |
Web page |
| DESCRIPTION |
Lambeth Conference resolution on
human sexuality |
| COMMENT |
This resolution was the product of
acrimonious debate. The expectation was that the resolution on human
sexuality would be rather moderate, but American conservatives and
representatives of the Global South managed to pass this resolution
describing “homosexual practice as incompatible with Scripture.”
Although Lambeth resolutions have never before been considered
definitive statements of the Anglican Communion, conservatives
regularly declare this resolution as the official “teaching” of the
communion. The commitment “to listen to the experience of homosexual
persons” has, in many provinces, not been kept. |
| TITLE |
The Kuala Lumpur
Statement on Human Sexuality |
| AUTHOR |
2nd Anglican Encounter in the South |
| DATE |
2/10/1997 – 2/15/1997 |
| ADDED |
8/26/2007 |
| TYPE |
Communiqué |
| FORMAT |
Web page |
| DESCRIPTION |
Early statement from Global South on
human sexuality |
| COMMENT |
This is an early statement from the
Global South on sexuality. The attitude expressed in the statement
would inform the discussion at the Lambeth Conference the next year. |
| TITLE |
The Virginia
Report |
| AUTHOR |
Inter-Anglican Theological and
Doctrinal Commission |
| DATE |
1997 |
| ADDED |
8/26/2007 |
| TYPE |
Report |
| FORMAT |
PDF |
| DESCRIPTION |
Report commissioned by the 1988
Lambeth Conference to consider the “meaning and nature of communion” |
| COMMENT |
Like its more famous descendant, the
Windsor Report, this report is a study of communion. In this case,
it was the advent of women’s ordination that led to the call for a
report. We see here (and earlier in the 1988 Lambeth Conference
itself) suggestions that the Communion might benefit from more
centralized authority. |
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