The Best of the Worst

"It's the best of the worst." That's how the canon to the ordinary in an orthodox diocese described the recently passed Resolution D025. You might hear about this through the media, and you will certainly hear about it in the church's life, so let me break it down for you from my perspective.

First, it is written in very gracious language: it does not have the abrasive, in-your-face tone of many of the resolutions dealing with sexuality. It was purposely written to be eirenic, and it starts out with a commitment to the Anglican Communion and a statement that being a part of the Communion is important to the American church. But then it goes on. It essentially quotes from a resolution from a previous convention that basically says, in layman's terms (if you'll pardon the pun): "we have gay folk in this church, they are in loving committed relationships that look like marriage to us, they are in ministry at all levels, including the episcopate, and we like it that way." In a sense, although the facts that it describes are disappointing from an orthodox perspective, they are, in my judgment, facts. It's all true, as long as one takes the "we" to mean a majority of dioceses (although those dioceses do not have a majority of the people in the pews in their membership). There's a big part of me that welcomes the honesty with the Communion. I'm glad that the national leadership is saying, "hey, this is the case. This is what's happening in our church." The Communion can now decide how it wants to respond. This part of the resolution doesn't say anything that anyone with much awareness of the American church doesn't know already. It doesn't hurt anything, and probably helps, to say what is true. And in the last clause of Do25 it recognizes that there are people in the Episcopal Church who are "not of one mind," so it does recognize that we exist: frankly, that's an advance from the party line of the last several years.

However, there is a fly in the ointment. DO25 goes on to say that the American church is going to run things according to its own canons. This means the ordination of gay folk to the episcopate, whether the Communion likes it or not. Many of us are reading this section of D025 to be a repudiation of B033, which was the resolution from 2006 in which the EC committed itself to "exercise restraint" in ordaining homosexual persons to the episcopate and blessing same-sex unions. This in itself is a disappointing turning away from the Communion. But on the other hand, it simply recognizes the facts on the ground that B033 didn't restrain anybody from anything they wanted to do. So, again, I find myself putting trust in the truth: now we (the national church and those who control the levers of its power) are communicating honestly with the Communion. The Communion, in my judgment, can and will take it from there. It may take longer than we want, but there will in the end be a response.

So what does this mean in Dunstanland? Nothing! Nothing has or will change in how we do ministry or our commitment to living the Gospel. As I've said before to some of you, the best revenge is living well, and for Christians that means growing in faith, growing the church. For the record, all three of our bishops voted against D025, so not much will change in the diocese, either.

I am truly feeling led to respond to this by redoubling my efforts to grow St. Dunstan's. When confronted with the Israelites worshipping the Golden Calf, Moses said "All those who are on the side of the Lord stand with me!" The sons of Levi came to Moses' side and took the lives of their brothers for God's honor. In the New Covenant, we are called not to take life but to give it. In the face of faithlessness, let us give life to as many of our brothers and sisters who will receive it, to the glory of God. Let us share the redeeming love of Jesus Christ, and bring as many of our neighbors as God gives us into a relationship with Him. All who are on the side of the Lord stand with me! Are there any Levites out there?