Episcopal Church to Affirm Gay Clergy

"The Episcopal Church moved Monday toward affirming their acceptance of gays and lesbians for all roles in ministry, despite pressure from fellow Anglicans worldwide for a decisive moratorium on consecrating another openly gay bishop." (AP)

Bishops at the Episcopal General Convention in Anaheim, CA voted 99-45 for a statement declaring that God calls gay and lesbian people into ministry. Lay and ordained delegates to the meeting had approved a similar statement.

Certain forces within the Anglican Communion have been pushing Episcopalians to retract their support for gays and lesbians since 2003, when the U.S. denomination consecrated the first openly gay bishop, V. Gene Robinson of New Hampshire.

This issue will likely split the Anglican Communion and the Episcopal Church, but it is important for Episcopalian individuals and communities to stand up for LGBT rights and affirm the equality of all persons as created by God as God's children. As such, ministerial ordination as representatives leading people's lives toward right relationship with God in Christ should not be a matter of sexual orientation but one's values, commitment, and character.

Rachel Zoll of the Associated Press has the story.

Newly elected Bishop also Embraces Buddhism

"Episcopal bishop-elect of Northern Michigan, who's come under fire from conservatives for his simultaneous embrace of Zen Buddhism." This speaks to the increasingly common modern/postmodern phenomenon of multiple religious identities and its controversial status among a certain sector of our population. Daniel Burke of the RNS has the story.