Two Blogs to Note for a Friday Afternoon

An Elephant in the Living Room: Coming Soon to a General Convention Near You by Canon Susan Russell
I do not believe we have ever truly explored the impact of the events the ended the 75th General Convention in Columbus -- where having spent 10 days as the "council of the church" we ended up with precious little to show for it except a boatload of resolutions that fell through the cracks and a last minute betrayal of the gay-and-lesbian baptized to secure invitations for our bishops to Tea at Lambeth.

I want to suggest that until we deal with the rupture of trust of caused by that historic ramrodding of B033 through the House of Bishops -- and by then Presiding Bishop-elect Katharine Jefferts Schori's plea to the House of Deputies to concur with its misguided capitulation to homophobic based bigotry --- we're going to continue to replicate the cycle of misunderstanding, mistrust, suspicion and polarization to the continued detriment of the mission and ministry of the Church and the Gospel.

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Marriage Equality Through A Sacramental Lens by Bishop Mary Glasspool

Are there lesbian and gay couples who love and cherish each other, and stick together through thick and thin, in sickness and in health, who appear to manifest the grace of God, already given in their lives together? Do we have currently existing in our communities gifts from God that have not yet been recognized by the community as a whole? What would be the benefits (if any) of recognizing, blessing, or solemnizing those relationships?

The life of the very Church that I love will be so enriched once it finds a way to publically, respectfully, and intentionally recognize God's grace poured into the lives of gay and lesbian couples who have committed themselves to one another and are already living lives of great integrity.

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