Reason vs. openness and the impending Episcopal schism

TownHall.com ^ | Thursday, October 23, 2003 | by Ross Mackenzie

[JohnHuang2]

It's clear that one of the major news stories of the generation is the developing schism within the worldwide Anglican Communion. As anyone with his or her eyes and ears open well knows, the cause is homosexuality. As homosexuality within the Catholic priesthood now is costing Roman Catholicism dearly, so (a) the imminent consecration as bishop of an openly practicing homosexual and (b) the blessing of homosexual unions are fracturing Anglicans - known in the United States as Episcopalians.

The U.S. Episcopal Church is clearly losing adherents as it loses relevance in its dilution of scriptural teaching and the upholding of standards of right and wrong. Its overall membership has declined by about one-third over the last 40 years. Today - at 2.3 million communicants - it is about one-thirtieth the size of the 64-million-member U.S. Roman Catholic Church and about one-fortieth the size of the 78-million-member worldwide Anglican Communion.

Buggery ought to be at best a peripheral issue in any church, but in a collapse of reason in the name of openness and diversity, the U.S. Episcopal leadership has made it central. In August, at its Minneapolis convention, clerical and lay Episcopal leaders voted nearly 2-1 in favor of (a) consecrating a practicing homosexual as bishop of New Hampshire and (b) acquiescing in the clerical blessing of homosexual unions variously within the church. Soon such consecration and such blessing will be routine - normal - in dioceses across the U.S. Episcopal landscape.

And normalcy is largely what the debate and developing schism is about.

[JohnHuang2]

Thursday, October 23, 2003

Quote of the Day by RightWingAtheist

[Coeur de Lion]

Homosexuality, as we understand it as an orientation, is not mentioned in the Bible.

I love this kind of sophistry. I have a desire to drink massive quantities of good Scotch. It's my orientation. Even better yet it's not mentioned in the Bible. My orientation isn't mentioned but my resultant drunkenness definitely is.