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Letters
received during the week
of 29 June
'Continue
in that hard faith'
THE
DAY THAT CANON JEFFREY JOHN has
decided to turn down the episcopal nomination should cause the
Anglican Communion to take a pause and reflect on what was done
to one man. While I do not know this man personally, I can fully
understand how his experience is symbolic and reflective of many
homosexual persons' engagement with institutional religion.
The
Archbishop's commment on 'a shocking level of ignorance and hatred
towards homosexual people' is nothing new.
As
a Christian in a post-colonial Church, I have no romantic ideals
of this Church militant here on earth.
As
an Asian Christian, I see that suffering is a norm and as a Catholic
Christian, suffering is offered as participation in Christ's
passion.
As
gay Christians we are mostly sufficiently steeled in managing
prejudice, and Church homophobia is merely one small part of
our collective experience.
As
a Christian, however, we must continue in that hard faith in
believing that innocence and integrity will prevail.
The
Church in the third world lives with far more important issues
that require the support of first-world churches.
So
meanwhile St Chad of Litchfield, pray for Canon Jeffrey John
and all of us.
Lee
Tuck-Leong
St Andrew's Cathedral
Singapore
tuckleong-lee@stsams.org
7 July 2003
Never
on Sunday
ENOUGH
ABOUT SEXUALITY! Those
who would fight it out re this issue to determine who is the
elect and the damned often seem prepared
to step over and on the homeless, the hungry, the ill, the war-torn
to get at each other.
How
about let's spend some time on some really important issues,
like the current wars, genocide, and
millions around the world who are suffering. Surely God can
damn those who are on the wrong sides (plural intended) of the
sexuality
debate all by Himself at the appropriate time!
(Thanks
again for the forum, and for AO!)
WJ
Arnold
Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, CANADA
30 June 2003
'Vice
the American Communion'? Well, not till we know what it means,
at the very least.
REGARDING
THE ELECTION OF CN. GENE ROBINSON as
the new bishop-elect of New Hampshire, USA, (not to mention the
news from Western Canada
or the Diocese of Oxford, England), I've noticed a curious
fact.
At
least in the United States, those conservatives who are most
ready to impose (by force if necessary) American political
and economic values on other nations, particularly in the Middle
East, are least willing to force America's social values on
on the Communion at large. On the other hand, those liberals
who are most willing to insist that the Church in, say, Africa,
must abide by American social values in regards to sexual morality
are the most aghast at President Bush's apparent inclination
to impose American governance and free trade on Afghanis and
Iraqis.
As
I see it, beyond the problems of Cn. Robinson having left his
wife for a male partner, our unwillingness in the United States
to understand that we are members of the Anglican Communion,
vice the American Communion, is at the root of a lot of our
problems.
Fr.
Francis C. Zanger
Church of the Holy Communion
Charleston, South Carolina, USA
1 July 2003
¶ Er,
Canon Robinson (Cn.?) didn't leave his wife for a male partner.
This
scurrilous myth won't die, having been born in the British tabloids
and carried, like the children's game of Chinese whispers [American:
Operator], round the world. Here
is the correct chronology, written by Canon Gene Robison,
which we have received permission to publish:
| August,
1972 |
V.
Gene Robinson and Isabella 'Boo' Martin are married,
All Saints Church, Peterborough, New Hampshire, USA. |
| May,
1986 |
Gene
and Boo separate; Gene moves to Wilton, New Hampshire (five
miles away), sharing joint custody of daughters Jamee and
Ella. |
| March,
1987 |
Boo
meets Robert McDaniel, by May they are engaged to be married;
Gene moves to Concord, NH, where he is now employed as
Canon to the Ordinary. |
| August,
1987 |
Boo
and Gene's divorce is final; the Rector of Grace Church,
Manchester, accompanies them to the judge's chambers for
the final decree, and then they return to Grace Church,
where they mark the ending of their marriage, the mutual
release from their wedding vows (symbolized by the return
of their wedding rings), and the pledging of themselves
to the joint nurture and care of their children—all
within the context of the eucharist. |
| October,
1987 |
Boo
and Robert are married (within a couple of years, they
have two sons). |
| November,
1987 |
Gene
meets Mark Andrew while on vacation. |
| February,
1989 |
Mark
leaves his career with the Peace Corps and moves to New
Hampshire to be with Gene, Jamee, and Ella. |
| July,
1989 |
Gene,
Mark, Jamee and Ella host a 'Celebration of a Home' from
the Book of Occasional Services. |
Please
feel free to share this chronology with anyone else who seems
to be under the wrong impression about the ending of Canon Robinson's
marriage.
 Radishes.
Hmm.
THANK
GOD FOR ARCHBISHOP ROWAN, a
voice of reason and compassion in a Church that sorely needs
his brand of wisdom and solicitude for all.
I
sometimes wonder if church people ever pay attention to what's
happening in the world outside the walls of the church! Internecine
strife in the Congo and Uganda, Indonesia and the Solomon Islands,
(to mention but a few), children all over the world forced
to serve as soldiers, prostitutes, and slave labourers, the
ongoing turmoil in the Middle East, the repression of human
rights in more countries than I care to think about, the AIDS
epidemic that has killed thousands in Africa, and on and on
and on... and all Anglicans can get upset about is whether
or not gays and lesbians should have their unions blessed and
whether or not homosexuals should be ordained and if they are
whether or not they should serve as bishops! I give up!
Surely,
our sexuality is a God-given blessing, and shouldn't we be
celebrating love and commitment, rather than nitpicking. I'm
trying very hard to love the Archbishop of Sidney and those
of his ilk, and I am more than grateful that Jesus commanded
us to love one another rather than like one another. I am tired
of people picking little bits of scripture to support their
prejudices and homophobia, and I am tired of the eternal wrangling
over this issue when there are so many greater and more pressing
needs for Christian concern and compassion.
I
have a cartoon on my refrigerator door that depicts God sitting
on a cloud and looking down at earth, which has all the symbols
for atom bombs and swear words rising from it, and God is saying
to an angel standing beside him: "Next year, I think I'll just
put the whole thing to radishes!" Next year may come sooner
than we think!
Blessings
on you and your super web site. I look forward to your opening
letters each week. Thank you.
Rene
Jamieson
The Cathedral Church of St John the Evangelist
Winnipeg, Manitoba, CANADA
6 July 2003
Hot
under the collar: what to do?
THE
CHOIR HERE IN HONG KONG traditionally
wears both a cassock and surplice during the summer and winter.
However it is very hot
here in the sub-tropics. How have other Cathedrals in hot climates,
without air conditioning, modified their choir robes without
sacrificing tradition? Thank you.
Annelise
Connell
St John's Cathedral
HONG KONG
2 July 2003
¶ Have
solutions or suggestions? Email Annelise Connell: (redacted)
Letters
like this are why we're Anglican
Dear
Episcopal,
I
AM DEEPLY HURT AND ANGERED with the consecration of bishop V.
Gene Robinson. My son and daughter-in-law recently affiliated
with a church in "a city" and I admired their careful search
for a church with something solid behind it. Now that I read
what has taken place I am deeply disturbed by this development.
I want to protest this action in the deepest and strongest way
possible and on the basis of Biblical teaching. There is nothing
good about this event accept that I hope it will awaken Christian
people to what is taking place in the moral decline even within
supposedly "orthodox" churches. How can you justify such an endorsement
of gay depravity in the light of our general moral decay when
we, to the contrary, should be speaking out with clarity for
the highest and noblest in Christian character?
Sincerely,
Dick
Barker
Richard
Barker
I am not an Episcopal member - My son and daughter-in-law are.
Wilmore, Kentucky, USA
6 July 2003
¶ 'Episcopal'
says: Thanks
for letting us know of your non-membership.
(Canon Robinson won't be consecrated as a bishop until his election has been
confirmed by the General Convention, which will take place in late July and
early August).
Earlier
letters
We
launched our 'Letters to AO' section on 11 May
2003. All of our letters are in our
archives.
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