815 will give up to just under a quarter of a million dollars to help prop up their shadow dioceses and congregations where the majority have voted to realign with another Anglican province, ENS is reporting.Katharine Jefferts Schori and Bonnie Anderson who have now taken the helm of both houses of General Convention pledged to continue “reconciliation” which appears to be agreeing with them since, “It is profoundly unchristian and unhopeful to say that differences can be irreconcilable,” Bishop Schori said.
In addition, the Executive Board passed a resolution that sought to "Express a desire to seek reconciliation through conversation with the members of the Common Cause Partnership, request presiding officers appoint a task force to accomplish this, and encourage it to seek a person acceptable to all to facilitate such conversations in consultation with the Archbishop of Canterbury and the Secretary General of the Anglican Consultative Council (NAC042)."
It would be interesting to see who might be the one who could chat up all the parties, as if that hasn't all ready been going on for five years.
What is telling is that they are allegedly going to consult with Rowan Williams (who they were quick to out that he had met privately with Bob Duncan, Moderator of Common Cause) and Kenneth Kearon (if he's back from parking cars). But no mention of actually contacting the Moderator directly - and in fact, since the emphasis seems to be on seeking "reconciliation" (which of course means there can be no irreconcilable differences on scripture or revelation or moral behavior - so someone is going to have to change their mind) with "members of the Common Cause Partnership" which will soon be a province. Wonder which "members" they have in mind? Don't think it will be Ft. Worth.
There’s more here, but try not to get vertigo.
LATER - Posted this over at Dan Martin's blog:
No wonder Bishop Schori is blocking ratification of the covenant at General Convention (of course, how much time passed between Gene Robinson's election and confirmation at GC 2003?). Bishop Duncan was received as a bishop by none other than the Archbishop of Canterbury himself. And it was Bishop Schori who kept her arms folded in defiance when the Lambeth Conference gave Rowan Williams a standing ovation after his final Lambeth address.
And now TEC is slipping into at least $2 million deficit over legal bills (and that's an optimistic projection). TEC will have to deal with the deficits in dioceses as well - who will not able to pay their TEC Tax as their own legal bills and loss of income mount.
The conversation thingy - we did that for seven years - seven years - in the Diocese of Virginia. It built up enough trust between the parties that a protocol could be eventually negotiated that would allow the hope of reconciliation in the future. That was destroyed by Bishop Schori's intervention after taking the helm at 815.
So on one hand the Executive Council is giving Bishop Schori nearly a $1 million to prop up the TEC shadow dioceses and shadow congregations strategically created for the TEC litigation (got to see evidence of this strategy last week in court in Virginia), while sinking into at least $2 million in legal debt and yet call for "listening" with some unknown members of the CCP and not the actual moderator (the dissing of mentioning him in the EC resolution also speaks volumes about the broken trust and raises questions of sincerity).It would be like King George III calling for a listening process with the the American colonists - why would he do that except to find a Benedict Arnold?
Which of course, King George did.
4 comments:
I am not now nor have I been involved in legal issues with 815, therefore hopefully with a little objectivity I have a small message for 815 ...
DROP THE LAW SUITS!!!!!!!!!!
If they truly desire what they say, than let it first be shown in action. However, it is the highest level of hypocrisy to say, "It is profoundly unchristian and unhopeful to say that differences can be irreconcilable," when she is the woman who urge the interruption in cordial discourse in Virginia and elsewhere in the nation. This has a name in the secular world called escalation, it leads the opposite direction than to reconciliation.
When she serious instead of talking out her rear end, then let her prove her words by actions, universal and unilateral!
Perhaps Lady Katherine has heard the drumbeat for a new North American Province and fears the loss of the franchise.
Give it up KJS, we are not of the same belief system.
First of all, I say "prop away"! Propping up the liberal remnants after dioceses leave will ultimately hurt TEC. We all know why TEC is doing this - it's simply an attempt to claim diocesan property. Once that litigation is done, propping up a handful of liberals will be judged to be more costly then it is worth and the remants will be folded into a neighboring diocese. I expect that the latter will bring negative PR reprecussions. I also think it most likely that TEC will lose the litigation, in which case this "propping" campaign will turn out to be an abysmal failure.
Second, perhaps TEC is finally realizing that they are losing out on this, and that is why they are suddenly wanting "reconciliation" with the CCP. But I'll bet you that their "reconciliation" will go something like this:
1. The ABC agrees not to recognize any new North American province.
2. No current TEC diocese or parish will be accepted by CCP anymore.
3. Former TEC dioceses and parishes which joined CCP in the past will give up all legal claims to their properties.
And TEC will wonder why nobody agrees to this "reconciliation" and will loudly advertise to those that will listen that they "tried" reconciliation but it wasn't accepted.
Only three things come to mind...Lucy, Charlie Brown, and a football. You figure out what I'm implying.
Post a Comment