Press Conference Underway: ACC kicks the "Covenant Can" down the road

Go George Conger. It does appear that the non-English-as-first-language-speakers have been tricked.

It's shameful. How could Rowan Williams agree to this? Why would anyone want anything to do with these people?

Now Kearon is telling the press that because they didn't get to hear all the "indabaing" in the "discernment group" - it's a farce.

Go George, go George.

Haste in the meeting room, Robert is saying. Kearon and company had to spend forty-five minutes to figure out how to fix it. We're very close to breaking up, we need to do something. How is with the amount of confusion and haste, why can't there be any clarification for the delegates, if we're on the brink of schism, why can't there be more time for for discussion?

Kearon - "maybe you just don't want a press conference!" Did he really just say that?

Chis Sugden now asking questions. We now have a situation of further delay, doesn't this meeting present a major failure of what the Archbishop of Canterbury achieve at the start of the conference.

That's only one province anyhow, says Kearon about TEC. No one is fooled, no one is fooled.

No, we all knew that the Covenant was going to go to the ACC and then to the churches. That's what we were told at Lambeth. That is not true, Kearon. We were told exactly how this was going to work and that's what has been done - until a couple of hours ago when the Joint Standing Committee got elevated as the power that runs the Communion.

George is now speaking - is this just another kick the can down the road?

Kearon says they are not being unfaithful to the Communion. Section IV is going to a working group.

It's so over. If it goes to a working group, The Covenant is finished.

Section 1, 2, 3 are going no where. 4 is going to working group and then the working group to the JSC ... no, says Kearon, well, actually the text says that there will now be a revised Ridley Draft.

It appears there is still major confusion. Now there are "working groups" being proposed that will send it to the Joint Standing Committee - God knows when - whenever.

Chris is asking why the people were taken by surprised - so basically what I hear Kearon saying is that the Joint Standing Committee ejected the Anglican Covenant Design Group's resolution and rewrote it to fit the TEC agenda.

Attempt to clarify the confusion and there was no attempt, says Kearon. So there was confusion. What was on purpose. I've seen that done so many times at General Convention.

And Schori is smiling because she now has full control over the language and process of the Anglican Covenant. What a trick.