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Oasis/California Advisory Board

Initial Response to the Anglican Primates' Communiqué

As the gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender ministry of the Episcopal Diocese of California, Oasis/California is concerned about several aspects of the communiqué released by the Primates of the Anglican Communion following their February 2005 meeting in Northern Ireland. In particular, we wish to respond to the recommendation that primates "use their best influence to persuade their brothers and sisters to exercise a moratorium on public Rites of Blessing for Same-sex unions and on the consecration of any bishop living in a sexual relationship outside Christian marriage."

1. We rejoice that it has been the long-standing practice of our bishop to allow for the celebration of experimental rites blessing same-sex unions in congregations that are ready to receive the gifts that same-sex couples offer the Church. Many of our congregations recognize that same-sex couples can exemplify the self-giving love of God in Christ, and that their sharing in that love advances the mission of the Church.
2. For more than twenty-five years, the diocese has engaged in extensive theological reflection and conversation about the sacramental equality of gay and lesbian Christians. Our Diocesan Convention has voted repeatedly for the development of an authorized diocesan rite for the blessing of same-sex unions. The mind of the diocese as expressed through Diocesan Convention has been very clear on this matter. We continue to advocate for the development of such a rite, as a clear witness to the truth about the holiness of committed same-sex relationships we have come to know and claim.
3. It is simply impossible for us to declare "unclean" what God has declared "clean" and ask our gay brothers and lesbian sisters to return to the closet. Gay and lesbian people, lay and ordained, are active in ministry and mission in their local congregations, in the diocese, in the national church, and in the Anglican Communion. Their ministry is welcomed and valued. We utterly reject the notion of a moratorium on public rites blessing same-sex unions as incompatible with our experience of the presence of the Holy Spirit in the lives of same-sex couples, the biblical command to love God and neighbor, and our baptismal promise to respect the dignity of every human being.
4. We are mindful that our bishop has announced his retirement and called for the election of his successor. We support the Diocesan Standing Committee's firm commitment to follow the procedure for an episcopal election as set forth in church law, and its refusal to discriminate against any qualified clergy, including gay or lesbian clergy, who might be nominated in the course of the search process. We stand with them in their commitment to an open, transparent, Spirit-filled process to discern whom God is calling to serve as the next bishop of California. We are confident that the Diocese will be presented with a slate of well-qualified candidates who reflect the diversity of our multicultural diocese.

We also note that the Primates have asked "the Anglican Consultative Council in June 2005 to take positive steps to initiate the listening and study process which has been the subject of resolutions not only at the Lambeth Conference in 1998, but in earlier Conferences as well." Since 1978, the bishops of the Anglican Communion have pledged to listen to the experience of gay and lesbian Christians, but have thus far failed to do so on a Communion-wide basis. One important example of this failure was the lack of any gay or lesbians persons on the commission that produced the Windsor Report. It remains to be seen how such a process can be fruitful, given that the Primates also have requested that the two Provinces that have engaged most fully in this listening process (the Episcopal Church in the U.S.A. and the Anglican Church of Canada) withdraw from participation in the Anglican Consultative Council until the Lambeth Conference of Bishops in 2008. We pray that the Executive Council of the Episcopal Church and our General Convention meeting next year will carefully consider the justice of this recommendation.

We acknowledge that the current crisis in the Anglican Communion regarding these issues is painful to many of the members of our diocese. We lament the vilification of gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender people on the part of some in the Anglican Communion, and call the Church to repentance for its ambivalence regarding the human dignity and sacramental equality of all God's children. We will continue to advocate for the full inclusion of gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender people in church and society, and support congregations working to heal the divisions caused by heterosexism in our diocese and worldwide Communion.

The Advisory Board of Oasis/California