No to the Covenant from the Church of Englandshire!

I must admit to be rejoicing greatly at the news that a majority of dioceses in England have now voted against the Anglican Covenant. It cannot now return to the English Synod – well at least not for a few years. This vote kicks it into long grass until 2015 at least.

I have to admit that I have been surprised that this has happened. A year ago, I did not expect it. As time has gone on, it has become clear that support for the Covenant in England has been very flakey indeed. Particular congratulations to those who have been blogging against the covenant from the beginning and who saw the dangers before others did.

Though I may not have predicted this a year ago, I find myself looking back to a post I made a month ago regarding the Covenant and particularly Rowan Williams. Worth reading again, especially the final paragraph.

People have been asking me what this means for Scotland. Does it mean that we don’t have to discuss it at our Synod in June?

The answer to that is that we do need to discuss it in June as each Province needs to look at it in their own way and come to a conclusion.

However, it means that we can look at it in a different way. One or two people in Scotland have been very worried that if we said no to the Covenant and England had said yes, then it would have meant that we would move further apart and that it could result in clergy not being able to move easily between the Scottish Episcopal Church and the Church of England. I don’t think myself that was ever on the cards, but England’s no votes now mean that no-one can seriously present that as an argument.

It means more than ever that the responsibility comes to us to articulate what kind of communion we want and we don’t have to face the bullying of bishops and others from outside Scotland who have been trying to tell us that the Covenant is the only game in town. (Rowan Williams, I’m looking at you! Pay attention at the back!).

The Covenant is not the only game in town. And it seems clear to me it isn’t a game we have any interest in playing anyway.

The Church of England has shown in its processes over this that it still wants to be Anglican. It still wants to be a church where people can say no to things and not have them imposed from on high or from abroad.

We can, must and I am sure will make the decision to say no to the covenant ourselves.

No to the Covenant!

Yes to the Communion!

Ask! Tell!

Today shall not pass on this blog without noting the change in the law that now allows gay people to service openly in the military in the USA. The so-called “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” rule that has now been consigned to history was an emblematic piece of hypocrisy. The idea was that it was OK to happen to be gay in the US military, but it wasn’t OK to be honest and open about that. It was an uncomfortable half-way house on the road to acceptance. On the one hand the policy prevented the military authorities from harassing closeted gay military personnel but on the other it meant that people faced direct discrimination if they did disclose their sexuality.

Over 13000 people were discharged from the US military because they were either caught out or chose to be open. That is a lot of people’s lives messed up, a lot of money spent on training people who were then deemed unsuitable and a lot of grief all round.

All over now. Cause indeed for rejoicing.

So why is it significant for me to mark on this blog?

Well, the Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell policy is similar (though not identical) to the situation for many gay clergy. To be blunt, you get rewarded for staying in the closet. Come out and you don’t know what will happen to you. Come out and you could be removed from your post by your bishop. Or the next bishop who comes along. Or the Vestry might make life impossible because there are no established guidelines to stop them. Come out about your relationship and you don’t know where you are in the morass of ethics and values regarding who you can live with and what are the rules.

Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell comes very close to the attitude that the Anglican Churches have in the UK towards gay people becoming bishops. It doesn’t affect that many people directly, but it sends out a ghastly message indirectly to the many. Moderate Christians supportive of gay clergy think that policy stinks. Those in the church most opposed to gay clergy think it stinks. Friends in the USA and Canada, punished collectively in their churches because they affirmed one ministry or another connected to people who happen to be gay, think it stinks. The angry leaders of African provinces looking back at Britain think it stinks.

We can’t just blame Rowan William’s depressing tenure as Archbishop of Canterbury. That is too easy. Notwithstanding that though, I’d say that the closeted straight supporters of gay clergy have a particular role to play in finding a way out of the mire.

Ask! Tell! Whoever you are.