Colleagues
rally to keep Bishop Robinson in Lambeth spotlight
by Steve Waring
When it was announced during the House of Bishops' March retreat that a Lambeth
invitation to Bishop Gene Robinson of New Hampshire would not be forthcoming,
Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori said during a media briefing afterward
that the bishops would make sure that Bishop Robinson was "at least as present
at Lambeth as if he'd had an invitation."
Toward that end, a number of bishops and others have promised to stop by the exhibit hall where Bishop Robinson has a booth and to keep him informed about activities underway in the indaba listening group sessions. Bishop Robinson also will be supported by a large number of gay and lesbian persons who volunteered as part of an effort to ensure that the bishops of the Communion hear the voices of faithful gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender Anglicans.
Bishop Marc Andrus of California was one of a number of bishops who originally had pledged to Bishop Robinson that they would not attend the Lambeth Conference if he were not invited, as a stand of solidarity. Bishop Andrus and others changed their mind after talking with Bishop Robinson at the spring retreat last March.
"For some time now Gene has stated that he thinks all The Episcopal Church bishops should attend, so that as many voices can be at the table as possible," Bishop Andrus wrote. "I have accepted this as wise and good counsel. At the same time, it seems imperative to me that I find some creative way to attend that does not seem to support Gene's exclusion by silent acquiescence on my part. One solution that is being acted upon is being called "Witness at Lambeth."
Other bishops who have endorsed the Witness at Lambeth strategy are bishops John Chane of Washington, S. Todd Ousley of Eastern Michigan, Gregory Rickel of Olympia George Wayne Smith of Missouri, and Orris J. Walker of Long Island.
In a recent opinion piece published on its website, the advocacy group Integrity summarized the importance of the Witness at Lambeth strategy to its overall agenda.
"If a significant percentage of Anglican bishops continue to insist that The Episcopal Church refrain from ordaining additional lesbian/gay bishops and blessing same-gender relationships or face expulsion from the Anglican Communion, it will be very difficult to persuade General Convention to nullify B033 and advance marriage equality," the unsigned opinion piece noted. "Conversely, if the great majority of Anglican bishops 'hear what the spirit is saying to the church' and give space for The Episcopal Church to make its own decisions on LGTB issues, General Convention could well be a tipping point for full inclusion."
Each of the 136 Episcopal bishops registered to attend the conference has been given a pre-paid British mobile telephone with the phone numbers of all the other Episcopal bishops already programmed into the address book of the phone.
Lambeth Conference organizers report that approximately 650 bishops from around the world have registered to attend, meaning that about one out of every five bishops at the Lambeth Conference will be from The Episcopal Church. The use of telephones will make the ability to communicate news and information across the campus of the University of Kent in Canterbury, England much more efficient.
The Episcopal Church reports
approximately 2.4 million baptized members spread out over 110 dioceses. With
a reported 26 million members, the Church of England is listed as the largest
in the Anglican Communion, but average Sunday attendance at churches in Great
Britain is estimated to be less than 1 million in any given week. At least
30 million Anglicans from churches in Nigeria, Kenya, Uganda Rwanda and elsewhere
will not be represented at the Lambeth Conference. The leadership of those
churches say they have lost trust in the Archbishop of Canterbury's ability
to uphold previous agreements and have stated they are unwilling to be with
bishops who they contend continue to lead people away from the teachings of
Christ as found in scripture.
—Steve Waring
is news editor of The Living Church. From that publication's Web site.
