“May you live in interesting times.” That is a greeting that can be equally thought of as a blessing or a curse. It has been an interesting summer in the life of this Anglican Church of ours, to say the least. Fred Hiltz, the former Primate liked to call us a “beloved” Church. Many of us were quite upset, myself included, at the loss of the vote to allow the Marriage Canon to be more inclusive and allow for the marriage of same sex couples in the church. Hours after the vote our bishop, Archbishop Ron Cutler indicated that he would exercise the local option and provide guideline and liturgies for the Marriage of same sex couples in our Diocese.
Archbishop Cutler says in a letter to the Parishes of the Diocese that he sees the “full inclusion of same sex couples in the sacramental life of the church,” as a, “faithful development in our theology of marriage…”
In other words, as of now, same sex marriage is permitted in the parishes of the diocese. For this to happen at St. Paul’s a letter must be sent from the parish to Archbishop Cutler indicating that the Parish Council and the rector are in agreement with allowing same sex marriages to take place at St. Paul’s.
This is something that this parish has discussed and discerned about for decades. It is my opinion that there is widespread agreement here to allow for same sex marriages. However, it is the right and duty of the Parish Council to decide if we are ready to proceed, or if further discernment is necessary. It will be on the agenda for September’s Parish Council (Tuesday).
Copies of the letter from the Archbishop are available on our web-page and there are hard copies available today (Sunday).
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