24th Diocesan Convention
Friday and Saturday, Nov. 17 & 18, 2006
at St. Peter & St. Paul Episcopal Church, Arlington
Resolution #4 |
Resolved, that this Convention direct the establishment of a Diocesan Commission on Human Sexuality that includes Episcopalian members of the gay and lesbian community, including representatives of Integrity, to begin to fulfill the promises and commitments made by the Lambeth Conferences of 1978, 1988 and 1998, reaffirmed by the Primates Meeting of 2003 and the Windsor Report of 2004, to encourage dialogue with gay and lesbians persons, to engage in “deep and dispassionate study of the question of homosexuality” and “to listen to the experience of homosexual persons, and;
Be it further resolved, that this Commission be charged to develop an open, safe and welcoming listening process for use by all parishes and missions of this diocese to listen to and dialogue with Episcopal members of the gay and lesbian community, and report its progress to the next annual diocesan convention, and;
Be it farther resolved, that this Convention strongly urge and encourage all parishes and missions of this diocese to assure all ttoose who are homosexual “that they are loved by God and that all baptised, believing and faithful persons, regardless of sexual orientation, are full members of the Body of Christ…” [Resolution 1.10, Lambeth 1998, reaffirmed by Primates Meeting 2003] by publishing this statement in parish and mission newsletters; and
Resolved, that this Convention strongly urge and encourage all parishes and missions of this diocese to heed the admonition of the Primates’ Meeting of February 2005 when they stated that “we continue unreservedly to be committed to the pastoral support and care of homosexual people. The victimisation or diminishment of human beings whose affections happen to be ordered towards people of the same sex is anathema to us. We assure homosexual people that they are children of God, loved and valued by him, and deserving of the best we can give of pastoral care and friendship.”
EXPLANATION
"Beginning in 1978, each successive Lambeth Conference has urged the Provinces, the member churches of the Communion, to respect and listen to the experiences of gay and lesbian persons; a recommendation affirmed by recent gatherings of the Primates, and reflected in the Windsor Report. The purpose of such dialogue is to more fully and deeply understand the views of those who differ from us, not to compel them to change their minds. The listening process is intended as an expression of our Baptismal Covenant in which we pledge to seek and serve Christ in all persons, loving our neighbor as ourselves, and to strive for justice and peace while respecting the dignity of every human being. If the Diocese of Fort Worth is to take its place in the continuing Windsor process, it is important to our community and our credibility that we respond by providing for such a process."
Sources:
From the 1978 Lambeth Conference of Anglican Bishops, Resolution 10; ... The Church, recognising the need for pastoral concern for those who are homosexual,
encourages dialogue with them.
From the 1988 Lambeth Conference, Resolution 64;
This Conference: 1. Reaffirms the statement of the Lambeth Conference of 1978 on
homosexuality, recognising the continuing need in the next decade for "deep and
dispassionate study of the question of homosexuality...
From the 1998 Lambeth Conference, Resolution 1.10;
... We commit ourselves to listen to the experience of homosexual persons and we wish to
assure them that they are loved by God and that all baptised, believing and faithful
persons, regardless of sexual orientation, are full members of the Body of Christ...
From the Primates' Meeting, October 2003;
We also re-affirm the resolutions made by the bishops of the Anglican Communion
gathered at the Lambeth Conference in 1998 on issues of human sexuality as having
moral force and commanding the respect of the Communion as its present position on
these issues. We commend the report of that Conference in its entirety to all members of
the Anglican Communion, valuing especially its emphasis on the need "to listen to the
experience of homosexual persons, and to assure them that they are loved by God and
that all baptised, believing and faithful persons, regardless of sexual orientation, are full
members of the Body of Christ"; and its acknowledgement of the need for ongoing study
on questions of human sexuality.
From the Windsor Report, October 2004;
We remind all in the Communion that Lambeth Resolution 1.10 calls for an ongoing
process of listening and discernment, and that Christians of good will need to be
prepared to engage honestly and frankly with each other on issues relating to human
sexuality.
From the Primates' Meeting, February 2005;
... we continue unreservedly to be committed to the pastoral support and care of
homosexual people. The victimisation or diminishment of human beings whose affections
happen to be ordered towards people of the same sex is anathema to us. We assure
homosexual people that they are children of God, loved and valued by him, and deserving
of the best we can give of pastoral care and friendship.
Full Texts of Lambeth resolutions
1978 Lambeth Conference of Anglican Bishops
Resolution 10
Human Relationships and Sexuality
The Conference gladly affirms the Christian ideals of faithfulness and chastity both
within and outside marriage, and calls Christians everywhere to seek the grace of Christ
to live lives of holiness, discipline, and service in the world, and commends to the
Church:
1. The need for theological study of sexuality in such a way as to relate sexual
relationships to that wholeness of human life which itself derives from God, who is the
source of masculinity and femininity.
2. The need for programmes at diocesan level, involving both men and women,
(a) to promote the study and foster the ideals of Christian marriage and family life, and to
examine me ways in which those who are unmarried may discover the fullness which God intends for all his children; (b) to provide ministries of compassionate support to
those suffering from brokenness within marriage and family relationships;
(c) to emphasise the sacredness of all human life, the moral issues inherent in clinical
abortion, and the possible implications of genetic engineering.
3. While we reaffirm heterosexuality as the scriptural norm, we recognise the need
for deep and dispassionate study of the question of homosexuality, which would take
seriously both the teaching of Scripture and the results of scientific and medical
research. The Church, recognising the need for pastoral concern for those who are
homosexual, encourages dialogue with them. (We note with satisfaction that such
studies are now proceeding a some member Churches of the Anglican
Communion.)
1988 Lambeth Conference of Anglican Bishops
Resolution 64
Human Rights for Those of Homosexual Orientation
This Conference:
1. Reaffirms the statement of the Lambeth Conference of 1978 on homosexuality,
recognising the continuing need in the next decade for "deep and dispassionate
study of the question of homosexuality, which would take seriously both the
teaching of Scripture and the results of scientific and medical research."
2. Urges such study and reflection to take account of biological, genetic and
psychological research being undertaken by other agencies, and the socio-cultural
factors that lead to the different attitudes in the provinces of our Communion.
3. Calls each province to reassess, in the light of such study and because of our
concern for human rights, its care for and attitude towards persons of homosexual
orientation.
1998 Lambeth Conference of Anglican Bishops
Resolution 1.10
Human Sexuality
This Conference:
(a) commends to the Church the subsection report on human sexuality;
(b) in view of the teaching of Scripture, upholds faithfulness in marriage between a man
and a woman in lifelong union, and believes that abstinence is right for those who are not
called to marriage;
(c) recognises that there are among us persons who experience themselves as having
a homosexual orientation. Many of these are members of the Church and are
seeking the pastoral care, moral direction of the Church, and God's transforming
power for the living of their lives and the ordering of relationships. We commit
ourselves to listen to the experience of homosexual persons and we wish to assure
them that they are loved by God and that all baptised, believing aad faithful
persons, regardless of sexual orientation, are fuH members of the Body of Christ;
(d) while rejecting homosexual practice as incompatible with Scripture, calls on all
our people to minister pastorally and sensitively to all irrespective of sexual
orientation and to condemn irrational fear of homosexuals, violence within marriage and any trivialisation and commercialisation of sex;
(e) cannot advise the legitimising or blessing of same sex unions nor ordaining those
involved in same gender unions;
(f) requests the Primates and the ACC to establish a means of monitoring the work done
on the subject of human sexuality in the Communion and to share statements and
resources among us;
(g) notes the significance of the Kuala Lumpur Statement on Human Sexuality and the
concerns expressed in resolutions IV.26, V.1, V.10, V.23 and V.35 on the authority of
Scripture in matters of marriage and sexuality and asks the Primates and the ACC to
include them in their monitoring process.