More Thoughts About The Anglica Rift
Money, property, gays.
Apparently a potent mix.
Sevveral people ahve written to say what it is often said.
"I have gay friends. I sit next to them. But..."
The Lord said, the bible says...
This is tragic.
How about everybody takes a pill.
You don't have to sanction gay marriages in your parish if you don't want to. You don't have to attend the wedding.
The principle remains. Do unto others. Live and let live. Forget it. Move on. Let go.
2 comments:
Getting tired of this, David? Me too.
How I wish (and all Anglicans wish) we could just live and let live. Move on, let it go.
Up until Michael Ingham started this whole thing, that's exactly what Anglicans were doing. No Anglican was, say, walking into a United church and shutting it down because they were performing gay marriages. No gays were turned away at the door of any church. No one was protesting. There weren't even any pamphlets. Peaceful coexistence was the watchword.
But then Ingham decides, against church history and authority, that when it comes to a conflict between his opinions and church authority and even the Bible, he's right and everyone else is wrong. The whole church district must start performing a ritual against their will. Arrogant? You bet.
And he brought down the fight. He started bullyboy tactics. And most Anglican churches bowed under, but a few said, no, we should have the right to believe what the church has always believed, and not be forced by some middle-management clergy to believe something else. And Ingham threatened, and bullied, and waged war in the media.
Whatever. He can say what he likes. But then all the peace-loving, community-supporting, faithful Anglicans catch the blame, and are painted as being intolerant. When, by any standard, the intolerant, bullying one is Ingham.
(in a slightly cooler frame of mind)
Do unto others. Live and let live. Forget it. Move on. Let go.
That's pretty much what the Anglicans voting to leave the oversight of Ingham did. I don't know if I could be that cool under the circumstances. But instead of fighting (and it's a human rights case; a freedom of religion case they could have won) the local churches chose to leave the local diocese, and move on.
Still, Ingham looks like he might bring the fight after them, taking away their church buildings.
I really wish it wasn't like this. I wish Anglicans didn't get drawn into this issue. And I wish the church didn't get split over this, at a time when we all need unity and to care about each other.
But I think the local churches are acting as wisely as they can under the circumstances, and will continue to live and let live as they always have.
Post a Comment