Episcopal Church Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori on proposed bill in Uganda

[December 4, 2009] The following is the statement of Episcopal Church Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori concerning proposed private member’s bill on homosexuality in the Parliament of Uganda:

The Episcopal Church joins many other Christians and people of faith in urging the safeguarding of human rights everywhere. We do so in the understanding that “efforts to criminalize homosexual behavior are incompatible with the Gospel of Jesus Christ” (General Convention 2006, Resolution D005).

This has been the repeated and vehement position of Anglican bodies, including several Lambeth Conferences. The Primates’ Meeting, in the midst of severe controversy over issues of homosexuality, nevertheless noted that, as Anglicans, “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” (Primates’ Communiqué, Dromantine, 2005).

The Episcopal Church represents multiple and varied cultural contexts (the United States and 15 other nations), and as a Church we affirm that the public scapegoating of any category of persons, in any context, is anathema. We are deeply concerned about the potential impingement on basic human rights represented by the private member’s bill in the Ugandan Parliament.

In the United States and elsewhere, we note that changed laws do help to shift public opinion and urge a more humane response to difference. The Hate Crimes Act recently passed in the United States is one example, as are the many pieces of civil rights legislation that have slowly changed American public behavior, especially in the area of race relations. We note the distance our own culture still needs to travel in removing discriminatory practice from social interactions, yet we have also seen how changed hearts and minds have followed legal sanctions on discriminatory behavior.

We give thanks for the clear position of the United States government on human rights, for the State Department’s annual human rights report on Uganda, which observes that the existing colonial-era law on same-sex relations is a societal abuse of human rights, and for the State Department’s publicly voiced opposition to the present bill. We urge the United States government to grant adequate access to the U.S. asylum system for those fleeing persecution on the basis of homosexuality or gender identity, to work with other governments, international organizations, and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees to provide adequate protection for these asylum seekers, and to oppose any attempts at extradition under a law such as that proposed in Uganda.

Finally, we note that much of the current climate of fear, rejection, and antagonism toward gay and lesbian persons in African nations has been stirred by members and former members of our own Church. We note further that attempts to export the culture wars of North America to another context represent the very worst of colonial behavior. We deeply lament this reality, and repent of any way in which we have participated in this sin.

We call on all Episcopalians to seek their own conversion toward an ability to see the image of God in the face of every neighbor, of whatever race, gender, sexual orientation, theological position, or creed. God has created us in myriad diversity, and no one sort or condition of human being can fully reflect the divine. Only the whole human race begins to be an adequate mirror of the divine.

We urge continued prayer for those who live in fear of the implications of this kind of injustice and discrimination, and as a Church, commit ourselves anew to seek partnerships with the Church of Uganda, or any portion thereof, in serving the mission of God and the Gospel of Jesus Christ. That Gospel is larger than any party or faction. It is only in mutual service and recognition that we will begin to mend our divisions.

We are grateful for the willingness of the Anglican Communion Office and Lambeth Palace to hear this plea on behalf of all God’s people, and urge their continued assistance in seeking greater justice. We note the impediments this legislation would pose to the ability to continue a Listening Process in which all of the Anglican Communion is currently engaged.

The Most Rev. Katharine Jefferts Schori
Presiding Bishop

The Episcopal Church welcomes all who worship Jesus Christ in 109 dioceses and three regional areas in 16 nations. The Episcopal Church is a member province of the worldwide Anglican Communion.

From Episcopal Life.

Thanks to Ann.

UPDATE: "Request for Executive Council Meeting Withdrawn".

Read Fr. Jake's post.

I am concerned that the release of a statement by the PB was cause for some members of Executive Council to think that there was no longer any need for them to make a statement. Speaking personally, I am much more interested in hearing from all four orders, not simply from our Presiding Bishop. The Executive Council is the authority on these matters, as they are our representative body. This feels very much like falling back into past patterns; letting the Bishops call the meetings and make the statements.

I agree. The meeting should have proceeded as scheduled.

Please Pray...

...for my brother-in-law, who has acute diverticulitis

...for my niece Donna, who is recovering from a hysterectomy

...for Kay, who is recovering from spinal surgery

...for JimB

Jim said...

Sue-z and I are facing the tent option unless something good happens soon. I am a candidate for a gig in Arkansas and am praying for a fair shot at it.

...for Susan S.' sister-in-law

susan s. said...

My sister-in-law is having both of her knees replaced today.

UPDATE: From Eileen:

Can we add my mil Peggy here? She's moving to rehab later today to continue recovering from her hip replacement surgery for the next few weeks.

From Arkansas Hillbilly:

... and I hate to be a burden, but could you add me to the prayer list... I had a "minor procedure" done Wednesday and the end result still hurts something fierce.

Prayer requests are never a burden.

By The Light Of The Full Moon

Great ball shining bright
Rolling on dark night's ceiling
Sun's light brings to earth


I'm one night late. Sorry.

Presiding Bishop Katharine - Door Still Open to Gay Bishops

Mark Harris at Preludium says:

Still in some quite remarkable ways Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori continues to speak in ways that make me proud to be part of the same church with her.

Listen to her interview by Denis O'Hayer on WABE.

After hearing her, I'm with Mark. I have not always agreed with Bishop Katharine, but, in this interview, she gets it right.

On The Other Hand...

Another point of view from a women's rights activist from AFP.

Women's rights activists on Tuesday backed a US troop surge in Afghanistan but warned that hard-fought gains in women's rights will vanish without a long-term commitment to develop the country.

"If the US left, women would be back in their burkas," said Esther Hyneman, a member of Women for Afghan Women (WAW), a rights group advocating for Afghan women in the United States and Afghanistan.
....

"America must make a long-term commitment to Afghanistan. Countries cannot recover overnight from 30 years of war, chaos, destruction, subjugation," she said.

We must not abandon the Afghans, especially the women, but we must stop fighting the war there. A presence, perhaps, but not a fighting presence. What will happen in July of 2011? Should we occupy parts of the country forever? A UN presence?

According to the article by Seymour Hersh to which I linked in my previous post on Obama's address on the war in Afghanistan, the Pakistanis are more and more in sympathy with the fundamentalist anti-American Muslims, and they don't want us in their country. As fundamentalism spreads, women will be oppressed. We must search for solutions other than wars, and I don't know what those solutions are, but we can't occupy great swaths of the Middle East.

Thanks to Ann for sending the link.

The Same-Sex Marriage Debate

UPDATE: View the enlargement here.

From Pharyngula.

Thanks to Paul (A.) for the link.

Because Everyone Should See This

Senator Diane Savino, a state senator from New York, on gay marriage.

Thanks to Fran for calling the video to my attention.

A Sweet, Possibly Apocryphal, Story

From Ruth Gledhill:

The Archbishop of Canterbury has a son who is of school age and who, like any schoolboy and certainly like my own young son, loves nothing more than a good play date.

This boy was apparently round at a friend's house the other day when his dad, Dr Rowan Williams, appeared on the television, as he does.

'Oh look,' piped up the boy's school friend. 'There's that man on the telly who does the hoovering at Pip's house.'

Mitres off to you Jane, you've got your priorities right. I think you might just be deserving of another bottle of Times champagne for this coup in domestic ecclesiastical politics.

Credit due. Archbishop Williams, if you push the Hoover in your house, you deserve applause. You're an example to all husbands. How about a video of your technique? We may learn a more efficient way to do the chore.

Thanks to Lapin for the link.

The President's Plan For Afghanistan

From the transcript of President Obama's address on the war in Afghanistan:

And as Commander-in-Chief, I have determined that it is in our vital national interest to send an additional 30,000 U.S. troops to Afghanistan. After 18 months, our troops will begin to come home. These are the resources that we need to seize the initiative, while building the Afghan capacity that can allow for a responsible transition of our forces out of Afghanistan.

With all due respect, I don't buy the president's plan. What will be different in Afghanistan in 18 months? What will we accomplish in that time period, which will include more killing and maiming of Americans and Afghans? That's not to speak of the billions in the costs of the war, billions that could be put to better use than fighting a war we cannot win. The war becomes Obama's war now.

And this from TPM on the mostly ignored, but quite real "giant shadow army of contractors":

Private contractors employed by the Defense Department in Afghanistan will continue to outnumber the size of the American troop presence, even after President Obama sends 30,000 more soldiers to fight in the war, according to the military's most recent contractor count.

The latest figure on DOD contractors in the country is a whopping 104,100, a spokesman for U.S. Central Command tells TPM. That number, which is expected to grow, is already greater than the 98,000 U.S. troops that will be in the country after the new deployments.

The president mentions Pakistan several times during his address, as well he should. According to Seymour Hersh in The New Yorker, the nuclear weapons in Pakistan are much less safe than the leadership in both Pakistan and the US would have us believe. If you're looking for something else to worry about, read Hersh's article. It's long, but worth a read. A couple of paragraphs from the beginning of the article:

In the tumultuous days leading up to the Pakistan Army’s ground offensive in the tribal area of South Waziristan, which began on October 17th, the Pakistani Taliban attacked what should have been some of the country’s best-guarded targets. In the most brazen strike, ten gunmen penetrated the Army’s main headquarters, in Rawalpindi, instigating a twenty-two-hour standoff that left twenty-three dead and the military thoroughly embarrassed. The terrorists had been dressed in Army uniforms. There were also attacks on police installations in Peshawar and Lahore, and, once the offensive began, an Army general was shot dead by gunmen on motorcycles on the streets of Islamabad, the capital. The assassins clearly had advance knowledge of the general’s route, indicating that they had contacts and allies inside the security forces.

Pakistan has been a nuclear power for two decades, and has an estimated eighty to a hundred warheads, scattered in facilities around the country. The success of the latest attacks raised an obvious question: Are the bombs safe? Asked this question the day after the Rawalpindi raid, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said, “We have confidence in the Pakistani government and the military’s control over nuclear weapons.” Clinton—whose own visit to Pakistan, two weeks later, would be disrupted by more terrorist bombs—added that, despite the attacks by the Taliban, “we see no evidence that they are going to take over the state.”

Madame Secretary, I hope against hope that you are right.

No, Mr. President, I cannot buy into your plan.

UPDATE: A link to a post by Fred Schwartz at Real Anglicans which I urge you to read. Fred is a Vietnam vet. Fred's father served in WWII, and his son is presently serving in the Gulf of Oman. I quote the final paragraph, but please read the entire post.

Let me end this with where I began. My son is in the Gulf of Oman. He and his friends are professionals, they go where they are told to go, and do what they are told to do. That is the beauty of our military; actually, that is the brilliance of our military. It is up to our civilian government to say where and when and how and for how long. I for one, do not want my son and his friends, pilots and his shipmates, to be there for one more second than needs be. If, we are there for "the long haul" and we will continue a mission that is ill-defined and ill-conceived and we are unwilling to do what we started to do in the first place, then it is time to stop the madness.

Please Pray For Juan

From Margaret:

And the reality of Juan's situation is looming with his first hearing this Thursday. An impossible maze with impossible hurdles. Yet, we are preparing to leap with faith...

Some days are just like that.... impossible. Faith full. Today, after a month of rain, the sun is shining --a respite of sun. And it's not yet that clear, cold, blue-white winter sun --it is still full of warmth. And texture.

Margaret and Joel have taken into their home a young man, Juan, an illegal immigrant, who must attend a hearing tomorrow, Thursday, because he turns 18 years old. Then, on Dec. 7, he will have an immigration hearing at which a decision will be handed down as to whether he will be allowed to stay in the country or taken into custody and eventually deported. Please pray that the seemingly impossible will come to be - that Juan will be permitted to stay in the US.

Now to him who by the power at work within us is able to accomplish abundantly far more than all we can ask or imagine, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations, for ever and ever. Amen.

Ephesians 3:20-21