Episcopal bishop of NC OKs blessing of same-sex unions
Letter lets clergy, congregations decide about offering blessing
By Paul Garber

JOURNAL REPORTER
Saturday, July 3, 2004

The bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of North Carolina sent a letter to area
ministers this week telling those who want to bless homosexual unions that they
can do so under certain guidelines.
The letter from Bishop Michael Curry leaves it up to the ministers and
congregations to decide whether to offer the blessings. One local minister said
yesterday that he is prepared to offer the blessing. Others said they are not.
"From my perspective as Bishop, the blessing of the committed lifelong unions
of persons of the same gender is one way our community can live the Gospel
through faithful and loving pastoral care and spiritual support for each other,"
the Curry letter reads.
The letter, which was sent Thursday, is meant to offer pastoral guidance to
the clergy in the wake of a vote by officials at St. Philip's Episcopal Church
in Durham last month to allow the blessing of same-sex unions among its
members.
The Rev. Hal Hayek of St. Anne's Episcopal Church praised the bishop's
letter, saying that it gave clear-cut guidelines on how to proceed should a
congregation want to do so.
Hayek said that the people of St. Anne's have already held discussions on why
the church blesses any union, including those between men and women, and the
next step in those discussions would cover whether same-sex unions should be
blessed. He said he believes that such blessings can be appropriate.
Other local Episcopal leaders are taking a more cautious approach.
The Rev. Donald Goodheart of St. Paul's Episcopal Church said he will not
move forward on the blessings until a consensus is reached within the
congregation on what to do.
"At St. Paul's, we have people on both sides," Goodheart said. "Our
congregation is sharply divided on that right now."
The Rev. Howard Backus of St. Timothy's Episcopal Church said that he would
wait until the national Episcopal General Convention votes to approve such
blessings.
"I just feel like the General Convention is the voice of the church," Backus
said.
The General Convention meets every three years and has struggled with the
issue of homosexuality for several years. So far, it has declined to endorse
same-sex unions.
In a compromise decision on the issue of same-sex unions, officials at last
year's convention determined that local churches offering same-sex blessings
were within the bounds of the national church, but they stopped short of
authorizing common liturgies for such services.
Last year's convention was also notable in its approval of the election of
the church's first openly gay bishop, the Rt. Rev. Gene Robinson of New
Hampshire.
Those decisions on homosexuality, particularly regarding Robinson, angered
many of the more conservative Episcopalians here and prompted protests by
Anglican leaders in Africa and Asia. The Episcopal Church is the U.S. branch of
Anglicanism.
The next General Convention is scheduled for 2006.
In his letter, Curry said he understands that not all congregations will
agree to bless same-sex unions. For those that do, he asked that certain
guidelines be followed, including consulting with the bishop first, consulting with the
parish community and the local church's leaders, and proceeding with the
expectation that the relationships will be characterized by such things as
fidelity, monogamy and mutual love and respect.