Strange days for Anglicans. The Primates met (not apes - the archbishops fo each of the 38 mational Anglican churches) a few weeks ago and issued a letter stating that no church or diocese should ordain a practicing homosexual or bless a same sex union. For 20+ years Anglicans in the global west have been pushing for these things - American Anglicans (the episcopal church) have been pushing the hardest. Well, days after the letter a diocese in Canada "married" a gay couple and the diocese of New Hampshire elected a practicing gay priest as their bishop. By the way, he left his wife and children a number of years ago to pursue this relationship. This while a priest. His diocese not only did not reprove the behavior, but celebrated it. The mainline churches don't do much that is shocking anymore, but this is shocking even for them.

Now, the big deal is that Anglicans in the global south are tired of being bullied by the west. Archbishops in Africa, Asia and Latin America have declared themselves in impaired communion with the diocese in Canada. Two AB's - from SE Asia and Nigeria have broken communion with the diocese. This is a big deal. The Anglican community is made up of 38 churches that are in communion with each other. This means that a priest in my diocese is a priest in the whole communion and welcome in any diocese throughout the Anglican world. Since Anglicans are 1/2 catholic and 1/2 protestant sacramenal unity is a huge, huge, huge (did I write huge?) deal. If this breaks, the church breaks. So now, these two churches are in effect declaring the diocese in Canada no longer part of Anglicanism. By the way - the Anglican Church of Nigeria has 18 million Anglicans. That is more than the Church of England, the Episcopal Church and the Anglican Church of Canada put together. They are weary of not being listened to by the global west.

In the US church, the guy in New Hampshire is not actually a bishop yet. He needs to be confirmed by the other Bishops. He probably will be. If this happens, the whole commuion could bust up. Wild stuff.

Part of the tragedy is not simply the church moving away from historic Christianity. The tragedy is that now those how hold a biblical view of human of sexuality be will accused of being homophobic and oppressive toward gay Christians. It pains me because I have good friends - good Christian friends - who are gay. Some are struggling to walk in purity, some are committed to obey scripture but still live daily with same sex attractions and some have been transformed. I also have gay friends who are not Christ followers. One thing about all these friends is that I see none of them primarily as "gay". They are persons and friends first. But for those of us who will stand with the traditional understanding of human sexual practice, I fear we will be labeled as purveyors of hate. Oh well. God have mercy.