(Please note that the Anglican Centrist said much the same thing, only better and earlier than this but I did not see it until after writing myself. Go HERE for that posting.)Archbishop Drexel Gomez was ordained in 1959, became bishop in 1972, has been Archbishop of the Province of the West Indies since 1998. Sometime this year he will be 70 years old. His successor has been elected. Bishop Laish Boyd became bishop coadjutor for the Bahamas in 2006. Assuming the Province continues in the practice of electing a Primate who continues as diocesan, on Archbishop Gomez’ retirement as Bishop of the Bahamas there would have to be an election of a new Primate. I assume he will want to hold on through Lambeth or whatever else he might attend in 2008 and then be off.
The time to leave is now. Archbishop Gomez has been a primary player in the current Anglican mess for the past 10 years. Now, in the run up to Lambeth 2008 it is reported that he has considerable doubts that the Anglican Communion is able to work through its problems. Having those doubts is not the problem, contributing to the mess is.
At the ordinations of Bishops Atwood and Murdoch in Kenya Thursday August 30 the Archbishop was preacher. One assumes he preached from a supportive position. I presume he took part in the laying on of hands. His participation in these ordinations makes it clear that he has moved on from any thought that the current Province called The Episcopal Church will continue as part of the Communion. These bishops will join with the Common Cause Partnership in September and will be working out plans for an emerging entity that will claim to be the “real” Anglican province in North America. Who knows if they can pull it off, but if they do they will be looking for a covenant that TEC could not possibly sign precisely so that they will be seen to replace the no longer orthodox province of The Episcopal Church.
That being the case, he should resign as chair of the Covenant Design Group (CDG) or should be asked to go. That group is responsible for the difficult but important work of developing a covenant or charter for life together in the Anglican Communion, one which would challenge the church to mission and define with greater clarity what is required of member churches concerning mutuality and interdependence.
How can the Archbishop, in good conscience, return to the tasks of the Covenant Design Group having made it increasingly impossible for that work to proceed, even for the next year?
The question for the Archbishop is this: Have you no sense of honor? If you do, it is time to keep it intact.
I can see no obvious pattern or dynamic in the lemming-like behavior of these people in recent weeks and months. It's as though each of them is trying to outdo the next in demonstrating revolutionary zeal. Am I missing something - seeing only chaos, missing the underlying order?
ReplyDeletePS Regarding "revolutionary zeal", you will have seen Chris Sugden's most recent contribution to this mess:
http://www.anglican-mainstream.net/?p=2046
Indeed an interesting article, lapinbizarre.
ReplyDeleteSo Sugden equates Reformation principles with evangelical principles, even as he equates sexual ethics with "core doctrine," i.e. the Creeds. Rather bold, but, to be sure, not in the way Sugden intends it to be bold.
Archbishop Gomez apparently agrees. Sex as mandatory core doctrine for everyone! But, of course, no problem with all those lingering differences in such apparently non-core areas as, say, sacramental theology or women's ordination...
These people have no shame.
ReplyDeleteFr. Mark,
ReplyDeleteYou seem to have forgotten rule one: in pursuit of the unholy, and evil is just fine.
So, Bp. Duncan can participate in the laying on of hands for two out-off-communion bishops. His oath to be subject to the discipline of TEC is in tatters, but hey as Joseph Stalin observed, making an omelet requires one's breaking eggs. Fr. Anderson can rip off a charitable trust, he is after all a holy homophobes! Windsor means nothing, unless one is dishonestly using it as a club as do the 'Windsor bishops.' It is all in the service of their self-aggrandizing holiness.
I watched the entire web cast of the Kenyan ordinations. ABp Gomez did indeed participate, as did the Moderator of the Nutwork. How they retain their invitations to Lambeth is beyond me. How TEC can justify not presenting and removing Bp. Duncan is beyond any understanding.
I am seriously researching the possibility of a breach of fiduciary responsibility suit against the Presiding Bishop and executive council of they do not move on a presentment against Bp. Duncan. Allowing that man to use resources from the diocese of Pittsburgh to assist in acts like this is unconscionable.
FWIW
jimB
Go(ing) once, go(ing) twice...Go, Go, just *Go* Gomez!
ReplyDeleteThe Primates of Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, Southern Cone, West Indies, Malango, West Africa, Indian Ocean were present at the Kenyan service. Nigeria sent a representative. Tanzania, Congo and the Sudan sent messages of support.
ReplyDeleteI guess these 12 primates serve on a number of Anglican Communion committees.
Why only demand that Gomez step down? One of these primates is reported to be coming to the TEC HoB meeting in New Orleans. Would you rather he stay at home?
I might be reading you wrongly, Mark, but you seem to be suggesting that a commitment to supporting TEC should be a requirement for high office in the Anglican Communion.
From an outsider's perspective that comes across as a little high-handed.
For JimB Is it possible you meant Don Armstrong+ as the alleged trust violator? He was found guilty of such by an ecclesiastical court in Colorado and, he may or may not be indicted, for such in civil court. The matter has been appropriately turned over to the civil authorities. Were you referencing David Anderson+ of the American Anglican Council by mistake? EPfizH
ReplyDeleteWell, obadiahslope, it's a bit much when the man who heads a committee charged with keeping the Communion together is simultaneously, and with maximum publicity, doing his best to break it up. Speaks to a certain credibility problem with the whole effort.
ReplyDeleteOr is this a case of not letting the right hand know what the left hand is doing?
But if the efforts to draw up a Covenant have failed -- and they have failed, thanks in some considerable part to ++Drexel Gomez's recent actions -- we can still be in Communion with each other, and continue to seek ways to formalize that Communion.
That first sentence of yours, Charlotte, states the situation more clearly and succinctly than I've seen anywhere else.
ReplyDeleteEPfizH & all
ReplyDeleteYou are correct, I miss-typed.
FWIW
jimB
Amongst the usual suspects, I'm interested to note that there's been no mention of S E Asia being represented.
ReplyDeleteThe plotting is far and wide now, with several individuals batting for one side formally and batting for the other actually. In the UK we have Chris Sugden (to be our first Church of Nigeria (Anglican Communion) bishop?) stating to the Jamaica Gleaner all sorts of lines so that the newspaper states, without comment, that Archbishop Akinola is the "natural replacement" for Archbishop Williams. In other words, they are all bringing their plans into fruition so that come September 30 there is no turning back. The alternative Communion (not as they'd see it) is on its way.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/20070901/news/news5.html
JimB,
ReplyDeleteThey shouldn't stop with +Duncan. +Iker, +Stanton, and the other AAC/ACN schismatics deserve the same...
We've been "nice" long enough. Like Hercules at the Augean Stables, it's time to clean up this mess.