ENGLAND: Gay priests' civil partnership blessed in London church
Episcopal News Service. June 16, 2008 [061608-02]
Matthew Davies
Two gay clergymen who had their partnership blessed in a London church and the priest who led the ceremony have received both criticism and praise for the move which conservatives say is at odds with the Church of England's policies and more progressive Anglicans believe is long overdue.
According to reports, the Rev. Peter Cowell and the Rev. Dr. David Lord "exchanged vows and rings in front of hundreds of guests" on May 31 at St. Bartholomew the Great Church in the City of London.
The Rev. Martin Dudley, who led the service, said he didn't have any regrets and he did not seek permission from London Bishop Richard Chartres.
Dudley said that the ceremony didn't resemble a marriage and was "quite simply the blessing of a civil partnership." He said the church's guidelines don't prohibit such blessings, "but ask me to respond pastorally and responsibly to what I'm being asked to do."
Meanwhile, Chartres has ordered an investigation to take place, saying that services of public blessings for civil partnerships are not authorized in the Church of England or the Diocese of London. Civil partnerships have been legal in England since December 2005.
Cowell and Lord wanted a liturgical service that resembled a wedding, which was "more than I was able to give," said Dudley. "I was not willing to do that because I believe that marriage is the union of a man and a woman. Therefore, we had to negotiate the form of the service, the words that we used, so that I could say that with integrity, but they also found that they could express their love for each other and their commitment to one another.
"What we actually did was to celebrate in the context of Holy Communion...their love for each other," Dudley added.
Bishop Michael Scott-Joynt of the Diocese of Winchester, said: "Strictly speaking it is not a marriage, but [it] is clearly modeled on the marriage service and the occasion is modeled on the marriage service. This clearly flouts church guidelines and will exacerbate divisions within the Anglican Communion."
The Rev. Richard Kirker, chief executive of the Lesbian and Gay Christian Movement, said: "I hope it nudges the church into the 21st century. There are so many gay clergy in civil partnerships, whose integrity leads them to wanting to have their relationships affirmed by their faith."
Archbishop Henry Orombi of the Anglican Church of Uganda, a staunch conservative and fierce critic of homosexual clergy and same-sex blessings, has described the ceremony as "blasphemous" and called on Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams to take action.
Dudley said, "I don't think we should allow the cultural position of bishops in other countries to affect our response to the very large number of gay people and gay clergy in the Church of England."
Lord has since resigned as a priest, saying he "felt it appropriate to lay down his clergy license," according to a statement released through the Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand & Polynesia, where he is canonically resident.
According to The Guardian newspaper, liberal Anglicans reacted with disappointment to the news of Lord's resignation. The Rev. Giles Fraser, vicar of Putney and president of Inclusive Church, an advocacy group for gay Christians, said: "This is disgraceful. It's amazing this church cannot celebrate what little love there is in this world. It was supposed to be the happiest day of their lives and they have been turned into outcasts."