Houses Fail to Concur on Access to Ordination Process
Episcopal News Service. July 14, 1988 [88150]
NEW YORK (DPS, July 14) -- The General Convention failed to take any action to modify its "access to the selection process for ordination" or its 1979 position stating that the Church doesn't believe it is "appropriate to ordain practicing homosexuals or any person engaged in heterosexual relations outside of marriage."
In prolonged and heated debate, the House of Deputies failed to concur with a House of Bishops resolution to add a new section to the Church's canons, which stated: "No one shall be denied access to the selection process for ordination, except as provided by the canons of this Church. No right to ordination is hereby established." In a vote by orders, the resolution passed the clerical order by a wide margin, while it failed by a single vote in the lay order.
Other proposals were considered by the House of Bishops and the House of Deputies over a period of three days, neither House concurring with the other. At one point, the House of Bishops passed a resolution that included the above statement along with the words "on the basis of race, color, ethnic origin, sex, sexual orientation, physical disability or age," but the House of Deputies failed to concur.
The existing canons provide no limitations on who can be ordained, except to require candidates to pass prescribed psychological, medical, and academic examinations and be at least 21 years of age. Much is left to the discretion of the diocesan bishops and commissions on ministry.
Conservative deputies did not wish to see any change that would modify the Church's 1979 position. They pointed out that since the existing canons don't specifically exclude the ordination of practicing homosexuals, then the proposed canonical changes could be interpreted as "opening the door" to doing that.
"The net effect [would be] to authorize those who read it that way to allow the ordination of practicing homosexuals," said Douglas Irish, an Arizona deputy.
"It's giving permission to ordain a practicing homosexual," said Laurence Gipson, an Alabama deputy.
The result of hours of debate in both houses of the General Convention is no change. "We're back to square one," said the Bishop William Burrill of Rochester. "Nothing has changed."