Tuesday, January 31, 2012

Same sex blessings in church-- where does your parish stand?

From St Paul's Fayetteville AR, how the conversation began.  You can read more about their process and the resources they used for the conversation,  at their website.  I highly recommend this sermon (pdf) by their rector the Rev Lowell Grisham.




Meanwhile, At All Saint's Pasadena, it started 20 years ago:

What's your parish doing?  Are you discussing blessings, or marriage?  Is it a done deal?  Is it even on the radar?

7 comments:

Ann said...

A done deal --
This is the Anniversary of the public covenant of life together celebrated at the Church of St. John the Evangelist, Bowdoin Street, Boston in 1990 at Candlemas. It took two years of dialoguing and theological debate with our then-bishop and a lot of careful preparation in the supportive congregation By Rev. Richard Valantasis and myself, co-rectors, and much courage from Kathy Corbett and Ellen Welch to come forward and ask the blessing of God and the community upon their union in a parish liturgy. Congratulations, sisters, and happy anniversary! Blessings to you, people of St. John's, in your ongoing Eucharistic life together. We shared a wonderful piece of history and moment of prayer in which Christ was palpably present.

I attended the wedding of Susie Erdey and Jan Nunley in the 1980s at St. J the E. - held during the Sunday service.

IT said...

Woo hoo, Ann!

St Paul's Cathedral in San Diego, also a done deal, though much more recent.

Jim Pratt said...

Ironically, in a parish with a married gay priest and a married gay seminarian, in a diocese with an authorized liturgy, the topic is not really on the radar. We don't have any same-sex couples in the congregation, so we have been focused on other, more pressing matters, but if the issue came up, I don't think there would be much opposition.

JCF said...

I'm rather ashamed to confess I have NO idea (re St Michael's, Carmichael). I don't even know what the diocese's policy is (during and since the California Camelot of 2008: I wasn't here then). My bad! :-X Must find out...

JCF said...

Esp. important since our long-term rector just gave her notice, I might add.

[LGBT-affirming priest, who can (prophetically) drag along a rather mum suburban (and FWIW, financially-privileged) parish? Apply to St Mike's! :-D]

Erp said...

September 1993 was the first at the local church I'm familiar with (university chapel and with the permission of the university administration).

dr.primrose said...

The 9th Circuit decision on the release of the Prop. 8 trial tapes came out today. Basically, the court said they should not be released, but on a very narrow ground -- the trial judge had told the parties that he would use them only in-chambers for his own use and the parties are entitled to rely on his promise.

"The integrity of our judicial system depends in no small part on the ability of litigants and members of the public to rely on a judge's word. The record compels the finding that the trial judge's representations to the parties were solemn commitments. Upon this record, there is only one plausible application of the standard for sealing a record that is, arguendo, subject to the common-law right of public access: the interest in preserving the sanctity of the judicial process is a compelling reason to override the presumption in favor of the recording’s release." (pp. 5-6)

You can read the whole decision here.