According to Michael Bird, some of the bishops who favour same-sex marriage will vote against it to avoid suffering the same sanctions as TEC. A vote rooted more in pusillanimity than principle.
From here:
Interestingly, the reasons are not purely theological. Bird told me some bishops reject same-sex marriage on a Biblical basis while others, including himself, interpret scripture differently.
However, many bishops were worried the Canadian Anglican church would be punished if it stepped with the times. It is not divine punishment they fear, but the fist of Canterbury, the heart of the church where its leader, the Archbishop, resides.
“There are many bishops who don’t have a problem with same-sex marriage, but we were told that if we changed the definition of marriage it would negatively impact our relationships with other denominations and within of the Anglican church itself,” Bird said.
For Anglican priests, this is not an unreasonable concern. The American Anglican church defied Canterbury and elected to allow same-sex marriage last year. In January, ranking church officials voted to effectively expel the American church from the Anglican ranks for three years. This means, among other things, American Anglicans cannot vote on church policy at Canterbury. They may be Anglicans in name, but their voices will not decide the future direction of the church internationally.
Canadian bishops evidently fear a similar consequence.
So, if you don’t vote the way they want, you lose the ability to vote the way they want for 3 years. The only way to start th wave of sensible change would be to vote against them, and let THEM stew about it for 3 years….
There never has been any case for the baptizing of same-sex vice in the Church of Jesus Christ. So whatever “sensible change” are you talking about?
Yup. But heretics gotta push heresy…
Would that ‘punishment’ be a non-RSVP to the Marriage Supper of The Lamb,
The Groom of His Bride Church Who also is Called “The WORD of GOD”?
+ The Revelation of Jesus Christ, chs.19 (v.13) – 22 (v.15)
My thoughts exactly when I read the headline. Rather disappointing that they fear man, not God.
Apostate so-called bishops should indeed be punished. They have rejected the vows made initially at their ordination and reaffirmed at their consecration. They should be removed from office if they are not willing to resign as they have decided to worship the “Baals” of our so-called politically correct society and refuse to stand for the Gospel. Not only do we have apostates within the ACoC and the TEC we have an ABC who seems to think that apostasy and orthodoxy can live in the same camp. Needless to say this also places him in the apostate camp as he is willing to subject the Church to the views of secular society.