Bishop of Ottawa Shane Parker elected primate

In case anyone is under the impression that things are going to change under the new leader, Parker sets us straight by assuring us that “We need to think differently and behave differently.” Newspeak for thinking and behaving as we’ve done for years.

As a friend used to say when I worked at IBM and the management changed: “Same circus, different clowns”.

From here:

In a follow-up interview with the Journal, Parker added that he planned, as primate, to continue down the route of change set up by the listening process that brought forth the transformational commitments and the primate’s commission’s pathways—the set of recommendations calling for dramatic change in the church.

“A lot of people make the mistake of thinking that it is strategic or operational change when in fact it’s cultural change” that’s needed in the church now, he said. “We need to think differently and behave differently.” The rest of this week’s meeting of General Synod (running June 23-June 29) will determine the shape that change takes, he said.

In case you have any doubt:

Parker has spoken out publicly in support of LGBT people before, including as a signatory to the Global Interfaith Commission on LGBT+ Lives 2020 declaration, Declaring the Sanctity of Life and Dignity of All. In a 2023 letter Parker commended the commission and its work to his diocese amid what he described as an alarming increase in hateful words, actions and political posturing against LGBT people. “Not everyone or every parish in our diocese participates in Pride events, but each of us are called to participate in making a safe, loving space for 2SLGBTQI+ people, and to build meaningful connections with one another,” he said.

Does he even know what 2SLGBTQI+ people actually are? Does anyone?

Bishop affirms sanctity of life for 2SLGBTQI+, conveniently forgets about the unborn

In advance of Ottawa’s Pride March on August 27th, Shane Parker, the bishop of Ottawa urged us all to read his letter “Global Interfaith Commission on LGBT+ Lives”. The heading for the letter is: “Declaring the Sanctity of Life and the Dignity of All”.

Not quite all as it turns out. The handwringing is reserved for 2SLGBTQI+ people because “all sexual orientations, gender identities and gender expressions are a precious part of creation and are part of the natural order.”

Around 100,000 abortions per year are performed in Canada. In 2021, 55,073 of them were surgical or aspiration abortions: the baby is sucked out of the uterus with a pump. Or, if you would like to use the euphemism employed by the abortion industry, it uses gentle suction to pull pregnancy tissue out of the uterus. My emphasis.

Some of the 55,073 aspiration abortions, would have been performed by dilation and evacuation (D&E). These are performed for late term abortion and, of course, it is another euphemism. Using normal English, it is a dismemberment abortion. The baby is torn apart in the womb in order to remove it. Oh, and the baby’s skull is crushed. Here is a detailed description:

To prepare for a D&E, the abortionist must first dilate (widen) the woman’s cervix. Generally, this is done by placing laminaria sticks, which are osmotic dilators made from sterilized seaweed, in the cervix 24 hours before the surgery and allowing them to expand. Synthetic osmotic dilators, used to slowly widen the cervix, and misoprostol can also be used for cervical dilation. After the woman’s cervix is dilated, a suction catheter is used to suck out the amniotic fluid. The abortionist then uses metal forceps (sopher clamp) with sharp metal “teeth” to grab and tear away parts of the baby until her whole body is extracted from the womb. Since the baby’s skull has usually hardened to bone at this point (calcified), it is often crushed so that it can be removed.

However, the important thing to remember when considering the sanctity of life of a human, the bearer of God’s image, is affirmation of 2SLGBTQI+ individuals. Let’s not forget that.

From here:

Declaring the Sanctity of Life and the Dignity of All

  • We come together as senior religious leaders, academics, and lay leaders from around the world to affirm the sanctity of life and dignity of all.

  • We affirm that all human beings of all sexual orientations, gender identities and gender expressions are a precious part of creation and are part of the natural order.

  • We affirm that we are all equal under God, whom many call the Divine, and so we are all equal to one another.

  • We, therefore, call for all to be treated equally under the law.

  • We recognize with sadness that certain religious teachings have often, throughout the ages, caused and continue to cause deep pain and offense to those who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and intersex.

  • We acknowledge, with profound regret, that some of our teachings have created, and continue to create, oppressive systems that fuel intolerance, perpetuate injustice and result in violence. This has led, and continues to lead, to the rejection and alienation of many by their families, their religious groups and cultural communities.