Comment on the Resignation of the Bishop of Albany

by the Reverend Canon Susan Russell

A long, drawn out chapter in what some have called “The Inclusion Wars” ended today with the announcement of the resignation of +Bill Love as the Bishop of Albany. The announcement came in the bishop’s address to the 152^nd Annual Convention of the Diocese of Albany and in response to the recent ruling by the Title IV Hearing Panel finding him guilty of failing to abide by the Discipline and Worship of the Episcopal Church, and thus violating his ordination vows.

That violation arose out of a Pastoral Direction issued by Bishop Love on November 10, 2018, prohibiting the clergy in his Diocese from utilizing marriage rites for same-sex couples that had been authorized by the Church’s General Convention in 2018.

Presiding Bishop Michael Curry in his statement to the EpiscopalNews Service expressed “sadness for the pain that has been experienced across the theological spectrum and also his continuing support for the Church’s intention that all persons have access to marriage rites authorized by the Church.”

There is indeed sadness that it has come to this. Those of us who have labored longest and hardest for the full inclusion of all the baptized in all the sacraments take no joy in the fact that there are those for whom our welcome at the table is the deal breaker that causes them to leave. And we believe it grieves the heart of God when we cannot find ways to mutually flourish in communion with each other in spite of our differences.

In 2002 at the Claiming the Blessing conference at Christ Church Cathedral in St. Louis, then Integrity President Michael Hopkins made that clear in this message to the church: 

“Our message to our conservative brothers and sisters is we do not desire for you to go away. Yes, some sympathizers with our movement have said from time to time that it would be just as well if you did. Of course, some of yours have said the same about us. Let us together commit ourselves to finding every way possible to move forward with our debate without threatening either schism or purge. It is simply not necessary for us to do so. Because this movement is not about getting our way or else. This movement is a means to further the healthy debate within the Church, to deepen it on a theological level, to begin to articulate how we see the blessing of same-sex unions as a part of the Church’s moving forward in mission rather than hindering mission.”

That was our message then and that is our message now, nearly two decades later. But there was then -- and there remains now -- a second part of that message. 

Resolution 2018-B012 – the General Convention resolution authorizing Marriage Rites for the Whole Church includes affirmation of “the indispensable place that the minority who hold to this Church’s historic teaching on marriage have in our common life, whose witness our Church needs.”

The second part of our message is that the “indispensable place” the minority holds in our common life is one that offers space to hold differing theological perspectives – not one that gives license to deny others theirs.

It is a place that offers space to hold historic teachings – not to impose them on others in defiance of what the General Convention has said about marriage.

It is a place that Bishop Love could not with good conscience stand, and so he has chosen to step down. 

Nevertheless, it is important to be clear that he has chosen to step down not because there is no room in the Episcopal Church for the theology he holds -- but because there is no license for him to deny same-sex couples access to the sacrament of marriage because of the theology he holds.

Bishop Love has not been run out because of what he believes. Bishop Love has chosen to step down because he cannot impose those beliefs on the Diocese of Albany.  

There is sadness in this day, make no mistake about that. And Bishop Love, his family and the Diocese of Albany will be in our prayers as they take next steps in this new chapter ahead of them.

But there is also gratitude for the gift of clarity as we come to the end of this long, drawn out chapter in what some have called “The Inclusion Wars” in the Episcopal Church. Clarity that we are a church where the marriage rites approved for use in the whole church will be made available to the whole church. Clarity that there will be no second class baptized. Clarity that there will be no sacramental apartheid.

The General Convention has made that clear. 
The Presiding Bishop has made that clear. 
The Title IV Hearing Panel has made that clear.

And now, empowered by that clarity, let us redouble our efforts to reach out to those yearning for a spiritual home, starving for community and wondering if the “you” on the “Episcopal Church Welcomes You” sign really means them. And let us continue in the work Claiming the Blessing charted for itself in 2002 with the commitment to “promoting wholeness in human relationships, abolishing prejudice and oppression, and healing the rift between sexuality and spirituality in the Church.”

"Holy God, you promised Abraham and Sarah that you would bless them so that their descendants would be a blessing to all humankind.  As Jacob wrestled with you throughout the night, refusing to let you go until you blessed him, grant each of us the courage to claim your blessing as our baptismal birthright. Open our ears so that we can hear what your Holy Spirit is saying to the church.  We ask this in the name of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior.  Amen."

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Claiming the Blessing is a collaborative ministry committed to the full inclusion of all the baptized in all the sacrament of the Episcopal Church. Find out more about our history and resources here.