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LONDON: Gay bishop attacks 'unfair' Church report
By Elizabeth Day
THE TELEGRAPH
10/24/2004
The homosexual bishop whose ordination was criticised by the Windsor Report into the future of the Anglican Communion has condemned it for its "deficiencies and unfairness".
In his first British newspaper interview since the report was published last week, Bishop Gene Robinson, 57, censured the Lambeth Commission for not allowing him to contribute and for not containing a homosexual representative. Bishop Robinson, whose consecration in the American diocese of New Hampshire last November triggered a crisis in the global Anglican Church, told The Telegraph: "Not only was I not called in front of the commission, but my requests to appear were also denied, as were those of other diocesan representatives. There wouldn't have been a commission without my ordination."
The commission's findings, set out in its Windsor Report, were published on Monday after a year's consultation. The report castigated the 53 bishops who supported Bishop Robinson's appointment and suggested that they stand down from Church bodies. It also called on the Episcopal Church (USA) "to express its regret".
The 17-strong Lambeth Commission was set up by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams, last October, to investigate the legal and theological implications of Bishop Robinson's ordination and the performing of same-sex blessings in the Canadian diocese of New Westminster. It was chaired by Dr Robin Eames, the Archbishop of Armagh.
"I found it astounding that the Lambeth Commission had no gay or lesbian representatives," said Bishop Robinson. "Would you have a commission on racism with no people of colour? Or a commission on sexism that was all men? And yet it's supposed to be OK to discuss these weighty matters without the input of the people most affected. As a result, the report was deficient." The Bishop, who lives with his lover Mark, and has two adult children from his marriage, said that the experience of the past few months had been "draining", but that he had felt "surrounded by the love and support of my clergy and lay leaders.
"I feel positive about the report. I do not want to see the American Church go its own way. I am committed to our full participation in life within the Anglican Communion.
"I have nothing but the utmost respect for the Archbishop of Canterbury. I am very interested to see what he does with this report, but I have full confidence in him."
The Rev Brian Parker, a spokesman for the Lambeth Commission, said: "The commission's work was not about homosexuality. As for Gene Robinson, it was not about his episcopate, rather his lifestyle and there was little more to be said on that, so he was not invited to attend. He was invited to submit written evidence."
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