c. 2007 Religion News Service
Bishops Unveil Plan to Minister to Episcopal Conservatives
(RNS) As the Episcopal Church began a crucial meeting Thursday (Sept. 20) in New Orleans, Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori named eight bishops to take her place in overseeing conservative dioceses that reject her leadership.
Because of Jefferts Schori’s progressive theology and pro-gay politics, six U.S. dioceses have asked to be placed under the guidance of another bishop instead.
The eight bishops will be called “episcopal visitors” and assume the duties of visiting parishes, ordaining and consecrating bishops, and overseeing church discipline, according to the Episcopal Church.
“This gives dioceses the pastoral guidance and care they need while remaining faithful and loyal members of the Episcopal Church,” said the Rev. Charles Robertson, an adviser to Jefferts Schori.
Each of the eight bishops are “bridge-builders, who empathize with the concerns and needs of dioceses that are struggling with the issues of the current time,” Robertson said.
The announcement comes as Episcopal bishops convened this week to debate demands from overseas Anglicans to roll back their pro-gay policies or risk losing their place in the global Anglican Communion.
Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams, who as head of the Church of England is charged with holding the 77 million-member communion together, is meeting with the bishops.
The communion has been in turmoil since the Diocese of New Hampshire elected an openly gay bishop in 2003. Conservatives in the U.S. and abroad have threatened to bolt.
Anglican archbishops gave Episcopal bishops until Sept. 30 to promise not to consecrate any more gay bishops or authorize rites for same-sex unions. The bishops are expected to give their answer by Tuesday (Sept. 25).
Meanwhile, Robertson said he hopes the new oversight arrangement will persuade some conservative dioceses to maintain ties to the national Episcopal Church.
The eight bishops named as “episcopal visitors” are Frank Brookhart of Montana, Dorsey Henderson of Upper South Carolina, John Howe of Central Florida, Gary Lillibridge of West Texas, Michael Smith of North Dakota, James Stanton of Dallas, Geralyn Wolf of Rhode Island and Clarence Coleridge, retired bishop of Connecticut.
The six dioceses that have asked for alternative oversight include Central Florida; Fort Worth, Texas; Quincy, Ill.; Springfield, Ill.; San Joaquin, Calif.; and Dallas.
_ Daniel Burke
Pentagon Concludes Probe of Muslim Chaplain
WASHINGTON (RNS) The Pentagon’s inspector general has concluded a review of a former Muslim chaplain who was detained and later cleared of espionage charges, saying the Department of Defense acted properly in investigating the Army chaplain.
“We found that DOD officials acted in good faith and within applicable standards in ordering Chaplain Yee’s initial and continued pretrial confinement and Chaplain Yee was not targeted because of his religious affiliation,” reads a two-page executive summary of the review involving former Army Chaplain (Capt.) James Yee.
Yee was held at a military brig for 76 days and the charges against him were dropped in March 2004. The inspector general said an investigation determined in May 2004 that Yee possessed 54 documents with secret information when he was arrested in 2003.
The summary noted two policy violations by military officials regarding Yee. It said a general exceeded his authority when he dismissed Yee’s reprimand for downloading pornography and committing adultery. It also said a letter to the editor written by a public affairs officer violated DOD policy.
While DOD spokesman Lt. Col. Brian Maka said Yee’s case is now closed, Yee’s attorney, Eugene R. Fidell, feels differently.
“This case will not be over until the Department of the Army apologizes to Chaplain Yee,” Fidell said.
Army officials could not be immediately reached for further comment.
The inspector general’s investigation was launched in response to a request from members of Congress.
Yee, who had served in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and received an Army commendation for “exceptionally meritorious service,” was honorably discharged in 2005. He lives in Olympia, Wash., and travels to speaking engagements for his 2005 book, “For God and Country.”
_ Adelle M. Banks
Vatican Says Reports of U.S. Papal Visit `Premature’
VATICAN CITY (RNS) The spokesman for Pope Benedict XVI said Thursday (Sept. 20) that press reports of the pope’s visit to the United States next year were “premature” and “misleading” because no plans had been set.
The Rev. Federico Lombardi said that a predicted visit by the pope to United Nations headquarters in New York next April was a “plausible hypothesis,” and that the Vatican was “working toward” a visit at that time. “But we have not made any commitments,” Lombardi said.
U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon invited the pope to New York during a visit to the Vatican this past April. The Vatican announced later the same month that Benedict had accepted the invitation, but no date was announced.
On Wednesday (Sept. 19), the Associated Press reported that Lombardi had “confirmed” that Benedict would address the U.N. General Assembly in spring 2008.
Media outlets have reported that the pope’s U.S. visit could also include stops in Boston, Philadelphia, Baltimore and Washington. The spokesman refused to comment on those reports.
“I have nothing to say on the subject until a program ready for publication has been formulated and approved,” Lombardi told Religion News Service. “Premature hypotheses are misleading because they create expectations that are then not realized.”
_ Francis X. Rocca
House Says Insurers Must Cover Travelers to Israel
WASHINGTON (RNS) The House approved a bill Wednesday (Sept. 19) that prohibits insurance companies from denying coverage to people who travel to Israel, a step that was welcomed by Orthodox Jews.
The bill, known as the Terrorism Risk Insurance Revision and Extension Act of 2007, passed the House on a vote of 312 to 110.
The Orthodox Union’s Washington-based Institute for Public Affairs said the bill will prevent discrimination against Jews who travel “to Israel and other lawful destinations.”
“This legislation will have a broad impact on all types of travelers, from businessmen to students, and will now enable them to obtain a life insurance policy from the carrier of their choice,” said Nathan Diament, who directs the Orthodox Union’s Washington office.
Earlier this year, Diament’s office said that “too often insurance companies use travel to Israel as grounds to reject or drop applications for life insurance.”
In an interview, Diament conceded that not all insurance companies deny coverage to international travelers, and noted that some companies deny coverage only to customers who have traveled or plan to travel to select countries.
The bill now heads to the Senate.
_ Heather Donckels
Quote of the Day: Focus on the Family Founder James Dobson
(RNS) “He has no passion, no zeal, and no apparent `want to.’ And yet he is apparently the Great Hope that burns in the breasts of many conservative Christians? Well, not for me, my brothers. Not for me!”
_ Focus on the Family founder James Dobson, in a private e-mail to friends obtained by the Associated Press, speaking about Republican presidential hopeful Fred Thompson.
KRE/PH END RNS
