c. 1998 Religion News Service

VANCOUVER, British Columbia _ A low-key crusade for greater rights for gays and lesbians in the Anglican Church of Canada is being led out of the country’s West Coast.

Greater Vancouver’s Anglican bishop, Michael Ingham, has begun across-Canada consultation with Anglicans on the contentious issue of blessing same-sex unions now that his diocese, earlier this year, became the first in the nation to give such blessing its stamp of approval.

Ingham is seen as the strongest voice among Canadian Anglican bishops who are signaling that the struggle for a greater role for homosexuals in the church is far from over despite the setback orchestrated by conservative Anglican bishops from Asia and Africa at the Lambeth conference in England last month.

Canada’s Anglican Primate, Michael Peers, has joined Ingham, nine other Canadian bishops and more than 150 bishops from the United States and other parts of the world in signing a statement apologizing to gays and lesbians for not giving them a chance to speak at August’s Lambeth conference, a gathering of worldwide Anglican bishops held once every decade in Canterbury, England.

The dissident bishops began adding their names to the statement of apology on the same day the Lambeth Conference voted 526 to 70, with 45 abstentions, to express their disapproval of homosexuals in the priesthood unless they remain celibate and to disallow the blessing of same-sex unions.

Ingham refuses to let the Lambeth vote de-rail a process of consultation he set in motion in May after his diocese voted narrowly to support the blessing of same-sex unions.

Ingham has appointed a council of nine people, including two other prelates _ Bishop Victoria Mathew of Alberta and Bishop Percy O’Driscoll of Ontario _ to advise him. Before taking further action on the volatile issue, Ingham has promised to report back before November to his fellow Canadian bishops, who represent 700,000 Canadian Anglicans.”The vote (at Lambeth) has caused a lot of pain,”said Ingham, 49, whose region is formally called the diocese of New Westminster.”Very strong language was used. But anyone who thinks this is over because of the vote has to think again.” The pastoral statement signed by Ingham and others following Lambeth is a commitment to work for full inclusion of gays and lesbians in the 80 million-member Anglican communion.

Peers, Canada’s top Anglican, also made it clear he was unhappy with the Lambeth vote.”I must disassociate myself from any who perceive this action as a `victory,'”Peers said.”Canadians generally have been scandalized by some of the reported comments, as were Canadian bishops. The debate was marked at times by outright condemnations of homosexual persons.” Although the views of the Canadian primate and Ingham may not be far apart on homosexual issues, it is Ingham who has become the lightning rod for Canadian Anglicans.

Gays, lesbians and liberal Canadian Anglicans have applauded him, while conservatives have condemned his approach. He also says he has received hate mail.

Although Ingham has made it clear he personally supports the ordination of practicing homosexuals and favors same-sex unions, he is adamant his decision is not predetermined on whether to endorse Greater Vancouver Anglicans’ unprecedented vote to officially bless unions between homosexual partners.”I have a responsibility as a bishop for the unity of the church,”he said,”and I’m quite capable of setting my public responsibility and my personal views alongside each other, and not getting them mixed up.” Ingham acknowledged he will have to take into account the overwhelming vote by the world’s Anglican bishops at the Lambeth conference to deny certain church roles to practicing homosexuals.”It is obviously a decision that has to be taken seriously,”he said.”But it’s not a legislative decision. It has no binding power over any church. Yet it exerts a considerable amount of moral force, and I intend to convey that in my consultation.” Rev. Roger Simpson of Holy Trinity Anglican Church in Vancouver, is one of a number of evangelical Anglicans in North America who are urge prelates like Ingham to”get in step”with the conservative and increasingly influential Anglican leaders of Asia and Africa, where the church is growing.”The strength of the (Lambeth) vote encouraged me,”Simpson said.”It made me realize that the way we are looking at things over here in parts of Canada is not true of what’s going on in the rest of the world.” The Bible is clear in condemning homosexual behavior, argued Simpson. He applauded Archbishop of Canterbury George Carey, a political progressive but theological conservative, for voting with the bishops who opposed the blessing of same-sex unions.

While Ingham said he was happy with the solidarity the Lambeth bishops showed by voting strongly in favor of Western banks and the International Monetary Fund forgiving the debts of developing nations, he was as stunned as Peer by the acrimonious debate over homosexuality.”Bishop Duncan Abraham of South Africa was the chair of the subsection on homosexuality. When he suggested that a number of gay and lesbian Christians be allowed to speak, he was shouted down, largely by African bishops, from Uganda and Nigeria,”Ingham said.”It was an appalling scene. It was shocking. Bishop Abraham said to me afterwards that the two weeks of chairing the subcommitee was the most brutal experience of his life. This was a man who lived through 30 years of apartheid.”DEA END TODD