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Claiming the Blessing (www.claimingtheblessing.org) is a collaborative of justice organizations and individuals in the Episcopal Church. Established in 1998, CTB is committed to securing the authorization of liturgical rites of blessing for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender couples who enter into a covenant to live together in relationships marked by mutuality, love, faithfulness, respect and lifelong monogamy. Members of the CTB Steering Committee met May 26-28, 2004 in the Diocese of Dallas, in the Name of Jesus and seeking to be guided by the Holy Spirit, to evaluate, assess, and plan our work together. Our time was framed by prayer, song and laughter, which inspired creative strategies to accomplish the high prophetic call to do justice, love kindness and walk humbly with God. We celebrated the initial success of the educational and evangelism tool, via media. We are excited by the reception it is receiving--especially in those places where progressive Episcopalians are marginalized and trivialized for their beliefs. Clearly, there is great spiritual hunger for the solid food which has been prepared in the classic Anglican style of scripture viewed thorough the lens of tradition and reason. Other educational programs such as an Instructed Eucharist are in development and we applaud and support the Every Voice Network (www.everyvoice.net) in this important ministry. We also rejoiced in the status of asylum recommended for approval by U.S. immigration authorities to a lesbian from Africa who has been sponsored to live in this country by several members of CTB. Research on homosexuality in Africa, published in The Witness (the Episcopal Church Publishing Company, www.thewitness.org), has helped to document both her case and that of another African lesbian who recently received asylum. Despite the "Ashcroft climate" of xenophobia and homophobia, such outcomes for lesbians and gay men encourage us that sound judgment still exists in this country and its institutions. We continue to study the reality of the health of our church and, despite the dire predictions made after General Convention and the very real challenges we continue to face, we believe that it is good. In Dallas, we received with encouragement the report that in one AAC-affiliated diocese a small band of moderate and progressive parishes, determined to be faithful, are pledging tens of thousands of dollars to the National Church. Others in that diocese who have sought to negatively impact the National Church have failed to do so, since that diocese had not been paying its assessment previously anyway. Our fervent prayers remain with Bishop Robinson and the people of the Diocese of New Hampshire. We urge Archbishop Eames and the members of the Commission he leads to enter into meaningful conversation with the Bishop and Standing Committee of New Hampshire, as well as Bishop Ingham and the Diocese of New Westminster, before making their recommendations. We also continue to pray for Archbishop Rowan Williams, our own Presiding Bishop, Frank Griswold, and for all bishops, priests, deacons and members of the laity as they provide effective leadership in this time of Kairos in our lives of faith. The development of liturgical rites of blessing is ongoing in many dioceses around the country, as well as the blessing--by priests and bishops--of same sex relationships. We are preparing a map to identify the dioceses engaged in this endeavor, which we suspect will mirror those dioceses which supported the election of the Bishop of New Hampshire. We are deeply committed to continue to work for authorization by the Episcopal Church of rites for the blessing of same-sex couples in committed relationships. We are overjoyed at the marriages of same-sex couples now occurring, but our joy is tempered by the decision of some bishops to prohibit clergy from officiating at such marriages. We believe the lack of separation of church and state regarding marriage needs to be carefully scrutinized. We will work for change in the Church's national Canons on marriage, and in the marriage rites in The Book of Common Prayer to make the canons and prayer book rites gender neutral. As all of these issues are considered and addressed, we will stand in solidarity with those who feel called to acts of constructive disobedience by officiating at the marriages of same-sex couples. The Steering Committee of Claiming the Blessing: Return to Oasis/California Home Page.
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