Gay NZ priest lying low after exchanging vows

5:00AM Wednesday June 18, 2008
By James Ihaka

A gay vicar who exchanged vows with his partner in a London church has gone to ground while the diocese he was once part of remains tight-lipped.

Former Reverend David Lord of Hamilton and Rev Peter Cowell have upset many in the Anglican Church after they exchanged vows and rings at the 12th century St Bartholemew The Great Church in London on May 31.

A leading figure of the Anglican Church, which is facing an upheaval over homosexuality, has since ordered an investigation into the blessing.

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LLOYD ASHTON - Challenge Weekly | Monday, 19 May 2008

NEW Zealand's Anglican bishops will tell the Lambeth Conference in London in July that the church they head wishes to remain in communion with all duly con­stituted Anglican churches.

This follows a lengthy debate at their two-yearly gen­eral synod last week.

The debate acknowledged divisions over the ordination of homosexuals and the bless­ing of homosexual unions, and encouraged those attend­ing Lambeth to engage gra­ciously and honestly with these issues, rather than break communion.

The mover, Dr Tony Fitchett of Dunedin, told synod that issues of sexuality were not first-order or core questions for the church.

Suggesting that all human knowledge is incomplete and that "we see through a glass darkly," he said current disa­greements in the Anglican Communion over sexuality were not the real dispute.

"The real dispute is over power and control."

Dr Fitchett's original motion contained a clause stating that disagreements over homo­sexuality were not sufficient grounds for breaking com­munion.

However, Bishop Richard Ellena of Nelson objected to that because communion was already being broken by par­ishes and dioceses.

He also disputed that the crisis stemmed from power and control.

"It's about the authority of scripture."

Bishop Ellena suggested an amendment to the effect that present disagreements should be engaged "gracefully and honestly" at Lambeth.

At this point synod faced the prospect of an impasse, but the morning tea-break allowed space for both a breather and a compromise.

When synod resumed, Dr Fitchett obtained permission to redraft the motion, incorporating elements of Bishop Ellen's amendment.

The Rev Edward Prebble, a guest of Te Waipounamu, emphasized that the church wanted to stay in communion with Archbishop Akinola and other African bishops - who are leading the opposition over same-sex relationships - even though they didn't choose to.

"We're not going to walk away from the table," he said. "We want to say to the bish­ops: 'Stay at the table and keep talking'."

Before the vote, Archbishop David Moxon reminded synod that Lambeth would not be passing resolutions.

It was designed, rather, to be reflective, educational and prayerful.