General Synod 2010 of the Anglican Church of Canada decided almost unanimously to issue a pastoral statement on human sexuality rather than create any new legislation that might have permitted or inhibited same-sex blessings in the church.
The challenge, said the synod, is to “live together sharing in the mission of Christ entrusted to us, accepting that different local contexts call at times for different local discernment, decision and action.”
“We’re not ready as a national church to say, ‘We’re building this into our doctrine that we approve of same-sex unions,'” Archbishop Fred Hiltz, the church’s senior bishop, told a press conference following the close of the General Synod in Halifax. What synod did say was, “We need to have more conversation,” said Hiltz, adding, “That’s an action.”
The report on sexual discernment, finalized after discussions by members, acknowledges “diverse pastoral practices as dioceses respond to their own missional contexts.” The report also acknowledged “the continuing commitment to develop generous pastoral responses” to gay and lesbian members of the church.
Asked whether he thought the international Anglican Communion would see General Synod’s decision as evidence of “gracious restraint” that has been urged by some of its bodies, he said, “Some will and some won’t.”
Hiltz emphasized that members were challenged to “think about the world in which we live … what we’re doing to respond to the world’s suffering.” The issues that Anglicans in Canada think are so compelling “pale in comparison to issues that other people in the world face day to day,” he said.
— Anglican Journal. (The Anglican General Synod took place in Halifax at the same time as the PCC’s General Assembly.)
