c. 2007 Religion News Service
Episcopal Church Must Halt Gay Rights `For a Season,’ Top Bishop Says
(RNS) Episcopal Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori said Wednesday (Feb. 28) the church should refrain from ordaining gay bishops and blessing same-sex unions “for a season,” so it can contribute to a covenant between the world’s 77 million Anglicans.
“If we want to be part of the writing of a covenant, we have some expectations before us,” Jefferts Schori said during a live Web cast. She took questions from a studio audience, as well as by e-mail and telephone during the hour-long event.
A number of gay and lesbian Episcopalians questioned Jefferts Schori about how far the Episcopal Church must bend to the will of overseas Anglican bishops, who have demanded the U.S. church promise by Sept. 30 to stop ordaining gay bishops and authorizing liturgical rites for same-sex unions.
Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams has proposed a covenant among the communion’s 38 regional churches. The convenant would outline areas of common agreement and could provide a means for settling disputes.
It’s unclear how long it would take to complete a working covenant. But under the Episcopal Church’s democratic government, it would need to be approved by a General Convention, the next of which is in 2009.
Jefferts Schori asked Episcopalians to be patient Monday and to “wait on God for clarity.” She compared the church’s situation to that of Jesus in the garden of Gethsemane, as he awaited execution.
“We must watch and wait in this hour,” she said.
Jefferts said the church could provide a “creative” response to the primates but that a decision “not to decide” will have consequences.
“What it means for the church is that we lose our voice at the table,” Jefferts Schori said.
Anglican bishops have also called for a “cease-fire” in the legal disputes over property between dissident breakaway parishes and the Episcopal Church. Jefferts Schori said the lawsuits will continue.
_ Daniel Burke
Catholic Diocese of San Diego Files for Bankruptcy, Victims Angry
WASHINGTON (RNS) Plaintiffs in sexual abuse cases against the Roman Catholic Diocese of San Diego and victims’ rights groups reacted angrily Tuesday (Feb. 27) after the diocese filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.
Bishop Robert Brom announced the decision, which resulted in the postponement of action in about 150 sexual abuse lawsuits, leading some to accuse him of attempting to conceal details of the cases from the public.
“This is a morally bankrupt move by a self-serving bishop who’s afraid to face tough questions about coddling and concealing pedophile priests,” Mary Grant, the California director of the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, said in a statement.
John Manly, an attorney for 18 of the plaintiffs, described the filing as “a cynical attempt to keep the truth from coming out.”
“The diocese’s action makes clear that this organization is nothing more than Enron in a Roman collar,” he said in a statement.
Brom argued the diocese had no choice but to file for bankruptcy, saying it’s “the best way available for us to compensate all of the victims as fairly and equitably as … resources will allow.”
“This is not a `cop out,’ but a sincere effort to face up to our responsibility,” he wrote in a statement.
Brom added that the diocese would be releasing the names of accused clergy known to be sexual abusers and the extent of their abusive actions. He said the diocese would also verify that no known abuser is currently in the ministry.
In the bankruptcy filing, the diocese said it has assets of more than $100 million and estimated debts of more than $100 million.
_ Katherine Boyle
Methodist Clergy Say SMU Trustees Shouldn’t Decide on Bush Library
(RNS) At least eight trustees of Southern Methodist University with close ties to President George W. Bush shouldn’t cast votes on whether to bring his presidential library to SMU’s campus.
That’s the argument of four United Methodist clergy, including three retired bishops, who have began calling for eight trustees to withdraw from board discussions on a proposed library and policy center. They suggested the trustees have conflicts of interest.
“We call upon these eight trustees to recuse themselves, along with any others who have had noteworthy personal, political, or financial dealings with George W. Bush,” said Bishops C. Joseph Sprague, Joseph H. Yeakel and Kenneth W. Hicks in a written statement. The Rev. Andrew Weaver, a Bush critic and SMU alumnus in New York City, also signed the call for recusal.
“The proposed Bush Complex will significantly affect SMU and the United Methodist Church that founded it. Such a decision requires objectivity unencumbered by personal considerations,” the clergy said.
Plans to bring a Bush library and policy center to SMU have sparked sharp debate in United Methodist circles since December, when the Bush administration declared SMU the sole finalist under consideration to host the facilities.
“These accusations are unfortunate,” said Brad Cheves, SMU vice president for development and external affairs. But the clerics’ concerns don’t “meet the standard of conflict of interest. There’s no personal benefit that’s coming to (the accused trustees) in any way.”
Supporters say the proposal shows the denomination tolerates political diversity and will examine the Bush legacy in the light of faith and scholarship. Opponents, concerned the policy center will be a mouthpiece for defending Bush doctrines, say Methodism shouldn’t be linked with an administration accused of practicing torture and preemptive warfare.
The clergymen named six SMU trustees who allegedly either contributed to a Bush campaign or pledged to raise at least $100,000 in campaign funds. The list includes such prominent Texas businessmen as Hunt Oil CEO Ray Hunt and former American Airlines CEO Donald Carty. Spokespersons for Hunt and Carty did not immediately return calls seeking comment.
_ G. Jeffrey MacDonald
New German Muslim Group Challenges For Right to Speak for Faithful
BERLIN (RNS) A new German group of ex-Muslims is challenging the country’s leading Islamic organizations for the right to speak for millions of German residents registered as Muslim.
About 3.5 million of Germany’s residents are Muslim, according to official counts. But very few practice the faith, says the newly formed Central Council of Ex-Muslims. Many immigrated to Germany and were registered as Muslims merely because they arrived from predominantly Islamic nations, the group argues.
“It ends today,” Mina Ahadi said Wednesday (Feb. 28) as she announced the council’s formation. “(These Islamic groups) can speak for themselves. They can no longer speak for Muslims.”
Ahadi admitted that using the phrase “ex-Muslims” in the group’s name was provocative. But she said she could think of no better way to draw attention to her cause, which includes integrating Arabic immigrants into Germany and calling on the German government to take a tougher stance on human rights abuses in Middle Eastern nations.
Arzu Toker, the council’s co-chair, was even more outspoken. “These other groups, forming these societies and then claiming to represent 3.5 million people? That’s provocation,” Toker said.
Toker said she anticipates the council will eventually become the main representative for German Muslims. The council claims 120 members and says it has heard from former Muslims in Switzerland, Austria, Sweden and Egypt about forming similar organizations.
_ Niels Sorrells
Quote of the Day: Shereen Sabet of Muslim swimwear store
(RNS) “Nothing in the Quran says women and men can’t swim or scuba dive together. It’s just a question of finding a solution.”
_ Shereen Sabet, a Muslim microbiologist at California State University who founded Splashgear, an online swimwear store for Muslim women.
DSB/LF END RNS
