B.C. CHURCH SHUT IN SAME-SEX FIGHT.

Anglican congregation challenges its bishop by refusing to perform gay marriages

Michael Higgins National Post

Tuesday, December 23, 2003

An Anglican church defying its bishop by refusing to support same-sex unions has been terminated only days before Christmas.

The decision by Bishop Michael Ingham to close Holy Cross in Abbotsford, B.C., is the latest action in a dispute that is threatening to split the Anglican church worldwide. Despite the closure, the priest at Holy Cross, the Rev. James Wagner,

vowed yesterday to celebrate mass on Christmas Day with parishioners.

As far as the diocese is concerned we do not exist. We are a non- entity, Mr. Wagner said yesterday. But I will not abandon these people. I will continue to pastor and pray for them in the midst of this crisis.

He said the decision to close the church was a surprise because its so close to Christmas.

Ronald Harrison, executive archdeacon of the Diocese of New Westminster, said Holy Cross brought the closure upon itself by seeking episcopal oversight from another bishop. He said that a result of the church declaring itself independent was that its funds had been stopped and eventually the bishop was forced to close it.

The decision by Bishop Ingham to sanction same-sex unions and the broader issue of homosexuality are dividing Anglicans. In October, church leaders met at a crisis conference in London called in part because of Bishop Ingham’s approval of same-sex unions. The Canadian House of Bishops has also set up a task force to look at parishes opposed to Bishop Ingham’s decision.

Holy Cross, a mission church that relies on its funding from the diocese, is part of a group of breakaway churches in New Westminster that was seeking episcopal oversight by Bishop Terry Buckle of the Yukon.

In October, the Diocesan Council of New Westminster voted to close Holy Cross but needed Bishop Ingham’s approval. However, funding was withdrawn from the church.

In a letter dated Dec. 18, Bishop Ingham informed Mr. Wagner that he had decided to close the church.

Mr. Wagner said he told parishioners the news on Sunday. They were shocked and surprised that it would come at this time. When they got the news it was four days before Christmas.

None of the other churches in the breakaway group has been closed.

Because they are incorporated individually, and don’t rely on funding from the diocese, they have been able to carry on.

Mr. Wagner said his church was being ostracized within the diocese though it is aligned with Anglican thinking worldwide.

Substantially we are right in step with Anglicans throughout the world and that has great consolation for them [the parishioners] because they very much want to be Anglicans. They are not doing things rebelliously and very much want to be a part of the family of Anglicans throughout the world, Mr. Wagner said.

The termination of the church meant they were like sheep without a shepherd, he said.

He said although they would celebrate Mass on Christmas Day, they would not be recognized as Anglicans. It’s not just that the Diocese of New Westminster will not recognize us as Anglicans, the really sad thing is that, unofficially, there are many Anglicans who want to recognize us, but, officially, there is no one that will recognize us as such.

Mr. Wagner had already had his pay cut off by the diocese and said he now needed to consult with his lawyer to see what his position is.

I don’t regret what I am doing or the circumstances I find myself in. I think that Jesus often talked about his disciples having to count the cost and having to take up their cross, he said.

He called on the Canadian House of Bishops and primates internationally for clear leadership.

Mr. Wagner said the parish had already been in discussion with the House of Bishops task force.

The task force was set up to establish adequate provision for Episcopal oversight of dissenting minorities.

It followed a call from Dr. Rowan Williams, Archbishop of Canterbury, who warned the Anglican Church was in danger of splintering over the issue of homosexuality.

After the task force was set up, Bishop Ingham wrote to Holy Cross offering to restore its funding if it accepted his authority.

Mr. Harrison said the bishop had never had a satisfactory reply except from Mr. Wagner, who said he was consulting his lawyer.

We support and fund all kinds of things, including mission initiatives, but if they have openly declared their hostility to the diocese and the diocesan bishop and will not rescind that even when the bishop has stepped back from the plate, the question is: Why would we fund that?

The decision was made months ago and the bishop withheld his decision while he waited for the parish to respond favourably. They didn’t correspond with him. It has nothing to do with Christmas. We have been waiting for their response for some time.

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Church at home with the Lord Holy Cross celebrates Christmas in priest’s living room

Ai Lin Choo,

Vancouver Sun

Friday, December 26, 2003

ABBOTSFORD Surrounded by Christmas wrappings, presents and excited children, about 20 members of Abbotsford’s newly terminated Church of

the Holy Cross gathered in their priest’s living room for Christmas service Thursday.

While the gathering was mostly upbeat and included the usual Christmas songs and nativity stories, the reasons behind the domestic gathering were still on the minds of many.

We as a church community will continue as we always have. It’s unfortunate that the diocese has felt the need to close down the mission, said Dave Chapman, who has been a member of the church since it opened in 2001.

Thursday was the first time parishioners had met for a service since hearing that Bishop Michael Ingham had decided to terminate their mission. The small church has been battling Ingham ever since he decided to sanction same-sex marriages in the Anglican Diocese of New Westminster.

Reverend James Wagner said the service renewed his commitment to his

congregation, adding, we will continue to worship, even though were apparently not recognized formally.

The makeshift church looked like any other Christmas-morning household. Children ran around excitedly displaying and playing with their new toys. But for the parishioners, the atmosphere reiterated a sense of loss -- of not feeling like they belong to a larger community.

We hear a lot about tolerance and diversity and that diverse views should be respected. It seems to me a strange way to resolve conflict, said Chapman.

He said he has been feeling frustrated and disappointed since hearing that the church has been cut off from the New Westminster diocese. He finds it ironic that a church is closing down a mission when, in his view, churches are supposed to be about opening new missions.

There’s just something strangely ironic and surreal about all this. And although the mission church is only three years old, member Rachel Weiland said she is very hurt by the closure.

We follow the minority these days and we stick to the word of God and the diocese doesn’t, so they just cut us off, she said.

While the New Westminster diocese does not place an obligation on priests to perform same-sex marriages, Wagner says the issue is only part of the fight with the diocese. Members of the mission church say they differ from their diocese in their belief that gays and lesbians can be cured of their sexual orientation.

Wagner says the controversy is now being looked at by a task force at the Canadian House of Bishops for dissenting parishes and hopes the decision to terminate the church will be overturned. Beyond that, he says, he has no plans for what he will do next. I haven’t thought that far yet.

Because the New Westminster diocese withdrew funding to the church in

October, Wagner doubts the congregation will be able to continue to meet in the location where it has been holding services lately – a seniors room at the Matsqui Recreational Centre.

But Jeremy Smyth, who described the mood Thursday as quiet and reflective, said that doesn’t mean it lacked joy. In a strange way, I am joyful because as a Christian I find it’s a joy to be persecuted for Jesus sake -- especially at Christmas time when were caught up in the stress and activities of preparing for it, he said.

END