By David W. Virtue
www.virtueonline.org
DALLAS (7/5/2006)--The Bishop of Dallas, James M. Stanton has written a letter to Dr. Rowan Williams, the titular head of the Anglican Communion requesting a direct pastoral relationship with the archbishop, following the recent ECUSA General Convention that saw a woman elected to the church's highest office who holds views on sexuality at variance with Scripture and the Anglican Communion.
In a pastoral letter to the diocese, Stanton called on Dr. Williams for "direct primatial relationship for the purpose of mission, pastoral support, and accountability."
A spokesman for the diocese, Canon Neal Michell, told VirtueOnline that Bishop Stanton's request differs from the other six dioceses that have sought "alternative primatial oversight" in that he is asking for direct oversight from Dr. Williams and not to "pick a primate".
"The bishop did this because the American Episcopal Church does not have a primate in the same way England has primates (Canterbury and York). In the U.S. Presiding Bishop Frank Griswold (who recently added the title Primate) is only one among many. In the United Kingdom the primate has a direct relationship with a bishop which is not the same as in the US, hence it differs from APO," said Michell.
The Canon for Strategic Development cited an instance where Bishop Stanton went to England to ordain a deacon for the Diocese of Dallas and had to receive permission from Dr. Williams to do so.
Michell told VOL that Bishop Stanton is also appointing a panel to hear the concerns of the people of the Diocese of Dallas to prepare a report for their upcoming diocesan convention which will study their relationship with The Episcopal Church and the Anglican Communion.
He said that Christ Church, Plano, the largest attended parish in the Episcopal Church with some 4,000 members which recently pulled out of the Episcopal Church, still recognized Bishop Stanton as its bishop. "We are treading uncharted waters here," said Michell.
The Diocese of Dallas has 40,000 members and is one of the fastest growing dioceses in the Episcopal Church. Bishop Stanton is evangelical and theologically orthodox in faith and morals.
The Dioceses of Fort Worth, Pittsburgh, Springfield, Central Florida, South Carolina, and San Juaquin have all requested "Alternative Pastoral Oversight" asking Archbishop Williams to assign them another Primate for ecclesiastical control. Dr. Williams has yet to respond.
END
The Episcopal Diocese of Dallas Official Press Statement
July 5, 2006
DALLAS - Bishop James M. Stanton said Wednesday he is convening a special panel to consider the present relationship of the Episcopal Diocese of Dallas to the Episcopal Church.
The action comes amid mounting concerns over controversial actions last month by the Episcopal General Convention.
The panel will report Oct. 20 to the annual convention of the diocese, which acts in concert with the bishop to set diocesan policies.
"I want to hear the voices of the leaders of the congregations as we seek a way forward," said Stanton, bishop of Dallas since 1993. "This is what pastors do, and I, as chief pastor of the diocese want to listen to the concerns of my people."
Stanton said, additionally, he would write to Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams, head of the 70-million-strong Anglican Communion of which the Episcopal Church is a part, and pursue with him "a direct pastoral relationship."
The diocesan Standing Committee, which acts as a council of advice to the bishop, asked July 1 that Stanton call on Williams for "a direct primatial relationship for the purpose of mission, pastoral support, and accountability."
Stanton described the proposed pastoral relationship as an interim step pending the special panel's report and prospective follow-up action by the diocesan convention. Chairman of the special panel is the Rev. Dr. William J. A. Power, longtime diocesan priest, now serving on the staff of the Church of the Incarnation, and emeritus professor of Old Testament at Perkins School of Theology, Southern Methodist University.
Stanton, concluding a meeting with more than half of the diocese's 230 clergy, said Power's panel will attempt as many meetings as possible with vestries, clergy, and other leaders of individual parishes.
"We are a large and strong diocese," the bishop said, "with nearly 40,000 communicants spread from the Arkansas border almost to Fort Worth. We need to be sure that we hear all points of view in order to move forward as a family, pledged heart and soul to the Gospel of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ."
The Episcopal Church's General Convention stirred controversy at its triennial meeting in Columbus when it dodged the call of a special body, the Lambeth Commission, to disavow the possibility of same-sex marriage and to refuse consents to the consecrations of future bishops living in same-sex relationships.
Likewise, Convention chose as the church's presiding bishop-elect a bishop who not only had allowed same-sex unions by her clergy in Nevada but who consented to the election, in 2003, of a New Hampshire bishop who was living in a partnered relationship-outside of marriage.
Contacts:
The Rev. Canon Paul Lambert (214/826-8310)
The Rev. Canon Neal Michell (214/826-8310)
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