September 8, 2007
FORT WORTH, Texas – Bonnie Anderson, the President of the House of Deputies of The Episcopal Church, has made a visit to the Episcopal Diocese of Fort Worth, where she was the featured speaker at a forum held on the campus of Texas Christian University on Saturday, September 8th. The program was sponsored by Brite Divinity School and Fort Worth Via Media.
The Rt. Rev. Jack Leo Iker, Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Fort Worth, has issued the following statement:
“This visit by Mrs. Anderson was arranged without any prior consultation with me or any of the other elected leaders of this diocese. I consider it a breach of protocol and a violation of the basic polity of The Episcopal Church. It is a clear effort on her part to recognize and empower a small group of people who dissent from the stated theological positions of this diocese and who claim that they alone are the true ‘loyal Episcopalians‘ here in Fort Worth.
“This visit by Mrs. Anderson further exacerbates an already tense, adversarial relationship that has developed between national leaders and diocesan officials. Unfortunately, she has sought to further divide the people of this diocese rather than to promote reconciliation. I regret that Mrs. Anderson has chosen to fan the flames of division and to advocate a rather one-sided view of the controversies that have overtaken The Episcopal Church in recent decades. Rather than working with me and other diocesan officials, she has chosen to go around us in a blatant attempt to work with the revisionist opposition known as the Via Media.
“I regard her visit as part of a concerted effort to undermine the existing diocesan leadership in favor of those who support the liberal agenda of the General Convention Church. It is disconcerting to see this deepened alienation fostered by one of the top leaders of The Episcopal Church. However, we will not be deterred or side-tracked from our Gospel mission by this kind of political manipulation.”
The Episcopal Diocese of Fort Worth consists of 56 congregations serving 24 north central Texas counties. The major cities in the diocese include Fort Worth, Arlington, Hurst-Euless-Bedford, Wichita Falls, Grand Prairie, Richland Hills, Brownwood, and Stephenville. The Rt. Rev. Jack L. Iker has served as the third Diocesan Bishop of Fort Worth since 1995. The diocese enjoys companion relationships with the Dioceses of Northern Malawi and Northern Mexico.
Contact: Suzanne Gill
Director of Communications
The Episcopal Diocese of Fort Worth
sgill@fwepiscopal.org
The URL for this story is:
http://www.fwepiscopal.org/news/andersonvisit.pdf
Maintainer: Ted McMichael
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