FINAL VERSION
Resolution:C009
Title:Develop Rites for Same Gender Unions
Topic:Liturgy
Committee:13 - Prayer Book, Liturgy and Church Music
House of Initial Action:Bishops
Proposer:Diocese of Atlanta

Resolved, the House of _______ concurring, That the 76th General Convention of The Episcopal Church authorize the Standing Commission on Liturgy and Music to develop appropriate rites for the celebration and blessing of the sacred unions of gay and lesbian persons, taking into account the variety of civil arrangements for such unions available in the regions served by the church; and be it further

Resolved, That such rite or rites shall be presented at the 77th General Convention of the Episcopal Church.


EXPLANATION

In light of events following the Lambeth Conference of 2008, it is clear that our charitable restraint and response to the Windsor Report in the matter of our declining to develop a rite or rites to allow the celebration and blessing of sacred unions for people of the same gender has not had the effect of preserving unity and civility between those who believe such unions may be good and moral and those who cannot conceive as such a possibility being within the bounds of Christian faith and the Anglican Tradition. It is also clear that while a great many Episcopalians remain undecided about their own beliefs in these matters, they recognize both the desirability of allowing those who seek to make such commitments in the midst of their community of faith to do so; and that the reality that the cost of our charity has been at the expense of one clear minority within our church; and further that there is no compelling reason that these brothers and sisters should have to continue to bear the burden of that charity.
The development of such a rite or rites by and for the whole church will allow a restoration of decency and order from diocese to diocese under the guidance of each bishop, the ensuring of theological integrity to such rites and the capacity of the church to 'sanction' and declare such committed relationships among people of the same gender to be both moral and fully within the bounds of our common life.