CHAPTER 1
I. Introduction to the Revised and Expanded Edition
In 2012, the General Convention of The Episcopal Church commended "Liturgical Resources 1: I Will Bless You, and You Will Be a Blessing" for study and use throughout The Episcopal Church. In the 2013-2015 triennium, the materials were widely used in a number of dioceses, and the Standing Commission on Liturgy and Music (SCLM) invited responses through several avenues. This new volume is the result of this process.
Responses to Liturgical Resources 1
In January 2013, the SCLM asked bishops of The Episcopal Church to report whether they had authorized the liturgy "The Witnessing and Blessing of a Lifelong Covenant," and if so, whether they had authorized any modifications to meet the needs of members of The Episcopal Church. The SCLM received responses from half (fifty-five) of the dioceses, and of these, thirty-eight had authorized use of the resource. In many dioceses in jurisdictions where civil marriage is legal for same-sex couples, the bishop authorized revisions of the liturgy to allow clergy to officiate at a civil marriage of a same-sex couple.
In fall 2013, nearly one thousand people accessed an online survey distributed with the assistance of diocesan contact people and through social media. Responses were overwhelmingly positive to all sections of Liturgical Resources 1. However, a number of respondents expressed frustration or confusion that the liturgy appeared to be a "separate but equal" rite, which therefore was not equivalent to marriage.
The Commission heard similar comments at an international, ecumenical, indaba-style conversation on same-sex marriage that it hosted at Grace and Holy Trinity Cathedral, Kansas City, Missouri, June 3–5 2014. The SCLM invited participation from every diocese of The Episcopal Church and every province of the Anglican Communion where civil marriage is legal for same-sex couples, and from ecumenical partner churches in the United States. Participants at the consultation included fifty-seven people representing twenty-four dioceses of The Episcopal Church, six other churches of the Anglican Communion, and five ecumenical partners, along with the President of the House of Deputies, the Presiding Bishop, and the Secretary of General Convention. Two dioceses of The Episcopal Church and two provinces of the Anglican Communion declined to send representatives. While none of the participants in the consultation was opposed to same-sex marriage, the conversation enabled the Commission to understand more deeply the issues facing clergy and same-sex couples in contexts where civil marriage is legal.
To evaluate the Kansas City consultation, the SCLM asked the Reverend Doctor Paula Nesbitt, a sociologist who has worked extensively in evaluation of the continuing indaba process in the Anglican Communion, to interview a selected cross-section of participants. We have included her executive summary of her report as an appendix to this volume.
Faith, Hope, and Love: Theological Resources
In Resolution A049, the 2012 General Convention directed the SCLM to develop the theological resource "with specific attention to further engagement with scripture and the relevant categories and sources of systematic theology (e.g., creation, sin, grace, salvation, redemption, human nature)." The Commission invited responses from theologians representing different disciplines (Scripture, ethics, Church history, systematic theology, missiology) and diverse theological perspectives. These essays are included in this revised and expanded edition; they represent the viewpoint of the individual authors rather than the consensus of the SCLM.
The Church's Canon Law and Laws of the States
Liturgical Resources 1 included a study of the complexities of civil and canon law regarding marriage and civil unions. It offered a number of scenarios, taking into account differences in both civil law and diocesan policy.
Since 2012, dramatic changes in civil law in the United States have reshaped the context. When Liturgical Resources 1 was first published as part of the 2012 Blue Book Report to the 77th General Convention, seven states and the District of Columbia allowed same-sex civil marriage. On June 26, 2015, the Supreme Court of the United States ruled, "The Court, in this decision, holds same-sex couples may exercise the fundamental right to marry in all States. It follows that the Court must also hold – and it now does hold – that there is no lawful basis for a State to refuse to recognize a lawful same-sex marriage performed in another State on the ground of its same-sex character."
Recognizing that resolutions to amend the marriage canon were likely to come before the 2015 General Convention, the SCLM determined that the original section on canon law might no longer be relevant or provide useful guidance. Instead, an appendix to this revised and expanded edition of Liturgical Resources 1 provides a history of the marriage canon prepared by the Task Force on the Study of Marriage for its 2015 Blue Book report. In addition, the definitions of "civil union," "Defense of Marriage Act," and "same-sex marriage" have been revised in the Glossary.
In Resolution A036, the 2015 General Convention revised Canon I.18, and in Resolution A054, the Convention affirmed that the provisions of Canon I.19.3, regarding marriage after divorce, apply to the liturgies in this resource. We have included both the revised Canon I.18 and Canon I.19, which was not revised, in Appendix 2.
Hearing, Seeing, and Declaring New Things: Pastoral Resources
Several participants in the June 2014 consultation on same-sex marriage expressed concern that the pastoral resource portrayed gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender people in a negative and stereotypical manner. The SCLM formed an ad hoc task group to recommend revisions. The first half of the resource has been revised accordingly.
The five-session process for preparing couples for a blessing of their covenantal relationship was not revised. Though the SCLM received some suggestions for a different order of the sessions and for other changes, no clear consensus emerged. The content and structure of the sessions is recommended but not required, and the SCLM believes that clergy and lay people trained for preparing couples can adapt the resource to suit their particular approach.
After the 2015 General Convention, the pastoral resource was revised to take account of the revisions of the marriage canon (Canon I.18) and the authorization of trial use of the liturgies for marriage as well as the U.S. Supreme Court decision permitting same-sex marriage throughout the United States.
Liturgical Resources
In response to comments by those who used the 2012...
