Anglicans reverse vote on same-sex marriage
Resolution supporting gay union passes after errors in previous ballot are found
On Monday, Anglicans narrowly rejected a resolution to allow same-sex marriage.
But on Tuesday, questions about the integrity of the voting process emerged — leading to a stunning reversal of the result, just hours after several bishops, including Toronto Archbishop Colin Johnson, declared they’d move ahead with same-sex marriages in their jurisdiction regardless of the vote.
Some members attending the General Synod on Monday stood up to say their votes had not been recorded during voting, when passage of the resolution failed by a single vote.
“That is an issue of concern,” said Archbishop Fred Hiltz, primate of the Canadian church. “We cannot leave this synod with this kind of confusion.”
To pass, the resolution required two-thirds of each of three orders — lay, clergy and bishops. The clergy failed to reach that threshold by one vote, which was apparently not counted because it was counted in the lay order instead.
The error was discovered after delegates requested a detailed hard copy of the electronic voting records.
Hiltz then declared the resolution in favour of same-sex marriage passed.
The apparent failure on Monday night — which followed a bitter and divisive debate — stunned those on hand into silence. Some wept openly, others embraced. Some were clearly in anguish.
“The worst of yesterday was knowing that there are young LGBTQ people who had to listen to some very hateful stuff in the discussion,” said Rev. Joyce Barnett, of Toronto’s St. Matthias Anglican Church, before the reversal was announced.
“Those of us who have been here for the long haul want to say to everybody: Don’t despair,” she said. “We are moving forward, we are just moving slowly. . . . We’re heading in the right direction.” Toronto Archbishop Johnson called same-sex marriages — at the discretion of the bishop and with agreement of local clergy — a logical step in the evolution of the church that he said he would be considering in the coming weeks.
“I am advised that this option would not contravene the marriage canon,” Johnson said. “I am confident it would be supported by the majority — even if not all — of our bishops, clergy, laity and the wider community.”
Bishop Michael Bird, of the Anglican Diocese of Niagara, was among those vowing early to disregard the original decision. He released a statement Monday saying he would be willing to sanction LGBTQ marriage rites for those wishing to marry within his diocese.
“This decision is deeply regrettable and inconsistent with the ever more inclusive witness of our church,” he said.
“I want to say, as a bishop charged with guarding the faith, unity and discipline of the church, that I solemnly pledge to do my part to ensure that this is indeed the case.”
Ottawa Bishop John Chapman, another supporter of LGBTQ marriages within the Anglican Church, also said in a statement that his “pastoral decision” to allow them is necessary. But, he said he wouldn’t force anyone to officiate over them.
“It is time, my friends,” Chapman said. “It is past time.”
Church members in favour of solemnizing same-sex marriages also leaned on a statement from the General Synod’s chancellor, who said the current marriage canon does not specifically ban the practice.
The resolution still needs affirmation by the next synod in 2019 before it becomes church law. Northern representatives complained about feeling bullied, while Yukon Bishop Larry Robertson left the floor in protest, saying he was angered at what he called the adversarial process.
Hiltz acknowledged the “deep differences” that exist around the issue.
“We sometimes find ourselves very much being pulled apart,” he told delegates Tuesday. “Our work on this matter is not done. It’s not sufficient for us to simply say we dealt with the resolution.”
While some fretted that the failure of the resolution would cause a rupture in the church and spark an exodus of members, others said they believed the church would hold together despite the bruising nature of the debate, in which some used terms such as “abomination” in reference to the LGBT community.
“It was a painful process, it was a difficult process, but at the end of the day, we’ve ended up moving forward,” British Columbia Bishop Logan McMenamie said Tuesday.
Synod delegates did approve a motion affirming the sanctity of samesex relationships — a position the church adopted in 2004.
About 1.6 million Canadians identify as Anglican, according to Statistics Canada, and church figures indicate more than 500,000 of them are part of about 2,800 congregations across the country. With files from Vjosa Isai and Brennan Doherty