Episcopal and gay
Q&#;A: Episcopal priest Wesley Hill shares what it’s like as a celibate gay Christian in a fully LGBTQ+-affirming church
The Rev. Wesley Hill. Photo: Trinity Episcopal Cathedral
Editor&#;s note: The story has been edited to accurately reflect The Episcopal Church&#;s position on same-sex relationships.
[Episcopal News Service] To some, the Rev. Wesley Hill might embody contradiction: an openly gay man who is opposed to same-sex marriage and advocates celibacy for gay Christians, serving in a church that is fully inclusive of LGBTQ+ people. But Hill is part of an emerging network of LGBTQ+ Christians who share his beliefs – a loosely defined community nicknamed “Side B” that he helped foster.
Hill, 40, is an associate professor of New Testament studies at Western Theological Seminary in Holland, Michigan, and a priest serving at Trinity Episcopal Cathedral in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. In , his book “Washed and Waiting: Reflections on Christian Faithfulness and Homosexuality,” articulated an uncommon, nuanced approach to Christian sexuality that diverged from the much lo
Episcopal Clergy Increasingly Identify as LGBTQ
By Kirk Petersen
Church Pension Group has flexed its mighty databases in search of insights into clergy compensation based on race, gender, and sexual orientation. In response to resolutions at the General Convention, CPG has repeatedly introduced enhancements in its demographic reporting, and the latest results are described in an hour-long webinar on the company&#;s website.
Here are the bulleted observations in a press release issued July 26 by CPG, along with some additional analysis by TLC.
- Episcopal clergy are gradually becoming more diverse, in particular with respect to sexual orientation.
This is perhaps the most striking finding in the press release, and it comes at a time when controversy over same-sex marriage at the Lambeth Conference is underscoring the different levels of acceptance of LGBTQ orientations among provinces of the Anglican Communion.
From to , more than one out of every four new Episcopal priests and deacons identified as LGBTQ &#; a proportion more than three times higher than for the U.S. pop
With same-sex marriage in the spotlight, where does it stand across the Anglican Communion?
A same-sex couple receives a blessing in the Church in Wales in November Photo source: Church in Wales
[Episcopal News Service – Canterbury, England] As the Lambeth Conference gets underway here, the status of same-sex marriage and LGBTQ+ inclusion in the Anglican Communion has unexpectedly taken center stage. Though the controversial statement saying the Anglican Communion “as a whole” rejects same-sex marriage has now been removed from one of the proposed “Lambeth Calls,” it has heightened the differences among the provinces on the issue.
Some bishops have spoken of a Lambeth resolution rejecting same-sex marriage as the “official teaching” of the Anglican Communion. However, the Anglican Communion is not one church but a group of distinct churches, known as provinces, and does not have a codified set of “official teaching[s]” beyond the Nicene and Apostles’ Creeds, except perhaps the Lambeth Quadrilateral. The Lambeth Conference is not a legislative body, and its resolutions (or, i
: October Homosexuality, along with alcoholism, is studied by the Home of Bishops of the Protestant Episcopal Church. It is referred to as a “standard weakness.” [1]
: August Rev. David B. Wayne of the Church of the Epiphany in New York City preaches that homosexuals “must be accepted fully into the fellowship of the church” while they also must seek counseling or psychological treatment. [2]
: November A proposed revision to a New York State law that would decriminalize “sexual deviation” (i.e., homosexuality and adultery) is praised by Episcopalians and denounced by Roman Catholics. The revision is later dropped by the NY state Legislature. [3]
: October Speaking at Duke Law School, Episcopal Auxiliary Bishop of California, Rev. James A. Pike claims that laws “aimed at controlling homosexuality, sexual practices between man and wife and abortions…must be changed.” He claims that such matters are “nobody’s business but the individuals concerned.” [4]
: November During a symposium on homosexuality sponsored by the Episcopal Dioceses of New York, Conne