Anglican Mainstream

By Cherie Wetzel, Anglicans United (From Virtueonline)

Present were Bishop Jack Iker, Bishop William Godfrey of Peru and Bishop William Wantland of Eau Claire ret. and Assisting Bishop of Ft. Worth

Bishop Iker’s statement: I please that this is concluded. This was an historic convention and there were no surprises. The mood of the convention was respectful, generous and loving. This will be a short press conference because it has been a long day.

Q: [David Virtue] Does the diocese have a war chest in the event that 815 comes after you? Bp. Iker: We have a number of concerned families of substantial means who will underwrite legal costs to the diocese should litigation come. None of the money from assessments will be paid for legal or litigation costs. All will come from special contributions. No, we don’t have money sitting in the bank to cover it; just promises that can be trusted.

Q: [Katie Sherrod] What is the status of the clergy now?

Bp. Iker: they are registered in the Province of the Southern Cone. None will be forced to take any action. Clergy do not have ratification powers over diocesan convention resolutions. If they choose to do so, they can disassociate from this diocese and have their letter transferred to another Anglican jurisdiction.

Q: [Cherie Wetzel] What is the status of parish property?

Bp. Iker: The properties of this diocese are held by a Corporation for the beneficial use of the parish or the diocese. To sell or encumber a parish property, the parish needs the approval of the Corporation, the Standing Committee and the Bishop. Last year we passed Canon 32 which provides a process for a parish to leave the diocese. The vestry and the rector can initiate the process, but it takes a 2/3 vote of the congregation to bring the matter to the Standing Committee and myself. This is not congregationalism. It is listening to the whole congregation.

Q: [Katie Sherrod] What about parishes that don’t have rectors right now?

Bp. Iker: I am the rector. Those parishes that are in the process of calling a rector should make sure that the person they call knows that we are now part of the Southern Cone. They need to agree with this. Now that the decision is made, I hope it freezes some of the controversy we have had the past year. We need to get back to mission.

Q: [Cherie Wetzel] If you could speak to each parish tomorrow, what would you say to them? (Bp, Iker thought for a moment before answering)

Bishop Iker: I would tell them that God loves you and so do I. God is good all the time and it is His church, not mine; and not TEC’s. You just can’t have official teaching of the Church denigrating the foundations of the faith.

Q: [David Virtue] What does the national church look like after today?

Bp. Iker: The center keeps moving to the left and the right is redefined as of today. Now the dioceses of South Carolina, Dallas, Albany, Central Florida and Springfield are the radical extreme right wing of this church.

Q: [David Virtue follow up] What about the Anglo-Catholic branch of this Church? Surely this was the last Anglo-Catholic mass in the Episcopal Church.

Bp. Iker: The Anglo-Catholic branch is more than just wearing fancy vestments. It is the use of the Vincentian Canon. This branch of the church has been dying for 30 years. Now its virtually eliminated. The move to eliminate the choice over women’s ordination will not be delayed now.

Q: [David Virtue follow up] Do you believe that the homosexual agenda will now be regularized?

Bp. Iker: Ordination became mandatory in 1997. The only other aspect is same-sex marriage. That is permissive now and I believe it will become mandatory maybe as early as this next General Convention. (July 2009) Sixteen dioceses already have their own rites that they use for these weddings, even though the official position of the church is that this is not permitted. So, it is inevitable that the national church will order a same-sex marriage rite. Soon after that, it will be mandatory in all dioceses.

Q: [Katie Sherrod] What will church look like tomorrow?

Bp. Iker. Remain Episcopal has said that if we pass these resolutions, they won’t worship with us any more. I expect a response from them tomorrow to say that they are separating from us. For years, they have insisted that we can all stay together and worship together. If they do as I expect, it will be the exact antithesis to what they have said in the past. I want to continue to encourage both sides to stay and work this out. Take the time to work this out. No judge will say that one side is the winner and they will take all. He will send this to mediation. Since we have to do that in the long run anyway, why not stay now and work it out?

Q: [Fort Worth Star Telegram reporter] I don’t understand about the Corporation and what you said earlier about the parish properties. Could you explain?

Bp. Iker: When we were part of the Diocese of Dallas, that diocese was the sole corporate owner of all property. When Bp. Davies started Fort Worth, he set up a Corporation to hold and manage all the properties so he could reduce the number of meetings that signing all the papers pertinent to properties required. Now Dallas has this set up too.

Our position is based on the assumption that the local people, not the national church, own the property. The national church has no vested interest in any building in this diocese. If TEC comes in and takes over this cathedral, who will worship here the next week? Who will pay the bills and change the lights? Every vestry of each parish is responsible for their property. We are hierarchical only at the diocesan level, not the national level. Now, why don’t you all ask either Bishop Wantland or Bishop Godfrey a question.

Q: [Cherie Wetzel] Bishop Godfrey, what did your diocese and/or your province think about the decision to consecrate Gene Robinson?

Bp. Godfrey. We thought it was strange. We belong to a family called the Anglican Communion. For one part of the family to make a controversial decision without knowing how the rest of the family feels about that issue was bizarre.

TEC decided to do what they wanted, without consulting the rest of the Communion. Presiding Bishop Griswold betrayed the rest of the Primates when he consecrated Robinson after agreeing with the others that it should not happen. The Diocese of Fort Worth is not the protagonist in this event. The are reacting to 815 Second Ave’s decision, placed on member dioceses by the General Convention. I frankly don’t understand how they allowed this decision. But I will tell you the ramifications in Lima, Peru. The day after Robinson’s consecration, there was a three page spread with color pictures in the largest local paper. They said what else would you expect a religion founded by an adulterer King to do? They smeared Anglicanism for weeks.

Lambeth 1998 was my second Lambeth Conference. We passed Lambeth Resolution I.10 by an overwhelming margin of bishops from around the world. The Episcopal bishops from your country said they were going to ordain and marry gays anyway. Why not just tell us that they don’t care what we think? The bishops from my continent thought this behavior was appalling.

We believe we must consult each other and act more like a family. Submit to common discernment. TEC’s behavior is scandalous. Now, I suppose, Bishop Iker will be deposed by supposed adherence to canon law. Its scandalous.

Bishop Iker: Bishop Wantland, would you like to make a statement?

Bishop Wantland: Yes, I would. My father had a phrase: "Just because you can do something doesn’t mean that you should. When in doubt, don’t." I used that phrase all the time when I was a practicing lawyer and judge. The problem that led us to this point is not just a problem for TEC or the Anglican Communion. It is those who want to impose their will on others. It seriously concerns me that our House of Bishops has disregarded our own canons with regard to deposition.

Bishop Iker: Judy would you like to make a statement? [Judy is a member of the Standing Cmte, beginning her third year.]

Yes, I would. I want to state how hard the many members of the Standing Committee and members of the Bishop’s staff have listened to each parish in this diocese. We made a plan with the Diocese of Dallas for temporary oversight of those parishes that do not want to come with us to the Southern Cone. That plan was rejected by the national church. I feel real excitement in going forward. God is with us and will guide us. It is good to get to this point with the decision behind us. Now is the time to move forward. It may be difficult for a while. To those who choose to go another way, we will say "God Speed." The new Province will be good, but there is sadness to it, too. It is sad to know that we tried to work with the General Convention and TEC and gotten to the point that each is traveling on two roads that do not converge. We need to be honest about that. Our differences are real and substantial.

Q: [Katie Sherrod] Don’t you see this as just another border incursion by the Southern Cone into our Province? The Southern Cone has crossed our borders and taken another diocese. Its an outrage.

Bp. Godfrey: Not at all. Fort Worth came to us and said would this be possible? We said yes.

Bp. Iker: The whole issue of border crossings is a red herring. Honduras, a diocese in Central America is in TEC. Is that provincial border crossing? What about Taiwan in Asia. They are part of TEC. Isn’t that provincial border crossing? What about Columbia in South America? Isn’t it a border incursion for TEC to pick up dioceses that are were bought and paid for? Doesn’t TEC pay the vast majority of their expenses now?

The Presiding Bishop has no ecclesiastical authority in Fort Worth. Read the canons. She cannot go anywhere without permission. They’ve made that office much more than it was written or intended. Now she is acting like a Primatial authority when her only stated jobs are to chair meetings and make some appointments.

Bp. Godfrey: The Southern Cone did not cross borders. One or two bishops from that Province did. I see the Southern Cone used all over now in an accusatory fashion and it is a bad understanding of what we are about. It is a negative characterization of very good, honorable, orthodox people.

Bishop Iker: We will draw this to a close now. Tomorrow I am with our Hispanic congregation, San Juan Apostle, and there will be 550 people there. It has the largest average Sunday attendance of any parish in this diocese. Many children are making their first Communion and a large bunch will be confirmed. My Spanish is poor and I will be there with an interpreter. Pray that he can make a good sermon out of what I say, a sermon I have yet to complete. Thank you all for coming.

You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.