Second Class Citizens?

I am just back from vacation and haven't caught up on my professional reading, but the Anglican media seem most interested right now in the Archbishop of Canterbury's recent proposal of two-tier status for provinces in the Anglican Communion. One tier would be for those who accept the idea of a common "covenant;" the other for those who wish to be part of the communion but, in effect, make their own rules.

Admittedly, if this characterization is accurate, it would only formalize current reality. The U.S. church and Canada have been making their own rules for some time. On the other hand, some African and South American bishops have been making their own rules about interfering in North American provinces, and this hasn't been regarded with the same opprobrium attached to pro-gay resolutions of General Convention.

Moreover, there are indications that liberals in the Church of England will push for greater recognition of gay relationships. That might change the scene entirely. As the Pope is Catholic, so the head of the Church of England is most certainly Anglican. --J. Douglas Ousley