As the General Synod of the Anglican Church, the church of which I serve in, gathered to discuss and vote on marriage equality, I sat in a hotel room in East Tennessee. I felt so far removed from what was happening so I wrote these words to express my thoughts.
As the Diocesan Synod of Eastern Newfoundland and Labrador, the diocese in which I serve, gathers to vote on marriage equality, I will sit in the midst of the discussion and discernment. My thoughts have not changed.
We have all prayed our prayers.
Some of us have prayed for things to change.
Others of us have prayed for things to stay as they are, as they should be
The time for praying has ended
We have all read the same scriptures
The same sacred stories
You see one thing
I see another.
You see a God fixed, steady, predictable
I see one wide open, wild, unpredictable
We both see love
The time for reading scripture has ended.
We have both listened,
Listened to people’s stories, fears, pain.
Listened to those whose faith keeps them longing for equality
Listened to those who cannot see God’s hand in this.
We have cried, we have ranted, we have bore witness
What else is there to say?
The time for listening has ended
It’s time to look each other in the eyes
Hold each other’s hand
Take the next step
Hope against hope
Put our love into verbal form
And see if we mean what say we believe about life, death, new life, the moving spirit and the unity found in diversity
Time has come