Beloved in Christ,

I realize that I have now written quite a lot to you about the Lambeth Conference. Given that it occurs rarely, is a historic gathering whenever it does take place, and that many of you have been asking questions, following along, and holding all of us in prayer, I wanted to say something about the call On Human Dignity we discussed earlier this week. 

I would first call your attention to the Presiding Bishop’s statement from Tuesday, which, as usual, captures what needs to be said much better than anyone else could. 

I also want to add that I, and nearly all of my sibling bishops from across the Episcopal Church, see this Lambeth Conference as a major step forward on the issues that have divided the Anglican Communion for several decades now. The final version of the call On Human Dignity acknowledges that a majority around the communion do not see same-sex marriage as compatible with Christian teaching. It also acknowledges that provinces like ours that do bless same-sex marriages have come to that decision through careful and faithful discernment and engagement with scripture. It honors that we are doing what we believe God has led us to do. It also expresses the commitment of all the gathered bishops to work together in the best way we can for the sake of God’s mission in the world. Additionally, the Archbishop of Canterbury told the whole assembly before we discussed the call that he could not and would not sanction or exclude any province from participation in the communion. 

All of this was almost unimaginable at the last two conferences, in 1998 and 2008, where the tone was rancorous, and in its aftermath people on all sides of the communion were ready to dismiss and walk apart from one another. This week represents a commitment to stay in communion despite our real differences. It is also an acknowledgement that those of us who support the full inclusion of LGBTQ+ in the life and leadership of the church are doing so in good faith and while taking scripture and theology very seriously. 

One of the things this conference has driven home to me is that the cultural and political contexts in which the bishops and spouses here gathered engage in their ministries are so unbelievably different. Many of the bishops here have put their own lives, and those of their families, at risk, simply by choosing to attend. The suffering and courage of Anglican Christians in many parts of the world is formidable and very real, and informs how they engage all of the challenges before us. I have heard stories from bishops across the world who are homeless and sleeping in church buildings, who are in exile after fleeing political oppression, and who have to rent space on the back of someone else’s moped to travel hundreds of miles to visit and care for their flocks. I disagree with them about many issues, but I have a deep reverence for the resilience of their ministries, which utterly shame the challenges that I face. 

I also understand that the church has done irreparable harm to LGBTQ+ persons, who are beloved children of God, and that their very lives are at risk all over the world every day. My own commitment to working for justice and inclusion is undeterred, and it is why I and many other TEC bishops signed a statement expressing our continued pledge to such action Tuesday evening. 

But maintaining our connection to the global and historic community we are part of is also critically important, even when it’s painful and conflicted. Our communion with one another is found in Jesus and the power of God’s grace, not in our uniformity of opinion. And it is a real, tangible, sometimes messy expression of the relationships God expects and desires for us to have with one another, quite different as we may be. Not everyone will love this outcome. But please know that this conference has been characterized by an increased willingness on all sides to listen across difference, a longing to connect more closely, and a sign of hope that the Anglican Communion, which represents around 85 million people covering most of the planet, can come together to witness to God’s great love in the face of the world’s great suffering.

As a bishop in Christ’s Church, I will remain committed to affirming the belovedness of every child of God, and I will remain committed to walking in love with those, both in our diocese and on the other side of the world, who do not share my views on this or any other matter. 

I only wish that many of you could have been here with me this week, to share this hard, holy, and exceedingly complex work. It has been transformative for me and, it is my fervent hope, for the wider church and the world. I recently heard that a bishop represents the part to the whole, and the whole to the part. I hope that I have represented our part to this whole as faithfully as I can. Know that I love you very much, give thanks for you, and that I look forward to being back in Minnesota very soon.

Grace and peace,

The Right Reverend Craig Loya

X Bishop 

Episcopal Church in Minnesota

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