The Right Reverend John Bryson Chane
Bishop of Washington

September 30, 2004

To the Clergy and Wardens of the Diocese of Washington ,

I have just returned from the House of Bishops meeting in Spokane , Washington , where, in frank and painful debate, we discovered again the importance of listening to one another, especially at times of profound disagreement. 

With that lesson in mind, I would like to call your attention to two events in our diocese in the next few days that I hope will demonstrate our diocese's willingness to deal gracefully and charitably with one another, even as divisions within our Church and Communion become more rigid and more intense.

On Monday, October 4, at  6:30 p.m. , Archbishop Peter Jasper Akinola, primate of the Church of Nigeria , will give an address at All Saints' Church on Chevy Chase Circle , Chevy Chase , Maryland . The event begins with refreshments and concludes with Compline at 9 p.m.

As you may know, Archbishop Akinola has been one of the most outspoken critics of the actions taken by our Church on issues of human sexuality at our most recent General Convention. He disagrees vehemently with this diocese's practice of blessing same sex unions, and has been an energetic advocate of disciplining our Church for what he perceives as our sins. He is unlikely to speak comfort to us. Nonetheless, I believe that he and we must learn to listen to one another if we are to repair the fabric of our Communion and move forward in common mission.

On Sunday, October 10, at 11 a.m., Bishop Gene Robinson, the man whose consecration has delighted and infuriated Anglicans around the world, will preach at the Holy Eucharist at The Church of the Epiphany, 1317 G Street, NW, in downtown Washington, D.C. Bishop Robinson will be in town for the Eighth Annual Dinner of the Human Rights Campaign, the nation's leading gay civil rights group, at which he and the actress Jessica Lange will be honored with the National Equality Award. While many of us may be otherwise occupied on Sunday morning, I hope you will share news of this opportunity with others who may want to attend.

The visits of these two very different bishops illustrate the thinking that has shaped my policy on visits to our diocese by bishops from other jurisdictions, both within the Episcopal Church and in the broader Anglican Communion. I accede to almost all requests to allow other bishops to preach, celebrate the Eucharist and worship in our parishes, and take no account of whether the bishop agrees with me on whatever issue might be roiling ecclesial waters at that particular moment. However, I reserve all episcopal acts—such as performing confirmations and ordinations—to myself, except for rare instances in which a close personal or familial relationship suggests that an exception might be made.

I am advising you of this policy because the issue of jurisdictional boundaries is much in the news and was debated intensely at the recent House of Bishops meeting. There, despite differences on issues of human sexuality and the interpretation of Holy Scripture, the House reaffirmed its commitment to the provision for Delegated Episcopal Pastoral Oversight adopted in March of 2004.

In the past year, there have been several instances in which bishops crossed diocesan boundaries without the permission of the Ordinary in violation of the Constitution of the Episcopal Church. Members of the House of Bishops have not brought charges against these bishops, as provided by the canons, determining that we are in a time that calls for some measure of forbearance as we await the October 18 release of the report of the Lambeth Commission, appointed by the Archbishop of Canterbury to help resolve conflict in the Communion.

The release of the Lambeth Commission Report is the beginning of a process of consultation that will lead to further conversations at the Primates meeting in February of 2005 and the meeting of the Anglican Consultative Council later in the year regarding the future of the Anglican Communion. Unlike some provinces of the Communion, the American Church is governed by an elected chamber of laity and clergy—the House of Deputies—as well as the House of Bishops. Any changes in the Communion that necessitate action by the Episcopal Church in the United States would require approval of both houses at our next General Convention, which meets in 2006.

For those of you interested in the Lambeth Commission Report, I will be sharing initial reflections and responding to questions at a diocesan Open Forum at 7:30 p.m. on November 1, 2004 , being hosted by the Discernment Committee of All Saints' Church, Chevy Chase . Although still early in the process, it will allow us an opportunity to take counsel with each other and to be together in fellowship and prayer.

Following the release of the report, bishops are prepared to uphold diocesan boundaries and to take what ever action seems most beneficial to preserving the good order of the Church. In this, I am glad to say that Archbishop Akinola and I are in complete agreement. “You don't just jump from your diocese to begin to do whatever you like in another man's diocese,” he told the Church of Nigeria News in 2001. “That is not done in our Anglican tradition.”

Let the Church say Amen.

In Christ's Peace, Power and Love,

John Bryson Chane