Axiom and action

Axiom
A consensual committed life-long mutual relationship between two people of the same sex is the moral equivalent of a heterosexual marriage.

Corollary
Being in such a relation is not a bar to any role in this church.

Action

TEC implicitly accepted these propositions at GC2003 when it accepted V. Gene Robinson's election as Bishop of New Hampshire.

It has never explicitly accepted either of them.

Not at GC03.
ABC was said to have muttered that we did the right thing but in the wrong order (or so it was interpreted by those used to reading the enigmatic oracles -- he probably said "hysteron proteron"). I suppose this bass-ackwards approach was taken because it was clear that accepting the election would pass ("Vicky Gene is such a nice guy" as, indeed , he is) while the general principle might not. And maybe it was thought (by whomever was doing the thinking) that the general principle would even further strain the bonds of the Communion. It is not clear that it could have, given what has happened since -- little or any of it actually about lgbt people.

Not at GC06
I suppose that, along with B033, this nonaction was taken in the hope of mollifying the situation and giving the new PB some space in which to operate in the Communion. And we know how well that turned out. Collaborating with Others on a display issue while continuing not to give all power to those who are Absolutely Right, will not win a favorable response from the latter.

Not at GC09
HOB has announced (implicitly, of course -- the via media "Do it, but don't say so"?) that no action will be taken on same-sex unions: "We have to wait for our secret committee's reports". As if there was an argument that had not been worked to death already, or a new piece of information to explore (except, of course, the stories of happily united faithful across the demographics -- which "will be given all due consideration"). Of course, the GC does have some control over the budget and in these times cut must be made ... . As if!

Not GC12
Sorry, but the report was negative. Nearly a half of lgbt unions end in separation, and in a very large number cases at least one partner has sexual liaisons outside the union. So, it cannot be morally equivalent to heterosexual marriage.


By the way, you might want to gussy the axiom up with more adjectives: "self-giving," "caring," "loving," and so on. And add "blessed and registered as much as the law allows." This will not change many of the facts on the ground, alas.