The Washington Post has a front page article on the vote of seven conservative Episcopalian parishes in Virginia that have voted to leave the US Episcopal Church and affiliate with the Episcopal Church of Nigeria.
Two of the congregations are among the state’s largest and most historic: Truro Church in Fairfax City and The Falls Church in Falls Church, which have roots in the 1700s. Their leaders have been in the vanguard of a national effort to establish a conservative alternative to the Episcopal Church, the U.S. wing of the 77 million-member worldwide Anglican Communion.
[…]
The votes are fresh evidence of an increasingly bitter split within the U.S. Episcopal Church. Seven of its 111 dioceses have rejected the authority of Presiding U.S. Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori, installed in November as the first woman to head an Anglican church. Schori supports V. Gene Robinson, an openly gay man elected bishop of New Hampshire in 2003.
So it seems it the split is about women and gays. How refreshing.
Mason Conservative reported on the issue earlier this month. In the comments is one from NLS, in which he says that Truro is the church of Chap Petersen. The WashPo article says that “more than 90 percent of eligible voters resolved to sever ties” with the US church.
Was Chap in the”more than 90%” crowd? If so, why? If not, why not? Will this be an issue in the upcoming campaign?
VIVIAN J. PAIGE | All Politics is Local 
Vivian, you know I love you…but since you brought it up…here’s one old gay guy’s opinion…
What a specific church membership decides to do about their own rules and associations is their business. Who cares? The fact that Chap! is a member of a pissed off congregation making a radical allignment is interesting, but not a big political issue to me. A lot of religious people can’t understand gays and lesbians, and most organized churches have always had a sexist bent.. And it is a whole lot worse outside of the US. Get used to it. It’s part of who they are.
But that said, the only way to bring these local folks around is to keep the dialogue open and focus on things we can agree about. Chap! doesn’t strike me as a kool-aid drinker and he appears to be trying to find a way to reconcile his faith with the reality of NOVA diversity. Something we need to encourage, not confront. He recently attended a political event at a gay couple’s home and did not wear rubber gloves so he’s making progress. 😉
Majority matters so let’s stop trying to sandbag a strong candidate that must make JMDD pretty nervous. Time for GLBT to stop crying over lost causes and help the Dems recapture Richmond and go after the REAL enemy…like Bob Marshall.
Actually, for me the issue is as much about women as it is about gays. I have no idea where Chap stands on women’s issues.
I have heard that Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas attends the Truro church. Is that refreshing or what?
“Do you have any idea what this Nigerian church is up to?
Do some research. It is painful to read.”
I have been blogging about this and the Nigerian Church’s connection to Howard Ahmanson since 2004. Let’s look at our choice. One the one hand we have JMDD who, in addition to a homophobic voting record, keeps the Republican majority in power. She also voted to end the can’t-take-it-with-you tax and has a terrible record on health care issues.
On the other hand we have Chap who voted to retain the can’t-take-it-with-you tax and has been a good Democrat. He can beat JMDD and give us control of the Senate.
You know, I have some SERIOUS issues with Webb, but I put them aside when he won the primary. It is the same way with Chap, and I would hope that those who style themselves Democrats and live in the 34th Senate district would do the same.
The Washington Post would use the term “bitter.”
What it comes down to is that some folks read the Bible, and they believe what it says. They expect the people running their church to believe what the Bible says too. If church leaders do not follow the teachings in the Bible, why should a Christian follow their leadership? There is no reason. As a result, these church members are calmly and deliberately finding new leadership.
Frankly, even if I shared your views on gay or women’s rights, I do not think I would attack a politician just because he happens to be a member of one of these churches. I do not think it would serve my cause. These churches do not fall outside the mainstream, and they are not doing anything radical. The members just do not want to go down the path their current leadership would take them.
Count your blessings. Because Christians are tolerant, the United States tolerates a diversity of faiths and races. Because Christians are tolerant, the women in this nation have equal rights. Nonetheless, Christians do have certain ideas about what is right and what is wrong, and that sort of comes with the territory. If it doesn’t have any effect on your behavior, what good is a religion?
Vivian, the Catholic Church also does not allow women into leadership. Why have I not heard you raise that issue before about Catholic candidates?
Because I don’t see any of the Catholics leaving a US diocese to affiliate with a Nigerian one. If there is, please point me to it.
NLS, The issue should be just what Vivian posed originally: Was Chap in the”more than 90%” crowd? If so, why? If not, why not? Will this be an issue in the upcoming campaign? If you are a candidate representing the Democratic Party in an election, an open profession of one’s faith that supports jailing homosexuals is fair game for critics.
When a member of a church who might be running for public office votes for that church to align itself with an Anglican bishop who has openly advocated jailing homosexuals, then I’m deeply disturbed. If that candidate believes that jailing homosexuals is acceptable, then I’m deeply disturbed.
Truro Church certainly has a right to homosexual dissent and it has the right to join a bigoted brigade of “Christians” in Nigeria. However, Democratic candidates who chose to go along with such prejudiced behavior should not be trusted to protect the rights of all Virginians. Whomever the Democratic Party choses to run as a Senate candidate in the 34th race should support the Democratic Platform of Virginia which states —
“The Democratic Party of Virginia supports full equality of opportunity for all people and opposes discrimination in any form. We welcome women and men from all walks of life and from all regions of the world, without regard to wealth, age, race, religion, national origin, disability, sexual orientation, or gender identity. ”
Clear and simple.
“Truro Church certainly has a right to homosexual dissent and it has the right to join a bigoted brigade of “Christians” in Nigeria. However, Democratic candidates who chose to go along with such prejudiced behavior should not be trusted to protect the rights of all Virginians. Whomever the Democratic Party choses to run as a Senate candidate in the 34th race should support the Democratic Platform of Virginia which states –”
Hello hello hello, Chap isn’t running against a Democrat, he is running against JMDD. The choice is between a Democrat and a Republican. Electing Chap helps us get back the Senate and puts us in an execellent position to take back the 11th CD and even winning the US Senate and carrying Virginia’s electoral college in 2008. Chap can do that for us and no other Democrat is running.
Chap voted against Marshall/Newman, so clearly he does not believe in jailing homosexuals. JMDD voted FOR Marshall/Newman.
Vivian, that is a false analogy, and you are better than that. No catholics have sought to affliate elsewhere because their church doesn’t allow women priests PERIOD. Some members of their church would react the same way as these churches did, if they allowed women. The point is the national church chose to go one way, and the locals decided to stick with what they were doing. What’s the political issue here?
Perhaps in your mind, but not in mine.
The political issue is that we have a right to know where our candidates stand. Pure and simple.
And the funny thing about all this? I would have never known that Chap attended that church if you hadn’t posted it on MC.
Your claims are looking false Vivian. You said in comment 17 that your concern was over women. The Congregation doesn’t want women in leadership positions. I agree with you that is dumb, but I don’t belong to that church. My question is still unanswered- why pick on this church that doesn’t want female leadership and not other churches that do the same like the Catholic Church?
We Democrats should not support Democrats who align themselves with institutions which discriminate and persecute those whose sexual orientation is different than heterosexual.
I’m sincerely hoping that Chap Petersen hasn’t aligned himself with a church which does.
What claims, Ben? First of all, go back and re-read #17:
Women AND gays, Ben. Everyone else wanted to focus on the gay only portion. The split is about both.
And I’m not picking on this church. Any candidate who belongs to a church that has decided to leave its US affiliation and hook up with a Nigerian church that has no respect for women and gays needs to answer the same questions that Kaine answered about his opinion on the death penalty. It is appropriate for voters and supporters to know where a candidate stands.
Why are you having such a hard time understanding that? You can try to browbeat me all you want but the facts don’t change: voters and supporters have a right to know where a candidate stands on controversial issues
On PUBLIC issues, faith is a PRIVATE issue, and I find it offensive that you are trying to bring it into public affairs. I’m upset because you have crossed the line of decent discourse.