Bishop skeptical of Episcopal stance on gays

Pittsburgh Episcopal Bishop Robert W. Duncan Jr. last night dismissed the promise of church leaders meeting in New Orleans to "exercise restraint" in approving gay bishops and same-sex blessings.

Speaking before the opening in Pittsburgh of a four-day gathering of more than four dozen bishops representing both the Episcopal Church's conservative minority and U.S. and Canadian offshoots of the denomination, Bishop Duncan said the leaders' promise was "the same stuff; it's not movement."

"The American church is moving in one direction," he said. "The Western church is moving in one direction. The classic church stands where it has always stood."

The New Orleans decision, reached by about 170 members of the Episcopal Church's House of Bishops, ultimately may not be enough to prevent a schism between the worldwide Anglican communion and its American arm. The Episcopal Church has been at odds with a majority of the world's more than 70 million Anglicans since its 2003 consecration of an openly gay bishop in New Hampshire. Read more
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