RESOLUTION 6: CANON XI
Resolution Moved by: The Rev. Glen F. Michaels
Resolution seconded by: Fredrick W. Jackson
Parish (If Lay Deputy): St. Andrew’s, Albany
Be it resolved: That subdivisions (A) and (B) of Canon 11.8 of The Canons of the Diocese of Albany be and hereby are repealed.
11.8 – Standards for Ordination and Consecration
A. To be eligible to be ordained to the Diaconate or Priesthood, or consecrated a Bishop, a person must live within the covenant of Marriage between one man and one woman, or be celibate and abstinent.
Standards for Election, Appointing, and Licensing
B. To be eligible to be elected, appointed or licensed to any position of ordained ministry in the Diocese, a member of the clergy must live within the covenant of Marriage between one man and one woman, or be celibate and abstinent.
Rationale: Subdivisions (A) and (B) of Diocesan Canon 11.8 are not consistent with The Canons of General Convention, Title III.1.2, which provides, in part, that “No person shall be denied access to the discernment process or any process for the employment, licensing, calling, or deployment for any ministry, lay or ordained, in this church because of … sexual orientation, gender identity and expression … except as otherwise provided by these canons.”
RESOLUTION 7: CANON XVI
Resolution Moved by: The Rev. Glen F. Michaels
Resolution seconded by: Martha Iannacone
Parish (If Lay Deputy): St. Andrew’s, Albany
Be it resolved: That Canon 16 of The Canons of the Diocese of Albany be and hereby is repealed.
CANON XVI – MARRIAGE
16.1 – Celebration or Blessing of Marriages by Clergy
Members of the Clergy Resident in or Licensed to Serve in this Diocese shall neither officiate at, nor facilitate, nor participate in, any service, whether public or private, for the Celebration or Blessing of a Marriage or any other union except between one man and one woman. Unions other than those of one man and one woman in Holy Matrimony, even if they be recognized in other jurisdictions, shall be neither recognized nor blessed in this Diocese.
16.2 – Marriages on Church Property
Properties owned, controlled, managed, or operated by this Diocese, or any Parish of the Diocese, or any legal entity established by the Diocese or a parish of the Diocese, shall not be the site for any service, public or private, for the Celebration or Blessing of a Marriage or any other union except those between one man and one woman.
Rationale: General Convention Canons already provide Members of the Clergy of the Episcopal Church with discretion to decline to solemnize or bless any marriage. Action taken in 2018 by the 79th General Convention authorizing for continued use “The Witnessing and Blessing of a Marriage” and “The Celebration and Blessing of a Marriage 2” (from “Liturgical Resources I: I Will Bless You and You Will Be a Blessing, Revised and Expanded 2015”) brought the diocesan canon on marriage into non-conformity with provisions of Canon I:18 of The Canons of General Convention. Article IX of the Constitution of the Diocese of Albany provides that diocesan canons be consistent with the Constitution and Canons of General Convention or the diocesan constitution. This resolution effectuates that diocesan constitutional provision.
