On Saturday, July 19th, at about 8.35 am London time the BBC on its Radio 4 Today programme, had an interview with Canon Gene Robinson, the "gay " priest soon to be elected bishop by the General Convention of the ECUSA (which event I expect to witness).
He seemed very calm and clear and confident.
He rehearsed all the familiar positions about homosexuality as an orientation and about the noveelty and goodness of faithful, monogamous same-sex relationships
He stated he was called by God to be a bishop and that with the help of his spiritual director he had distinguished his ego from the call of God and was sure that he was really called by God. He was not called to celibacy.
He believed that Rowan Williams, Archbishop, would one day bless him but he did not need his blessing now.
He was sorry about threats of breaking communion by conservatives and he urged them to pray more and discern more carefully where the Spirit was leading the Anglican family.
He was sorry about what happened to Canon John in England. There was opposition to the ordination of women and there is opposition to the ordination of a gay person; but both will pass away.
The unity of the Church, he said, is based on Jesus Christ not on sexual views and Jesus said nothing about same-sex partnerships.
I think that he will have impressed a lot of people and made them wonder what all the fuss is about. Most of his hearers belong to a culture where human rights provides the morality and thus they cannot see what is wrong in Gene's position, especially as he sounds so reasonable and kind.
The Rev'd Dr. Peter Toon M.A., D.Phil. (Oxon.)
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