31 July 2008

We're On A Mission From God Gene.

For those wondering why we at RSR are spending so much time lampooning the drama of Gene Robinson at Lambeth (it doesn't take that much time, actually; the stuff almost writes itself), read this Times article. Bishop Mouneer Anis, Primate of the Episcopal Church in Jerusalem and the Middle East, clearly spells out the problem:

"I find that many of our North American friends blame us and criticise us for bringing in the issues of sexuality and homosexuality but in fact they are the ones who are bringing these issues in. Here at Lambeth, you come across many advertisements for events organised by gay and Lesbian activists which are sponsored by the North American Church. If you visit the marketplace at the conference, you will notice that almost half the events promoted on the noticeboard promote homosexuality and are sponsored by the North Americans. And in the end, we, the people who remain loyal to the original teaching of the Anglican Communion, which we received from the Apostles, are blamed. They say that we talk a lot about sexuality and that we need to talk more about poverty, about AIDs, and injustice. They are the ones who are bringing sexuality into this conference. It’s not us. We want to talk about the heart of the issues which divide us, not only sexuality. That is just a symptom of a deeper problem."

And Catharine Roskam, Suffragan bishop of New York, who was also mentioned in the Times article, drops this bit of inclusive stereotyping in another article:

"Culturally, many of our bishops come from places where it is culturally accepted to beat your wife. In that regard, it makes the conversation quite difficult."

In other words, the current problems in the Anglican Communion are the fault of some ignorant, uppity, wife-beating savages who just don't understand civilized people like Bishop Roskam. And the good Bishop Roskam, Bishop Robinson and their friends are going to drag all those uncivilized brutes, kicking and screaming, into the light of full inclusion "civilization."

Screw diversity. It's Manifest Destiny time!

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