Icon (Close Menu)

Archbishop Hiltz Responds

Please email comments to letters@livingchurch.org.

firemedic58/Flickr

André Forget writes in the Anglican Journal:

In a written response to a statement issued by seven Canadian bishops expressing their dissent from General Synod’s decision to move toward solemnizing same-sex marriages, Archbishop Fred Hiltz, primate of the Anglican Church of Canada, pushed back against several of the points they had raised.

While he affirmed the bishops’ commitment to offer “pastoral care and loving service to all irrespective of sexual orientation,” he noted that for many LGBTQ (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer/Questioning) Anglicans, “pastoral care” would include the solemnization of their marriages—which the bishops have expressly said they will not do. “For me, my brothers, the question you ask is really a question for all members of the church. To what extent can we and will we make room for one another? To what extent will we pastorally accommodate one another?” Hiltz said in his letter.

Hiltz’s response is dated August 5, but it became public following its distribution to the House of Bishops in advance of its September 22-27 meeting in Winnipeg. The Anglican Journal obtained a copy of the letter after a request was made to the primate’s office.

Read the rest.

Hiltz Response 2016-08-05 by TheLivingChurchdocs on Scribd

WEEKLY NEWSLETTER

Top headlines. Every Friday.

MOST READ

CLASSIFIEDS

Related Posts

Bishop Paul Idlout (1935-2025)

“Bishop Paul was a real servant, a gentle and kind man with a good sense of humor,” said Joey Royal, himself once a suffragan bishop in the Arctic.

Canadian Hate Crimes Bill Could Ban Religious Speech

Bill C-9 seeks to respond to a surge in antisemitic violence, but critics say that removing a religious exemption threatens free speech.

Canadian Church Resists Expensive Lease

Church lawyers are negotiating to leave an unauthorized $8 million lease for its Toronto headquarters, and its 2026 budget is 6 percent smaller as decline continues.

C of E Liberals Outraged by Same-Sex Blessings Decision

Some clerics say their church remains homophobic and others vow to defy the bishops, with the eight-year LLF process stopped dead by new legal and theological guidance.