A Holy Blessing on Same-Gender "Marriage" - Holy?

On July 9^th, 2009 the Episcopal Church held hearings on a collection of resolutions requesting marriage equality or rites for same gender blessings.  Episcopal Life reports  that the resolutions received broad support.  These requests include making canonical changes to the Book of Common Prayer – replacing the words “man and woman” with “two persons” and “husband or wife” with “spouse.” 

Rev. Susan Russell says, “It represents our best, brightest and most focused effort to achieve clarity on this issue," she said.  "The marriage of same-sex couples is no longer theoretical;  it is ontological.”

"I am 18, and I am a gay Episcopalian," said Carolyn Chou, a member of the official youth presence at convention. "Let my parents have the privilege of seeing me get married one day."

"I really believe it's time for us to get to marriage, "said the Rev. Timothy Safford, (Pennsylvania), in support of Resolution C028.  "John needs to say, 'Tim is asking me to marry him, and we want to marry in the church,' and when the grandmother says it's not possible, he needs to be able to say, 'Yes, it's on page 423 of the Book of Common Prayer.'"

These resolutions are met with some resistance.  Rev. Charles Holt spoke in opposition to the amendments, “My greatest concern is the message we are sending to the children that are in our care," he said.  "We're teaching them not to trust the word of God, and that is problematic."

There is nothing surprising that is reported here.  This is the path that the Episcopal Church has well worn.  Yet, if we simply see this as the Episcopal Church capitulating to culture, we miss the more significant, deep-seated problem.  This should be a living parable before the watching world and especially the Christian church of Romans 1:32, “Though they know God's decree that those who practice such things deserve to die, they not only do them but give approval to those who practice them.” 

This is not a matter of right or wrong interpretation of certain passages of Scripture or questions on how to rightly engage human sexuality.  This is a matter of the creature disregarding the Creator’s design and will for his or her life for their own desires.  This is a moral failure that has, more and more, instilled spiritual blindness.  To steal a phrase from D. A. Carson, the Episcopal Church has effectively gagged the authority of Divine instruction.