The Church of England, meeting in General Synod, voted this Thursday to bless same-sex unions, but reaffirmed its opposition to the celebration of homosexual religious marriages.
After eight hours of tense debate spread over two days, the nearly 500 members of the elected body responsible for deciding doctrinal matters reached a conclusion and approved the blessing of same-sex couples by a majority: 250 votes in favour, 181 against and 10 abstentions.
The decision is the culmination of six years of deliberation, which revealed deep divisions within the Anglican Church and its 85 million faithful over the issue.
While the Church of England is more liberal towards the LGBT+ community (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and others), this is not the case in other Anglican churches, particularly in sub-Saharan African countries where homosexuality is still considered considered a crime. .
Even in England, the proposal submitted to the synod received much criticism.
“Synod has now achieved a result. I recognize that some will be deeply pleased and others will be hurt”said the Bishop of London, Sarah Mullally (the first woman in history to hold the post), after the results were announced.
“May this profound and collected debate be a new beginning for the Church in our will to move forward by listening to each other, and above all to God”Mullally said.
The motion passed today also recognizes “the failure of the Church to integrate LGBT+ people and the harm that LGBT+ people have suffered and continue to suffer in the life of the Church.”
Source: DN
