Clergy in the Anglican Church of New Zealand will be able to offer blessings to couples in same-sex marriage after the Synod of the Anglican Church of Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia voted to approve the chance.
Motion 29 says marriage is a union between one man and one woman, but it also allows for individual bishops to offer a “non-formulary service” to bless same sex couples.
Previously, there was disciplinary action for clergy who offered those types of blessings.
A similar motion was considered at the 2014 Synod meeting, and then in 2016, the Synod said any changes on blessings would not be doctrinal changes.
According to the Anglican Communion News Service, the changes will not apply to the Diocese of Polynesia. Christians in Samoa, Fiji and Tonga do not recognize same-sex unions.
In a statement, the Synod said it was “deeply mindful of the deep interweaving of cultural and religious values at the core of our Pacific societies that place a profound respect, and reverence for the belief in God and the belief in the traditional understanding of marriage.”
The Scottish Episcopal Church and in the United States, the Episcopal Church already offers blessings to same-sex couples. Both, however, have changed their definition of marriage to include same-sex couples.
Meanwhile, the Church of England has not made any changes. Justin Welby, the archbishop of…
… Read More
Click here to read the rest of the story from our content source/partners – Christian Headlines.