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Like their U.S. neighbors, Canadian Anglicans are facing a crisis over homosexuality. Delegates passed a resolution just before the final gavel to affirm the "integrity and sanctity" of committed same-sex relationships when they met in June in St. Catharines, Ontario.

The vote came a day after the 300 delegates to General Synod, which meets every three years, had agreed to defer the question of blessing same-sex unions until 2007 while a theological commission studies whether the issue is a matter of doctrine.

Lauded by liberals as a step toward full acceptance of gay unions in the church, the decision to affirm gay unions was quickly followed by a strong statement from nine conservative bishops. They said, "General Synod's opinion is in error and contrary to the teaching of Scripture and the tradition of the undivided Church."

The problem is with the word sanctity. Garth Bulmer, the priest who made the motion, says he was using the word "not in a technical, theological sense so much as a pastoral sense." But to Archbishop Drexel Gomez, primate of the West Indies, the word sanctity is the same as holiness and should be reserved for marriage. Within hours of the decision Gomez sent a message to conservative Anglicans saying, "It is completely unacceptable to Bible-believing orthodox Christians that same-sex unions are described as 'holy.'"

Anglican Essentials, a 10-year-old coalition of orthodox Anglicans who worked behind the scenes in encouraging synod delegates to approach issues from a biblical perspective, also issued a statement, saying they "repudiate and distance" themselves from the decision. "Sanctity equals blessing," says Charlie Masters, Essentials national director.

Essentials leaders are urging conservative Anglicans not to leave the Anglican Church of Canada, however, but to work from within.

Also at General Synod, delegates elected a new primate, Archbishop Andrew Hutchison, to head the national church. Hutchison has liberal views on homosexual unions but said he hopes to work with all sides in an effort to keep the church together. Hutchison favors same-sex blessings but not same-sex marriage.

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Christianity Today's other recent articles on the Anglican crisis include:

A Slow Exodus | Disaffected orthodox Episcopalians start new ministries. (May 27, 2004)

An Anglican Rorschach Test | Conservatives and liberals fide hope in statement. (Dec. 02, 2003)

Canadian Anglicans Face Off | Bishops hold charges against dissenting clergy, but division and suspicion abound. (Dec. 09, 2003)

The Gay Bishop's Global Fallout | How each of the 39 provinces in the Anglican Communion have responded to Sunday's consecration. (Nov. 07, 2003)

Translating the Anglican Primates | Interpretations vary widely on what last week's statement means, how forceful it was, and what's next. (Oct. 21, 2003)

One-and-One-Half Cheers for the Anglican Primates' Statement | An interview with theologian—and longtime Anglican—J. I. Packer (Oct. 17, 2003)

Dispatch: Conservatives Just Got Clobbered | Last week's American Anglican Council meeting in Texas announced victory prematurely (Oct. 17, 2003)

Weblog: Early Responses to the Anglican Primates' Statement | Both sides seem happy as the Episcopal Church USA promises to go ahead with its gay bishop ordination (Oct. 17, 2003)

Anglican Leaders Criticize Episcopal Church, Canada's New Westminster Diocese on Homosexual Actions | Future of the Anglican unity "in jeopardy," they say, but don't break communion—yet (Oct. 16, 2003)

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August 2004, Vol. 48, No. 8