The Network/ACC has crashed

My first reaction to +Schofield's response to the PB was "so this is what
innocence looks like", referring to the recent verdict of the charges
brought against him by my bishop and 3 others here in CA. And then I
remembered OJ was also found innocent.

FWIW, IMO, the Network/AAC people have had their day and they have
failed. They had their moment in GC03 and they failed to block the
approval of Robinson. They have defeated themselves with their tactics
of fear, misrepresentation of facts, violence of language, melodrama.
The American people do not like to be bullied and we have a innate, or
so it seems, refusal to respond to "my way or the highway' tactics"
nor do tolerate threats well.

Seems to me that most of us in TEC have been faithfully plodding along
doing God's work of feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, caring for
the sick, providing for those unable to provide for themselves, etc
etc while somewhere else above our heads this conflict has raged. I
don't know how many Episcopalians have said to me "Oh, I don;t know
what all the fuss is about and I don't care." My rector told me once
that as far as he knew, I was the only person in the parish other than
the clergy who was even aware of what was going on. Or something like
that.

I don't know about the Network/AAC people, but most of us live and
work with and around other people who are different from ourselves.
Eye color, skin color, size, gender, sexual orientation,
nationality... there are so many differences between me and the next
guy I couldn't begin to count them all.

IMO, the Network/AAC people defeated themselves when they failed to
understand that a nation who has lived through the Civil Rights
movement and the women's movement would ever understand why they
should not apply the principles of those movements to The Issue.

IMO, it's all over but the shouting. And the lawsuits. Our former PB
and our present PB have extended the sign of peace over and over again
to the Network/AAC people. I believe the ABC's recent statement
recognizes that. I also believe his statement reflects his
understanding that both of these PBs have done everything possible to
live out, observe and preserve Anglican polity.

I also think the polity of TEC is far more deeply ingrained in the
average Episcopalian than the Network/AAC people think. I think they
underestimated how much diversity we can embrace and continue to
celebrate our unity.

As for the lawsuits...I say file a lawsuit against every priest,
parish or diocese that tries to steal what they do not own. Law suits
are the logical consequences of grand larceny, are they not? Maybe
through some vagary of some ill-thought legislation here in CA, the CA
judges might decide in favor of the parishes or even diocese but after
all, the Supreme Court has repeatedly demonstrated that they uphold
the canons and constitutions of a denomination. Why should we allow
them to loot Episcopalian assets and property?

The root and heart of the Anglican Communion is not theology but
prayer. We unite around a way to pray, whether it is Sunday morning
Eucharist or the Daily Offices. Our doctrinal statements, such as
they are, are the Creeds. And really, what better doctrinal statement
could there be than the ones that have stood the test of time, of
thousands of years?

The Network/AAC has crashed. It will just take some time for the
flames to burn out, for the fire to be contained.