Episcopal delegates seek 'restraint' on electing gay bishops

COLUMBUS, Ohio — Episcopal delegates asked church leaders Wednesday to "exercise restraint" when considering openly gay candidates for bishop, a vote that ended days of painful debate but fell far short of demands to preserve Anglican unity by banning gay bishops.

The measure calls on Episcopal prelates to "exercise restraint by not consenting to the consecration" of candidates for bishop "whose manner of life presents a challenge to the wider church." However it is nonbinding and — in a sign of the deep split over gay clergy — at least one bishop vowed immediately to ignore it.

Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams, the spiritual leader of the global Anglican Communion, has been trying to broker a truce between conservative and liberal archbishops worldwide ever since the Episcopal Church shocked traditionalists by consecrating Bishop V. Gene Robinson of New Hampshire.

Robinson, who was elected in 2003, lives with his longtime male partner. Anglican conservatives — a majority in the 77-million-member communion — hold that the Bible prohibits gay sex.

Episcopal delegates did vote to affirm the denomination's commitment to the Anglican fellowship; the church is the U.S. arm of the communion. But a proposal for a temporary moratorium on gay bishops never hit the convention floor.

On Tuesday, the House of Deputies rebuffed a measure that would have urged dioceses to "refrain from" choosing bishops in same-gender relationships. Some saw its language as sending a slightly tougher signal.

Whether the Episcopal General Convention went far enough to preserve Anglican ties will play out over months, if not years. World Anglican leaders meet next in February in Tanzania.

Many Anglican churches have already broken ties with the U.S. church over Robinson's elevation. And if overseas leaders dislike the outcome of the American meeting, it greatly increases the chances that the association of 38 national churches will break apart.

Wednesday's vote, just hours before the end of a nine-day meeting, won praise from Williams but pleased neither American conservatives nor advocates for full inclusion of gays.

A statement from conservative bishops was read from the convention floor calling the resolution meaningless and accusing the church of "misleading the rest of the communion by giving a false perception that they intend actually" to comply with Anglican requests.