Dedication
Acknowledgements
Introduction; Homosexuality in the Headlines
1: The American Right’s Love affair with Homosexuality
2: Why is Homosexuality such a Big Deal?
3: Children of God Come Out
4: Evangelical Episcopal Explosion
5: The Episcopal Church Gets AIDS
6: Conservatives and Progressives lock Horns
7: When America Sneezes the Whole World Catches a Cold
8: Dissident Conservatives Revolt
9: Three Men Divided by Truth and Unity
10: Fight the Good Fight
11: Who Defines Anglican?
12: The Empire Strikes Back
13: “The Lord is Displacing the Episcopal Church”
14: Where Now is Authority?
Appendix: For the Bible Tells Me So
Bibliography
Rev. Caroline Addington Hall is priest-in-charge of an Episcopal parish in California and vice-president of Inter-Anglican Affairs for Integrity, an organization that works for the full inclusion of gay and lesbian Episcopalians, and a frequent contributor to the blog Walking with Integrity. Hall and her spouse were among the first gay couples married in California when marriage became legal for same-sex couples in 2008.
Hall, an Episcopal priest, presents the history of the struggle for
full inclusion and ordination of gays and lesbians in her
denomination. Although firmly on the pro-gay side of the rift, she
evenhandedly presents the viewpoints of both factions. She opens
with two brief chapters offering reasons why homosexuality has
become such a key political issue. She then turns to a history of
the gay and lesbian debate in Episcopalianism from the late 1950s
to the present, and Episcopalian responses to key historical
moments, such as the AIDS crisis. Although her focus is on the
United States, she deftly explains how the debate has spread and
influenced the larger Anglican Communion. In particular, her
unraveling of the American roots of the anti-gay bill in Uganda
provides crucial analysis of how the debate affects those far
beyond North America. Using individuals to shape the story makes
even the lengthy discussions of ecclesiastical politics engaging.
Her work provides an excellent introduction to the current schisms
in Anglicanism, both within the U.S. church and
internationally.
*Publishers Weekly*
This is an intriguing read, a page-turner for those following the
wider issue of gender policy in the Episcopal Church. . . .This is
an important . . . read.
*Anglican and Episcopal History*
This is Episcopal history at its best and a compelling story that
needs to be told. Hall narrates with intelligence and accuracy the
past 50 years of prejudice and pride. Her wide vision encompasses
the critical intersections of shifts in religion, politics and
contemporary cultural awareness about homosexuality.
*Fredrica Harris Thompsett*
For over fifty years, the Episcopal Church has struggled to
appreciate faithfulness and holiness among LGBT Christians.
Caroline Addington Hall has given us a richly informative account
of this disturbing, provocative, and inspiring strand of our
history. Reading this book is good background for those who would
continue to move the Anglican Communion forward.
*Reverend Canon Marilyn McCord Adams, formerly Regius Professor of
Divinity, Oxford*
The Anglican upheaval over homosexuality has found its historian.
Caroline Addington Hall does not disclaim her own perspective on
the debate, no credible commentator can as the earth still trembles
with change, but she tells both sides of the story with remarkable
and thorough care. A Thorn in the Flesh will be the benchmark
against which later works on this subject will be measured.
*Rev. Harry Knox, president and CEO, Religious Coalition for
Reproductive Choice*
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