[Oe List ...] A Happy 80th Birthday to Bob Fishel today + followup on African bishops, etc.

[W. J.]

Bob and Judy, here are my Sunday morning thoughts after our conversation yesterday.
And a Happy 80th Birthday to Bob today! I really enjoyed celebrating at lunch with bites of birthday cake!

I forgot to mention that one of the highlights of the CoB meeting at Lake Junaluska last fall was Bishop Karen Oliveto's sermon at their public worship service on Tuesday in the Harrell Center auditorium. I would have been there had I been tuned into the grapevine. The report from those who were there was that she had the African bishops applauding and shouting their Amens with great enthusiasm.
What amazed me was that choosing Karen to preach from among 100+ bishops could not have been by chance. The powers that be in the council leadership must have been very intentional, though they claimed that all the bishops got their shot at the sermon slot in rotation. Yeah, fat chance!
My other point is that the best argument against the One Church Plan is Bishop Karen. By removing the prohibition, there WILL be more like her! (Lesbian bishops! Gasp! BTW, she is the first 'out' lesbian bishop, but definitely NOT the first. I can name several who are/were closeted, including Bishop Susan Morrison, whose cabinet included Art Brandenburg and who spoke at the symposium honoring Bishop Mathews and his brother Joe at Wesley Theological Seminary. She retired to Rehobeth Beach, MD--big clue!).
Remember that "episcopalizing" Bishop Gene Robinson was a huge affront for the Anglican communion around the world. Especially in Africa, I would surmise.
Conservative Riley Case, whom I don't agree with, made the point in 2011: 
"If changing our stance on sexual morality would wreck havoc in American churches, the effect in the African churches would be many times greater. And, the effect in lands where Muslim presence is strong would be devastating."
Read the whole article about the 36 retired bishops who 'came out' @https://methodistthinker.com/2011/02/21/riley-case-retired-bishops-statement/
BTW, I DID attend the opening Memorial Service for the CoB (and their spouses) @ FUMC Waynesville. Beautiful and elaborate with the full pipe organ and their church choir and the bishops' colorful robes in procession down the aisles.
I sat on the back row directly behind a long pew full of African bishops and showered them with my silent prayers of blessing and profound gratitude. That's the closest I ever got to them. Afterwards I made eye contact and nodded a greeting to a few bishops without saying a word. Including Bishop Talbert.

Finally, here's a BIG CLUE as to why the Connectional Conference Plan can NEVER pass muster with a 2/3 vote of annual conferences:Bishops dismayed at United Methodist Church's failure to affirm gender equality

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Bishops dismayed at United Methodist Ch...
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Grace and Peace,
Marshall
And here's an article on the (former) ministry of Rev. Bryne Comrade, who was smuggled out of Uganda and whom I met recently in SF as he awaits his asylum decision by USCIS:Providing HIV Services To A Hidden LGBT Network in Uganda – This Is Brian’s Story

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Providing HIV Services To A Hidden LGBT...
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