Statement by the Rt Revd Harold Miller, Bishop of Down and Dromore, on the Deposition of the Bishop of Pittsburgh
It was with great sadness that I heard of the decision of the House of Bishops in TEC to depose Bishop Bob Duncan. Bob is in every way a thoroughly orthodox Christian, firm in and committed to a catholic Anglican faith. He is a man of both conviction and courage, who is prepared to lay down everything for the sake of the Gospel.
I had feared that this deposition might happen, but had thought that the listening process of the Lambeth Conference might change things, and had hoped that we would see a generosity of spirit from The Episcopal Church. Despite many of the bishops showing such generosity, the general determination of TEC, and not least the Presiding Bishop, to deal harshly with conservatives, appears to be set. One has to ask, ‘What listening was done at the Lambeth Conference by those who most trumpeted the importance of listening?'
This is a tragic decision by a province which has already torn the fabric of the Anglican Communion, and which is now in danger of unraveling itself thread by thread.
My thoughts and prayers are specially with Bob and his wife Nara at this time, and with the people of the Diocese of Pittsburgh who have, at least temporarily lost their beloved father-in-God.
+ Harold Down and Dromore