Archbishop of Canterbury Writes to Bishop Howe of Diocese of Central Florida

This is a copy of the letter Rowan Williams, Archibishop of Canterbury sent to Bishop Howe of Central Florida. On his website, Louie Crew sent an email to Bishop how to ask if this is really authentic. Bishop Howe replied, "yes." Dear Louie also sent a copy to every bishop in the Anglican Communion, so by the time my readers see this on my blog, it will be hundreds of copies all over the Internet. Gordon http://www.cafepress.com/fartotheleft ---------------------------------------------------------

14 October 2007 Dear John I've just received your message, which weighs very heavily on my heart, as it must - though far more so - on yours. At this stage, I can say only two things. The first is that I have committed myself very clearly to awaiting the views of the Primates before making any statement purporting to settle the question of The Episcopal Church's status, and I can't easily short-circuit that procedure. The second is that your Rectors need to recognize that this process is currently in train and that a separatist decision from them at this point would be irresponsible and potentially confusing. However, without forestalling what the Primates might say, I would repeat what I've said several times before - that any Diocese compliant with Windsor remains clearly in communion with Canterbury and the mainstream of the Communion, whatever may be the longer-term result for others in The Episcopal Church. The organ of union with the wider Church is the Bishop and the Diocese rather than the Provincial structure as such. Those who are rushing into separatist solutions are, I think, weakening that basic conviction of Catholic theology and in a sense treating the provincial structure of The Episcopal Church as if it were the most important thing - which is why I continue to hope and pray for the strengthening of the bonds of mutual support among those Episcopal Church Bishops who want to be clearly loyal to Windsor. Action that fragments their Dioceses will not help the consolidation of that all-important critical mass of ordinary faithful Anglicans in The Episcopal Church for whose nurture I am so much concerned. Breaking this up in favour of taking refuge in foreign jurisdictions complicates and embitters the future for this vision. Do feel free to pass on these observations to your priests. I should feel a great deal happier, I must say, if those who are most eloquent for a traditionalist view in the United States showed a fuller understanding of the need to regard the Bishop and the Diocese as the primary locus of ecclesial identity rather than the abstract reality of the 'national church'. I think that if more thought in these terms there might be more understanding of why priests in a diocese such as yours ought to maintain their loyalty to their sacramental communion with you as Bishop. But at the emotional level I can understand something of the frustration they doubtless experience, just as you must. With continuing prayers and love, +Rowan

La Cage aus Folles Latest Update

Thank you, Bishop Howe for giving Trinity Preparitory School the publicity needed to draw a big crowd. The school will benefit greatly. www.orlandosentinel.com Standing-room-only opening at 'La Cage'

Trinity Prep School play seems to benefit from free publicity after bishop's nix.

Tanya Caldwell Sentinel Staff Writer September 8, 2007 The thespians of Trinity Preparatory School opened their controversial show Friday night to a full house without the Episcopalian bishop's blessings.T hey opened their theatrical season before hundreds at the Orlando Repertory Theatre, playfully prancing around in blond wigs and patent leather heels.Some were girls. Some were boys in drag. And for the Episcopal bishop, that was the problem.The high schoolers hoped to perform La Cage aux Folles, a musical comedy that features a gay couple and drag queens, on their Christian campus last week.But Bishop John Howe, head of the Episcopal Diocese of Central Florida, asked the school's headmaster to cancel the on-campus performance on Aug. 31, just hours before the show was to debut. Howe thought the PG-13 show was inappropriate for the school near Winter Park.But attendees thought it was inappropriate for the bishop to cancel the students' show."It was unfortunate that it just got canceled at the last minute. That was an uncalled for reaction," said Doug Truelsen, who attended the opening night Friday."They just got the rug whipped right out from under them," said Darby Ballard, an attendee who graduated from Trinity in 1990. "When I went to school we didn't have those guidelines. We had a different administration that was more accepting." The students took the show to Orlando Repertory Theatre after a week of debate about whether the bishop overstepped his bounds or held his moral ground. At least three other theaters also opened their doors to the group.At least 300 parents, peers and neighbors arrived for the opening night, laughing at the jokes, smiling during the solos and whistling as grinning drag queens danced across the stage. The Broadway musical has won several awards and was later tuned into an American movie called The Birdcage, which starred Robin Williams and Nathan Lane. La Cage features a gay couple in which one partner runs a French nightclub and the other performs there as a drag queen. The couple has been together for 20 years but make changes when their son bring home his fiancee and her conservative parents. Janine Papin, Trinity Prep's fine-arts department chairwoman, said earlier that she wanted do the show to "push the limits." She said the play is about family and tolerance, not about homosexuality. Fred Trabold, a 32-year-old attorney who graduated from Trinity in 1993, agreed with the bishop's decision."The issue is whether the Trinity Preparatory School, which is an Episcopalian school, should honor the bishop of the Episcopalian church," Trabold said. "It's not a matter of homophobia. I saw the movie The Birdcage and it was hilarious." Howe had no further comment Friday night two hours before curtain."I really have said all I want to about it," he said. Some attendees said the show taught moral values that others might enjoy."I think that the play has a lot of values to teach. It's about acceptance. It's about love. It's about tolerance," Truelsen said. "Those are great values to teach anyone." Tanya Caldwell can be reached at tcaldwell@orlandosentinel.com or 352-742-5928. Copyright © 2007, Orlando Sentinel

La Cage aux Folles Riles Episcopal Bishop of Central Florida

I found this to be particularly outrageous. It's censorship of the arts for one thing. But I think Bishop Howe's biggest beef is that it's about a subject near and dear to his heart....it's about tolerance and respect for those who are G/L/B/T. Simply because the plot dealt with cross dressing, they had to give it a PB-13 rating. Not good enough for the Episcopoevangelical bishop. For those non-Episcopalians reading this, let me tell you a little bit of history about Bishop Howe. He was disappointed years ago when Pat Robertson ran for president and lost. When Robertson decided to return to ministry, Bishop Howe, along with other Robertson groupies 'laid hands upon him' to return him to ministry, which now consists of peddling his health food drink, bellyaching about homosexuals taking over the United States and denying dealing in blood diamonds with the former butcher of Liberia. What a fine model of the episcopate he is! The Episcopal church has many loving, accepting bishops, priests and members. But it also has its share of bigots, including the episcopate. Gordon ************************************************************************** From the Orlando Sentinel - Bishop nixes Trinity Prep playThe move to cancel 'La Cage aux Folles' riles students and parents. ** The school theater production aimed to "push the limits," and it did -- way too far for its conservative Episcopal bishop. ** Trinity Preparatory School canceled its opening-night performance of La Cage aux Folles on Friday at the request of Bishop John Howe, head of the Diocese of Central Florida."His request was not to stage the production, and we decided to honor his request," said Headmaster Craig Maughan, who called off Friday's and tonight's planned performances. "I met with the cast and all the people involved in the production and announced the decision and explained it to them." ** "There was disappointment among students, but I would say they understood."The award-winning musical comedy, which opened on Broadway in 1983, features a middle-aged gay couple and actors dressed in drag. ** Howe learned about the performance when he read a story about it in Thursday's Orlando Sentinel. Howe said in an e-mail response to questions that he recognized it was difficult to cancel a show hours before the curtain went up but said he was grateful for Maughan's decision. ** The bishop was surprised "that any high school would sponsor this particular production," he wrote. "Having to put a 'PG-13' warning label on a dramatic production certainly seems an unusual decision for a Christian preparatory school." ** Howe, a leader of conservative bishops in the Episcopal Church, USA, has been vocal on issues of sexual orientation and in 2003 strongly opposed the election of an openly gay man as bishop of New Hampshire. That election, and the issue of blessing same-sex unions, has created a rift in the Episcopal Church. ** Trinity Prep, which is on the border of Orange and Seminole counties, is one of four high schools in the Central Florida diocese.Maughan said he would meet with the school's administrative council and board of directors early next week and decide whether to hold performances at the school next week."I'm very sad," said Janine Papin, chairwoman of Trinity Prep's fine- arts program and director of the show. ** But she also hoped for "a happy outcome" -- perhaps off-campus performances -- and had "faith in some very strong leaders" at the school where she has worked for eight years. ** Mostly, she said she was sorry misconceptions about the musical had brought problems to Trinity."La Cage really isn't about a gay couple. It's about family," Papin said. "It's funny and endearing, and there's a wonderful message about being comfortable with who we are. And it really doesn't have to deal with sexuality." ** In the show, one partner runs a French nightclub and the other performs there as a drag queen. Their life is upended when one man's son brings home his fiancee and her ultraconservative parents. ** The musical, which won several Tony Awards, was also made into an American movie, The Birdcage, staring Robin Williams and Nathan Lane. ** Last week, Papin told the Sentinel she picked the show because she wants "to push the limits so that there are very few shows that are off-limits for the kids because of sexual orientation or because of religious differences or whatever it is. ** "The performances were to be the culmination of Trinity Prep's intensive summer musical-theater class. ** Papin had told Trinity Prep administrators of her selection and was asked to put a PG-13 label on promotional posters. Her news release explained the show involved a gay couple and said "the audience should be age appropriate for the content."No one seemed concerned, she said. Earlier Friday, posters for the show dotted the campus, and a number of Trinity Prep students wore T- shirts touting the show. ** "I had no idea that this sort of nonsense would come up at the last minute," she added.The student cast members were told of the decision late Friday, some as they arrived on campus to get ready for what they thought was a 7:30 p.m. performance -- the first of six planned shows. ** One mother said her child was "absolutely furious" about the cancellation.The mother asked not to be identified after the headmaster asked parents and students not to comment to the press."I would like the show to go on. It has absolutely nothing to do with the bishop," the mother said. "I don't think it has anything to do with the church."The mother noted the musical ran on Broadway for many years and preaches a message of tolerance, a message that many students take to heart. ** The cast was mostly students from the prep school, though it included a few from public high schools and 20-year-old Benjamin Rush. He stepped in to play one of the leading men when the student actor was injured."I understand this is a private school, a religious school," Rush said, but that didn't make the decision easier for the cast. "I'm upset because of the censorship of the arts." ** Headmaster Maughan said the school would continue to produce "challenging productions," but added, "It is important to evaluate the importance of musicals or plays and consider them in light of our position as an Episcopal school." ** Correspondent Jill Duff-Hoppes contributed to this report. Leslie Postal can be reached at 407-420-5273 or lpostal@orlandosentinel.com. Dave Weber can be reached at 407-320-0915 or dweber@orlandosentinel.com.Copyright © 2007, Orlando Sentinel