Official policy of The Episcopal Diocese of North Carolina can be established only by Diocesan Convention or Diocesan Council. Neither of these bodies has addressed the specifics of the Wake County school board's diversity policy.
There are clergy and members of this diocese who are involved in this issue. I encourage Episcopal clergy to participate in public concerns seeking the common good. When they do so, they speak personally and with the moral authority granted by ordination, but not officially for the diocese or their respective congregations.
I marched July 20 to support the need for a diversity policy that ensures equal opportunity and access to education for all children within the Wake County school system. I do so as an individual, as a person of faith and as a bishop, but I do not speak on behalf of other Episcopalians. It is important that this debate and discussion be respectful, civil and in the best traditions of American democracy.
