At the Diocesan Convention last November, Bishop McConnell promised that his decision concerning the blessing of same-sex unions and the ordination of persons in such unions would be informed (although not determined) by a diocese-wide dialogue, and announced the formation of a planning team to organize this dialogue. In February, the bishop sent a letter to the whole diocese describing the progress made. By that time, interviews had been conducted with a diverse group of 20 others, a number of whom would go on to participate in the first two dialogues, and the team itself had tested the dialogue that resulted, and refined the procedure further in the light of its experience.

The third phase of the dialogues will take place throughout the diocese in August and September. The only limitation on the number of participants will be the need for there to be a roughly equal number who come at this controversy from each side.  Clearly a large pool of volunteers is needed on both sides of the question.

If you have signed up, the dialogues will be held on three Saturdays between early August and September 14. You will be contacted with specifics when the sites and dates are finalized. If you are unavailable on Saturday but are available on Sunday between 2 and 6 p.m., contact Dana Phillips at dphillips@episcopalpgh.org about your availability.

To volunteer to take part in the summer dialogues, click this link. Some have indicated that they would like to participate in the dialogues but either cannot or prefer not to enter their information online.  In order to facilitate everyone's participation, a paper form (click here) is available.