Moravians Add Full Communion with Presbyterians
The Moravian Church, which is already in full communion with the Lutherans and Episcopalians, has now added full communion with the Presbyterian Church U.S.A., the largest of the various Presbyterian bodies in the U.S. The two denominations will celebrate their "covenant relationship" at a service in Wisconsin, June 10, 2016. Full communion between the Moravians and Presbyterians means that clergy in each denomination are recognized and fully authorized to serve in the other. The Episcopal Church has been in conversation with the Presbyterian Church for a decade and a half, and has a limited agreement approved in 2008 (See Update story here), but a formula for TEC and the Presbyterians that allows each to fully recognize the other's clergy has not been found.Virginia Bishops Are Working on Transgender Policy for Church Schools
The three bishops of the Diocese of Virginia, Diocesan bishop Shannon Johnston, Suffragan Bishop Susan Goff, and Assisting Bishop Ted Gulick have issued a statement that they are carefully working on a policy for the Church Schools of the diocese, (and for other diocesan related organizations and camps) that will address controversies that have arisen in fully including transgender students. The principles that will infuse the policy are sensitive to the needs of transgender students and parents, educators, psychologists, and others involved with the schools. There are six official Church Schools, some of which are day schools and some that take boarders. The diocese elects a single board of trustees that oversees all six schools while granting much autonomy to individual boards at each school. The six are Christchurch (Middlesex County) St. Catherine's (Richmond), St. Christopher's (Richmond), St. Margaret's (Tappahannock) Stuart Hall (Staunton), and St. Stephen's and St. Agnes School (Alexandria). Three of the schools are single sex schools. One Additional Richmond school, the Anna Julia Cooper School is considered an "related institution" for the diocese. The Cooper School is a middle school with ties to the Church Schools in Richmond. In addition the policy would affect the diocesan summer camps run at Shrine Mont. The Episcopal High School in Alexandria is independent and it is not clear if any policy developed by the diocese will apply to it.