Resolved, the House of _____ concurring, That the Vestry of St. Bartholomew’s Atlanta memorializes this resolution regarding the Report of the Special Commission on the Episcopal Church and the Anglican Communion to the Bishop and Deputation of the Episcopal Diocese of Atlanta and the 75^th General Convention.
St. Bartholomew’s mission is to be “a nurturing, inclusive community centered in Jesus Christ, called to grow in our faith through worship, ministry, education, and service.”  Our community has, for decades, welcomed people of all sexual orientations.  It is with great joy that we have experienced the gifts of all people who are drawn to our community- regardless of sexual orientation – and it is with deep sadness that we recognize that the gifts of some among us are sometimes rejected by the Church only because of the sexual orientation of the giver.
As such, we express support for Resolution A167 recognizing all persons as full members of the Body of Christ through baptism, regardless of sexual orientation, and also calling on the Church to reaffirm its apology to all people within and outside of the Church who have suffered “years of rejection and maltreatment by the Church” because of their sexual orientation.
We express great concern about Resolutions A161 and A162, which negate the full membership of our gay and lesbian brothers and sisters, as expressed in A167, through the proposed restrictions on blessed unions and eligibility for election as Bishops through established processes available to all others.
In regards to Resolution A160, we call for the 75^th General Convention to stand by the decision made by the 74^th General Convention.  While we also regret the pain which that decision has caused some in our Communion, we call on the General Convention not to repent or regret the action itself, but to stand by all members of the Body of Christ regardless of sexual orientation, to acknowledge the full range of spiritual gifts present in all members, and to allow for their full expression as ordained and lay leaders in our Church.
We do express regret and we repent for our Church, which continues to cause pain to members of our communion who are gay, lesbian, transgender and transsexual, and express our support and deep love for all persons who are pained by the ongoing debates.