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At its General Synod in April the Anglican Tikanga of the Dioceses of New Zealand, Aotearoa and Polynesia passed a motion regarding same gender marriage.
Motion 30 seeks to see if there is a structure for the Anglican Church to hold onto the traditional view of marriage, and at the same time find a way of recognising and blessing those in life-long same-gender relationships.
If successful, Anglican churches in Fiji and the Pacific could be performing same-sex marriage ceremonies by 2016.
At present same-sex marriage in Fiji is illegal.
“The timing is God’s timing and it comes through God’s synod and is important for the people to bring their voices on this issue,” said the Archbishop of Polynesia Winston Halapua.
He said local reps of the different churches were tasked with taking the issue to their congregation and to ensure that whichever system arises was in line with the local laws.
When broached on the issue, the Catholic Church said it still believed in the traditional idea of marriage being between a man and a woman.
“If that is what the Anglicans have decided that is their view on the issue, but the Catholic Church still believes that marriage can only be between a man and a woman,” the Catholic Archbishop of Suva, Peter Loy Chong said.
The Methodist Church said it needed to be understood that the position of the three dioceses came from a process of responding to the contexts and issues facing the society in which it lived and served.
“The process is not merely one of policy but has involved a deep and honest theological reflection,” Reverend James Bhagwan said.
“We hold to a similar theological tradition which they express “the church has received and articulated an understanding of intimate human relationships which it expresses through her doctrine of marriage between a man and a woman, and is life-long and monogamous.
“And while they have not reached agreement of the way forward, they are having the conversation in a sincere way.”
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