The Diocese of Niagara has declared that it is pressing ahead with same-sex blessings:

Effective September 1, 2009, permission will be granted by Bishop Michael Bird for the use of the Niagara Rite as outlined in the protocols that are included.

In a moment of mincingly understated candour Fred Hiltz admitted that this might “create some tension”:

The decision by the diocese of Niagara to offer same-sex blessings as of Sept. 1 is bound to create some tension among bishops, says Archbishop Fred Hiltz, primate of the Anglican Church of Canada.

In contrast, Michael Ingham in New Westminster is paying advanced lip-service to the pretence of pacifying conservatives by limiting parishes that conduct same-sex blessings to a mere 8: Bird makes no such promise:

No more parishes may bless same sex couples for forseeable [sic] future

For the foreseeable future, the blessing of the union of gay and lesbian Anglicans will continue to be limited to eight parishes in the diocese.

One can only assume that Michael Bird is eager to thrust Ingham out of the limelight and grab some well-deserved notoriety for himself. When the death of the Anglican Church of Canada is chronicled by a church historian in the not too distant future, Bird will take his rightful place as the Michael who assisted with the coup de gras by putting the boot in at the level which befits his stature.