Calif. bishop allows blessing gay unions

LOS ANGELES, Dec. 8 (UPI) -- The head of the Episcopal Church in Southern California has authorized the blessing of same-sex unions in the Los Angeles diocese.

The Rev. J. Jon Bruno, bishop of the diocese, announced the policy change Friday during the diocesan convention, the Los Angeles Times reported. Delegates to the convention Saturday approved a resolution in favor of lifting a moratorium on consecrating openly gay bishops.

Bruno's announcement is not expected to make much difference in practice, the Times said. Priests in the diocese are not compelled to bless same-sex unions, and many have been doing so for years.

The U.S. church and the worldwide Anglican Communion have been fractured by a debate on how Anglicans should deal with homosexuality. The issue was brought to a head in 2003 when Gene Robinson, a gay man in a committed relationship, became bishop of New Hampshire.

Conservative churches in the United States and Canada announced Wednesday that they were forming a separate Anglican province in North America. If the split becomes official, it would be the first time provinces have been divided by ideology, not geography.

Several U.S. dioceses in the past year after voted to affiliate with the Province of the Southern Cone in South America.