Several months ago at their 20th All-American Council, in response to the request of the faithful the Holy Synod of the Orthodox Church in America issued an encyclical entitled Statement on Same-sex Relationships and Sexual Identity. Within the historical context of the Christian faith, the only thing even remotely remarkable about this encyclical is the fact that anyone felt the need to issue it at all (sadly, however, such a need is only too real). It consists merely of a simple and calm reaffirmation of “the unchanging teaching of Christ the Savior” regarding sexual identity and morality, a repeated emphasis that such teaching proceeds solely out of “love and out of sincere care for souls,” and finally an exhortation to the faithful not to publicly contradict or undermine the teaching of the Church in these matters.