September 2003
Dear All Saints' Family,
While on vacation, Janet and I turned on the news
to learn that the General Convention (which is a representative meeting of
our denomination that meets every three years) had approved the election
of the first openly gay bishop and had approved the development of rites
to bless relationships outside of Holy Matrimony, including same sex
unions. When I heard the news, my heart sank, even though I had expected
this to happen. Everywhere we went people asked what my feelings were
about the decisions made at convention. Even our in-laws in Switzerland
voiced their shock.
Most of the people we spoke with did not
comprehend the magnitude of the actions of the Convention; several thought
it was much ado about nothing. The truth is that the decisions made at
convention have sent seismic waves throughout the Anglican Communion and
beyond. The Archbishop of Canterbury issued a statement immediately after
the action of Convention. He wrote:
The General Convention's decision to approve
the appointment of Gene Robinson will inevitably have a significant impact
on the Anglican Communion throughout the world and it is too early to say
what the result of that will be.
It is my hope that the church in America and
the rest of the Anglican Communion will have the opportunity to consider
this development before significant and irrevocable decisions are made in
response. I have said before that we need as a church to be very careful
about making decision for our own part of the world which constrain the
church elsewhere.
It will be vital to ensure that the concerns
and needs of those across the communion who are gravely concerned at this
development can be heard, understood and taken into account.
Later the Archbishop called an emergency meeting
of all of the Primates from around the word to be held in October to
determine what will be done. This is the first such meeting in 450 years.
There is a possibility that the Episcopal Church will be censored or even
excommunicated from the Anglican Communion. The Episcopal Church in the
USA also faces the possibility of a major realignment or split over the
actions of Convention This could result in major court battles over
property and financial resources. What grieves me deeply is that the
bishops had previously agreed that issues of such importance could
and should not be left to a vote, but that instead a consensus of the
'whole' church needed to be reached. The Convention went ahead and voted
(60-40, hardly a consensus) knowing the consequences
Why is this as big deal? Like no other acting
taken by our denomination, this brings undoubted clarification that we
have two very different understandings of the Christian faith. The
following explanation is taken from a letter by John Yates, Rector of The
Falls Church, Virginia.
On the one had, we have the traditional,
historic understanding of the Christian faith; on the other hand, we have
what we call a revisionist or revised understanding of the Christian faith
. Each claim to be rooted in the apostolic faith of the New Testament, but
the first is shaped by the Reformation -- the second is shaped by the
Enlightenment. The firs is rooted in the Reformation conviction of the
authority of the scriptures as the inspired, infallible word of God. The
Second is rooted in the authority of reason and experience. Revisionists
see scripture as essentially human documents -- fallible. It wasn't too
long ago that the Bishop of Pennsylvania said, "Well, we wrote the Bible
the first time, we can write it again."
The traditional and revisionist understandings of
the faith lead to different conclusions on many issues from salvation to
ethical and moral behavior. The ethics and moral values for
traditionalists focus on obedience to God as revealed in Holy Scripture;
revisionists tend to look to culture for moral guidance. In the words of
John Yates,
The first believes in the beauty of chastity
and moral purity, the second seem to say these values are outdated. The
first believes that we are called to "control ourselves," the second to
"express ourselves."
I realize these are polarizations and
generalizations, but they make the point that we have two very different
ways of understanding our faith.
Our seminaries became saturated with revisionist
thinking in the 1950s and 1960s, and most of our Episcopal bishops were
trained in these schools. The results have been that many of the actions
and teachings of the church in recent years are a result of such thinking.
The conflict lies in the fact that the revisionist understanding of the
Christian faith is not the norm of the Anglican Communion. The majority of
the Anglican Communion believes in the traditional understanding of the
faith and is opposed to the decisions made at General Convention. Our
denomination has put itself out of step with the majority of the Christian
world and the worldwide Anglican Communion has become painfully divided.
That is why this action is so important.
When I was ordained I took a vow that I believe
the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments to be the Word of God. I
took this vow seriously, and I am preparing a more detailed response to
the actions of Convention that explain why I feel this way. This response
will be available soon. I believe passionately that God set aside his
chosen people to be different from the rest of the world. The Scriptures
calling us to a life of holiness, righteousness, and obedience to the law
of god are too numerous to list. There are things in the Bible that I do
not understand fully, and things that are difficult, but I must put my
trust in God who is loving, forgiving, compassionate, and wants what is
best for me. After all, 'God is God and I am not.'
I do not know what lies ahead or how all of this
will turn out. I do know that God remains God and is in control. The best
thinks we can all do is to draw near to God, pray for the future of His
church and pray for one another.
Finally, Scripture tells us not to judge, for that
is up to God. Remember that we all must look first into ourselves and
repent of our own sinfulness. "For all have sinned and fallen short of the
glory of God." Remember also that God is in control, and that this is His
church. God has blessed All Saints' with wonderful growth and ministry. We
are called to be and make disciples of Christ. Not denominational strife
can deter us from that calling May we continue to uphold the Gospel and
honor our Lord and Savor Jesus Christ.
If any of you would like to speak to me about al
of these matters or are looking for helpful resources, please call and we
will make a time to meet. In the meantime may God bless you and keep you.
Faithfully,
Fr. David
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