Posted on 03/11/2005 5:26:46 PM PST by sionnsar
While I have spent my whole life in God’s Church, I have not spent my whole life as an Episcopalian, having made this choice seventeen years ago. Some people are, as they say, “cradle born” Episcopalians (my children would be in this category though the category is a misnomer for, indeed, no one is “cradle born” into a denomination. We are cradle born sinful humans, become baptized into God’s Holy Church and then, later in life, become confirmed in a denomination), but often take for granted the gift they have inherited. While I know many life-long Episcopalians who are also deeply committed Christians, I unfortunately know many who have the Episcopal Church as their heritage, but really know little about its historic roots and have little commitment to its theological foundation. For these, engagement in the life of the Episcopal Church has more to do with family tradition than with personal commitment. It’s a bit like my Jewish friend, Dale, who lives in New York. Dale is very proud to tell you he is a Jew, though he really knows less about the Jewish faith than I do, and has no depth of commitment to Judaism as a religion. Judaism is his ethnic heritage but has no real impact on how he lives his daily life. For me, the Episcopal (Anglican) tradition is not a matter of heritage but of personal faith commitment.
I struggled in prayer and study for five long years before choosing the Episcopal Church, knowing that that choice would have life-long consequences for me and my children. I chose the Episcopal Church basically because, as a Methodist, I read too much of John Wesley (Wesley was the founder of Methodism, and an Anglican priest). Wesley’s commitment to the Prayer Book, to daily Eucharist, and to the historic roots of Anglicanism was an inspiration to me. I didn’t want any longer to be a part of an American denomination which had no commitment to the historic Church, and no clear standard for its liturgy and theology. I became an Episcopalian, then, for three reasons: 1) I wanted a church that was committed to the historic Christian faith. Anglicanism, more than any other “Protestant” tradition, seemed rooted in the classical Biblical tradition of the ancient church. Here was a Protestant manifestation of the Church which had not cut itself off from its Catholic roots. Here was a church that was not some fly-bynight American denomination, but an honorable tradition thoroughly established in the ancient faith. 2) I wanted a church with Eucharist at the center. I believe, as I think the New Testament teaches, that Holy Eucharist is the normal means of God’s grace. While God can make His grace available in many ways,we know that Scripture promises that in the breaking of the bread He not only reveals Himself to us, but feeds us spiritually with His grace. Clearly, this Holy Meal was the centerpiece of early Christian worship for this very reason, and I believe was intended by God to be the foundation of Christian community. 3) I wanted a church that had a liturgical standard, The Book Of Common Prayer, with a clear biblical basis (more than 70% of the Prayer Book comes directly from Scripture), and roots in the practices of the early Christian Church. A liturgical standard not only binds a large body of people together in “common prayer,” but gives a foundation and sets limits for what is and is not acceptable in worship and theology.These are the basic foundation stones that led me to the Episcopal Church.
It was a long process of study and prayer for me to become an Episcopalian, and an equally long process from membership to priesthood. Because the Methodist Church was not feeding me spiritually, I had been going back and forth between the two churches for several years. I would attend the early service at the Episcopal Church, then dash over to the Methodist Church just in time to vest and preside at their 9:00 service. In time I knew I could no longer lead this dual life, and I made the decision to leave Methodism. I visited an Episcopal bishop who was very kind but told me that because the Episcopal Church didn’t know me, he could not assure me that I would ever be a priest, but if I wanted to become a member of the Episcopal Church he would be happy to have me. (In other words, give up your job as a Methodist minister, become an Episcopalian and we’ll look you over for a while and decide if we’ll let you in the process for priesthood. Even though I had already received degrees from Vanderbilt- a Methodist school- and Berkeley Divinity at Yale University- an Episcopal school- my process would have to be just like someone straight out of college.) So, I surrendered orders in the Methodist Church (i.e., I had to be “honorably discharged” as a clergyman), costing me a number ofMethodist clergy friends who felt I was deserting them (I was serving in the largest Methodist Church in South Carolina and they assumed that I felt that this wasn’t good enough). I went through a catechumenal process for membership in an Episcopal Church and was confirmed. With confirmation I lost not only a job and income, but insurance, pension, and a place to live (we had lived in a Methodist parsonage). We were left as a couple with a newborn baby, no income, no housing, but a clear faith that God had led us into this church. I searched for several weeks for a secular job while our small savings account dwindled. We found a little house to rent, but could not get insurance coverage. In these first weeks we felt greatly tested because our car had a flat tire which we couldn’t afford to repair, and our oil tank ran out of oil leaving us sleeping with our newborn in front of the fireplace in the living room. Finally, the parish I had joined fired their Director of Christian Education and offered me the job. I took the job and found myself responsible for Adult Education, Children’s Education, Youth Ministry, and Acolyte Training in a parish of 3800 members for a salary of $1,200. per month (plus insurance)! I then began a process for Holy Orders and two years later was ordained an Episcopal priest.
I tell you this long story to have you know that being an Episcopalian is not something I have ever taken for granted because it came for me at great sacrifice, and only after years of study and prayer. I have worked hard to be a priest in this church, and to raise my children in it, which is why I am now so deeply distraught over the many changes that have begun to reshape the Episcopal Church. The changes that concern me have to do with so much more than homosexuality. Major theological shifts have taken place in the American Episcopal Church which have deeply undermined its place in the larger Anglican Communion. The classic theological rootedness which drew me to the Episcopal Church has all but been replaced at the national level by a trendy American theology rooted in cultural experience rather than historic faith. The commitment to Eucharist and the liturgical standard of the Prayer Book seem farcical as many parishes clearly disregard the liturgy altogether, and have so learned to read the creeds and Eucharistic rites from a metaphorical perspective that they have no real meaning. As a result I find myself in ongoing turmoil.
On the one hand, I feel I chose this church, love this church, and want to fight for it; yet, on the other hand, I feel this church has abandoned the very foundation of Christian faith and its own heritage and has no hope for redemption. So what do I do? Personally, I don’t know what to do, so I am waiting for God. I pray, read about and study the theological issues that are before us, and pay clear attention to what is happening politically at the international level. And I wait to see what God will do with His Church.
Since part of this faithful waiting is listening, your vestry and I have created a process for listening that will, over the next six months, involve education, conversation, and prayer.
• We have already provided a summary of the Windsor Report (Fr. Petty created a written summary and I offered a verbal analysis, both of which are available in written or recorded form in the parish office). • In this issue of Proclamation! the clergy and some members of the vestry have written articles expressing their concerns or clarifying the issues that are before us.
• Before the end of the month we will make a packet of articles available written by scholars and priests throughout the American Church and the larger Anglican Communion that represent a clear picture of the theological shift that is taking place in our church. • We will invite orthodox priests from the larger Episcopal Church into our pulpit to share their perspectives and to encourage us with the Gospel. • We will host a conference in the winter for our region which will bring significant voices from the larger Anglican Communion together to shed light on the theological issues that are before us and answer questions you may have. • We will create a series of “cottage meetings” hosted by me and by each member of the vestry to be held in vestry homes and here in the parish house to hear what you are thinking and feeling about the life of this parish and the larger Episcopal Church.
In many ways this is a very exciting time in that God has given us the opportunity with this crisis to dig down and work through the commitments of our faith, and to stand together more than we ever have before for the truth entrusted to us.
–The Rev. Eric Dudley is rector, Saint John’s, Tallahassee, Florida
Traditional Anglican ping, continued in memory of its founder Arlin Adams. It looks like he's connected to the ACN et al, but... "eco-phones"?
I thought he would just be the head of the Church of England and though derived from, the Episcopal Church does not really answer to the Archbishop of Cantebury except for in a synergistic way........or am I wrong???????
Church of England was derived from the Episcopal Church? And where did the Epsicopal church begin? I don't know?!
well my syntax was wrong......i meant that though derived from the Church of England, I didn't think the Episcopal Church answers to the Church of England like the Catholics here answer to the Pope.......just always thought the two churches were technically not under the same authority except for historical/ceremonial reasons.....
The American branch of the Episcopalian church definately doesn't! Appointing a Gay Bishop - who lives in a church house with his lover! Whose idea was that?!
"Why I am an Episcopalian and Why that Frightens Me"
A title like that reminds me why I love Anglicans. :^D
Where do we begin....
I guess Charles and Camilla could simply give a large, undisclosed amount of money to the church in exchange for an "annulment" of their previous marriages from the bishop.
....... Henry the VIII pushed through legislation removing the Bishop of Rome's authority in England (a process that had begun in 1214) in order to ensure the succession to the throne. In order to avoid another civil war upon his death (remember, Henry's father, Henry VII, had ended the the Wars of the Roses), Henry needed an heir; in order to have an heir, Henry needed a wife who could provide him one; in order to get such a wife, he needed an annulment from his current one on the grounds that she could not provide an heir (usually granted by the Bishop of Rome after payment of a large sum of money). The problem was that Catherine's nephew, Emperor Charles V, had captured Rome and thrown Clement VII in jail. In another words, the politics of continental Europe were preventing England from establishing a stable succession.
Here we have the occupant of the Chair of St Peter, St Clement, Leo the Great, Gregory the Great, and Innocent III jailed by a member of his own flock. Who could blame Henry for wanting to get away from that mess?
....... Everytime I see the seasonal missilettte (sp?) being used in Roman Catholic churches, I remember that the man who championed the concept of printing the service and Scriptures in the vernacular language books so that the whole congregation could follow along and participate. That man was Archbishop Thomas Cranmer of Canterbury, who was burned at the stake for his reform by the Inquisition.
Not Anglican bashing, but thats what I learned in school.
and the way the American branch of the Anglican church is going...
"While I have spent my whole life in God’s Church, I have not spent my whole life as an Episcopalian, having made this choice seventeen years ago."
What the @#$&*! for? They have been committed to abortion on demand since 1975.
Okay...where do I start. The Episcopal church was founded in the late 1700's in America. It is part of the Anglican communion of churches. The Church of England is a separate church of that communion. There are Anglican churches in many countries and all are independent. They are not part of nor governed by the Church of England. The doctrinal head of the Anglican church is the Archbishop of Canterbury; a first among equals. But decisions are all arrived at by consensus.
As to your historical facts; Henry did not behead five wives. He beheaded two, divorced two; one died of natural causes, and one out-lived him. And his divorce from Katherine was part of a struggle power with Rome that had gone on for some time.
It sounds very much like Anglican bashing and I've seen you make the comment before.
Your parents are Episcopalian and you don't know much about the church?
We were semiannual Christians, Christmas Easter DONE. You need to have a church for funerals and such. They were somewhat involved when I was little, and then it became less of a priority-
Then you weren't taught its history? You should really be more careful about making statements such as post #4 unless you know what you're talking about.
But that's what I learned- it's in my history textbook. Henry the 8th started the Church-
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