the three legged stool
The clergy of our diocese gathered on Thursday with our bishop for our winter clergy day. Our task was to reflect on and discuss the Windsor Report--the response of a committee gathered together by the Archbishop of Canterbury after the election and consecration of Gene Robinson as bishop of New Hampshire.

The first part of the report is wonderful--it talks about the place of scripture in the Anglican Communion, talks about the concept of subsidiarity (things should be decided at the lowest possible level)and the idea of adiaphora--the realization that some things are not as important as others.

What is a bit distressing about the report is the way it uses these concepts. Anglicanism has always prided itself on using what has been called the "three-legged stool" as a means for making decisions. The three legs are Scripture, tradition and reason. As anyone who has tried to place a coffee cup on a wobbly table can tell you, that idea only works well when the three legs are in balance. They don't all have to be exactly the same length, but they need to be close.

What seems to have happened in the Windsor report and also within some of the more conservative voices in the Anglican Communion is that our three-legged stool is out of balance. Scripture has become more important that the other two legs, and not only that, the bishop is seen as the primary interpreter of scripture and the primates (the presiding bishops or archbishops of each area of the church) are seen as having even more power in the interpretation of scripture.

All of this is even more troubling to me in light of the second part of the report. In an attempt to codify things and respond to various concerns and pressure, the report sets out several groups as "instruments of union." These instruments of union are meant to be ways for Anglican Communion as a whole to grapple with which are of concern. I don't have problems with idea of being able to respond, but I do have some problems with the means chosen.

Of the 400 or so people involved as delegates to various groups cited, only the Anglican Consultative Council has members other than bishops and archbishops. The ACC has one bishop, one priest or deacon and one lay person from each of the 37 provinces of the Anglican Communion.

The polity of the Episcopal Church is quite different from that of most other churches in the Anglican Communion. We are a very democratic church. Our church structures are quite similar to the legislative bodies in the US--no surprise if you know that Bishop White, the second bishop consecrated for the USA, had served as chaplain to the constitutional convention in the 1780's. Our bishops are elected, rather than appointed. The final say in matters of concern to the Episcopal Church as a whole is decided by General Convention, rather than the Presiding Bishop or the house of bishops. So for us to delegate to our Presiding bishop the ability to speak as the sole voice of the Episcopal Church whether in matters of scriptural interpretation, the ordination of gay and lesbian clergy, or anything else is foreign to us.

So the question for us is: How do we stay together? What's at stake? In New England we are influenced by congregationalism--we tend to go our own way, with a nod to our diocese. We rarely think in terms of the Anglican Communion as a whole.

How important is it to you to form your own interpretation of scripture?

Are we willing to delegate the interpretation of Scripture to our bishop?

Are we willing to let the presiding bishop speak for the Episcopal Church?

What effect would that have on your day to day experience of church?

What in scripture is adiaphora--less important, not as central as the "core message"? Can you define the core message in a few sentences?

If you are interested in joining in the conversation,
click on the comment box. I'll get an email notifying me, and I'll post your comments to the site.

--Meredyth+

groundwork
There is a great need for meaning, hope and spiritual experience in our society. Everything from aromatherapy to techno to weightlifting is touted as a spiritual path. I've had any number of conversations with people who describe themselves as "spiritual but not religious" (including some people who recently came to me to ask me to do a funeral for their mother). They are looking for a way to connect with God or their higher power or the source of the universe, but they're not always sure how to do it.

When I run across these folks who are searching, I often wonder why they're not part of a church. Many of the values they are looking for (community, a spiritual life, folks with common values, and a sense that life is bigger than just getting by) can be found in church communities. Not all these things can be found in every community, and certainly all churches aren't equally welcoming, but it seems to me that churches are a good place to start.

Part of the problem, at least in the Episcopal church, is that we're not very good at tooting our own horn. We put up signs saying "The Episcopal Church Welcomes You," and figure that interested people will beat a path to our door. We need to do more than put up signs--we need to learn how to tell our story and invite people into relationship with us.

This coming summer and fall (2005), the national church will be running a major media campaign. During Lent 2005 we are invited to take a look at the transforming stories of God's love found in the Lenten gospels. When we are used to connecting the gospel stories with our own stories, we'll be better equipped to welcome newcomers into our midst. We'll have stories to tell about what has changed us, helped us and challenged us when people wonder what we find here at Christ Church.

During the course of Lent, I'll be reflecting on some of these themes on these pages. The national church has offered some wonderful materials and good questions to ask ourselves as we move forward.

You can connect to these blogs through our parish website. If you are interested in joining the conversation, and posting a response to what I've written, you'll need to let me know your email address, so we can add you to the list of "authors." While this posting is open, if you would like to read the comments of others, you'll need to register for that as well. This is an experiment in a new form of communication/adult education for the parish.

I'll be adding to this blog at least twice a week, sometimes talking about the scriptures for the week, sometimes looking at a topic on evangelism or mission, and sometimes sharing a poem or other quotation that speaks to me. Let me know if there is something you'd like to see addressed, or if you would like to join the broader conversation.

--Meredyth+

Iona Prayer

Because the world is beautiful,
And beauty is a tender thing.
And we are stewards of creation,
We need you, God.
We need you, God.

Because Human knowledge seems endless,
And we do not know what we do not know,
We need you, God.
We need you, God.

Because we cannot live without you
And are free to go against you,
And could worship our wisdom alone,
We need you, God.
We need you, God.

Because you came among us,
And sat beside us,
And healed our pain and let us wound you,
And loved us to the end,
And triumphed over all our hatred,
We need you, God.
We need you, God.
Amen.