Louie Crew, one of the founders of Integrity, and Brian Cox, one of the founders of the American Anglican Council, have issued a joint letter asking for donations to fund the listening process that was called for by the Lambeth Conference in 1998.
1. Oh hai. In teh beginnin Ceiling Cat waz invisible, & he maded the skiez & da earths, but he did not eated it. 2. The earths wus witout shapez & wus dark & scary & stufs, & he rode invisible bike over teh waterz. 3. & Ceiling Cat sayz, i can has light? & light wuz.
Roads were packed, tents were pitched, and crowds wearing their Sunday best were out in droves, as thousands of people gathered in Jamaica to hear the Archbishop of York, John Sentamu, speak to mark the 200th anniversary of the Abolition of the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade. Sentamu is a black African who fled persecution Uganda under the rule of Idi Amin.
What Jesus insisted upon was a certain spirit in one’s conduct and was careful to teach principles only, knowing that when the spirit is right, details take care of themselves. He states, “The letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life.” And so, I ask, what would Jesus think about the spirit, tone and tenor of these breakaway Episcopalians?
After the 2004 elections, religious conservatives were riding high. Newly anointed by pundits as “values voters” — a more flattering label than “religious right” — they claimed credit for propelling George W. Bush to two terms in the White House. Even in wartime, they had managed to fixate the nation on their pet issues: opposition to abortion, gay marriage and stem cell research.
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A truly delightful video interview with Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori on KOCO TV in Oklahoma: watch it here.
For St. Stephen’s Episcopal, Heathsville, their church’s reconstitution started with an alternate coffee hour at a local tire and auto shop. “We were shocked at how many people showed up,” said vestry member Dawn Mahaffey, who stood in the church and addressed the congregation after the December 17 vote to leave the Diocese, telling them, “If there’s anybody who would like to remain Episcopalian, come see me.”
Do you remember the first time you ever addressed a group of people, whether it was your first sermon or your first public speaking class or your first time lay reading? It’s sort of like that, at least as I experienced it. Signing my name to a post about faith created anxious tension. Even though I wasn’t hiding my identity per se, it scared me.
You bishops, gather the faithful with much patience, and with doctrine and exhortation, as ministers of the kingdom everlasting. Hold your assemblies with all decent order, and appoint the places for the brethren with care and gravity.