That We All May Be One

Bilateral dialogues are ongoing meetings between two partners seeking mutual understanding, finding common ground, and working for unity. In ecumenical conversations, the goal is full communion — and eventually the restoration of the full visible unity of the Church. From March 8-10, clergy and laity from the Roman Catholic and Episcopal churches met at St. Paul’s College in Washington, DC for the 62nd meeting of the Anglican – Roman Catholic Theological Consultation in the USA. This conversatioin has been going on for over 30 years!

We prayed Morning and Evening Prayer together everday, alternating between the Book of Common Prayer and Shorter Christian Prayer (a Catholic daily devotional). Each day we also celebrated the Eucharist. That is both joyful and painful. Because Roman Catholic discipline does not permit Eucharistic sharing until full agreement has been reached on matters of faith, order, and polity, we are unable to receive holy communion together. So, at the Episcopal Eucharist, Roman Catholics come forward for a blessing rather than receiving the sacrament. At Catholic Mass, Episcopalians do the same.

I have often wondered about the wisdom of this. Perhaps we should just pray the Daily Office together and let it go at that. But, over time, I have come to see that participating in “real but imperfect” communion in this way allows us to bear the pain of separation and renews our energy for the long journey forward.

It is excruciating, for example, to have the Roman Catholic celebrant hold up the consecrated Bread and Wine and say (as, of course, he would at any Mass) “Happy are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.” And to know that we are not!  Equally painful for me to hold up those same sacramental signs and say, “The Gifts of God for the People of God” and know that the Roman Catholics will receive those gifts from me.

Yet, it is for that reason that we press on. At this meeting we shared news of our two churches, listened to and discussed two papers on “Mary: Grace and Hope in Christ” published by the Anglican – Roman Catholic International Commission. We reviewed the first draft of a pastoral guide for Spanish-speaking Christians, which attempts to make clear both the similarities and differences between the Roman Catholic and Episcopal churches for new Latino immigrants who may find the terms “catholic” and “episcopal” confusing.

We discussed “Growing Together in Unity and Mission” which will soon be published for use by clergy conferences, seminaries, and local congregations. This international document summarizes, in very accessible fashion, the progress made in over 40 years of Anglican – Roman Catholic dialogue, clearly articulates where we still disagree and new stumbling blocks which have arisen, and yet suggests very specific ways in which the two churches can engage in mission and ministry together even now.    

In the words of this new document,”Because we hope in the bountiful grace of God, we are encouraged to persevere, and to face the difficulties of growing together. We give glory to God, ‘whose power, working in us, can do infinitely more than we can ask or imagine; glory be to him from generation to generation in the Church and in Christ Jesus for ever and ever. (Ephesians 3:20-21)'”

Isaiah 1:2-4, 16-20; Psalm 50:7-15, 22-24; Matthew 23:1-12.

The Episcopal Church has historically valued liturgy and sacraments, titles and ceremonial, spiritual disciplines and ascetical practices. So, a church like ours is particularly vulnerable, and needs to pay attention to, Jesus’ admonitions in today’s Gospel. Along with the scribes and the Pharisees we are warned about placing too much emphasis on honorific titles (like “Father” or “Teacher” or – by implication — “The Rev.” or “The Very Rev” or “The Rt. Rev.” or “The Most Rev!” Do we have “The Partially Reverend?” I can’t remember! It may be the only one we missed!

We are warned about getting too wrought up about our beautiful vestments or the latest designs for our naves and sanctuaries (our version of “the best seats in the synagogues!”). Most of all, we are warned about not practicing what we preach! About laying guilt trips on people when we ourselves may be guilty of the same things!

This is Jesus’ version of the prophetic message from people like Isaiah who used to quote the Lord as saying, “…incense is an abomination to me. New moon and Sabbath and calling of convocation – I cannot endure solemn assemblies with iniquity. Your new moons and your appointed festivals my soul hates; they have become a burden to me…”Ah, sinful nation…who have forsaken the Lord, who have despised the Holy One of Israel, who are utterly estranged!” (Isaiah 1). Hard words for
Israel…and for us.

So, what is the remedy for all this? How do we “judge ourselves” so that we will not “be judged” negatively by our God? Well, Isaiah says – simply – “cease to do evil, learn to do good; seek justice, rescue the oppressed, defend the orphan, plead for the widow.” (Isaiah 1:17). And Jesus says, even more simply, “The greatest among you will be your servant. (For) all who exalt themselves will be humbled, and all who humble themselves will be exalted.” (Matthew 23:11-12) 

How are we doing on all that? Well, we obviously have a long way to go – as a church and as individuals. But I would invite you (if you’ve not already done so) to take a look at the web site as to what the Executive Council of this church did, last weekend, in Portland, Oregon. And what the Anglican Women’s network has been up to all last week!   

While many, across the land, seem preoccupied with re-arranging the deck chairs on our Noah’s ark of a church, Council spent most of its time on the Millennium Development Goals, on passing a balanced budget focused on God’s mission, on the just re-building of the Gulf Coast, on peace with justice in the Middle East. And the Anglican Women spent most of their time “seeking justice, rescuing the oppressed, defending the orphans, and pleading for the widows!”

Now, I don’t want to fall into the trap of “exalting ourselves” lest – according to Jesus – we find ourselves “humbled!” But the members of our Executive Council – elected to represent this whole church between General Conventions – and the network of Anglican women from around the world did indeed spend most of their time trying to find ways to heed Isaiah’s warnings and to follow Jesus’ direction.

And I, for one, want to commend them as some of the “greatest among us…who acted as servants. As ones who sought to humble themselves, rather than be exalted.” For 

“Whoever offers me the sacrifice of thanksgiving honors me; but to those who keep in my way will I show the salvation of God!” (Psalm 50:24) Amen.   

Since the Episcopal Church is “episcopally led” but “synodically governed” (meaning that not only bishops make decisions for this church, but councils comprised of clergy and laity) it was important to see how the Executive Council would react to the recent Primates’ Meeting and the requests made of our church.

Meeting in Portland, Oregon, March 2-4, Council did a number of things: created a Millenium Development Goals “Inspiration Fund;” raised continuing concern about the peace process in the Middle East; urged an end to secret military detention centers and “extraordinary rendition;” passed a balanced budget for 2007; and a number of other things.

Among them was to state that:

“We wish to clearly affirm that our position as a church is to welcome all persons, particularly those perceived to be the least among us. We wish to reaffirm to our lesbian and gay members that they remain a welcome and integral part of the Episcopal Church.”

“Further, we offer our prayerful affirmation to all who struggle with the issues that concern us: those who are deeply concerned about the future of their Church and its place within the wider Communion, and those who are not reconciled to certain actions of General Convention. We wish to reaffirm tht they too remain a welcome and integral part of the Episcopal Church.”

The Executive Council also created a process to allow for the full participation of all Episcopalians in the response to a draft text for a Covenant in the Anglican Communion. We will give this our best effort. But we will do so, as we have always done, with the full participation of all the baptized members of this church — lay persons, bishops, priests, and deacons.

And the context in which we will do all this is as a Church With No Outcasts!  

I was struck by the first line of the Gospel for this Second Sunday of Lent: “(Jesus) went on his way through towns and villages, teaching, and JOURNEYING TOWARD JERUSALEM.” (Luke 13:22). I find myself drawn to geographical references to the Holy Land like this one ever since a sabbatical I took years ago at St. George’s College located in the Palestinian section of east Jerusalem just a short walk from the Damascus gate into the Old City.

Jerusalem is a holy and timeless place. I have been back several times since and always look forward to the experience of “journeying toward Jerusalem” like Jesus. Of course, in our Lord’s case, the journey is rich with symbolism and meaning. In a way, Jesus’ whole life could be described as a “journey toward Jerusalem.” His whole life was moving toward some kind of encounter in Jerusalem.

His radical understanding of God’s inclusive love, his challenging of the religious status quo, his own special sense of vocation as God’s unique revelation — all these would have to bring him into conflict with the religious and political leaders of the day. And that conflict would have to be played out eventually in the capital and “see city” of Palestine — Jerusalem!

The former Dean of St. George’s College and retired Secretary General of the Anglican Communion, John Peterson, shared a theory of his with us during my sabbatical. He believes that one reason Jesus was tried, convicted, and executed by the Roman government with the full consent of the Temple authorities in Jerusalem was because he came from the north of the country, in the Galilee.

There, rabbis were accustomed to dialogue and debate and even arguing with Scripture and with various interpretations. While in Jerusalem, because of the Temple and the sacrificial system, things were seen as being much more “black and white.” If you commit this sin, you offer that sacrifice. Things were very “clear” to the Jerusalem authorities, and they could not handle Jesus’ rabbinical, dialogical way of getting at God’s truth.

These two perspectives — absolute clarity, black and white “easy” answers versus dialogue and continual seeking after the deeper truths of God’s ongoing revelation — frame much of the debate within our own Anglican communion today as well as throughout much of the Christian world. Indeed, these differing perspectives are present in other great religions of the world as well.

How can we engage one another — without rancor or premature closure — as we together seek God’s truth on our “journey toward Jerusalem?”       

I spent Friday evening, along with a small group, at the home of Ed and Patti Browning here in Portland, Oregon, where we are for an Executive Council meeting. The last Presiding Bishop to have served a twelve-year term (and one of the few who actually made it for the whole twelve!), the stress and brutal travel schedule had taken its toll on Ed (and Patti) by the end of their time in 1998.

They both look fabulous these days. Ed keeps his hand in by occasional preaching responsibilties (he’ll preach at the consecration of the new Bishop of Hawaii soon) but mostly they enjoy their view of Mount Hood from their country home and enjoy growing and selling blueberries from their one-acre plot. “We made $3500 last year,” Ed said with remarkable seriousness!

He listened intently to our “takes” on the Episcopal Church’s “current difficulties” within the Anglican Communion and early discussions the Executive Council has had on the matter. At the end he said, “I try to keep up as best I can with what’s going on. It’s a very difficult position we’re in right now. I pray for Katharine and for all of you as you provide leadership together. I hope we can find our way through this. However it all sorts out, I hope we will not sacrifice the vision of a church with “No Outcasts” we have grown into over these last decades.”

Ed Browning ordained me as Bishop of Iowa in 1988. I served a six-year term on Executive Council under his leadership and that of Pam Chinnis. I did a good bit of ecumenical work on his behalf, at the invitation of my predecessor,  David Perry, in the 1990’s. In all that time, sitting at Ed’s feet in over 20 Executive Council meetings, as many House of Bishops meeting, and several General Conventions, I always came away from the experiences more committed to, and excited about, this church and my service to her as a bishop — and more hopeful about the possibilities.

There is something about his gentle, compassionate spirit coupled with his fierce commitment to the poor and marginalized for the sake of Christ that is most compelling to me — and to many, if not most, who know him well. This world, and this church, in my opinion, are holier and more just because of the life and witness of the Brownings.      

In the face of all the divisions we face in the Church, and as Christians, St. Paul reminds us — on this first Sunday of Lent — that “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.” (Romans 10:13).

Who is “everyone?” Well, “if you confess with your lips that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.”

Who does that? Who makes that confession and shares that belief?

Pope Benedict, the Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew; Archbishop Rowan Williams; Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori; Archbishop Peter Akinola; Bishop Gene Robinson; Bishop Robert Duncan; members of Forward in Faith; members of Integrity; lay persons, bishops, priests, deacons from around the world.

So…are we really so divided? Do we not really acknowledge one Lord, one Faith, one Baptism, one God and Father of us all? Shame on us for not standing together around that message. Shame on us for letting secondary issues cloud that witness. Please, God, help us resolve our petty differences…

That We All May Be One!