A Change Coming for TEC?

 

Dr. Alice C. Linsley

It can be argued that the crisis of authority in the Anglican world is evident in the shift from the biblical understanding of divinely appointed clergy to a corporate model of business. Divine appointment took the form of a calling on the man's life to serve God in the Church. The "call" was to be confirmed by his home congregation, discerned by a diocesan committee, and tested through seminary training, liturgical studies, prayer, the moral quality of the candidate, and Ember Day communications with his bishop. 

The shift began well before the 77th General Convention of the Episcopal Church decision to restructure in July 2012. It began at the peak of the Episcopal Church's cultural influence in the 1950s. Episcopal Church bishops perceived of their body as an entity resembling the "Established Church" of the USA. Bishop Paul Hewitt notes in his book The Day-spring from on High that "The Episcopal Church was a de-facto state church until the 1960s." (p. 29)

The bishops worked hard to build a perception of prestige, and they took measures to secure it. The college of bishops resembled an elite club in which the members were expected to guard the club's reputation. 

This is one reason Bishop James Pike was never held accountable for his apostasy. Pike wrote that the Church was no longer relevant in an essay published in Look magazine in December 1960. He was a growing embarrassment to the bishops who were glad to see him depart the Episcopal Church in April 1969. His parting shot was to describe the Episcopal Church "a sick - even dying- institution."

As the Episcopal Church lost ground to the counter-cultural movements of the 1960s and 1970s, it sought to create and deliver a revision of itself that would capture the public's attention. This required a business model for strategic decision-making and business operations. The new model sought to make the headlines by claiming to be the first at every turn. The Episcopal Church would be the first church to have women priests. It would be the first to consecrate a woman bishop. (And even better if that first female bishop be an African American!) The Episcopal Church would be the first to have a female Archbishop in Katharine J. Schori. In 1977, Bishop Paul Moore (NY) ordained the lesbian Ellen Marie Barrett to the priesthood. She served as Integrity's first co-president along with the late gay activist Louie Crew. Not surprisingly, the Episcopal Church was the first to elevate a partnered homosexual to the episcopacy. All these made for dramatic, attention-getting headlines.

The trend-setting bishops launched innovation after innovation. The theological leanings of the trendy Episcopal Church included Process Theology, Liberation Theology, and Feminist Theology.

There would be a new prayer book. From the outset, it was recognized as a departure from all former Anglican Books of Common Prayer. The 1979 prayer book presents what Urban T. Holmes termed a "differentiated" theology. An Episcopal priest and theologian, Holmes understood that the liturgical revisions of the 1970s drew more on Process Theology and modern philosophy than on Scripture, Tradition, and the Church Fathers. In reference to the 1979 Prayer Book, he wrote, "It is evident that Episcopalians as a whole are not clear about what has happened. The renewal movement in the 1970s, apart from the liturgical renewal, often reflects a nostalgia for a classical theology which many theologians know has not been viable for almost 200 years. The 1979 Book of Common Prayer is a product of a corporate, differentiated theological mind, which is not totally congruent with many of the inherited formularies of the last few centuries. This reality must soon ‘come home to roost’ in one way or another."

In the final analysis, spiritual pride and ambition turned a Christian body into a prime marketing agency for all things culturally relevant. The veneer of Christianity has worn thin over the past decade, exposing a church that is, as Pike predicted, a "dying institution." 

Presiding Bishop Michael Curry's suggestion is to make The Episcopal Church the Anglican version of the 1960s Jesus Movement. He said, "Our work is actually the work of participating in the Jesus movement, which seeks to realize God's dream and seeks to accomplish God's mission in this world." 

When a body has exhausted all the new relevancies, it will try to resurrect some of the old ones.

Yet there are stirrings that suggest a change is coming. There is hope! Pray that the bishops repent of their pride and ambition. Pray that they stop promoting a false gospel that "love" covers a multitude of sins. Pray that the Holy Spirit will convict, renew, heal, and direct a new generation of faithful Episcopalians who are done with false Utopian promises.

Related reading: The Tragedy of James Pike; Changing the Church by Stealth; Anglicans and Process Theology; David W. Virtue, The Seduction of the Episcopal Church (2019); Dropping the Word "Church"

Dropping the Word "Church"

Dr. Alice C. Linsley

The First Amendment of the US Constitution prevents the government from creating or establishing a religion, and thereby guarantees religious freedom to all US citizens. The First Amendment protects the right of the individual to worship or to not worship. However, the separation of church from state does not require a separation of religious conversation, signs, signals or language from politics.

On the other hand, diverse religions have been protected by the state in many countries. Examples of state religions include The Church of England, Lutheranism in the Scandinavian countries, Roman Catholicism in Italy and Spain, Judaism in Israel, Islam in Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Iran, and Buddhism in Thailand.

In the 16th century, Catholic and Reformed churches vied for state sponsorship. The principle Cuius regio, eius religio (state follows the ruler's religion) somewhat ameliorated the unrest, but rulers often put political interests above religious convictions. It was written that "an Established Church is only a political machine." (Mark Twain, A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court, Chapter XVIII)

At best, the mutual support of Church and State can help to preserve a religious tradition. At worst, it can become tyrannical and exclusionary. This happens when the leaders of both Church and State do not uphold Church dogma or retain the meaning of words. Some suspect that the recent study called "New Things: A theological investigation into the work of starting new churches across 11 dioceses in the Church of England" reflects this condition. The study was conducted by the Centre for Church Planting Theology and Research in Durham. 

The Reverend Dr. Will Foulger is the main author of the report. He has been vicar at St Nicholas' Church in Durham since September 2023. His parish website identifies the church simply as "St Nic's Durham." Prior to September 2023, Foulger taught theology and mission in Durham, and gained experience in church planting in Nottingham.

According to the study, words like "community" and "congregation" were preferred over the word "church." Even though more than 900 new C of E congregations were established by 11 dioceses in the past 10 years, none of them used the word “church plant” or “church.”

According to Dr Foulger, the findings of the new report may suggest language change is “forcing us to redefine what we think a church is in the Church of England.”

Dr. Giles Fraser, vicar of St. Anne's in Kew, expressed to the Telegraph that the sudden drop of the term "church" reflects "a misplaced desire to be relevant and modern-sounding."

A Tempest in a Teapot?

Ultimately, it is certain that the Church of England will never change its name. It will never be called the "Community of England" or the "Congregation of England" because those designations are meaningless. 

Would the disestablishment of the Church halt the trend of seeking to be culturally relevant? If the USA experiment is a measure, the answer must be no. In the USA, there is no shortage of nontraditional names for Christian congregations.

Speaking of his Messianic Christian congregation, Ben Frostad, explains, "You may have noticed that I avoid using the word 'church' to describe the corporate body of believers in Messiah."

In New Hampshire, an example involves two congregations simply called "Converge." One is located in Lebanon and the other in New London.

"Gather Asheville" doesn't use the word "church" when talking about themselves, said the lead pastor, Rev. John Redwine.

Fr David Epps has observed, "in order to market the church, the very word, 'church' is often dropped altogether." Among the new nomenclatures are words such as fellowship, world outreach center, chapel, ministry, and tabernacle.

In a time when the indeterminate label "woke" is often applied to studies, proposals, theories, religious trends and politics, it is wise to investigate matters for oneself. Having done so, I conclude that the uproar over the "New Things" study will fade as quickly as the next uproar appears.