An Executive Summary of “Reconciliation in Communion”

NB:  The full text of “Reconciliation in Communion” may be found below and online at http://www.covenant-communion.net

• Evangelism is central to the life of the Church’s mission.
• Our Baptismal Covenant calls us to live lives leading to holiness, justice, and peace.
• The rite of Holy Baptism in the 1979 Book of Common Prayer contains no theology unique to the Episcopal Church.
• Baptism before Communion is the best way to be faithful to our Baptismal Covenant as we engage in evangelism, and reflects an ecumenical consensus we cannot ignore.
• The Episcopal Church’s full communion with the See of Canterbury and its full and active participation in the other Instruments of Communion, as well as in the life of the whole Anglican Communion, are essential elements of our identity.
• The actions already taken by General Convention that demonstrate the Episcopal Church’s good faith intention to remain in full communion with the Anglican Communion are to be affirmed.
• Schism undermines the Gospel; what divides the Church is not of Christ.
• Unilateral actions undermine justice, even when such actions are intended to establish it.
• The Anglican Covenant is the only viable path at present for maintaining communion and should be adopted by the Episcopal Church.
• General Convention should not speak with one voice on public policy or other issues when that voice is merely that of the majority, and not reflective of genuine consensus.
• General Convention needs to keep in mind that schism among Anglicans damages the witness of all involved, and thus should focus on building mutual respect leading to reconciliation.
• Youth and young adults are necessary to the growth of the church and should be a top priority over the next Triennium.
• Bishops and other leaders need to pursue constructive and charitable relationships with those who are currently estranged from the Episcopal Church, particularly since we must be mindful of the legacy we will pass on to the next generation.
• Making a commitment to remaining lovingly engaged in worship and service with all members of this church, even amid our conflicts, is an essential feature of what it means to love each other as Christ loves us.

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Reconciliation in Communion:  A Word to the 76th General Convention of the Episcopal Church

An initiative of Covenant
http://www.covenant-communion.net

Holy Week 2009

We, the undersigned laity and clergy of the Episcopal Church, offer the following as a testament to our concern for the life and witness of our church and its membership in the Anglican Communion.  The God-given bonds of affection that unite us to one another are based in the prior unity of love that is God’s own Trinitarian life; for this reason, our corporate life should continually strive to be an icon of this same love.  At the present moment, we are particularly mindful that “God was in Christ, reconciling the world to himself” (II Cor. 5:19), and that because of this we have been given a “ministry of reconciliation” (II Cor. 5:18). It is our prayer that the Holy Spirit will give the Episcopal Church a renewed awareness that at the heart of our common mission lies the ministry of reconciliation, which endeavors “to restore all people to unity with God and each other in Christ” (BCP Catechism, p. 855).

To that end, we

Affirm that evangelism lies at the heart of the Church’s mission, understanding evangelism to subsist in the proclamation of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, which calls all people to repent from sin, to be united in the Body of Christ through baptism, and to be continually discipled in the communion of the Church.

Affirm that the vows and promises of Holy Baptism, articulated in the 1979 Book of Common Prayer, are a call for all Christians to live lives that lead to holiness, justice, and peace for all.

Affirm that the rite of Holy Baptism in our Prayer Book stands in continuity with the received faith of the one holy catholic and apostolic Church of the creeds, and articulates no theology that is unique to the Episcopal Church, but only makes explicit that which is common to all Christians for whom the catholic and apostolic faith as expressed in the creeds is normative.

Affirm that in continuity with our Baptismal Covenant, all who desire to participate in the Lord’s Supper are called first to Baptism, which is the sacrament of new birth through which all are welcomed into the full sacramental life of the Church.

Affirm that the self-understanding and mission of the Episcopal Church have become inextricably anchored to its relationship of full communion with the See of Canterbury, its active participation in the Instruments of Communion, and its formal and informal partnerships throughout the Anglican Communion.  This is reflected in our liturgical patterns, and the continued allocation of funds for the Anglican Communion.

Affirm those actions already taken by General Convention that demonstrate the Episcopal Church’s good faith intention to remain in full communion with all provinces of the Anglican Communion.

Reject the way of schism as undermining the very Gospel it seeks to uphold.  That which divides the Church cannot be said to be of Christ.

Reject the way of unilateralism and self-sufficiency as undermining the very justice it seeks to establish.

Support the emerging Anglican Covenant because it is, at present, the only available concrete means of maintaining the unity and witness of the Anglican Communion.  We encourage its adoption by the Episcopal Church, and further encourage that this adoption be understood by all Anglicans to be an outward and visible sign of our commitment to maintain and deepen the bonds of affection that we already have with our fellow Anglicans.

Encourage the Bishops and Deputies to engage in the work of reconciliation by not making pronouncements on public policy and other issues where there is no theological or moral consensus among Episcopalians, and to focus instead on those things that bring us together, rather than those that drive us apart.

Remind the Bishops and Deputies that a growing number of Episcopalians now live in situations where schism among Anglicans has become an unavoidable daily reality that damages the witness of all involved.  This makes the imperative of mutual respect, which is necessary for reconciliation, all the more urgent.

Encourage the Bishops and Deputies to take with the utmost seriousness the recently released report by the House of Deputies Committee on the State of the Church.  In particular, we request that “youth and young adults” be returned to our list of top priorities for the next Triennium.  We fear that a church that places little emphasis on the young is a church that risks placing little emphasis upon its own future.

Encourage the leadership of the church, particularly the Bishops, to pursue constructive and charitable relationships with those that are currently estranged from the Episcopal Church, remembering that our quarrels and divisions will become burdens borne principally by future generations.

Affirm our commitment to remaining lovingly engaged, in worship and service, with all members of this church, even amid our conflicts.

In closing, we humbly and earnestly ask those within and beyond the provincial borders of the Episcopal Church to seek the theological virtues of faith, hope and love, as we seek to embody the unity we have been given by virtue of our baptism into the Body of Christ.

Very respectfully submitted,

Click here to view the full list of signatories
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We hope you will join us in this initiative by adding your name as a signatory to “Reconciliation and Communion: A Word to the 76th General Convention of the Episcopal Church.”  To add your name, go to your online profile and respond “Yes” to the question, “Add your name to “Reconciliation and Communion?”  Please also update your formal name and parish or cure so that it will appear properly in the list.  Then click “Update.”  Your name will automatically be added as a signatory.

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If you’d like to add your name to this document, please post your name and parish or cure as a reply to this forum topic.  We welcome your comments, as always!

Blessings,
Craig

A great document, but I will admit to having two minor concerns.

First, I agree that the self-understanding and mission of the Episcopal Church has become anchored in it’s relationship with the See of Canterbury, but I do have concern with the use of the word “inextricably” in this particular context.

Second, I agree that we should support the “emerging” Anglican Covenant, but until a consensus is reached as to the contents of this covenant, I feel that encouragement of it’s adoption may be a bit premature. IMHO, it would have been better to encourage GC to support and participate fully in the process of formulating an Anglican Covenant, and to fully commit to it’s eventual adoption. I am not necessarily saying I disagree with what was said in this section, only that I feel it would be helpful to offer clarification beyond the mere use of the word “emerging”.

As I said, my concerns are only minor ones. All in all, I would heartily recommend this to not only GC, but the church in it’s entirety. What better time than Holy Week to reflect on these things.

Mr. Lennel Vincent Anderson, III, MDiv, Wye Parish, Wye Mills, MD

Thank you for this initiative.  I want to take a bit of time to read, mark, and inwardly digest this initiative, but I commend you for this effort - and hope that good dialogue, discussion, and constructive debate/conflict might happen around these items.

Peace and Blessings in Holy Week!

I will post further comments in coming days,

In Christ’s Peace,

Peter M. Carey+
http://santospopsicles.blogspot.com

I have to join the others in thanking Covenant for a refreshing initiative that hopefully will bring our Church back to its foundations. My concerns are cosmetic, but are not deal-breakers for me. The clause “Encourage the Bishops and Deputies to engage in the work of reconciliation by not making pronouncements on public policy and other issues where there is no theological or moral consensus among Episcopalians, and to focus instead on those things that bring us together, rather than those that drive us apart.”, I think is excellent advice as we walk into one of the most potentially explosive conventions in our history.

With that I append my signature

Mr. Ian Chamberlin, Trinity Episcopal Cathedral, Phoenix, AZ

Thank you for your thoughtful piece.  It would be better were it balanced to affirm some reconciling expectations that we might expect to be shown us.  For example:

  We affirm the continued unacceptable, communion straining, unilaterally conceived jurisdictional crossings, urging their immediate cessation;
  We affirm findings of the California Supreme Court that properties are held in trust for TEC and may not legally be expropriated by dissident groups;
  We affirm the immediate return of all properties an restitution of all legal and other expenses incurred by these violations;
  We affirm the ++ABC’s repeated statements that these matters must be settled within TEC;
  We affirm our commitment to a world wide policy that anathematizes violence against gay and lesbian people anywhere in the world.

  It fascinates me that the statement endorses consensus as something other than a super majority. But consensus cuts both ways. What we need to figure out is polity for times when consensus is broken or shifting so that the weak or marginalized are not held captive to a tyranny of the few.
 
  I realize that you are talking to General Convention, but it would be helpful to balance that with an appreciation of the damage done by the various unilateral actions of the dissidents.

Is there any reason to suppose the TEC will give up on its liberal agenda. Personally I have no problem with that: my problem is a very uncertain path to full communion with the Anglican Church.

Michael Strong, parishioner, St Michael and All Angels, Corona del Mar, California
Please add my name as signatory,

Thanks for your suggestions, Michael (Russell).

I think that many Covenant Contributors have sympathy with the thrust of your remarks.  For example, have you read Nathan Jennings’ series on border crossings, “Respecting Boundaries”?  I would love to hear your thoughts on that, for Nathan is laying out a theological case that I infer you would find most compelling.

I appreciate your comments on what you feel is absent.  But could you also engage what is present a bit?  How do you feel about the items we included? 

It is good to have you here!

Peace,
Craig

It seems rather boring to me.  It (generally) endorses things that are rather obviously good, but doesn’t seem to deal with what drives folks in other directions.  For myself I think it might be somewhat more worthwhile to call on folks to be more deeply honest with each other.

Jon

Jonathan:

Websites are replete with “negative” reactions addressing our present problems. Indeed i have offered my full quota!  It is vital that we present a “positive” agenda, framed in language which demonstrates that we have something to affirm rather than merely offering a list of objections.

IMHO, it would have been better to encourage GC to support and participate fully in the process of formulating an Anglican Covenant, and to fully commit to it’s eventual adoption.

I am sure this is right. Frankly I am not wild about the conservative/liberal split. I would prefer us to focus on:

1. universal consensus before we change the BCP, excluding translations, or the Sacraments.
2. a method for congregations who leave TEC to be able to pay FMV for the Church property
3. a guarantee by TEC that if the TEC/Anglican communion becomes more strained, it takes steps to offer each congregation a local church in communion. Herein lies the problem, there does not appear to be any way of maintaining discipline within TEC. All I can think of is requiring Bishops taking some sort of fealty oath

It seems to me that we need concrete statements rather than a wish list of pious hopes.

Cheers Michael Strong

Michael Strong,

I appreciate your comments, but of course, pious hope is all that enables some of us to consider the future of TEC at all (or mainline protestantism more generally).

The thinking in drafting this statement was, as Fr. Tony mentioned above, a desire to present a series of positive statements and affirmations out front where they could inspire conversation and garner support.  This is not an entire platform.  For one, our conversation already seems to be proving that no committee of authors could anticipate the good ideas generated by our readers.  Where the points above lack specificity, the hope is to follow with more substantial pieces to deal with these issues in an appropriate way.  I would think that many of the issues you raise would be perfect candidates for such essays.  It would be helpful for us as we consider these things to have you (and others) expand on why you believe, for instance, awaiting universal consensus before pursuing prayerbook revision is a good thing.  I believe I understand why you’d think this is a good idea (and we probably agree), but as we move ahead, we are hoping that more flesh attaches to these bones in the form of reflections from many episcopalians, whether they are affiliated directly with Covenant or not.

Several have contacted us to ask if they can add their names as signatories to this initiative.  We are gratified by this response and have tried to make it as simple as possible to add your names along side those of the original authors.

We hope you will join us in this initiative by adding your name as a signatory to “Reconciliation and Communion: A Word to the 76th General Convention of the Episcopal Church.”  To add your name, go to your online profile and respond “Yes” to the question, “Add your name to “Reconciliation and Communion?”  Please also update your formal name and parish or cure so that it will appear properly in the list.  Then click “Update.”  Your name will automatically be added as a signatory.

Affirm that evangelism lies at the heart of the Church’s mission, understanding evangelism to subsist in the proclamation of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, which calls all people to repent from sin, to be united in the Body of Christ through baptism, and to be continually discipled in the communion of the Church.

Given the general purpose of the statement, this might be the best you can do about evangelism. You do use the “s” word, and that will get some pushback!

But I can’t help but think that the definition of Gospel that lies behind this misses the mark slightly. It might be the anthropocentric thrust - you highlight our (good and right) response. I might rather have had a positive statement of what the Gospel, that is, God in Christ, actually is and does for us. For example, Bp Wright’s emphasis on the Gospel as the proclamation of Jesus’ lordship. And of course, the message that God has been working in Christ to reconcile the whole world to himself (this is in your prologue, but I’d like it intentionally tied to evangelism).

Charlie,
I quite agree with your concern and had the same one myself.  But the text really is not seeking to define the Gospel so much as to affirm the priority of evangelism over and against other conceptions of what our mission is that lead us to secular agendas if we aren’t careful.

We will be publishing essays to explicate each of these points, so I encourage you to submit your own development of this point if you’d like to help us flesh it out.