[Apologetics] Focus on the Family: Episcopal Church Split All But Certain

[Art Kelly]

June 22, 2006

Episcopal Church Split All But Certain
by Pete Winn, associate editor

As the smoke clears from the recent general
convention, traditional Episcopalians reel at the
events of recent days. 

Leaders of the Episcopal Church of the USA have
adopted a resolution urging the church's dioceses not
to appoint bishops whose "manner of life" would "pose
a challenge" to the Anglican Communion. 

But The Rev. Dr. Ephraim Radner, an orthodox
conservative Episcopal theologian, said the statement
approved by the church's general convention in
Columbus, Ohio, is weak and doesn't come close to what
the Worldwide Anglican Communion asked of the American
church — that it "repent" for having consecrated a
homosexual bishop in 2003 and pledge that it won't
elect any more gay bishops. 

"They were also asked to deal with the problem of
same-sex blessings," Radner said, "and they chose not
to deal with that at all, which is a problem." 

The statement may — or may not — keep the larger world
church from distancing itself from the American branch
of Anglicanism. 

"It is not yet clear how far the resolutions passed
this week and today represent the adoption by the
Episcopal Church of all the proposals set out in the
Windsor Report," said The Rev. Dr. Rowan Williams, the
archbishop of Canterbury, titular head of the Anglican
Communion, in a statement. 

"The wider Communion will therefore need to reflect
carefully on the significance of what has been decided
before we respond more fully." 

What is now clear, however, is that the denomination
is heading away from orthodox Christian belief at
light speed, according to The Rev. Todd Wetzel, who
heads Anglicans United, an evangelical group within
the denomination. 

Theological liberals, he said, have been working their
way into top positions in the church for decades. 

"This convention is the clear signal that their
takeover is now complete," Wetzel told CitizenLink. 

Further evidence of that, he added, is that delegates
to the church's general convention also decided they
wouldn't even vote on a resolution saying Jesus Christ
was the "only name by which any person may be saved." 

"The resolution about Jesus was ruled 'out of order'
and 'unnecessary,' " Wetzel said. "Basically, it was
the feeling of the leadership in the church that
because we say the Nicene Creed and the Apostle's
Creed regularly on Sunday mornings that there should
be little doubt about the commitment of the church, at
least in terms of its documents, to Jesus Christ as
its Lord and Savior." 

But Wetzel said the leaders of the church were way too
quick to dismiss the resolution. 

"In fact, the commitment of the Episcopal Church to
Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior is seriously in
question," he said, "and the resolution should have
come to the floor for consideration." 

Even sadder, Wetzel added: "I think, if we are really
honest, it might well have been voted down." 

But in what could be the most shocking event of the
last week, the newly elected presiding bishop of the
church, The Rev. Katharine Jefferts Schori, preached a
sermon at the convention which referred to "Mother
Jesus." 

"Actually, she said, 'Our mother Jesus gives new birth
to a new creation and we are his children,' " Wetzel
noted. 

Mother Jesus? 

"It is fairly typical of her and her theological
thinking," he added, "but it is beyond the pale of
Christianity by any standard that I can think of. It's
certainly not a biblical image." 

Wetzel said what is happening to the Episcopal Church
should serve as a warning to all American churches. 

"The Episcopal Church was once a proud, clear,
mainline and very Christian denomination," he noted.
"But beginning in the '50s we began to slide into
moral ambiguity, watering down the marriage canons;
then came the Pike affair (the theological challenges
made by an Episcopal bishop that bordered on heresy),
and then women's ordination, and then blessing
same-sex unions, and then ordaining practicing
homosexual males and a variety of other things." 

Radner, meanwhile, said this year's general convention
made it very clear where the American Episcopal
bishops stand. 

"It's now very clear that the leadership of the
Episcopal Church is incapable of acting in a way that
will keep this church bound to its Anglican Communion
identity," he said. 

A church split is all that's left, according to both
Radner and Wetzel. The fact is, many people who
faithfully cling to orthodox Christian teachings are
still in the pews. 

What form the split will take is, as yet, unclear. 

"I think it's clear, though, that this isn't just a
question of people sitting around a table and coming
to understand each other better," he said. "We're
beyond that now." 




                           
  ART KELLY, ATM-S
  13524 Brightfield Lane
  Herndon, Virginia 20171-3360
  (703) 904-3763 home
  (703) 396-6956 work
  arthurkelly at yahoo.com
  art.kelly at cox.net
  ArtK135 at Netscape.net
   
   















__________________________________________________
Do You Yahoo!?
Tired of spam?  Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around 
http://mail.yahoo.com