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Rowan Williams,
The Archbishop of Canterbury,
and the Episcopal Church.
The Archbishop of Canterbury, Rowan Williams, has announced his resignation, effective the end of 2012. While he could have continued even beyond the mandatory retirement age of 70, he has been in office for nearly ten years. It's been a tumultuous decade, beginning with the General Convention of the Episcopal Church in 2003 that consented to the election of Gene Robinson as Bishop of New Hampshire. Robinson is the first openly gay bishop in the Anglican Communion and his election and subsequent consecration gave rise to intense controversy. But Williams has had other things to deal with as well. In the Church of England, legislation is nearing final approval that will allow the ordination of women as bishops (the Church of England has been ordaining female priests since 1994). In addition, the English government will probably approve gay marriage, something the Church of England opposes adamantly.
Corrie and I had the privilege of meeting and spending time with Rowan Williams years before he was appointed Archbishop of Canterbury. He is a brilliant theologian, a man of deep faith and intense spirituality, and remarkably humble. Something he said in response to a question at the public lecture while he was at Sewanee has stuck with me and I think helps to explain his style and method as Archbishop. He said something to the effect that he feared going to heaven because there he would encounter and have to be at peace with those Christians with whom he disagreed most vehemently. That statement reflects his ongoing desire to keep the disparate groups in the Church of England, and in the worldwide Anglican Communion, talking with one another and sharing Eucharistic fellowship.
Williams has written many books on topics from early Christianity to Dostoevsky. He was visiting Trinity Church, Wall Street on 9-11 and wrote a powerful reflection on that experience in Writing in the Dust: After September 11.
His resignation adds to the uncertainty surrounding the future of the Anglican Communion. His vision for our worldwide fellowship of tighter control by bishops and central offices seems to be going down to defeat. Whether his successor can find ways to keep the worldwide Anglican Communion together, or indeed even the Church of England, is not at all clear. I suspect that over time what will emerge are more relationships among national churches and between individual dioceses, much like the companion diocese relationship we have established with a diocese in Tanzania about which we will hear more this Sunday. There are many other ways of being in communion than through a hierarchical relationship with a central authority, and we should explore those other ways fully.
For us in the United States, the implications are probably more certain. It's likely that General Convention will reject the Anglican Covenant when it meets this summer. It's also likely that some form of trial usage for same-sex blessings will be approved. Speaking of General Convention, the Madison Episcopal Churches will be having a series of discussions about the major issues facing GC on Tuesdays in May. Look for more information about that, the Anglican Communion, and other matters on my blog: http://gracerector.wordpress.com.
Confirmation Class
begins this Sunday
9 a.m. in the Library
The Sacrament of Confirmation is "a mature public affirmation of faith and commitment to the responsibilities of Baptism" and includes the laying on of hands by the bishop. While everyone who is baptized is a full member of the church, confirmation is a public way in which we acknowledge our commitment to the baptismal vows we made or were made for us when we were baptized. I have been asked by several people about confirmation, and in response to their requests, we will be offering a confirmation class between services, beginning this Sunday (March 25) in the library.
Confirmation will take place during Bishop Miller's visitation of St. Andrew's on May 6. This class is open to anyone who has been baptized and would like to make a deeper commitment to Jesus Christ. If you have been confirmed in a different tradition (Roman Catholic, for example), this class will prepare you for Reception into the Episcopal Church, which will occur on the same date.
Please contact me for more information.
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