Today's New York Times has an article about what I think is a typical conversation at a typical Sunday morning forum on General Convention and its aftermath. The parish is St. Luke's, Darien, Connecticut. I'd encourage you to read the article -- I think it reflects the conversations taking place in many parishes throughout Rhode Island and the country.Here's an excerpt.
For parishes that identify with the right or the left pole on the issue of homosexuality, allegiances are clear. But the vast majority of parishes are somewhere in the middle, with members on each side of the debate who feel connected to the Episcopal Church and to Anglican tradition, said the Rev. William Sachs, a St. Luke's member who was recently named director of the new Center for Reconciliation and Mission at St. Stephen's Church in Richmond, Va.
"What's really going on in the pews of Episcopal churches is they don't necessarily want to align with either side," he said. "They want to get on with life. They want this thing resolved."
The NY Times photo is the Rev'd David R. Anderson, rector of St. Luke's, Darien, CT.
Frances Hart, a worshiper at St. Edwards Episcopal Church who was mentioned in the linked article, said: "The middle, where I am, seems to be losing members," Ms. Hart said. "Quite frankly, I can't figure out why they can't get back to the middle."
ReplyDeleteI submit that it is likely the “middle” to which she refers is largely uninformed about the issues swirling around our national church and the Anglican Communion.
It would therefore be instructive, and at the same time cut beyond the political rhetoric, to clearly identify the issues and initiate well-reasoned discussion of each topic. The following link is to an essay by Rev. Dr. Leander Harding in which he raises some points related to the 2006 General Convention that deserve thoughtful review and either confirmation or refutation – with theology, facts and logic, not emotion, hearsay and super-heated polemics.
http://leanderharding.classicalanglican.net/?p=208#comments
To those in the “middle” - Do not accept anyone else’s characterization of the facts and events: do the hard work of finding things out for yourself, seek a diversity of viewpoints, then decide for yourself. If all you seek out are “liberal” or “conservative” sources, then you do not enough contrast to make an informed decision.
If one isn’t interested in thoughtful analysis, and cannot respect truly diverse viewpoints, then just skip the link.
Your brother in Christ,
Geof Milner