The fall out from the actions last week at the Episcopal Church USA general assembly have begun. While action from the Worldwide Anglican Church is yet to be known, local congregations are taking action. The Episcopal Church in Plano Texas mentioned in this article has been at odds with the National Leaders for a number of years. Expect other local congregations to follow. After a meeting of conservatives at the end of July don't be surprised if even more congregations break away from ECUSA. One key point in the number of congregations that will break away is where they can go. If the Archbishop of Canterbury grants congregations the privilege of associating with another branch or diocese of the Episcopal Church it could create a flood. The article is linked below.
Christianpost Article
Meditations on Scripture with an emphasis on practical daily living of the Christian life. The goal of every post is to give readers a clear view of God's glory that results in practical action.
Tuesday, June 27, 2006
Sunday, June 25, 2006
The Slippery Slope of Nontraditional Ordination
The Los Angeles Times made a trek into an area often avoided. On the editorial page they published an editorial on the link between those advocating ordaining women into the Clergy and ordaining Gays. What makes this interesting is it affirms an argument I have made for some time in private conversations with friends and relatives, some of whom favor ordaining women. The choice of accommodating one group leads to the the accomodation of the other. Why is this so?
For over 1,950 years the interpretation of scripture on who was qualified to hold the office of Bishop, Pastor, Elder and Deacon was men only. This interpretation was challenged in the 1970s and then discarded by some denominations. The challenge of this interpretation was not based on new biblical evidence from sound scholarship; it was the changes in our society, the emergence of feminism. The Episcopal Church USA, Presbyterian USA and some other denominations chose to take this route: to experiment with scriptural faithfulness.
The results are now complete. To accept ordaining women requires a disregard for the instructions for scripture. To do so will lead to disregarding scripture for other qualifications. We see that as a truth now in the ECUSA, PC USA and the United Methodist Church. Even though the majority of the rank and file laity do not accept gay ordination in these denominations, the leaders and governing bodies have. The LA Times even affirms this. From the editorial:
Yet the election of a female presiding bishop for the Episcopal Church is a reminder that many, though not all, members of that faith have accommodated themselves to what was once seen as a heretical idea, without compromising what they see as the essentials of their faith. That experience can only give heart to advocates of other kinds of inclusiveness in the church's ordained ministry.
The key phrase is: members of that faith have accommodated themselves to what was once seen as a heretical idea. The accommodation of once heretical ideas comes from a disregarding of scripture where scripture speaks. This is how it went from men only to women also, to divorced and remarried several times to now homosexuals ordained as ministers of the gospel of Jesus Christ. It does not end here either. In the near future the desire of individuals with behavior now deemed inappropriate for ministers will be debated and accepted. Why? Because they have no standard to base their "rejection" on. Mark my words. The ordination of polygamists and others with outlandish lifestyles is soon on the horizon for these denominations.
For over 1,950 years the interpretation of scripture on who was qualified to hold the office of Bishop, Pastor, Elder and Deacon was men only. This interpretation was challenged in the 1970s and then discarded by some denominations. The challenge of this interpretation was not based on new biblical evidence from sound scholarship; it was the changes in our society, the emergence of feminism. The Episcopal Church USA, Presbyterian USA and some other denominations chose to take this route: to experiment with scriptural faithfulness.
The results are now complete. To accept ordaining women requires a disregard for the instructions for scripture. To do so will lead to disregarding scripture for other qualifications. We see that as a truth now in the ECUSA, PC USA and the United Methodist Church. Even though the majority of the rank and file laity do not accept gay ordination in these denominations, the leaders and governing bodies have. The LA Times even affirms this. From the editorial:
Yet the election of a female presiding bishop for the Episcopal Church is a reminder that many, though not all, members of that faith have accommodated themselves to what was once seen as a heretical idea, without compromising what they see as the essentials of their faith. That experience can only give heart to advocates of other kinds of inclusiveness in the church's ordained ministry.
The key phrase is: members of that faith have accommodated themselves to what was once seen as a heretical idea. The accommodation of once heretical ideas comes from a disregarding of scripture where scripture speaks. This is how it went from men only to women also, to divorced and remarried several times to now homosexuals ordained as ministers of the gospel of Jesus Christ. It does not end here either. In the near future the desire of individuals with behavior now deemed inappropriate for ministers will be debated and accepted. Why? Because they have no standard to base their "rejection" on. Mark my words. The ordination of polygamists and others with outlandish lifestyles is soon on the horizon for these denominations.