THE GRAPEVINE
THE GRAPEVINEMeeting at the church center in early December, the presidents and vice presidents of the nine provinces of the Episcopal Church reflected on the diversity of their provinces and took a hard look at the future.
The provinces of the Episcopal Church are incredibly diverse. Some are geographically compact. Some are enormous. Some have only a few dioceses. Some have many. Some are relatively homogeneous. Some have diverse populations. Some have paid staff. Some have no staff at all. Budgets range from $10,000 to well over $100,000. Some provinces offer programs. Some simply gather for information sharing and fellowship. Moreover, the provinces are diverse in their understanding of the role of the provinces. Some see the provinces as a viable middle level structure that will provide a platform for de-centralizing the program of the Episcopal Church. Some see the role of the provinces as facilitating communication and encouraging networking among the dioceses. Some see the province as superfluous and fulfilling no necessary function in this day of electronic communication.
There was considerable agreement, however, on how the province has developed over the past decade and its chief functions in the current environment. The provinces' primary functions are to facilitate communication and build community among the dioceses of the province, to empower, enable and support the development of ministry, and to fulfill the canonical, legislative responsibilities given to the provinces. Many now look to the provinces to provide leadership in the ministries of the church.
On the second day of the meeting, the presidents and vice presidents took a hard look at the future. With such diversity, there was little agreement about the best strategy for the work of the provinces. Some provinces were encouraged by the developments in communication and networking and hoped to find ways to move toward a paid coordinator or executive. Several were concerned with funding. One province saw little role for the province. There was extensive conversation and a healthy exchange of views.
At the 1995 meeting of the presidents and vice presidents, those gathered proposed a resolution asking the national church to split the cost with the provinces of hiring a half-time executive for each province. That resolution was reconsidered. Solid support remained and no changes were made. Those who felt strongly about the resolution were encouraged to contact their representatives on Executive Council. We are in favor of the resolution seeking support for staff. Province II works hard on communication and coordination of the program networks. The active networks in the province include: Asiamerica ministries; Brotherhood of St. Andrew; Christian education; diocesan ecumenical officers; evangelism; higher education; ministry development; justice, peace, and the environment; and youth ministries. Work continues to activate other networks in the province.
Here in Province II, preparations are going forward for our annual synod in May. We'll meet May 1-3 as the guests of the Diocese of Long Island at the Crowne Plaza at LaGuardia Airport. This will be the pre-General Convention meeting, and we will use our time helping our deputies get ready. The Rev. Canon Don Nickerson, Secretary of General Convention, will help us get oriented to the convention. Treasurer Stephen Duggan will present the budget and proposals for changes in the assessment formula. Diane Porter, executive for program, will talk about the program proposals. Bishop Walter Dennis (NY) will preview the leading issues before the convention. There will also be workshops to allow for in-depth study of various issues including the Lutheran-Episcopal Concordat and the revision of Title IV, ecclesiastical discipline.
Life in the province continues to be vital and exciting. Province II looks forward to an increasing role in the life of the church.
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In the summer of 1997 the General Convention of the Episcopal Church and the Churchwide Assembly of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America will be asked to act on a bold new proposal for ecumenical life and mission between our two churches. The two churches will be asked to enter into a Concordat of Agreement. If it is adopted, the two churches will begin a very exciting partnership in life and mission.
The Concordat proposal is the end product of about 30 years of dialogue and study between our churches. These exchanges, called Lutheran-Episcopal Dialogues (LED) I, II, and III, evaluated the doctrine each church held and concluded they were essentially the same, though reflecting the accents of our different histories. Our tradition stems from the ancient Christianity of the British Isles and the Anglican Communion, while theirs stems from the Christian tradition found in Germany and the Baltic countries.
Also studied were our church polities and the ways in which we continued in the "apostles' teaching and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in the prayers," as we put it in the Baptismal Covenant. For Anglicans, apostolicity is conveyed through the apostles' teaching contained in the Bible, the Creeds, and the interpretation of those in the early ecumenical councils of the church. This continuity of written doctrine is complemented by the living ministry of bishops in succession back to the time of the apostles, whose on-going teaching role would help apply apostolic teaching to contemporary life. Martin Luther, the great reformer and father of the Lutheran tradition, favored bishops provided they served the Gospel and apostolic teaching. While the succession of bishops was continued in the Baltic Lutheran churches, early German Lutherans experienced bishops as opposed to the Gospel and therefore, according to one Lutheran theologian , bishops were temporarily set aside until an episcopate oriented to apostolic teaching could be embraced again. American Lutherans, many of whose leaders came from Germany, have followed the German model.
The issue of the historic episcopate has been the most difficult one in our discussions with the Lutherans. A foundation stone of all twentieth century ecumenical dialogue is the Chicago-Lambeth Quadrilateral* of 1886 and 1888. This statement, found on pages 876-878 of the Prayer Book, sets forth four fundamentals of church life and being: the Holy Scriptures, the Creeds, the Sacraments, and the historic episcopate form of ordained ministry. Indeed, we have used the phrase "apostolic succession" to refer especially to the historic episcopate (though apostolic teaching has always been an essential component of that.) Moreover, the vast majority of Christians around the world live in churches with the historic episcopate ( Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, Old Catholic, Anglican, some Lutherans, etc.) and more and more scholars of non-episcopal churches see it as the normative pattern of ordained ministry.
In the proposed Concordat, the Episcopal Church of the USA and the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America would mutually recognize the authenticity of each other's ordained ministry and establish a state of intercommunion between us. Moreover, the Augsburg Confession, the official Lutheran statement of faith, will be taught in Episcopal seminaries and the Prayer Book will be taught in Lutheran seminaries along with the regular courses of study.
While Lutheran churches in Sweden and other Scandinavian countries have retained the historic episcopate, the American Lutheran bodies have not. The terms of the Concordat specify that both Episcopal and Lutheran bishops will lay hands on each new bishop consecrated in either church. Within a generation each church will share in each other's succession and in the succession of the universal church. The terms also specify that the threefold orders of deacon, priest, and bishop will be perpetuated in each church. In light of this action, the Episcopal Church would be able to accept ELCA clergy as the equivalent of our own.
The Concordat is not a merger. The Episcopal Church will still be the Episcopal Church and the Evangelical Lutheran Church will still be that church. But our ordained ministries will be unified so that Lutheran and Episcopal clergy may serve in each other's churches and vast new fields of cooperative ministry will be opened up. The two churches will be partner (not merged) churches able to work together in ministry and mission. Some examples of shared ministry might be campus ministry, foreign missions, work in new communities, clusters of parishes including Episcopal and Lutheran parishes, the use of each other's resources for teaching and parish development, and the strength of bearing common witness to Jesus Christ in the world.
If adopted, the Concordat will be a truly history-making event of strategic importance in the wider movement toward unity among all Christians. The Concordat could easily become a model of unity that honors and preserves creative diversity while achieving unity in essentials. If this model proves successful, it will pave the way for similar approaches among other churches.
While Lutherans admire our liturgical heritage and the role of corporate worship at the center of our community life, many of us admire their theological articulateness, their preaching and teaching skills, and their resources in congregational development and evangelization. Even as they would gain the spiritual and practical advantages of the historic episcopate, we will gain from their devotion to clarity in the expression of apostolic doctrine. Doubtless the experience of working together will reveal other advantages as well.
Liturgically, our two churches are very similar. Many of our liturgical texts are identical and Lutherans are very clear about the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist. However, the proposed Concordat expects the Prayer Book to continue to be the liturgical form for Episcopalians and the Lutheran Book of Worship to be used by Lutherans.
The Evangelical Lutheran Church includes about eight million members and is stronger demographically in the Midwest. (ELCA was formed in the late 1980s by merging a number of Lutheran churches representing German, Swedish, Norwegian, and Finnish bodies. Certain other Lutheran Churches, e.g., the Missouri Synod Lutheran Church, are not involved in the Concordat.) Episcopalians number a little over two and a half million and are more numerous on the west and east coasts and in metropolitan areas. Many believe that this complementary demography can be put to use in our common witness to the Lordship of Christ.
Anglicans have had a special interest in ecumenical relations ever since the time of the Reformation. As a church that is both catholic and Protestant, we have special resources as a bridge church.
Reconciliation in Christ is the church's business. If our two churches approve the proposed Concordat, it could be a major act of reconciliation between Christians that fosters and enables the reconciliation of those now beyond the community of practicing Christians . Our world has largely forgotten the controversies that divided Christians in the sixteenth century. Yet people today are hungry to hear, in words they can understand, the good news of the Gospel of Jesus, and to experience the healing that Gospel can bring to their lives. If the Concordat is approved and helps us to better the work of reconciliation, then the Episcopal House of Bishops and the Lutheran Conference of Bishops, meeting together last October, will have been not only an event that marked the history that has been, but also one that makes the history that shall be.
Personally, I've become very enthusiastic about this proposal and I hope and pray it will be given fair and imaginative consideration by our two churches. It not only will enable us to more fully carry out our Lord's prayer that "...they may all be one..." but will enable our two communions to learn from each other and gain significant advantages through cooperation in mission and ministry.
Please keep the Concordat proposal in your prayers that Lutherans and Episcopalians may be led to right decisions as we strive to serve our Lord in our time.
*Of interest to us in Province II is that the Quadrilateral was introduced to the Lambeth Conference by Bishop Henry B. Whipple of Minnesota. Bishop Whipple was a native of New York who grew up in Adams, was baptized in Zion Church in Pierrepont Manor, and later was rector of Zion Church in Rome, New York. We may take pride that he learned the treasures later incorporated in the Quadrilateral here in our parishes and that those fundamentals have become the cornerstone of the modern ecumenical movement.
(Editor's note: This article is a compilation of two articles that appeared in 1996 in The Messenger , newsletter of the Diocese of Central New York. Printed in this form with permission of Bishop Joslin.)
(Editor's note: The Justice, Peace and Integrity of Creation Network in Province II held an assembly in Albany, New York, October 4-5, 1996.)
"God came into history to create a place where every person knew that he or she was loved, was valued, had a contribution to make, and had just as much right to the riches of the world as every other person. That is what the Church is all about, to bring into being that vision, that ideal community of love in which we all are equally valuable and in which we equally share. Every structure of life comes under the judgment of that vision: our politics, our economics, our education, our social structures. Even the Church!" The Authority of the Laity by Verna Dozier.
The idea of a gathering that called members of churches in Province II to wrestle with visions of justice, peace, and environmental integrity was indeed intriguing. The simplicity of the brochure that had no detailed listing of topics, agenda, workshops, or time frames, but that boldly held up the title "Reclaiming Our Passion" was invitation enough. I wondered if this assembly would be able to express the kind of passion that would be commensurate with the anxiety of the prophets or the compassion of Jesus or the intense focusing of the gospel writers or the ardor and frustrations of the early Christian communities. I went to test for passion.
Indeed there was passion that infused the fast-paced, intense, ongoing conversation of the assembly. Here was a spirited coming together of people from the dioceses of New York and New Jersey-eager and full of energizing passion.
We were quickly and easily engaged in conversation that began in house meetings. Small groups of us from different places and backgrounds fielded the question, "What issues of justice, peace, and the environment are you most passionately concerned about at this time?"
Our conversations were spontaneous. Even more, they were painful as we exchanged stories of our own interactions with environmental concerns, violence, racism, educational inequity, poverty, social upheaval, and conflict in the churches, neighborhoods, and communities where we live, worship, work, play, and serve. Through this sensitive process of probing for sincerity and discernment of issues, we began to reach common ground.
Our stories told us that the oppression and suffering inflicted by the insensitive political structures and local and national principalities are intrusive injustices. They are not contained within poor neighborhoods, but are ever flowing over borders and into areas of affluence. The impact of environmental mismanagement, hazardous planning of sewage disposal, and transportation systems is devastating to the health and well being of all humanity living in the cities and suburbs. Racism is an ongoing component in the lives of black, Hispanic, and Asian people; bigotry against other cultures and new immigrants arises anew. The complexities of the color/culture/class triad distort the contours of our Creator, brothers and sisters of Christ. The life of the church and the community is disadvantaged by the denial and deprivation of the gifts, skills, and talents of all of God's people.
Perhaps it was a relief and a release of tension that the process of the house meetings gave us, that allowed each person the capacity and courage to understand better the interconnectedness of these issues and to acknowledge that, while we are all sharing in the woes of life on this planet, we are all here trying to sing the Lord's song in an alien land.
The next step was an active plenary session to distill, from the myriad of social, economic, educational, and environmental issues, a list of seven critical areas that call us to prayer and action in accordance with the gospel mandates. There was consensus that domestic violence, racism, environmental injustice, immigration, public education, welfare reform, and prison ministry are crucial areas for our mission.
The exhilaration and momentum of the initial sharing aroused eagerness and ardor, a sense of urgency, and resulted in resolutions and strategies for action and mutual support. Selecting two areas in which we were passionate, the participants worked in small groups. We wrote resolutions concerning each area and listed strategies to implement the resolutions. After this we gathered together to review, discuss, and amend each resolution and strategy. The assembly accepted the resolutions, and working groups were formed to carry forward the work begun at this assembly.* Time was scheduled for us to meet with those from our own dioceses and with those from our state to discuss the resolutions and strategies, and to discuss future action and support.
We were urged to "jump off the cliffs"; to go forward in faith into the unknown; to do that which will shatter our complacency . We were urged to dare to wade in the waters that surround the island of the public square in order to live out the pronouncements of our baptismal faith by activating parish and diocesan ministries and by attempting to influence public policy deliberations.
Our Baptismal Covenant to "seek and serve Christ in all persons, loving your neighbor as yourself" and to "strive for justice and peace among all people, and respect the dignity of every human being" was reaffirmed. This will be the foundation of solid ground on which we stand together as one province of the church, united to join with others in sounding a public voice to bring about a more sane, just, and equitable public policy.
We see the JPIC structure as lateral, mutual, and fluid, with Jesus, our founding principal, the groundwork and fundamental source of our mission and ministry. We, all of us together, the people of God, are the grassroots of the church of which Jesus is the head.
The clarity that emerged from all of our discussion and sharing was the delineation of issues and the affirmation that we have the will to stand together cohesively in carrying forth our conversion and activities into the realms of public advocacy, parish ministry, and diocesan structures. Our determination is to go public with lobbying and public advocacy as we represent Christ to the world. We concluded that we have the work of justice to do posthaste.
We hope that the sight and sound of JPIC's supporting, networking, organizing, and lobbying efforts will declare a message of the good news of hope, joy, and freedom to the poor, disenfranchised, uneducated, abused, persecuted, imprisoned, and oppressed, and of honor and care for this fragile earth.
"...Lord when was it that we saw you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did nothing for you?' And he will answer, 'I tell you this; anything you did not do for one of these, however humble, you did not do for me.'Matthew 25:44-45.
*These resolutions and accompanying strategies can be obtained from the Rev. Earl Kooperkamp, 550 West 155th St., New York, NY 10032, tel: 212-283-6200.
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The Province II Episcopal Asian Youth and Young Adult Fellowship has been in full swing since September 1995. It is amazing how a tiny idea discussed at the 1995 Episcopal Asiamerica Ministry Consultation could have blossomed so quickly into reality.
We are a group of youth and young adults who are dedicated to serving our Lord in all ways possible. We are excited about learning all that we can about God so that we may continue to grow in our faith, be living witnesses for Christ, and bring others to the faith. Our unique mission is to unite all Episcopal Asian-American youth and young adults in Province II, and to bring them together on a regular basis for fellowship, support, networking, and sharing ideas about our churches and young people's ministries.
On December 28, 1995, we held our first Christmas and New Year's event at St. George's Church, Flushing, New York. It was a huge success! Fifty-seven youth and young adults came together to praise the Lord with "singspiration," worship, and fun and to enjoy the food.
On July 20, 1996, we held our second event, a picnic and barbecue at Flushing Meadow Park. Forty people representing three different con gregations in the New York metropolitan area were present. The participants enjoyed a fun-filled, community-building day at the park.
The members of the Province II Episcopal Asian Youth and Young Adult Fellowship had a vision in September 1996. We wanted to thank God for the wonderful things that he does in our lives. We wanted to thank him for being our friend, protector, comforter, and most important of all, our Savior. We wanted to sing, dance, stomp our feet, and shout his holy nameÑto "tell it out among the nations: 'The Lord is King!'" In addition, we wanted to unite in faith and worship, as one body in Christ, the Asian American congregations in Province II, and especially their young people.
On the afternoon of January 4, 1997, at the Church of Our Savior, New York City, the September vision became a reality. The fellowship brought together people of various congregations who were Chinese, Filipino, Japanese, Korean, and friends of Province II Asian youth ministry for a joyous, contemporary, worship service with the theme taken from Psalm 98: "Sing to the Lord a new song."
It was an honor that the Rev. Dr. Sheryl Kujawa, national church program director for ministries with young people and youth ministries coordinator, was the principle celebrant of the service. Archdeacon Michael Kendall of the Diocese of New York was the co-celebrant, and the Rev. Allen Shin of St. Mary's, New York City, was the preacher. We are thankful for the support of the Rev. Steven Choi, Episcopal Asiamerica Ministry (EAM) chair of the Diocese of New York; the Rev. Dr. Franco Kwan, EAM chair of the Diocese of Long Island; the Rev. Peter Lam, Province II EAM chair; Mrs. Sandra Wiley, Province II Youth Ministry Network Coordinator; Mr. Peter Ng, president of the EAM Council; and the Rev. Dr. Winston Ching, national church officer for Asiamerica Ministry.
We invite you to come and join us for our monthly fellowship meetings of worship prayer, praise, Bible study, sharing, planning, and group activities. The fellowship meets on the second Saturday of each month but the location and time may vary. Please call one of the following telephone numbers for location and time. We look forward to hearing from you and seeing you at out next meeting.
Contact: Vivian Lam, tel: 212-979-5633 or Grace Kwan , tel: 718-461-9154.
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