Episcopal Press and News
Seattle Meeting Looks at What Divides -- and Unites -- Episcopalians
Episcopal News Service. December 15, 1999 [99-190A]
(ENS) Gathered to quietly begin searching for ways to encourage reconciliation across the Episcopal Church, 22 clergy and lay leaders, a sample of conservative, moderate and liberal points of view in the church, met at St. Alban's Parish in Edmonds, Washington, from November 8 through 11. They discovered a common Christ-centered piety among themselves and confronted the myths that had led to stereotyping and demonization of each other.
Members first were asked to share their spiritual journeys with each other, according to a press release issued by the group. They moved on to share their perspectives on the conflicts in the Episcopal Church, which, they agreed, seem to revolve primarily around the issues of the uniqueness of Jesus, the approach and interpretation of the bible, abortion and the blessing of same-sex unions.
Some in the group insisted on seeing the conflict as identity-based, involving two communities with differing world views in the same institutional structure. Others argued that that view did not capture the complexity of the conflict. The Rev. Canon Elizabeth Kaeton of Maplewood, New Jersey, said, "There are not two distinct sides to the crisis in the church; indeed the crisis is multidimensional and complex. There is no consistent uniform 'conservative,' 'liberal' or 'moderate' approach. One can hold a conservative position on one issue while being quite liberal on another."
Bishop Catherine Waynick of Indianapolis pointed out that many laypeople don't even understand why the conflict is taking place. They are puzzled as to why these particular issues are ones that threaten to cause a schism in the Episcopal Church.
As trust began to develop among the participants the discussion became candid, awkward, and at times painful, revealing feelings of anger, mistrust, marginalization and victimization. One Generation X leader, the Rev. Beth Maynard of Fairhaven, Massachusetts, said, "Infighting has consumed most of the energy of the church all my life, and done immeasurable damage to our pubic profile. As a 'postmodern' watching this conflict from outside, I'm reminded of the over 50 percent of my generation who are children of divorce. This feels like growing up watching Mom and Dad fight about issues that were real to them, but to us often seemed not to be worth breaking up the family over. I want the family to stay together."
When the group members asked, "What does reconciliation in the Episcopal Church look like?" they were able to move from defending their different positions to exploring what unites them.
By the final morning most participants were cautiously optimistic that reconciliation was possible if conservatives and liberals were prepared to treat each other's fears, concerns and interests as legitimate. Dr. Stephen Noll of Ambridge, Pennsylvania, observed, "On the part of liberals, it involves a willingness to let the present formularies and liturgies stand and to allow conservatives to follow their sense of godly conscience. For conservatives, it means a willingness to live in a radically pluralistic church without continually acting and speaking defensively, but mobilizing churches to spread the gospel."
As the meeting drew to a close there was no definitive plan for reconciliation agreed upon by the group, but there was a strong sense among those present that acts, not just statements, of reconciliation needed to be moved to a much higher priority on everyone's agenda.
Those who attended the meeting included: The Rev. Billy Alford of Augusta, Georgia; the Rev. Edwin Bacon of Pasadena, California; Roger Boltz of Dallas, Texas; Bishop Bill Burrill of Rochester, New York; the Rev. Paul Collins of Seattle, Washington; the Rev. F. Brian Cox of Santa Barbara, California; Dr. Louie Crew of East Orange, New Jersey; Bishop Robert Duncan of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; the Rev. John Guernsey of Woodbridge, Virginia; the Rev. Canon Mary Hays of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; the Rev. Michael Hopkins of Greenbelt, Maryland; the Rev. Carolyn Jones of St. Louis, Missouri; the Rev. Canon Elizabeth Kaeton of Maplewood, New Jersey; the Rev. Richard Kew of Murfreesboro, Tennessee; the Rev. Edward Little from Bakersfield, California, bishop-elect of Northern Indiana; the Rev. Beth Maynard of Fairhaven, Massachusetts; the Rev. Dorsey McConnell of Edmonds, Washington; Ted Mollegen of Glastonbury, Connecticut; Dr. Stephen Noll of Ambridge, Pennsylvania; the Rev. Jan Nunley of Providence, Rhode Island; Bishop Onell Soto of Birmingham, Alabama; Bishop Catherine Waynick of Indianapolis, Indiana.