Throughout the summer, my wife — The Reverend Canon Natalie Van Kirk — and I have been preaching a series on the subject of doubt. We have been addressing both the subject of doubt itself and the questions that are often the source of trying questions for Christians, as well as others. Obviously, none of these articles are exhaustive but we hope that they will be a helpful stimulus to your own thinking. Frederick writes: When I told friends that... Read more
Throughout the summer, my wife — The Reverend Canon Natalie Van Kirk — and I have been preaching a series on the subject of doubt. We have been addressing both the subject of doubt itself and the questions that are often the source of trying questions for Christians, as well as others. Obviously, none of these articles are exhaustive but we hope that they will be a helpful stimulus to your own thinking. Natalie writes: In the course of parish... Read more
The subject of revitalizing parish life is not a common topic of conversation in mainline Protestant churches. And in my own tradition, the people who do speak to that challenge are often lonely voices. Mainline Protestantism found itself locked in a zero-sum battle with Fundamentalism in this country early in the 20th century. And just as Fundamentalists defined themselves in reaction to mainline Protestantism, so mainline Protestants were deeply shaped by a reaction to Fundamentalist Christians. This often meant that... Read more
So, way down at the end an article dealing with other, more important issues at the General Convention, The Living Church reported on a conversation that evidently occupied the closing moments of yesterday’s meeting of the House of Bishops. It’s worth including a description of that afterthought in its entirety: Approving a church revitalization study The bishops also passed a resolution aimed at supporting congregational revitalization, citing “trends of decline and diminished capacity” in the Episcopal Church. Resolution A044 creates... Read more
Over the last few days an article that I wrote, entitled “Whose peace?”, sparked quite a bit of conversation. There were many who agreed and offered their own reasons for agreeing. Others told me that my position implied that we should have one and only one liturgy. I was also urged to listen to communities and honor differences, meaning — I assume — that I am not sensitive to those communities and differences. This is not the case. But what... Read more
Among the seemingly endless number of modifications to the Book of Common Prayer that are now in the works for General Convention, one of the latest is the proposal that the rubrics allow for extending the “peace” at the beginning of the service. The text of CO36 reads as follows: The service of Holy Eucharist consists of two parts, the Liturgy of the Word and The Holy Communion. Together they draw the community towards the central act of Eucharistic worship,... Read more
In recent years, there have been a string of writers who have acknowledged the leavening influence of the Christian tradition on the western world but who are careful to make it clear that they are not Christians. It is hard to know where the trend began. Tom Holland, author of the book, Dominion, began his journey while doing work research for his lengthy tome. Trained as a historian of the Greco-Roman period, Holland believed that the values which sustain western... Read more
(With apologies to the prophet Habakkuk) Maybe it’s just the limitations of the average search engine. Maybe it’s user error. But interestingly when you search for the characteristics of dying institutions, even a bit of tinkering still yields the same result. Most of the articles you locate are devoted to dying in institutions, not the death of institutions. But the dynamic is everywhere you look today. There are serious questions about the relevance and reliability of our institutions. Crises of one... Read more
My wife and I just returned from vacation in France not long ago. We had a wonderful time. We ate too well. We drank our share of wonderful wine. In addition to seeing Paris again, we also got to see Bordeaux for the first time – which helps to explain the wine. And despite the airlines’ best efforts, we have managed to hold onto the delight of getting to see another part of the world again. That said, both of... Read more
“Do not let your hearts be troubled. Believe in God, believe also in me. 2 In my Father’s house there are many dwelling places. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, so that where I am, there you may be also. 4 And you know the way to the place where I am going.” 5 Thomas said to him, “Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way?” 6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. (John 14:1-6) Whenever someone dies at an early age, we inevitably want to know, “Why.” Why can life be so painfully brief? Why does a husband leave behind a wife — or a wife leave behind a husband? Why does a father or mother leave behind children? Or a parent outlives a child? And the longer we... Read more
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