THOUGHTS AT THE END OF THE CHURCH YEAR AND BEFORE DEPARTURE TO THE CHURCH OF ENGLAND

“Woe to the Shepherds who destroy the sheep and scatter the sheep of my pasture”

These words, from the first Lesson [Jeremiah 23:1] in the ECUSA Lectionary for the last Sunday before Advent, have been ringing in my ears since I first heard them today. [It is of interest that the Epistle reading in the classic BCP Lectionary for this same Sunday is also from Jeremiah 23, but begins at verse 5 and so does not contain the above words.]

As I prepare to leave canonical residence in the diocese of Quincy in the ECUSA and move soon to Christ Church, Biddulph Moor, in the diocese of Lichfield in the Church of England, I cannot but think that these words apply very particularly as a word of the Lord today to the Bishops and clergy of the ECUSA, especially the Bishops.

The very name, The Episcopal Church, puts emphasis on the Episcopate and thus on each Episcopos [Bishop]. If the Bishops of the ECUSA fail to be what they are called to be then the whole Church suffers deeply for they are the chief pastors of the flock.

The content of the service for the consecration of a Bishop (whether in the ordinal of the classic BCP or in the 1979 prayer book) makes clear the high calling and onerous duty of each bishop to teach and safeguard the Faith, to care for the clergy and people, and to live in such a manner as to adorn the Gospel of Christ Jesus, the Chief Shepherd.

Unless my eyes deceive me and my mind wrongly interprets the empirical evidence, the clearest fact in regard to the ECUSA in my 11 years in the USA is that the Bishops have failed to be genuine pastors of the flock of Christ because they have failed to teach and guard the Faith, morals and divine order, and at the same time they have encouraged and abetted heresy, error and immorality.

They have rejected the authority of Holy Scripture over the Church; they have rejected the witness and guidance of holy Tradition in and over the Church [tradition in the dogma and teaching of the ecumenical Councils and in the classic Anglican Formularies]; they have accepted the dominant liberal, secularized, western view of human rights, sexuality, self-worth (self-expression etc.) and given to this human-centered ethos God-names and language of Zion reference. They have turned from Trinitarian Theism to forms of Unitarianism, panentheism and pantheism. And they have done this with their clergy and laity in the General Convention, in diocesan conventions and in their pastoral relations, letters and permissions.

The few bishops who have opposed some or all of this new episcopal agenda have not (it seems) declared themselves out of communion with their sisters and brethren and so are [whether they like it or not] participants in this general reality, and upon them the “woe” falls.

It needs to be noted that often these same bishops who claim to be “orthodox” have actually redefined orthodoxy to make its content significantly less than it has been in the life of the Church over many centuries. Further, some of them tend to allow in their own dioceses flagrant examples of clergy practicing the new Episcopalian religion and morality [immorality]. Thus the “woe” remains.

What applies to the chief shepherds of the ECUSA also applies to all the clergy – all of us -- for they/we share in the ethos and content. Woe to all the shepherds, woe to all of us under-shepherds. Being members of one society we all share in its disease and judgment.

Unless all the shepherds repent and embrace the Lord Jesus Christ in all his Advent glory and in all his Advent holiness, and humble themselves under the mighty hand of the LORD GOD, the Father almighty, then the WOE will be for each of us a judgment that sooner or later will cause us to tremble, really tremble…

How many people are starved, how many people have been scattered, how many are walking in the way towards hell, because of the failure of Shepherds to care for the flock for which Christ died!

I wish that I could state that ALL the Bishops (circa 104) of the Anglican Jurisdictions outside the ECUSA gave a clear and unambiguous portrait of godliness, sound teaching and good order. Regrettably, too many of them seem to be ruled by ideas and passions that do not adorn the Gospel of Christ. This said, there are some fine examples of bishops in these churches who genuinely care for the flock in terms of biblical standards, thinking not of their own promotion but that of the kingdom of heaven.

Having said all this, I cannot say that the Bishops of the Church of England are a lot more faithful, holy and well ordered than those of the ECUSA. But I have not been canonically resident in Britain for the last 11 years and have no near view.

What seems very clear to me is that if the Anglican Way is to survive in the West/North as a godly form of the one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church, then it will be despite most of the Shepherds and not because of the Episcopate. Thus, the sheep must find ways to green pasture and to still waters on their own if they are to preserve the true faith and enter into life eternal. I hope and pray that they will do this and be the means in the divine providence of causing the Episcopate to repent!

The Revd Dr Peter Toon (Sunday before Advent, 2001)