Dio. Fort Worth: A response to the Steadfast Episcopalian Mailer

A response to the Steadfast Episcopalian Mailer
Dean Ryan Reed, St. Vincent’s Cathedral
September 5, 2008

I received a very nice letter in the mail today from Steadfast Episcopalians. There is much to commend about the two-page letter sent out to what I assume is various members of the Diocese of Fort Worth. The charitable tone and the desire to seek unity in commonality are both helpful. The seven theological points are helpful in beginning discussions about unity for all Christians.

I guess what concerns me is that the brief nature of the letter really masks the seriousness of the problems facing the Episcopal Church. I believe one weakness of the letter is that it transfers the orthodoxy and unity of the Diocese of Fort Worth onto The Episcopal Church (TEC) which is far from orthodox and far from united. Here are several of my concerns:

1. "Fostering respect for differences that have always been a hallmark of the Episcopal Church" was true when the differences fell within the boundaries of Christian faith and practice. In recent times, what it means to be an Episcopalian can fall far outside the basic boundaries of what it means to be a Christian. Our differences between high-church and low-church or broad church and charismatic are not in the same category as the differences we face today. the rest-pdf