Tuesday, June 20, 2006

on the ecusa presiding bishop

After waking up next to a bowl of wet salad, I decided today is a good day I think for commenting on Anglican church politics. I for one do not see what the brouhaha is about. If one ordains women to the priesthood, one must not have a problem with consecrating women to the episcopacy. If one consecrates women to the episcopacy, one must not have a problem with making a woman the presiding bishop of one's national church. Female ordination is not going to go away in the ECUSA and it never will. Those who have a problem with it in the worldwide Anglican Communion and the ECUSA have known this for years. This event should not be big for those opposed to women's ordination, though I suppose it is big for those who are for it. Hence my suspicion of those who make loud noises about the whole thing.

4 comments:

Eric said...

Good word. Just goes to show that those who are still hanging on for something to change and get better are really just unwilling to go all the way to swim the Tiber or come to Orthodoxy

Mr. G. Z. T. said...

There are some things which might conceivably change, but women's ordination is probably not one of them. Somebody else can correct me if I'm wrong, but that's fairly firmly in place in America and simply will not change. Those who are hanging on hoping for that to change are misguided, but those aren't the only two options for them. Many are, of course, Protestants through and through. Those who aren't opposed to women's ordination but opposed to some other trends may well have good reason to stay and fight it out. Others who don't necessarily have an opinion or are open-minded but don't like the way the politicking is being done [ie, doctrine by fiat rather than discussion of some sort] may also have a reason to stay and fight. etc. etc. I don't particularly care as long as somebody thinks of the children.

Mr. G. Z. T. said...

Or perhaps "the Volga".

G Sanchez said...

I think it's difficult for people to abandon their traditions, especially when they have been faithful to them. It's far easier for a lapsed Catholic such as myself to come to Orthodoxy than it would have been if I had remained a steadfast Catholic.

I don't necessarily agree with Eric's "progressivist" model in that I don't see people as on a lifelong quest for the "right" tradition. Faithful Christians are more likely to be on a lifelong quest for Christ; only when their tradition no longer allows that and/or throws them from that path do they see a reason to go elsewhere.