September 2009
The 76th General Convention of the Episcopal Church has ended. The Deputies and the Bishops have returned home and we have been given the fruit of their ten days of intensive labor. It will take some time for all the new and exciting changes to filter down in documents to us, but I truly believe that this was one of our best efforts at being an Episcopal Church body working graciously for the common good of the people who are the Episcopal Church and for those we reach out and touch others in our many projects and programs.
I am very excited about the pastoral tool we have been given by General Convention known as Rachael’s Tears and Hannah’s Joy. The text is supplemental prayer book material addressing all those complicated and often painful issues parents and individuals face concerning pregnancies, the loss of a child, infertility or sterilization, adoption, and other similar circumstances. It is a tool both the laity and the clergy can use to reach out to their friends and neighbors who might be confronted with similar events.
Not only is this a much needed and welcomed resource for us, it is an inspiring story of how two groups within the church, those of The Right to Life and those of Planned Parenthood, came together in healthy dialogue and together with the aid of the Liturgical Commission created this important supplement. In a summer where people feel it necessary to carry weapons to town hall meetings and “debates,” this is a refreshing reminder that with God’s help we can respect one another’s different opinions and still be united behind a common cause including supporting one another in times of family and personal crises.
Underlying all of the convention was a deep sense of mutual respect and care for one another. This was brought home to me by a remark made by one of our delegates, Beth Matthews, who has attended more General Conventions than anyone I know. She said that everyone at the General Convention wanted to be there and were not threatening to walk out at any given moment, AND for the first time in many years, everyone worshipped together as one body. At many conventions in the past, there had been separate worship services arranged by those who refused to receive communion when a woman was the celebrant or when women were used as Eucharistic ministers including women bishops, priests, deacons, or laity.
We don’t have to all agree on what is said and done on every issue of the church, nor do we need to even attempt to make everyone feel good – an impossible task. We only have to listen to one another, respect one another’s opinions, and then move on once decisions are made. We can still pass the peace and kneel down together at the Lord’s Table, and then work together to build up the church. God loves everyone equally and so should we. We have shown the nation how we can debate serious matters and still love one another.
Fr. Ken †
