Lately there has been a tremendous amount of concern expressed for preserving the title "Episcopal". However, we hear very little concern expressed for preserving the meaning and purpose of the word episcopal. This seems odd since the adjective was chosen to modify "Church" as a name to express an important theological and historical truth. Have we forgotten that?
When capitalized, "Episcopal" functions as a noun, which is combined with "Church" to identify the Scottish-American branch of the Church of England. This came about for the practical reason that 18th century Anglicans in America needed pastoral oversight that recognized the fact that they were no longer British citizens. The Church of England refused to consecrate any bishops for America, unless the bishop-elect would declare allegiance to England. So, Anglicans in America turned to another source for bishops who would provide the oversight that they needed: the Episcopal Church in Scotland. Scottish bishops consecrated the first American bishop, Samuel Seabury, in 1784.
When presented in lower case, "episcopal" functions as an adjective – as a modifier. And, it has much older origins than the title of the Anglican Church in Scotland or that in the United States. Episcopal is derived from the Greek word episkopos, which appears several times in the New Testament. Episkopos literally means overseer [epi = over (as in epidermis); skopos = see (as in scope)], the common translation being bishop. A bishop is an overseer. An episcopal church is a church that is pastored by a bishop. The Episcopal Church is a federation of churches overseen by their bishops.
How are bishops intended to function as overseers? What is the role of an overseer? The answers are given to us in two important sources: the New Testament and the Book of Common Prayer.
Saint Paul provided very specific criteria to Titus regarding the qualifications of bishops:
This is why I left you in Crete, so that you might put what remained into order, and appoint elders in every town as I directed you— if anyone is above reproach, the husband of one wife, and his children are believers and not open to the charge of debauchery or insubordination. For an overseer, as God's steward, must be above reproach. He must not be arrogant or quick-tempered or a drunkard or violent or greedy for gain, but hospitable, a lover of good, self-controlled, upright, holy, and disciplined. He must hold firm to the trustworthy word as taught, so that he may be able to give instruction in sound doctrine and also to rebuke those who contradict it. [Titus 1:5-9]
A bishop is called to be above reproach, to hold firm to the trustworthy word as taught (by Moses and the prophets; Jesus and the Apostles) and to be able to give instruction in sound doctrine and also to rebuke those who contradict it. This is the role that God purposed for an overseer. A bishop is called to behave like Jesus, the Good Shepherd, and to guard the sheep from wolves and robbers [John 10:1-18].
Paul also warned the overseers in Ephesus that some of their own members would arise to draw Christian disciples away from the truth,
[28] Pay careful attention to yourselves and to all the flock, in which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to care for the church of God, which he obtained with his own blood. [29] I know that after my departure fierce wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock; [30] and from among your own selves will arise men speaking twisted things, to draw away the disciples after them. [31] Therefore be alert, remembering that for three years I did not cease night or day to admonish everyone with tears. [Acts 20:28-31]
The Book of Common Prayer also clearly recognizes the New Testament criteria for bishops, as evidenced in the examination preceding the consecration of a bishop:
My brother, the people have chosen you and have affirmed their trust in you by acclaiming your election. A bishop in God's holy Church is called to be one with the apostles in proclaiming Christ's resurrection and interpreting the Gospel, and to testify to Christ's sovereignty as Lord of lords and Kings of kings.
You are called to guard the faith, unity, and discipline of the Church; to celebrate and to provide for the administration of the sacraments of the New Covenant; to ordain priests and deacons and to join in ordaining bishops; and to be in all things a faithful pastor and wholesome example for the entire flock of Christ.
With your fellow bishops you will share in the leadership of the Church throughout the world. Your heritage is the faith of patriarchs, prophets, apostles, and martyrs, and those of every generation who have looked to God in hope. Your joy will be to follow him who came, not to be served, but to serve, and to give his life a ransom for many. [BCP, 517]
Two points are worth noting here. (1) The Episcopal Church, which authorized and published the Book of Common Prayer did not deviate from Saint Paul’s instructions to Titus. (2) A bishop is commissioned to share in the leadership of the Church throughout the world.
In other words, the role of a bishop as a guardian of the Faith, as received from the Apostles, has its origins in the Ancient Church, from which all modern churches receive their mandate. Holy Scripture provides that mandate.
Secondly, a bishop belongs to a universal worldwide fellowship of bishops, not simply a regional or national fellowship of bishops. Therefore, the call to guard the faith, unity, and discipline of the Church cannot be held rightfully as limited to one region and one age, while ignoring the greater faith, unity and discipline of the Church as expressed in the received doctrine of the Church from the Apostles and practiced by our brothers and sisters in other lands. The celebration of All Saints’ Day teaches us that the Church is much broader and deeper than one nation and one age.
What do we pray?
And grant that we may find our inheritance with [the Blessed Virgin Mary, with patriarchs, prophets, apostles, and martyrs, (with ______ ) and] all the saints who have found favor with you in ages past. We praise you in union with them and give you glory through your Son Jesus Christ our Lord. [BCP 375]
Therefore, those who are authentically episcopal Christians, are Christians who believe that our bishops – throughout the world and for all time – have a sacred responsibility to shepherd us and to oversee God’s people in a manner consistent with the Gospel Message. When bishops behave rebelliously and teach that which opposes the teaching of Christ and the Apostles, they fail their primary role as overseers. They no longer represent their episopal calling. [See: 1 Timothy 5:17-22; 6:11-16, 20-21; 1 Peter 5:1-9]. This was so obvious to the bishops of the early Church that many of them were martyred rather than declare a false witness of Christ.
"Episcopal" is an adjective. It is a modifier. In one ancient word, episkopos provides the description of what the Church (Christians) values and what we are called to proclaim to the World. If the title "Episcopal" loses its scriptural precedence, it has no significant value as a name.
"Salt is good, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is of no use either for the soil or for the manure pile. It is thrown away. He who has ears to hear, let him hear." - Jesus [Luke 14:34, 35]
Saturday, July 28, 2007
Friday, July 27, 2007
Jesus Among Other Gods
You hear it a thousand times and more growing up in the East [India] - "We all come through different routes and end up in the same place." But I say to you, God is not a place or an experience or a feeling . . .All religions are not the same. All religions do not point to God. All religions do not say that all religions are the same. At the heart of every religion is an uncompromising commitment to a particular way of defining who God is or is not and accordingly, of defining life's purpose.
Anyone who claims that all religions are the same betrays not only an ignorance of all religions but also a caricatured view of even the best-known ones. Every religion at its core is exclusive.
. . . What the person means by saying, "You must be open to everything" is really, "You must be open to everything that I am open to, and anything that I disagree with, you must disagree with too."
-- excerpts from "Jesus Among Other Gods" by Ravi Zacharias, pp. 6-7
Amazing Perseverance
1833
Galatians 3:23-29
Matthew 25:31-40
Psalm 146:4-9 or
Psalm 112:1-9
Let your continual mercy, O Lord, kindle in your Church the never-failing gift of love, that, following the example of your servant William Wilberforce, we may have grace to defend the poor, and maintain the cause of those who have no helper; for the sake of him who gave his life for us, your Son our Savior Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
The life of William Wilberforce refutes the popular notion that a politician cannot be a saintly Christian, dedicated to the service of humanity.
Wilberforce was born into an affluent family in Hull, Yorkshire, on August 24, 1759, and was educated at St. John's College, Cambridge. In 1780, he was elected to the House of Commons, and he served in it until 1825. He died in London, July 29, 1833, and was buried in Westminster Abbey.
His conversion to an evangelical Christian life occurred in 1784, several years after he entered Parliament. Fortunately, he was induced by his friends not to abandon his political activities
after this inward change in his life, but thereafter he steadfastly refused to accept high office or a peerage.
He gave himself unstintingly to the promotion of overseas missions, popular education, and the reformation of public manners and morals. He also supported parliamentary reform and Catholic emancipation. Above all, his fame rests upon his persistent, uncompromising, and single-minded crusade for the abolition of slavery and the slave-trade. That sordid traffic was abolished in 1807. He died just one month before Parliament put an end to slavery in the British dominions. One of the last letters written by John Wesley was addressed to Wilberforce. In it Wesley gave him his blessing for his noble enterprise.
Wilberforce's eloquence as a speaker, his charm in personal address, and his profound religious spirit, made him a formidable power for good; and his countrymen came to recognize in him a man of heroic greatness.
1994 Lesser Feasts And Fasts
The Ninth Sunday after Pentecost
A statue of Saint Peter near the Church of the Holy Nativity in Bethlehem
As you have received Christ Jesus the Lord, continue to live your lives in him, rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving.
-- Saint Paul to the Church in Colossae
Lessons for Sunday, July 29th
Proper Twelve
Genesis 18:20-33
Colossians 2:6-15
Luke 11:1-13
Psalm 138
O God, the protector of all who trust in you, without whom nothing is strong, nothing is holy: Increase and multiply upon us your mercy; that, with you as our ruler and guide, we may so pass through things temporal, that we lose not the things eternal; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
Announcements- This Sunday’s Sermon will focus on Acts 20:17-24 (ESV Pew Bible pg. 929).
- Next Youth Group Meeting is Saturday, August 11th at the McCalister's in Tulare, beginning at 5PM
- Bishop's Committee meets on Sunday, August 12th following "Coffee Hour"
(Proper 13)
Ecclesiastes 1:12-14;2:(1-7,11)18-23
Colossians 3:(5-11)12-17
Luke 12:13-21
Psalm 49 or 49:1-11
Friday, July 20, 2007
The Eighth Sunday After Pentecost
You who were once estranged and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, he has now reconciled in his fleshly body through death, so as to present you holy and blameless and irreproachable before him-- provided that you continue securely established and steadfast in the faith, without shifting from the hope promised by the gospel that you heard, which has been proclaimed to every creature under heaven.Saint Paul to the Church in Colossae
The Lessons for Sunday, July 22nd
Proper Eleven
Genesis 18:1-10a(10b-14)
Colossians 1:21-29
Luke 10:38-42
Psalm 15
Announcements
- Pray for those who are going to Camp H2O this week
- Today’s Sermon will focus on Acts 20:7-12 (ESV Pew Bible pg. 929).
Proper Twelve
Genesis 18:20-33
Colossians 2:6-15
Luke 11:1-13
Psalm 138
Tuesday, July 17, 2007
The Awakening
On Sunday I referred to the book "The Awakening" by Friedrich Zuendel, who chronicled the struggle of Pastor Johann Christoph Blumhardt in Germany in the 1800s. I presented Pastor Blumhardt's story in comparison to Paul's ministry to the spiritually starved Ephesians in Acts 19.11-20. While the story begins with a very sensational incident, which might remind you of the movie "The Exorcism of Emily Rose", the story moves to events in the life of a small country parish that any Christian could relate to. The title of the book is completely appropriate, since it describes how God grabbed the attention of a lethargic parish and moved them through repentance and into a lively faith. This is one of the most inspiring true stories that I have ever read and highly recommend it.
The book is out of print but it is available FREE as a pdf (Adobe Acrobat) file here:EBOOKS You will find many other free e-books at that web site: www.plough.com
My sermon for last Sunday (July 15, 2007) was recorded and can be E-mailed or recorded to an audio CD, by request. That's also free!
Thursday, July 12, 2007
The Seventh Sunday After Pentecost
For this reason, since the day we heard it, we have not ceased praying for you and asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of God's will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so that you may lead lives worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him, as you bear fruit in every good work and as you grow in the knowledge of God. May you be made strong with all the strength that comes from his glorious power, and may you be prepared to endure everything with patience, while joyfully giving thanks to the Father, who has enabled you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the light. He has rescued us from the power of darkness and transferred us into the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
- Saint Paul to the ColossiansThe Lessons for Sunday, July 15th
Proper 10
Deuteronomy 30:9-14
Colossians 1:1-14
Luke 10:25-37
Psalm 25 or 25:3-9
[Acts 19:11-20]
O Lord, mercifully receive the prayers of your people who call upon you, and grant that they may know and understand what things they ought to do, and also may have grace and power faithfully to accomplish them; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
Announcements- Sunday’s Sermon will focus on Acts 19:11-20 (ESV Pew Bible pg. 928)
- The Bishop's Committee meets this Sunday following "Coffee Hour"
Genesis 18:1-10a(10b-14)
Colossians 1:21-29
Luke 10:38-42
Psalm 15
Dead Sea Scrolls Exhibit
The San Diego Natural History Museum Exhibit:
June 29 - December 31, 2007
June 29 - December 31, 2007
"The San Diego Natural History Museum's exhibition Dead Sea Scrolls is the largest, longest, most comprehensive ever assembled in any country. Spanning two floors and 12,000 square feet, 27 Dead Sea Scrolls - 10 exhibited for the first time ever - will be on display over the course of the exhibition.
The six-month exhibition brings together materials never before exhibited together: Dead Sea Scrolls from Israel and Jordan reunited for the first time in sixty years, never-before-exhibited ancient Hebrew codices from the Russian National Library, medieval manuscripts from the British National Library, and stunning modern interpretations of the texts. Tracing the scrolls and their meaning through time, the exhibition connects the ancient world to the modern.
The Dead Sea Scrolls - objects of great mystery, intrigue and significance - are widely acknowledged to be among the greatest archaeological treasures ever discovered. Learn more about the history of the scrolls here."
- Excerpt from http://www.sdnhm.org/scrolls/index.html
Friday, July 6, 2007
The Sixth Sunday after Pentecost
May I never boast of anything except the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world.- Saint Paul to the Galatians
The Lessons for Sunday July 8th - Proper 9
Isaiah 66:10-16
Galatians 6:(1-10)14-18
Luke 10:1-12,16-20
Psalm 66 or 66:1-8
O God, you have taught us to keep all your commandments by loving you and our neighbor: Grant us the grace of your Holy Spirit, that we may be devoted to you with our whole heart, and united to one another with pure affection; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
Saints Aquila and Priscilla July 8thGod of grace and might, we praise you for your servants Aquila and Priscilla, to whom you gave gifts to make the good news known. Raise up, we pray, in every country, evangelists and heralds of your kingdom, so that the world may know the immeasurable riches of our Savior, Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
Announcements
- We continue our Summer teaching series on the Acts of the Apostles. This Sunday we will be focusing on Acts 18:18-19:10
- The Bishop's Committee meets next Sunday, July 15th following "Coffee Hour"
Next Sunday's Lessons - Proper 10
Deuteronomy 30:9-14
Colossians 1:1-14
Luke 10:25-37
Psalm 25 or 25:3-9
[Acts 19:11-20]
Tuesday, July 3, 2007
Easter 2007
This is a photograph of our Sunday School children on Easter morning during their Easter Egg hunt. Why don't the adults get to do fun stuff like this?
Better late than never: Due to problems with my E-mail this did not get posted during Easter Season, as it should have been. Thank you to Jerry and Kay McKinzie for the photo and for not giving up on my stubborn E-mail! (Hey, you can click on the photo to see bigger smiling faces!)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)