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Canterbury and the Episcopal Church in South Carolina: "To Be or Not to Be"

Canterbury and the Episcopal Church in South Carolina: "To Be or Not to Be"

By Ladson F. Mills III
Special to Virtueonline
www.virtueonline.org
May 28, 2015

'To be or not to be" may have been Hamlet's question but for some supporters of the national Episcopal Church in South Carolina there is another. Their questions seek to clarify the relationship between the Diocese of South Carolina and Bishop Mark Lawrence and the Archbishop of Canterbury.

It began with a visit to the Diocese of South Carolina from Bishop Hector Zavala , Bishop of Chile, and Presiding Bishop of the Anglican Church in South America.

As one of the primates of the Anglican Communion and a member of the Global South Bishop Zavala came to express support. He reiterated the 2014 decision of the Global South to provide "Primatial" (an official or formally recognized relationship) between Anglicans of the Global South and the Diocese of South Carolina but this is hardly news.

Stemming from the visit Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby was once more reminded of the difficult situation in which he finds himself. The Anglican Church in the Global South which makes up 75 percent of Anglicans worldwide has the majority of growth and energy in the communion. The Episcopal Church has financial resources but these are rapidly dwindling. Archbishop Welby has no power outside of England and must increasingly rely on the goodwill of an older generation who recall a more harmonious time within the communion. The Episcopal Church has long been an embarrassment for a majority of Anglicans and has often been tolerated out of a need for the financial support it provided..

The current crisis erupted over Bishop Zavala's statement that he had come to South Carolina with the "consent" of Archbishop Welby. Critics quickly responded that Zavala and South Carolina misrepresented the situation . They conceded the Primates of Global South support of the Diocese of South Carolina but argued that the Archbishop of Canterbury refers to the relationship as "pastoral" which unlike "primatial" is less formal and not an official sanction. There were other suggestions that the Spanish speaking Zavala may have added to the confusion in selecting the word "consent" to describe the Archbishop's understanding of the visit. A Lambeth Palace spokesperson's written response to a blogger and supporter of the national church is offered as proof of the former, if not the latter.

Regardless of one's sentiments there is a collective reality that is mutually shared. No one is right all of the time. Mistakes are made, information proves untrue and there are always those who intentionally misrepresent. In the attempt to provide clarity VOL contacted the communications officer for the Archbishop of Canterbury with two questions regarding Bishop Zavala's visit and ensuing concerns:
1. Has the Archbishop of Canterbury's position been mis-represented and is there any suggestion this was purposeful?

2. If he has in fact been purposely mis-represented what if any action will be taken?

This is the reply VOL received from Lambeth Palace spokesperson Ed Thornton:

"Please find a statement below which you are welcome to use. We aren't planning to comment further.

"The Global South Primates Steering Committee announced in 2014 the establishment of Primatial Oversight for the Protestant Episcopal Church in the Diocese of South Carolina, which had seceded from the Episcopal Church. The steering committee informed Archbishop Justin of their decision when he joined them for the final day of their meeting in Cairo.

Archbishop Justin had since had discussions in order to clarify how the arrangements will work, exploring the exercising of pastoral oversight by Presiding Bishop Zavala. Archbishop Justin discussed these developments with the Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church, Katharine Jefferts Schori (sic) at a meeting last autumn in Washington."

It appears that we are back to where we began. Partisans can focus on whichever part of the press release best supports their argument. Like the old joke regarding the Episcopal Church House of Bishops pastoral letters, "pick a paragraph, pick your position."

The statement from Archbishop Welby's office does reveal his challenge in dealing with crisis with little real power and declining influence. The Global South with its energy, growth and strength is essential to the Anglican Communion. In dealing with the Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church he will rely on tactics such as an Honorary Oxford Degree and other baubles to assure continued financial support.

No matter how things turn out Archbishop Welby seems to be taking a lesson from Sir Winston Churchill who observed that "in war it does not matter who is right but who is left."

In the meantime those who suggested Bishop Zavala and the Diocese of South Carolina were intentionally duplicitous were wrong. His assertion of the overwhelming worldwide support for the Diocese of South Carolina and Bishop Lawrence is accurate.

It seems that ambiguity like beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Rather than a case of "to be or not to be" this recent criticism might better be described as "Much Ado About Nothing."

Ladson F. Mills III is a priest with over thirty years pastoral experience. He is retired and lives with his wife in South Carolina. He currently serves as Scholar in Residence at the Church of Our Saviour, Johns Island. He is a regular contributor to "Virtueoneline."

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