ECUSA IS THE SPOILED CHILD IN ANGLICAN COMMUNION.
ORTHODOX LEADER URGES EVANGELICALS TO ROCK THE BOAT

By David W. Virtue

CHERRY HILL, NJ (11/21/2004)--A leader in the orthodox wing of the Episcopal Church says evangelical Episcopalians must stand together, build new networks and friendships and be prepared for whatever the worst revisionist bishops do and fight back.

Speaking at St. Bartholomew's Episcopal Church, Cherry Hill, on Sunday, Canon Martyn Minns, rector of the 2,500-strong Truro Church in Fairfax, Virginia said that unless ECUSA repents some sort of North American provincial realignment was "inevitable." He also pointed out that the Network (NACDP) was recognized by the Church of Nigeria and the other African provinces as their partner in the USA during the recent conference in Lagos.

Minns, who was in Lagos for the All Africa bishops meeting, said that most of those present think that ECUSA is the spoiled child in the Anglican Communion and that the rest of the communion will not follow.

Minns reported that his own parish had suffered from the actions of last summer's general convention. "We have lost 50 families. Most of them said they could not be part of a church that was rejecting the truth of the Scriptures on sexuality issues. Many of them said that they could not raise their children in such a church."

He said that following General Convention, and the Robinson confirmation, 70 percent of his congregation had insisted that their money not go forward to the Diocese of Virginia, and the National General Church. They wrote hundreds of letters to the Bishop Lee and said that this was a time of crisis.

Minns said doing nothing was not an option. "You can come together and you can pray. Be the church and begin to move forward. Get organized. Establish mission partnerships. Get involved in ministry. Show how God can transform lives. You have lots of power; the power of the Spirit, the power of the feet and the power of the purse. This is a good time to stand up and fight back."

While acknowledging the strong points in the Windsor Report such as the importance of the Communion and the "supreme authority of Scripture", Minns was nonetheless critical of the Report because it appeared to put most of the blame on the wrong people, those who cross diocesan boundaries, for the problems in the communion, when in fact it was those who chose to defy the Lambeth resolution on Human Sexuality overwhelmingly passed at Lambeth 1998.

"Sadly, while it is a valiant effort, the Windsor report appears to be an
inadequate prescription for the disease of false doctrine, found in the
Episcopal Church."

"If the Episcopal Church does not repent and change its ways it will walk alone," he told his audience of clergy and laity most of whom were drawn from mid and south New Jersey.

"ECUSA will have chosen to be out of the Anglican Communion."

Minns pointed to Nigeria as an amazing story of Anglican growth. "Nigeria is a relatively small country compared with the USA, but it has 17 million Anglicans. The Church is on fire for the Lord. They are not planting churches, they are planting cathedrals. Archbishops Akinola has set a goal to double their province in three years."

"Nigeria is not an ignorant church. There are more earned doctorates in
their House of Bishops than in the Episcopal Church House of Bishops. The Dean of the Cathedral in West Lagos is a former surgeon, he said. "We are dealing with world class people."

Minns said that Archbishop Akinola had described an incident that took place when the Primates met in Lambeth last October. There was a time in the meeting when there seemed to be no way forward. Some of the primates were in tears, Akinola went up to Griswold and said to him, "you have seen what your actions have done, please stand back, back off before it is too late.

Griswold said 'no I can't" Akinola said it was a tragic moment for the Communion.

Minns said one of the issues that the report fails to acknowledge was the growing power of the Global South. The West sees that power threatened. He also questioned the whole notion of geographic borders. Parish boundaries no longer define our local congregations ­ it is time to admit that we have to move away from limiting mission by geography. We are the temples of the Holy Spirit, the church is a people, it is not a place."

Minns also pointed out that while Presiding Bishop Griswold had condemned President George Bush for what he considered to be unilateralism in foreign policy, it appeared to the rest of the Communion that he was guilty of doing exactly the same thing with his sexuality policies.

However, Minns was optimistic about the eventual outcome of all of this. He said that he was confident that God was at work and would never abandon His Church. "While some of the familiar structures will disappear he is confident that a stronger more vibrant church will be the result. It will be a church that will demonstrate the transforming power of the Gospel for all people. It will also be one that will take seriously the need to listen to the voices of those in the Global South who have a great deal to teach us."

He finished by saying that "The laity is the greatest resource in the church. It bugs me why the laity sits quietly by; be encouraged to rise up.

The church was never meant to be dominated by clergy or bishops. Many lay folks are reluctant to take initiative, Please, I beg of you, stand up and rock the boat."

END