Is Jesus divine and thus the second person of the Godhead? In the church today it seems to be all right if you believe it yourself and choose it among the many other expressions of faith that are presented. It certainly makes it easier to live in a world which has turned its back on God's truth. It does not offend and thus we are safe.

Was Jesus Christ born of the Holy Spirit of God to a virgin in humility and grace? It appears we do not have to believe that, because for years some bishops have proclaimed it to be nonsense, and no one has ever said they were wrong. To take a stand may hurt someone's feelings and tell others that they have chosen a path away from the kingdom.

So what is the message? Who cares? We do not seem to. So who is this Jesus on whom we bet our lives and our immortal souls?

To many it comes through that it doesn't matter what you believe these days, especially in the hierarchy of The Episcopal Church. And the one who is now given the right to speak for the whole has relegated the Lord of all life and who was in the beginning and ever shall be Lord of all to being an avenue to the divine. So he is not divine? Avenues are not divine; are they?

All the discussions of the past few years - sexuality, ordination of women, border crossings, property disputes - pale before the question "Will The Episcopal Church remain a Christian body?" Are the words of the creeds real, or can we dismiss any that we do not personally believe? Can we as bishops spout any theology or thought that we personally happen to think is right, even when it is in direct contradiction to the official (yes, official - see the BCP) theology and teachings of our church? Can we, as a church of a larger whole, do anything we want just because we can vote on it and the majority in this small piece of the Anglican Communion declares it so?

To see The Episcopal Church in the past decades, one would think that the answer to all these questions would be "Of course!" So let's put the system to the test. Let's vote. "Is Jesus Christ Lord and Savior?" Print the theology as agreed upon and signed and sealed by the whole of the church through the acceptance of the Archbishop of Canterbury, the councils of unity, and our prayer book. Tally up the votes and answer the question. Then we will see what people believe and act accordingly, each to his or her own conscience. To hear people talk about democracy in The Episcopal Church, the proceeding would be proper, if not called for, in our determination of who we are and what we can do.

But I have the light burden and the easy yoke of believing there are absolutes in the world. If Jesus is Lord and Savior, then he is the only one who can accomplish for us our journey from this world to the next. Those who do not choose him do not have him as their mediator and advocate. It does not mean he does not love them as his created, but the benefits of faithful living, which is righteousness (read, relationship with Jesus), are not available to the unrighteous (read, do not have a relationship with Jesus.)

What is their place in eternity? Got me! Jesus dwelt upon his gift to the world. He wants to love us into heaven, not scare us into obedience. We should not even try to answer the question of anyone else's final judgment. All we can say is what it means to have Jesus, the Son of God, as our advocate at the final judgment. We should never back away from how to build that relationship, through confession, absolution and repentance.

Those who do not want to follow these simple rules are always trying to change them, water them down, or discount their validity, because we self-justify our own unfaithfulness and then convince others that we are right because it makes it easier to live in our sin and worship our worldly gods. But there is really only one truth, one life, and one way to go. We either believe it or we do not choose Jesus as our Lord and Savior. If that is offensive, then I would suggest trying it and seeing that indeed (and here I will use a proven theological term) this "stuff" works.

Believe the promise and not the hype. Believe the scriptures or another's opinion? Always take scripture's words when there is a discrepancy. Yes, I did "solemnly engage to conform to the doctrine, discipline, and worship of the Episcopal Church." But that is always in light of the words which precede this statement on page 526 of the Book of Common Prayer in the question, "Will you be loyal to the doctrine, discipline, and worship of Christ as this Church has received them?" I know that many of the beliefs spoken of in this church today were not received in the manner they are being used. Yes, Christ is more important than even his church.

---The Rt. Rev. James M. Adams, Jr., is the Bishop of Western Kansas.