CAN THE EPISCOPAL CHURCH BE SAVED?
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By David W. Virtue, DD
February 12, 2026
I stumbled across a blog the other day. The author, the Rev. Kevin E. Martin, an Episcopal priest, made a number of thoughtful statements about how the Episcopal Church could recover its soul.
He made nine claims, which you can read here.
1. Emphasize the apostolic ministry of bishops as witnesses of the resurrected Christ and agents of Christ’s love for all. This means stopping the overemphasis on their administrative and institutional roles. Free them to plant new congregations and communities of faith and to serve as overseers of congregations marked by health, vitality, and discipleship. Instead of watching congregations and even dioceses fail, act now to reorganize the number of bishops and dioceses to reflect the loss of two-thirds of our membership over the past 30 years. In short, we have too many bishops maintaining a declining community and too few giving apostolic leadership.
2. Make the main thing the main thing by charging all our clergy to live up to the mission of the Church: “to reconcile all people to God and one another in Christ.” We must underscore the ministry of reconciliation in this time of polarization and teach all of us to carry out this ministry. Discourage clergy from taking sides in America’s political and cultural wars, committing instead to be instruments of God’s peace.
3. Return to the core values of the Church: the Great Commission to make disciples of all people and the Great Commandment to love one another. Follow Jesus in finding creative ways to extend Christ’s love to those most in need, especially the most vulnerable.
4. Seek out current leaders and congregations already doing this work and demonstrating how to reach new people and form new disciples. Ask them to train others for the work before us. Stop treating such leaders and congregations as outliers while prioritizing the status quo.
5. Meet the challenge of the impending loss of two-thirds of our members who are Baby Boomers and commit to raising up younger lay and ordained leaders, age 35 or younger. This demands our utmost energy and effort over the next five years. It will require transforming Commissions on Ministry from recommending people “like us” toward recruiting younger, more diverse ordained leaders to be missionaries to their own generations.
6. Require current older leaders to actively recruit and empower younger leaders. Reward innovation and creative leadership rather than tenure.
7. Recommit to being “The Foreign and Domestic Missionary Society,” especially by emphasizing the existing multiculturalism of the wider Anglican Communion and the presence of many of these brothers and sisters who already live among us. Focus more energy and resources on domestic mission, particularly the tremendous potential for expanding ministry among Hispanic communities. While we have made some headway, our efforts remain inconsistent and largely diocesan-based, where most dioceses lack the leadership or resources to expand this work.
8. To this end, appoint provincial and regional Hispanic bishops to oversee this work, plant new congregations, and help guide Anglo congregations whose future includes newer Hispanic populations. The Diocese of Texas provides one example of progress in this area, largely due to its size and financial resources. Hispanic ministry represents significant evangelistic opportunity and requires the whole Church’s support.
9. Build on current trends to equip a variety of people for ordained ministry through programs such as the Iona School, which combines theological training with practical, hands-on strategies taught by those already engaged in such work.
I want to remind all Episcopalians of this truth: even in our decline, nearly 20% of our congregations demonstrate health, vitality, and growth. What I am suggesting is not beyond our grasp. What we need is a change of direction and the mandate to stop spending all our time and energy maintaining the status quo. As the recovery community says, “Insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results.” We need urgency and the courage to change before it is too late. My prayer is that a future Episcopal Church will look back at this moment and say, “Thank God we had leaders who saw what was needed and had the courage to do it.”
Noble aspirations indeed. Here are the problems.
It is too little, too late. Beginning with Bishop John Shelby Spong and his openly heretical views, the long slide into theological error began in earnest. No bishop seriously challenged him. Scratch the surface and you will see the depth of the problem. The final blow came with the consecration of Gene Robinson, an openly gay man living in a same-sex relationship. To this day, many bishops still believe Spong was right, and most believe Robinson’s consecration had God’s approval. “Apostolic ministry” disappeared decades ago.
Same-sex marriage is now fully enshrined in the life of The Episcopal Church — a non-starter for 90 percent of the Anglican Communion.
Four presiding bishops have embraced pansexual ideology, openly promoting unbiblical sexual ethics. It began with Presiding Bishop Ed “no outcasts” Browning, followed by Frank Griswold who consecrated Robinson in defiance of the united Global South’s disapproval.
The entire sexual-politics agenda has failed to bring in new converts. Raging about racism has likewise failed. Whatever issues the Church champions — even immigration — they have not ignited the masses. With over 348 million Americans, less than 1.5% of the population even knows or cares what the Episcopal Church preaches.
An alternative Anglican jurisdiction (ACNA) is now established and is not going away, despite its own struggles.
Why was Mr. Martin not challenging the Church’s innovations thirty years ago, when many of us were warning that the Episcopal Church was squandering its theological inheritance?
Why doesn’t the present presiding bishop take up Mr. Martin’s points and implement them?
GAFCON bishops and archbishops no longer recognize the Episcopal Church as legitimately Anglican, or even Christian, and refuse fellowship. The same is true of GSFA bishops.
There are now six gay and lesbian bishops in TEC, none of whom would likely permit Martin’s ideas to be implemented in their dioceses.
Orthodox priests are not welcome in most TEC dioceses. Ordinands trained at orthodox seminaries such as Trinity Anglican Seminary would likewise find little welcome.
Dioceses must now welcome gay and lesbian clergy, many of whom reject historic Christian doctrine.
Under the former Bishop of Washington, only women and gay clergy were welcomed as priests; orthodox candidates were excluded.
The Diocese of Florida attempted to elect a moderately orthodox bishop and faced fierce opposition. Accusations of homophobia flooded the Church, and the effort collapsed.
The vast majority of bishops, in my view, cannot clearly defend the gospel — justification by faith alone in the finished work of Christ at the cross — or affirm the bodily resurrection. Consider former PB Katharine Jefferts Schori, who often described the resurrection in metaphorical rather than literal terms.
Mr. Martin’s proposals would require full support from the current Presiding Bishop, Sean Rowe. Despite his background at Grove City College, known for its conservative Christian worldview, that formation appears not to have shaped his leadership.
Only one in ten Episcopalians in the pews is under fifteen. There are simply not enough younger people to replace retirees.
The 12 percent of parishes emphasizing lifelong discipleship cannot change the overall direction of the Church when leadership remains committed to progressive activism. Political messaging will not fill churches.
Most churches cannot afford a full-time priest without an endowment, and most have none.
Many parishioners cannot evangelize because they lack confidence in the message themselves. Discipleship is scarcely addressed.
Episcopal boomers will be gone within a generation and will not be replaced, despite Mr. Martin’s hopeful tone.
One can admire Mr. Martin’s effort to revive the Episcopal Church, but the moment has passed. It is too little, too late. The Episcopal Church, as we have known it, is fading. Only its pension fund may survive — and money has never saved a soul or built anything of eternal value.
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