Reverend Ref +

DEAR SHARI,

Grace and peace to you:

I have read your recent comments directed towards Jane, Susie and myself. I must agree with others who hear much anger in your overall tone, and I apologize if I have contributed to that anger.

It is a hard thing to feel that your roots are being carelessly ripped out, leaving you struggling for support and feeling neglected (at best), or left to die (at worst). I have been there, seminary was just such an experience for me.

I entered seminary as a self-described 'right of center conservative.' I also had a tendency to speak my mind publicly. Not always, but often enough to earn both overt ridicule and covert admiration. There were many times when I felt like my root system was being ripped out, times when I thought people saw me as a weed and wanted me gone.

But one of my many flaws is that I am not a good debator -- I don't think that quickly. So instead of immediately engaging classmates about our differences, I was forced to take time and consider both positions carefully. This did two things: first, it made me a better listener; and second, it caused me to entertain the possibility that I might be wrong. And if I were wrong, was it then true that my roots were being ripped out, or was I being pruned?

I finally came to the conclusion that my roots consisted of the following: Jesus Christ is the second person of the Trinity, Jesus Christ is my Lord and Savior, I am a sinner in need of redemption, God is way bigger than I can imagine and won't be confined to my limitations. That's it. Everything else is branches that come and go and change over time.

But enough about me.

In my last sermon (Proper 11A, see below), I discussed the desire of certain groups to want to rid the Church of those people they saw as weeds. You were kind enough to both read and comment on that sermon and I want to thank you for taking the time to do so. I will address your comments here.

"Go preach to Bishop Smith in Connecticut."
The situation in CT is indeed a sad affair, as is the General Unpleasantness in the Anglican Communion. I am not from CT, however, so my knowledge of those events is second-hand at best. My understanding of what is happening can be summed up as: We (Side A/Side B) tried to explain our position and talk with them, but they (Side B/Side A) won't listen.

One side claimes it requested outside oversight, the other side claims they demanded it. One side claims a parish was abandoned, the other side claims there were/are extenuating circumstances that were well documented but ignored. What is known for sure is that I don't know the specifics, so my preaching to Bp. Smith would seem out of line.

"Or are conservative 'weeds' easier to spot . . ."
I do not know if 'conservative weeds are easier to spot,' but I do think that they are louder. In my humble (and probably too-little informed) opinion, there is much more sabre-rattling coming from the likes of +Duncan, ++Akinola, the AAC, the Network (in Anglicanism), and the non-denominational Fundamentalists such as the Christian Coalition, Focus on the Family, etc, than there is from the other side. Right or wrong, I think that their willingness to be outspoken demands a rebuttal.

". . . and my be so ripped up without comment?"
If you have been reading my sermons over the course of time (that includes sermons I preached in seminary, as an intern and up to now), you will note that I comment against both sides when it seems appropriate. I will concede that I do tend to lean more to the left, but that doesn't stop me from commenting against that side when I feel it necessary.

I am never in favor of ripping up what I might consider to be a weed. First, it does more damage than good. Second, God may choose to use that 'weed' in a way I hadn't considered; remember the example of the dandelions in my sermon. And third, by concentrating on ripping up weeds, I neglect to care for the wheat.

It seems to me that we, myself included, have become more focused on the branches than on the roots. We have forgotten that our root is Jesus Christ our Lord, and instead have mistaken our roots for Paul or Apollos or Cephas or Robert or Peter or Gene or Bill. We are forgetting that we who are many are one body. In our forgetting unity through diversity, we are all trying to become eyes so that we can make sure everyone sees things the "correct" way, whether right or left, liberal or conservative.

Archbishop Desmond Tutu wrote, ". . . differences are not intended to separate, to alienate. We are different precisely in order to realize our need of one another" (God Has a Dream, 76). Thank you, Shari, for being different from me and for giving me the opportunity to share a little of myself with you. I do not ask that you change your views; I only ask that you be willing to acknowledge and appreciate our differences, and, in that acknowledgment, share a Eucharistic meal with me knowing that we are both children of God, loved by the One who created us both.

May the blessing of God Almighty be with you always; and pray for me, a sinner.