Preparing for England

As I am slowly feeling better this afternoon, I am puttering around the house, getting things ready to depart for England on Thursday. I'm taking a week to go and (among other things) visit my brother in Exeter. Here is where I shall be staying. When I visit England, this is my favorite newspaper to read. But my brother will no doubt have copies of this lying about, and I'll peruse them happily...

I'm not a Methodist, but Jay Voorhees is, and he has this fine post about the outcome of the Karen Dammann trial. (The Methodist news service story on the trial is here; anguished reaction from conservative Methodists can be found at the website of Good News Magazine.) I really like what Jay has to say about living in tension on this issue:

I'm not going to get into an extended argument about the issue of homosexuality and whether practicing homosexuals should be ordained. I've come to my beliefs on the issue over time and after much prayer and study. While I disagree with our churches current proclaimed position, I have made a covenant to live within that stance until the time that we can affect change.

I do, however, mourn that we continue to use legislative and judicial means to try and address this issue. We made one attempt to talk about the issue theologically some 12 years ago, and when the outcome didn't come out one way or the other, we gave up. The fact is that our theology of sexuality is unclear, a combination of Augustinian restraint and Protestant exuberance over "God's good gift." We will never come to clarity on this issue until we first do the theological and conversational work of sitting down, reflecting on the scriptures, our traditions, and our experience.

Bold emphasis is mine. I wish that all those conservatives in various mainline denominations who contemplate schism would adopt Jay's tactic of living in obedient disagreement!

I strongly support same-sex marriage, a position that is in the minority in Mennonite Church USA. Though I pray for the day that my fellow Mennonites change their stance, I am not going to allow one issue to drive me out the door. Even within my nine-member Friday night small group, I know folks whose beliefs about sexuality are radically different from my own. We can learn from each other, challenge each other, listen to each other, and stay in communion with each other even as we come to different conclusions about what the precise nature is of the standard for sexuality to which Christ calls us. I am learning a great deal from my more conservative brothers and sisters; they are learning something from me. It's called being the church, and I dig it.

Comments

[John]

"The Independent" is a paper of dubious reputation for people of the same (As opposed to "The Guardian" which is the paper of Satan). Read "The Daily Telegraph", or "The Spectator". You never know-they might convert you. Boris Johnson is very addictive ;-). Give my regards to the Motherland...Island race...Cradle of Imperial virtue...Chain of freedom...Liberty and Empire...Green and pleasant land...etc. I'm jealous! You have stirred up 21 years of Imperialist indoctrination. Have fun!

[Hugo]

The Guardian was once my favorite; then it became a mouthpiece for New Labour. I read the Independent first, and then the Guardian, and yes, I do glance at the Telegraph from time to time.

I will indeed give regards to the mother country, home of the world cup of rugby... ;-)

[John]

Grrr! Did you have to do that? ;-)

[Fr. John McCuen]

Having been a priest in the Episcopal Church for some five years before leaving to become Orthodox, I have some experience with the attempt to remain in the same house while also in disagreement. It works just fine as long as the issue is unimportant to the parties involved. However, at least one side is going to get irritated enough with the other for failure over time to change their mind, and become disagrreable enough to cause the other to leave; or even be thrown out.
We do have a lot to offer to each other, if we are willing to listen. But when dialogue becomes jawboning, no one is listening any more. And when two positions are fundamentally different and mutually exclusive -- what is there to talk about?
I appreciate your civility.

[Hugo]

Thank you, father; what kind words. Indeed, resisting the temptation to let "dialogue become jawboning" is difficult indeed!