A Word from our Bishop

Martyn Minns

A Future for Traditional Values within the Anglican Communion

At this juncture in our nation's history, it is vitally important that we separate the values that are worth fighting for from those that are simply matters of cultural preference. There are values that are universal and non-negotiable. I find them in the Bible and they have shaped my life.

It is in the Bible where you will discover the truth that every human life is of inestimable worth. You will find that God created marriage - one man and one woman for life. This is not some social arrangement that we can redesign at will; it is part of God's design for humanity.

However, for about the past forty years I belonged to a church that no longer advocates these values. In fact, it is attempting to deliberately replace our core values with some of the latest cultural whims.

That church is The Episcopal Church. It still has remnants of its rapidly fading prestige, but its current leadership seems to have lost its way and it has caused a major rift in the Anglican Communion.

The division within the Communion has been widespread and unbelievably painful. About half of the 38 provinces are in broken or impaired relationships. Dozens of dioceses are in disarray and hundreds of churches and millions of people have been negatively impacted by this fracture in our common life.

Here in the U.S., hundreds of clergy and congregations have come to the conclusion that, as a matter of conscience, they must separate from The Episcopal Church. This has produced a spiteful backlash from church leadership with reprisals against clergy and lay leaders and dozens of punitive lawsuits.

The lawsuits are a costly distraction at a time when there is a desperate need for articulate Christians to do the work of the Gospel and engage in the important debates confronting our nation. What is tragic is that a church that so often rails against the intolerance of biblical fundamentalism has now become aggressively intolerant towards those with whom they disagree.

But out of the confusion and decline of The Episcopal Church, exciting new life has emerged. The Convocation of Anglicans in North America is one example. Initially sponsored by the Church of Nigeria, another partner in the worldwide Anglican Communion, we have expanded to more than 70 congregations in 21 states.

These congregations are committed to living out our Christian faith within the Anglican way. We have a three-fold vision of radical inclusion, profound transformation, and inspired service and are growing despite threats and lawsuits by The Episcopal Church.

We have a future and it is exciting. We all do if we will remember our roots. We do not need to apologize for the values that shaped our nation or question the biblical foundation of our faith. We must, however, stand firm to ensure that those values remain the cornerstone of our churches and our country.

The Right Reverend Martyn Minns is the Missionary Bishop of the Convocation of Anglicans in North America.

Posted by Martyn Minns on September 12, 2008 10:10 AM