Christ Church San Antonio responds to TEC’s recent Actions

Posted by Kendall Harmon at TitusOneNine:


A STATEMENT TO THE PARISH
Concerning Actions Relating to The Episcopal Church

At its retreat last February, the Vestry discussed the numerous actions taken by The Episcopal Church (TEC) and many of its leaders that are contrary to traditional Christian faith, and which have marginalized TEC with many of its sister churches in the Anglican Communion. Building on a letter to the congregation from the Vestry dated July 26, 2006, a process of discernment was begun to explore how Christ Church can today best differentiate itself with its core values and beliefs from the theological innovations being pursued by TEC. Five options were identified that ranged from accepting the authority of TEC and submitting to its teachings and leadership, to making a full break with TEC and becoming an independent church with no denominational affiliation. The option which was chosen to pursue at this time, and which the Vestry has acted upon, is:

to disassociate from TEC’s false teachings without disconnecting from the Anglican Communion and the Diocese of West Texas.

During this time we have kept Bishop Lillibridge fully informed of our process. Vestry teams have met with him on three occasions, and we have had numerous email correspondence with him as well. With his knowledge and considering his counsel, at its meeting on October 21, 2008, the Vestry passed the following resolutions concerning Christ Church’s relationship to The Episcopal Church and the Diocese of West Texas:

1. AFFIRMED: that Christ Episcopal Church is apostolically connected to the One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church of Jesus Christ directly through the Anglican Communion, the Archbishop of Canterbury and our diocesan bishop, the Rt. Rev. Gary Lillibridge. This apostolic connection is not through the provincial structure of The Episcopal Church or its Presiding Bishop;

2. RESOLVED: to continue to participate fully in the life of the Diocese of West Texas and to pay its full diocesan apportionment;

3. RESOLVED: that Christ Episcopal Church disassociates itself

• from those actions of The Episcopal Church’s General Convention that impair The Episcopal Church’s relationships with other provinces of the Anglican Communion;

• from those statements and actions made by the Presiding Bishop and other leaders within The Episcopal Church that support positions that have not been tested or accepted by the Anglican Communion or the wider Christian community;

• from the failure of the Presiding Bishop and other bishops and leaders to live within the guidelines of the Windsor Report.




For his part, Bishop Lillibridge assured us that he is, and will continue:

• to be a “Windsor” bishop, affirming the Windsor Report;

• to support a diocesan policy that allows congregations and individuals to redirect their portion of TEC funds to other ministries outside the diocese;

• to support CEC’s relationships with the wider communion, such as with Uganda and Nigeria.

We believe that this statement and these actions allow our parish to affirm the historic Christian faith that we proclaim, yet reject the erroneous teachings that are accepted by many in TEC.

Unanimously Approved October 21, 2008