Another Story About PECUSA Inclusivity

Priest is braced for more battles
Episcopalians will again attempt to name Lawrence leader of diocese
By CAROLYN CLICK - cclick@thestate.com

The Rev. Mark Lawence says he is prepared to re-enter the ecclesiastical fray once the Episcopal Diocese of South Carolina renews its bid to elect him as bishop.

There is no question the Lowcountry diocese wants the conservative California priest as its leader. In a recent letter to parishioners, retiring bishop Edward Salmon Jr. wrote of a consensus among leaders that “the Holy Spirit has spoken in the election of Fr. Lawrence.”

But Lawrence said Thursday he knows he will not escape a second round of divisive debate that mirrors in many ways the theological struggle in the larger Episcopal Church.

“I am sure it will happen again,” he said in a telephone interview from his office at St. Paul’s Episcopal Parish in Bakersfield, Calif. “How it unfolds is hard to know.”

His first election was invalidated March 15 by the Episcopal Church’s presiding bishop, Katharine Jefferts Schori, because some of the 56 diocesan votes, called consents, were obtained via e-mail. Church law requires that each American diocese file written consents.

It was the church’s first rejection of a bishop in nearly 75 years. But beyond the technical difficulties, the election revealed a growing fault line between biblical conservatives like Lawrence and the more liberal wing of the American denomination. The Episcopal Church in America, with 2.3 million members, is part of the 77-million worldwide Anglican Communion.

The 2003 election of V. Gene Robertson, a practicing gay priest, as the bishop of New Hampshire exacerbated the divisions. But other issues also have alienated a handful of dioceses enough for them to seek alternative leadership. Lawrence’s diocese, the Diocese of San Juaquin, and the Diocese of South Carolina are among them.

“The issues that we are dealing with, from the authority of scripture to issues of sexuality to the doctrine of the church internationally, these are things we will struggle with for at least a generation,” Lawrence said. “They are not going away.”

The diocese has resolved to fight for Lawrence’s election and has set in motion a process for re-election that begins June 9. Once the diocese elects him, it has 120 days to obtain consents from around the country.

“I guess we will see whether those who speak often of reconciliation will be conciliatory,” Lawrence said. “If South Carolina does re-elect me, there is an opportunity for the Episcopal Church to say we are this big tent, this inclusive body, that we claim we are.”

Some in the diocese have questioned why Lawrence’s would be the only name placed in nomination, said Steve Skardon, a Charleston Episcopalian who runs a Web site called South Carolina Episcopalians (www.dioceseofsc.com).

“There has been plenty of conversation about at least having a choice,” he said. But Skardon said there is no sentiment for a huge battle, and he believes most Episcopalians in the diocese are willing to accept and embrace Lawrence.

“I think people have been kind of worn down by the controversy and are very anxious to get back to their parishes and doing the Lord’s work,” Skardon said.