KIDDIE LITTER

from Midwest Conservative Journal by The Editor

If you can judge a man by the people who don’t like him, I may have to eventually admit that I was completely wrong about Rowan Williams. The Episcopal left continues to react to yesterday’s meeting with Anglican Communion Secretary General Kenneth Kearon by forcefully demonstrating that it just doesn’t get it:

“I don’t think [Canon Kearon’s] responses clarified matters,” the Rev. Canon Mark Harris told The Living Church.

Translation: Mark didn’t hear what he wanted to hear.

Sarah Dylan Breuer of Massachusetts said she felt disappointed, particularly over “remov[ing] people from [ecumenical] conversation,” but added: “We have opportunities to get creative.”

Neither did Sarah but she was more upbeat about it. After all, “getting creative” is something Episcopalians are particularly good at.

In her closing remarks to the council on Thursday afternoon, House of Deputies President Bonnie Anderson referred to a statement made by Canon Kearon that some people desire that the Archbishop of Canterbury act as a pope.

It always gets back around to that, doesn’t it? The Episcopal Organization!! Where every day is Guy Fawkes Day!!

“I’m still an Anglican, and nobody, whether it is a person who is told that they are an Anglican pope or that they should not be an Anglican pope … can tell me that I’m not an Anglican,” she said.

Bonnie? Kitten? That’s not what’s in view here and you know it. AH-OOH-GAH, AH-OOH-GAH, BEVERAGE ALERT, BEVERAGE ALERT!! Immediately swallow whatever you’re drinking and remove all liquids from the vicinity of your computer!!

She also told The Living Church that she sees the disciplinary actions as contributing to a “strain in Anglican Communion relationships.”

I have to tell you that as far as I’m concerned, airheaded obliviousness like that isreally impressive. You have to go some to be that out of touch.

“Do you sign on to … a punitive body of Christ?” she asked. “Are we now part of a punitive body of Christ?”

No, B, we’re part of a church that actually believes something. Meanwhile, someone named Lucas Mix thinks he’s caught my gracious lord of Canterbury in a contradiction.

And herein lies the rub for Rowan Williams. He can either choose for national autonomy or for an international church, and I would respect either choice. If he chooses national autonomy he has no right to tell the Episcopal Church (USA) or any other Anglican province how, who, or in what manner they can choose bishops. As a man appointed by Parliament, he looks mighty silly claiming authority over an elected American Primate. Archbishop Williams may or may not choose to allow Presiding Bishop Jefferts-Schori to preach in his jurisdiction, but he cannot stand in judgment of her consecration.

Lucas! Use the Force, Lucas! My gracious lord of Canterbury was not passing judgment on her consecration but on her primacy. Specifically, the way she and her pseudo-spiritual debating society have been using their “apostolic” connection to Canterbury to completely reinvent the Christian religion.

If, alternatively, he chooses an international church, he has no right to call himself an Archbishop. John Henry Newman became famous for leaving the Church of England for Rome. The belief in an international church leads one, in the end, to recognize the largest and oldest church (in the West) as the central authority. Rowan Williams only has authority as the Archbishop of Canterbury because he thinks the British Parliament gives him that right. Thus Mr. Williams is free to believe in the international church, but it makes of him a Roman Catholic layman, and not an Archbishop.

Oh sweet mother of…now do you people see up with which I have to put? Lucas? Try this one on. Did you know that one of the official titles of Pope Benedict XVI is “Archbishop and Metropolitan of the Province of Rome?”

About the only Christians who still use the title “Metropolitan” on a regular basis are the Eastern Orthodox. So according to your “reasoning,” His Holiness has either got to drop that title or become an Eastern Orthodox layman.

Similarly, Shenouda III is the head of the Coptic Church in Egypt. I don’t what the term is in Coptic or Arabic but one of his titles is “Pope of Alexandria.” Since ”Pope” is Western, Shenouda is obligated to either drop it or become a Roman Catholic layman.

Shenouda also styles himself the “Patriarch of the See of St. Mark.” Since “Patriarch” is almost exclusively identified with Eastern Orthodoxy these days, Shenouda must also drop that title as well or convert to some branch of the Eastern Orthodox Church.

For the love of God, Lucas, try a little harder than that.

Mr. Williams seems to have forgotten that his power as head of the Anglican communion rests squarely on national autonomy.

Wrong. It depends on the respect that Anglican churches, or those churches who call themselves Anglican, have for the Anglican tradition.

Apparently he has also forgotten that he has a freedom of conscience, for his decisions as head of the communion are utterly at odds with what he published as a theologian (when he was actively and famously pro-gay).

Wrong again, jackass. Dr. Williams’ actions suggest two things. He may be “actively and famously pro-gay” but he doesn’t necessarily believe that his views must prevail over the views of the Communion he leads.

And unlike Her Arrogance there in New York or any of the rest of her “church”, my gracious lord of Canterbury at least seems open to the possibility of his own imperfection.

I hope he comes to his senses soon.

From all indications, I think there’s a good chance that he has.

I hope he realizes what it means to be an Anglican.

He understands that a whole lot better than the Americans do.

The alternative, for him and for many others, can only be a hierarchical international church that lacks the wealth, history, prestige, complexity, and numbers of the Roman Catholic Church.

Anglicanism is, what, the third largest international Christian tradition in the world?

Our true heritage and our Divine gift has always been national autonomy, theological diversity, and the ability to disagree with one another.

In a Christian context, L. “Our true heritage” has never been to make crap up and call it Christianity.

Otherwise, we’re just disobedient Romans.

Or Protestants. To-may-to, to-mah-to.

Do you know how to identify an adult? Here’s one way.

I suppose there are quite a few Roman Catholics who have read arguments for and against women’s ordination and are persuaded by the former. If you’re one of those, what do you do? If you’re a grown-up, you have two options.

One is to drop the subject. You may still think women ought to be ordained but your church doesn’t so that’s that and there’s no point in raising a fuss. But if the issue is important enough to you, your other option is to leave the Roman Catholic Church and join a church that ordains women.

Those are adult responses. A childish response would be something along the lines of loudly declaring that you believe women should be ordained and you don’t care what the Church teaches, that you’re as good a Roman Catholic as anyone and that no old man in Rome has the right to tell you differently.

Here’s the deal. Whatever else you can say about him, Rowan Williams is an adult. And he realizes that the teaching of the Communion on the subject of homosexuality does not agree with his own views on the subject.

So what does he do? Joyfully participate in the consecrations of Gene Robinson and Mary Glasspool, kill the Anglican Communion and jump up and down on its corpse? Or try to keep the Communion together as best he can, implying that maybe he was the one who got it wrong?

Rowan Williams understands that the Anglican Communion means something and stands for something. Dr. Williams might not agree with the conclusions the Communion he leads comes to but he loves the tradtion anyway and, unlike the Episcopalians, he does not think that his disagreement grants him the right to unilaterally annul Communion understanding.

Because the Archbishop of Canterbury is two things that the United States Anglican primate is not. A grown-up. And something who is willing to admit the possibility that he might be wrong.