The West Texas Bishop Gary Lillibridge fielded questions from some of his people as to whether or not they have a place in the LGBT-run Episcopal denomination. He said,
“At this point, it's going to take all of us working together with God's wisdom as a very diverse diocese to come up with a response,” he said after the meeting at Christ Church, the largest donor to the West Texas Diocese and its largest church with up to 800 people at weekly services.
Where was "working together" when the chaos was imposed?
So let's say I come to your house. You are basically "nice" and you let me hang out. Then I start doing weird things like calling the shots as to your family's daily schedule. I control the remote. I bogart the computer over the whining of your kids.
I start using your car and, if I let you come along, only my tunes get played. But hey, you're nice and you go along to get along.
Then you come home from work to find I've smashed out some walls and windows, ripped up some flooring, and thrown some appliances and artwork to the curb.
With righteous indignation, you cry, "That's it! Get out of here, you maniac!"
But I just put on my smarmiest, I'm-so-spiritual whispy voice and say, "It's going to take all of us working together with God's wisdom to complete this remodeling."
- Fin -
5 comments:
S.C. has set a pretty high standard for "coming up with a response", haven't they, Tim?
At the least, though, Lillibridge goes back to West Texas having waved a battle flag in Anaheim, and everybody in West Texas who was paying attention to the events of GC's second week knows it. When he acknowledges publicly that West Texas is a "diverse diocese", and yet is not willing (as a young bishop) to let status quo reign, but states that they WILL "come up with a response", I'd say he was unfurling that battle flag again.
West Texas is in for some tough stuff, and God is going to be glorified. We'll need to pray.
Where was working together when the chaos was imposed?
Good question. Even when Pike spoke heresy, the House of Bishops didn't work togeher to remove him and that was the camel's nose under the tent.
Trying to blame is useless. Complacency has been a dowenfall in every generation. Just look at Israel's history in the OT!
In truth, the Devil has worked by stealth using the LGBT activists to accomplish chaos, destruction, and suffering.
Review the events:
The Philadelphia ordination of the 11 women (several lesbians) came in 1974, the same year that "Integrity" was founded.
The next year the "Me Too" document was sent by Integrity to all US Roman Catholic bishops.
In September 1975, more lesbians were ordained in Washington D.C.. Here is Louie Crew's admission of stealth: "More 'irregular' ordinations of women took place… after our convention. In Washington at the time, on a missionary journey to our new chapters in the east, Jim Wickliff and I yielded to the counsel of friends who advised that our visibility at the ordination might put in jeopardy lesbians among all early ordinands." From here: http://andromeda.rutgers.edu/~lcrew/gayhist.htm
In 1976 General Convention passed a resolution affirming homosexual behavior ('we are children of God' proclamation).
In 1977, Bishop Paul Moore (NY) ordained Ellen Marie Barrett, who had served as Integrity's first co-president.
Homosexual activists have attacked the Historic Faith and Practice every year since the founding of Integrity. The undermining of catholic orders has been persistent and steady.
Those who uphold Holy Tradition are on firm ground, but we are surrounded by many who hate us for what we represent, a Faith that resists their demonically-inspired vision.
Rob+, the little parable I wrote was my own mea culpa. I am certainly among those who bought the lies at the now defunct (well, it still operates but commercial interests use most of it for condos) General Seminary and came out as a young priest polluting the church, betraying God and His people in the process.
Then, even after I realized that I had to get back to Evangelical Faith and Apostolic Order, I bought into "unity in diversity" and the lie that "the crazy stuff is just in a few crazy places - if I just do faithful ministry where I am, that's plenty."
So "let's all work together" is something I recognize as an admission of failure. It's what we say when we've already let people get away with stuff that should have been resisted.
I think that S. Carolina, W. Louisiana, Albany, C. Florida and other places are offering sincere witness to the Gospel. I would say that my parish is attempting the same.
But read the new post with quotes from the ELCA... "Let's all pull together because we are all in pain"? Please.
Prayer will continue, and I am grateful for faithful witnesses like yourself who stir us up to do that work. But there's also the reality that I am of a generation of really weak Christians (clergy in particular) who played around with a comfy, compromised Gospel and now bear the consequences.
So I wrestle less with "Stay in TEC or go to ACNA?" than with "Continue in ordained ministry or get a secular job and ask God for (more) mercy on my soul?"
Whatever you do make sure you stay in God's presence. Never leave.
Tim,
I had posted something to my weblog before I saw your post re: my sermon from last Sunday. But today, after checking out something that "Billy Ockham" posted, and putting the two together - the sermon, the song - it made me think of your post and response to my comment. So I put the two together as an update on Surrounded just to let you know my solidarity with you- that is, I feel your pain, and, you are not alone, and, what "anonymous" said, and, what you already know.
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