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Lambeth Postscript: August 15, 2008

As Becky and I prepare to return to Alabama, I am aware that there is considerably more that needs to be written about Lambeth 2008. An experience so rich and complex cannot be summarized in a few weeks or a few words. I will be addressing this in a future article in The Apostle later in the fall.

I would recall that early in the conference Archbishop Williams offered a seminal observation when he said that what the Anglican Communion needs most of all is "transformed relationships." This was the essence of Lambeth 2008. A transformation of relationships began there among the bishops and will need to continue in wider circles as we all appreciate more deeply the complex worldwide community in which we engage in God's mission together. There are many challenges ahead of us to be sure, especially in such areas as the proposed development of an Anglican Covenant, the ongoing

Windsor process, and addressing the Millennium Development Goals in our social witness. Our mutual loyalty to one another in Christ will be an essential element in rising to meet them.

As we all reflect upon the Lambeth Conference, I urge you to review the materials available on the Anglican Communion Web site, www.anglicancommunion. org, and find there many documents worth reading, including the three presidential addresses and the brilliant address to the conference by Jonathan Sacks, the Chief Rabbi of England.

God bless you for the remainder of summer and for the new beginnings of fall,

6 August 2008, The Feast of the Transfiguration

To the Clergy and People of the Diocese of Alabama

Dear Friends in Christ:

Becky and I send greetings from Great Britain where we are resting after the Lambeth Conference. Our nearly three weeks in Canterbury were both spiritually rich and physically draining as we spent our days in many meetings and services of worship with bishops and spouses from the 130 countries where the Anglican Communion has its being. We are presently in the countryside of Oxfordshire where the simpler sight of sheep and meadows and quiet streams is most welcome.

The Lambeth Conference concluded last Sunday evening where we began, at prayer in Canterbury Cathedral. It ended well, with a profound sense of the unity in diversity that we share in Christ, which has characterized Anglican Christianity for many centuries. In the midst of the complexities of this present time, there was among the bishops a broad commitment to staying together and preserving the unique gift of the Anglican Communion. The strong center of the church held firm.

This was a different Lambeth Conference from the first one we attended in 1998. It was much more as Archbishop Longley first envisioned this gathering of bishops to be in 1867. Its focus was relationship, both with Christ and with one another, and appreciating the challenges we face across the world in our apostolic ministries. I believe that the great accomplishment of this Lambeth was knitting the fabric of the communion together in our relationships as bishops.

The structure of the conference was that of the "inbaba," an African word for a gathering of the community to discuss in depth issues facing the group. We met in the same indaba group of about 35 bishops each day. The purpose of indaba is to allow all voices to be heard in some depth. The goal is the conversation itself, not a formal report or resolution. In the West we always expect "something to be decided." Indaba is about listening and finding wisdom in the group.

Accordingly, the outcome of this Lambeth Conference is not a series of reports or resolutions. It is a faithful summary of reflections that seek to summarize the indaba conversations. We received the reflections document on Sunday. It was prepared by a group of writers from each indaba, with some open discussion but not edited or adopted formally by the bishops as a whole. It is well to remember this as you hear of "what the bishops said" at Lambeth. The reflections reveal a range of views on many subjects, and may be - undoubtedly will be - interpreted in different ways, especially on the burning issues of the day.

My experience of the conference was that we listened deeply to one another with respect and mutual loyalty. A wide range of opinion was expressed on the Windsor Report, issues of human sexuality, and the proposed Anglican Covenant. As we listened to one another respectfully and openly the result was greater understanding on all sides, along with a passionate desire to be faithful to the Gospel in our different contexts and to the inheritance we have received as Anglicans. Did we resolve all the issues? Did we answer all the urgent questions? No, but we built the relational foundation necessary to address the issues with deeper understanding and commitment in the years to come.

One of the greatest moments of the conference was the "March of Witness" in London in support of the Millennium Development Goals, which seek to address the greatest needs of the earth and her peoples at present. We were absolutely united in seeing these as a framework for the mission Christ has entrusted to us for the healing of the world. After three weeks with bishops from some of the earth's most challenged places one cannot help but be moved by the needs and opportunities before us to join together in God's mission.

Lambeth 2008 was a most meaningful and spiritually renewing experience. I look forward to telling you more about it in the months to come, and to hearing the questions that you have for Bishop Sloan and me after reading various accounts of the conference. There are stories to tell. As one group reported, "the indaba must continue" as we go home to our dioceses.

With every blessing for the remainder of the summer,

Your servant in Christ,

Henry

24 July 2008

Canterbury, England

Sisters and Brothers in Christ:

Once again I send warm greetings to all of you from the Lambeth Conference. Today some 650 bishops, along with many spouses, friends, and ecumenical guests, marched in central London to Lambeth Palace in public support of the Millennium Development Goals. The Archbishop of Canterbury and the Prime Minister gave passionate addresses about the urgent importance of these goals and the need for world governments to keep their promise to do our level best to work toward them.

As we marched, all awash in purple colors and festive outfits, past 10 Downing Street, Westminister Abbey, and the Houses of Parliament, over the Thames River, Big Ben rang out eleven o'clock in its deep baritone voice. The chimes seemed to underline the significance of our Christian witness to the highest priority of these efforts to reduce poverty and human suffering in God's world. In our worship during the march we recalled the words of the prophet Micah, "what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God?"

I urge us all to reflect on this particular moment in the Lambeth Conference, and convey its significance to our people. There are excellent articles and photographs available at www.anglicancommunion.org/acns <http://www.anglicancommunion.org/acns>.

It is difficult for us here to learn fully what is being said about Lambeth in the secular press. From the sampling of things I have seen, it appears that the media is mainly focussing on the divisions over human sexuality in the Communion, the absence of numbers of bishops from some parts of the global south, the presence of Bishop Robinson outside the conference, and various warnings about schism This is typical of too much of the competitive media and of the reductionist sensationalism of our age. It is always seductive. But I assure you that the Lambeth Conference is infinitely more than this.
I want you to know that we are sharing together in deep Bible study and profound worship. We are engaged with the challenges before the church in mission and witness. We are encouraging each other in our ministries, discussing our Anglican identity and diversity, and learning fresh ideas. I deeply regret the absence of some bishops. We need their faith and voices. But I firmly believe that we are called by Jesus to love one another in the midst of our inevitable differences and to preserve absolutely our sacramental fellowship. We who are here, the vast majority of the Anglican world, are seeking to do this faithfully, honestly, and joyfully.

An special joy for me has been seeing my friend Barnabas, Bishop of Sittwe, Myanmar. We were in Bible study together in 1998 here and I have never forgotten him. He has been laboring in God's vineyard in a war torn and challenging land for over 20 years. Barnabas speaks little English but is a courageous servant of God uniquely eloquent in communicating Christ's love and grace.

What I see each day is a beautiful tapestry of God's church and an array of faithful, gifted, and courageous servants seeking to witness to the saving grace of Jesus Christ and to do his work of redeeming and reconciling love in the world. It is an amazing sight. I thank God to be among these faithful people and to be part of this council of the church. Let no one, absolutely no one, diminish it.

Faithfully in Christ,

Henry

Sunday evening, July 20, 2008

To the Clergy and People of the Diocese of Alabama:

Greetings from Canterbury and the Lambeth Conference. Bishop Sloan and I are well-ensconced in Canterbury and the conference is off to a fine beginning. We spent the first days in retreat in the cathedral with the Archbishop offering several rich addresses on our faith and ministry as bishops in the church. We had this holy and beautiful place all to ourselves for hours of prayer, meditation, and quiet conversation with one another. It was spiritually invigorating and an excellent way to begin the Lambeth Conference.

Today we celebrated a festival Holy Eucharist in the cathedral with some 650 bishops and countless spouses and guests present and many ecumenical partners. The Missa Luba sung by the choir of men and boys was splendid and dancers from Melanesia in native dress danced the Gospel procession with brilliant singing and reverence. The Bishop of Colombo, Sri Lanka preached a wise sermon about the challenges before the Anglican Communion. He was honest about the problems we face and passionate about the need for us to stay together for the sake of the Gospel. Citing the parable of the wheat and the tares (one of my personal favorites) he noted that Jesus said that the two must grow together and that they share the same soil. As a communion he suggested that we must renew our commitment to self-scrutiny, standing naked before God and examining the log in our own eye not just the mote in our neighbor's; that we must renew our commitment to unity in diversity, an Anglican hallmark for centuries; and that we must renew our prophetic voice, both as a voice for the voiceless and to call to account those who abuse power. He reminded us of William Temple's great words that the 'church is the only institution that exists for those outside' and concluded saying that we must give all our energy toward offering Christ's abundant life for the others.

In the afternoon we turned to the work of the conference, which will focus on renewing our Anglican identity and resourcing one another for our ministry as bishops in the service of God's mission. In his presidential address the Archbishop described the 'indaba' process as a new way for us to consult one another about the issues before us and present a written record of our conversation to the wider church. There will be no formal resolutions. These conversations begin tomorrow and will conclude at the end of next week. Tomorrow we will address Anglican identity and in course there will be reviews of the proposed covenant and other timely topics.

I urge you to review the reports of Lambeth published regularly by the Episcopal News Service on the church's website and those posted on the website of the Anglican Communion. I especially recommend to your reading the Archbishop's address today. There are many voices here and many points of view, not always represented comprehensively on various agenda- based websites and in the public media. The two above-mentioned sites are readily accessible and reasonably balanced, I believe.

There is a very good and positive spirit among us, thanks be to God. I sat in the great choir today with several bishops from New Zealand, wonderful persons of faith and spirit. We are blessed with a remarkable and gifted communion of churches and a rich legacy of faith and mission since St. Augustine came to Canterbury in 597. It is a sacred trust indeed.

We have much difficult work to do together in the days to come. It is all about the renewal of the Anglican Communion in trying times. By the grace of God we will do our best to preserve and renew the mission and fellowship entrusted to us. We count on your prayers and assure you of ours daily from this holy place.

A verse from one of our final hymns in the cathedral today is a fitting conclusion for this word from Canterbury:

God's own true image we possess
In innocence first known,
Now tainted by the hate and spite
To Christ's own body shown.
By that same wounded heart of love
God's image is restored'
To sing again the pilgrims' song:
'Your kingdom come, O Lord!'

May it be so.

Grace and peace,

Henry

June 2008

Dear Friends in Christ:

An old friend recently sent me the article reprinted below, which was written years ago and continues to reflect the passionate love for our Lord and the Episcopal Church that burns in the heart of many of us. I offer it to you, slightly edited, as a witness to the enduring spirit of this Church, to the sure truth that as some things change much remains the same, and in hopes that it will bring a smile to your face.

I love the Episcopal Church, and in spite of the desirability of modern ecumenism, perhaps I secretly
hope that I may die in her arms. I love her not conditionally or with calculation, not with careful reservations, but freely, joyfully, wholeheartedly.

I love the stone-and-brick stateliness of her old city parishes, even when they get down at the heels because "the neighborhood has changed." And her tatty little small-town churches, smelling faintly musty and damp, kept going somehow in the face of great challenges by devoted, self-giving souls. And her gleaming, spanking-fresh suburban churches too, whose modern architecture speaks of the unending creativity of the Spirit.

I love her high-church places with their clouds of smoke from the incense pot and their chants. And
no less do I love her low-church parishes, all furniture polish and gleaming brass and memorial tablets, some still with the restrained but curiously exuberant dignity of choral Morning Prayer.

I love her Book of Common Prayer, her firm doctrine and emphasis on sound learning, her devotion
to scripture and tradition, and the glorious cadences of her language. But I love too the freedom that she grants her children, her openness to the new, her breadth of humanity, her expansive love, learned at the feet of Christ.

I love the bright young families proudly ranged in their pews on Sunday morning, and the elegant elderly who have seen it all, and the sparse little congregations on weekdays whose hushed devotion to their Lord is an almost palpable radiance. And her old priests whose eyes show the compassion taught them in a lifetime, and her young priests who are so sure that the world can be won in five years at the outside.

I love the names of her heroes-Cranmer, Hooker, Julian, Pusey, Gore, Underhill, Lewis,
Seabury, Breck, DeKoven. And a hundred others, including some private ones of my own.
I love the letters to The Living Church that begin, "Dear Sir: It is high time . . .." And the solemn verbiage with which the Executive Council launches a new project, the billowing sleeves of the bishops' rochets, and the whole mad range of possible headgear that clerics can wear. I even love the battered Prayer Books in the pew racks that are sometimes confused with Hymnals.

I love the eccentric ladies in city parishes who dress in liturgical colors. And the uproarious stories about departed dignitaries that are told whenever the clergy gather and have time for small talk.
I love the Holy Communion, and the beauty of holiness, and the hands of young and old reverently raised to receive the sacrament.

I really can't help it. I don't know if everybody ought to be an Episcopalian; it may be that other people feel as strongly about their Churches as I do about mine. I do know that I love the Episcopal
Church and that I am sworn to her, forsaking all others.

I'm glad of it. And it isn't denominational loyalty or sectarian spirit or party fervor or naiveté about her imperfections. It's love.

Written originally by the Rev. James Pearson, edited by the Rev. Don Henning, and further edited by yours truly.

With every blessing for your many ministries and a refreshing summer,
Faithfully in Christ,

The Rt. Rev. Henry N. Parsley Jr.

May 2008

In 1867 the Archbishop of Canterbury invited the 144 bishops of the Churches in communion with the Church of England to meet together for the first time in what would come to be known as the Lambeth Conference. The 2nd Bishop of Alabama, Richard Hooker Wilmer, was in attendance. Bishop Sloan and I will attend the 13^th Lambeth Conference this summer, July 16-August 3, in Canterbury, England. Some 600 bishops are expected to be present, along with many spouses.

Interestingly enough, it was the bishops of the Church of Canada who requested this first meeting of the bishops of what would come to be called the Anglican Communion. In 1867 Archbishop Longley was careful not to describe the conference of bishops as a synod or decision- making body for the Churches. The autonomy of the Churches in communion with England was highly valued, as well as the catholicity of the faith. It was understood to be imperative that decision-making synods include other clergy and laity in addition to bishops.

Lambeth Conference Prayer

Pour down upon us, O God, the gifts of your Holy Spirit, that those who prepare for the Lambeth Conference may be filled with wisdom and understanding. May they know at work within them that creative energy and vision which belong to our humanity, made in your image and redeemed by your love, through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Amen.

The Archbishop wrote, "It should be distinctly understood that at this meeting no declaration of faith shall be made, and no decision come to which shall effect generally the interests of the church, but that we shall meet together for brotherly counsel and encouragement. . . . Such a meeting would not be competent to make declaration or lay down definitions on points of doctrine. But united worship and common counsels would greatly tend to maintain practically the unity of the faith: whilst they would bind us in straiter bonds of peace and brotherly charity." These descriptions have remained the DNA of the Lambeth Conference, valuing at once the common counsel of bishops, the autonomy of each local Church and its Dioceses, and the interdependence we share as members of the one holy catholic and apostolic Church. In the midst of the Lambeth Conferences there have always been issues and controversies. In 1867 it was the matter of Bishop Colenso of Natal in Southern Africa who had been deposed by Natal for controversial teaching. In succeeding years issues such as divorce, contraception, polygamy, war and peace, the ministry of women, ecumenism, temperance, faith and modern thought, the administration of Holy Communion, racism, and of course in recent days some issues of human sexuality. These have been addressed by the bishops at Lambeth through reports, resolutions, and letters to the Churches, all having moral and spiritual weight but not central synodical authority.

The present Archbishop of Canterbury, Rowan Williams, has emphasized that this Lambeth Conference will not focus on resolutions but on spiritual fellowship, worship, and mutual encouragement in our roles as bishops in the 21st century. He wishes us to strengthen our sense of a shared Anglican identity and help equip bishops for their role as leaders in mission. There will be a two-day retreat in Canterbury Cathedral and a festive opening service there. Each conference day will include Bible study following the Gospel of John, three worship services, each sponsored by one of the 38 provinces in its own language and liturgy, and discussion on a variety of topics.

One of the important matters to be considered will be the draft of a proposed Anglican Covenant, which the bishops will discuss and offer feedback on to the drafting committee. The covenant represents an attempt to provide greater unity to the Anglican Communion while respecting the diversity of our Churches and cultures. Some of the concerns it addresses were at play in the very first Lambeth, as Anglicans have long sought to be a communion that values unity in diversity. Such a covenant's value would be in clarifying our Anglican identity and how we consult with one another. Its danger would be an overcentralization of the Communion and the role of primates.

The draft covenant is available at http://www.aco.org/commission/covenant, along with a study guide prepared by the Executive Council of our Church. Kee and I will be most grateful for your studying it and using the feedback form to give us your thoughts. Any such covenant could not be adopted by Lambeth. It would have to be accepted by the Anglican Consultative Council, meeting next in 2009, and then adopted by each of the 38 provinces over a period of years.

As always in our day there will be many voices commenting on the Lambeth Conference in the coming months. I urge you to use the official communication Web sites of the Anglican Communion, http://www.anglicancommunion.org, and the Episcopal Church, http://www.episcopalchurch.org, to follow the run-up to and news from the conference. Given the geopolitical complexities in the Communion at present it will be important, as Ephesians says, not to be "tossed to and fro and blown about by every wind of doctrine, by people's trickery . . . but speaking the truth in love we must grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ."Your bishops will make every attempt to keep you informed in a faithful and objective manner.

We ask your earnest prayers for the Lambeth Conference that God will use this important time to renew the bishops of the Anglican Communion in unity, mutual affection, and zeal for the mission of God.

Your servant in Christ,

The Rt. Rev. Henry N. Parsley Jr.

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