It gives me no pleasure to be talking about what will likely be happening when the Diocese of San Joaquin (California) meets in convention this Friday and Saturday.
In an earlier post, I reported that Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori had written an important letter to the Rt. Rev. John-David Schofield, the Bishop of San Joaquin. In it, she said that she had received reports of a letter he had sent to convention delegates that appeared to urge them to take action to leave The Episcopal Church (TEC). She reminded the bishop that such action would likely violate his ordination vows to "uphold the doctrine, discipline, and worship of Christ as this Church has received them." The Presiding Bishop went on to say:
"If you now feel that you can no longer do so, the more honorable course would be to renounce your orders in this Church and seek a home elsewhere. Your public assertion that your duty is to violate those vows puts many, many people at hazard of profound spiritual violence. I urge you, as a pastor, to consider that hazard with the utmost gravity."
There is no news of any response from the Bishop of San Joaquin to the Presiding Bishop's letter. This does not mean, of course, that +San Joaquin's intentions have changed. The first steps in the process have already appeared in the form of a document on the diocesan website titled "PROPOSED AMENDMENTS TO THE DIOCESAN CONSTITUTION". These changes (which may be read here), if passed, will amount to a clear attempt by the Diocese of San Joaquin to secede from The Episcopal Church.
An important aspect of the strategy followed by San Joaquin and other "secessionist" dioceses, has been their appeal to the Archbishop of Canterbury for what is called "Alternative Primatial Oversight" (APO). While secessionists cite deep theological reasons for seeking APO, its more pragmatic aim is to enlist ++Canterbury, or the Anglican Communion or, at least, "the Global South," in helping reframe their insurrection as the act of 'a faithful remnant'. This has precious little to do with 'looking good'. On the contrary, it has everything to do with establishing one's claim to 'the goods' - the assets (churches, schools, resources, etc.) of the defecting diocese - property currently vested in The Episcopal Church.
Just recently, a whole platoon of organizations associated with The Episcopal Church sent an open letter to the Archbishop of Canterbury on the issue of the applications for APO. The text can be found on the well-known 'blog: Father Jake Stops the World under the title: "An Open Letter to the Archbishop of Canterbury". If they'd asked me to help write that letter, I'd have made the point in the previous paragraph.
By the way, it's worthwhile rooting around on Father Jake's excellent 'blog - it has his take on the events in Fresno this week, as well as a lot of other ingeresting stuff.
Finally, don't get too upset with the likely outcome of the deliberations this week at the San Joaquin Diocesan Convention. It will take a second reading before any final step is taken, and that will not happen until a year from now. A lot can happen in a year. As Robbie Burns' said:
The best-laid schemes o' mice an' men
Gang aft agley …
Comments