The monthly meditation had a playful air about it.
“A crone is an old woman. A crone is a witch. A crone is a wise woman. Which one will you be, my friend? Which one I?”
Wrapped around a rite for “croning”, the meditation embraced a history of mystical women and offered prayers to “Mothering God” and “Eternal Wisdom.” But the article was not in a new age publication or Wiccan blog: it was on the pages of the September newsletter of the Episcopal Diocese of Washington.
Entitled “Crone Power”, the meditation innocuously sat opposite a story about choosing a children’s Bible and next to a column on St. Jerome. The newsletter quickly drew the attention of Anglican bloggers, many of whom found the placement of what appeared to be a Wiccan ritual to be jarring in an official church publication. But intentionally or not, the publication and placement of the rite were reflective of a new reality: one in which practices drawn from or inspired by pagan belief, including witchcraft, are increasingly finding acceptance within the ranks of the Episcopal Church.
yes for many within it have deserted Jesus, spat in his face and made a pact with the self worship of this world….that much is surely obvious to anyone with eyes to see…
Diversity and vehicles. Vehicles and diversity. From the PB on down the EcUSA/tEc is rife with alternatives to Jesus. Take your pick!
Excellent article.
Very thoughtful, also allows an Episcopal Church priest to come up with a very good and healthy response to the Crone Liturgy.
Well I am an older woman and I ask you NOT to identify me as an old crone, Jesus Christ is my Savior and I have found that He is sufficient to anyone at any age.
I feel sorry for these women who have ignored the study of their own religion and gained so little wisdom at their age. If they had taken the time to study the Christian religion over the years they would understand its value to them and they might have found the respect they crave but it is hard to respect a person who ignores the riches provided by her own religion and evangelizes for religion of her own making.
This seems so jarringly out of place in a church that purports to follow Jesus who modeled abdication of self.
Better these self-identified “crones” should submit to their Lord and Savior and allow Him to call them to love and service to others.
Can you say “Samaritans”? That is what we are becoming, for our leaders are allowing a mixture of Christianity with the paganism of the culture, just as in the Northern Kingdom in the days of the prophets. The bright side is, look how many Samaritans were drawn to Jesus as he presented them with the truth! The mission field will one day be ripe for a great harvest of souls out of TEC!
[blockquote]The problem that exists with a lot of these pagan rituals is that they don’t bring the redeeming life of Jesus into them,†Sanders said. “They’re all about the participants, and that is where the problem lies.[/blockquote]
Agreed.
Hahahaha, telling the older ladies in our parish that they should be embracing their “inner crone” would probably get you slapped!
I think the article title is sensational, and meant to be so for whatever reason. Wish the RCC would have kept this woman but I don’t think she’s going to get an overwhelmingly positive reaction to her musings in TEC, either. The lib clergy might find her “empowering” and “prophetic” as they always seem to do but the vast majority of folks will move right along.
Deplorable. This will only lead to cronyism among the ecclesiastical
elites.
Does anyone have a copy of the referenced Episcopal Diocese of Washinton Newsletter? If it was ever on the Diocesan web site it has been expunged. I have no doubt that his article is factual, but it would nice to see the newsletter with my own eyes.
With disgust,
NW Bob
I definitely fit into the age-category of an older woman: I am 67. I would never identify as a “crone”. I identify as a servant of my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. I have submitted myself to Him and to Him only; He is the Ruler of my life and through His Grace I am able to minister to others. Down with crones and croneyism!!!
#10, lots of excerpts from the article were published on Stand Firm back in September:
http://www.standfirminfaith.com/?/sf/page/24720
Perhaps Greg has it archived?
As Karen B and others have noted, this is hardly news, but it is quite revealing and symptomatic of what’s wrong with TEC. It reminds me of G. K. Chesterton’s quip that when people stop believing in the Christian God, it’s not that they refuse to believe in anything anymore; rather they’ll fall for all sorts of nonsense. Or in short, if you don’t stand for something, you’ll fall for anything.
Congratulations to IRD. An informative, thoughtful article on a timely topic.
David Handy+
Also available from the Episcopal Diocese of Washington:
– ‘Toltec liturgy – worship with the heart’
– ‘Suttee made simple’
– ‘Thugees are people too’
– ‘Build your own wicker-man’
– ‘Cooking the Carib way’
– ‘Democracy, no substitute for theocracy? An Iranian president makes the case’
…….well, you never know.
I’ve bookmarked this article, so the next time someone says to me that the conflict in the Episcopal Church is all about ‘gays’, I can point back to it and say “Not at all! It’s about being loyal to God, and the truth revealed in the Bible, and the faith handed down; the conflict is about not worshiping inclusivity and ‘cultural relevance’.”
Jim Elliott <>< Florida