Christianity Today: Episcopal Headquarters Takes Steps to Remove Conservative Bishops

The call for patience in the 30-year battle for the soul of the Episcopal Church does not resonate as loudly as it once did, however, as the doctrinal differences between the liberal and conservative wings of the church deepen.

For the diocese of Fort Worth, Bishop Jefferts Schori’s Christmas card epitomized the two faiths co-existing within the Episcopal Church. The card sent to all of the church’s bishops shows a mother and child surrounded by three wise women. No mention of Jesus appears on the card, while the card speaks of “wise women throughout time and in every culture know themselves to be seekers and seers of the divine.”

This card “defies explanation” the diocesan leadership said. Bishop Jefferts Schori is an “intelligent woman, so this re-interpretation of Scripture to exclude masculine images must be intentional. This card illustrates in many ways the core problem of the General Convention Church. Scripture cannot be made to conform to us, we must conform our lives and our faith to Scripture,” the diocese said.

Read it all.

Posted in * Anglican - Episcopal, Episcopal Church (TEC), TEC Bishops, TEC Conflicts, TEC Conflicts: Fort Worth, TEC Conflicts: San Joaquin

12 comments on “Christianity Today: Episcopal Headquarters Takes Steps to Remove Conservative Bishops

  1. Choir Stall says:

    KJS and her litigious acolytes are liars and the truth is not in them.
    Just last Summer all kinds of assurances were given that conservatives were welcome and at the table. The pre-emptive strike against Duncan and Iker show that the table in mind was the children’s table in the corner.

  2. Words Matter says:

    This Christmas card: is an image of it online anywhere?

  3. Words Matter says:

    Should have googled first: [url=http://www.bridgebuilding.com/narr/jmepi.html]here it is[/url]. Jesus kind of looks like a little girl I know.

  4. libraryjim says:

    From the website:

    [blockquote]Narrative: Wise women throughout time and in every culture know themselves to be seekers and seers of the Divine. In Janet McKenzie’s interpretation of the Magi, women around the world find an image of the Epiphany that includes and validates their encounters with the One Who Saves, celebrated here in the powerful, protective and tender manifestation of a mother and her child, embraced and nurtured by a loving community. Here is global inclusiveness and a vision of mutuality and interdependence – the giving and receiving of the three gifts essential to life itself: presence, love and daily bread. Epiphany proclaims again and anew: Christ for all people. God’s favor extends to all!

    Christmas Card Message:
    May the joy and peace of Christmas be with you always
    [/blockquote]
    Note: IMO, “Mary” looks more African than Middle Eastern, and “Jesus” looks ‘white’.

  5. libraryjim says:

    P.S., Also note: Not one masculine pronoun in the enitre narrative!

  6. Wilfred says:

    Theologically dubious. But artistically, not bad. At least it wasn’t done in elephant-dung.

  7. TomRightmyer says:

    The joke is that the wise women brought diapers and casseroles – and came earlier because they stopped along the way to ask directions.

  8. Tom Roberts says:

    … probably could smell the path of the exiting (and redolent) shepherds.

  9. Sir Highmoor says:

    Bishop Jefferts Schori’s Christmas card epitomized the two faiths co-existing within the Episcopal Church. The card sent to all of the church’s bishops shows a mother and child surrounded by three wise women. No mention of Jesus appears on the card, while the card speaks of “wise women throughout time and in every culture know themselves to be seekers and seers of the divine.”
    Does everybody in the Diocese of South Carolina know about this card?

  10. Larry Morse says:

    I didn’t see a lesbian in the card. Did I miss something?
    It is hard to know whether to laugh or curse bitterly when Schori’s does agenda driven things like this. This card has little to do with Ephiphany, a lot to do with peddling the feminist agenda. Even Christ is a little girl.
    If you were bishop in TEC, what would be your response to this card? My point, I guess, is that this is what bigotry looks like, only in this case it is liberal bigotry. This card fits the dictionary definition. LM

  11. Cousin Vinnie says:

    With the hits she has ordered on orthodox bishops, she is acting less like a wise woman and more like a “wise guy,”

  12. nwlayman says:

    It shows how much contempt Schori still has for her mother’s conversion.