wfn.org | Address from the Chair The Most Rev

[ENS.parti@ecunet.org (ENS)]

November 13, 1997
Episcopal News Service
Jim Solheim, Director
212-922-5385
ens@ecunet.org  
97-2012
Address from the Chair The Most Rev. Edmond L. Browning
Executive Council
November 6, 1997

       Dear friends, given that this is the first meeting of this new
council and my last meeting, it feels a little strange to preside here once
more. I have talked with the Presiding Bishop-elect, and I think, from
our different perspectives, we agree that this transition is too long. I hope
the church will re-think future transitions and move to have the new
Presiding Bishop in place by this meeting, so that Executive Council and
Presiding Bishop begin the journey together. However, since I remain in
office for another 55 days, 14 hours and 30 minutes, give or take a few
minutes, I'll take this opportunity to share some final thoughts. 
       Let me begin by saying a word about Frank Griswold, and how
blessed the church is to have his leadership. Bishop Griswold is a faithful
pastor, and a wise and articulate leader. Frank and I are different in
many ways, and I believe this is healthy for the church. At the same
time, our whole beings are rooted in the common ground of our Lord.
He and Pam Chinnis have already begun to forge a partnership for the
new triennium, and their strengths combined will be a great gift for the
whole church. My love, and my prayers, are with you both.
       Several experiences leave me with a full heart this morning, and
they have a common thread, which gives me my parting word for you.
That word is reconciliation. Last month I visited Coventry and preached
in that great cathedral, which has been rebuilt amidst the rubble of World
War II bombing. The rebuilding of Coventry, after the suffering of that
war, is dedicated to reconciliation. Seeing the new cathedral, which rose
up out of the ruins, was a powerful reminder to me, and for all of us, of
the call to healing in the midst of division and pain. 
       The visit to Coventry took me back to my first visit to Hiroshima
and the war memorial there. Forever etched in my memory is the face of
an old woman, who was a child when the atomic bomb exploded. She
spoke of that day, and walking among the ruins of that city, with
grotesque death all around her. And then, after sharing the horror of that
experience, she looked at us, a group of Americans, and said simply,
"Forgive us, for what we have done to your country."  I was undone.
The sculpture at Hiroshima of two figures, kneeling, facing one another,
is at Coventry as well. They bear witness to the reconciliation that can
come out of division, and tragedy. 
       This past weekend at Jamestown, Virginia, the Indian leadership
of our church gathered with other leaders of our church, including Dr.
Chinnis and myself, in another powerful witness of reconciliation. We
agreed to enter into a new covenant, based on mutual respect and a
commitment to justice. The original Jamestown Covenant in 1606
referred to the Native Americans as infidels and savages. The colonists
saw them as less than human, and we look at this today and are rightfully
ashamed. And over the years since then, our church has been complicit
in the long string of broken promises and oppression that has befallen our
native peoples. Yet out of all that brokenness, these faithful members of
this church have called on us to enter into a new covenant.  I would say
to you that this kind of reaching out across a great divide of pain for past
sins and seeking a new beginning is a model for the whole church, not
only with our Native Americans, but wherever in the church there is a
need for reconciliation and healing.
       Experiences such as my recent one in Coventry, and the earlier
one at Hiroshima, and then at Jamestown, have helped shape who I am
today, and what my ministry has been all about. I have learned that
enormous redemption takes place when one who has been hurt, and the
one who has caused the hurt are reconciled. The ministry of Jesus was a
ministry of reconciliation. We also are called to that ministry, and we do
not want for opportunities to express it.
       The General Convention in Philadelphia is the best I remember,
and one of the high points of my time as presiding bishop. There was a
great spirit of openness to one another, and a reaching out into the
world. Of course, as is to be expected, some of our community left
Philadelphia dissatisfied. What is not to be expected, and what is not
right for a community of faith, is that some of the dissatisfied persons
are sowing seeds of disunity in the church. So, how does reconciliation
take place? It cannot and will not with threats. You are called to a higher
ground, and to the ministry of reconciliation among those within our
household of faith who are disaffected, alienated, or angry. Though their
number is not great, and their concerns must be kept in perspective, their
voices should be heard.
       At the same time, the mission of the church must not be held
hostage by the discontented. The idea that some members of the body
can say, "I have no need of you," or "you have no need of me," is
decidedly unscriptural. Withholding funds from our common mission is
not the best way for anyone to make their views heard. To let those
voices dominate your agenda is to lose sight of the mission. Don't let
that happen.
       Let me mention an another example of discontent, and what I
hope will be a reconciling response. The Episcopal Synod of America
has written to senior wardens in some dioceses and suggested a
mechanism for visitations by bishops other than the diocesan. I have sent
a letter to all members of the House of Bishops asking them to respond
pastorally to such requests. I said in my letter that the approval by the
diocesan for an episcopal visit, as provided in the canons, may be a
gracious and pastoral act. It does not mean that the diocesan has ceded
authority. It might mean that authority has been exercised wisely. Nor
should such a visit signal a break in the relationship between the
congregation visited and the diocesan bishop. 
       God is working God's purpose out, in and through our divisions,
and we donžt always know what and how that might unfold. A story
might be instructive. At the Lambeth meeting in 1988 any discussion of
AIDS, any recognition that it was a problem, was out of the question for
some of the provinces, particularly some of the African provinces.
Today, in some respects African churches are leading the way in AIDS
education and prevention. This says to me that we each need to honor
where we are, that we are not all at the same place, and allow the time,
the time for God to work out Godžs holy purpose.
       My dear friends, my prayer for you is that you will carry out
your great responsibilities remaining faithful to the values of the gospel,
the rich traditions of our church, and reason together under the guidance
of the Holy Spirit. There is enormous good will for you out there, an
immense amount of great ministry being lived out every day, and a great
deal of love. And, in the end, love is our highest calling. The church is
built on a foundation of love. I believe in that love and call on you to
exercise it generously with one another. Jesus commanded it and Paul
identified it as the greatest gift. May you abound in it.   Thank you for
your love, generously given to both Patti and me. Mine is with you
always. God bless, and farewell.