Friday, December 19, 2008

It's Over

The ACN Bishops in palmier days

I'm going to go out on a limb and say that the great Coup d'Eglise is over.

The schismatics played their last hand. Four dioceses, Quincy, Fort Worth, Pittsburgh, and San Joaquin, broke apart rather than march out in lockstep behind their departing bishops. The great tidal wave of defections from the Episcopal Church never happened and probably won't.
Canterbury threw cold water on the idea of a Third North American Province, saying that it requires a process that takes years, and that the applications haven't even been submitted yet.
Unless some right wing billionaire provides funds for endless litigation (not likely), then the lawsuits over the properties in those 4 dioceses will end in settlements before they go to trial.

I'd say that the Coup is over and it failed.
The splitters will join the throng of tiny schismatic former Episcopal congregations who spend as much time quarreling among themselves as with their former church.
The Episcopal Church will continue, and I predict not much altered by the experience. It will still be faction-ridden with conflicting constituencies. The Presiding Bishop and her successors will still have the awkward and stressful task of holding everyone together at the same table.
The Episcopal Church will continue to be one of those rare churches that says, "No, we don't have all the answers. We're still trying to figure it all out and we're doing the best that we can with what we have and God provides. Care to help out?"

5 comments:

Leonard said...

Yup!

You got it Doug!

There will be a few more moments of shrillcrying from the non-victims as the authentic victims tell them NO...we intend to include everyone and The Body of Christ...everyone means everyone...go fish (or sit quietly in your pew like we have for lifetimes).

Göran Koch-Swahne said...

The air has left the balloon

;=)

Leonard said...

¨The air has left the balloon¨ Göran

WOW, I love that expression, thanks
Göran...the hot air escaped!

Davis said...

Well said, Doug. I tend to agree. Another sad split. Let's get on with proclaiming the Gospel.

BTW, Don't they look pretty in purple?!!!

June Butler said...

Counterlight, I think you may be right.

The schismatics have lots and lots of bishops for not a lot of people. If that's what they like, it's all right by me. The thing is, bishops are expensive.