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Letters from 13 to 19 February 2006

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Divedrsity a stumbling block to community

I can't help but respond to your comments about the Super Bowl. As a resident of Pittsburgh, the city whose team won that auspicious event, I can only underscore what an event like that does to meld a community together. Despite all of the political and other such disagreements in our city, for two weeks nothing could have united us like our football team did. It was deeply refreshing and reinvigorating to see men and women; young and old; religious and non-religious; Jew, Christian, Muslim, Hindu; black, white, red and yellow; even aspoused political enemies, all standing side by side, congratulating each other, even hugging one another as we all cheered the same team. 250,000 people came to the celebratory parade, crowded into Pittsburgh's downtown area. All was peaceful, no arrests and everyone celebrated like they haven't in years. At the core, we all shared a love for our team and for our city.

Yes, it was like a revival of sorts and clearly because we were all focused on the same thing and shared an understanding of what that 'thing' was. There is plenty of room for diversity amongst us, but unless we share something together at our core, our 'diversity' becomes a stumbling block to 'community.' Differences alone cannot unite.

In the Episcopal Church USA, we no longer know what we share at the core. Our core has been drawn, quartered and scattered about. Therefore, we are now simply a diverse collection of people sharing nothing that we know in common. Therefore, all we can see is our differences.

At the recent 'Hope and a Future' Conference held by the Network of Anglican Diocese and Parishes, that kind of revival was felt. 3,000 diverse Anglicans gathered from all over the world, we all knew what we shared in common at our core. It was a time of great blessing and represents the only hope for the American branch of Anglicanism. We pray for revival!

The Rev. Ron Baillie, Vicar
Church of the Good Samaritan
Pittsburgh, PA USA
13 February 2006

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