Letters from 7 to 13
May 2007
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A thing
of shreds and patches
Greetings
to all of you at AO!
I must
say, amidst all the Sturm und Drang of Anglican/Episcopalian politics,
you always seem to point to what really matters to us as part
of the Body of Christ. And I heartily thank God for you for that!
However,
being even just a wee part of the whole messy and wonderful Anglican
world, I have a bit of a quibble with one of your news stories
today. (You must know how we all love a good quibble!)
Here is
the relevant quote:
"The primate
of the Church of Nigeria, Peter Akinola, has voyaged to the USA
to consecrate a priest in Virginia, Martyn Minns, as a bishop
in the Nigerian Communion."
May I say
that the Archbishop, Metropolitan and Primate of All Nigeria had
ALREADY consecrated Mr. Minns as bishop, in a service in Nigeria,
sometime back.
(I don't
know exactly when, and I don't really care enough to look it up.
Which just goes to show you this is a MINOR quibble, and not a
MAJOR one. Major quibbles would of course entail endless pages
of foolscap replete with reflections, recitations of facts, citations
of Scripture, establishment of study groups and committees, and
much sought after counsel from those who some consider to be the
Doctors of the Church these days. And, who knows, there maybe
even an ultimatum or two! They seem to be pretty common these
days.)
No, this
particular dog and pony show--oops, sorry--this sacred service,
was Mr. Minns's formal "installation" as Grand Poobah of CANA.
Whatever
that means.
What I
do take with me into this next week is not who is "boss" or SAYS
he's "boss", or who is orthodox, or who is a reasserter, or who
is a revisionist, or who is an applicant for the position of Lord
High Everything Else. No, today I am all about the power and wonder
of the promise God made in Revelation 21, that was read in Church
this morning:
And I heard
a loud voice from the throne saying, "Now the dwelling of God
is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people,
and God himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe
every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning
or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away."
Now this,
brothers and sisters, trumps any "installation" any old day.
May God
continue to bless all of you and your sacred work.
Douglas
Curlin
Church of the Epiphany
Atlanta, Georgia, USA
dougcurlin@hotmail.com
7 May 2007
(Ed: Thank
you.)
There will
be no third try
I am a
60-year-old retired college professor after spending 37 years
as an educator from kindergarten right through to the college
level. I have been a good friend to many. I am in a 30-year relationship
and we were married in May 2006. After a 45-year internal battle
after the death of my mother when I was 13 (the priest refused
to come and give her the last rites as, he said, “ . . .
she was a woman living in sin”) I vowed I would never let
a church get their grips on me ever again. You see, my mother
was a French-Canadian Roman Catholic who had, in 1942, left an
abusive husband to live with another man. This in a small northern
Ontario town was a big scandal. Later, in 1946, she met my father,
a Croatian émigré, and I was born in 1947. Again,
this was scandalous at the time. Many a times I was pointed at
as being “illegitimate” and on a few occasions referred
to as a “bastard”. Then came the news, from an aunt,
that there was always a question as to my paternity and that possibility
I was my mother’s husband’s son after all! Since all
parties are long dead, the truth will never likely be known. In
2004, I reunited with my half-siblings (a sister who is 77 and
a brother who is 81) after a 30-year estrangement. This has been
an incredible miracle in my life. I have discovered new nephews
and nieces, great-nephews, great-nieces, and a great-great-niece.
And, by the way, if you haven’t figured it out by now, I
am a gay man.
In 2003,
my spouse, who has been a life-long Anglican, finally convinced
me to participate in parish ministry program at The Church of
St John The Evangelist in downtown Ottawa. This ministry, called
Terrific Tuesdays, is a weekly agape meal followed by the Eucharist.
The attendees come a wide range of circumstances. The fellowship
at Terrific Tuesdays is formidable. That is where I met the Rev
Sharon Schollar, now rector of St Bartholomew’s in New Edinburgh.
After several discussions and encounters with her, I jokingly
said, “If I ever return to the Church, it will be because
of that woman!” In 2005, I made the conscious decision
to become a full member of St John’s. It is there that I
have found a spiritual oasis. The rector, the Rev Canon Garth
Bulmer and the Curate, the Rev Kathryn Otley, along with the Rev
Dr Linda Privitera, and other staff members of St John’s,
along with the congregation have created an incredibly affirming
and welcoming parish to everyone who attends. The congregation
is very diverse and the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgendered
are but one element. St John’s multiple ministries reach
out to many different groups in need within our city and parish.
I have found my spiritual home.
However,
as a gay man, there is a cloud over my head. What will happen
in 2007? Will I once again be considered a “leper”?
Will the Church continue to marginalize me? Will my civil marriage
ever be blessed by the Church? Will the “men” of the
Church continue to vilify me? Will I ever be “good enough” for
the Church? When will I be able to participate as a full-member
of the Church will all rights, privileges, honours, sacraments,
and hopes bestowed upon me? Why am I so hated by so-called “Christians”?
Why must I continue to be sent to the “lion’s den” by
the conservative and, I dare say, uncaring members of the Church
who wish me to sit back, be quiet, and accept my lot?
Well, Jesus
didn’t sit back and “take it like a good boy”.
He fought, he cajoled, and he directed, he inspired, he soothe,
he fed, he healed, and he loved unconditionally. He was a protestor,
an activist, a healer, a comforter, and, above all he was my Saviour.
He was the prime champion of the marginalized. He was a REBEL
WITH A CAUSE! He didn’t belong to an “exclusive club” (perhaps
I should say “excluding club”) called the Church with
a hierarchy of old men and women who are so afraid of letting
the love and compassion of true Christians affect them and, perhaps,
make them see that I am only an ordinary human being who happens
to be gay. I am a man who has contributed to society as an educator
for 37 years. I have been a good citizen. I have been a good friend,
a good uncle, a good partner. I have lived a good, honest, and
fruitful life. As I enter my “golden years”, I have
only one more item to add to my list . . . to become a good Anglican
and to participate fully in the life of my Church. Will I be allowed
to do that? Or, will I, once again, be “thrown out” because
I don’t fit the neat and tidy mould that is being required
of me.
I am a “fragile” Anglican.
What happens to me after 2007? I don’t know if I’ll
be able to stay in the Anglican Church if I’m not accepted
100% for who I am. I can truly say, though, that there will not
be a third attempt. My faith, my spirituality, and my humanity
will not leave me. God will not leave me. Jesus will not leave
me. Will the Church leave me? Pray for me.
Frank E.
Kajfes
The Church of St John The Evangelist, Ottawa.
Ottawa, Ontario, CANADA
fkajfes@sympatico.ca
10 May 2007
People of
the Book
Ineresting
new book, The
Physics of Christianity by Tulane University Professor,
Frank Tipler.
Rev. Peter
Christiansen
South San Francisco, California, USA
smi2le@sbcglobal.net
12 May 2007
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