On this Day of Pentecost, I am honored to be amongst the great cloud of witnesses signing onto
this letter on baptism and communion, addressed to the respective Chairs of the House of Bishops or House of Deputies Committees on Constitution and Canons or Prayer Book, Liturgy and Music.
It suggests some options to consider as they address the issues of Communion and Baptism at the upcoming 80th General Convention of the Episcopal Church -- and I believe it calls us to our best selves as members of a church which is blessed with the DNA of Anglican comprehensiveness coursing in our ecclesial veins.
As the letter notes, I signed as an individual -- not representing either my parish or diocese. But to be clear, I serve a congregation (All Saints Church, Pasadena) which has had an open table since the 1980's and the days of our Rector Emeritus George Regas and I serve as Canon for Engagement Across Difference in the Diocese of Los Angeles, where we are committed to creating bridges that span differences ... not building walls that exacerbate divisions.
So when I was asked to consider adding my name to this letter, they had me at
"It feels as though there are two opposing camps on the topic of “open communion,” choosing up sides and talking past each other."
I believe we can, should and must do better than that ... and so I hope these words will be received as part of that work of finding a better way to move forward together in these perilous times when our beautiful and broken world so desperately needs the Good News of God's love, justice and compassion we have to offer.
====================
June
5, 2022 | Day
of Pentecost
A Statement on Baptism and Eucharist in The Episcopal Church
As
Jesus was walking along, he saw a man called Matthew sitting at the tax booth;
and he said to him, “Follow me.” And he got up and followed him. And as he
sat at dinner in the house, many tax collectors and sinners came and were
sitting with him and his disciples. When the Pharisees saw this, they said
to his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and
sinners?” But when he heard this, he said, “Those who are well have no
need of a physician, but those who are sick. Go and learn what this means,
‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’ For I have come to call not the righteous but
sinners.” —
Matthew
9:9-13
Dear
Bishop Klusmeyer, Bishop Lee, Dr. Meyers, and Canon Simmonds Ballentine,
Greetings
on this Feast of the Pentecost.
We
are writing on behalf of ourselves and not our respective churches, dioceses or
institutions. We are a group of church folks, lay and ordained, scholars, and seminary
professors. We write out of deep concern at the vehemence of opposition to C028(“All Are Welcome At The Table”), particularly a letter from twenty-two of our colleagues. Some of us are from the Diocese of Northern California which has
sponsored this resolution.
The
resolution in question proposes to repeal the Canon I.17.7, which states: “No
unbaptized person shall be eligible to receive Holy Communion in this Church.”
Many
of the signatories are friends whom we respect. We agree with them that baptism
is the “fountain from which the other sacraments flow” and that Holy Baptism
and Holy Eucharist are “a gift of supernatural grace.”
But
on this Day of Pentecost, we are especially aware that the gifts of supernatural
grace from the Holy Spirit do not always come in the neat order required by
canons.
It
feels as though there are two opposing camps on the topic of “open communion,”
choosing up sides and talking past each other.
We
therefore have the following proposal for you (and others to consider):
1 - Refer C028 to the Standing
Commission on Liturgy and Music to examine the underlying biblical, theological
and liturgical issues, history and practical impact of Canon I.17.7, including
whether eligibility requirements for the sacrament of Holy Communion
appropriately belongs in the canons.
2 - Ask the commission to consider
developing an invitational rubric to Communion in the Book of Common Prayer.
3 - Ask the commission to consider
replacing the language of the canon with a positive statement affirming that
the fullest meaning of our Holy Eucharist is lived out through our Baptismal
Covenant.
We
fully support the resolution passed in 2012 by General Convention (2012-C029)
stating: “That the Episcopal Church reaffirms that baptism is the ancient and
normative entry point to receiving Holy Communion and that our Lord Jesus
Christ calls us to go into the world and baptize all peoples.”
We
believe that the 2012 resolution wisely recognized that while the “normative”
entry point to Holy Communion is baptism, there are other entry points as well.
Those
of us who have served in local churches are aware of instances where the
unchurched have been drawn to baptism only after first receiving Holy Communion.
We have experienced how the Holy Spirit does not always work in linear ways or
respect the “good order” of the Church.
The
crux of the present issue does not stem from a lack of respect for and belief
in baptism. Rather, it stems from how the 1979 Book of Common Prayer eliminated
the requirement that a person must be confirmed to receive Communion. The 1979
prayer book remained silent about any other eligibility requirements for receiving
Communion. The canon requiring baptism was adopted at a subsequent General
Convention.
At
worst, eliminating Canon I.17.17 brings us back to where the prayer book left
us in 1979.
We
are concerned that the language of the canon carries a tone of control and
gatekeeping. That the canon begins with the word “No” underscores how this
canon is essentially a negative rule rather than an invitation to the grace of
the sacraments.
The
current canon has the unintended effect of diminishing both sacraments. The
canon makes it sound as if one sacrament — Baptism — is a dinner ticket to the
other sacrament — Communion.
In
practical terms, the canon is virtually unenforceable. No priest or bishop we
know checks for baptismal certificates at the altar rail. No priest or bishop
we know has been disciplined for serving Communion to an unbaptized person.
As
followers of Jesus, we resist such barriers to those seeking the grace and
mercy of the sacraments from whatever doors they enter.
We
are also concerned that the letter writers assert that “God’s people” are
restricted only to the baptized. That assertion has a narrow, tribal tone that
does not serve our church well. Moreover, their assertion, perhaps
unintentionally, creates a barrier to interfaith relations.
Indeed,
when the presider at the Holy Eucharist raises the elements and proclaims the
words “The Gifts of God for the People of God,” we hear in that an invitation
to all of humanity. For as the apostle Paul wrote in the Letter to the Romans
8:14, which we hear on this Pentecost Day, “All
who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God.”
Faithfully submitted,
through the Grace of Our Lord Jesus Christ,
Dr. Diana Butler Bass,
Ph.D.
Author and
historian
Diocese of Virginia
The Very Rev.
Penny Bridges
Dean, St Paul’s
Cathedral, San Diego
Diocese of San Diego
The Very Rev. Dr.
Donald G. Brown
Dean Emeritus, Trinity
Episcopal Cathedral, Sacramento
Diocese of California
The Rev. Dr. Linda Lee
Clader
Professor Emerita,
Church Divinity School of the Pacific
Diocese of Northern
California
The Rev. Cookie Clark
Deacon, Church of the
Epiphany, Vacaville
Clergy Deputy
Diocese of Northern
California
The Rev. Robin Denney
Rector, St. Mary’s
Episcopal Church, Napa
Clergy Deputy
Diocese of Northern
California
Jay Elmquist
Trinity Episcopal
Cathedral, Sacramento
Lay Deputy
Diocese of Northern
California
The Very
Rev. Gail Greenwell
Dean of
Christ Church Cathedral, Cincinnati, retired
Diocese
of Southern Ohio
The
Rev. Dr. Robert Gregg
Professor
and University Chaplain Emeritus,
Stanford
University
The Rev. Canon Rosa
Lee Harden
Executive Producer,
Faith+Finance
Asheville, North
Carolina
Peter
Juve
Saint
Mary’s Church, Napa
Lay
Deputy
Diocese
of Northern California
The
Very Rev. Nathan LeRud
Dean,
Trinity Episcopal Cathedral, Portland
Diocese
of Oregon
The
Rev. Dr. Daniel DeForest London, Ph.D.
Rector,
Christ Episcopal Church, Eureka
Diocese
of Northern California
The
Rev. Dr. Rebecca Lyman,
Samuel
Garrett Professor of Church History, emerita
Church
Divinity School of the Pacific
Diocese
of California
Canon
Charles R. Mack, Chancellor Emeritus and Vice Chancellor
First
Lay Alternate Deputy
Diocese
of Northern California
The Very Rev. Kristi
Maulden
Dean, Cathedral of St
John, Albuquerque, New Mexico
Episcopal Diocese of
the Rio Grande
The Very Reverend
Ronald D. Pogue
Dean (interim,
retired), Saint John’s Cathedral, Denver Colorado
and St. Andrew’s Cathedral,
Jackson, Mississippi
Diocese of Texas
The Rev.
Br. Simeon (Lewis) Powell, C.G.
Clergy
Deputy, and Chair of the Deputation
Diocese
of Northern California
The Rev.
James Richardson
Former
Associate Dean and Interim Dean, Trinity Episcopal Cathedral, Sacramento
Former
Rector, St. Paul’s Memorial Church, Charlottesville, Virginia
First
Clergy Alternate Deputy
Diocese
of Northern California
The Rev.
Canon Susan Russell
All
Saints, Pasadena
Diocese
of Los Angeles
The
Rev. Dr. Susanna Singer, Ph.D.
Professor
Emerita of Ministry Development
Church
Divinity School of the Pacific
Diocese
of California
The Rev.
Dr. P. Donald White, Jr.
Former
Chair, Board of Trustees, Church Divinity School of the Pacific
Diocese
of Louisiana
DonnaJo
Woollen
Emmanuel Church, Grass
Valley, California
Lay Deputy
Diocese of Northern
California
