IHFIVOLUME . 70 NUMBER. 6 HESJUNE 1987 S publication. and Honduras: reuse for Launchpad required for war Denise Stanley Permission DFMS. / Nicaraguan Church [women...and Episcopal children, the of too Archives y Lou 2020. Copyright Confronting covert acts: When Congress had courage F. Forrester Cnurch Letters the time comes of recognizing the is a woman bishop present. I suggest Wrong end of telescope? orders of men "ordained" by women, that our bishops should stay away from The Rev. Richard Mansfield's article there will be total disruption and ec- Lambeth because it is being held in a "Holding Canterbury accountable" clesiastical integrity will have disap- province of the Anglican Church that (March) is looking at the problem through the wrong end of the telescope. peared. And the burden of such dis- refuses to accept the orders of some of Indeed there is a major division within ruption will be on those who have the priests that they have ordained. But the Anglican Communion, but it is the made the change, not on those who if they do attend, I certainly hope they, American/Canadian/New Zealand/etc, cannot accept it. in solidarity with our sisters, will not provinces which have caused it, not the Dorothy W. Spaulding practice their sacramental ministry Church of England. We are the ones McLean, Va. while they are in that province. publication. who have changed the nature of the The Rev. Richard i I. Mansfield, Jr. Hartford, Conn. and sacramental ministry, and we should Mansfield responds not be surprised when other portions I understand that the Church of Eng- reuse of the church refuse to recognize the land's Synod has just approved the Harris columns powerful for novelty. Indeed, many of our own ordination of women as priests. The Kudos to the Rev. Barbara Harris for members do not recognize it either. If Church of England has now joined people are starting to worry about dis- her consistently provocative, profound "the American/Canadian/New Zea- theological message. She tackles the required unity and division, I suggest they were land etc. provinces" in recognizing this tough issues with verve, tenacity and warned about it long before the change, "novelty." Surely now the Church of and they chose to ignore the warning. integrity. She makes us think. Her England should be able to remove the January and March columns have And when Canon Mansfield says "a restriction against women Anglican Permission been especially powerful. Thank God bishop celebrates Holy Communion priests practicing their sacramental and THE WITNESS for her. by the fact that he is ordained a pres- ministries in England. The word "nov- Nell Braxton Gibson DFMS. byter as well as a bishop" he has it elty" is Ms. Spaulding's unsuccessful / attempt to trivialize the growing and Executive Assistant backwards again. A priest celebrates, to the Bishop of New York holds office, exercises oversight, only significant realization by our church Church because he is ordained by a bishop, as of our oneness in Christ. The nature of a deputy of that bishop. Bishops came the sacramental ministry has not been Meese threatens freedom before presbyters in the church, and changed. It has only been fulfilled by Bishop Coleman McGehee's guest Episcopal the latter order developed only as a making ordination a possibility for all editorial in the March issue of THE God's people regardless of gender. the necessity when the burden of oversight WITNESS astutely spotlights a fact of of grew to be too much for one bishop in Bishops in our church today first which many church leaders in this an area. were enabled to celebrate the eucharist country seem unaware: the policies of When he says "There are no women as priests. I hope that neither priests Attorney General Edwin Meese pose a Archives bishops (yet)..." he is obviously ex- nor bishops in our church will cele- danger to the religious freedom of us pecting it to happen soon. Dissention brate communion in the Church of all. 2020. and disruption will only be multiplied England when some of their ordained As the Bishop points out, Meese's in this case. A number of bishops colleagues are unable to do so. That is a apparent lack of understanding of the throughout the Anglican Communion real issue of "ecclesiastical integrity." freedoms guaranteed by the Consti- Copyright have said they cannot attend Lambeth I am not surprised by, nor do I fear tution is leading him to dismantle if a woman claiming episcopal orders dissension or disruption. But I do some of our most important rights, as is present; if this happens, it will be her challenge those who espouse our Angli- well as the wall of separation between novel ministry which has disrupted can Communion and Christian unity church and state. By his support for things, not long held beliefs of others. through acceptance of each other's government-sponsored school prayer The Church of England has not said it orders when one of the provinces in he denies the basic tenet that even the does not recognize the orders of men our communion refuses to accept the most vocal opponents of church/state ordained in the historic ministry even orders of some clergy in other provinces. separation recognize in the First from provinces which have changed Mrs. Spaulding suggests that some Amendment: a prohibition on estab- the nature of that ministry, but when bishops will not attend Lambeth if there lishment of religion. THE WITNESS Meese stands, however, as a repre- dread and inward horror / Of falling Arndt & Gingrich wrote that a spir- sentative of the entire Reagan admini- into nought? Why shrinks the soul / itual man "possesses the divine pneuma, stration, which seeks to have the gov- Back on itself, and startles at destruc- not beside his natural human soul, but ernment support religious education tion? / 'Tis the divinity that stirs within in place of it;" This can be the case only through tax deductions and direct sub- us; / 'Tis heaven itself that points out when a person has laid down his life so sidies, leading to destructive entangle- an hereafter / And intimates eternity that God can make his crucifixion with ment between church and state and the to man." the Anointed One reality, and having destruction of public education; and William Dauenhauer been reborn he is filled with all the which wants to legislate religious Wickliffe, Ohio fulness of God. morality through the constitutional Nothing else matters in a person's publication. amendment process. Nothing could be life until he has allowed God to bring and a greater threat to the vitality of the Negative models in control him to this state. It is therefore useless church; nothing could be more de- I have consistently enjoyed THE WIT- to consider anything else until people reuse structive of the freedom of conscience NESS copies supplied to me by a San are in this state. God can do his will for we all enjoy under the Constitution. Diego subscriber, so I now wish to sub- only in these spiritual people. Any- Bishop McGehee deserves our thanks scribe on my own. Excellent articles! I thing done by, in, or through unspir- for his timely warning. Let us hope it is am a Roman Catholic priest who has itual people is of the evil ones and has required not too late. had salary cut off because of my con- the nature of sin. stant sermons on women priests. I hope Dr. Robert L. Maddox a retired Catholic bishop will soon or- Charles H. Bergsland Executive Director dain some Catholic women. Through Sequim, Wash. Permission Americans United for Separation the Holy Spirit the feminine will save of Church and State the church and this planet. WITNESS to archives DFMS. Negative masculine models are in As archivist for the Society of the / Stimulating thoughts control everywhere. Male and female Companions of the Holy Cross, I want Charles Meyer's essay, "Eleven myths alike need feminine consciousness; to express my appreciation for the re- about death" in the March WITNESS Church soul intuition! We have no feminine printing of excerpts of Chapter 10 of was the most thought-stimulating piece thealogy so we don't know what a fe- Mary Sudman Donovan's book, A I've read in many moons. male priest or bishop would look like. Different Call, in the February WIT- Nowadays the optimist/pessimist NESS ("The feminist dimension of the Episcopal Let us imagine together so we can hope. dualism seems intensified to harsh The Rev. Neil Voigt Social Gospel"). I would like to order the polarity in our society. We are tempted two copies for our Adelywood Library. of San Diego, Cal. to opt for the here-and-now of material Ruth S. Leonard things, rather than ardently seek spir- Boston, Mass. itual insight. For spiritual people only Archives "We are poor, silly animals," reflected When I first read a flyer covering your Kudos on anniversary Horace Walpole. "We live for an in- publication it seemed worth while to 2020. For the last five years I have subscribed stant upon a particle of a boundless see what might be written in it and so I to your magazine. Yours is perhaps the universe, and are much like a butterfly subscribed. Yesterday the first issue only national publication in the Epis- that should argue about the nature of came and I found that you write about copal Church educating our society on Copyright the seasons, and what creates their the same things as all religious publi- the many issues confronting it and our vicissitudes, and does not exist itself to cations.