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Home , Broad church, Daily Office (Anglican)

Episcopalians and Tradition

The Reverend Jaime Case, Rector St. Luke’s ~ San Lucas Episcopal V-4 426 East Fourth Plain Blvd. Vancouver, WA 98663

Tradition Tradition is an area of continued contention and discussion among . Tradition is usually referred to as something passed from one generation of Christians to another, as in the ’s references to what is handed down. Often what is handed down changes in many ways, and returning to older traditions, as well as updating current traditions, continues to be a dynamic in . Changes in the Faith: Christianity was changing and evolving between the end of the apostolic generation. During the early years, the church was “universal” or , having members of equal standing in the great cities around the Mediterranean. Rome was one, as were Constantinople, Jerusalem, Antioch, Carthage, Athens and Alexandria. Rome was the old capitol of the empire, Constantinople the new. The emperor Constantine made it legal to be a Christian in 314. The Universal or Catholic Councils: During the early formation of doctrine, from the end of the persecution of the Church (314) to the council of Chalcedon (451), many issues were resolved regarding the identity of and the Trinity. The most famous may be the Council of Nicea (324), which gives us the from Sunday liturgy. The most important was the Council of Chalcedon (451). You can read the Chalcedonian Definition on page 864 of the . It is a “negative” definition: i.e., “without confusion, without change, without division, without separation.” It sets the boundaries of what the Church can say about Christ Jesus’ identity. English Church: The early defenders of the separation of the English church from Rome upheld the first Seven Catholic Councils of the Church, but rejected all sorts of later ideas that had accrued in the catholicism of Rome and Christianity elsewhere. One of these ideas was the much-disobeyed rule (not doctrine!) of celibacy, the 2

Immaculate Conception of Mary, and the Dormition or Ascension of Mary.

Episcopalians and Tradition All unmarked dates are in the Current Era [A.D.]

Unknown Origins of : Every Christian body tries to connect its current belief and practice with the apostolic age and hence to Christ. When the first, anonymous, Christians arrived in England, there was no one to record it, and no one knows when it happened. Christianity may have arrived with Roman soldiers (occupied southern Britain 43 BCE-410 CE), camp followers, or traders. None of Britain was ever completely controlled by Rome, and sporadic revolts continued. There are legends that say St. Paul, St. Philip or St. Joseph of Arimathea connected to the founding of Christianity. Tertullian, writing around 200, mentions areas of Britain that Rome did not conquer had been conquered by Christ. Origen, writing about 240 lists Britain among the places where Christians are found. Alban (310?) is the oldest recorded name, a lay person who took the place of a and was martyred by Roman soldiers. These Celtic Christians sent their first to the Council of Arles (314), which shows considerable organization. The Celtic Church produced Patrick, Ninian, and Pelagius, whom Augustine of Hippo attacked as a heretic. Pelagius’ great heresy was to believe that human beings have the courage and dignity to seek the good, unlike Augustine’s theology of “Original Sin. This kind of optimism regarding the human condition remains part of English spirituality to this day (Martin Thornton, English Spirituality 1st U.S. ed., p, 50). ” Columba evangelized the northern Picts and Anglo Saxons from his mission on the isle of Iona, which lasted from 563 to 804. Celtic Christians were the very western edge of Christianity. (also Moorman, A History of the Church in England, 3rd ed., pp. 3-11) As a Part of Roman Christianity: In 595 is sent by Gregory the Great to evangelize the Angles and Saxons of southern England. In 610 the Abbess Hilda of Whitby hosted the

3 council at which the Celtic Church submitted to the Roman Church. It took a while to bring the two churches together. The Celts had some interesting traditions, which Rome learned, such as and spiritual guidance. The Celts also preserved the sacred texts in illuminated manuscripts during the dark ages when many were destroyed. The Celtic Church used the monastery as the center of mission. Some Celtic traditions were lost, such as the as spiritual guide, and the abbot as administrator of an area. Today our bishops are administrators following Roman practice. The calendar the Celts used for was an older calendar that probably matched Jewish Passover. Our celebrations conform now to the Gregorian calendar, made standard in Europe in 1582. The Anglo-Saxons were soon converted, and produced Wynfrith, who evangelized the German tribes across the English Channel. He was named Boniface, Apostle to the Germans. The Reformation: When Martin Luther wrote the 95 Theses, in 1512, Henry VIII defended Roman practice and was given the title Defender of the Faith by the Pope. Henry later wanted to divorce his queen Catherine of Aragon (of Spain) to remarry because he had no male heirs. The Pope, who was close to the Spaniards, would not let him. All along, the English Parliament, now powerful controller of the royal purse, agreed with Henry. Henry’s reform opened the way for printed books, the Bible in the vernacular and works of theology, which made it possible for each person to read and live according to individual conscience. The Elizabethan Religious Settlement: Nothing is settled in England until (1533-1603), who with Parliament’s help brokers the great compromise allowing one to preserve one’s conscientious objections to doctrine of Christ in the consecrated elements of the , while remaining a part of the English church. The liberty found in that compromise is far reaching, creating a large space for ideas and speculation about God. It is called the Elizabethan Settlement

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The Interregnum (1640-1660): After Elizabeth and two other kings, then the Calvinist tried their hand at governance. Once more violence characterized the extreme change, but in the Restoration of 1661, Parliament again affirmed an English church independent of Rome. The Middle Way: The Anglican Church established itself from the 17th century as the via media between Protestantism and Roman Catholicism. The Anglicans and the Episcopalians are in the middle, a unique and celebrated location among the controversies following the Reformation. As protestant churches go, we are conservative in that we have preserved the Eucharist, the orders of Bishop, Presbyter (elder or priest), and , which may even be found in the . We adhere to the early church councils’ definitions of proper doctrine (orthodoxy) regarding Christ and the Trinity. However we lack the rigid hierarchy of the Roman church. Colonial Dispersion: The arrived with our English speaking ancestors. It was particularly strong in the Crown colonies Virginia, Connecticut, New Jersey, New York, Georgia, and North and South Carolina. The of Massachusetts and the Quakers of Pennsylvania were dissenters from the Anglican Church. Rhode Island early on developed the idea of religious tolerance, and pioneered the practice that the independent nation would one day follow. However, Anglicans were not quick to provide bishops and ministers to the colonies, and , an Anglican priest, and others ordained ministers for the colony, setting off the Methodist Episcopal Church. The Anglicans identified with England in the northern colonies, and in the south with the rebellion when the American Revolution took place. The two parties returned to unity after the Revolutionary war, and established a uniquely American form of Church. The First Independent Church of the : The Episcopal Church in the USA was formed by the same men who framed the U.S. Constitution. About two-thirds of the authors of the U.S. Constitution were at least nominally Anglicans. In the same year of the Constitution (1789), the church constitution in America, named The Protestant Episcopal Church of the USA, now shortened 5 to The Episcopal Church, was written. One of our first US bishops, William White, was the Chaplain to the Continental Congress. The Episcopal Church is the first “independent Anglican Province outside the British Isles” (Report of the Archbishops Group, 1990, CPH). The model of church communion with independent heads is familiar to the Eastern Orthodox Churches, where each nation has a bishop as head of an independent church which shares communion with others of the same tradition, and harkens back to the early churches in Antioch, Jerusalem, Alexandria and others who held equal authority to Rome. Other Issues: The Episcopal Church was the first church of the Anglican Communion to ordain women to the orders of presbyter (priest) and bishop, and to ordain openly gay and lesbian men and women to the ministry. We have the only woman archbishop or “Presiding Bishop,” head of a national church in the Anglican Communion. Socially we have supported the Social of the beginning of the 20th century, and we opposed the death penalty, supported affirmative action, and the civil rights. Divorce and abortion are treated with a nuanced care that leaves the church often in the middle. It is true, though, that not all in the Episcopalians agree with these decisions. What to call us: A common mistake by non-Episcopalians is over the use of the words "Episcopal" and "Episcopalians". An Episcopalian is a member of the Episcopal Church but it is not the Episcopalian Church. Likewise, a member is not called an Episcopal, but Episcopalian. Episcopalian is a noun; Episcopal is an adjective. Three Worship Traditions: Over time the church developed three traditions within the framework of the Book of Common Prayer: 1. The tradition is tolerant and generally occupies the largest group of Episcopal churches. 2. The tradition likes to worship with many gestures, with incense, with great attention to detail close to a catholic sacramental tradition.

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3. The tradition is evangelical, emphasizing preaching, often speaking of being “born again.” St. Luke’s ~ San Lucas is mostly Broad Church with some selections from both of the other groups from time to time. The Book of Common Prayer: The book which guides our shared worship has roots back to , the under Henry VIII, who first compiled and translated it from Latin (1549). Throughout the centuries, the book has been revised to reflect the national identity of the different churches that are part of the Anglican Communion. Churches around the world worship in traditions and languages other than English. Our American prayer book preserves the following traditions: 1. The Church Year described starting on page 15. It has a calendar of Holy Days, Days of Special Devotion, Days of Optional Observance, and a calendar of Saints feasts (pp. 13-30). 2. The Titles of the Seasons Sundays and Major Holy Days observed in this Church throughout the Year (pp. 31-33). 3. The , a cycle of prayer four times a day (Morning Prayer, Noonday, Evening Prayer and , Rite II (75-135). There are also Daily Devotions for Individuals and Families (136- 140). These rites along with the (933-995) give a group a scheme to read the Bible in a two year cycle. 4. The , prayers that are used for specific Sundays of the Church Year and for other occasions (157ff.). 5. The Proper Liturgies include , , Thursday, , and the Vigil of Easter. 6. The rites of Holy Baptism and Holy Eucharist follow (298ff, 315ff, and 350ff.). Baptism and Eucharist are the “two great sacraments given by Christ to his Church” (p. 858). 7. The Pastoral Offices (pp. 411-507) include , Christian Service, Marriage, Thanksgiving for a Child, Reconciliation of a Penitent, Ministration to the Sick, Ministration at the Time of Death, and Burial. You might know some of these by older names (Confession, Anointing, Ultimate Unction or Last 7

Rites). Some are new, like Christian Service, or re-tasked, like the Thanksgiving for a Child (used to be The after Childbirth!). 8. The Episcopal Services, at which only bishops preside, include and the and of a Church (509ff.). 9. The , which is a translation that is meant to be chanted, like the songs of ancient Israel which they are (582ff.). 10. Prayers and Thanksgivings for different occasions follow (809ff). Lots of good prayers here. 11. An Outline of the Faith, commonly called the (843ff). in the traditional form of question and answer. 12. Historical Documents of the Church (pp 864ff.) include: a. The Definition of the Union of the Divine and Human Natures in the Person of Christ. b. The Creed of St. Athanasius, c. The to the First Book of Common Prayer (1549), d. The Articles of Religion (sometimes called the XXXIX or 39 Articles), a reformation era document. It’s still part of the English prayer book. We share these articles with the Methodists and the African Methodist Episcopal Churches. e. And The Chicago-Lambeth Quadrilateral 1886-1888 in which is established a 4 part definition of how we might join with other Christian churches. The preamble (3) states, “this Church is ready in the spirit of love and humility to forgo all preferences of her own;” and in the last paragraph “we hereby declare our desire and readiness … to enter into brotherly conference with all or any Christian Bodies seeing the restoration of the organic unity of the Church.” The Episcopal Church long been committed to Christian unity. It has never claimed to be the ‘only’ true church. It asserts a form of catholic Christianity. Our bishops fall in . The General Convention: Every three years the national meeting of the church is held, called the General Convention. The General Convention is made of two parts: The , and the 8

House of Deputies, who include the and other ordained persons. This form of governance expresses our roots in American democracy.

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