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This letter was originally posted on the HoB/D (House of Bishops and Deputies list) and was reprinted here with the permission of the author. In reading this letter, written by a member of the Executive Council of the Episcopal Church, you may think he is describing The Fort Worth Diocese under its former management but he is not. The similarities, however, are startling. It should remind us of how things were and that we need to take the appropriate actions to see that they never happen again.
Sisters and brothers in Christ, The last week of January 2009 I was granted a rare privilege as part of my role in Executive Council. The recent discussions about dioceses and the ongoing proliferation of misinformation and inaccurate information finally prompted me to share my experiences. Executive Council met in the Diocese of San Joaquin. A substantial portion of our time was devoted to providing safe space for members of the renewed diocese to talk with us and share their experiences. My own personal impression is that there had not been safe space for discussing much of anything in that diocese for many years. I'm not sure I was prepared for what I experienced. There is life in the Diocese of San Joaquin...precious life. The church is alive and literally expectant with all that comes with renewal and rebirth. Those who have made a conscious decision to remain a part of The Episcopal Church have been through the trials and tribulations and come out stronger. They are committed to rebuilding. I am convinced that it will not be very many years before a very robust, very faithful, and very diverse diocese will be operating full tilt. The diversity is a "natural" diversity created by the folks who populate the area. The parish where I attended services on Sunday was filled with life and was probably the most diverse parish in which I had ever worshiped. The diversity encompassed age, ethnicity, gender, national origin, and as best I could determine, even sexual orientation. It was truly a "stew" type mixture of God's children, all interacting with each other in a spirit of love and respect. The saddest part of what I heard was about what had literally been done to these wonderful folks. They were the victims of a nearly two decade systematic, step-by-step effort to isolate them from the rest of The Episcopal Church. The leadership of the diocese had, for whatever reason, engaged in this process. "Outside" publications such as Episcopal Life were not permitted in the diocese. Discussions that reflected any differences of opinion with diocesan leadership were not permitted. One might ask if there were not ways for at least the clergy leadership to interact with each other so as to determine if everyone was indeed agreeable to following the same path. That proved an almost impossible task. There were clergy conferences and retreats, but they were all silent retreats. It's rather difficult to share thoughts and ideas without being able to verbalize them. I suppose they could have passed notes to each other, but I also am guessing that would not have been a safe activity to undertake. It is truly a sad situation when those called to positions of leadership invoke a method of leading that is based on isolation and intimidation. Such is not leadership in any sense of the word. Perhaps the term dictatorship is the most descriptively accurate of such situations. Joyfully, the Holy Spirit (and yes I am convinced it was the Holy Spirit) managed to break through the shell of isolationism and reach enough people to begin to work. It was my privilege to be able to see that genesis, that renewal and rebirth. There is an important question in all of this for those of us who find ourselves in positions of leadership: Is it leadership when we seek to control by isolation, intimidation and the proliferation of inaccurate and incomplete information simply to retain control over those we are called to lead? This has nothing to do with issues of gender, sexual orientation, orthodoxy, Biblical inerrancy or anything of the kind. It has to do with leadership style.....bad leadership style, leadership style that does not reflect what we should have learned from our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. The leadership and those who found that style of leadership to their liking have gone in a different direction. I hope and pray that the door will remain open should they decide to return. I will do my best to insure that they still have a place at God's table. The only condition will be that they share that table with those with whom they might not always agree. As we encounter the 40 days of Lent, may we pray that the Easter that will follow will be a resurrection for the Diocese of San Joaquin such as they have not been able to experience in many years. Christ is risen. In a few weeks we can add the "A-word" to that proclamation. Let us also pray for those in the dioceses of Ft. Worth, Pittsburg and Quincy - those remaining and those who have left. Bruce Garner |