But Archbishop Kaziimba Renews Opposition to Capital Punishment

By Douglas LeBlanc

The Anglican Church of Uganda has again welcomed the nation’s bluntly named Anti-Homosexuality Act, and has reiterated its opposition to capital punishment. The law permits the death penalty for “aggravated homosexuality,” which it defines as sex involving a minor, a person who has HIV, or a person who has a disability.

The bill’s proposer, Asuman Basalirwa, said the law allows for, but does not require, the death penalty.

“What the law creates is a maximum sentence, and therefore the courts can decide not to impose the maximum sentence of death,” Basalirwa said. “Parliament cannot create death as a mandatory sentence, because then you take away the latitude of the courts to exercise the discretion.”

Archbishop Stephen Samuel Kaziimba Mugalu endorsed the bill this year when parliament approved it and sent it to President Yoweri Museveni for his consideration. The president and parliament negotiated the bill to its final state, which the president signed on May 26.

Archbishop Kaziimba restated the church’s rejection of capital punishment, and endorsed life imprisonment.

“As expressed in our responses to earlier versions of the Anti-Homosexuality Bill over the last fifteen years, the Church of Uganda supports life and, in principle, does not support the death penalty,” he said. “As grievous as aggravated defilement and aggravated homosexuality are, we do not support the death penalty for those crimes, and continue to recommend life imprisonment instead.”

Kaziimba’s predecessor, Archbishop Stanley Ntagali, said in 2014 that the Church of Uganda was encouraged when parliament discussed removing the death penalty from the law.

The church also said in 2009, during Archbishop Henry Luke Orombi’s tenure, that it “upholds the sanctity of life and cannot support the death penalty.”

The archbishop broadened his remarks beyond homosexuality.

“Fornication, defilement, and adultery are also attacking our families, our souls, and our country. Many of the people loudly protesting against homosexuality are quietly fornicating or betraying their spouse through gender-based violence, adultery, or defiling their own children,” he said.

Public discussion of the bill often equates to debating whether any nation may treat same-sex sexual behavior as criminal. Nearly half of African nations do this, whether the law is grounded in Christian or Muslim concepts.

That still leaves plenty of Ugandan law to be debated, usually on whether people should be imprisoned, much less for life, based on consensual sex between adults. Uganda’s law rejects consent as a defense.

President Joe Biden condemned Uganda’s law on several points.

“The enactment of Uganda’s Anti-Homosexuality Act is a tragic violation of universal human rights — one that is not worthy of the Ugandan people, and one that jeopardizes the prospects of critical economic growth for the entire country. I join with people around the world — including many in Uganda — in calling for its immediate repeal. No one should have to live in constant fear for their life or being subjected to violence and discrimination. It is wrong,” he said May 29.

“Since the Anti-Homosexuality Act was introduced, reports of violence and discrimination targeting Ugandans who are or are perceived to be LGBTQI+ are on the rise. Innocent Ugandans now fear going to hospitals, clinics, or other establishments to receive life-saving medical care, lest they be targeted by hateful reprisals. Some have been evicted from their homes or fired from their jobs. And the prospect of graver threats — including lengthy prison sentences, violence, abuse — threatens any number of Ugandans who want nothing more than to live their lives in safety and freedom.”

Republican Sen. Ted Cruz agrees with critics of Uganda’s law. “Any law criminalizing homosexuality or imposing the death penalty for ‘aggravated homosexuality’ is grotesque & an abomination,” Cruz tweeted on May 29. “ALL civilized nations should join together in condemning this human rights abuse.”

Trinity Sunday, June 4

Gen. 1:1-2:4a
Ps. 8 or Cant. 2 or Cant. 13
2 Cor. 13:11-13
Matt. 28:16-20

“In the beginning when God created the heavens and the earth” (Gen. 1:1): thus begins a primordial story of the universe coming to be from the wellspring of divine life, will, and love. As it was in the beginning, so it is now, and ever shall be. Every moment of time and every being, from the most indescribably minute to the most prodigious and complex, is suspended in being by nothing other than divine love. In liturgical language, “In your infinite love, you made us [and all things] for yourself.”

This claim arrests our attention and draws us up and out of ourselves in the silent land of contemplative wonder. “O Lord our Governor, how exalted is your Name in all the world! … When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars you have set in their courses, What is man that you should be mindful of him? The son of man that you should seek him out?” (Ps. 8:1, 4-5). Everything is radiant with the presence of God, from the high vault of heaven to the depths of the earth (Cant. 13). Everything bears evidence of “the work of your fingers, for “the builder of all things is God” (Heb. 3:4).

“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form and void, and darkness was upon the face of the deep; and the Spirit of God swept over the face of the waters” (Gen. 1:1-2, RSV). God is an active and unseen presence, like a breeze or breath or Spiritus. God is the Lord and giver of Life, for breath is life. In this regard, what is said of the first human being in Genesis 2 may be said of all the creation. “[T]he Lord God formed man from the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and the man became a living being” (Gen. 2:7). Creation is, in a sense, the life-giving exhalation of divine breath, without which all things would instantly collapse into an abysmal nothingness. The breath of God, the Holy Spirit, is an unseen mystery, giving life, infusing, and suffusing all things.

“Then God said, ‘Let there be light’” (Gen. 1:3). God speaks a creative Word, and indeed is that very Word; for, as we read in the opening words of St. John’s gospel, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God” (John 1:1). The Greek word logos, commonly translated into English as Word, has an expansive range of meanings, including reason, law, ground (as in source), principle, purpose, giving an overall impression of order, purpose, and intelligibility. Light gives clarity and distinction, definition and purpose.

Consider three meanings — really, three persons — within the designation one God. God is the font of all being, the source, the eternal Father of all that is. God is Logos, through whom all things are made and made precisely to have purposeful existence and generative power. God is life-giving Spirit, a breath that hovers and slowly moves, like a translucent blanket of morning mist over the face of the waters, resting and enfolding, but the Spirit also passes into things and through them, connecting the whole cosmos in one inseparable web of being.

To this God, we dare to say, “Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be.” We glory in the Trinity and worship the Unity, feeling and knowing, though beyond all knowing, the pulsing life of the one true God.

Look It Up: Matthew 28:19

Think About It: Unbegotten, eternally begotten, an eternal Spiritus Amoris

By Dylan Thayer

Christians know that Jesus calls us to love our neighbors: “let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven” (Matt. 5:16).

But just how much light are we shedding? According to Partners for Sacred Places, a secular nonprofit organization that works with organizations of all faiths, quite a bit. Bob Jaeger, who cofounded Partners for Sacred Places, said the organization’s research indicates that the average rural church benefits its community by roughly $750,000. For urban churches, it’s even higher — around $1.7 million.

Much of this benefit is directed toward nonmembers. Beginning in the 1990s, Partners for Sacred Places conducted three studies — two in conjunction with the University of Pennsylvania and one with the University of North Carolina — on churches’ community impact. In addition to the “halo effect” — Jaeger and Partners for Sacred Places’ term for the positive economic effect of churches — these studies showed that most of that effect comes during the week, not on Sunday mornings. Up to 90 percent of the people who come to a church on weekdays are non-members.

“We started to realize that no one knew what was happening in the buildings during the week,” Jaeger said, looking back on the research, which he says was aimed at helping “congregations tell a better story about their value.” Emilie Haertsch, who joined Partners for Sacred Places in 2022, agreed: “The value of houses of worship is often judged by worship attendance. But you can’t assume that very small churches can’t have a very big impact on their neighborhood.”

So how can churches that care about their communities and want to grow their halo do it? Both Jaeger and Haertsch agree that increasing program budgets is helpful, but for many churches, this may not be an option. An easy solution is to take a fresh look at the space and invite civic organizations and community leaders to work with the congregation. “The interesting part is, [community leaders] always say yes” to an invitation to collaborate, Jaeger said.

Partners for Sacred Places’ most recent notable community collaboration involved the Diocese of Indianapolis, the Diocese of Northern Indiana, and Indiana Landmarks. Its goal was to perform an evaluation of all 80 churches in the two dioceses, to determine just how big each parish’s halo is, and what can be done to make it larger. The support of the Lilly Endowment, which provided a Thriving Congregations grant, was also essential.

The initiative was enthusiastically supported by the Rt. Rev. Jennifer Baskerville-Burrows (Indianapolis) and the Rt. Rev. Dr. Douglas E. Sparks (Northern Indiana). Baskerville-Burrows has an extensive background in historic preservation, and once interned at Partners for Sacred Places.

Brendan O’Sullivan-Hale, canon to the ordinary for administration and evangelism in the Diocese of Indianapolis, discussed the study by phone on a sunny mid-April afternoon as the last congregations were finishing the program. The study began with training and interviews of parish leadership online, aimed at answering basic questions: Is the congregation using its resources in alignment with its mission? Is it serving the community as well as possible?

The next step was a site visit curated and led by Partners for Sacred Places, aimed at a strategic review of each parish’s buildings and grounds, which generally takes about three hours. That review studies the space’s current use, best possible use, and potential community partners. Finally, churches were encouraged to engage in dialogue with relevant community organizations that could help them achieve their mission goals.

O’Sullivan-Hale said the results were almost immediate. Within weeks after a site visit, one parish began using its parking lot to create wheelchair ramps for disabled veterans. Another church invited people of harshly discordant political views to talk about what issues they could agree needed attention in the community. This dialogue inspired the church, alongside nearby congregations, to apply for a grant for an art program intended to help young people suffering from mental illness.

O’Sullivan-Hale has been impressed by the success of the program, but said he isn’t ready to declare victory. He identified two potential areas for more development: how to supplement leadership capabilities of congregations and how to assist congregations when building size and congregation are an extreme mismatch.

O’Sullivan-Hale’s cautious optimism about the program, combined with a desire to continue building congregations’ capacity for community engagement, was echoed by Michelle Walker, priest in charge at St. Paul’s Church, La Porte, and a missioner for administration and governance in the Diocese of Northern Indiana. As a result of her different roles, Walker experienced the program from both the top down and the bottom up.

Walker is excited about the “great opportunity” that St. Paul’s and other parishes across both dioceses have to pivot toward their community. Walker said she was intrigued by the program’s challenge to “look at ourselves differently and consider other options,” which she and her flock quickly met. Within two months of its site visit, St. Paul’s began working with two community organizations, the La Porte Service League and Arts in the Park.

St. Paul’s received a community grant as part of the Thriving Congregations Initiative. The grant, aimed at restoring the church’s Gothic bell tower, was for $7,500, conditional upon St. Paul’s raising $2,500 on its own. St. Paul’s launched a matching capital campaign to raise the funds, and the results astonished Walker: the church managed to raise $22,500, with no effect on the annual stewardship campaign, which was “as productive, or more so.”

Walker believes the enthusiasm for the building campaign shows how St. Paul’s collaboration with Partners for Sacred Places and the two dioceses has changed the parish for the better, making it “more open to sharing what we have with the community.” St. Paul’s has begun offering a concert in its nave on the first Friday of every month, and has expanded its community meals from once to twice a month.

“For a congregation that really didn’t know what we were getting into, we’ve been really pleased by the project,” Walker said. Like O’Sullivan-Hale, she knows there is more work to be done, but remains faithful and hopeful about the future: “When we give, God comes alongside us.”

Dylan Thayer is a parishioner at St. Paul’s K Street, Washington, D.C.

By Douglas LeBlanc

For most of the years since his ordination as a priest in 2012, the Rev. Canon Mike Pilavachi was known for his exotic shirts, advocacy of charismatic worship, and attracting up to 30,000 participants to the youth rallies of his Soul Survivor ministry.

In 2020, he was among 32 people receiving Lambeth Awards from the Archbishop of Canterbury. Pilavachi’s citation praised his “outstanding contribution to evangelism and discipleship amongst young people in the United Kingdom.”

Earlier in the year, he had been appointed to the Order of the British Empire in the New Year’s Honours List, also “for services to young people.”

In his preaching, the 65-year-old bachelor encouraged his young audiences to resist the lure of premarital sex, which he sometimes compared to fighting the persistent impulse to eat a chocolate cake.

But away from the speaking platform, according to multiple people who have spoken with the Church of England’s National Safeguarding Team and with The Telegraph, Pilavachi found overly hands-on ways of interacting with young male interns. They have mentioned involuntary wrestling sessions lasting about 20 minutes, followed by full-body massages with oils and dim lighting, and of being straddled by Pilavachi during these rituals.

Further, reports have said, his interest in young men was so clear to some leaders of Soul Survivor that they urged him to form friendships more suited to his age.

Gabriella Swerling of The Telegraph wrote on May 1 of “young, athletic, attractive men, usually around 18 to 21, from broken homes or with traumatic childhoods who were preyed upon and made to feel ‘special’ by their celibate vicar who they say led them to believe he held the key to their careers, happiness and futures.”

Pilavchi had “stepped back from ministry” when the accusations first arose in late April, but was formally suspended by Soul Survivor pending further investigation on May 20.

When it first announced accusations, the safeguarding team stressed that they were not recent and that Pilavachi was not subject to criminal charges.

Soul Survivor later said it removed such “non-recent” language because it learned from the investigating team “that allegations about recent matters have come to light. Whilst it does not appear these recent allegations include physical contact, they are no less significant because of that.”

Most church statements in response to Pilavachi’s case have been brief, saying that the investigation does not permit more than expressing grief at these developments and concern for anyone who was mistreated.

“I am deeply conscious of the impact that reports concerning Soul Survivor and Mike Pilavachi continue to have on many people,” Archbishop Justin Welby said on May 16. “The investigation, which is being led by safeguarding professionals from the National Safeguarding Team and the Diocese of St. Albans, is independent from Soul Survivor and has my full support. The investigation is prioritizing the wellbeing of everyone concerned, and I am confident they are treating all who are involved in the investigation and everything that has been shared with the utmost care and sensitivity. Access to counselling is available and support is being offered to all concerned.”

He added: “I cannot comment any further at this stage while the investigation is ongoing, but I know how profoundly painful this is. I would like to assure anyone who has been affected by this situation of my ongoing prayers. For some that will be from their direct involvement, for others this is bringing to the surface past experiences from their own lives. Please continue to support and pray for one another, as we remind each other of the love of Christ which never fails.”

The Rev. Andy Croft, who was one of Pilavachi’s interns and was ordained one year after him, became Soul Survivor’s interim leader during Pilavachi’s break. He was coauthor on several of Pilavachi’s many books. Croft is the son of Bishop Steven Croft of the Diocese of Oxford.

“We want you to know that we are especially aware of how much those who have come forward have been affected and of how much they are suffering, as are all who are directly involved in this investigation. I want to say, on behalf of the leadership of the church, how much this grieves us,” Croft read aloud from a statement on April 30.

“I also want to acknowledge that for our church family, this is painful. The trustees and the staff of the church have been cooperating fully and completely with this investigation and will continue to do so. We strongly encourage you that, if you know anything that you think might be relevant, to share it with the national safeguarding team.

“We cannot comment on an ongoing investigation, though we can say that more recent allegations have come to light. We want to underline our commitment to excellence in our present safeguarding practice and culture. We’ll continue to do all that we can to meet the high standards that we are aiming for, and to ensure that Soul Survivor is a safe place for all.”

By Kirk Petersen

Arson is suspected in simultaneous fires that consumed two century-old churches in the border town of Douglas, Arizona, and an arrest has been made, according to the local police.

Fires were reported late Monday morning at St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church and at First Presbyterian Church, and burned through the day and into the night. The two churches are separated only by a narrow alley, but officials said from the beginning that the blazes started independently.

The churches sit less than a mile up D Avenue from a wall topped by concertina wire, and a bit more than a mile from the port of entry on Pan American Avenue that connects to the Mexican town of Agua Prieta (“black water”). Both churches have played an active role in providing support for migrants and asylum-seekers, and the priest at the Episcopal church told TLC he is concerned that the churches may have been targeted for that reason.

“It’s a fear,” said the Rev. John Caleb Collins, who has been vicar of the mission congregation for about three years. “I hope not.” In a Facebook post, the Rev. Peggy Christiansen, co-minister at First Presbyterian, said the fire there was initially contained, but reignited in the middle of the night, collapsing the roof.

“Our rectory is completely burned and our sanctuary is completely burned,” Collins said. “Only the skeletal structure of the building remains. Everything — the icons, the stained-glass windows, the vestments, the pews — everything was completely consumed in the flames.” The parish hall does not appear to have sustained significant damage, he said, but parishioners have not yet had access to the building.

The Douglas Police Department said Eric Ridenour, 58, who lives near Douglas, had been arrested without incident on suspicion of arson. No motive has been established.

Bishop of Arizona Jennifer Reddall drove four hours from Phoenix to help lead an outdoor prayer service across the street Monday evening, even as the fires continued to burn. She told TLC on May 24 she had been briefed that morning by the detective in charge of the case, who said the suspect was captured with the help of surveillance camera recordings.

“The person who was arrested is not somebody who’s known to us, so we have no idea of what his motivation was,” she said. “I’m grateful for the the speed of the investigation.”

Collins said the local United Methodist and Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints congregations had contacted him to offer the use of their worship spaces. There is no estimate of the dollar cost of the damage, but Reddall said the church is insured and the Church Insurance Company has been very responsive. The diocese has established a web page to accept donations for St. Stephen’s for costs not covered by insurance.

St. Stephen’s is believed to be closer to the Mexican border than any other church in the country, Collins said, and the parish reflects that — it holds one service every Sunday, which is fully bilingual. Collins said when he first arrived to serve as vicar, he offered to start having separate English and Spanish services, as he speaks both languages fluently. “Everyone on both sides of the language aisle said no,” that they wanted to continue with a single service, he said. “This congregation really is intentional about being a unifier.”

No injuries were reported at either church. “We always pray for the safety of the church,” Collins said, but he told his parishioners not to wonder why God didn’t protect the church. “No single person was hurt. And since the church is the people, I said, the prayer was answered that day. … Our sanctuary can be rebuilt.”

Appointments

The Rev. Deacon Paul Barker is pastor of Christ Church, Bluefield, W.Va., and director of the Highland Educational Project.

The Rev. Kevin Barron is the Diocese of Central Pennsylvania’s interim diocesan transition minister and continues as associate for congregational vitality and Shaped by Faith.

The Rev. Bryan Michael Callen is vicar of St. Stephen’s, Sweetwater, and All Saints’, Colorado City, Texas.

Ms. Sarah Carlson is program director of Camp Capers, Waring, Texas.

The Very Rev. Shay Craig is dean of Christ Cathedral, Salina, Kan.

The Rev. Canon Matthew Dayton-Welch is rector of Epiphany, New York City.

The Rev. Sinclair Ender is priest in charge of Christ Church, North Conway, N.H.

Ms. Kana Goldsmith is interim director of Sawyerville, Birmingham, Ala.

The Rev. Mary Ann Hill is rector of Trinity on the Hill, Los Alamos, N.M.

The Rev. Steve Holt is rector of Guardian Angel, Remington, and the Diocese of Maryland’s associate for mission.

The Rev. Stacy Kelly is assistant rector for outreach ministries at St. Paul’s, Alexandria, Va.

The Rev. John Kennedy III is associate rector of St. Mark’s, New Canaan, Conn.

The Very Rev. Steve Lipscomb is priest in charge of Church of the Covenant, Junction City, Kan.

The Rev. Dr. William Lytle is long-term supply priest at St. Paul’s, Sidney, N.Y., and continues as rector of Christ Church, Gilbertsville, and long-term supply priest at St. Paul’s, Franklin.

The Rev. Slaven Manning is rector of St. John’s, Winnsboro, S.C., and continues as rector of St. Luke’s, Newberry.

The Rev. Charles Marks is transitions officer for the Diocese of West Missouri.

The Rev. Darcey Mercier is priest in charge of Grace Church, Sheldon, and St. Luke’s, St. Albans, Vt.

The Rev. Catherine Munz is interim priest at St. Michael’s of the Valley, Ligonier, Pa.

The Rev. Ernesto (Jar) C. Pasalo Jr. is priest in charge of St. Matthew’s, Waimānalo, Hawaii.

The Rev. Gregory Pennington is rector of St. John’s, Huntington, W.Va.

The Rev. Dcn. Kaitlyn Presley is associate rector at All Saints, Hilton Head Island, S.C.

Ms. Marisa Rainey is director of camp and program at the Episcopal Conference Center, Pascoag, R.I.

The Rev. Dr. Shane Scott-Hamblen is rector of St. Michael & All Angels, Corona Del Mar, Calif.

The Very Rev. Dr. Benjamin Shambaugh is rector of St. Luke’s, East Hampton, N.Y.

The Rev. Dr. John T. Sorensen is priest in charge of Messiah, Myrtle Beach, S.C.

The Rev. Floyd (Buddy) Stallings is canon to the ordinary in the Diocese of New York.

The Rev. Canon Christopher Streeter is priest in charge of Christ Church, Newton, N.J.

The Rev. Dr. Stephen Sturgeon is vicar of Holy Spirit Church, Concord, Calif.

Mr. Greg Tuttle is the Diocese of San Diego’s digital evangelist.

The Rev. Naomi Tutu is priest associate at All Saints’, Atlanta.

The Rev. Ginny Urbanek and the Rev. Steve White are chaplains to retired clergy and surviving spouses in the Diocese of Maine.

The Rev. Mason Waldhauser is rector of St. Margaret’s, Inverness, Fla.

The June 11 Parish Ministry issue of The Living Church is available online to registered subscribers.

Our cover is devoted to the coronation of the Church of England’s Defender of the Faith, with team coverage provided by Philip Corbett on the Mall, a Rosie Dawson wrap-up of celebrations in churches around the United Kingdom, and Peter Eaton on the sacramental significance of a coronation.

The Standing Committee of the Diocese of Ohio voted against giving consent to the consecration of Charlie Holt in Florida, and Kirk Petersen has the story. Kirk also is back from Kigali, Rwanda, with a package of articles on the fourth GAFCON conference, at which the conservative Anglican movement formally rejected the leadership of the Archbishop of Canterbury.

Sue Careless reports that a Canadian bishop has been suspended from ordained ministry, pending investigation of unspecified misconduct. Episcopalians are involved in an effort to gather 100 million signatures in Korea in support of reconciliation between North and South, and Douglas LeBlanc describes the challenges.

Dylan Thayer profiles the priest at a growing Delaware church, while Lauren Anderson-Cripps describes a complex, $63 million real estate project in support of Church of the Epiphany in New York City.

Dylan also has a report on the “halo effect,” the term the nonprofit Partners for Sacred Spaces uses to describe the benefit of a church on the surrounding community.

All this plus more news and features, book reviews, People & Places, and Sunday’s Readings, from an independent voice serving the Episcopal Church and the Anglican Communion since 1878. Consider subscribing today.

NEWS

• Ohio Standing Committee Withholds Consent for
  Florida Election | By Kirk Petersen

OPINION

• Impressions from a Theological Liberal at GAFCON
  By Kirk Petersen

THE CORONATION OF CHARLES III

• The Coronation from Street Level | By Philip Corbett
• Celebrating the Coronation at a Distance
  By Rosie Dawson
• Anointed, Blessed, and Consecrated | By Peter Eaton

FEATURES

• In Search of Growth: ‘What Is Jesus Doing Right Now?’
  By Dylan Thayer
• ‘A Mindset of Transformation’
  By Lauren Anderson-Cripps
• Study Helps Churches Expand Their ‘Halo Effect’
  By Dylan Thayer
• Worship, Discipleship, and Vocation: Pandemic
  Reflections | By Heidi J. Kim

COVENANT

• Becoming Leaders of Profound Change
  By Kristine Blaess

OTHER DEPARTMENTS

• Book Reviews
• Children of the God of Israel
• Sunday’s Readings
• People & Places

Children of the God of Israel

Pentecost A: John 20:19-23

By Ellen Charry

John 20:19-23 is one of Jesus’ post-resurrection appear- ances to his remaining 11 followers who had locked themselves in on the night of the Resurrection, fearing that the forces that had conspired to execute Jesus would come after them too, and they were not ready to martyr themselves.

The phrase “fear of the Jews” also appears in John 7:13, when there was considerable complaining about him, but Jesus went to the Temple on the Feast of Tabernacles (Sukkot), and spontaneously started teaching there. The phrase recurs at 19:38, when Joseph of Arimathea sought the body of Jesus to give it a proper burial. Those who have locked themselves away according to John 20:19 are Jews, as are Jesus’ opponents whom they fear.

Other verses in John that indicate fear of other Jews are John 9:22 and 12:42, where Jesus warns his followers that they could be evicted from the synagogue. John 16:2 speaks of two fears; one is of being unwanted in the synagogue. There is no indication anywhere that Jesusites were banned from synagogues or that anyone was out to kill them, only that they feared that they might be. These verses rather illustrate that early Jewish Jesusites did not see themselves as leaving Judaism. The debate in Jerusalem reported at Acts 15:4-29 also indicates that pharisaic Jesusites understood themselves to be Jews.

John’s designation of non-Jesusites as “Jews” is anachronistic, because the Jesusites holed up after the Resurrection were not Gentiles. John reveals what had by his time become a vicious struggle to determine the future of Judaism after Rome had burned the Temple. “The Jews” had become Jesus’ enemies, while the implication was that his followers were therefore not Jews. But John does not use the word “Christians.” Neither do any of the other canonical gospels.

In considering this situation, it is important to keep in mind that “the Jews” here retrojects a division between Judaism and Christianity that had not occurred when the text was written, but John was helping it along. We are in a rapidly moving intra-Jewish clash that is livestreamed here. The epithet “the Jews,” which later would become a term of scorn, expresses the writer’s hostility, 85-90 years after Jesus’ death. Separation was fitful, gradual, and painful.

Jewish animosity toward Jesus, expressed in all the gospels, has flummoxed Christians ever since. Why do Jews reject him not only as their messiah but even as a savior for Gentiles? Jesus warned the disciples that they would be persecuted for believing him, and so it was until Christians gained political power and turned the tables. Answers to these questions are complex and shift from age to age.

How might we read this passage in the Church today? One historical perspective is that the Judaisms that Paul, Hebrews, and other nascent Christians were suggesting are what they think Judahite religion could or would become in light of the Jesus movement. Or perhaps (more likely) they were proposing new Jewish sects or parties alongside Essenes, Sadducees, Pharisees, etc. These reconstructions, as well as John’s, were simply unrecognizable to most Judahites. Worshiping Jesus as the Son of God, incarnate in a person, as may have already been happening in John’s day, was idolatrous. Idolatry, murder, and sexual impropriety are Judaism’s three great sins.

What would constitute idolatry for Christians today? Might it be corrupting entertainments — pornography, violent action films, and games that promote violence, for example? Should Christians lock themselves away from these dangers and boycott them? Might producing and using products whose byproducts pollute our air, water, and land, including non-biodegradable plastics, be considered idolatrous because they destroy God’s very good creation? Might abandoning or withholding alimony or financial support for children express greed that is a form of self-worship? The prevalent fear of being harmed in this gospel is fecund ground for preaching and teaching when it is understood in its original context and its kernel extracted for us to explore its applicability generation after generation.

Day of Pentecost, May 28

Acts 2:1-21 or Num. 11:24-30

Ps. 104:25-35, 37

1 Cor. 12:3b-13 or Acts 2:1-21

John 20:19-23 or John 7:37-39

The promised gift of the Holy Spirit arrives, spreading abroad throughout the world, making a holy people who are learning, however haltingly, to judge rightly in all things, who feel and know a holy comfort amid all their joys and their sorrows (the Collect). The Holy Spirit is God, within us individually and collectively, but also God enveloping, sustaining, and directing all things. “You send forth your Spirit, and they ahre created; and so you renew the face of the earth” (Ps. 104:31).

Jesus comes to the disciples, greets them, and then gives them the gift of the Holy Spirit. “Jesus came and stood among them and said, ‘Peace be with you.’ After he said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord. Jesus said to them again, ‘Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you. When he had said this, he breathed on them and said, ‘Receive the Holy Spirit’” (John 20:19-22).

The breath of Jesus is the breath of life, the same Spirit who once moved over the face of the waters and spoke, saying, “Let there be.” This Spirit makes us newly alive, and alive especially in the common life we share. In the words of St. Paul, “For in the one Spirit we were all baptized into one body — Jews or Greeks, slave or free — and we were all made to drink of one Spirit” (1 Cor. 12:13). And, as we say in the baptismal rite, “There is one Body and one Spirit; There is one hope in God’s call to us; One Lord, one Faith, one Baptism; One God and Father of all” (BCP, p. 299). The holiness of the Church and the unity of the Church are concomitant themes. The Church is quintessentially one and holy.

Within the Church’s unity, the Spirit permits, indeed fosters, a wide range of gifts to be used for the common good. St. Paul speaks of gifts, activities, and services, among which he lists “the utterance of wisdom,” “the utterance of knowledge,” “faith,” “healing,” “the working of miracles,” “prophecy,” “discernment of spirits,” “various kinds of tongues,” and “the interpretation of tongues” (1 Cor. 12:4-11). The list is by no means exhaustive.

St. Peter quotes the prophet Joel: “In the last days it will be, God declares, that I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh, and your sons and daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams” (Acts 2:16-17). With vision-dream awareness, we may see the Spirit working incessant wonders in creation. “I will show portents in the heaven above and signs on the earth below, blood, and fire, and smoky mist. The sun shall be turned to darkness and the moon to blood” (Acts 2:19-20).

Standing on my front porch looking east for a private view of the early-morning sky, I see smoky gray clouds resting on the horizon, pierced by flaming balls of red, yellow, and orange of varied hues. Upward and to the north and south, the sky clears, the clouds fading into a subcaeruleus sky. Birds chatter and dart in staccato flight. “O Lord, how manifold are your works! In wisdom you have made them all” (Ps. 104:24).

The Holy Spirit is God within us, and God all around us, present to and in all things.

Look It Up: Acts 2:6

Think About It: The Spirit speaks your language, giving you your irreplaceable gift. The Spirit opens your eyes to a world of visions and dreams, making all things strangely new and divinely luminous.

Since the beginning of the 21st-century rupture, the Episcopal Church (TEC) and the Anglican Church in North America (ACNA) have spent tens of millions of dollars nationwide in court disputes over property ownership. South Carolina has been one of the bitterest battlegrounds. Last year, the respective bishops of South Carolina resolved to get past the tragedy of Christians suing Christians. TLC’s Kirk Petersen caught up with Anglican Bishop Chip Edgar in April at the GAFCON conference in Kigali, Rwanda, and found him in a talkative mood. TLC: For the past five years or so I’ve been covering litigation in South Carolina and elsewhere. I’ve written so much about conflict between TEC and ACNA. I am interested in anything that looks like reconciliation, or even cordial coexistence. And I see you and [Episcopal] Bishop Ruth [Woodliff-Stanley] modeling that. Bishop Chip Edgar: It’s been one of the surprising, sweet gifts of this whole thing, and I always give her credit. When the Supreme Court decision came down, which was April 20, 2022, that was a very busy day. And I kept thinking to myself, I really am going to have to reach out to her. She beat me to the gun. So she gets the credit as the one who offered the olive branch. But you were willing to take it. I took it, and we met the next day. At that first meeting, we said we’re going to do everything we can to keep this from going back into the court system. There’s been enough lawyers paid, enough briefs filed. The [state] Supreme Court in that 2022 decision said “we’re done.” But the decision had raised as many questions as it solved. So we began a series of meetings – pretty formal, just me and my chancellor, her and her chancellor – working through list after list of questions that had to be answered, to effect the Supreme Court’s decision. If we had gone to court again over some of these questions, the expense, the time, and the energy would have exceeded the value of the things we were having conversations about. Over that time, I found we were both committed to working with each other, committed to being honest and charitable. The net result of all that work was a pretty deep appreciation for each other. She took what looked to be some very difficult and very costly stands on behalf of staying out of litigation. The decision they made to sell us back one of our parishes, I think she paid for that with her people. Ruth and I had the advantage of coming in very late in the game. She was consecrated just a few months before I was. So neither of us came in carrying the wounds and the scars that are really there. So what do you see as the future for relationships between your two dioceses? I think that’s a way off. There have been a couple of times where Ruth has reached out to me to talk about issuing a kind of a joint statement on something. And I’m hesitant about that for a variety of reasons. We might find our way to agree on a statement about guns in the wake of another shooting or something like that. But there are under-the-surface iceberg differences. We could make the situation worse.

After a confusing series of rulings over several years, the April 2022 state Supreme Court decision divvied up the remaining contested church buildings based on arcane interpretations of each parish’s constitution or canons. (Parishes with documents saying they “conform to” the TEC canons went to ACNA, while parishes that “accede to” the same canons went to TEC. Seriously.) Some individual parishes have appealed the court ruling, but both dioceses have accepted it, and are working through the complicated details of handing over properties where necessary. The first such handover was nothing less than a model of Christian charity. St. John’s Anglican moved out of a historic Johns Island church and into a middle-school auditorium, and St. John’s Episcopal was reestablished in the church building. Both congregations livestreamed their first services in new quarters on July 17, 2022, and neither service showed any trace of resentment or triumphalism. The Anglicans had transitioned to ACNA’s new 2019 prayer book, and stored the Episcopal prayer books. When the Episcopalians got the keys to the building, they found the pews stocked with the 1979 Episcopal Book of Common Prayer. Bishop Chip Edgar: We now have seven templates for how we can reach agreements to effect transfer if transfer is required. TLC: So there have been seven handovers. All in the same direction? Yes, and one they chose to sell back to us. So that congregation stayed, but they had to do a quick capital campaign. They have an amazing woman priest there, Janet Echols, at St. Matthews in Fort Motte. People call it the mythical town of Fort Motte, because it’s actually an intersection with cornfields on every side. There are very few people to work with in terms of building a new congregation. So Ruth said, I’m not going to go in and further disrupt a small community by demanding that we get it back. So they set a price that was achievable for this little congregation. It was appraised value, but the appraised value of the church is nowhere near the value of the church. I thought that was the most impressive moment. From the point of view of the people who were used to worshipping there, and then had to do a capital campaign to buy what they considered to be their own building — were they thankful for the opportunity? Were they resentful? They were [thankful]. I think they realized that the Supreme Court had ruled, we’re gonna lose the building. They were delighted to have the opportunity to buy it back. Let’s put aside South Carolina and go global, and talk about GAFCON. Leaving the Episcopal Church was a grievous thing for me. I spent years looking back over my shoulder. But one of the great gifts of all that was getting to know these Rwandan Christians who have come through so much. There’s a fidelity that I just find irresistibly attractive. And in the world where there are teams being drawn, I cannot, not be on that team. I’m an anglophile, I love English choral music. This is a world of praise music. This is not my heart-language worship, but I’ve never been in worship that moved me more.