Original Face

By my side

    Today is the Feast of Saint Peter & Paul.  It is traditionally the day in the Roman Church when the metropolitan archbishops come to the Vatican and get the pallium, the woolen symbol of their office.  Happens every year.  No reason to write about it.  Except when the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople, the titular head of the world's 200 million Orthodox Christians, participates in the service.  That is news.
    Both the pope and the patriarch processed together, kissed the main altar of St Peter's and sat side by side during the Liturgy of the Word.  Both incensed the Gospel books, both received the Gospels from the other's deacons and they read together the Creed (minus the filioque).  Of course, when the Liturgy of the Sacrament started, the Patriarch retired to a throne of honor outside of the sanctuary, as the two Churches are not in communion with each other--yet.
    This is the closest the two Churches have come in nearly 1000 years.  While there is still a long way to travel until the schism is finished, today's actions are a dramatic development on that road to unity.  Deo Gratia!

The road back

    It will be a long road to health, but today, in Israel, the orthodox of the Anglican Communion took the first and most important step toward recovery.  The GAFCON communique issued this afternoon is a masterstroke.  It neither caves in with the typical Anglican vacillation nor declares a formal parting of the the ways with the rest of the Communion, both of which would have been welcome news to the the Episcopal Church and Church of England leadership.  Rather, the GAFCON statement makes it quite clear that they are and will remain Anglicans and that the criteria for being Anglicans is theirs, not Canterbury's, to bestow.  A new reformation has occurred. 
    By maintaining the power of the conciliar process of the Communion's primates, of which the orthodox have the lion's share, the leftists' power has been tossed aside.  Canterbury will be told, in not-too-subtle terms, if he wishes to have a Communion over which to be Archbishop, he had better take his orders from the orthodox from now on.  The real powerful bishop in Britain is now Michael Nazir-Ali, not Rowan Williams.
    What does this mean for North American orthodox Anglicans.  Nothing right away.  But it seems clear that soon the Communion's primates will be recognizing a new North American province and de-recognizing the Episcopal Church as the American branch of the Anglican Communion.  This will probably have little to no influence to civil judges making decisions on property disputes as parishes and dioceses leave the Anglican Church of Canada and the Episcopal Church.  American Anglican parishes will be hardscrabble and start from lowly beginnings, winning souls with faith rather than furnishings.  But given the decline in numbers and demographics of the Episcopal Church and other so-called progressive Christian denominations, there will probably be a whole lot of church buildings on the market shortly.

Bishop to archbishop 1. Check...

    The Anglican blogosphere and media are all focused on the large meeting of orthodox theologians, clerics and laity in Jerusalem this week, wondering if GAFCON, as the gathering is called, will mark the beginning of a formal split of the Anglican communion.  These reporters and commentators note that the meeting, coming just before the once a decade Lambeth Conference held by the Archbishop of Canterbury, will be attended by bishops who represent more of the world's Anglicans than will those attending Lambeth.  Yet, while GAFCON is an attractive story, it is not the big story in the dismantling of present day Anglicanism.
    The news that has received quite little attention is that Michael Nazir-Ali, the Bishop of Rochester in the Church of England, has let it be known that he and several other of his fellow diocesan CofE bishops will also be absent from Lambeth.  This is like the governor of Illinois or New York stating that he is refusing to come to the Democratic National Convention on ideological grounds. 
    Nazir-Ali, a leading evangelical in the Church, has long opposed the Episcopal Church's disregard of the rest of the Communion's prohibitions against gay marriage and consecrations but the breaking point is probably deeper than that.  His fierce attack on ++Rowan's speech on Sharia law earlier this year demonstrates that the Pakistani born cleric believes that the present CofE leadership is ill equip to deal with the problems presented by an aggressive Islam.  Nazir-Ali's decision seems to be that time is of the essence and that ++Rowan must be humiliated and forced to resign for the good of the Church.
    Without Nazir-Ali, Lambeth can no longer claim to be an inclusive meeting of Church hierarchs but rather will be merely a gathering of ideological bed-fellows and those who see Lambeth only as the the highlight of their life's social calender. There is no way for ++Rowan to save face.  He has failed to heal the breaches...indeed, he has exacerbated them.  Nazir-Ali's actions will just force this issue to the foreground.

O Death

    When I was a young boy, one of the first "real" books which I read pierced my soul.  It takes a nanosecond for me to recall reading John Gunther's "Death Be Not Proud" recounting the last months of his teenage son as he lost his battle with brain cancer.  The profound sadness which pervaded me that day comes back to me quite easily.  It showed me, and continues to show me, the particularity and universality of mourning. 
    Some time later I came to wonder how Gunther came upon that powerful title.  It comes from a sonnet of John Donne.  Surprisingly, Donne's death does not win, in the end.  Rather at the end of time, death is the vanquished foe.
    As Memorial Day approaches, it is good to remember Donne's words.

DEATH be not proud, though some have called thee
Mighty and dreadfull, for, thou art not so,
For, those, whom thou think'st, thou dost overthrow,
Die not, poore death, nor yet canst thou kill me.
From rest and sleepe, which but thy pictures bee,	5
Much pleasure, then from thee, much more must flow,
And soonest our best men with thee doe goe,
Rest of their bones, and soules deliverie.
Thou art slave to Fate, Chance, kings, and desperate men,
And dost with poyson, warre, and sicknesse dwell,	10
And poppie, or charmes can make us sleepe as well,
And better then thy stroake; why swell'st thou then;
One short sleepe past, wee wake eternally,
And death shall be no more; death, thou shalt die.

Who do you think you are, Einstein?

    Christie's auction house is putting up a 1954 letter of Albert Einstein's for bid this afternoon.  In it, he wrote, that he has no sense that Jews are the "chosen people" and that he finds religions and ideas of a god to be "childish" and "superstitious."  Ok.  So what?  I have a hard time wondering why this is a story at all, let alone why it is leading today's news programs.
    Einstein was an extraordinary theoretical physicist whose contributes to that field over turned centuries of established physics knowledge, but I he has admitted that he never studied theology or philosophy.  His ideas on God are as meaningful as John the Evangelist's ideas on natural science.  If his comments were on baseball, music or cooking, they would be amusing, but ignored.  But since all of us wonder about ultimate reality we look for someone who is smart in a field to tell us what to think.  There is a categorical confusion when prominence in a field, especially in fields as arcane as modern theoretical physics or theology, makes that person's pronouncements on matters that have nothing to do with their area of expertise, important and transforming. 
    What I or you believe to be the ultimate nature of our lives should not be influenced by Einstein's comments.  If I wouldn't trust him to tell me how to make a carrot cake, I certainly wouldn't trust him with my soul.

Why is tonight (and last night) different than all other nights?

    Because it is the Passover.  Here is the wonderful poet, Primo Levi's, poem on and for the holiday.

Tell me: how is this night different
From all other nights?
How, tell me, is this Passover
Different from all other Passovers?
Light the lamp, open the door wide
So the pilgrim can come in,
Gentile or Jew;
Under the rags perhaps the prophet is concealed.
Let him enter and sit down with us;
Let him listen, drink, sing and celebrate Passover;
Let him consume the bread of affliction,
The Paschal Lamb, sweet mortar and bitter herbs.
This is the night of differences
In which you lean your elbow on the table,
Since the forbidden becomes prescribed,
Evil is translated into good.
We will spend the night recounting
Far-off events full of wonder,
And because of all the wine
The mountains will skip like rams.
Tonight they exchange questions:
The wise, the godless, the simple-minded and the child.
And time reverses its course,
Today flowing back into yesterday.
Like a river enclosed at its mouth.
Each of us has been a slave in Egypt,
Soaked straw and clay with sweat,
And crossed the sea dry-footed.
You too, stranger.
This year in fear and shame,
Next year in virtue and justice.

Sisk, boom, bah

    It isn't everyday that one can see an 81 year old bantam weight throw a real knock-down punch but yesterday at St. Joseph's Church on New York City's Upper East Side, Benedict XVI TKO'ed the Episcopal bishop of New York.  In his remarks to the assembled ecumenical leaders, the Pope made it clear that dialogue is only possible within the context of revelation and the apostolic teachings of the Church.  He singled out for particular condemnation (I don't think that this is too strong a word here...) the notion of "local option" in changing sacred doctrine.
    So how is this such a smack across Sisk's face?  Because the Episcopal Church's actions for the past quarter century has been characterized as an abandonment of doctrinal norms to press for sociological relevance.  From the unilateral ordination of women to the priesthood, based not upon Scriptural or theological analysis but upon political considerations (using theology to back-fill once the political decision was made) to the idea of "open communion,"  that is giving the Eucharist to the non baptized in direct and flagrant contradiction of both the Epistles and the ancient tradition of the Church, the Episcopal Church has claimed that it was acting locally.
    Sisk was in the audience yesterday as Benedict said "no dice."  What must he have said to Sisk when the NY Episcopal bishop was introduced to him?  What could Sisk say to him? 
    Traditional Anglicans for sometime have been wondering how and when the Vatican was going to become involved in the dismantling of the Anglican Communion.  Yesterday was a not-so-subtle message that that time is approaching very quickly.  It would not be surprising, given the Pontiff's remarks, to see Bishop Robert Duncan and other traditionalists be invited to take the place of the Episcopal Church leaders in future ecumenical dialogues.

Christ is risen!

Meshia iz ufgeshtanen.

Kristus er Opstanden.

Cristo ressuscitou.

Cristo è risuscitato.

Le Christ est ressuscité.

Christ daaztsáádéé' náádiidzáá.

Jesu jinde.

Xris-Tuu-Sax Agla-Gi-Kux.

Mesih dirildi.

Chúa ki-tô đã phục sinh.

Se levantó el Sinyor.

Si Kristo ay nabuhay.

Kristur er upprisinn.

Eysa tirildi.

Christ waniskow.

Kristus jevstal.

Christo ha resucitado.

Kristo levigîs.

Tha Criosd air èiridh.

Kristu amefufuka.

Mshiho qom.

Tsesa dolehisanahi.

Хрисмос Воскресе.

Yésu apumbo.

Krista dékina.

Atgyfododd Crist.

Christus ist auferstanden.

Kristu mubika.

Piztu da Kristo.

Tá Criost éirithe.

Eyesus ten-si-ou.

Christus resurrectus est.

Pikhistof aftonf.

םק תמאב ; םק ח׳שמה

Ua ala hou ʽo Kristo.

yinqa' HrIyStoS.

Χριστός Ανέστη!

Good Friday

For I the Lord have slain

In evil long I took delight,
Unawed by shame or fear,
Till a new object struck my sight,
And stopp'd my wild career:
I saw One hanging on a Tree
In agonies and blood,
Who fix'd His languid eyes on me.
As near His Cross I stood.

Sure never till my latest breath,
Can I forget that look:
It seem'd to charge me with His death,
Though not a word He spoke:
My conscience felt and own'd the guilt,
And plunged me in despair:
I saw my sins His Blood had spilt,
And help'd to nail Him there.

Alas! I knew not what I did!
But now my tears are vain:
Where shall my trembling soul be hid?
For I the Lord have slain!
A second look He gave, which said,
"I freely all forgive;
This blood is for thy ransom paid;
I die that thou may'st live."

Thus, while His death my sin displays
In all its blackest hue,
Such is the mystery of grace,
It seals my pardon too.
With pleasing grief, and mournful joy,
My spirit now if fill'd,
That I should such a life destroy,
Yet live by Him I kill'd!

--John Newton (1725-1807)

With thanks to Canon Kendall Harmon for noting this poem today.

Preparation for Tenebrae

 It is a special thing to read the work of a poet with whom you have shared more than one glass of whiskey and with whom you have laughed and cried.  I have known David Slavitt for all of my adult life; he is the father of my best friend.  He is also a poet of great sensitivity, grace and, as contradictory as it may appear, power.  A number of years ago he tackled translating 61 of the Psalms.  With a modern poet's ear and a learned Jew's perspective, he found depths in David's lyrics which I had not appreciated until I read his take on them.
    This year, in preparation for the Tenebrae service during Holy Week, I am slowly working through Slavitt's translation and meditations on Lamentations.  It is a difficult task.  Not because the poetry is clumsy and dense, it is not, but because Slavitt has contextualized the Book within the tragic nature of the Jewish experience throughout the centuries.  As a Christian, it is not pleasant reading, however, it is vital reading.  His translations use Hebrew poetry's acrostic style that demonstrates Jeremiah's intent on imposing a semblance of order out of the seeming chaos of the world.  The verses have a flow and a sense of profundity that makes their use as Lectio Divina almost required.
    Get it.  Don't just borrow it, buy it.  Read it again, and again, and again.  Write in the margins, argue with it, rage at it and with it.  Make it your cry to the Lord as well.