firemedic58/Flickr Postcard from London By John Martin After two weeks of wall-to-wall Olympics coverage by the United Kingdom’s mass media, the usual seasonal news void has set in. Making headlines this week is a story first featured in The Guardian that a dozen gay Church of England priests intend to write an open letter to the House of Bishops to … [Read more...] about Revolution by Royal Mail?
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U.K. Decides and Divides
Postcard from London By John Martin Early Wednesday evening I left my local rail station, Ealing Broadway, and was greeted by a phalanx of campaigners handing out leaflets and canvassing support in the once-in-a lifetime referendum on whether the U.K. will be an island of, or an island off, Europe. The first face I recognized was that of our local MP, Steve Pound, a Roman … [Read more...] about U.K. Decides and Divides
A Queen’s Momentous Reign
Letter from LondonBy John MartinAt nearly 4 years old in February 1954, from my six-foot father’s ample shoulders I waved a pennant-sized Australian flag as a royal motorcade drove slowly by. A smiling, pretty young Queen Elizabeth II and the handsome Duke Edinburgh waved amid the cheers of a huge Sydney crowd.An estimated three-quarters of Australians set eyes on the royal … [Read more...] about A Queen’s Momentous Reign
Facing My Inner Racist
By Bob Libby I’ve had a cross burned on my lawn, but I am a racist. I have an award from the Hollywood Radio and Television Society that honors me for creating a public-service radio announcement on racism, but I am a racist. President Obama contends that racism is in America’s DNA. I would expand that to suggest that racism is part of human DNA. Is it not part of our … [Read more...] about Facing My Inner Racist
Jesus Was Never a PB
The Rev. Frederick Schmidt of Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary reflects on the office of Presiding Bishop, comparing it to the ministry of Jesus:We’ll be getting the names of the people nominated for Presiding Bishop of The Episcopal Church in a few hours and people have already named the demands of the task.But I have a sinking feeling that — just as with the election … [Read more...] about Jesus Was Never a PB
Thinking Ahead to Convention
Philip Turner and Ephraim Radner write for the Anglican Communion Institute on the theme “What Then Shall We Do?”:There are times in the life of individuals, institutions and communities when they are faced with questions for which received wisdom has no ready answers. As loyal members and Priests of the Episcopal Church (TEC), we find ourselves in precisely this position. As … [Read more...] about Thinking Ahead to Convention
Kenyans, Bishops, and Women
CommentaryBy Francis OmondiThe appointment and now the consecration of the Rt. Rev. Libby Lane as Bishop Suffragan of Stockport, prompted many conversations in the Anglican Church of Kenya (ACK). Our ties with the Church of England have progressively loosened since March 1955, when Archbishop Geoffrey Fisher consecrated two Africans, one of them Festo Habakkuk Olang, who became … [Read more...] about Kenyans, Bishops, and Women
Alcohol, the Church, and Lent
The Rev. Robert Hendrickson, writing at The Sub-Dean's Stall on January 14:On Facebook today, a friend sent along an idea that I thought both sensible and spiritually valuable. He wrote the following:“Like everyone in the Episcopal Church, I’ve been torn, dumbfounded, and mortified by the events of Maryland: what it says about the episcopacy and church structures, what it … [Read more...] about Alcohol, the Church, and Lent