Reconciliation Puzzle Game: Join the Dots to Schore Winning Points

In Anglican news this week there is appalling tragedy on South Sudan which reminds us the for some Anglicans going about their mission, violence and death are close at hand. Cheerful news is also at hand as we read about a grand opening to the year for St John's College, Auckland and the pilgrim's progress around her new diocese of soon to be ordained bishop, Helen-Ann Hartley. A little further away from these islands is a story of reconciliation between past and present, concerning 19th century martyr +John Coleridge Patteson and the present Archbishop of Melanesia, George Takeli.

Reconciliation is emerging as the great theme of Archbishop Justin Welby's tenure as ABC. He is making waves as he goes about this. A recent wave has been the appointment of an ACNA clergyman, Tory Baucum as one of six 'Canterbury Preachers.' One ripple on the beach is this exchange at the CofE GS this week. But if that perturbed 'Communion watchers' who view any positivity towards ACNA as a surf patroller views a shark's fin moving towards swimmers at the beach, note the alarm with which other watchers are reacting towards a Welby wave this week. That wave is a press release celebrating Oxford University awarding an honorary DD to Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori. 'What was Justin Welby Thinking?' is one of the kinder responses. I am grateful that ++Justin celebrates things about her leadership which can be celebrated. At least he didn't say she was a notable theologian ...

What about the dots to be joined up? Astute observers have noted that across the Atlantic, as TEC's Executive Council does some work on budgets, some new money to fund Communion conversations is being proposed, with a specific signal from ++KJS that this is 'in recognition of greatly improved relations with the Communion.'

So, there we have the big picture of ++Justin's reconciliation vision for the Communion as the dots are drawn up. In one word, 'inclusion.' ACNA gets a crumb from the table. TEC remains seated at the table. Absent members (whether choosing to stay away for the time being, or kept away by local trauma as in South Sudan) will be visited (recall the flying trip to GAFCON).

Incidentally, ++Justin's presidential address to his GS is worth the read, whether in a word cloud there or full transcript here.

To cite one thing only, but connected with reconciliation, here is ++Welby taking on his critics:

"The Church of England is not tidy, nor efficiently hierarchical. There are no popes, but there is a College of Bishops and there are Synods and collections and lobbies and groups and pressure and struggle.   When it works well it works because love overcomes fear.  When it works badly it is because fear overcomes love. The resources for more fear lie within us and the resources for more love lie within God and are readily available to all those who in repentance and humility stretch out and seek them. With Jesus every imperative rests on an indicative, every command springs from a promise. Do not fear.

Already I can hear the arguments being pushed back at me, about compromise, about the wishy-washiness of reconciliation, to quote something I read recently.  But this sort of love, and the reconciliation between differing groups that it demands and implies, is not comfortable and soft and wishy-washy.  Facilitated conversations may be a clumsy phrase, but it has at its heart a search for good disagreement. It is exceptionally hard edged, extraordinarily demanding and likely to lead in parts of the world around us to profound unpopularity or dismissal. 

This sort of gracious reconciliation means that we have to create safe space within ourselves to disagree, as we began to do last summer at the Synod in York, and as we need to do over the issues arising out of our discussions on sexuality, not because the outcome is predetermined to be a wishy-washy one, but because the very process is a proclamation of the Gospel of unconditionally loving God who gives Himself for our sin and failure.  It is incarnational in the best sense and leads to the need to bear our cross in the way we are commanded. "

Pekoe Pips: A Legacy

My approach to Christian faith is shaped by my upbringing, both in household, local parish and involvement in the Christian Unions of the Universities of Canterbury and Otago. The shape of this evangelical approach was influenced by a number of clergy, beginning with my father (the writer of the article below) and including our vicar in the Parish of Bryndwr when we arrived there in 1971, Dick Carson (one Orange Pip). But my father was a Bible Class member in the Parish of Spreydon when Roger Thompson (another Orange Pip) was its Vicar. Though senior in life, both Roger Thompson and Harry Thomson (an Orange Pip) were memorable models in my own youth, along with other Pips mentioned below. One of them, Maurice Goodall, as then Bishop of Christchurch took a punt when he encouraged me to offer for ordination. In various ways then, Canon William Orange (whom I do not personally remember - he died when I was six) has influenced people who have influenced me. In two sentences below (italicised by me) the whole of my biblical hermeneutics is summed up. The article has recently been published in our local diocesan magazine, Anglican Life. (Not yet online).

Fruitful Orange Pips

One of the most influential parish ministries in the 150 year history of the Christchurch Diocese was that of a man who never held high office or was renowned for his charismatic personality. The man was Canon William Orange (or ‘Pekoe’ – after the English tea).

Canon Orange

Of slight stature, conservative and precise in dress and style akin to Hercule Poirot, softly spoken, and in many ways quite unworldly, William Orange was Vicar of Sumner 1930-45, then later Precentor at Christ Church Cathedral. But over this time his preaching and teaching, complemented by his personal mentoring, led to dozens offering themselves for ordination, and many others for missionary service overseas..

At Sumner he built up a Sunday afternoon young men’s Bible Class of more than 40, some drawn locally from his parish, but most cycling out week by week from the City. The fare they came for was invariably plain and undecorated – an hour of Bible teaching, the systematic working through of one book of the Old or New Testament before moving on to another. This was followed by a prayer meeting and light meal before concluding with Evening Prayer where the sermon was also consistently bible exposition. In time, those who regularly attended his Bible Class were referred to jocularly as ‘Orange Pips’. Many of these same Orange Pips were in turn to emulate their mentor’s style of ministry and produce similarly fruitful ministries.

There were few peculiarities in Pekoe’s style. He allowed the Scriptures to speak for themselves, but in such a way that held people in rapt attention absorbing his teaching. There were no histrionics, no ear-tingling oratory – just the opening up of the Scriptures with clarity to reveal the depth of their significance, then relating this in practical terms to the world of that day. The experience of those present was like that shared by the two disciples on their way to Emmaus:

Were not our hearts burning within us while he was talking to us on the road, while he was opening the Scriptures to us?

His students welcomed his insights into the way Christ and his salvation was foreshadowed throughout the Old Testament. Pekoe often reminded his students, ‘The New is in the Old concealed, the Old is in the New revealed.’ There were many ‘Orangeisms’ which those who sat at his feet still recall with appreciation. ‘Interpret any single passage of Scripture in the light of the teaching of Scripture as a whole. Therefore always read widely as well as closely.’ Pekoe also had delight in quoting the astute comment of Mark Twain: ‘It is not the things I cannot understand in the Bible which trouble me, but the things I can understand.’ One of the strengths of his appeal was his subtle sense of humour, selectively introduced to lighten his teaching and enliven his students.

The Orange Pips

Among the Sumner first generation Orange Pips were a number who in later decades would make their own mark in the Diocese or in the Church overseas. Max Wiggins would become a Bishop in Tanganyika, Roger Thompson would have a fruitful ministry at St Martins (Spreydon), Harry Thomson would become the first full-time General Secretary of NZ CMS after a notable ministry at Woolston, Dick Carson would serve many years in Pakistan before returning to parish ministry in Christchurch, and David Aiken likewise would distinguish himself as a missionary in Pakistan before a role as a Bible College teacher in Auckland. Peter Tovey would also serve his best days as a CMS missionary in the Sind, Harvey Teulon and Graham Lamont would become Vicars of parishes in the diocese, Maurice Betteridge would teach at College House before parish ministry in Christchurch and Dunedin Dioceses and later becoming Principal of Ridley College, Melbourne.

Maurice Goodall was to have an outstanding ministry as Vicar of Shirley before roles as City Missioner, Dean and Bishop. Lester Pfankuch and Robert Glen would also be ordained. Others in that Sumner Bible Class would take secular paths, none-the-less making an impact in their various vocations, such as Edwin Judge who would become Professor of Ancient History at Macquarrie University in Australia. 

Roger Thompson

As Vicar of Spreydon (1946-60) Roger Thompson was the immediate successor to Canon Orange, following his mentor’s style and substance closely. His ministry also focussed on a Sunday afternoon 4 pm Bible Class for young men and now (note) women, once again followed by a light tea, prayer meeting and Evening Prayer.  But an extra factor was built in – an after-service gathering at the Vicarage for a fellowship hour. 

Numbers steadily built up to a point where the old 75-seater church was regularly full at 4 pm each Sunday. The same sense of eager anticipation of each week’s study was as much a feature of this second generation bible teaching ministry as it had been the mark of Canon Orange’s seed-sowing pattern at Sumner. And the fruit of this ministry was to be similar also.

Those fifteen years of ministry at Spreydon produced 38 members of the Sunday Bible Class, men and women, who went on to be ordained (three of whom later became bishops), and 35 who responded to the missionary call. At a reunion of former St Martin’s Bible Class members in 1992, 120 came from around New Zealand and overseas to recall the formative role of this Bible Class in their lives.

Harry Thomson

In Woolston across the other side of the city through this same post-war period another Orange Pip was having a similarly fruitful ministry, following the same principles learned from Canon Orange, but with some different emphases and outcomes.

Harry Thomson’s passion was overseas missions, particularly CMS. It is not surprising therefore that his efforts in the end led not so much to vocations to ordained ministry in this country as to missionary service beyond our shores. For some years he combined a part-time CMS organising role with his responsibilities as Vicar of Woolston. Nor is it surprising that many of the missionaries sent or supported overseas during this decade were fellow Orange Pips (eg Max Wiggins, David Aiken, Lester Pfankuch, Peter Tovey, Dick Carson, Robert Glen). By 1961 it was evident that the CMS task needed full commitment and Harry Thomson left his parish role to become the first General Secretary.

Also from that time the fruits of the Orange Pip ministries of Harry Thomson, Roger Thompson and others now in parish ministry began revealing themselves in a growing number of second and even third generation Orange Pips discerning a call to missionary service. Most of these had also been significantly nurtured in faith and a vocation to some form of Christian service through their involvement in a youth branch of CMS, the League of Youth - encouraged by Harry Thomson and supported ardently by other Orange Pips. A vibrant programme of monthly meetings, periodic weekend house parties and annual Easter Camps often featured first or second generation Orange Pips as speakers or bible study leaders. 

An Appreciation of Canon Orange

William Orange had been brought to conscious faith as a lad of 10 during a parish mission in Kaikoura. Some years later, in another parish mission, he experienced a turning point in life where he committed himself to the service of Christ. In his 1911 diary he wrote:

My great ambition is that love for Jesus may become the one absorbing passion of my life.

Ordained in 1919, he served a curacy at Sydenham followed by a locum at Fendalton before becoming Vicar of Waikari (1924-30). After his years at Sumner he was briefly based at Tyndale House, Cashmere, before becoming Precentor at the Cathedral as his last appointment. He died in 1966 and is buried in the Avonside Churchyard.

Dean Martin Sullivan in his book Watch How You Go, reviewing Orange’s ministry, made the claim that his ‘ability to inspire others to enter the ordained ministry was unparalleled in any other New Zealand churchman’.  This did not always please the Anglican hierarchy! In 1934 Canon Parr, the Principal of College House, complained to Bishop West-Watson that four of the six new ordinands were “men put up by Orange”.

Pekoe himself was averse to labelling fellow clergy through a perception of their theological views. In his own words, ‘labels too easily become libels’.

                                                          - Brian Carrell

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Further reading:  For an excellent and recently published detailed survey of this period see Stuart M Lange, A Rising Tide, Evangelical Christianity in New Zealand, 1930-65, Otago University Press, 2013.

I am grateful to my father for supplying the text. I am currently in the process of reading the book mentioned just above for review for Stimulus. 

One note struck above concerns humour. In my own evangelical upbringing there was always laughter as many jokes were told and many riffs on the quirks of life and faith were shared. In contrast to some aspects of evangelicalism today (at least as I read around the world) which seem dourly serious and seriously dour, I look back fondly on my upbringing in the life of the church. We had fun. I suppose, theologically speaking I should describe that as 'joy.' 

In praise of creationism

I am on short rations timewise this week, so a bit of reliance on the writings of others ...

Is there any virtue in expounding a literal seven day creation? Possibly. An appreciative but critical perspective heads towards this conclusion:

"So I do not think that Ken Ham–style creationists should get to rewrite biology textbooks according to their very peculiar reading of Scripture. But I admire their bullheadedness. They have gotten lost in the woods while trying to protect the big truths of Christianity: that God created the world, that we are dependent on him, that we owe him everything, and that he loves us even though we are sinful. In the world most of us inhabit, day to day, the world of lovers, wriggling kids, disease, war, and death, the sureness of God's love is relevant in a way that the details of early hominid fossils never will be, glorious as they are. Have some perspective, people."

The whole article is here at The Week.

Abuse of language

How would you feel if I killed your family, perhaps most of your townfolk too, in the name of my politics and then said to you and a few of the other survivors languishing in some hellhole of a prison that you should just think of it as "one of modern history's pivotal experiments."

Not much :(

In fact I think you would rightly want to punch my face in.

Yet this phrase, "The revolution that birthed one of modern history’s pivotal experiments" has been used in NBC's opening montage to its coverage of the Winter Olympics to deftly cover the whole history of Russia from 1917 to 1990. (H/T MCJ)

The slide of Western civilization into historical oblivion continues unabated. When we stop telling the truth, darkness waits pouncing at the door.

As Christopher Johnson rightly observes, thank goodness Germany is not due to host an Olympics anytime soon.

Yet more light to be revealed from God's Word?

Some recent argumentation here concerns the ever recycling question of 'authority' and 'interpretation' of Scripture, as well as the role of the Spirit in inspiring Scripture and illuminating its meaning for each generation. Hint: when engaging in such discussion it is helpful to be really clear about what aspect of the matter is being worked on. (It saves tiresome debate when a riposte tackles something one didn't think one was trying to say).

Anyway, all that means I think it worth drawing attention to this Down Under post by Jason Goroncy which (at the end) includes this phrase,

"God has yet more light to break out of his holy word."

Also at the end is a bit of a clever comment about N.T. Wright. Last year I had the privilege of travelling in the same train as Tom Wright. I can report that we made it to our planned destination.

The Tickle Down Theory of Ecclesiology?

Stand back from the details of debates here there and everywhere in 21st century Christianity. Get a perspective which is appropriately post-Christendom on a pluralist, secular Western world, while seeing the rest of the world through a different lens as sometimes strident, often times alarmingly extremist growth spurts are made by Christianity, Islam and Hinduism. What do we see?

One answer, bubbling away for a few years now, but not recently addressed here, is that we are in the midst of massive religious change. 2015 is 1515. Just as the Reformation in Europe was to the then world - massive seismic shift, change in paradigm, revolution in consciousness - so is the Something which is going on now. Whether we are worried about decline in our local parish as members age with no replacement generation in sight, or press carefully in reflective research into how people are 'spiritual' but not 'religious', or just hammer away at the question of why otherwise sane Christians today seem intent on (say) ignoring biblical truth, chucking away liturgical heritage, reversing nostalgically into some past (e.g. reviving Mass in Latin, reworking BCP 1662), the deep issue may be something else.

In specific Anglican terms, whether we rejoice or despair in the lead which Nigeria/Uganda/TEC/Sydney/Holy Trinity Brompton is trying to give the Communion, the actual question of Anglican future in the midst of this Something might have an answer no one is currently proffering. That is, Christians generally and Anglicans reading blogs such as this (tends to mean you are concerned about the Anglican future!) need to get hold of the Something which we are in the midst of, which hasn't yet received a name like 'Reformation' (or, for that matter, 'Renaissance'), smell the roses and realise that what is dying is a now useless version of Christianity (and Anglicanness).

Just as there is a point in a body which is dying where attempts to revive and resuscitate should give way to preparation for death, so (this answer) would say that a lot of huff and puff amongst Christians today is pointless. But or BUT, in preparing for the death of what has been, we should act and think Christianly, that is, we should also prepare for resurrection. Out of this Something will arise a new and vigorous Christian movement, with as much or more dynamism than Protestant Christianity once had (and, indeed, post Counter Reformation Roman Catholicism had). So, a thesis goes.

With all that as background musing, check out this interview of Phyllis Tickle about her new book, co-authored with Jon Sweeney The Age of the Spirit: How the Ghost of An Ancient Controversy is Shaping the Church.

What do you think?

Even if, on the basis of the interview, you demur from the detail of Tickle's argument for 'Spirit Christianity' to be the new 'Great Emergence' of our faith, do you think we are in the midst of change as significant as the Reformation (or the Great Schism or ...)?

If so, is the Holy Spirit kind of the 'key player' of the Trinity in this new phase?

Living wage or minimum wage?

One of the privileges of my current work is sharing a building with our Diocesan Social Justice Unit, spearheaded by Jolyon White, Kate Day (pictured front/centre) and Lyndon Rogers. The details of our many stimulating discussions need not be rehearsed here but occasionally their work makes the pages of the newspaper, if not the front page.

On page 3 of this morning's Press is an excellent report of their presentation to the City Council arguing that it ought to pay all its employees at least the 'Living Wage' (worked out here to be NZ$18.40 per hour, compared to our law-required Minimum Wage of NZ$13.75 per hour). The paper carries a beautiful picture of many supporters seated behind Jolyon and Kate as they present. Unfortunately the Stuff report is just text now includes the picture. Here is an excerpt:

"Advocating on behalf of the Living Wage movement, Jolyon White, from Anglican Life [Ed.: an alternate name for the Diocese of Christchurch], acknowledged the council was in a difficult financial position but told councillors that it was in hard times that good decisions really mattered.

He challenged the completeness of the report presented to the committee, saying it failed to draw on the experience of hundreds of overseas cities which had instituted a Living Wage.

Their experience showed the cost of introducing the Living Wage was often far less than initially envisaged.

"It is a far too important thing, affecting far too many lives, to be made on incomplete information," White said as he urged the council to commission a full feasibility study rather than accept the report's recommendation.

"We are foolish if we think there are not ongoing costs of paying low wages in Christchurch," she said."Kate Day, also from Anglican Life, said experience in cities that had introduced a Living Wage showed it boosted morale and productivity."

I am all for people being paid fairly but I am wondering whether the argument for the Living Wage being paid to workers not currently on or above that level is not also an argument for the Minimum Wage being set at the Living Wage level?