tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-45342375494851368422024-03-13T14:34:11.763-05:00An Odd Work of Gracea bishop's blogmattgunter1081@gmail.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14808597688160170927noreply@blogger.comBlogger266125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4534237549485136842.post-63257847160286990672024-03-03T20:04:00.000-06:002024-03-03T20:04:06.438-06:00<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIhcTo5eT2VF6ZAhYqK1QazwWYNGRvbUmGyd0JGmIJyInPFCHWPcTGHEbbfn2q7M-Hdnw-EjQWwkfNOpaOvxhA35mypj9gpqHkguGU8qrqCcOUfphRilGdDOQWNBSNN-KuzBZfHJ6QxM-3Q_5mfE_C4MgZJk7bzadKQFl20VoQpIW-SyS2NNX-oGZm6N6a/s640/Giving%20Communion.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="243" data-original-width="640" height="176" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIhcTo5eT2VF6ZAhYqK1QazwWYNGRvbUmGyd0JGmIJyInPFCHWPcTGHEbbfn2q7M-Hdnw-EjQWwkfNOpaOvxhA35mypj9gpqHkguGU8qrqCcOUfphRilGdDOQWNBSNN-KuzBZfHJ6QxM-3Q_5mfE_C4MgZJk7bzadKQFl20VoQpIW-SyS2NNX-oGZm6N6a/w464-h176/Giving%20Communion.jpg" width="464" /></a></div><span style="color: #050505; font-size: 11.5pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Sometimes at the Eucharist, as I am
distributing the Sacrament, I imagine I am wielding an invisible needle and
thread. With every placing of the Bread in the hands or tongue of a communicant
and then the next as I go along the line, the body of Christ is being threaded
together anew.</span></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="color: #050505; font-size: 11.5pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Every Eucharist is a remembering of
the body of Christ as we remember and recall the Presence of Jesus in the
Sacrament. And every Eucharist is a re-membering of the body of Christ, the
Church, in which the threads that bind us together are reinforced. We recall
that we are not our own. We are created for communion – communion with God and
communion with one another. The Holy Spirit – the Holy Weaver – weaves, knits,
and sews us together.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="color: #050505; font-size: 11.5pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">All of humanity is created for
communion with God, communion with itself, and communion with all of creation.
Part of the Church’s vocation is to be the sign and foretaste of that
communion. The Church’s vocation is to be a sign and foretaste of the promise
that all that is torn and tattered will be mended, rewoven, and knit back
together. All that is torn and tattered in each of us can be mended. The torn
and tattered fabric of human relationship and society can be mended. Creation,
torn and tattered, can be repaired. It is not just about the Church. But, it is
the mission of the Church to point to and live in anticipation of God’s
restoration of all things (Acts 3:21).</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="color: #050505; font-size: 11.5pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">That is the work of God. Only God can
finally accomplish it. But Christians are called to participate in that mission
and be menders in the world. It is the Church’s vocation, knit together by the
Holy Spirit through Baptism and Eucharist, to be the loom of the Lord.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="color: #050505; font-size: 11.5pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">There is precedence for this image:</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">“But
speaking the truth in love, we must grow up in every way into him who is the
head, into Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and knitted together by
every ligament with which it is equipped, as each part is working properly,
promotes the body’s growth in building itself up in love.” </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">(Ephesians
4:15-16)</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">"Christ
is likened to a needle the eye in which, pierced most painfully at his passion,
now draws all after him, so repairing the tunic rent by Adam, stitching
together the two peoples of Jews and Gentiles [and, by extension, every
division that rends the human fabric], making them one for always." </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">–
Henri de Lubac (1896-1991), 'Catholicism, Christ and the Common Destiny of
Man', referencing Paschasius Radbertus (785-865)</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">"One
day a little girl sat watching her mother working in the kitchen. She asked her
mommy, 'What does God do all day long?' For a while, her mother mother was
stumped, but then she said, 'Darling, I'll tell you what God does all day long.
He spends his whole day mending broken things.'" </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">–
Festo Kivengere (1921-1988), quoted in 'Glorious Companions'</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">"From
Jesus began a weaving together of the divine and human nature in order that
human nature, through fellowship with what is more divine, might become divine,
not only in Jesus but also in all those who, besides believing in Jesus, take
up the life which he taught; the life which leads everyone who lives according
to the precepts of Jesus to friendship with God and fellowship with him." </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">–
Origen (184-253), 'Contra Celsus'</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">“For
the sake of love all the saints resisted sin, not showing any regard for this
present life. And they endured many forms of death, in order to be separated
from the world and united with themselves and with God, joining together in
themselves the broken fragments of human nature. For this is the true and
undefiled theosophy of the faithful. Its consummation is goodness and truth –
if indeed goodness as compassion and truth as devotion to God in faith are the
marks of love. It unites men to God and to one another, and on this account
contains the unchanging permanence of all blessings.” </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">–
Maximus the Confessor, ‘Various Texts on Theology, the Divine Economy, and
Virtue and Vice’, 1st Century</span></span></p><br /><p></p>mattgunter1081@gmail.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14808597688160170927noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4534237549485136842.post-89674373116144492602023-11-25T07:11:00.005-06:002024-02-15T01:41:35.712-06:00The Way of Spartacus, the Way of bar Kokhba, or the Way of Jesus<p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">100
years before Jesus, <a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Spartacus-Roman-gladiator">Spartacus</a> (c.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">103</span><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Garamond;">–</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">71 BC) who was a slave
and gladiator, led a slave revolt against the</span></span></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKP5jLSbcc7W4TXAm9WPLlL0Orslz3dV0M1ctdwTdgnyKX5kWRDvjHhOYoXrJ1PA8gvBtKu8qWJot2RldhT5_Uo1sHWdkx6qw4q7y-EVtXhFtGLFpuPdLA_fmkoDaRuFhjR4jpeZU-ugArTt8dE-VYVYt3KDXSVdAvGszbNA9z28qJKjwQvLoY2TcjLe2T/s320/Spartacus.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><img border="0" data-original-height="220" data-original-width="320" height="221" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKP5jLSbcc7W4TXAm9WPLlL0Orslz3dV0M1ctdwTdgnyKX5kWRDvjHhOYoXrJ1PA8gvBtKu8qWJot2RldhT5_Uo1sHWdkx6qw4q7y-EVtXhFtGLFpuPdLA_fmkoDaRuFhjR4jpeZU-ugArTt8dE-VYVYt3KDXSVdAvGszbNA9z28qJKjwQvLoY2TcjLe2T/w320-h221/Spartacus.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Kirk Douglas in the 1960 movie, 'Spartacus'</span></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: 12pt;"><br /> Roman Republic. After several
stunning military successes, Spartacus and his army were defeated. 6,000 of the
defeated rebel slaves were crucified. Spartacus' body was never identified, so
it is unclear if he was among those crucified (though he was in the classic
Kirk Douglas movie). If only he had borne our sins on the cross taking up the cross might mean something different and walking
in his footsteps would be the way of holiness.<o:p></o:p></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: 12pt;">100
years after Jesus, <a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Bar-Kokhba-Jewish-leader">Simeon bar Kokhba</a> (died, 135) led a Jewish revolt against the
Roman Empire. He also won several battles against the Roman legions and won independence
for his people – for a few years. He was identified by some as the Messiah. Like
Spartacus, bar Kokhba was eventually defeated and died fighting the Romans. If
only he had risen from the grave and breathed his spirit upon us so we could be
sure that living by his spirit was the way into the heart of God.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: 12pt;">If
either Spartacus or Simon bar Kokhba had been "the Messiah, the Son of the
living God" (see <a href="https://bible.oremus.org/?ql=567916830">Matthew 16:13-20</a>), we could embrace our every fantasy of
"good" violence.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: 12pt;">Instead
we have Jesus, the Prince of Peace, the Slaughtered Lamb. "When he was
abused, he did not return abuse; when he suffered, he did not threaten; but he
entrusted himself to the one who judges justly" (<a href="https://bible.oremus.org/?ql=567916883">1 Peter 2:23</a>),
"leaving you an example, so that you should follow in his steps" (1
Peter 2:21).</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: 12pt;">Over
against human wisdom and the pattern of this world (see Romans 12), the pattern
of the cross, which is the wisdom of God, will always seem foolish (<a href="https://bible.oremus.org/?ql=567916938">1Corinthians 1:22-25</a>). And even many Christians will prefer the way of Spartacus
or bar Kokhba to the way of Jesus.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: 12pt;">If
Jesus is Lord, we who follow him will walk in his way will:</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse
them. Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. Live in harmony
with one another; do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly; do not claim
to be wiser than you are. Do not repay anyone evil for evil, but take thought
for what is noble in the sight of all. If it is possible, so far as it depends
on you, live peaceably with all. Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave
room for the wrath of God; for it is written, ‘Vengeance is mine, I will repay,
says the Lord.’ No, ‘if your enemies are hungry, feed them; if they are thirsty,
give them something to drink; for by doing this you will heap burning coals on
their heads.’ Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good. </span><span style="font-size: 12pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">(Romans 12:14-21)</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: 12pt;">If
Jesus is our Lord and Teacher, we will follow his example:</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">After he had washed their feet, had put on his robe,
and had returned to the table, he said to them, ‘Do you know what I have done
to you? You call me Teacher and Lord—and you are right, for that is what I am.
So if I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash
one another’s feet. For I have set you an example, that you also should do as I
have done to you. Very truly, I tell you, servants are not greater than their
master, nor are messengers greater than the one who sent them. If you know
these things, you are blessed if you do them. </span><span style="font-size: 12pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">(John 13:12-17)</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: 12pt;"></span></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6Sb1TTNjuaXKNfvLYUFRSErV0I4MxY3PlBmrWzVSIPFLr-mtz7kiXQ0NoA1pVI3c6DMN3uRHPHqYFNh4yyHwTpw6_4qNhXfYADDiLofa3DkOANJPtgCY9kyyxH4RAY-DpaUKfy2-7Q5Z_RW8Mhyf3rRZTq33OB0UXGzshC8moQqRLwMvNFRjstfZpIFxH/s1000/Footwashing%20icon.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><img border="0" data-original-height="540" data-original-width="1000" height="173" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6Sb1TTNjuaXKNfvLYUFRSErV0I4MxY3PlBmrWzVSIPFLr-mtz7kiXQ0NoA1pVI3c6DMN3uRHPHqYFNh4yyHwTpw6_4qNhXfYADDiLofa3DkOANJPtgCY9kyyxH4RAY-DpaUKfy2-7Q5Z_RW8Mhyf3rRZTq33OB0UXGzshC8moQqRLwMvNFRjstfZpIFxH/s320/Footwashing%20icon.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Ethiopian Icon of Jesus Washing the Feet of the Disciples</span></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span><p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: 12pt;">See also:</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: 12pt;"><a href="https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2022/06/guns-myths-redemption-conversion.html">Guns,
Myths, Redemption & Conversion</a></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: 12pt;"><a href="https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2022/05/gun-violence-again.html">Gun Violence. Again . . .</a></span></p><p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: 12pt;"><a href="https://www.diofdl.org/news/teaching-for-the-church">Gun Violence, Sin, and Regulation: A Teaching for the Church</a></span></p><p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p><br /></o:p></span></p><br /><p></p>mattgunter1081@gmail.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14808597688160170927noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4534237549485136842.post-23950819791424139812023-11-18T17:19:00.003-06:002024-02-15T01:42:09.764-06:00Celebrating Our Mutual Dependence<p><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">One
route I sometimes take on my morning walk takes me by the city water works. Another
route takes me by the city sewage treatment plant. I do not know any of the
people who work at either of these facilities. But I am immensely grateful for
them. They are not generally celebrated but should be. There are no television
dramas or movies about the exploits of people who work in such places as there
are for police, fire fighters, and doctors,. They are not as celebrated as the military. But they are arguably every bit as
essential to our well-being. Maybe more so. I remember hearing in a history
class that no single technological development has done more for human
flourishing and saved more lives than modern plumbing that assures that our drinking water is clean and our
waste is managed. </span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 16px;">In this light, plumbers are heroes. </span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Think of that the next time you turn on a water tap. Or flush
a toilet. And give thanks for those involved in tending these most basic needs.
Our wellbeing depends upon them. </span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">That
got me thinking. My wellbeing and that of my neighbors is in the hands of
people who work at the water works and the sewage treatment plant. People I do
not know. Where else is that true? Once you start thinking about it, the answer
is as clear as clean drinking water – everywhere. We are always and everywhere
living at the hands of </span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 16px;">–</span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;"> mostly </span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 16px;">–</span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;"> unknown others. As suggested above, we do
celebrate some, e.g., first responders and health professionals. And rightly
so. But it is true of others less celebrated. Just about any civil
servant/employees. It is true of utility workers. It is true of</span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">farmers and those who harvest, process,
and deliver our food, along with those who work at grocery stores,
and all involved in the agricultural and food delivery system. The clothes we
wear depends others. We could add the merchants on Main Street and those who
work in shops and restaurants. One graphic way to understand this is to
imagine all the people involved in making sure the passenger of a commercial
airplane makes it safely from one place to another. The same is true of trains
and buses. Or when we “just” drive a motor vehicle anywhere. The list goes on
and on. The fact that we pay some of these people for their service does not make us any less beholden to their labor.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">If
we were truly aware of how much our lives depend on all these others, we would move
around the world in wonder. And we would be continuously moved to gratitude.
Thank you. Thank </span><i style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">you. </i><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">And you and you and you . . .</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">We
are, as Charles Williams would say, all knit to one another, ultimately, to
every other, and to all creation in a great web of exchange. There is no
autonomous individual. None of us is independent. We are all interdependent. I
live in the hands of others. Others, God help me, live at my hands. Williams
liked to use the classical theological term, </span><i style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">coinherence</i><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">, to name this
reality. It is on the one hand inescapable. But we can live it it well or
badly. When we embrace our coinherence with gratitude, harmony, and justice we
experience our life and our life together as coherent, anticipating the New Jerusalem
we read about at the end of the Revelation to John. When we try to reject our
coinherence through selfishness and presumed independence, there is disharmony
and injustice. Then our lives and our life together become incoherent and echo the
desolation of Hell.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">I am trying to live with the awareness of my interdependence. I am cultivating the practice of gratitude. I say thank you a lot to those I encounter. I especially make a point of saying thank you to public employees who make sure things keep working. If I ever see someone at the </span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 16px;">city water works or the sewage treatment plant, I intend to say, "Thank you for your service."</span></p>mattgunter1081@gmail.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14808597688160170927noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4534237549485136842.post-31878336184939575242023-10-23T06:57:00.002-05:002024-02-15T01:42:33.978-06:00An Episcopal Bishop's Teaching on Abortion, Part 10: Conclusion<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">The
148th Convention of the Diocese of Fond du Lac requested that “the Bishop
Diocesan, our Chief Teacher as expressed in the consecration service of the
Book of Common Prayer, to provide a series of teachings and theological
reflections on the issue of abortion to the members of this diocese.”</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">In
response to that request, I wrote a series of teachings over several months.</span><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Abortion%2010%20-%20Conclusion.docx#_ftn1" name="_ftnref1" style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[1]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">
I studied extensively sources by theologians of the Christian Tradition and by
contemporary authors, including both men and women. I have invited others,
within the diocese and beyond, both men and women (but mostly women), holding
different perspectives to read each teaching and give feedback before it was
published. I have had conversations in person, by phone, and via email. I have
heard from people whose views on abortion have evolved over time, and people who
have expressed mixed feelings about abortion. I have also engaged in
conversation with those who are convinced a fully ensouled human person is
present from the moment of conception and with those who believe that is not
the case until birth. I have heard from women who had life-threatening
pregnancies in places where procuring an abortion was difficult. I have also
heard from many who have simply expressed appreciation for the teaching
series.</span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">I
set out the recent historical, cultural, and political context of current
understandings of the issue which suggest that the contemporary divisions on
the issue of abortion do not represent what the Church has always taught or
practiced.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">The
several resolutions passed by the General Convention over the years on the
morality of abortion were set out. I explained that those resolutions are not
binding on the conscience and behavior of Episcopalians. The Episcopal Church’s
teaching on this issue is not static. Further reflection and teaching would be
welcome. But these resolutions do represent the closest thing we have to an
“official” teaching. Because they have been passed by different General
Conventions over several decades, they have an ad hoc character. They do not
set out one straightforward teaching document. Consequently, there is some
tension among them, and one might wonder if there is a lack of consistency or
coherence. Taken together, these resolutions do challenge both what is usually
referred to as the “Pro-choice” and the “Pro-life” positions.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">The
Episcopal Church acknowledges that “in this country [the United States] it is
the legal right of every woman to have a medically safe abortion” and
therefore, “We believe that legislation concerning abortions will not address
the root of the problem.” (Resolution 1994-A054). General Convention has also
asserted on behalf of the Episcopal Church,</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">“its unequivocal opposition to any legislative,
executive or judicial action on the part of local, state or national
governments that abridges the right of a woman to reach an informed decision
about the termination of pregnancy or that would limit the access of a woman to
safe means of acting on her decision.” (Resolution 1994-A054).<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">The
most recent General Convention, in 2022, asserted that it,</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">“understands that the protection of religious
liberty extends to all Episcopalians who may need or desire to access, to
utilize, to aid others in the procurement of, or to offer abortion services.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">On
the other hand, while there is no assertion that we are fully human persons at
conception, in the name of the Episcopal Church, General Convention has
affirmed that,</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">“All human life is sacred from its inception
until death. The Church takes seriously its obligation to help form the
consciences of its 149th Convention 2023 Page 5 members concerning this
sacredness. Human life, therefore, should be initiated only advisedly and in
full accord with this understanding of the power to conceive and give birth
which is bestowed by God.” (Resolution 1994-A054)<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Therefore,
“We regard all abortion as having a tragic dimension” (Resolution 1994-A054).
General Convention has also “strongly condemn(ed) the act of abortion when the
sole purpose of such action is the selection of the sex of the child” and that
“abortion after the diagnosis of non-serious or trivial abnormalities, or
abortion in a case where purely cosmetic abnormalities are discovered, is also
strongly condemned” (Resolution 1982-A065). It has also expressed “grave
concern about the use in the third trimester of pregnancy of the procedure
known as intact dilation and extraction (commonly called "partial birth
abortion") except in extreme situations” (Resolution 1997-D065).</span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">General
Convention has also counselled that,</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">“Whenever members of this Church are consulted
with regard to a problem pregnancy, they are to explore, with grave
seriousness, with the person or persons seeking advice and counsel, as
alternatives to abortion, other positive courses of action, including, but not
limited to, the following possibilities: the parents raising the child; another
family member raising the child; making the child available for adoption.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(Resolution 1994-A054)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Episcopalians
seek to ground our teaching in scripture and look to the tradition of the
Church for guidance in interpreting scripture. So, the teaching series included
looking at both the Old Testament and the New Testament to see what instruction
they contained on the morality of abortion or the question as to when the life
in the womb is a fully human, ensouled person. We saw that there is little or
nothing in the Bible that directly addresses or answers those questions.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">When
we turned to the traditional teaching of the Church, we saw that from its
beginning Christianity proclaimed a radically new valuing of all human beings
of all sorts and conditions. This included a valuing of children that was more
affirming of them as persons than had been common in the ancient world. With
that was a clear rejection of infanticide, a common and accepted practice in
the ancient Greco-Roman world. Christians treated abortion as similar to
infanticide.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">But
we also saw that most Christian teachers through most of Christian history did
not consider the life in the womb in the early parts of a pregnancy to be fully
human. This was true in the teaching of most major theologians and Doctors of
the Church. It was true in the on-the-ground practice of pastoral care of women
who resorted to abortion. And the life of the mother took precedence if giving
birth threatened her life. It was only a little over 150 years ago in 1869 that
understanding was reversed in the Roman Catholic Church – mostly due to its
teaching on the Immaculate Conception of Mary.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Given
all of this, I have suggested something consistent with the tradition and in
line with the current teaching of the Church of England that “all life is
God-given but that [fully ensouled human] life emerges only gradually as does
our moral responsibility towards that life.” Though less clearly articulated,
this seems to be the direction of the various resolutions of the General
Convention of the Episcopal Church. I made the case that this seems in keeping
with Job 10:11-12 and Psalm 139:12-14. That understanding recognizes that the
holy mystery of becoming fully human is a gradual process in the womb and that
the pregnant woman is not merely a passive vessel of that process of becoming.
The moral balance at first tilts toward the agency of the pregnant woman
(usually along with the father) and gradually tilts to include the baby
developing in her womb.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">We
looked at how this applies when looking at the biology of pregnancy and the
development of an embryo – fetus – baby. Though this goes beyond what the
General Convention of the Episcopal Church has said, I suggested that at around
20 weeks we can be fairly certain that the fetus has developed to the point
that it makes sense to speak of it as having the capacity to be a fully
ensouled human being. At that point, the rest of the community has more of a
stake in its well-being such that it is reasonable for there to be more
regulation of abortion beyond that point. In keeping with the teaching of the
Church, the pregnant woman’s life still takes precedence if it becomes
threatened. Though it was not my intention when I started the teaching, series
this is similar to what the law was in Wisconsin before Roe v Wade was
overturned by the Supreme Court.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">I
also made the case for moving beyond simply pitting the individual life in the
womb against the individual life and choice of the pregnant woman. We are not
simply individuals with competing rights. We are interdependent beings in
communion with one another with mutual obligations. This is not just about the
responsibility a woman (and the man with whom she has gotten pregnant or her
partner) has toward the life in the womb. The wellbeing of mothers and
children, born and unborn, is the responsibility of the community. There are
things we as a community – whether in our churches, our states, or as a country
– can do to address the reality of unwanted or difficult pregnancies, reduce
the number of abortions, and reduce maternal mortality. This includes things
like better sex education and the availability of birth control, insuring
better prenatal and post-natal care, paid parental leave, subsidized daycare,
etc.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">It
would seem possible to both advocate for safe, legal, and available abortion,
at least in the first half of a pregnancy, and support efforts to reduce the
frequency of abortion including advocating for policies that make it easier for
women pursue other options. It would not be inconsistent to also advocate for
restrictions on abortion in the second half of a pregnancy. In any event,
shaming women is not the way of mercy.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Taking
all this together, it appears that the Episcopal Church’s teaching is that
abortion should be a legal and readily available option for women. But various
resolutions passed by the General Convention also suggest that abortion is not
necessarily morally neutral or that all abortions at whatever stage of
pregnancy are morally equivalent. Some reasons for abortion are morally
problematic, others less so. The stage of the fetus’ development is also
morally significant. But problematic pregnancies are also a reality. Simply
criminalizing abortion is not required by the Bible or the broad teaching of
the Church’s tradition. Nor does it address the complexities of pregnancy and
the reasons women resort to abortion. The Episcopal Church has sought to
faithfully grapple with those complexities.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">I
commend </span><a name="_Hlk148935143" style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Enriching Our Worship 5 Liturgies and Prayers
Related to Childbearing, Childbirth, and Loss</a><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;"> which contains liturgies,
prayer for discernment, and confession authorized by General Convention regarding
various aspects of pregnancy, including abortion.</span><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Abortion%2010%20-%20Conclusion.docx#_ftn2" name="_ftnref2" style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[2]</span></span></span></a></p><div style="mso-element: footnote-list;">
<hr align="left" size="1" width="33%" />
<!--[endif]-->
<div id="ftn1" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Abortion%2010%20-%20Conclusion.docx#_ftnref1" name="_ftn1" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn1;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> <i>An
Episcopal Bishop’s Teaching on Abortion</i>, ‘An Odd Work of Grace’, Blogspot<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoFootnoteText">(anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2023/01/the-episcopal-churchs-statedposition).<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn2" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Abortion%2010%20-%20Conclusion.docx#_ftnref2" name="_ftn2" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn2;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><b><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;">[2]</span></b></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
<i>Enriching Our Worship 5 Liturgies and Prayers Related to Childbearing, Childbirth,
and Loss <o:p></o:p></i></p>
<p class="MsoFootnoteText">(chrome-extension://efaidnbmnnnibpcajpcglclefindmkaj/https://www.churchpublishing.org/siteassets/pdf/liturgies-and-prayers-related-to-childbearing/enrichingourworship5.pdf)<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><br /></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;"><b>Previous:</b></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Part 1: <a href="https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2023/01/the-episcopal-churchs-stated-position.html">The Episcopal Church’s Stated Position on Childbirth and Abortion</a></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Part 2: <a href="https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2023/01/an-episcopal-bishops-teaching-on.html">Context</a></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Part 3: <a href="https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2023/02/an-episcopal-bishops-teaching-on.html">Old Testament</a></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Part 4: <a href="https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2023/02/an-episcopal-bishops-teaching-on_29.html">New Testament</a></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Part 5: <a href="https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2023/03/an-episcopal-bishops-teaching-on.html">Tradition</a></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Part 6: <a href="https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2023/04/an-episcopal-bishops-teaching-on.html">Tradition, continued</a></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Part 7: <a href="https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2023/05/an-episcopal-bishops-teaching-on.html">Back to the Bible</a></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Part 8:</span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;"><a href="https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2023/08/an-episcopal-bishops-teaching-on.html">Wisdom and the Glorious Works of Nature</a></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Part
9: <a href="https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2023/10/an-episcopal-bishops-teaching-on.html">Rights, Choice, Obligations, and Community</a><o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
</div>mattgunter1081@gmail.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14808597688160170927noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4534237549485136842.post-15277506788982213732023-10-16T09:48:00.002-05:002024-02-15T01:43:31.883-06:00An Episcopal Bishop's Teaching on Abortion, Part 9: Rights, Choice, Obligations, and Community<p><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Many
of the questions surrounding the morality of abortion have to do with language
about rights – the right to life, reproductive rights, the right to choose, the
right to bodily autonomy, personal rights vs communal rights, etc.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Abortion
is not the only issue about which we use the language of rights. There are also
notions of the right to bear arms, the right to self-defense, the right to free
speech, the right to private property, the right to marry whom we will, the
right to work, the right to unionize, etc. More recently we have had debates
about the right to wear or not wear a mask and the right to refuse to be
vaccinated. The list goes on.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">On
the one hand, the idea of rights has undoubtably been liberating. The Bill of
Rights in the American Constitution was a welcome development in organizing
political life and setting limits on government. The idea of individual rights
has also been liberating for minorities, women, and others who have
historically had the ability to exercise their gifts and pursue their dreams
limited by laws or communal norms.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">It
is certainly the case that until very recently, women were accorded fewer rights
than men and had their agency over their own lives constrained. Women were not
“allowed” the right to vote until 1920 (though in many places it was much later
for women of color). They were not assured of the right to open a bank account
or have a credit card in their own name until 1974 and without a husband
cosigning. Only in 1993 had the right to legal protection from marital rape in
all fifty states. Women still do not always receive equal pay for equal work.
And sexual harassment and assault, either publicly or domestically, is still
all too common. The idea of personal rights is a powerful one and has often
been the impetus for welcome change.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">On
the other hand, from a Christian perspective, no personal rights are
straightforward or absolute. And some of the above might actually be suspect
from a Christian perspective. If we look at the Bible, we can infer certain
human rights, but the Scriptures are much less interested in our rights than it
is with the will of God and our obligations to God and others.</span><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Abortion%20Teaching%20-%209.docx#_ftn1" name="_ftnref1" style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[1]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">
In a society increasingly shaped by radical individualism, some have begun to
point out the problems if the language of rights is all we have.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">In the social ethic of individual rights, people
claim their rights over and against other people’s in an argument that quickly
leads into a trap. Are my rights more important than yours? Whose rights matter
more: the person who wants to carry a gun or the person threatened by the
proliferation of guns in our society? The person who says a hateful thing on
social media or the person forced to listen to such speech without recourse?
“When rights are taken to be the fundamental moral reality, we are encouraged
to take an ultimately degrading perspective on society,” writes Esther Reed.
“No real society can exist when its citizens’ only way of relating is in terms
of noninterference. The language of ‘rights’ . . . encourages us to live as if
we had no common interests or beliefs.<a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Abortion%20Teaching%20-%209.docx#_ftn2" name="_ftnref2" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn2;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[2]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">From
a Christian perspective we are not autonomous individuals with competing
rights, but persons woven into a web of relationships. We </span><i style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">do</i><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;"> have common
interests even with those with whom we might not have common beliefs. Our
interests are bound up with one another and we are obligated to love and care
for one another even when our immediate interests seem to be at odds. As Simone
Weil wrote, “[There is a] "chain of eternal obligations that bind every
human being to every other one."</span><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Abortion%20Teaching%20-%209.docx#_ftn3" name="_ftnref3" style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[3]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">
And as Edith Stein wrote,</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">It is most peculiar how the very thing that
causes us to be totally on our own―our freedom―at the same time chains us
inseparably to all others and creates a true community of fate. We are
responsible for the well-being of all others. and they for ours.<a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Abortion%20Teaching%20-%209.docx#_ftn4" name="_ftnref4" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn4;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[4]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a>
<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">This
is all relevant to the conversation about abortion. At least in some of the
more partisan rhetoric, things get reduced to the competing rights and
interests of just two individuals – the pregnant person and the developing
person in her womb. But then these are pitted against each other and there is a
temptation to minimize the significance of one or the other of these
individuals.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">The
partisan political rhetoric surrounding abortion does not capture the
complexities on the ground. Many who identify as pro-life are not dismissive of
the difficult choices faced by women and their loved ones when with a difficult
pregnancy and seek to give them aid. Among those who identify as pro-life there
are those who hold to a consistent ethic of life that seeks to defend all life.
Among pro-choice advocates there is often a recognition of the significance of
the life developing in the womb and the recognition that ending a pregnancy is
no small matter. Women who have abortions do not do so casually and the reasons
for doing so are complex and varied. Acknowledging the complexities does not
settle the moral questions but does keep our hearts empathetic and merciful as
we engage those questions.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">If
we are not simply autonomous individuals with competing rights we need to
recognize that somehow we are all in this together. Thus, the developing life
in the womb is not insignificant. But, especially in the early weeks and months
of a pregnancy, that life, which even official Vatican documents acknowledge is
only “probably” an ensouled person, does not necessarily outweigh the realities
of the actual person in whose womb it is developing. Before that, we are
talking about a potential human being. As such, it is still sacred and perhaps
increasingly so. The burden of deciding to bear it is mainly that of the
mother, ideally along with the father. Still, “. . . the ends of all members of
a relationship must be carefully considered. A woman facing the decision of
whether to terminate a pregnancy must include a sense of what she owes to those
with whom she shares or will share her life with. [This includes the father], the
unborn, existing young human beings, as well as other people including elderly
dependent relatives.”</span><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Abortion%20Teaching%20-%209.docx#_ftn5" name="_ftnref5" style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[5]</span></span></span></a></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">The
Episcopal Church’s teaching is that abortion should be a legal and readily
available option for women. But various resolutions passed by the General
Convention also suggest that even in the case of a developing embryo/fetus that
is not yet a fully ensouled person, abortion is not necessarily morally neutral
or that all abortions at whatever stage of pregnancy are morally equivalent.
Some reasons for abortion are morally problematic, others less so. But that is
different from whether or not it should be a legal and safe option.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">As
the fetus develops, and particularly after the 20<sup>th</sup> week of
pregnancy, the moral calculus shifts with the recognition that the fetus is now
“formed” and has the capacity to be a fully ensouled human person. At this
point, society as a whole has more of a stake in caring for the person in the
womb as well as the woman bearing it and might enact legal restrictions on
abortion as long as delivering the baby does not threaten the life or physical
well-being of the mother. This 20 week distinction was actually the abortion
statute in Wisconsin before the</span> <span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">U.S. Supreme Court ruling in Dobbs v. Jackson.<a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Abortion%20Teaching%20-%209.docx#_ftn6" name="_ftnref6" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[6]</span></span></span></a>
I recognize that this is at odds with the most recent resolution passed by the
Episcopal Church’s General Convention which emphasizes autonomy and advocates
for “no restrictions” on the timing of an abortion.<a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Abortion%20Teaching%20-%209.docx#_ftn7" name="_ftnref7" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[7]</span></span></span></a>
But I would argue that that is inconsistent with many other resolutions passed
by General Convention.<a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Abortion%20Teaching%20-%209.docx#_ftn8" name="_ftnref8" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[8]</span></span></span></a>
And it is inconsistent with the Church’s historic teaching.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">But
the rest of the community’s stake in the life of the unborn is not limited to whether
or when or what restrictions on abortion might be desirable. Because of our
fundamental connectedness, the social and economic environment we create affects
us all, not least women who get pregnant. Dietrich Bonhoeffer, who was
otherwise opposed to abortion, pointed out that the rest of the community is
implicated when a woman feels there are few viable alternatives to abortion.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">A great many motives may lead to an action of
this kind; indeed in cases where it is an act of despair, performed in
circumstances of extreme human or economic destitution and misery, the guilt
may often lie rather with the community than with the individual. Precisely in
this connection money may conceal many a wanton deed, while the poor [person's]
more reluctant lapse may far more easily be disclosed.<a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Abortion%20Teaching%20-%209.docx#_ftn9" name="_ftnref9" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn9;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[9]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Ours
is a society content to tolerate an alarmingly high maternal mortality rate –
far higher than any other industrialized nation.</span><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Abortion%20Teaching%20-%209.docx#_ftn10" name="_ftnref10" style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[10]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">
There are no guarantees of prenatal or postnatal medical care. There is no guarantee
of adequate maternity – let alone paternity – leave or affordable childcare. And
there does not always seem to be the will to protect women from sexual
harassment, assault, or rape including by partners and family members. Merely
making abortion illegal and putting the burden on the woman is inadequate in
such an environment. And then shaming women who resort to abortion regardless
of the complex reasons that might lead them to choose abortion is unjust and
unmerciful.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">A
critical flaw in the singular emphasis on autonomy and individual rights is
that it reinforces a libertarian impulse by which everyone</span> is promised <span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">noninterference, but everyone
is also left to fend more or less for themselves. But Christians affirm that we
are interdependent beings in communion with one another with mutual obligations.
This is not just about the responsibility a woman (and the man with whom she
has gotten pregnant) has toward the life in the womb. The wellbeing of mothers
and children, born and unborn, are the responsibility of the community. There
are things we as a community – whether in our churches, our states, or as a
country – can do to address the reality of unwanted or difficult pregnancies
and reduce the number of abortions. Including things like, better sex education
and the availability of birth control, ensuring better prenatal and post-natal
care, paid parental leave, subsidized daycare, etc. If we really believe we
belong to one another and we truly care for women, couples, families and the
life in the womb, we will create an environment of support and invest in that
care.</span></p><div style="mso-element: footnote-list;">
<hr align="left" size="1" width="33%" />
<!--[endif]-->
<div id="ftn1" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Abortion%20Teaching%20-%209.docx#_ftnref1" name="_ftn1" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn1;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a>
John j Collins, <i>What are Biblical Values?</i>, (Yale University Press), pp.
40-44<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn2" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Abortion%20Teaching%20-%209.docx#_ftnref2" name="_ftn2" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn2;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[2]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> Jonathan
C. Richardson, “The Language of Rights and It’s Limits”, <i>The Christin
Century</i>, March 14, 2023<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoFootnoteText">)<a href="https://www.christiancentury.org/article/features/language-rights-and-its-limits">https://www.christiancentury.org/article/features/language-rights-and-its-limits</a>)<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn3" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Abortion%20Teaching%20-%209.docx#_ftnref3" name="_ftn3" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn3;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[3]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> Simone
Weil, <i>The Need for Roots: Prelude to a Declaration of Duties Towards Mankind<o:p></o:p></i></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn4" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Abortion%20Teaching%20-%209.docx#_ftnref4" name="_ftn4" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn4;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[4]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> Edith
Stein, ‘World and Person’, quoted in <i>An Edith Stein Daybook</i><o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn5" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Abortion%20Teaching%20-%209.docx#_ftnref5" name="_ftn5" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn5;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[5]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> Susan
Martinelli-Fernandez, ‘Abortion, Polyphonic narratives, and Kantianism’ from <i>Interdisciplinary
Views on Abortion,</i> Martinelli-Fernandez, Baker-Sperry, McIlvaine-Newsad,
ed. (McFarland & Company), p. 113-114<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn6" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Abortion%20Teaching%20-%209.docx#_ftnref6" name="_ftn6" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn6;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[6]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> Madeline
Kasper, Jillian Slaight, Isaac J. Lee, A Brief History of Abortion Laws in
Wisconsin (rev. ed.), p. 7 <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoFootnoteText">(chrome-extension://efaidnbmnnnibpcajpcglclefindmkaj/https://docs.legis.wisconsin.gov/misc/lrb/lrb_reports/history_of_abortion_laws_6_4.pdf)<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn7" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Abortion%20Teaching%20-%209.docx#_ftnref7" name="_ftn7" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn7;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[7]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> <i>Resolution
2022-D083: Addressing the erosion of reproductive rights and autonomy</i> (https://2022.vbinder.net/resolutions/326?house=HD&lang=en)<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn8" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Abortion%20Teaching%20-%209.docx#_ftnref8" name="_ftn8" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn8;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[8]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> An
Odd Work of Grace Blog, <i>The Episcopal Church’s Stated Position on Childbirth
and Abortion</i> (https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2023/01/the-episcopal-churchs-stated-position.html)<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn9" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Abortion%20Teaching%20-%209.docx#_ftnref9" name="_ftn9" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn9;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[9]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> Dietrich
Bonhoeffer, <i>Ethics</i> (New York; Macmillan, 1965) 175-6<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn10" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Abortion%20Teaching%20-%209.docx#_ftnref10" name="_ftn10" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn10;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[10]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> Jamila
Taylor, ‘The Worsening U.S. Maternal Health Crisis in Three Graphs’, <i>The
Century Foundation </i>(https://tcf.org/content/commentary/worsening-u-s-maternal-health-crisis-three-graphs/?gclid=Cj0KCQjw1aOpBhCOARIsACXYv-e7Vf3C_uyO5KPt5GJyrZ5pdD6dEYg-8lVCC1A2fdookVsgS919c9YaAmW2EALw_wcB)<i><o:p></o:p></i></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">Next:<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Part
10: Conclusion</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Previous:</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Part
1: <a href="https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2023/01/the-episcopal-churchs-stated-position.html">The Episcopal Church’s Stated Position on Childbirth and Abortion</a></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Part
2: <a href="https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2023/01/an-episcopal-bishops-teaching-on.html">Context</a></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Part
3: <a href="https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2023/02/an-episcopal-bishops-teaching-on.html">Old Testament</a></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Part
4: <a href="https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2023/02/an-episcopal-bishops-teaching-on_29.html">New Testament</a></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Part
5: <a href="https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2023/03/an-episcopal-bishops-teaching-on.html">Tradition</a></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Part
6: <a href="https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2023/04/an-episcopal-bishops-teaching-on.html">Tradition, continued</a></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Part
7: <a href="https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2023/05/an-episcopal-bishops-teaching-on.html">Back to the Bible</a></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Part
8:</span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;"><a href="https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2023/08/an-episcopal-bishops-teaching-on.html">Wisdom and the Glorious Works of Nature</a></span></p>
</div>
</div>mattgunter1081@gmail.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14808597688160170927noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4534237549485136842.post-60725021982657351842023-08-10T09:58:00.006-05:002024-02-15T01:44:11.706-06:00An Episcopal Bishop's Teaching on Abortion, Part 8: Wisdom and the Glorious Works of Nature<p><b><span style="font-family: georgia;">Introduction</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;">We
have seen that until relatively recently there was a wide consensus in the
Christian tradition that the life in the womb is not a fully ensouled human
until later in the pregnancy. For many that has meant what is called “delayed animation,”
meaning God imparted the soul into the body after it was sufficiently
developed. A related understanding is called “gradual animation,” meaning the
soul develops along with the body until both together are fully human. We saw
in <a href="https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2023/05/an-episcopal-bishops-teaching-on.html">the last post</a> that that was the teaching of Gregory of Nyssa, along with his
sister, Macrina, who he called his teacher. It is an approach that also makes biblical
sense given passages like Job 10:11-12 and Psalm 139:12-14. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;">We’ve
looked at scripture and tradition for wisdom to inform our understanding of the
beginning of life and the morality of abortion. Another place Christians have
looked for wisdom is in the rest of creation. For example, according to the
great Anglican theologian, Richard Hooker (1554-1600), we should seek wisdom in
the “the glorious works of nature”:</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">"Some things [Wisdom] openeth by the sacred
books of Scripture; some things by the <a name="_Hlk141551627">glorious works
of nature</a>; with some things she inspireth them from above by spiritual
influence, in some things she leadeth and traineth them only by worldly
experience and practice. We may not so in any one special kind admire her that
we disgrace her in any other, but let all her ways be according unto their
place and degree adored.”<a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/An%20Episcopal%20Bishop's%20Teaching%20on%20Abortion%20Part%208.docx#_ftn1" name="_ftnref1" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn1;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span>Wisdom
opened to us in the study of embryology and pregnancy reveals not just the
conception, development, and eventual birth of a new human being. It also
reveals the fundamental maternal-fetal biological connection. The gestating
mother is not just an abstraction. “Gestation is not just a temporary nutritive
dependency analogous to a patient on a feeding tube or connected to a ventilator.
The fetus is a developing human being uniquely interconnected with its mother,
within her body.”</span><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/An%20Episcopal%20Bishop's%20Teaching%20on%20Abortion%20Part%208.docx#_ftn2" name="_ftnref2" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="line-height: 107%;">[2]</span></span></span></a><span>
</span><a name="_Hlk141553737">And she is not a passive vessel. </a><span>We will come back to
that.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span>In
this post, we will look at the beginning of life at conception through
pregnancy and what light that might shine on the questions we have been asking.
</span><a name="_Hlk141452453">Wisdom opened to us in the science of embryology </a><span>gives
us information that can help us discern when the life in the womb has developed
sufficiently to be an actual human body and soul. I am going to suggest that it
can shed light on the “gradual animation” approach which I argue is most
faithful to the Church’s tradition. I will suggest that there are milestones
along the way.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-family: georgia;">Science
Can Reveal Much, But Cannot Answer All the Questions</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;">However
much we know from science about the process of conception, pregnancy, and
birth, it remains an awe-inspiring wonder. Two human beings come together,
giving themselves to each other in sexual intimacy, one hopes in the context of
commitment and mutual affection. And from that union, there is new life. One of
those two, the mother, nurtures this new life with her own body. It is a sacred
mystery – not because we don’t understand the biology of it, but because there
is a holy depth to it all.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span>Science
does not remove the sacred mystery and wonder of new life. But it also, on its
own, cannot answer the basic questions we’ve been asking in this series of
posts. It can describe the process of fertilization and conception and
subsequent development. It can describe the interplay of the life of the mother
and the life in the womb. But it cannot tell us when the life in the womb
becomes a fully human person. Or, to use the theological language, it cannot
tell us when it is fully </span><i>ensouled</i><span>. Nor can it answer for us the difficult
moral questions related to abortion.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span>This
uncertainty is acknowledged even by the Roman Catholic Church in its official
documents. </span><span>In its </span><u><a href="https://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/cfaith/documents/rc_con_cfaith_doc_19741118_declaration-abortion_en.html">Declaration on Procured Abortion</a></u><span>, The Sacred Congregation
for the Doctrine of the Faith “leaves aside the question of the moment when the
spiritual soul is infused. There is not a unanimous tradition on this point
[whether or not the soul is fully present at conception] and authors are as
yet in disagreement. . . it suffices that this presence of the soul be probable.
. .”</span><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/An%20Episcopal%20Bishop's%20Teaching%20on%20Abortion%20Part%208.docx#_ftn3" name="_ftnref3" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="line-height: 107%;">[3]</span></span></span></a><span>
But they do not make a case for </span><i>why</i><span> it is probable. “Probable” is a
technical term in the Christian moral tradition. But Catholic bioethicist, Carol
A. Tauer, “argues that there are fallacies in the way these documents assign
certainty to the notion of fetal personhood . . .”</span><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/An%20Episcopal%20Bishop's%20Teaching%20on%20Abortion%20Part%208.docx#_ftn4" name="_ftnref4" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="line-height: 107%;">[4]</span></span></span></a></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-family: georgia;">When
and How Does a Human Person Develop?</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span>Given
what we know, it actually seems unlikely that a fully human soul is present
from conception. </span><span> </span><span>First of all,
fertilization itself is more complicated than simply sperm meets egg and is
more of a process than a singular event. It is significant that for the first days
to two weeks after fertilization the embryo is not a stable entity. In those
early days before the embryo has implanted on the uterine wall, it is possible
for it to split into identical twins or quadruplets. Strange as it sounds, it
is possible for those twin embryos, or for two separate eggs fertilized as in
fraternal twins, to “fuse” into back into one, producing one person.</span><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/An%20Episcopal%20Bishop's%20Teaching%20on%20Abortion%20Part%208.docx#_ftn5" name="_ftnref5" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="line-height: 107%;">[5]</span></span></span></a><span>
It is hard to see how the fertilized egg can be one person or one soul at this
point if it can split into two or more or, where there were two, fuse into one.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span>Adding
to this fundamental instability is the fact that a large percentage of early embryos
do not survive to implant in the uterus for natural causes. Though some
estimates are much higher, careful analysis of research indicates that as many
as 40% of embryos do not survive this early stage under natural conditions.<a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/An%20Episcopal%20Bishop's%20Teaching%20on%20Abortion%20Part%208.docx#_ftn6" name="_ftnref6" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="line-height: 107%;">[6]</span></span></span></a>
Even many who</span> <span>generally
oppose abortion have pointed out that it is problematic to imagine such a high
percentage of human souls never seeing the light of day. Others point out that
if we really believed these were truly human souls, we would invest lots of
money in research to determine how to save them.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span>Further,
about 2% of fertilized embryos end in ectopic pregnancies in which the embryo
attaches somewhere other than the uterus’ The most common place this can happen
is inside the fallopian tubes. This means that not only can the embryo not
survive, but it can also be deadly to the mother.</span><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/An%20Episcopal%20Bishop's%20Teaching%20on%20Abortion%20Part%208.docx#_ftn7" name="_ftnref7" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="line-height: 107%;">[7]</span></span></span></a></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span>Given
that in the early days after conception the embryo is a ball of cells and not a
stable entity, it is hard not to agree with the majority view in the Christian
tradition that “it would not be possible to style the unformed embryo a human
being, but only a potential one.”</span><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/An%20Episcopal%20Bishop's%20Teaching%20on%20Abortion%20Part%208.docx#_ftn8" name="_ftnref8" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="line-height: 107%;">[8]</span></span></span></a><span>
So, implantation is something of a milestone. It is also about the same time a
pregnant woman misses her period and may begin to feel different due to the
release of the hormones associated with being pregnant. Still, at this point,
the embryo can hardly be recognized as “formed” as a human being.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-family: georgia;">Some
Milestones Along the Way</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span>Around
the same time as implantation, </span><i>gastrulation</i><span> occurs, at which point
various cells of the developing embryo begin to be “assigned” the role they
will play in the organism, e.g., part of the digestive tract. Implantation and
gastrulation make for a basic milestone on the way to being formed as a human
being. What might some other milestones be? The beginning of a heartbeat at
about four weeks of gestation is an emotional milestone for many. But, as all
but the most primitive animals have a heartbeat, it does not seem to be a
particularly significant milestone.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;">A
more significant milestone is reached around the fourteenth week at the
beginning of the second trimester. At that point, the fetus looks
proportionally like a newborn human baby. This is significant because our
bodies matter. We communicate with our bodies, and we recognize one another as
fellow human beings because we share the human form.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span>Another
important milestone occurs between weeks sixteen and twenty-one. It is
somewhere in that range that a mother first begins feeling the fetus moving. Traditionally
this is referred to as “quickening.” Due to modern scientific observation, we
know that the fetus is moving before that. But some have argued that when the
woman </span><i>feels</i><span> the life stirring within her something changes in their
relationship and a sort of moral covenant is formed between them. </span>Abortion was legal in Wisconsin before"quickening" until 1858<span> </span><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/An%20Episcopal%20Bishop's%20Teaching%20on%20Abortion%20Part%208.docx#_ftn9" name="_ftnref9" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="line-height: 107%;">[9]</span></span></span></a></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span>Viability
is another significant milestone. But viability is something of a moving
target. Generally, obstetricians set viability at between 20 and 26 weeks of
gestation. The earliest premature baby to survive was born at just 21 weeks.</span><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/An%20Episcopal%20Bishop's%20Teaching%20on%20Abortion%20Part%208.docx#_ftn10" name="_ftnref10" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="line-height: 107%;">[10]</span></span></span></a><span>
But a high percentage of babies born before the 27</span><sup>th</sup><span> week do not survive
and only then with extensive medical intervention. This is because their basic
organs, particularly their brains and lungs, have not fully developed.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;">By
week twenty-six, the end of the second trimester, the fetus’ brain has the
essential structure of a post-natal brain. We know that the brain continues to
develop from then through birth and into young adulthood. But the basic
structure is in place at this point. The fact that some babies born earlier
prove to be viable, however, suggests that the brain is developed enough
several weeks earlier.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span>The
final milestone is when the baby is born. It takes its first breath which is biblically
significant.</span><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/An%20Episcopal%20Bishop's%20Teaching%20on%20Abortion%20Part%208.docx#_ftn11" name="_ftnref11" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="line-height: 107%;">[11]</span></span></span></a><span>
With birth the baby is physically separate from the mother.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-family: georgia;">Conclusion</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Earlier,
I noted that during pregnancy the mother is not a passive vessel housing the
developing baby, doing no more than providing nutrition, oxygen, and space for
growth. Even before conception, no sperm cell would make it to the egg without
the active assistance of the woman’s body. From there on there is an intimate
interaction between the mother’s body and that of the fetus. They might not be
exactly the same body. But neither are they totally separate bodies. In any
event, pregnancy takes place within the particular body of a particular woman. Therefore,
pregnancy and the life in the womb should not be talked about without
accounting for the lived reality of the pregnant woman and her agency. I will
say more about that in the next post.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Toward
the end of the second post in this series, I wrote,</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">“the holy mystery of becoming fully human is a
gradual process in the womb and that the pregnant woman is not merely a passive
vessel of that process of becoming. The moral balance at first tilts toward the
agency of the pregnant woman (usually along with the father) and gradually
tilts to include the baby developing in her womb.” <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span>It
might </span><span> </span><span>seem simpler to say that we are
fully human from the point of conception. But we have seen that conception
alone does not create a stable enough entity to be considered a person or a
soul. And, in any event, that has not been the teaching of most of the Church
for most of its history. It might also seem simpler to set birth as the
demarcation of when we become actual persons. Though that is closer to the
Jewish understanding, we have seen that even in Judaism it is not that simple. And
that has never been the Christian view. For most of the Church’s history some
version of delayed or gradual animation (being given or becoming a human soul)
has been the teaching.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;">I
believe this remains a persuasive and faithful understanding. Thus, if abortion
is ever the taking of a person’s life, it is not so in the early weeks or
months of a pregnancy. Given the combination of a body that looks like the
human form, the quickening, and the earliest point at which there is enough
brain and lung development for any hope of survival outside the body of the
mother, I would argue that 20 weeks of gestation is when we can with some confidence say
a human person is fully formed, body and soul. Before that, we are talking
about a potential human being. As such, it is still sacred and perhaps
increasing so. But until that point, the burden of deciding to bear it is
mainly that of the mother, ideally along with the father.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;">The
question of whether at 20 weeks and beyond the rest of society also has a stake
in protecting the life in the womb along with the life of the mother is part of
what we will look at in the next post.</span></p><div style="mso-element: footnote-list;">
<hr align="left" size="1" width="33%" />
<span style="font-family: georgia;"><!--[endif]-->
</span><div id="ftn1" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/An%20Episcopal%20Bishop's%20Teaching%20on%20Abortion%20Part%208.docx#_ftnref1" name="_ftn1" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn1;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a>
Richard Hooker, <i>On the Laws of Ecclesiastical Polity</i>, Book II, par. 4<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn2" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/An%20Episcopal%20Bishop's%20Teaching%20on%20Abortion%20Part%208.docx#_ftnref2" name="_ftn2" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn2;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[2]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> Margaret
D. Kamitsuka, <i>Abortion and the Christian Tradition: A Pro-Choice Theological
Ethic</i> (Westminster John Knox) p. 106<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn3" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/An%20Episcopal%20Bishop's%20Teaching%20on%20Abortion%20Part%208.docx#_ftnref3" name="_ftn3" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn3;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[3]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> <o:p></o:p><span>Sacred Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, </span><span><a href="https://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/cfaith/documents/rc_con_cfaith_doc_19741118_declaration-abortion_en.html"><i>Declaration on Procured Abortion</i></a></span><span>, </span> (1974), n. 19</span></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn4" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/An%20Episcopal%20Bishop's%20Teaching%20on%20Abortion%20Part%208.docx#_ftnref4" name="_ftn4" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn4;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[4]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> Margaret
D. Kamitsuka, <i>Abortion and the Christian Tradition: A Pro-Choice Theological
Ethic</i> (Westminster John Knox) p. 109. The article itself can be found at Carol
A. Tauer, “The Tradition of Probabilism and the Moral Status of the Early
Embryo,” <i>Theological Studies</i> 45 (1984)<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><span style="font-family: georgia;">(<a href="chrome-extension://efaidnbmnnnibpcajpcglclefindmkaj/https://theologicalstu.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/45.1.1.pdf">chrome-extension://efaidnbmnnnibpcajpcglclefindmkaj/https://theologicalstu.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/45.1.1.pdf</a>)<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn5" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/An%20Episcopal%20Bishop's%20Teaching%20on%20Abortion%20Part%208.docx#_ftnref5" name="_ftn5" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn5;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[5]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> Rachel
Hosie, “Woman with rare birthmark discovers she is her own twin<i>”, The
Independent, </i>Friday 02 March Dec. 13, 2018 (<a href="https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/woman-birthmark-rare-twin-discover-blood-types-taylor-muhl-america-chimerism-chimera-a8236411.html">https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/woman-birthmark-rare-twin-discover-blood-types-taylor-muhl-america-chimerism-chimera-a8236411.html</a>)<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn6" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/An%20Episcopal%20Bishop's%20Teaching%20on%20Abortion%20Part%208.docx#_ftnref6" name="_ftn6" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn6;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[6]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> Jarvis
GE.” Early embryo mortality in natural human reproduction: What the data say”.
F1000Res. Nov 25, 2016 (<a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5443340">https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5443340</a>)
A summary of this essay is here: University of Cambridge. "Human
reproduction likely to be more efficient than previously thought." <i>ScienceDaily</i>.
June 13, 2017. <a href="http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/06/170613101932.htm">www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/06/170613101932.htm</a>)<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn7" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/An%20Episcopal%20Bishop's%20Teaching%20on%20Abortion%20Part%208.docx#_ftnref7" name="_ftn7" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn7;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[7]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> <a href="https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/9687-ectopic-pregnancy">https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/9687-ectopic-pregnancy</a><o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn8" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/An%20Episcopal%20Bishop's%20Teaching%20on%20Abortion%20Part%208.docx#_ftnref8" name="_ftn8" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn8;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[8]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> Gregory
of Nyssa, <i>On the Holy Spirit, Against the Macedonians</i> (<a href="https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/2903.htm">https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/2903.htm</a>)
See the previous post in this series (https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2023/05/an-episcopal-bishops-teaching-on.html)<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn9" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/An%20Episcopal%20Bishop's%20Teaching%20on%20Abortion%20Part%208.docx#_ftnref9" name="_ftn9" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn9;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[9]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> Lloyd
Steffen, <i>Life/Choice: The Theory of Just Abortion</i>, (Pilgrim Press, 1994) p. 113-116<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoFootnoteText"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Abortion was legal in Wisconsin before"quickening" until 1858. <span style="color: #222222;"><span style="background-color: white;">See: </span></span>Bridgit Bowden
and Evan Casey, ‘How Wisconsin's 1800s-era abortion ban came to be: While the
letter of the law remains the same, the conversation around abortion has
changed,” Wisconsin Public Radio, August 7, 2023 (<a href="https://www.wpr.org/wisconsin-1849-abortion-ban-history-began#:~:text=Under%20Wisconsin's%20original%201849%20abortion,quick%20child%22%20to%20be%20manslaughter">https://www.wpr.org/wisconsin-1849-abortion-ban-history-began#:~:text=Under%20Wisconsin's%20original%201849%20abortion,quick%20child%22%20to%20be%20manslaughter</a>)</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background: white;"><span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn10" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/An%20Episcopal%20Bishop's%20Teaching%20on%20Abortion%20Part%208.docx#_ftnref10" name="_ftn10" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn10;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[10]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> <a href="https://www.uab.edu/news/health/item/12427-uab-hospital-delivers-record-breaking-premature-baby">https://www.uab.edu/news/health/item/12427-uab-hospital-delivers-record-breaking-premature-baby</a><o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn11" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/An%20Episcopal%20Bishop's%20Teaching%20on%20Abortion%20Part%208.docx#_ftnref11" name="_ftn11" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn11;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[11]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> <o:p></o:p>Many passages in the Bible seem to equate breath and life, e.g., <a href="https://bible.oremus.org/?ql=558676309">Genesis 2:7</a>, <a href="https://bible.oremus.org/?ql=558676256">2 Maccabees 7:21-23</a>, <a href="https://bible.oremus.org/?ql=558676210">Ecclesiastes 11:5</a>, <a href="https://bible.oremus.org/?ql=558676166">Job 12:10</a>, <a href="https://bible.oremus.org/?ql=558676071">Job 27:3</a>,<a href="https://bible.oremus.org/?ql=558676021"> Job 32:8</a>, <a href="https://bible.oremus.org/?ql=558675977">Job 33:4</a>, <a href="https://bible.oremus.org/?ql=558675930">Job 34:14</a>, <a href="https://bible.oremus.org/?ql=558675880">Ecclesiastes 11:5</a>, <a href="https://bible.oremus.org/?ql=558676355">Ecclesiastes 12:7</a>, <a href="https://bible.oremus.org/?ql=558675826">Isaiah 42:5</a>, <a href="https://bible.oremus.org/?ql=558675779">Acts 17:25</a></span></p><p class="MsoFootnoteText"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><b>Next:</b><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Part 9: </span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Rights,
Choice, Obligations and Community</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><b>Previous:</b></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Part 1: <a href="https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2023/01/the-episcopal-churchs-stated-position.html">The Episcopal Church’s Stated Position on Childbirth and Abortion</a></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Part 2: <a href="https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2023/01/an-episcopal-bishops-teaching-on.html">Context</a></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Part 3: <a href="https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2023/02/an-episcopal-bishops-teaching-on.html">Old Testament</a></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Part 4: <a href="https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2023/02/an-episcopal-bishops-teaching-on_29.html">New Testament</a></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Part 5: <a href="https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2023/03/an-episcopal-bishops-teaching-on.html">Tradition</a></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Part 6: <a href="https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2023/04/an-episcopal-bishops-teaching-on.html">Tradition, continued</a></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Part 7: <a href="https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2023/05/an-episcopal-bishops-teaching-on.html">Back to the Bible</a></span></p>
</div>
</div>mattgunter1081@gmail.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14808597688160170927noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4534237549485136842.post-55784507526620138042023-05-15T16:03:00.008-05:002024-02-15T01:44:31.782-06:00An Episcopal Bishop's Teaching on Abortion, Part 7: Back to the Bible<p><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="background-color: white;">Earlier in this series we saw that the Bible has almost
nothing to say about abortion. Neither is there much in the scriptures about
when a human being becomes a human being. There are a few passages that hint at
this question. They support the conviction among most Christian thinkers in the
tradition before the 19</span><sup>th</sup><span style="background-color: white;"> century that the life in the womb, however
sacred, is not a fully ensouled human being at conception.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span class="text"><span style="background: white; color: black; mso-bidi-font-family: "Segoe UI";">Remember that you fashioned me like clay;</span></span><span><br />
</span><span class="indent-1-breaks"><span style="background: white; color: black; mso-bidi-font-family: "Courier New";"> <span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span></span></span><span class="text"><span style="background: white; color: black; mso-bidi-font-family: "Segoe UI";">and will you turn
me to dust again?</span></span><span><br />
</span><span class="text"><span style="background: white; color: black; mso-bidi-font-family: "Segoe UI";">Did you not pour
me out like milk</span></span><span><br />
</span><span class="indent-1-breaks"><span style="background: white; color: black; mso-bidi-font-family: "Courier New";"> <span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span></span></span><span class="text"><span style="background: white; color: black; mso-bidi-font-family: "Segoe UI";">and curdle me
like cheese?<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-indent: 0.5in;"><span class="text"><span style="background: white; color: black; font-family: georgia; mso-bidi-font-family: "Segoe UI";">(Job 10:9-10)<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span class="text"><span style="background: white; font-family: georgia;"></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZ7VAiEH51hjYmSNUG7c1I7OQcXIuOlm2UIFt0iIQmpVHjdVBsEvLX5hwv-_tsGNrxRiWiLJFI5H9H8wFqtQLvSI19ZLYSUbgdw1u0xRJWhuvMYC23AgYYgs6DPKkoURNH7n2u-laouRu9UiogvIJF_uIMXPNSCC0E2Nv6-uMC0ChhshVD-la5MvK8iQ/s408/Hildegard%20Vision%20of%20the%20Soul%20Entering%20the%20Body.jpeg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><img border="0" data-original-height="408" data-original-width="186" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZ7VAiEH51hjYmSNUG7c1I7OQcXIuOlm2UIFt0iIQmpVHjdVBsEvLX5hwv-_tsGNrxRiWiLJFI5H9H8wFqtQLvSI19ZLYSUbgdw1u0xRJWhuvMYC23AgYYgs6DPKkoURNH7n2u-laouRu9UiogvIJF_uIMXPNSCC0E2Nv6-uMC0ChhshVD-la5MvK8iQ/w183-h400/Hildegard%20Vision%20of%20the%20Soul%20Entering%20the%20Body.jpeg" width="183" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br />“Did you not pour me out like milk and curdle me like cheese?”
It is not hard to imagine what the question is getting at. Our ancestors were less
squeamish about some things than we often are. The understanding behind it is
the idea that male semen interacted with female blood in the womb similar to
the way milk interacted with rennet to make cheese. There it “curdled” or
“coagulated” to gradually form a new baby. As with the making of cheese, the
making of a new human was a gradual process. This was a common understanding in
the ancient world and Middle Ages across different cultures. The ancient Greek
philosopher, Aristotle, used this image. The buddha is recorded as having used
it. It shows up in the medieval Muslim world and medieval Europe.<a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Abortion%20Part%207%20Back%20to%20the%20Bible.docx#_ftn1" name="_ftnref1" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="background: white; color: black; mso-bidi-font-family: "Segoe UI";"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 107%;">[1]</span></span></span></span></a><span class="text"><span style="background: white;"> It is this
understanding that informs one of Hildegard of Bingen’s visions though she does
not reference Job. In her vision, the soul is infused into the fetus’ body only
after it has taken the proper form symbolized by people carrying baskets of
cheese around the mother.</span></span><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Abortion%20Part%207%20Back%20to%20the%20Bible.docx#_ftn2" name="_ftnref2" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="background: white; color: black; mso-bidi-font-family: "Segoe UI";"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 107%;">[2]</span></span></span></span></a></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: georgia;">The passage from Job 10 continues with a more familiar image that
is also found in Psalm 139:</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-indent: 0.5in;"><span class="text"><span style="font-family: georgia;">You clothed me with skin
and flesh,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span class="text"><span style="font-family: georgia;">and knit
me together with bones and sinews.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-indent: 0.5in;"><span class="text"><span style="font-family: georgia;">You have granted me life
and steadfast love,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span class="text"><span style="font-family: georgia;">and your
care has preserved my spirit.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-indent: 0.5in;"><span class="text"><span style="font-family: georgia;">(Job 10:11-12)<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span class="text"><span style="background: white; color: black; font-family: georgia; mso-bidi-font-family: "Segoe UI";"><o:p> </o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-indent: 0.5in;"><span class="text"><span style="font-family: georgia;">For you yourself created
my inmost parts;<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span class="text"><span style="font-family: georgia;">you knit
me together in my mother's womb.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-indent: 0.5in;"><span class="text"><span style="font-family: georgia;">I will thank you because
I am marvelously made;<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span class="text"><span style="font-family: georgia;">your
works are wonderful, and I know it well.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-indent: 0.5in;"><span class="text"><span style="font-family: georgia;">My body was not hidden
from you,<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span class="text"><span style="font-family: georgia;">while I
was being made in secret<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span class="text"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>and woven in the depths of the earth. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-indent: 0.5in;"><span class="text"><span style="font-family: georgia;">(Psalm 139:12-14, Book of
Common Prayer)<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Like
the cheese image, the poetic picture of life being “knit” or “woven” in the
womb suggests a gradual process of becoming. A skilled knitter sees in a ball
of yarn the potential for a beautiful sweater. The yarn might be beautiful and
costly. It might thus have great value in itself and to the knitter. But the
ball of yarn is not a sweater. It only gradually becomes a sweater as it is
fashioned day by day. As the waistband takes shape one can see what it is
becoming, but a waistband is not an actual sweater. A knitted sleeve by itself
is not a sweater. A sweater is more and other than the ball of yarn from which
it began and the stages in between.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Though
it is not the only way these inspired poetic images can be interpreted, they
lend themselves to the Church’s traditional understanding that becoming human
in the womb is a gradual process. This is not exactly what Hildegard, Thomas
Aquinas, and others taught. They believed the soul was created directly by God
and infused into the body once the fetus had developed sufficiently to be a
proper home and instrument of a soul. But that creates a problematic separation
of the body and soul.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span>I
think Gregory of Nyssa’s understanding is better. Gregory believed (as did most
Christian teachers until the modern era) that all living things, including
plants and animals, have souls to a degree.</span><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Abortion%20Part%207%20Back%20to%20the%20Bible.docx#_ftn3" name="_ftnref3" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="line-height: 107%;">[3]</span></span></span></a><span>
Humans contain all those degrees of soul and our soul develops with our body in
the womb. According to Gregory, everything we need to become fully human, body
and soul, is there at conception (like a ball of yarn). From there, the body
and soul gradually become fully human. Here is how Gregory put it:</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">“. . . it would <a name="_Hlk134381991">not be
possible to style the unformed embryo a human being</a>, but only a potential
one, assuming that it is completed so as to come forth to human birth, while as
long as it is in this unformed state, it is something other than a human being.
. .”<a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Abortion%20Part%207%20Back%20to%20the%20Bible.docx#_ftn4" name="_ftnref4" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn4;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[4]</span></span></span></span></a></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">“[A]s the soul finds its perfection in that which
is intellectual and rational, everything that is not so may indeed share the
name of soul, but is not really soul, but a certain vital energy associated
with the appellation of soul.”<a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Abortion%20Part%207%20Back%20to%20the%20Bible.docx#_ftn5" name="_ftnref5" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn5;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[5]</span></span></span></span></a></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">“[W]e suppose the human germ to possess the
potentiality of its nature, sown with it at the first start of its existence,
and that it is unfolded and manifested by a natural sequence as it proceeds to
its perfect state, not employing anything external to itself as a
stepping-stone to perfection, but itself advancing its own self in due course
to the perfect state . . .”<a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Abortion%20Part%207%20Back%20to%20the%20Bible.docx#_ftn6" name="_ftnref6" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn6;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[6]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;">According
to Gregory, the potentiality of our nature is there at conception. Its actual
perfection or completeness involve the capacity for rationality: reason and relationship. imagination and empathy, self-reflection and self-utterance, memory, etc. Not everything nor every organism is fit for a a fully human soul. It is doubtful even God could enfuse a rock with a human soul. Or a tree. Or any animal whose brain is incapable of rationality. It is not until later in a pregnancy that the fetus is sufficiently formed with the necessary biological complexity, and with it the soul, that there is an actual human person. Though Hildegard, Aquinas, and others beleived the soul was imparted at some later point in the prgancny, they agreed with Greogory that until it was sufficiently forned, the life in the womb could not bear a fully human soul.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Although
Gregory of Nyssa and the scriptures indicate a gradual becoming in the womb
from potential to actual human being, there is no doubt that God is actively
and intimately involved in the life from the beginning. And even before (<a href="https://bible.oremus.org/?ql=555675093">Jeremiah 1:5</a>). Even if we accept that it is not possible “to style the unformed embryo a
human being”, we are still talking about something sacred, worthy of care, and
not to be denigrated, or interfered with lightly.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Also
sacred and worthy of care is the woman in whose womb new life is developing. Her
life and well-being are also worthy of respect, consideration, and care. The life that is being
knit in her womb is being knit partly from the material and resources of her
own life and body. More on that in the next post.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;">We
have looked at the scriptures and tradition. But neither is written from the
perspective of modern science. Next, we will look at the biology of pregnancy
and the development of life from conception to birth. What might we learn from our
contemporary scientific understanding in conversation with scripture and
tradition?</span></p><div style="mso-element: footnote-list;">
<hr align="left" size="1" width="33%" />
<!--[endif]-->
<div id="ftn1" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Abortion%20Part%207%20Back%20to%20the%20Bible.docx#_ftnref1" name="_ftn1" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn1;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> Ott,
Sandra. “Aristotle Among the Basques: The ‘Cheese Analogy’ of Conception.” Man
14, no. 4 (1979): 699–711. https://doi.org/10.2307/2802155.<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn2" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Abortion%20Part%207%20Back%20to%20the%20Bible.docx#_ftnref2" name="_ftn2" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn2;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[2]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> Hildegard
of Bingen: <u>Scivias</u>, Mother Columba Hart, Translator, (Paulist Press,
1990) p. 107-129<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn3" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Abortion%20Part%207%20Back%20to%20the%20Bible.docx#_ftnref3" name="_ftn3" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn3;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[3]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> Gregory
of Nyssa, <u>On the Making of Man</u>, VIII.4 (<a href="https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/2914.htm">https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/2914.htm</a>)
See also, Oelze Anselm, <u>Animal Rationality,</u> BRILL (2018), pp. 28-35, Chapter
5, ‘Animal Souls and Sensory Cognition’ (https://brill.com/display/book/9789004363779/BP000008.xml)<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn4" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Abortion%20Part%207%20Back%20to%20the%20Bible.docx#_ftnref4" name="_ftn4" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn4;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[4]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a>
Gregory of Nyssa, <u>On the Holy Spirit, Against the Macedonians</u> (https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/2903.htm)<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn5" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Abortion%20Part%207%20Back%20to%20the%20Bible.docx#_ftnref5" name="_ftn5" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn5;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[5]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> <a name="_Hlk134373558">Gregory of Nyssa, <u>On the Making of Man</u>, XV.2 (https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/2914.htm)</a><o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn6" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Abortion%20Part%207%20Back%20to%20the%20Bible.docx#_ftnref6" name="_ftn6" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn6;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[6]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> Gregory
of Nyssa, <u>On the Making of Man</u>, XXIX.3
(https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/2914.htm)<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoFootnoteText"><b style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;"><br /></b></p><p class="MsoFootnoteText"><b style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Next:</b></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Part
8: Biology of Pregnancy and the Development of Life</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Previous:</b></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Part
1: <a href="https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2023/01/the-episcopal-churchs-stated-position.html">The Episcopal Church’s Stated Position on Childbirth and Abortion</a></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Part
2: <a href="https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2023/01/an-episcopal-bishops-teaching-on.html">Context</a></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Part
3: <a href="https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2023/02/an-episcopal-bishops-teaching-on.html">Old Testament</a></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Part
4: <a href="https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2023/02/an-episcopal-bishops-teaching-on_29.html">New Testament</a></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Part
5: <a href="https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2023/03/an-episcopal-bishops-teaching-on.html">Tradition</a></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Part
6: <a href="https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2023/04/an-episcopal-bishops-teaching-on.html">Tradition, continued</a></span></p>
</div>
</div>mattgunter1081@gmail.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14808597688160170927noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4534237549485136842.post-7920526234948593502023-04-14T12:32:00.003-05:002024-02-15T01:44:46.046-06:00An Episcopal Bishop's Teaching on Abortion, Part 6: Tradition, continued<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">In
the last post, we saw that Christianity has always had a negative view of
abortion. We also saw that most theologians in the Western Christian Tradition made
a distinction between the life in the womb early in a pregnancy vs later in a
pregnancy. That life, however sacred, was not considered fully human until
later, after it was “formed.” We also saw that the Church’s on-the-ground
pastoral care made that same distinction and also took into account the reason
a woman resorted to abortion – poverty, some medical conditions, and rape being
mitigating factors. And even in the Eastern Church, which was generally more
strict, the mother’s life took precedence over the life in her womb. Abortion,
though sinful, was not simply and always equated with murder.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">With
few exceptions, this was the standard teaching in the Western Church –
particularly the Roman Catholic Church until the 19</span><sup style="font-family: Garamond, serif;">th</sup><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;"> century. In
1588, Pope Sixtus V did change this ancient teaching, decreeing that there was
no distinction between a potential and fully human person in the womb. But soon
after Sixtus’ death, Pope Gregory XIV returned the Church’s teaching to what it
had been. There were also some who argued that abortion earlier in a pregnancy
could be defended as not sinful at all. But those arguments got little traction
and the official teaching remained more or less consistent until Pius IX who
was pope from 1846 to 1878.</span><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Tradition%20part%202.docx#_ftn1" name="_ftnref1" style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[1]</span></span></span></a></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">In
1854, Pope Pius IX summed up a particular and deepening aspect of devotion to
Mary and formally defined the Roman Catholic dogma of the Immaculate
Conception, asserting that, “from the first moment of her conception, the
Blessed Virgin Mary was, by the singular grace and privilege of Almighty God,
and in view of the merits of Jesus Christ, Savior of Mankind, kept free from
all stain of original sin.”</span><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Tradition%20part%202.docx#_ftn2" name="_ftnref2" style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[2]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">
According to this doctrine, with Mary there was an interruption to the general
human inheritance of original sin in preparation of her being worthy of conceiving Jesus. For that to work
logically, that interruption had to begin at her conception. “The new dogma
dealt the old formula [that the soul was not present until later in a pregnancy]
a glancing if not fatal blow.”</span><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Tradition%20part%202.docx#_ftn3" name="_ftnref3" style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[3]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">
The fatal blow came in 1869 when </span><a name="_Hlk132178726" style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Pope Pius IX </a><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">revised
canon law and asserted that the fully human person, soul and all, began at
conception removing any distinction as to when the fetus might be ensouled. He ruled that abortions at any point of gestation were punishable by excommunication. With
that the contemporary Roman Catholic position was born. While some scientific
discoveries about the biological specifics (the discovery of sperm and the ovum) might have played a part in this, it seems
unlikely given the timing. In any event it seems clear that a theological logic
of the Immaculate Conception played a significant part.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">As
a bit of an aside, it is important to note that the Immaculate Conception as a
dogma is unique to the Roman Catholic Church. It is not a dogma of the
Episcopal Church or the Anglican Tradition. Charles Grafton, 2</span><sup style="font-family: Garamond, serif;">nd</sup><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">
Bishop of Fond du Lac who in many ways was very catholic, rejected the
teaching.</span><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Tradition%20part%202.docx#_ftn4" name="_ftnref4" style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[4]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">
It is also possible to have great devotion to Mary without accepting the idea of the Immaculate Conception, </span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 16px;">as do the Eastern Orthodox and many Anglicans.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">Protestants
and Anglicans</span></b></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">I
have focused on the Roman Catholic Church partly because of its size and its
influence on the topic of abortion. But I am also just unaware of Protestant
theologians who have given the topic extended reflection prior to the last half
of the 20<sup>th</sup> century (that doesn’t mean there have not been, I just
haven’t come across them). As we saw, in Part 2, until the late 1970’s, many
conservative Protestants, including Southern Baptists and other Evangelicals,
held that life in the womb was not fully human. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">When
they gathered for the Lambeth Conference in 1930, the bishops of the Anglican
Communion expressed an “abhorrence of the sinful practice of abortion.”</span><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Tradition%20part%202.docx#_ftn5" name="_ftnref5" style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[5]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">
But, beginning in the 1960’s, the teaching of the Church of England moved toward
a more gradualist position, holding that “all life is God-given but that
life emerges only gradually as does our moral responsibility towards that life.”</span><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Tradition%20part%202.docx#_ftn6" name="_ftnref6" style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[6]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">
Though less clearly articulated, this seems to be the direction of the various
resolutions of the General Convention of the Episcopal Church.</span><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Tradition%20part%202.docx#_ftn7" name="_ftnref7" style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[7]</span></span></span></a></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">Some
observations about this survey of the tradition</span></b><b><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span></b></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><b><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Garamond; mso-fareast-font-family: Garamond;">1.<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></b><!--[endif]--><b><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">Three ways of
understanding.</span></b><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">
In the Christian tradition we see three ways of understanding life in the womb.
One is <i>Immediate Animation</i> in which the fully human soul begins at
conception. This (this is the view held by Basil of Caesarea and most of the
Eastern Church). Augustine of Hippo also seems to have been inclined toward
this view though he remained noncommittal. A second understanding is <i>Delayed
Animation</i> in which the soul is imparted or infused into the fetus by God at
some point after conception. This was the view of Hildegard of Bingen, Thomas
Aquinas, and most theologians of the Western Church until 1869. Gregory of Nyssa (along
with his sister, Macrina, perhaps) seems to hold a third view, a <i>Gradual
Animation</i>, in which the soul and body gradually develop together into a
fully human being. Each of these has implications for how one views abortion.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Garamond; mso-fareast-font-family: Garamond;">2.<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><b><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">What’s the question?</span></b><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;"> How one comes at the
philosophical or theological question of when life begins depended partly on
what prior question one was trying to address.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">For Augustine, the prior question was “How is it
that we are sinners from the start and how is original sin passed from
generation to generation?” Why, after all, do we baptize infants for the
forgiveness of sin? These are questions Augustine wrestled with, not because he
made them up, but because they were implications of the traditional teaching of
the church as he inherited it. Grappling with those questions led him to favor
the notion of immediate animation. Similar
questions lie behind the notion of the Immaculate Conception of Mary.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">A different question concerned Gregory of Nyssa
and Thomas Aquinas. For them, the question was what kind of body is suited for
the <i>human</i> soul? A fully human rational soul cannot exist until the organism
is sufficiently developed to receive it – only after some weeks or months of
development in the womb.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Garamond; mso-fareast-font-family: Garamond;">3.<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><b><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">A mostly male perspective</span></b><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">. By far, most of the
theologians known in the tradition are male. That needs to be acknowledged. While
they can be simply dismissed for that, it is impossible to deny that their perspective
and experience is thus limited.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">There were some women theologians, several of
whom are not only considered saints, but according to the Roman Catholic Church,
“Doctors of the Church”, i.e., authoritative teachers. Hildegard of Bingen is
one of those. Other women saints and doctors like Catherine of Siena and
Theresa of Avila do not speak to the issue of abortion or when life begins as
far as I know. Neither does Julian of Norwich. Macrina might have, if it is
really her words recorded by Gregory of Nyssa in the ‘On the Soul and the
Resurrection’.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">One can have great respect for these theologians
while also admitting that they often have very limited and sometimes negative understandings
toward women generally and the reasons why a woman might feel compelled to
contemplate abortion particularly. Then, as now, there was a good deal of
blaming and shaming of women. There also seems at times, then as now, to have
been a general discomfort with female sexuality that colored views on abortion The
most common assumption was that they chose abortion because they had had illicit
sex and wanted to hide their guilt.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">There were exceptions to the tendency to place
all the blame on women. John Chrysostom aimed his preaching against abortion at
men whose sexual promiscuity impregnated women causing them to seek drastic
solutions, “For even if the daring deed be hers, yet the causing of it is
yours.”<a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Tradition%20part%202.docx#_ftn8" name="_ftnref8" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[8]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Others, like Thomas Sanchez (1550-1610) expressed concern for the violence some
young women would be subject to at the hands of their families or others if
they became pregnant outside of marriage.<a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Tradition%20part%202.docx#_ftn9" name="_ftnref9" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[9]</span></span></span></a></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">We don’t know much about what everyday women or
men thought about this. Or much else. Clearly some thought abortion was the
necessary thing to do even if they thought it was sinful in some sense. And it
is the case that there were women who were knowledgeable about natural medicine
that included medical recipes of herbs to regulate menstruation. Some of these
could also cause abortion in the early stages of a pregnancy. Hildegard of
Bingen, who along with being a theologian, mystic, and composer, also wrote
medical treatises that included recipes for such medicine. Given the common
teaching and understanding that the life in the womb was not fully human or ensouled until later, it is not hard to imagine women (along with their
husbands if they were married) resorting to the medical assistance of a local
woman knowledgeable in the use of medicinal herbs. It might still be a sin in
need of confession and repentance. But it would not be considered murder.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Garamond; mso-fareast-font-family: Garamond;">4.<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><b><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">Mostly celibate.</span></b><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;"> Another thing that needs
acknowledging and factoring in is the reality that nearly all theologians, men
and women, were committed to celibacy. Augustine notoriously had a live-in
girlfriend with whom he had a son before he got more serious about his faith.
Gregory of Nyssa might have been married at some point before becoming a
bishop. But there were no serious theologians or spiritual writers before the
Reformation who were married and living with the possibility of being
responsible for a pregnancy. I do not think that disqualifies their teaching.
But it is not irrelevant nor is it disrespectful to ask how it might have shaped
their thinking.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Garamond; mso-fareast-font-family: Garamond;">5.<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><b><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">Early Abortion and
Contraception</span></b><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">.
One thing that makes it hard to sort out the reason for opposition to abortion,
particularly in the earlier stages of a pregnancy, is that the opposition is
often linked with opposition to contraception and that the language against
contraception mirrors that against abortion. Here are a few examples:</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">Caesarius of Arles (died, 542) preached,</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.75in;"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">“Who is he who cannot warn that no woman may take
a potion so that she is unable to conceive or condemns in herself the nature
which God willed to be fecund? As often as she could have conceived or given
birth, of that many homicides she will be held guilty”<a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Tradition%20part%202.docx#_ftn10" name="_ftnref10" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[10]</span></span></span></a></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;"> In his penitential guide, Regino of
Prüm (died 915) gave this counsel,</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.75in;"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">“If anyone, to satisfy their own desires, or
through hatred did something to a man or woman which would impede their having
children, or gave them any drink so that they could not, he could engender or
she conceive, this must be held to be homicide”<a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Tradition%20part%202.docx#_ftn11" name="_ftnref11" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[11]</span></span></span></a></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274) asserts that
contraception is analogous to murder.<a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Tradition%20part%202.docx#_ftn12" name="_ftnref12" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[12]</span></span></span></a></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">John Calvin (1509-1564), in his commentary on
Genesis 38:9-10, wrote,</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 1in;"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">“[Interfering with conception during intercourse]
“means that one quenches the hope of his family, and kills the son, which could
be expected, before he is born.”<a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Tradition%20part%202.docx#_ftn13" name="_ftnref13" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[13]</span></span></span></a></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">Martin Luther (1483-1546), commenting on Genesis
25:1-4 wrote,</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 1in;"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">“How great, therefore, the wickedness of human
nature is! How many girls there are who prevent conception and kill and expel
tender fetuses, although procreation is the work of God.”<a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Tradition%20part%202.docx#_ftn14" name="_ftnref14" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[14]</span></span></span></a></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">Most Christians, including Anglicans, do not
consider contraception to be sinful. Even fewer would associate contraception
with murder or abortion. That these authors did so raises questions about where
they drew the line between contraception and abortion. It is plausible that
their opposition to abortion in the early stage of pregnancy has more to do
with opposition to contraception than to taking a fully human life. This would
not be the only reason they would oppose abortion in the earlier stages. But it
is something to take into account as we seek to understand them.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><b><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Garamond; mso-fareast-font-family: Garamond;">6.<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></b><!--[endif]--><b><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">Tradition as an ongoing conversation.</span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Many find the idea that we might
be beholden to tradition difficult. We tend to be suspicious of tradition. But
being shaped by a tradition of some sort, explicitly or implicitly, is
inevitable. Even the being suspicious of tradition is a tradition we have
inherited from philosophical and political ideas from three or four centuries
ago. As Christians, we are committed to placing ourselves under the authority
of scripture and tradition understood through the application of careful reason
in community. We are to “test the spirits” (1 John 4:1-6), including our own thinking,
our own prejudices, in light of those authorities. Because any authority can be
abused, they should also be tested, at least in their application.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">As we’ve seen, the Tradition is
not one thing. There is a diversity of views and interpretations. Nor is it
static or unchanging. But that need not worry us. Christian philosopher,</span>
<span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Alasdair
MacIntyre, has written, “Traditions, when vital, embody <a name="_Hlk132303161">continuities
of conflict</a>.”<a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Tradition%20part%202.docx#_ftn15" name="_ftnref15" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[15]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Tradition is an ongoing conversation and even debate in which every generation
takes part. To faithfully take part we need to be conversant in the
continuities as well as the conflicts, so we know the language of Christianity,
not just the language of our contemporary world. Our task is to understand what
the conflicts are about and look for the continuities as we seek to embody faithfulness
in our time.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing">
</p><div><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><br clear="all" />
<hr align="left" size="1" width="33%" />
<!--[endif]-->
<div id="ftn1">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Tradition%20part%202.docx#_ftnref1" name="_ftn1" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> <a name="_Hlk132176711">John T. Noonan, “Abortion and the Catholic Church: A
Summary History” (1967) <i>Natural Law Forum</i>, p. </a>85-131<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn2">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Tradition%20part%202.docx#_ftnref2" name="_ftn2" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[2]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> Pope
Pius IX, “Ineffabilis Deus. The Immaculate Conception” (1854) (<a href="https://www.papalencyclicals.net/pius09/p9ineff.htm">https://www.papalencyclicals.net/pius09/p9ineff.htm</a>)<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn3">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Tradition%20part%202.docx#_ftnref3" name="_ftn3" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[3]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> John
T. Noonan, “Abortion and the Catholic Church: A Summary History” (1967) <i>Natural
Law Forum</i> p. 114<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn4">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Tradition%20part%202.docx#_ftnref4" name="_ftn4" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[4]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Charles Grafton, “The Three Religions: Protestantism, Romanism, and Catholicism”,
Project Canterbury, (<a href="http://anglicanhistory.org/grafton/v8/350.html">http://anglicanhistory.org/grafton/v8/350.html</a>)<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn5">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Tradition%20part%202.docx#_ftnref5" name="_ftn5" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[5]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> The
Lambeth Conference, 1930, Resolution 16 (<a href="file:///C:/Users/BishopMattGunter/Downloads/1930.pdf">file:///C:/Users/BishopMattGunter/Downloads/1930.pdf</a>).
This was reaffirmed with more nuance at the 1958 Lambeth Conference<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn6">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Tradition%20part%202.docx#_ftnref6" name="_ftn6" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[6]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Robin Gill, “Church of England (Anglican) Perspectives on Abortion” , pp 63 –
72 in “Abortion: Global Positions and Practices, Religious and Legal
Perspectives”, Alireza Bagheri ed., Springer (2021)<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn7">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Tradition%20part%202.docx#_ftnref7" name="_ftn7" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[7]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> “The
Episcopal Church’s Stated Position on Childbirth and Abortion” (<a href="https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2023/01/the-episcopal-churchs-stated-position.html">https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2023/01/the-episcopal-churchs-stated-position.html</a>)<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn8">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Tradition%20part%202.docx#_ftnref8" name="_ftn8" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[8]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> John
Chrysostom, Homily 24 on Romans <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoFootnoteText">(<a href="https://bibleportal.com/sermon/John-Chrysostom/homily-24-on-romans">https://bibleportal.com/sermon/John-Chrysostom/homily-24-on-romans</a>)<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn9">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Tradition%20part%202.docx#_ftnref9" name="_ftn9" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[9]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> John
T. Noonan, “Abortion and the Catholic Church: A Summary History” (1967) <i>Natural
Law Forum</i>, p. 126<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn10">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Tradition%20part%202.docx#_ftnref10" name="_ftn10" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[10]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> Caesarius
of Arles, Sermons 1:12 (<a href="https://www.catholic.com/tract/contraception-and-sterilization">https://www.catholic.com/tract/contraception-and-sterilization</a>)<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn11">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Tradition%20part%202.docx#_ftnref11" name="_ftn11" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[11]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> Pierre
Riché; Jo Ann McNamara, ed and trans, “Daily Life in the World of Charlemagne”
(University of Pennsylvania Press), p. 50.<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn12">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Tradition%20part%202.docx#_ftnref12" name="_ftn12" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[12]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Thomas Aquinas, “Contra Gentiles”, 3.122.9 (<a href="https://isidore.co/aquinas/english/ContraGentiles3b.htm#122">https://isidore.co/aquinas/english/ContraGentiles3b.htm#122</a>)<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn13">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Tradition%20part%202.docx#_ftnref13" name="_ftn13" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[13]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
John Calvin, “Commentary on Genesis” (<a href="https://bibleportal.com/commentary/section/john-calvin/12835">https://bibleportal.com/commentary/section/john-calvin/12835</a>)<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn14">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Tradition%20part%202.docx#_ftnref14" name="_ftn14" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[14]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Martin Luther, “Luther's works / Vol. 4, Lectures on Genesis, chapters 21-25”, Jaroslav
Pelikan, ed., p. 304 (<a href="https://archive.org/details/luthersworksv4c21-25unse/page/304/mode/2up">https://archive.org/details/luthersworksv4c21-25unse/page/304/mode/2up</a>)<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn15">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Tradition%20part%202.docx#_ftnref15" name="_ftn15" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[15]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> Alasdair
MacIntyre, “After Virtue”, University of Notre Dame Press (2007) p. 221<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoFootnoteText"><br /></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;"><b>Next:</b></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">Part
7: Back to the Bible</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;"><b>Previous:</b></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">Part
1: <a href="https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2023/01/the-episcopal-churchs-stated-position.html">The Episcopal Church’s Stated Position on Childbirth and Abortion</a></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">Part
2: <a href="https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2023/01/an-episcopal-bishops-teaching-on.html">Context</a></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">Part
3: <a href="https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2023/02/an-episcopal-bishops-teaching-on.html">Old Testament</a></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">Part
4: <a href="https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2023/02/an-episcopal-bishops-teaching-on_29.html">New Testament</a></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">Part
5: <a href="https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2023/03/an-episcopal-bishops-teaching-on.html">Tradition</a></span></p>
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</div>mattgunter1081@gmail.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14808597688160170927noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4534237549485136842.post-24467266836533753102023-03-17T19:49:00.012-05:002024-02-15T01:45:05.062-06:00An Episcopal Bishop's Teaching on Abortion, Part 5: Tradition<p><b><span style="font-family: times; font-size: 12pt;">Introduction</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: 12pt;">We
start with the Bible, but most Christians, including Anglicans, do not stop
there. “We understand the meaning of the Bible by the help of the Holy Spirit,
who guides the Church in the true interpretation of the Scriptures” (BCP, p.
853). We look to how the Church has interpreted the Bible through the years
with particular attention to official teaching, the thinking of major
theologians, and the lives of the saints. We are not bound to simply repeat the
Tradition. For one thing, the Tradition is not uniform and we have to attend to
a diversity of voices that do not always agree. Also, the Tradition is not
static and unchanging. Still, we do believe the Holy Spirit has been present in
the Church to inspire and guide it. So, while we are not bound to simply repeat
the Tradition, we do want to humbly engage and maintain continuity with it even
as we pray and listen together for the guidance of the Holy Spirit in our own
day.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-family: times; font-size: 12pt;">Christianity’s
Radical Newness</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: times;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">As
Christianity spread throughout the classical Greco-Roman world, it reshaped the
imagination of converts and eventually society itself. Things that had been despised
or held in low esteem were now valued – things like humility, compassion for the
poor and the weak, for slaves, etc. This included the then radical idea that
every human being, regardless of social standing or nationality or gender or
age, was a </span><i style="font-size: 12pt;">person</i><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> with dignity and worthy of respect and care. This
included a new valuing of children.</span><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Part%205%20-%20Tradition.docx#_ftn1" name="_ftnref1" style="font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[1]</span></span></span></a></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: 12pt;">One
thing that set Christians (along with Jews) apart from their pagan neighbors
was their emphatic rejection of infanticide. In the ancient world it was assumed
that a father could dispose of an unwanted baby after it was born as he saw fit.
Any offspring belonged to the father and he had the right to choose if it lived
or died. From its beginning, the Church rejected this, insisting that the life
of the child was God’s, not the father’s.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-family: times; font-size: 12pt;">Early
Christian Teaching on Abortion</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: times;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Christians
extended this concern for life into the womb. From the beginning, Christianity
taught that abortion was a serious sin. An early Christian text, the </span><i style="font-size: 12pt;">Didache</i><span style="font-size: 12pt;">,
usually dated in the decades after the death of Paul says, “you shall not abort
a child or commit infanticide”</span><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Part%205%20-%20Tradition.docx#_ftn2" name="_ftnref2" style="font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[2]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-size: 12pt;">
</span><i style="font-size: 12pt;">The Epistle of Barnabas</i><span style="font-size: 12pt;">, another early Christian text said, “You shall
love your neighbor more than your own life. You shall not slay the child by
abortion. You shall not kill that which has already been generated.”</span><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Part%205%20-%20Tradition.docx#_ftn3" name="_ftnref3" style="font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[3]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-size: 12pt;">
St. Basil the Great (c330-379), Bishop of Caesarea, wrote, “The woman who
purposely destroys her unborn child is guilty of murder. With us there is no
nice enquiry as to its being formed or unformed..”</span><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Part%205%20-%20Tradition.docx#_ftn4" name="_ftnref4" style="font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[4]</span></span></span></a></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: times;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">St.
John Chrysostom (347-407) also described abortion as murder.</span><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Part%205%20-%20Tradition.docx#_ftn5" name="_ftnref5" style="font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[5]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-size: 12pt;">
This became the standard teaching in the Eastern Church. But, despite the quote
above, Basil imposed a lesser penalty or penance for abortion than for murder.</span><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Part%205%20-%20Tradition.docx#_ftn6" name="_ftnref6" style="font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[6]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-size: 12pt;">
And though abortion was generally against the law in the medieval Byzantine
Empire, “both Imperial Legislation and the Orthodox Church accepted selective
abortion for medical reasons,” particularly when the mother’s life was
threatened</span><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Part%205%20-%20Tradition.docx#_ftn7" name="_ftnref7" style="font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[7]</span></span></span></a> and </span><span style="font-family: times; font-size: 16px;">the Jusintinan Cosde of the sixth century excused from penalty abortions performed prior to forty days after conception.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-family: times; font-size: 12pt;">The
Beginning of Soul/Person in Church Tradition</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: times;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">But
it gets more complicated. Although Basil in the quote above explicitly rejects
the idea, other theologians</span> <span style="font-size: 12pt;">made a distinction depending on how far along the pregnancy
was. Basil’s younger brother, St. Gregory of Nyssa (335-395), took this approach,</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: 12pt;">“. . . just as it would not be possible to style
the unformed embryo a human being, but only a potential one, assuming that it
is completed so as to come forth to human birth, while as long as it is in this
unformed state, it is something other than a human being. . .”<a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Part%205%20-%20Tradition.docx#_ftn8" name="_ftnref8" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn8;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[8]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: times;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">This
became the common understanding in the Western Church of which the Anglican
Tradition and the Episcopal Church are a part. Christian thinkers in the Western
Church grappled with the question, at what point are we talking about a human
soul? They did not engage this question in a vacuum. In the absence of a clear
teaching in the Scripture, they were also influenced by the teaching of
classical philosophy. And on this, ancient philosophers and philosophical
schools differed. Plato taught that the soul was there from conception
(although he still advocated for the option of abortion and infanticide for the
sake of population control and eugenics). Aristotle taught that the life in the
womb was not animated, or ensouled, until some weeks after conception (he also
believed that abortion and infanticide were useful for population control and
eugenics. The Stoics, like the Jewish tradition, taught that human life began
at birth. Ironically, the Stoics were nevertheless strongly opposed to
abortion.</span><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Part%205%20-%20Tradition.docx#_ftn9" name="_ftnref9" style="font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[9]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-size: 12pt;">
These philosopher and philosophical schools shaped the thinking of Christian
theologians.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: times;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">The
common teaching in the Western Church has been, until relatively recently, that
in the early stages of pregnancy there was only a </span><i style="font-size: 12pt;">potential</i><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> human in the
womb which did not become or receive a fully human soul until later in the pregnancy
– after it was the body was “formed”. The rationale seems partly to be based on
the Christian conviction that the human soul and body are fundamentally
inseparable. Though the teaching has generally been that the soul in some sense
survives the death of the body, the tradition has insisted that the soul remains
incomplete until it is reunited with the body in the resurrection. There must
be a human body for there to be a human soul. And one cannot have a soul or
relate to God or others until one has the biological capacity – physical and
mental.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: 12pt;">St.
Jerome (died, 420), who translated the Bible from Hebrew and Greek into Latin, affirmed
the notion that only at a certain stage of development was the life in the womb
a fully human person,</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: 12pt;">“For just as seeds are gradually formed in wombs
and for so long a time murder is not considered until mixed up elements take up
their appearances and limbs . . .”<a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Part%205%20-%20Tradition.docx#_ftn10" name="_ftnref10" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn10;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[10]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: 12pt;">Though
the question of the origin of the human soul baffled him throughout his life, St.
Augustine of Hippo (354-430) wrote,</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: 12pt;">“If what is brought forth is unformed (<i>inforne</i>)
but at this stage some sort of living, shapeless thing (<i>informiter</i>),
then the law of homicide would not apply, for it could not be said that there
was a living soul in that body, for it lacks all sense, if it be such as is not
yet formed (<i>nondum formata</i>) and therefore not yet endowed with its
senses.”<a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Part%205%20-%20Tradition.docx#_ftn11" name="_ftnref11" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn11;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[11]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: times;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">In
</span><a name="_Hlk129232802" style="font-size: 12pt;"><u>On Virginal Conception and Original Sin</u>, St. Anselm
of Canterbury </a><span style="font-size: 12pt;">(1033–1109) wrote,</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: 12pt;">"no human intellect accepts the view that an
infant has the rational soul from the moment of conception."<a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Part%205%20-%20Tradition.docx#_ftn12" name="_ftnref12" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn12;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[12]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: 12pt;">The
great mystic and theologian, St. Hildegard of Bingen (1098-1179), also taught
that it was not until the fetus was formed whole with all its members that it
received a spirit,</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: 12pt;">“. . . when a woman has conceived by human semen,
an infant with all its members whole is formed in the hidden chamber of womb. .
. by God’s secret and hidden command and will, fitly and rightly at the
divinely appointed time the infant in the maternal womb receives a spirit . . .”<a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Part%205%20-%20Tradition.docx#_ftn13" name="_ftnref13" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn13;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[13]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: times;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Thomas
Aquinas (1225-1274), the most consequential medieval theologian also taught
that the life in the womb gradually became human, but was not fully human until it
was “animated” (ensouled) many weeks into the pregnancy.</span><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Part%205%20-%20Tradition.docx#_ftn14" name="_ftnref14" style="font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[14]</span></span></span></a></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-family: times; font-size: 12pt;">Penitentials</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: 12pt;">In
the medieval period penitential canons were developed. These were handbooks to
guide those who heard confessions in discerning what penances needed to be done
for various sins. The more serious the sin, the more intense the penance. The
teaching was always that abortion was a sin. But the seriousness of the sin depended
on when it occurred and other circumstantial factors.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: times;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">The
<u>Canons of Theodore</u> were an early medieval penitential composed around 700 A.D
soon after the death of Archbishop Theodore of Canterbury. In assigning penance
for an abortion a distinction was made based on whether it was earlier and
later in the pregnancy. Only if the abortion is later is she “to be accused as
a homicide” and do penance accordingly.</span><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Part%205%20-%20Tradition.docx#_ftn15" name="_ftnref15" style="font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[15]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-size: 12pt;">
Irish penitentials form this period made similar distinctions.</span><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Part%205%20-%20Tradition.docx#_ftn16" name="_ftnref16" style="font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[16]</span></span></span></a></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: times;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">In
some early medieval penitential guides, the reason for resorting to abortion
was considered, and penance was significantly reduced if resorted to due to
poverty, for example. </span>One penetential of this period deems, "But it makes a great difference whether a poor woman does it on account of the difficulty of feeding [her child] . . ." Medical conditions were also seen as a mitigating factor, as in the case of a woman who took an abortifacient potion because of her fear of "death or concern about the narrowness of her birth canal. Rape was also an extenuating circumstance in some penitenbtial texts, which "explicitly state that a woman is 'not guilty', if she commits abortion af</span><span style="font-family: times;">ter being raped."</span><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Part%205%20-%20Tradition.docx#_ftn17" name="_ftnref17" style="font-family: times; font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[17]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-family: times;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: times;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Gratian's
Decretum was a collection of canon law completed around 1140 by a Benedictine
monk from Italy Gratian became known as the father of the study of canon law.
The Decretum became the standard for church discipline in subsequent centuries.
Gratian states, "He is not a murderer who brings about abortion before the
soul is in the body."</span><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Part%205%20-%20Tradition.docx#_ftn18" name="_ftnref18" style="font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[18]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-size: 12pt;">
He does not specify precisely when the soul enters the body, but, as with the
theologians quoted above, it is at a later point in a pregnancy.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-family: times; font-size: 12pt;">Reformation
and After</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: times;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Martin
Luther did not write extensively about the issues and questions related to
abortion. But when he did refer to abortion, he condemned it.</span><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Part%205%20-%20Tradition.docx#_ftn19" name="_ftnref19" style="font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[19]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-size: 12pt;">
He does not mention any distinction between early and later pregnancy.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: 12pt;">John
Calvin also makes no mention of a distinction between early and later life in the
womb. In his Commentary on Exodus 20:21 he wrote,</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: 12pt;">“If it seems more horrible to kill a man in his
own house than in a field, because a man’s house is his place of most secure
refuge, it ought surely to be deemed more atrocious to destroy a foetus in the
womb before it has come to light.”<a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Part%205%20-%20Tradition.docx#_ftn20" name="_ftnref20" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn20;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[20]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: times;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">But
his interpretation of this passage is problematic.</span><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Part%205%20-%20Tradition.docx#_ftn21" name="_ftnref21" style="font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[21]</span></span></span></a></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: times;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Luther’s
collaborator, Phillip Melanchthon “believed that the soul was given by God
only after the body was formed” and “seventeenth-century Anglican and Puritan
authors shared in condemning abortion, usually associating it with sexual
immorality, and sometimes reviving the distinction between the formed and
unformed fetus.”</span><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Part%205%20-%20Tradition.docx#_ftn22" name="_ftnref22" style="font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[22]</span></span></span></a></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-family: times; font-size: 12pt;">Conclusion</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: 12pt;">The
Christian Tradition has always taken a negative view of abortion. The mystery and sanctity of life and the process of procreation have always been a concern. But its most
authoritative theologians have taught that the life in the womb was not a fully
ensouled human early in the pregnancy. They considered abortion at any point a
sin. But the seriousness of the sin depended on when it occurred. It was not considered
homicide before the fetus was formed. In the Church's on-the-ground pastoral practice, the seriousness of the sin could also
depend on other factors. For example, abortion might be considered less sinful if resorted due to poverty or or fear of detrh due to medical conditions, or not sin at all if due to rape. And, in any event, if the life of the
pregnant woman was threatened, her life took precedence.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: 12pt;">This
was more or less the common teaching of most of the Church. It was the official
teaching of the Roman Catholic Church until 1869. I’ll look at that change and
make some other observations in the next post.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: 12pt;">______</span></p><div style="mso-element: footnote-list;">
<span style="font-family: times;"><!--[endif]-->
</span><div id="ftn1" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><span style="font-family: times;"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Part%205%20-%20Tradition.docx#_ftnref1" name="_ftn1" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn1;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> O.
M. Bakke, <i>When Children Became People: The Birth of Childhood in Early
Christianity</i> (Fortress Press, 2005)<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn2" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><span style="font-family: times;"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Part%205%20-%20Tradition.docx#_ftnref2" name="_ftn2" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn2;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[2]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> Didache
2.2<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn3" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><span style="font-family: times;"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Part%205%20-%20Tradition.docx#_ftnref3" name="_ftn3" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn3;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[3]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> Epistle
of Barnabas XIX, 5<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn4" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><span style="font-family: times;"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Part%205%20-%20Tradition.docx#_ftnref4" name="_ftn4" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn4;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[4]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a>
Basil of Caesarea, <i>Letter 188,</i> <i>To Amphilochius, concerning the Canons</i>
II (<a href="https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/3202188.htm">https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/3202188.htm</a>)<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn5" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><span style="font-family: times;"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Part%205%20-%20Tradition.docx#_ftnref5" name="_ftn5" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn5;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[5]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> John
Chrysostom, <i>Homily 24 on Romans<o:p></o:p></i></span></p>
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><span style="font-family: times;"><i><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></i>(<a href="https://bibleportal.com/sermon/John-Chrysostom/homily-24-on-romans">https://bibleportal.com/sermon/John-Chrysostom/homily-24-on-romans</a>)<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn6" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><span style="font-family: times;"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Part%205%20-%20Tradition.docx#_ftnref6" name="_ftn6" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn6;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[6]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> David
Albert Jones, <i>The Soul of the Embryo</i> (Continuum International, 2004), p.
64<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn7" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><span style="font-family: times;"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Part%205%20-%20Tradition.docx#_ftnref7" name="_ftn7" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn7;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[7]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> Poulakou-Rebelakou,
Lascaratos, and Marketos, <i>Abortions in Byzantine Times,</i> Vesalius, II,
1,19-25, 1996<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn8" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: times;"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Part%205%20-%20Tradition.docx#_ftnref8" name="_ftn8" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn8;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[8]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> Gregory
of Nyssa, <i>On the Holy Spirit, Against the Macedonians</i> (<a href="https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/2903.htm">https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/2903.htm</a>)
This can appear to be in some tension with what Gregory (or his sister, Macrina)
seems to say in <i>On the Soul and the Resurrection</i> and in <i>On the Making
of Man</i> where<i> </i>it is affirmed that the soul is coterminous with the
body. But those isolated quotes need to be understood in light of Gregory’s understanding
that even plants and animals have souls to a degree. The soul of the preformed fetus
has only the potential to become a fully human soul even as the embryo has only
the potential to be a fully human body. See <i>On the Making of Man,</i> VIII.4
(<a href="https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/2914.htm">https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/2914.htm</a>).
Thomas Aquinas also articulated this understanding (see footnote #14)<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn9" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><span style="font-family: times;"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Part%205%20-%20Tradition.docx#_ftnref9" name="_ftn9" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn9;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[9]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> <a name="_Hlk129448803">Michael Gorman, <i>Abortion and the Early Church:
Christian, Jewish and Pagan Attitudes in the Greco-Roman World</i>, (Downers
Grove, Intervarsity Press), p. </a>22-23<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn10" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><span style="font-family: times;"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Part%205%20-%20Tradition.docx#_ftnref10" name="_ftn10" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn10;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[10]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> Jerome,
Letter 121, To Algasia (<a href="https://epistolae.ctl.columbia.edu/letter/1291.html">https://epistolae.ctl.columbia.edu/letter/1291.html</a>)<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn11" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><span style="font-family: times;"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Part%205%20-%20Tradition.docx#_ftnref11" name="_ftn11" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn11;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[11]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> Augustine
of Hippo. <i>Questions on the Heptateuch</i>; quoted by <a name="_Hlk129952059">G
R Dunstan in <i>The moral status of the human embryo: a tradition recalled </i>(Journal
of medical Ethics, 1984 Mar;10(1):38-44)</a><o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn12" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><span style="font-family: times;"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Part%205%20-%20Tradition.docx#_ftnref12" name="_ftn12" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn12;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[12]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> Anselm
of Canterbury, <i>On Virginal Conception and Original Sin, </i>Chapter 7 (<a href="chrome-extension://efaidnbmnnnibpcajpcglclefindmkaj/https://jasper-hopkins.info/DeConceptu.pdf">chrome-extension://efaidnbmnnnibpcajpcglclefindmkaj/https://jasper-hopkins.info/DeConceptu.pdf</a>)<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn13" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><span style="font-family: times;"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Part%205%20-%20Tradition.docx#_ftnref13" name="_ftn13" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn13;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[13]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> Hildegard
of Bingen: <i>Scivias,</i> Mother Columba Hart (Translator)<i> </i><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(Paulist Press, 1990) p. 119<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn14" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><span style="font-family: times;"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Part%205%20-%20Tradition.docx#_ftnref14" name="_ftn14" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn14;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[14]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a>
Thomas Aquinas, <i>Summa Theologiae, Question 64,</i> (h<a href="ttps://www.newadvent.org/summa/3064.htm">ttps://www.newadvent.org/summa/3064.htm</a>)<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn15" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><span style="font-family: times;"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Part%205%20-%20Tradition.docx#_ftnref15" name="_ftn15" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn15;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[15]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> <i>Early
Penitentials: Canons of Theodore</i> (opensource) p. 20 B66.05.02
(<a href="https://archive.org/details/EarlyPenitentialsTheCanonsOfTheodore/page/n19/mode/2up">https://archive.org/details/EarlyPenitentialsTheCanonsOfTheodore/page/n19/mode/2up</a>)<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn16" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><span style="font-family: times;"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Part%205%20-%20Tradition.docx#_ftnref16" name="_ftn16" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn16;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[16]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> G
R Dunstan in <i>The moral status of the human embryo: a tradition recalled</i>
(Journal of medical Ethics, 1984 Mar;10(1):38-44)<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn17" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><span style="font-family: times;"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Part%205%20-%20Tradition.docx#_ftnref17" name="_ftn17" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn17;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[17]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> </span><span style="font-family: times;">Margaret D. Kamitsuka, </span><i style="font-family: times;">Abortion and the Christian Tradition</i><span style="font-family: times;">, (Westminster John Knox Press, Louisville, KY), p. 29-32 </span></p><p class="MsoFootnoteText"><span style="font-family: times;">See also, </span><span style="font-family: times;">Marianne J. Elsakkers, </span><i style="font-family: times;">Reading Between the Lines: Old Germanic and Early Christian Views on Aborretion, </i><span style="font-family: times;">PhD Dissertation, (University of Asterdam, 2010), p. 449-450 (</span><a href="chrome-extension://efaidnbmnnnibpcajpcglclefindmkaj/https://pure.uva.nl/ws/files/1578630/76086_chapter_3_embargo_twee_jaar.pdf" style="font-family: times;">chrome-extension://efaidnbmnnnibpcajpcglclefindmkaj/https://pure.uva.nl/ws/files/1578630/76086_chapter_3_embargo_twee_jaar.pdf</a><span style="font-family: times;">). </span></p><p class="MsoFootnoteText"><span style="font-family: times;">And also, Pierre
Riché; Jo Ann McNamara, ed and trans, </span><i style="font-family: times;">Daily Life in the World of Charlemagne</i><span style="font-family: times;">
(University of Pennsylvania Press), p. 50.</span></p><p class="MsoFootnoteText"><span style="font-family: times;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn18" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><span style="font-family: times;"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Part%205%20-%20Tradition.docx#_ftnref18" name="_ftn18" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn18;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[18]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> Donald
DeMarco, <i>The Roman Catholic Church and Abortion: An Historical Perspective -
Part I,</i>
(<a href="https://www.catholicculture.org/culture/library/view.cfm?id=3361##">https://www.catholicculture.org/culture/library/view.cfm?id=3361##</a>)<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn19" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><span style="font-family: times;"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Part%205%20-%20Tradition.docx#_ftnref19" name="_ftn19" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn19;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[19]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Peter Barnes, <i>Abortion and the Reformation,</i>
Evangelicals For Life.com, posted on May 24, 2010. (<a href="http://evangelicalsforlife.com/abortion-and-the-reformation">http://evangelicalsforlife.com/abortion-and-the-reformation</a>)<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn20" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><span style="font-family: times;"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Part%205%20-%20Tradition.docx#_ftnref20" name="_ftn20" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn20;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[20]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> John
Calvin, <i>Commentary on Exodus</i> 20:21 (<a href="https://www.bibliaplus.org/en/commentaries/3/john-calvins-bible-commentary/exodus/21/22">https://www.bibliaplus.org/en/commentaries/3/john-calvins-bible-commentary/exodus/21/22</a>)<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn21" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><span style="font-family: times;"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Part%205%20-%20Tradition.docx#_ftnref21" name="_ftn21" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn21;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[21]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> Ibid,
As we saw in Part 3, this passage is unclear. Calvin admits that it is ambiguous
and unclear as to whether it applies to the pregnant woman only or to the foetus also.
But then he <i>assumes</i> it must include the foetus given his conviction
expressed in the quote above.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn22" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><span style="font-family: times;"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/Part%205%20-%20Tradition.docx#_ftnref22" name="_ftn22" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn22;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[22]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> Lisa
Sowle Cahill, “Abortion” in <i>The Westminster Dictionary of Christian Ethics</i>,
James E. Childresa and John Macquarrie, ed., p. 3. Unfortunately she does not include names or references.</span></p><p class="MsoFootnoteText"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: 12pt;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p class="MsoFootnoteText"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: 12pt;"><b>Next:</b></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: 12pt;">Part
6: Tradition, continued</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: 12pt;"><b>Previous:</b></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: 12pt;">Part
1: <a href="https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2023/01/the-episcopal-churchs-stated-position.html">The Episcopal Church’s Stated Position on Childbirth and Abortion</a></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: 12pt;">Part
2: <a href="https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2023/01/an-episcopal-bishops-teaching-on.html">Context</a></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: 12pt;">Part
3: <a href="https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2023/02/an-episcopal-bishops-teaching-on.html">Old Testament</a></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: 12pt;">Part
4: <a href="https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2023/02/an-episcopal-bishops-teaching-on_29.html">New Testament</a></span></p>
</div>
</div>mattgunter1081@gmail.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14808597688160170927noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4534237549485136842.post-22613346988858976852023-03-16T06:32:00.003-05:002024-02-15T01:59:20.662-06:00Taking Up The Cross In A Time Of War<p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Sermon
for Lent 2, Year B, 3/16/03 (Three days before the invasion of Iraq)<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">St.
Barnabas Episcopal Church, Glen Ellyn, Illinois<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Genesis
22:1-14, Psalm 16:5-11, Romans 8:31-39, <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Mark
8:31-38</b><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">In
the year 390, Ambrose, Bishop of Milan, sent a letter to one of his
parishioners. Ambrose was convinced that this parishioner had committed a
grievous and public sin. In his letter, Ambrose told the parishioner that until
he repented publicly he would not be allowed to receive Communion.</span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Ambrose had excommunicated him. But this was
no ordinary church member. It was Theodosius, emperor of the Roman Empire. It
seems one of Theodosius’ officials had been murdered in the Greek city of
Thessalonica. The exact circumstances are unclear. Perhaps it was a tax
revolt.</span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Perhaps it was a random
terrorist attack. In any event, Theodosius had done what emperors always do. He
sent in the army to teach the people of Thessalonica, and by extension the rest
of the empire, a lesson. Some 7,000 people – men, women, and children – were
killed, the vast majority of whom had had nothing to do with the death of the
official. Ambrose was not a pacifist, but he knew that the emperor’s actions
needed to be condemned even if it meant the very real possibility of being sent
to prison or killed.</span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Emperors don’t
usually like to be challenged. Against all odds, Emperor Theodosius repented
and publicly sought absolution from his bishop.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">I’ve
been thinking a lot about Ambrose and Theodosius lately. What would Ambrose say
about the looming invasion of Iraq?</span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">
</span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Would it make any difference? Christian leaders around the world and the
leaders of nearly every Christian denomination in America have stated that this
war does not meet the standards of a just war. The Pope has declared the same.
But it does not seem to matter.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Some
of these leaders can perhaps be written off as the religious lackeys of the
left – people who would reflexively oppose any use of force by America. But,
not all of them. The current Pope has never been accused of being a liberal
lackey. Nor is Miroslav Volf, an evangelical theologian on the faculty of Yale.
There are others who cannot be so easily written off.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">There
are some theologians who have argued that a preemptive war on Iraq is
justifiable. One has to wonder though if the religious lackeys of the left
don’t have their parallel among some conservatives who have never seen a war
waged by their own country that they could not justify. Did Theodosius have any
theologians around to reassure him that his use of force was necessary and
justified for the good order of the Empire?</span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">
</span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">“You can’t run an empire after all without a little collateral damage.” One
problem I have with the just war theory is that in practice it is too elastic. It
can be stretched, and has been, to support every war this nation and others
have waged. Too often, the just war theory has become merely the “excuse war
theory.”</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">I
have referred in passing to the pending war in sermons a couple times recently
but have been hesitant to address it directly. On reason for that hesitancy is
that the texts have not seemed to naturally lend themselves to addressing the
issue of Iraq. I do not want to do violence to the scriptures just so I can
preach against violence. Another reason for my hesitancy is that I, like you
have heard too many sermons where the pulpit was used as a platform for the
preacher’s political prejudices rather than a proclamation of the gospel.</span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">I am wary of doing the same. I have also been
hesitant because I am all too aware that I am no Ambrose. And you are not
Theodosius.</span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">None of us here this morning
has any control over the decision to attack Iraq.</span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">And, to be perfectly honest, I have been
hesitant to address the topic directly because I don’t particularly like
controversy. But this morning’s text and the urgency of the situation lead me
to wade into the thicket.</span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Jesus
said: “If any want to be my followers, let them deny themselves and take up
their cross and follow me.” I want to explore with you this question, what does
it mean to take up the cross in a time of war?</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">There
has been lots of public talk about God recently; some of it by the president,
some of it by those who oppose him. But talk about God is cheap and all too
often self-serving. I am convinced that any talk about God without the cross
tends to be either insipid or dangerous. There have been plenty of examples of
both lately.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">What
does it mean to take up the cross in a time of war? I have said before that I
am persuaded that the way of the cross means a commitment to peace. It is
harder to get around Jesus’ nonviolence and that of his earliest followers than
some want to suggest. But, any talk of peace must not avoid the reality of sin
and death. Talk of peace that implies that if we are just nice to others they
will be nice to us is not the way of the cross. It is simply naïve. Any serious
talk of nonviolence must recognize that it is a call to martyrdom. My own,
certainly, but more problematically, the martyrdom of others who I might
otherwise intervene to help. Being resolutely nonviolent does not mean doing
nothing, but to totally avoid having blood on my hands in a world of violence,
sin and death means being prepared to stand by while others bleed. That is not
an easy way. But, I am not convinced that it is not the way of the cross.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">There
is no avoiding the hard fact that, whether we commit to nonviolence or to the
“judicious” use of violence, we are all stretched out between the catastrophe
we have made of the world and the promise of God’s good creation and his
kingdom.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">But
what if nonviolence is not the only faithful posture for Christians? I am
catholic enough to recognize that the majority wisdom of the Church has
believed that it is not. I take that seriously.</span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">
</span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">But even then we must ask, what does it mean to take up the cross in a
time of war? Another problem with the just war approach as it is usually
presented is that it does not ask this question seriously enough. I have
serious reservations about a moral system in which the particulars of Jesus’
teaching, life, and cross are essentially irrelevant. Hindus, Moslems, and
agnostics could all support the classic just war approach. What does it have to
do with Jesus and the cross?</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">If
we decide that sometimes we cannot avoid participating in violence, we still
have to make that decision in light of the cross and of Jesus. What does the
way of the cross look like then? This way must also be understood as a way of
martyrdom, but not first and foremost in the obvious sense that some are going
to die in a war. That is true, but we must accept the way of the cross as first
of all dying to ourselves and following Jesus. Among other things that means:</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">1) Taking up the cross in a time of war means
getting our loyalties straight.</span></b><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"> I saw a woman wearing a t-shirt last summer that
I found very troubling and very telling. It was a white t-shirt that had
JESUSAVES written across the front. I believe he does. But that was not the
only message on the shirt. It actually looked more like this: JES<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">USA</b>VES. All the letters were blue
except for those in the middle – USA – which were red. It was a telling icon of
the confused syncretism of many Christians in America. Who saves?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Jesus? The USA? Or, are the two so entwined
that we can’t tell the difference? We cannot begin to discern whether war in
general or this war in particular is justifiable until we can tell the
difference between the way of Jesus and the way of the United States. The way
of the cross means dying to, and being suspect of, all other loyalties. If talk
of just war just means that it is OK for Christians to kill when their
government says so, it is not the way of the cross.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">2) Taking up the cross in a time of war means the
way of humility.</span></b><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">
It means being prepared to entertain the possibility that we are wrong. It
means asking, why does most of the rest of the world disagree with us? Even
those governments that support the United States’ invasion of Iraq do so
against the will of the overwhelming majority of their people. Most of those
closest to Iraq do not agree with us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Right and wrong are not determined by majority vote. But, it is arrogant
to presume that everyone else is automatically wrong because they don’t see it
our way.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">If it is America’s fate to be the de facto empire
of the world, it will make a big difference how we live that out. The way of
the cross means we cannot lord it over others. We have not been doing a very
good job of it lately. Because the United States has been seen as lording it
over others, we have remarkably managed to loose a public relations contest
with a thug and tyrant like Saddam Hussein and alienated much of the world. Humility
means listening to those who disagree with us, not derisively dismissing them
so we can ignore their concerns.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">We might not need U.N. approval to go to war. The
just war approach allows that any nation has the right, on its own authority,
to defend itself when attacked. But, Iraq has not attacked us and it is not
clear that it is able to. If, however, we are going to war to enforce U.N.
resolutions, it would seem the proper authority resides in the body that passed
the resolutions. What does it mean to enforce the will of others against their
will? What if Egypt and Syria decide on their own to enforce the U.N.’s
resolutions condemning Israeli settlements on the West Bank? I do not think we
would find that to our liking. We apparently haven’t run out of patience
there.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Humility means we must be careful
of the precedents we set just because we can.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">3) Taking up the cross in a time of war means we
must recognize our own sin.</span></b><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"> It is a Lenten theme.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It is a Christian theme. Much of the rest of the world looks to America
as an example, a beacon of hope, liberty, and prosperity. But it is also
suspect of our power and of our motives. We need to deny ourselves the
indulgence of self-justification and recognize that this is neither accidental
nor simply a matter of colossal misunderstanding. There are reasons many in the
world do not trust us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I am very
concerned that as a result of this war and our behavior leading up to it we
will be living with the deep resentment of much of the rest of the world for a
long time. And we will only be less safe and secure for it.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Recognizing our sin means we need to be
suspicious of our own motives. Can it be that every country that opposes war
with Iraq has mixed motives, but the United States does not? Do we really
believe that we are the only ones who are realistic about the dangers of the
world? Do we really believe that we the only ones who have courage? We need to
take the reality and pervasiveness of sin more seriously than that.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">4) Taking up the cross in a time of war means
repentance.</span></b><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">
We need be prepared to repent of sins we commit as individuals and as a nation.
And if sometimes we decide we must resort to violence, we need to repent for
that violence. Some have suggested that the classic just war approach does not
presume that violence is wrong. I do not know if that is true. If it is the
just war theory needs to be rethought in light of Jesus and the cross. Killing
some people for the sake of other people is always a devil’s bargain – even if
we decide it is the only bargain we can make. St. Basil of Caesarea who was a
contemporary of Ambrose said that though the church had decided that sometimes
we must resort to war, when we do so we should repent and those who participate
should do penance, enduring a time of exclusion from the sacrament. That is the
position still of the Eastern Orthodox Church which is not pacifist, but has
never accepted the theory that for Christians war can be just or pleasing to
God.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Lent
is about taking up the cross, denying ourselves, and following Jesus. It
includes denying our tendency toward self-justification – as individuals, as a
church, and as a nation.</span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">It means dying
to other loyalties.</span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">It means humility. It
means acknowledging our own sinfulness.</span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">
</span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">It means repentance. It is a way of martyrdom. If any want to be my
followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">I
can’t say whether, if he were here, Ambrose would oppose war with Iraq. What
disturbs me more is that for many Christians in America – it wouldn’t matter.</span></p><p></p>mattgunter1081@gmail.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14808597688160170927noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4534237549485136842.post-51375580335799096042023-02-23T10:40:00.005-06:002024-02-15T01:45:56.424-06:00An Episcopal Bishop's Teaching on Abortion, Part 4: Scripture – New Testament<p><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">As
we saw in the last post, there is little if anything in the Old Testament that
directly addresses abortion. There is even less in the New Testament. Jesus
says nothing about it. Paul writes nothing about it</span><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/FOLDERS/Essays/Abortion/Blog%20Series/Part%204%20-%20Scripture%20-%20NT.docx#_ftn1" name="_ftnref1" style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[1]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">.
This is curious because abortion was not at all unheard of 2,000 years ago.
Roman and Greek philosophers of the time had a range of things to say on the
subject.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">It
is significant that the Jewish understanding at the time of Jesus was that
while the life in the womb had value and was in some sense sacred as a
potential human being, it was not a fully human person before birth. According
to</span> <span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Jewish commentary
from around the time and place of Jesus if it came to it, <a href="https://www.sefaria.org/Mishnah_Oholot.7.6?lang=bi">the mother’s life must take precedence</a>.<a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/FOLDERS/Essays/Abortion/Blog%20Series/Part%204%20-%20Scripture%20-%20NT.docx#_ftn2" name="_ftnref2" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[2]</span></span></span></a></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">This
has remained more or less the teaching of Judaism since. Joseph </span><a name="_Hlk117098945" style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Schenker</a><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">, Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the
Hebrew University of Jerusalem, summarized the attitude toward abortion in the classic sources of Jewish law:</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">1. That the only indication considered for
abortion is a hazard to the mother’s life. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">2. That, otherwise, the destruction of an unborn
child is a grave offence, although not murder. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">3. That it can be viewed that the fetus is
granted some recognition of human life, but it does not equal that of the
mother’s, and can be sacrificed if her life is in danger.<a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/FOLDERS/Essays/Abortion/Blog%20Series/Part%204%20-%20Scripture%20-%20NT.docx#_ftn3" name="_ftnref3" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn3;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[3]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Something
like Dr.</span> <span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Schenker’s
summary would have been the common Jewish teaching at the time of the New
Testament. That Jesus and the rest of the New Testament say nothing to directly
contradict this understanding does not necessarily mean agreement with it.
Arguments from silence cannot take us very far. Still, it does seem significant,
given Jesus’ willingness to take issue with the understanding of his
contemporaries on other issues.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">It
is also true that, grounded though Christianity is in Judaism, it is not the
same. We do not share all the same scriptures and those that we do share, we
interpret differently. We have different traditions beyond the scriptures. Both
traditions have wrestled with questions around the issue of abortion. In both
traditions, the answers to those questions have been complex. For more on the
Jewish understanding, see this footnote.</span><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/FOLDERS/Essays/Abortion/Blog%20Series/Part%204%20-%20Scripture%20-%20NT.docx#_ftn4" name="_ftnref4" style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[4]</span></span></span></a></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">While there is nothing in
the New Testament that explicitly and clearly addresses abortion, that does not
mean it has nothing relevant to say on the topic. There are other themes and
passages that could have bearing on how we might think about abortion, the life
in the womb, and the agency of the woman bearing that life. There is Jesus’s
uncommon respect for women and their personal integrity. There is also his even
more uncommon valuing of children. There is the general commitment to care for
the vulnerable and the “least of these.” There is the Visitation in which John
leaps in Elizabeth’s womb when Mary appears bearing Jesus in hers (Luke
1:39–56). We will look at some of these later. Next, I want to look at another
authority that Christians look to in order to make sense of things, the Church’s
tradition.</span></p><div style="mso-element: footnote-list;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]-->
<hr align="left" size="1" width="33%" />
<!--[endif]-->
<div id="ftn1" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/FOLDERS/Essays/Abortion/Blog%20Series/Part%204%20-%20Scripture%20-%20NT.docx#_ftnref1" name="_ftn1" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn1;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> A
possible exception is the reference to <i>pharmekeia</i> in Galatians 5:19-21;
Revelation 9:21; and 18:23. This can mean any kind of medicine or drugs (“pharmacy”
comes from this Greek root). <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It can also
mean potions, particularly magic potions – something that was common in the
ancient world. Hence it is commonly translated as witchcraft or sorcery. But in
some early Christian texts, e.g., the <i>Didache</i>, it is listed alongside abortion
which seems to suggest the possible meaning of drugs meant to induce abortions.
But it is not clear that that is the meaning when it is used in the New
Testament.<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn2" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/FOLDERS/Essays/Abortion/Blog%20Series/Part%204%20-%20Scripture%20-%20NT.docx#_ftnref2" name="_ftn2" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn2;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[2]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> Mishna
7.6 : “If a woman is having trouble giving birth, they cut up the child in her
womb and bring it forth limb by limb, because her life comes before the life of
[the child].” (<a href="https://www.sefaria.org/Mishnah_Oholot.7.6?lang=bi">https://www.sefaria.org/Mishnah_Oholot.7.6?lang=bi</a>)<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn3" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/FOLDERS/Essays/Abortion/Blog%20Series/Part%204%20-%20Scripture%20-%20NT.docx#_ftnref3" name="_ftn3" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn3;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[3]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> Schenker,
Joseph G., ‘The Beginning of Human Life: Status of embryo. Perspectives in Halakha
(Jewish Religious Law)’, Springer Science, Business Media, LLC, Published
online: 13 June 2008</p><p class="MsoFootnoteText">(<a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10815-008-9221-6">https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10815-008-9221-6</a>)</p><p class="MsoFootnoteText"><o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn4" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/FOLDERS/Essays/Abortion/Blog%20Series/Part%204%20-%20Scripture%20-%20NT.docx#_ftnref4" name="_ftn4" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn4;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[4]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> Meacham,
Tirzah and Lipinsky, Yoelit, ‘Abortion: Halakhic Perspectives’, <i>Jewish
Women’s Archive</i>, July 27, 2022 (<a href="https://jwa.org/encyclopedia/article/abortion#pid-18948">https://jwa.org/encyclopedia/article/abortion#pid-18948</a>)</p><p class="MsoFootnoteText"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoFootnoteText">Fischer, Elli, ‘What You’re Getting Wrong About
Abortion And Judaism’, <i>The Forward</i>, August 1, 2022 (<a href="https://forward.com/life/406465/what-youre-getting-wrong-about-abortion-and-judaism">https://forward.com/life/406465/what-youre-getting-wrong-about-abortion-and-judaism</a>)</p><p class="MsoFootnoteText"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;"><b>Next:</b></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">Part 5: Tradition</span></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;"><b>Previous:</b></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">Part 1: <a href="https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2023/01/the-episcopal-churchs-stated-position.html">The Episcopal Church’s Stated Position on Childbirth and Abortion</a></span></p><p class="MsoFootnoteText"><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">Part 2: <a href="https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2023/01/an-episcopal-bishops-teaching-on.html">Context</a></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing">Part 3: <a href="https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2023/02/an-episcopal-bishops-teaching-on.html">Old Testament</a></p><p class="MsoFootnoteText"><o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
</div>mattgunter1081@gmail.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14808597688160170927noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4534237549485136842.post-87465841468394827842023-02-09T08:25:00.003-06:002024-02-15T01:46:16.619-06:00An Episcopal Bishop's Teaching on Abortion, Part 3: Scripture – Old Testament<p><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">The
Outline of the Faith, or Catechism, in the <a href="https://www.bcponline.org/">Book of Common Prayer</a> affirms that
the Christian Scriptures are “the Word of God because God inspired their human
authors and because God still speaks to us through the Bible.” (p. 853). So,
that is where Christians begin when discerning answers to moral questions.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">It
must be admitted, though, that the Bible has nothing to say explicitly about
deliberate abortion. Even theologians who firmly oppose abortion concede this.
In his encyclical, </span><u style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;"><a href="https://www.vatican.va/content/john-paul-ii/en/encyclicals/documents/hf_jp-ii_enc_25031995_evangelium-vitae.html">Evangelium Vitae</a>,</u><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;"> Pope John Paul II wrote,</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">The texts of Sacred Scripture never address the
question of deliberate abortion and so do not directly and specifically condemn
it.<a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/FOLDERS/Essays/Abortion/Blog%20Series/Part%203%20-%20Scripture%20-%20OT.docx#_ftn1" name="_ftnref1" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn1;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Though
he affirms a pro-life position, New Testament scholar, Richard B. Hayes, admits,</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">The Bible contains no text about abortion. This
simple fact – often ignored by those who would make opposition to abortion a
virtual litmus test of true Christian faith – places the issue of abortion in a
very different category . . .<a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/FOLDERS/Essays/Abortion/Blog%20Series/Part%203%20-%20Scripture%20-%20OT.docx#_ftn2" name="_ftnref2" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn2;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[2]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">That
the Old Testament says nothing directly about abortion is curious, given that it
contains extensive and explicit regulations about sex, pregnancy, childbirth,
and even menstruation, but there are no regulations about abortion. This is notable
because some, though not all, ancient societies did have laws explicitly forbidding
abortion. This is true of ancient Assyrian, Greek, and Roman law codes. Even
then, it is uncertain if these laws were intended for the sake of the life in
the womb. Such laws might have been meant to protect the pregnant woman given
that most methods of abortion were as likely to end in her death as in a
successful termination of the pregnancy. More likely, given that these ancient
societies were exceedingly patriarchal, laws against abortion were as much as
anything to protect the rights of the father who legally had the right to kill
the baby after birth if he chose.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">One
place the Old Testament might come close to addressing something like abortion
is Exodus 21:22–23 which reads:</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">When people who are fighting injure a pregnant
woman so that there is a miscarriage, and yet <a name="_Hlk117007601">no further
harm </a>follows, the one responsible shall be fined what the woman’s husband
demands, paying as much as the judges determine. If any harm follows, then you
shall give life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for
foot, burn for burn, wound for wound, stripe for stripe.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">There
is a basic lack of clarity in the passage. To whom does “no further harm”
refer? Is it the miscarried baby or the woman, or either one? From the earliest
Jewish interpreters in the Talmud to most contemporary scholars the consensus
interpretation is that financial compensation is due the father if the fetus is
lost while more severe penalties are exacted if “further harm” comes to the
woman. That interpretation is in line with the law codes of many of ancient
Israel’s neighbors. Not every scholar agrees with that consensus, but it is the
majority view held by Old Testament scholars.</span><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/FOLDERS/Essays/Abortion/Blog%20Series/Part%203%20-%20Scripture%20-%20OT.docx#_ftn3" name="_ftnref3" style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[3]</span></span></span></a></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">In
any event, the lack of clarity means it is not a passage we can rely on to
settle the question as to the moral value of the fetus or the morality of
elective abortion. It also raises the question in a less patriarchal age, why
the fine for the reckless causing of a miscarriage is determined by the father
rather than the mother.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Another
passage in the Old Testament that possibly refers to something like abortion is
Numbers 5:11–31. Like the one above, this passage is hard to translate and hard
to interpret. Here, a woman suspected of adultery is given a concoction by a
priest in order to determine her guilt and inflict a penalty. It is a passage
notoriously hard to understand or even translate. Some translations, e.g., the
New Revised Standard Version, New English Bible, and English Standard Version,
seem to suggest that the penalty is essentially an induced miscarriage or
abortion. Other translations suggest the penalty is some physical affliction on
the woman. So, this is another passage that is too uncertain to have much
bearing on the subject. Either way, one might wonder why the man with whom the
woman had the affair is unpunished by the potion.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">These
are the only two places in the Old Testament that address anything like
abortion. The sacredness of life, human and otherwise, is a general theme of
the Old Testament and there is of course the commandment against killing. The
question is, “Does that prohibition include the life in the womb or, if so, to
what extent?” Abortion is never explicitly equated with murder in the Old Testament.
That does not necessarily mean that abortion is simply morally neutral. Indeed,
there are passages that point to the value of fetal life (Job 10:9-11, Psalm
139:12). But that abortion is simply or always murder is more than can be
proved reading the Old Testament alone. This more complicated position on the
moral weight of abortion has been the Jewish understanding as we will see more
in the next installment.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">There
are other passages from the Old Testament that have some bearing on the
question such as </span><a name="_Hlk124573136" style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Job 10:9-11, Psalm 139:12, </a><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">and Jeremiah
1:5. We will look at those later. But, next, we'll look at the New Testament.</span></p><div style="mso-element: footnote-list;">
<hr align="left" size="1" width="33%" />
<!--[endif]-->
<div id="ftn1" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/FOLDERS/Essays/Abortion/Blog%20Series/Part%203%20-%20Scripture%20-%20OT.docx#_ftnref1" name="_ftn1" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn1;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> John
Paul II, <u>Evangelium Vitae</u>, Para. 61 (<a href="https://www.vatican.va/content/john-paul-ii/en/encyclicals/documents/hf_jp-ii_enc_25031995_evangelium-vitae.html">https://www.vatican.va/content/john-paul-ii/en/encyclicals/documents/hf_jp-ii_enc_25031995_evangelium-vitae.html</a>)<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn2" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/FOLDERS/Essays/Abortion/Blog%20Series/Part%203%20-%20Scripture%20-%20OT.docx#_ftnref2" name="_ftn2" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn2;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[2]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> Hays,
Richard B., <u>The Moral Vision of the New Testament</u>, p. 446. See also, Meilander,
Gilbert, <u>Bioethics: A Primer for Christians</u>, p. 29<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn3" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/FOLDERS/Essays/Abortion/Blog%20Series/Part%203%20-%20Scripture%20-%20OT.docx#_ftnref3" name="_ftn3" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn3;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[3]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a>
See for example <i>The Rabbi Sacks Legacy</i>, ‘The Meaning of Texts’ (<a href="https://www.rabbisacks.org/covenant-conversation/mishpatim/the-meaning-of-texts/">https://www.rabbisacks.org/covenant-conversation/mishpatim/the-meaning-of-texts/</a>)<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">Next:</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">Part 4: <o:p></o:p></span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Scripture – <a href="https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2023/02/an-episcopal-bishops-teaching-on_29.html">New Testament</a></span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium;"> </span></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">Previous:</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">Part 1: <a href="https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2023/01/the-episcopal-churchs-stated-position.html">The Episcopal Church’s Stated Position on Childbirth and Abortion</a></span></p><p class="MsoFootnoteText"><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">Part 2: <a href="https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2023/01/an-episcopal-bishops-teaching-on.html">Context</a></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><br /></p>
</div>
</div>mattgunter1081@gmail.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14808597688160170927noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4534237549485136842.post-6708156421441799032023-01-26T07:23:00.003-06:002024-02-15T01:46:29.619-06:00An Episcopal Bishop's Teaching on Abortion, Part 2 – Context<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">Introduction<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">On
June 24, 2022, the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe vs. Wade and placed the
question of abortion into the hands of each state. Americans, including church
members, have mixed feelings and complex convictions regarding abortion</span><span style="color: red; font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">,</span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;"> as reflected in various polls.</span><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/FOLDERS/Essays/Abortion/Blog%20Series/Part%202%20-%20Context.docx#_ftn1" name="_ftnref1" style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[1]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">
Most Americans want safe, legal abortion to be available. A majority is also
uncomfortable with abortion in at least some circumstances. Of course, morality
is not simply a matter of public opinion. The resolutions passed by the
Episcopal Church’s General Convention</span><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/FOLDERS/Essays/Abortion/Blog%20Series/Part%202%20-%20Context.docx#_ftn2" name="_ftnref2" style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[2]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">
reflect the tension in these overlapping majorities.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">That
the issue and the questions surrounding it are complex is reflected in the
Church’s history as it has grappled with the morality of abortion. The official
teaching of the Church and that of its major saints and theologians have not been
simple or straightforward.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">Some
Personal Context</span></b></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">I
have come to see it as less than straightforward. I invite you to prayerfully
think it through with me. I have long been persuaded by what is often referred
to as the “consistent ethic of life</span><span style="color: red; font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">,</span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">” which is
committed to cherishing, defending, and nurturing the flourishing of all life
(including to one degree or another, life in the womb). Such an approach
opposes nearly all uses of violence and all “the evil powers of this world
which corrupt and destroy the creatures of God” (BCP, p. 302). Many Christians
whose life and teaching I respect have held this ethic, e.g., Dietrich
Bonhoeffer, Dorothy Day, Fanny Lou Hamer, Helen Prejean (of ‘Dead Man Walking’
fame), Joan Chittister, Stanley Hauerwas, Rowan Williams, and others. That
remains generally where my convictions lie.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">In
my 20’s, I was on the board of a pro-life organization, Matrix Lifeline, in
Bloomington, IN (like those commended by General Convention Resolution D105 in
1994</span><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/FOLDERS/Essays/Abortion/Blog%20Series/Part%202%20-%20Context.docx#_ftn3" name="_ftnref3" style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[3]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">).
Ironically, the chair of the board of that organization was a woman who was also
a leader in the local Democratic Party. And when I was invited to speak on the
topic with a class at Indiana University, my counterpart defending the
pro-choice position was a woman who was involved in the local Republican Party.
Things were different then.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><a name="_Hlk125258110"><b><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">Recent Historical Context</span></b></a></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">This
last point is significant. Things were different before the 1980’s. The
abortion fault lines have not always run simply between conservatives and liberals/progressives,
whether inside or outside the church. The Roman Catholic Church has long been
Pro-Life and opposed to abortion (though, as we will see, even that is more complicated
in the tradition). But that has not always been so for other Christians, including conservative
Christians.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">In
1968, before Roe v Wade, </span><i style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Christianity Today</i><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">, the conservative Christian
magazine founded by Billy Graham, gathered 25 conservative evangelical
theologians, doctors, and scientists to discuss the morality of abortion in a
“Protestant Symposium on the Control of Human Reproduction.” The statement
coming out of that symposium affirmed, “Whether or not the performance of an
induced abortion is sinful we are not agreed, but about the necessity and
permissibility for it under certain circumstances we are in accord.”</span><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/FOLDERS/Essays/Abortion/Blog%20Series/Part%202%20-%20Context.docx#_ftn4" name="_ftnref4" style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[4]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">
A special issue of </span><i style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Christianity Today</i><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;"> followed including a lead essay by
conservative Old Testament scholar, Bruce Waltke who asserted, “the absence of
any biblical text forbidding abortion” and “the Old Testament does not equate
the fetus with a living person.”</span><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/FOLDERS/Essays/Abortion/Blog%20Series/Part%202%20-%20Context.docx#_ftn5" name="_ftnref5" style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[5]</span></span></span></a></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">In
1971, another conservative Christian magazine, </span><i style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Eternity</i><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">, published an
essay by Nancy Hardesty that came to a similar conclusion. Also in 1971, conservative
Evangelical scholar and apologist, Norman Geisler, published a book with
Zondervan (a conservative Christian book company) </span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">in
which he contrasted the Roman Catholic position with what he understood to be
the biblical view, asserting that “The embryo is not fully human.”</span><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/FOLDERS/Essays/Abortion/Blog%20Series/Part%202%20-%20Context.docx#_ftn6" name="_ftnref6" style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[6]</span></span></span></a></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">There
were certainly also conservative evangelicals who disagreed with these
positions</span><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/FOLDERS/Essays/Abortion/Blog%20Series/Part%202%20-%20Context.docx#_ftn7" name="_ftnref7" style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[7]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">,
but there was no anti-abortion consensus among those who otherwise shared basic
conservative theological commitments And it was not considered a litmus test issue.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Nor
was there a consensus among more liberal/progressive Christians. Some
Protestant theologians influential among liberal/progressives who were not conservative
evangelicals, like Karl Barth and Dietrich Bonhoeffer, argued for a more
pro-life position. In ‘Ethics’, Bonhoeffer wrote,</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">Destruction of the embryo in the mother’s womb is
a violation of the right to live which God has bestowed upon this nascent life.
To raise the question whether we are here concerned already with a human being
or not is merely to confuse the issue. The simple fact is that God certainly
intended to create a human being and that this nascent human being has been
deliberately deprived of his life. And this is nothing but murder.<a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/FOLDERS/Essays/Abortion/Blog%20Series/Part%202%20-%20Context.docx#_ftn8" name="_ftnref8" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[8]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Many
of the Roman Catholics and others who formed the first anti-abortion
organizations in the late 1960s were liberal Democrats who also opposed the
Vietnam War and nuclear proliferation.</span><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/FOLDERS/Essays/Abortion/Blog%20Series/Part%202%20-%20Context.docx#_ftn9" name="_ftnref9" style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[9]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">
Civil Rights icon, Fannie Lou Hammer, was also pro-life.</span><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/FOLDERS/Essays/Abortion/Blog%20Series/Part%202%20-%20Context.docx#_ftn10" name="_ftnref10" style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[10]</span></span></span></a></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">The
November 1980 issue of the progressive Christian magazine, </span><i style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Sojourners</i><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">
was dedicated to affirming a pro-life position from a more progressive
position. There were several essays by women and men including one by Jesse
Jackson</span><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/FOLDERS/Essays/Abortion/Blog%20Series/Part%202%20-%20Context.docx#_ftn11" name="_ftnref11" style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[11]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">. </span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Certainly, many liberal/progressive theologians advocated for a more pro-choice
position</span><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/FOLDERS/Essays/Abortion/Blog%20Series/Part%202%20-%20Context.docx#_ftn12" name="_ftnref12" style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[12]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">.
But, again, there was not a clear consensus on the issue despite many shared convictions
otherwise.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Well
into the 1970’s, there were a significant number of pro-life Democrats and a
similarly significant number of pro-choice Republicans. It has not always been
a matter of conservatives on one side and liberals/progressives on the other.
Beginning in the later 1970’s into the early ‘80’s, many liberals who had been
pro-life became pro-choice and many conservatives who had been pro-choice
became pro-life.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">It
is worth wondering what happened culturally and politically in those years and
what has happened over the last generation or so that has made the divisions
over abortion so much starker, more contentious, and a matter of partisan
identity.</span><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/FOLDERS/Essays/Abortion/Blog%20Series/Part%202%20-%20Context.docx#_ftn13" name="_ftnref13" style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[13]</span></span></span></a><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">
We might also wonder if a Christian understanding of abortion or any other
moral issue should be expected to fit neatly into the contemporary categories
of conservative or liberal or progressive.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">An
Episcopal Bishop’s Case for a Christian Understanding</span></b></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">The
Episcopal Church has passed a number of resolutions over the last several
decades on the subject of abortion at its General Convention. Together, those
resolutions affirm the sanctity of life and </span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 16px;">strongly condemn abortion in some circumstances </span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">while defending access to safe, legal
abortion as a necessary option for women. Thus, they reflect the conflicted, complex convictions
many have and have had on the subject.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">In
this teaching series I will explore the issue of abortion, the life in the
womb, and the agency of the woman bearing that life, offering what I believe is
a faithful and reasonable understanding based on scripture, tradition, and creation
(biology and science). That understanding recognizes that the holy mystery of becoming
fully human is a gradual process in the womb and that the pregnant woman is not
merely a passive vessel of that process of becoming. The moral balance at first
tilts toward the agency of the pregnant woman (usually along with the father)
and gradually tilts to include the baby developing in her womb.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">I
invite your feedback, comments and questions along the way. I also ask for your
patience as we make our way toward a conclusion.</span></p><div>
<hr align="left" size="1" width="33%" />
<!--[endif]-->
<div id="ftn1">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/FOLDERS/Essays/Abortion/Blog%20Series/Part%202%20-%20Context.docx#_ftnref1" name="_ftn1" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> <span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif;">Saad, Lydia,</span> ‘<span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif;">Where Do Americans Stand on Abortion?</span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif;">(</span><a href="https://news.gallup.com/poll/321143/americans-stand-abortion.aspx"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif;">https://news.gallup.com/poll/321143/americans-stand-abortion.aspx</span></a><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif;">)</span></p>
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif;">Americans’
Opinions About Abortion, Jan. 2022, Marist Poll </span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif;">(<a href="chrome-extension://efaidnbmnnnibpcajpcglclefindmkaj/https://www.kofc.org/en/resources/communications/marist-polling-slide-deck2022.pdf">chrome-extension://efaidnbmnnnibpcajpcglclefindmkaj/https://www.kofc.org/en/resources/communications/marist-polling-slide-deck2022.pdf</a>)</span></p>
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif;">‘Public
Opinion on Abortion’, Pew Research Center, May 17, 2022</span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif;">(</span><a href="https://www.pewresearch.org/religion/fact-sheet/public-opinion-on-abortion/"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif;">https://www.pewresearch.org/religion/fact-sheet/public-opinion-on-abortion/</span></a><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif;">)</span></p>
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif;">Saad,
Lydia, ‘“Pro-Choice” Identification Rises to Near Record High in U.S.’ (<a href="https://news.gallup.com/poll/393104/pro-choice-identification-rises-near-record-high.aspx">https://news.gallup.com/poll/393104/pro-choice-identification-rises-near-record-high.aspx</a>)</span></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn2">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/FOLDERS/Essays/Abortion/Blog%20Series/Part%202%20-%20Context.docx#_ftnref2" name="_ftn2" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[2]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> The
Episcopal Church’s Stated Position on Childbirth and Abortion(<a href="https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2023/01/the-episcopal-churchs-stated-position.html">https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2023/01/the-episcopal-churchs-stated-position.html</a>)</p>
</div>
<div id="ftn3">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/FOLDERS/Essays/Abortion/Blog%20Series/Part%202%20-%20Context.docx#_ftnref3" name="_ftn3" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[3]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> <a href="https://episcopalarchives.org/cgi-bin/acts/acts_resolution.pl?resolution=1994-D105">https://episcopalarchives.org/cgi-bin/acts/acts_resolution.pl?resolution=1994-D105</a><o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn4">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/FOLDERS/Essays/Abortion/Blog%20Series/Part%202%20-%20Context.docx#_ftnref4" name="_ftn4" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[4]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> ‘A
Protestant Affirmation on the Control of Human Reproduction’, <i>Christianity
Today</i>, November 8, 1968, (<a href="https://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/1968/november-8/protestant-affirmation-on-control-of-human-reproduction.html">https://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/1968/november-8/protestant-affirmation-on-control-of-human-reproduction.html</a>)<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn5">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/FOLDERS/Essays/Abortion/Blog%20Series/Part%202%20-%20Context.docx#_ftnref5" name="_ftn5" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[5]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> Waltke,
Bruce K., ‘The Old Testament and Birth Control: Family Planning Under the Law’,
<i>Christianity Today</i>, November 8, 1968, (<a href="https://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/1968/november-8/old-testament-and-birth-control.html">https://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/1968/november-8/old-testament-and-birth-control.html</a>)</p><p class="MsoFootnoteText"><o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn6">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/FOLDERS/Essays/Abortion/Blog%20Series/Part%202%20-%20Context.docx#_ftnref6" name="_ftn6" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[6]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> Geisler,
Norman, <u>Ethics: Alternatives and Issues</u>, Zondervan Publishing House,
Grand-Rapids, Michigan, 1971<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn7">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/FOLDERS/Essays/Abortion/Blog%20Series/Part%202%20-%20Context.docx#_ftnref7" name="_ftn7" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[7]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
For example, Cottrell, Jack W., ‘Abortion and the Mosaic Law’, <i>Christianity
Today</i>, March 16, 1973, (<a href="https://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/1973/march-16/abortion-and-mosaic-law.html">https://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/1973/march-16/abortion-and-mosaic-law.html</a>)<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn8">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/FOLDERS/Essays/Abortion/Blog%20Series/Part%202%20-%20Context.docx#_ftnref8" name="_ftn8" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[8]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> Bonhoeffer,
Dietrich, <u>Ethics</u>, Fortress Press, p. 206<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn9">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/FOLDERS/Essays/Abortion/Blog%20Series/Part%202%20-%20Context.docx#_ftnref9" name="_ftn9" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[9]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> Williams,
Daniel K., ‘The Partisan Trajectory of the American Pro-Life Movement: How a
Liberal Catholic Campaign Became a Conservative Evangelical Cause’, <i>Religions</i>,
2015, 6, 451–475</p><p class="MsoFootnoteText">(<a href="https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/6/2/451 pdf">https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/6/2/451 pdf</a>)</p><p class="MsoFootnoteText"><o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn10">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/FOLDERS/Essays/Abortion/Blog%20Series/Part%202%20-%20Context.docx#_ftnref10" name="_ftn10" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[10]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> See
<a href="https://www.feministsforlife.org/herstory-fannie-lou-hamer/">https://www.feministsforlife.org/herstory-fannie-lou-hamer/</a><o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn11">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/FOLDERS/Essays/Abortion/Blog%20Series/Part%202%20-%20Context.docx#_ftnref11" name="_ftn11" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[11]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> <i>Sojourners
Magazine</i>, November 1980, <span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">(https://sojo.net/magazine/november-1980).</span><o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn12">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/FOLDERS/Essays/Abortion/Blog%20Series/Part%202%20-%20Context.docx#_ftnref12" name="_ftn12" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[12]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> <a href="https://www.npr.org/2017/05/19/529175737/50-years-ago-a-network-of-clergy-helped-women-seeking-abortion">https://www.npr.org/2017/05/19/529175737/50-years-ago-a-network-of-clergy-helped-women-seeking-abortion</a><o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn13">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="https://dioceseoffonddulac-my.sharepoint.com/personal/mgunter_diofdl_org/Documents/Desktop/FOLDERS/Essays/Abortion/Blog%20Series/Part%202%20-%20Context.docx#_ftnref13" name="_ftn13" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[13]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> See
Williams, Daniel K., ‘The Partisan Trajectory of the American Pro-Life
Movement: How a Liberal Catholic Campaign Became a Conservative Evangelical
Cause’, <i>Religions</i>, 2015, 6, 451–475(<a href="https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/6/2/451">https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/6/2/451</a>)
See also: <span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Roach, David,
‘How Southern Baptists became pro-life’, <i>Baptist Press</i>, January 16, 2015 </span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">(<a href="https://www.baptistpress.com/resource-library/news/how-southern-baptists-became-pro-life">https://www.baptistpress.com/resource-library/news/how-southern-baptists-became-pro-life</a>)</span></p>
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">Part
1: <a href="https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2023/01/the-episcopal-churchs-stated-position.html">The Episcopal Church’s Stated Position on Childbirth and Abortion</a></span></p><p class="MsoFootnoteText"><o:p>
</o:p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">Part
3: <o:p></o:p></span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Scripture
– <a href="https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2023/02/an-episcopal-bishops-teaching-on.html">Old Testament</a></span> </p>
</div>
</div><div style="mso-element: footnote-list;"><div id="ftn13" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><o:p> </o:p></p>
</div>
</div>mattgunter1081@gmail.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14808597688160170927noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4534237549485136842.post-39369284626864345672023-01-11T13:13:00.011-06:002024-02-15T01:46:57.933-06:00The Episcopal Church’s Stated Position on Childbirth and Abortion<p><span style="font-family: georgia;">At the 14<sup>th</sup> Convention of the Diocese of Fond du
Lac held on Oct. 29, 2022,, a resolution was proposed regarding the church’s
teaching on abortion (see the first comment below).</span></p>
<span><span style="font-family: georgia; line-height: 107%;">To address this resolution, I will be posting a series of teachings on the subject over the next several weeks beginning with listing below the resolutions passed by the General Convention of the
Episcopal Church over the last several decades.</span></span><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span><span style="font-family: georgia;">There
is perhaps no moral issue more contentious, more polarizing, more emotionally
charged, and, more complicated than abortion. It is a daunting topic to engage.
Women and men with varying opinions have deeply held convictions and emotions
on the issue. Many feel conflicted and ambivalent. This complexity is reflected
in the resolutions passed over the years by the General Convention of the
Episcopal Church.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span><span style="font-family: georgia;">In
1967, the General Convention of the Episcopal Church passed a “Statement on
Abortion.” That statement has been reaffirmed with some revision in several
subsequent General Conventions, reaching its latest and fullest expression in
1994. Additional resolutions related to childbirth and abortion have been
adopted at General Conventions. Taken together, these resolutions affirm the
sanctity of life while also defending safe and legal abortion as a necessary
option for women.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span><span style="font-family: georgia;">These
resolutions constitute the closest thing the Episcopal Church has to an
official teaching. The Episcopal Church has no pope or magisterium by which
teaching or dogma are promulgated such as to be binding on the conscience of
every member. Historically, the Episcopal Church<span style="color: red;">,</span>
and the Anglican Tradition more generally, have allowed for more freedom of
conscience than some other Christian traditions. That is part of the beauty of
our tradition.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span>That
does not mean that members of the Episcopal Church are free to believe whatever
they want or to simply rely on their own wisdom or prejudices. The Book of
Common Prayer and our Constitution and Canons do contain teaching on doctrine
and morals. Beyond that, we are committed to testing our thinking and behavior
against the teaching of scripture guided by tradition using faithfully formed
and informed reason as best we can. I think we can add</span> <span>as another guide to our
discernment what the great Anglican theologian, Richard Hooker, called the
“works of nature” and those before him called the “Book of Nature.” In other
words, we also seek understanding by contemplating and studying creation.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span><span style="font-family: georgia;">Together
we seek to have our imaginations and our lives shaped by those sources of our
faith. We all affirm the faith as defined in the Book of Common Prayer. Beyond
that, as Christians have always done, we will disagree on some things. We will
seek to persuade one another in charity and encourage one another to deeper
faithfulness. And we will continue to gather to worship the One who weaves us together
and together weaves us into the eternal life and love and joy of the Holy
Trinity.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span><span style="font-family: georgia;">While
the following resolutions are not binding and members may disagree with all or
parts, they do represent what we have affirmed as a body gathered in General
Convention. Therefore, they are to be taken seriously and it is good for Episcopalians
to be familiar with them. To that end, I encourage you to read them carefully.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span><o:p><span style="font-family: georgia;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span><b>General
Convention Resolutions</b> </span><span> </span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span><span style="font-family: georgia;">Resolution
1994-A054: <i>Reaffirm General Convention Statement on Childbirth and Abortion</i></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i><span>Resolved</span></i><span>, That this 71st
General Convention of the Episcopal Church reaffirms resolution C047 from the
69th General Convention, which states:</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span><span style="font-family: georgia;">All
human life is sacred from its inception until death. The Church takes seriously
its obligation to help form the consciences of its members concerning this
sacredness. Human life, therefore, should be initiated only advisedly and in
full accord with this understanding of the power to conceive and give birth
which is bestowed by God. It is the responsibility of our congregations to
assist their members in becoming informed concerning the spiritual and
physiological aspects of sex and sexuality.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span><span style="font-family: georgia;">The
Book of Common Prayer affirms that "the birth of a child is a joyous and
solemn occasion in the life of a family. It is also an occasion for rejoicing
in the Christian community" (p. 440). As Christians we also affirm responsible
family planning.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span><span style="font-family: georgia;">We
regard all abortion as having a tragic dimension, calling for the concern and
compassion of all the Christian community.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span><span style="font-family: georgia;">While
we acknowledge that in this country it is the legal right of every woman to
have a medically safe abortion, as Christians we believe strongly that if this
right is exercised, it should be used only in extreme situations. We
emphatically oppose abortion as a means of birth control, family planning, sex
selection, or any reason of mere convenience.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span><span style="font-family: georgia;">In
those cases where an abortion is being considered, members of this Church are
urged to seek the dictates of their conscience in prayer, to seek the advice
and counsel of members of the Christian community and where appropriate, the
sacramental life of this Church.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span><span style="font-family: georgia;">Whenever
members of this Church are consulted with regard to a problem pregnancy, they
are to explore, with grave seriousness, with the person or persons seeking
advice and counsel, as alternatives to abortion, other positive courses of
action, including, but not limited to, the following possibilities: the parents
raising the child; another family member raising the child; making the child
available for adoption.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span><span style="font-family: georgia;">It
is the responsibility of members of this Church, especially the clergy, to become
aware of local agencies and resources which will assist those faced with
problem pregnancies.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span><span style="font-family: georgia;">We
believe that legislation concerning abortions will not address the root of the
problem. We therefore express our deep conviction that any proposed legislation
on the part of national or state governments regarding abortions must take
special care to see that the individual conscience is respected, and that the
responsibility of individuals to reach informed decisions in this matter is
acknowledged and honored as the position of this Church; and be it further</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i><span>Resolved</span></i><span>, That this 71st
General Convention of the Episcopal Church express its unequivocal opposition
to any legislative, executive or judicial action on the part of local, state or
national governments that abridges the right of a woman to reach an informed
decision about the termination of pregnancy or that would limit the access of a
woman to safe means of acting on her decision.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></span></b></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><b><span>Resolution
1982-A065:</span></b><span>
<b><i>Condemn Use of Abortion for Gender Selection and Non-serious
Abnormalities</i></b></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i><span>Resolved</span></i><span>, That the 67th General
Convention of the Episcopal Church strongly condemns the act of abortion when
the sole purpose of such action is the selection of the sex of the child; and
be it further</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i><span>Resolved</span></i><span>, That this new ability
to diagnose serious abnormalities in the fetus before birth is a welcome gift
to reduce pain and sorrow in the parents and suffering in the newborn, but that
abortion after the diagnosis of non-serious or trivial abnormalities, or abortion
in a case where purely cosmetic abnormalities are discovered, is also strongly
condemned.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span><o:p><span style="font-family: georgia;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span><span style="font-family: georgia;">Resolution
1988-D124: <i>Condemn Acts of Violence Against Abortion Facilities and Their
Clients</i></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i><span>Resolved</span></i><span>, That this 69th General
Convention of the Episcopal Church condemn all actions of violence against
abortion clinics; and be it further</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i><span>Resolved</span></i><span>, That this Convention
deplore any acts of violence against those persons seeking the services
available at such clinics.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span><o:p><span style="font-family: georgia;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span><span style="font-family: georgia;">Resolution
1988-A089: <i>Promote Use of Materials on Human Sexuality and Abortion for All
Age</i></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i><span>Resolved</span></i><span>, That this 69th General
Convention call on the Presiding Bishop and the Executive Council to provide
and promote the use of materials on human sexuality, birth control and family
planning for all age groups as part of this Church's on-going Christian
Education curricula as reflective of God's creation; and be it further</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i><span>Resolved</span></i><span>, That the topic of
abortion be included in the Church's education curricula and that these
materials be explicit, with a full understanding of the physical, emotional and
spiritual realities and risks involved in abortion; and be it further</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i><span>Resolved</span></i><span>, That we encourage the
members of this Church to give strong support to responsible local public and
private school programs of education in human sexuality.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span><span style="font-family: georgia;">Resolution
1991-C037: <i>Oppose Legislation Requiring Parental Consent for Termination of
Pregnancy</i></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i><span>Resolved</span></i><span>, That, in the matter of
requiring parental notification or consent when minor women seek safe means of
acting on their decisions to seek termination of pregnancy, this 70th General
Convention go on record as opposing efforts to legislate requiring such
notification or consent, unless such notification or consent laws allow
non-judicial bypass, in the event of the inability to notify parents or where
family dysfunction may put such minors at serious physical, psychological or
emotional risk, whereby such minors can make an informed decision with the
notification or consent of some other responsible adult with experience and/or
expertise, such as a clergy person, teacher, guidance counselor, mental health
professional or other family member.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span><span style="font-family: georgia;">Resolution
1991-A096: <i>Continue Discussion on the Use of Fetal Tissue for Research Use</i></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i><span>Resolved</span></i><span>, That the 70th General
Convention rejects conception for the purpose of providing fetal tissues for
therapeutic or medical research usages; and be it further</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i><span>Resolved,</span></i><span> That this 70th General
Convention rejects the use of fetal tissues aborted for financial profit for
use in therapy and medical research, and be it further</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i><span>Resolved</span></i><span>, That the discussion
concerning the use for therapeutic or medical research purposes of tissues from
healthy fetuses, aborted to save the life of the mother, be continued during
the next triennium.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span><span style="font-family: georgia;">Resolution
1994-D105: <i>Commend the Work of Pregnancy Care Centers</i></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i><span>Resolved</span></i><span>, That the 71st General
Convention commend the members of this church who minister through pregnancy
care centers, thereby helping to accomplish the will of General Convention to
"assist those faced with problem pregnancy" (1988 General Convention
Resolution on Abortion); and be it further</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i><span>Resolved</span></i><span>, That this General
Convention commends the work and mission of pregnancy care centers which stress
unconditional love and acceptance, for women and their unborn children; and be
it further</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i><span>Resolved</span></i><span>, That we encourage the
work of local pregnancy care centers to develop an outreach of love to pregnant
women and to mothers and their children.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span><span style="font-family: georgia;"> </span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span><span style="font-family: georgia;">Resolution:
1994-D091: <i>Practice of Forced Abortions and Sterilization in China</i></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i><span>Resolved</span></i><span>, That the 71st General
Convention of the Episcopal Church deplore the practice of forced abortions and
forced sterilization in the families of the People's Republic of China; and be
it further</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i><span>Resolved</span></i><span>, That the Episcopal
Church of the United States urge the U.S. government to consider all requests
for political asylum by pregnant Chinese citizens and their families in the U.
S. subject to forced abortion laws upon return to China; and be it further</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i><span>Resolved</span></i><span>, That this 71st General
Convention request the Secretary to communicate immediately the intention of
this resolution to Vice President Gore who will head the U.S. delegation to the
U.N. sponsored International Conference on Population and Development to be
held in Cairo beginning September 5, 1994, and to the U.S. Secretary of State,
and to Anglican Bishop Ding of the China Christian Council.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span><span style="font-family: georgia;">Resolution
1997-D065: <i>Express Grave Concern Over Misuse of Partial Birth Abortion</i></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i><span>Resolved</span></i><span>, That this 72nd General
Convention of the Episcopal Church express grave concern about the use in the
third trimester of pregnancy of the procedure known as intact dilation and
extraction (commonly called "partial birth abortion") except in
extreme situations; and be it further</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i><span>Resolved</span></i><span>, That the 72nd General
Convention of the Episcopal Church continue to encourage its Dioceses and
Congregations to give necessary aid and support to all pregnant women.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span><span style="font-family: georgia;">Resolution
2000-D104: <i>Affirm Adoption and Support Legislation on Adoption Counseling</i></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i><span>Resolved</span></i><span>, That the 73rd General
Convention of the Episcopal Church affirm the value of adoption and recognize
it is in the best interest of the child to be adopted by a stable person or
family to nurture him or her; and be it further</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i><span>Resolved</span></i><span>, That the General
Convention of the Episcopal Church urge the U.S. Congress to pass legislation
making adoption counseling available to those facing an unplanned pregnancy and
to those seeking to adopt.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span><span style="font-family: georgia;">Resolution
2018-D032: <i>Advocate for Gender Equity, Including Reproductive Rights, in
Healthcare</i></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i><span>Resolved</span></i><span>, That the 79th General
Convention of The Episcopal Church acknowledge the need for universal and
equitable access to good quality health care that allows for equal utilization
for those with equal need; and be it further</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i><span>Resolved</span></i><span>, That this Convention
acknowledge that equitable access to women’s health care, including women’s
reproductive health care, is an integral part of a woman’s struggle to assert
her dignity and worth as a human being; and be it further</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i><span>Resolved</span></i><span>, That The Episcopal
Church call for women’s reproductive health and reproductive health procedures
to be treated as all other medical procedures, and not singled out or omitted
by or because of gender; and be it further</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i><span>Resolved</span></i><span>, That The Episcopal
Church support health care that takes into account the specific health care
needs of all persons, including women; and be it further</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i><span>Resolved</span></i><span>, That this Convention
direct the Office of Government Relations and the Episcopal Public Policy
Network to urge all Episcopalians to advocate for government to address the
specific needs of health care for everyone, especially women's and girls’
health care, by:</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span><span><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span>Supporting legislation
that creates equal utilization of health care for those in equal need,
regardless of ability to pay, and reject reasons for unequal use as well as
strategies that promote unequal access to health care;<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span><span><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span>Advocating for everyone
to have the right to make decisions about their bodies and those decisions
should be between themselves and their provider (reaffirming 1994 A054: That
The… “Episcopal Church express its unequivocal opposition to any legislative,
executive or judicial action on the part of local, state or national
governments that abridges the right of a woman to reach an informed decision …
or that would limit the access of a woman to safe means of acting on her
decision.);<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span><span><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span>Ensuring equal access to
every health care service regardless of gender (reaffirming 1994 A055: that
the… “General Convention urge adequate government funding and support for
research and development, prevention and treatment in matters affecting the
health and quality of life of women, including domestic violence, AIDS, heart
disease, breast, ovarian and endometrial cancer, safe and effective
contraceptives, and other methods of pregnancy prevention, maternity care,
menopause and chronic illnesses unique to or prevalent among women);<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span><span><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span>Ensuring health care is
equal in coverage and cost regardless of gender.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span><span style="font-family: georgia;">Resolution
2022-D083:<i> Addressing the erosion of reproductive rights and autonomy</i></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i><span>Resolved</span></i><span>, that the 80th General
Convention recognizes that pregnancy and childbirth are dangerous undertakings
that risk permanent disability and death for those who bear children; and be it
further</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i><span>Resolved</span></i><span>, that the Episcopal
Church reaffirms that parenthood “should be initiated only advisedly and in
full accord with this understanding of the power to conceive and give birth
which is bestowed by God” (1988-C047); and be it further;</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i><span>Resolved</span></i><span>, that the Episcopal
Church recognizes that access to abortion is a key element in preserving the
health, independence, and autonomy of those who can bear children; and be it
further;</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i><span>Resolved</span></i><span>, that the 80th General
Convention affirms that all Episcopalians should be able to access abortion
services and birth control with no restriction on movement, autonomy, type, or
timing; and be it further</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i><span>Resolved</span></i><span>, that the 80th General
Convention understands that the protection of religious liberty extends to all
Episcopalians who may need or desire to access, to utilize, to aid others in
the procurement of, or to offer abortion services.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="color: #222222;">Part 2: </span><a href="https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2023/01/an-episcopal-bishops-teaching-on.html" style="text-decoration-line: none;"><span style="color: #249fa3;">Context</span></a></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="color: #222222;">Part 3: </span><a href="https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2023/02/an-episcopal-bishops-teaching-on.html" style="text-decoration-line: none;"><span style="color: #249fa3;">Old Testament</span></a></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="color: #222222;">Part 4: </span><a href="https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2023/02/an-episcopal-bishops-teaching-on_29.html" style="text-decoration-line: none;"><span style="color: #249fa3;">New Testament</span></a></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="color: #222222;">Part 5: </span><a href="https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2023/03/an-episcopal-bishops-teaching-on.html" style="text-decoration-line: none;"><span style="color: #249fa3;">Tradition</span></a></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="color: #222222;">Part 6: </span><a href="https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2023/04/an-episcopal-bishops-teaching-on.html" style="text-decoration-line: none;"><span style="color: #249fa3;">Tradition, continued</span></a></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="color: #222222;">Part 7: </span><a href="https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2023/05/an-episcopal-bishops-teaching-on.html" style="text-decoration-line: none;"><span style="color: #249fa3;">Back to the Bible</span></a></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="color: #222222;">Part 8: </span><a href="https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2023/08/an-episcopal-bishops-teaching-on.html" style="text-decoration-line: none;"><span style="color: #249fa3;">Wisdom and the Glorious Works of Nature</span></a></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="color: #222222;">Part 9: </span><a href="https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2023/10/an-episcopal-bishops-teaching-on.html" style="text-decoration-line: none;"><span style="color: #76a5af;">Rights, Choice, Obligations, and Community</span></a></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="color: #222222;">Part 10: </span><a href="https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2023/10/an-episcopal-bishops-teaching-on_23.html"><span style="color: #76a5af;">Conclusion</span></a></span></p>mattgunter1081@gmail.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14808597688160170927noreply@blogger.com21tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4534237549485136842.post-62986695492071293082022-10-23T05:03:00.003-05:002024-02-15T01:47:48.593-06:00Of Mercy and Banana Peels – Luke 18:9-14<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8KSG_kbmkA5rrwWHWoXy2HWK5Sur0XQ3C1WFGUYq2eOgCNTU-nkd1_l1peEQE_GMJHNEedfHcYx5xHvcLZoS2hQDEQ4XR-W-uQr3nwTfIcJDxV7mNZPUYKeZEYI3dwLdd57sBqWi8AGsXoSh6XG_9-z2MUpduYDgnjoXzC21pBYOomatavAwoJRNDLQ/s720/banana-peel-slip.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="340" data-original-width="720" height="151" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8KSG_kbmkA5rrwWHWoXy2HWK5Sur0XQ3C1WFGUYq2eOgCNTU-nkd1_l1peEQE_GMJHNEedfHcYx5xHvcLZoS2hQDEQ4XR-W-uQr3nwTfIcJDxV7mNZPUYKeZEYI3dwLdd57sBqWi8AGsXoSh6XG_9-z2MUpduYDgnjoXzC21pBYOomatavAwoJRNDLQ/s320/banana-peel-slip.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">I
suspect that Jesus would have liked slapstick comedy. You know, the Laurel and
Hardy sort of humor. Remember? Laurel will be eating a banana and throw the
peel on the ground. And you know, as soon as you see Hardy walking up the road what’s
going to happen. It’s the pratfall, the trip, the rug pulled out from under
your feet, the banana peel in the way.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Jesus
seems to have had a liking for that sort of thing, continually pulling the rug
out from under our feet or tossing banana peels in our path. His parables are
often like banana peels tossed on the pathway of our moral self-satisfaction.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">This
morning’s parable, in particular, is such a banana peel. It’s a familiar story
– the Pharisee and the Tax Collector praying at the temple. In fact, it’s so
familiar it has lost some of its edge for us. We already know who is the good
guy and who the bad guy.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Jesus’
original hearers would not have been so sure. The Pharisees were not known as
necessarily self-righteous or righteous in any other way than the way we all
hope to be righteous. The Pharisees were part of movement of lay people who had
a passion for seeking after God’s heart, for living according to the Torah – for
living faithfully so that all Israel might be redeemed. If anything, Jesus had
much in common with the Pharisees</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Tax
Collectors, on the other hand, everyone knew and no one liked. Even under the
best of circumstances few people are excited when they see the tax man coming. But
in a time when you are occupied and oppressed by a foreign nation, tax
collectors are even worse. Not only are they taking some of your money to run
the government, but the government they are taking money to run is a foreign
occupier. Tax collectors would have been seen as the collaborators with the
enemy, with the oppressor. The last thing you would want your son to grow up to
be would be a tax collector.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">And
so in this parable we have the Pharisee and the Tax Collector. The Pharisee
prays to God, recounting all the good things that he has done – good things that
everybody would have recognized as good things. He fasts. He tithes. He is a
regular worshipper. All the things that we hope to be ourselves.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Of
course, as he is praying and recounting all the good things, he has one eye
open to those around him. The Pharisee prays with peripheral vision, looking to
either side at those who might not quite measure up to his standards: all the
rogues, the prostitutes, thieves, adulterers, and, maybe even especially, this
tax collector (we all know what sorts of people they are). The Pharisee is
confident that he is on the right track, that he is dotting all the i’s and
crossing all the t’s. Not like so many other people.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">The
Tax Collector, on the other hand, as everyone would have known, is all undotted
i's and uncrossed t's. And he knows it. He prays the only honest prayer he can
pray, “God have mercy on me, a sinner.”</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">The
Pharisee is a moral, upright person. He is on the straight and narrow. But it
is on that straight and narrow that Jesus tosses his banana peel, and the
Pharisee who has every reason to think that he is right with God slips on the
peel and falls. Meanwhile, the Tax Collector who has every reason to think that
he is out of sorts with God goes home justified.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">And
I suspect those who heard Jesus tell this parable slipped on the banana peel as
well. What kind of a morally uplifting story is that? Not the kind of story you
want to tell your children. They might take it seriously. The just person is
condemned and the contemptible person is justified? Jesus doesn’t even suggest
that the Tax Collector went home to live differently. He only throws himself on
God’s mercy.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">The
point is not that being a tax collecting collaborator is a matter of
indifference to Jesus. The point is that the Pharisee is in as much need of
God’s mercy as is the Tax Collector. As are we all. And, of course, we all get
that now. Don’t we? Don’t we?</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">There
is a third person implied in this parable. This person is praying as well, and
watching both the Pharisee and the tax collector. We are the third person. If
we’re not careful, there is a banana peel in our path as well. How often do we
see this parable and say, “Thank you, God, that I am not self-righteous, like
that Pharisee"?</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">We
all slip on the banana peel sooner or later. We measure ourselves against
others. Whether it is the righteous and the unrighteous, the holy or the
unholy, the mature or the immature, the sophisticated or the unsophisticated, the
just and the unjust.We all fall into the trap of keeping score. Thank God I am
not like that liberal. Thank God I am not like that conservative.Thank God I am
not like that fundamentalist. One way or another, we are usually pretty sure
that we are the ones who get it. We are the ones who are superior. We are the
ones who are on the side of the angels.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Again
and again Jesus tosses a banana peel on our path to moral superiority, our own
exalted opinion of ourselves. We are reminded that we don’t know as much as we
think we do. We are reminded that we are not as good as we like to think we
are. We are reminded that our perspective is not God’s. We are reminded that we
often slip into our own version of the Pharisee in this parable. We slip and
land on our moral backsides.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">By
God's grace we are humbled and reminded, yet again, that our only honest prayer
is, “God, have mercy on me a sinner.” In fact, the only prayer that is anything
other than stammering, and the only deed that is anything other than stumbling,
is the one that begins and ends with, “Have mercy on me, a sinner.”</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Have
heard the story of the man who dies and goes to the Pearly Gates where he is
met by St. Peter?</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Peter
says, “Before you get in, you have to pass this little test. You have to make
sure you have scored enough points to get in. You have to get one hundred
points.”</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">The
man thinks that should not be too hard because he has, after all, led a very
good life. So he says to St. Peter, “Well, first of all, I was married for 57
years to one woman and was faithful from the very beginning until the very end.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Peter
says, “That’s impressive. Three points.”</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Then
the man says, “Well, I also was a regular at church, Sunday in and Sunday
out."</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Peter
gives him another point.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">The
man tries again, “I tithed. I gave 10% of everything I earned to the church and
to the poor</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Peter
says, “Well, good for you. That’s another three points.”</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">“Did
you know that I also volunteered for the youth group for five years? Do you
know how many lock-ins that is!?”</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">“Four
points.”</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">“I
was politically active and always voted for the right candidate”</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">“Another
point.”</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">The
points are not adding up very fast. The man begins to despair. He says, “Well,
how about this?” “What about that?” But his score remains distressingly low.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Finally,
the man beats his breast in despair and cries out, “At this rate the only way
that I’ll get into Heaven is by the mercy of God!”</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Peter
smiles and says “One hundred points!”</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">The
first word for Christians is grace The last word for Christians is grace; and
every day, along the way, is grace, grace, grace.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">That’s
not good news for the Pharisee in us who wants to keep score. It is very good
news for the Tax Collector in us who can only pray,</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">“God
have mercy on me, a sinner.”</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Watch
out for those banana peels.</span></p>mattgunter1081@gmail.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14808597688160170927noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4534237549485136842.post-57628280856631437192022-08-15T14:29:00.004-05:002024-02-15T01:49:16.094-06:00Lambeth Conference Conversations, Part 3 (sometimes it was about sex & sexuality)<p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPH8mANqeIPwS7w3WNiKAflsffIHWr3AvmH1oyzayEI9_7DIMaypAp5V3Qmrfcv2VhL9TocO4vb1CdftlCceh2PhVPBzTkQPvxj01odZlzBcrLb6byvQXX7-2ikveq0IsLzcdXl297DhR8opzC2rOvwb7YhHMjbJlLor0p11YtzEudbzZRdZSTZ62xWA/s2048/Discussing%20Human%20Dignity.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPH8mANqeIPwS7w3WNiKAflsffIHWr3AvmH1oyzayEI9_7DIMaypAp5V3Qmrfcv2VhL9TocO4vb1CdftlCceh2PhVPBzTkQPvxj01odZlzBcrLb6byvQXX7-2ikveq0IsLzcdXl297DhR8opzC2rOvwb7YhHMjbJlLor0p11YtzEudbzZRdZSTZ62xWA/s320/Discussing%20Human%20Dignity.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">The
motto for the 15</span><sup style="font-family: Garamond, serif;">th</sup><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;"> Lambeth conference was “God’s Church for God’s World.”
As I mentioned in the last post, the bishops gathered talked about many things
concerning both the church and the world at this moment in history. One of
those topics was Human Dignity, something that seems to be undermined or denied
on many fronts, directly and indirectly, deliberately and “accidentally” as the
side-effect of developing technologies. It was the document on this topic, made
public just a week before we arrived at Canterbury for the Conference, that
generated considerable controversy. In that initial document was inserted an
affirmation of a resolution passed at the Lambeth Conference in 1998 asserting
that the bishops gathered at that Conference “cannot advise the legitimising or
blessing of same sex unions nor ordaining those involved in same gender unions.”
</span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">It remains unclear how that got included
in the document or by whom. In any event, there was immediate pushback from
several of the provinces in the Anglican Communion – Scotland, Wales, the
Episcopal Church, Brazil. The document was reworked to state,</span><p></p><p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.25in;"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">Prejudice on the basis of gender or sexuality
threatens human dignity. <a name="_Hlk111464688">Given Anglican polity, and
especially the autonomy of Provinces, there is disagreement and a plurality of
views on the relationship between human dignity and human sexuality</a>. Yet,
we experience the safeguarding of dignity in deepening dialogue. It is the mind
of the Anglican Communion as a whole that “all baptised, believing and faithful
persons, regardless of sexual orientation are full members of the Body of
Christ” and to be welcomed, cared for, and treated with respect (I.10, 1998).
Many Provinces continue to affirm that same gender marriage is not permissible.
Lambeth Resolution I.10 (1998) states that the “legitimizing or blessing of
same sex unions” cannot be advised. Other Provinces have blessed and welcomed
same sex union/marriage after careful theological reflection and a process of
reception. As Bishops we remain committed to listening and walking together to
the maximum possible degree, despite our deep disagreement on these issues.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">This,
of course, did not make everyone happy, but it did describe the current reality
of the Anglican Communion. And this seems a particularly significant statement,
“Given Anglican polity, and especially the autonomy of Provinces, there is
disagreement and a plurality of views on the relationship between human dignity
and human sexuality.”</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">The
Human Dignity document had much that was good and important that was good in
it. But all the attention went to this one paragraph. Which was pretty much the
opposite of how the rest of the Lambeth Conference went. Though the
disagreement about human sexuality was in the air, most conversations, formal
and informal were about other concerns. But, I did have some conversations in
which the topic came up opr in which I brought it up. Here are some gleanings
from those conversations:</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">On the bus from Heathrow
to Canterbury, a bishop from an African province expressed impatience with
those provinces who chose not to come (Nigeria, Uganda, Rwanda) and indicated
that he does not approve of their approach. To the Communion. He did not say anything
about his own views regarding human sexuality but criticized the idea of boycotting
and neglecting the fellowship of the Lambeth conference.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">I had a long conversation
with a South Sudanese bishop who I know well about the disagreements regarding
sexuality in which it was clear that our disagreements on this are profound and
deep. I pointed out that he considered me to be faithful, but I had come to a
different conclusion. Among other things, I also observed that the church in South
Sudan ordains women and has a woman bishop. Other provinces do not, and many,
with whom he otherwise agreed, think that that is unbiblical as they interpret the
scriptures. So, it is possible for faithful people to read the Bible seriously
and come to different conclusions. He did not accept the analogy and asserted
that you cannot compare the two. It was also clear that this was connected in
his mind with polygamy which is still common in South Sudan. Still, he noted
his affection for a gay bishop he knows in spite of his conviction that that
bishop is “living in sin.”</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">I had a similar
conversation with another South Sudanese bishop who was equally clear that he
did not see much room for disagreeing on how to faithfully understand same-sex marriage.
I again explained how my own thinking had changed. We did not exactly “agree to
disagree” but we remained on friendly terms.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">A Sudanese bishop
observed that the people on the ground in the villages of his province cannot
wrap their heads around the idle of same-sex relationships. It is culturally
foreign. He also noted that his church exists in a tenuous position under an
oppressive government shaped by a radical version of Islam. The threat of violence
and perhaps being declared an illegal organization are not idle concerns for
them. He and other Sudanese bishops (and other bishops from particular
provinces) were concerned about the ramifications and potential backlash their
people would face back home depending how things went at the Conference.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">An American bishop
observed that part of our dilemma is that we hear from the bishops of some
provinces that being associated too closely with those provinces that celebrate
same-sex marriage and allow for those who are so married to be ordained puts
their people and churches at real risk. But GLBT+ people in America and
elsewhere also feel threatened. The concerns of both are real.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">Most Sudanese and South
Sudanese bishops and perhaps some others did not receive communion with the
rest of us as a matter of conscience which was painful. But they remained
otherwise engaged. </span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">This
was disappointing and frustrating. In one conversation a Kenyan bishop said
that this was no way to treat the holy Sacrament. A South Sudanese bishop
replied that his archbishop had told him to. It is also clear that there is a
range of views of Holy Communion ranging from a more catholic, “high” understanding,
to a more Protestant, “low” understanding (just another of the important things
about which we disagree in the Anglican Communion).</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">At our formal session on
Human Dignity, the Archbishop of Canterbury read his letter to the bishops of
the Anglican Communion (<a href="https://www.archbishopofcanterbury.org/news/news-and-statements/letter-archbishop-canterbury-bishops-anglican-communion">Here</a>). </span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt; text-indent: -0.25in;">He elaborated on that
letter in what I believe to brilliant and significant remarks (found <a href="https://www.archbishopofcanterbury.org/speaking-writing/speeches/lambeth-call-human-dignity-read-archbishop-justins-remarks">here</a>). The
letter and his remarks charted a course for a Communion marked by unity and
plurality, a Communion of provinces which are autonomous, yet interdependent.
He affirmed that there is a plurality of understanding of human sexuality
faithfully arrived at. Toward the end of his remarks, he made this significant
statement, “I am very conscious that the Archbishop of Canterbury is to be a
focus of unity and is an Instrument of Communion. That is a priority. Truth and
unity must be held together, but Church history also says that this sometimes
takes a very long time to reach a point where different teaching is rejected or
received. I neither have, nor do I seek, the authority to discipline or exclude
a church of the Anglican Communion. I will not do so.”</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">When we formally
discussed the issue in our small group conversations, a South Sudanese bishop
said, “God forbid that hate would come from my heart, but I hold with the tradition.”
He also observed that the majority of the Anglican Communion holds a
traditional view on human sexuality. Then he paused and noted reflectively,
“But, Elijah was in the minority. . .” He trailed off, leaving that a thought
to be pondered.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">In that same small group conversation, I explained
briefly how I had come to change my mind on the topic.</span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">One of the South Sudanese bishops wondered, “At
what point do we decide a disagreement is too deep and too basic to maintain
communion?”</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">A Tanzanian bishop, as we
talked over a meal, said that he and others need to do their homework, looking
at the biblical and biological arguments regarding human sexuality before
judging the conclusions to which others have arrived. He noted that some
Tanzanian bishops opted not to come to the Lambeth Conference, but he believes
most bishops of that province are where he is.</span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">A bishop
from the Indian subcontinent said that he believed that in 10 years the
disagreement about sexuality will be like that of the ordination of women.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">After the session in
which the Archbishop of Canterbury read his letter and we discussed sexuality
in our small groups, a bishop from the Province of Western Africa told me that
this Lambeth Conference was the defeat of those (like the leaders of ACNA and
GAFCON) who have wanted the Communion to be divided because of the
disagreements regarding human sexuality. It had become clear that however broad
or deep the disagreement is, the majority of bishops in the Anglican Communion
were committed to remaining in communion (even if to varying degrees). He said
that he thought those who were choosing to set themselves apart from the
majority of the Communion should change their name to something other than
Anglican. He also noted that he knew there were bishops from the provinces that
boycotted this Lambeth Conference – Nigeria, Uganda, Rwanda – would have liked
to come but were forbidden to do so by their archbishops.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">I
knew in my head that there was considerable diversity in Africa and the rest of
what is commonly called the Global South. But the conversations I had brought
that diversity home. No one person or entity speaks the “Global South” or even
for all those who by conviction do not think Same-sex relationships can be
blessed. The Anglican Communion is much more complex than that. It also became
more clear to me than I might have thought before that it would be a mistake to
underestimate the strength of the bonds of affection that exist in the Anglican
Communion and our connection to the See of Canterbury.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing">Previous:</p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;"><a href="https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2022/08/lambeth-conversations-it-was-not-all.html">Lambeth Conference Conversations, Part 1 (it was not all about sex)</a></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing">
</p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;"><a href="https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2022/08/archbishop-justin-welbys-3rd-plenary.html">Lambeth Conference Conversations, Part 2 (it was not all about sex)</a><o:p></o:p></span></p><p><br /></p>mattgunter1081@gmail.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14808597688160170927noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4534237549485136842.post-26600442618297443972022-08-11T11:05:00.004-05:002024-02-15T01:50:53.483-06:00Lambeth Conference Conversations, Part 2 (it was not all about sex)<p class="MsoNoSpacing"></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkuW95D1PEGtj4Vpq3vFIdpxF4Lq1CTtX2VLJYWnLJxgiDD_ae8y-lU76Sa_JJ4PzCsBD4ykS406y1S60wY3b_tlGaahID_SFEj2qEAmvlCthuGIVDML_0sQ8VdJR0XNdMBb2JeXMgAb3UDjy9uXxKTu8PQMi8HZWXOsRnKlNdHYWXfLUJ05pR5M5xdg/s2048/ABC%203rd%20Plenary.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkuW95D1PEGtj4Vpq3vFIdpxF4Lq1CTtX2VLJYWnLJxgiDD_ae8y-lU76Sa_JJ4PzCsBD4ykS406y1S60wY3b_tlGaahID_SFEj2qEAmvlCthuGIVDML_0sQ8VdJR0XNdMBb2JeXMgAb3UDjy9uXxKTu8PQMi8HZWXOsRnKlNdHYWXfLUJ05pR5M5xdg/s320/ABC%203rd%20Plenary.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Archbishop Justin Welby's 3rd Plenary Address</td></tr></tbody></table><p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">“The
heart of the church is deeply relational”</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">–
Justin Welby, Archbishop of Canterbury</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">You
might think from some of the reporting that the Lambeth Conference which ended
last Sunday was preoccupied with disagreements and debates about human
sexuality. That is actually far from the case. Aside from a lot of worship, we
formally engaged things like Evangelism & Mission, Discipleship, Climate
Change, Interfaith Relations, and better addressing the scandal of abuse when
it happens in the church and committing to preventing it. Informally, the
conversations were mostly about these and other issues. Here are more gleanings from conversations I had while at the Lambeth Conference:</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">There was an announcement
at our first gathering letting us know that the water from all the taps at the
university where we were staying had drinkable water. It was a reminder that
many in the world cannot take clean water for granted, even from the faucets in
their homes when they have them. It also reminded me of the scandal it is that
it is not true for everyone in America, not least in places like Flint, Michigan.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">A bishop of Bangladesh said
there are fewer legal restraints on the church than in some other places, but
his church has had to be careful not to make too many converts. Converts’
families (Muslim or Hindu) often abandon them, leaving them needing support
from the church which is committed to doing so but is already strained
financially and otherwise.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">The wife of this bishop is a native of India who
splits her time between India and Bangladesh. She has worked for an aid
organization. She spoke of the frustration when she is in Bangladesh of having
her clothing choices challenged in public.</span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">They also spoke of the devastating effects
climate change is having on their country, e.g., more and worse storms,
flooding, etc.</span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">This was a recurring theme in conversations with
bishops from around the world. Those of island nations spoke of rising sea
levels that lead to shrinking islands. Others spoke of less reliable rainfall
and drought. Many spoke of increasing number of storms of increasing severity.
Others, of an increase of damaging wildfires. This is one of the issues we
discussed formally and about which we issued a call to action.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">When, in our Bible study,
we looked at the relationship of suffering and rejoicing, our South Sudanese
bishops spoke of dancing and singing in refugee camps with tears of grief while
still rejoicing in their faith in God and hope for the future.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">We heard of the church in
Jerusalem and the Middle East which runs schools and hospitals for anyone
regardless of their religion.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">We heard from a bishop of
the Church of England who was born in Iran. Her father was an Iranian who had
converted from Islam and married and English woman. He became the Anglican
Bishop of Iran for nearly 30 years. She has warm memories of her Muslim
grandfather, “a godly man”. After the Islamic Revolution there were threats and
an assassination attempt against her father. Then, her brother was
assassinated, and the family went into exile in England. In Iran, today, the
church is not officially acknowledged to exist and Christians are considered
apostates. There is currently no bishop of Iran. But the church does exist and
Christians living under threat are none the less able to exercise hospitality
and generosity.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">Interfaith relations was
one of the topics we formally discussed. While acknowledging the hard realities
that some live with in countries where a particular version of radical Islam
prevails, we heard stories of cooperation between Christians and Muslims in
Kenya and elsewhere. The Archbishop of Alexandria, “My neighbor’s faith and
mine do not simply coexist, they interact and corelate.” And in India, the
various faith’s cooperated in addressing Covid-19.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">We heard the story of a
mechanic who contacted his local Church of England parish church to enquire
about being baptized. A man who needed some work on his car had spoken to him about
Jesus and faith and he wanted to be baptized. It turns out, unbeknown to the
mechanic, that it had been the bishop who needed some car work. Evangelism and
Mission were other topics we discussed formally.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">A bishop of South Sudan and I discussed the challenges
of forming disciples in our relative contexts. I spoke of complacency, the
plethora of distractions, and a wariness of commitment. He spoke of the lack of
Bibles and the reality that concerns about food and fuel for cooking were
uppermost in peoples’ minds.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">We heard from a bishop of
New Zealand about the growth of congregations of young people based on
discipleship in small groups of shared life, worship, and mission. Discipleship
was another topic we formally discussed.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">In several conversations
with bishops from South Sudan to Australia, it was clear how closely the rest
of the world pays attention to American politics. Several expressed concern.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">In a conversation with a
bishop of England, we both noted the negative phenomenon of shrinking and aging
populations in many of our small towns and villages as more and more people
move to urban centers. We compared the negative effects of this on our
communities. He observed that in many English villages the parish church is the
last remaining institution.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">The wife of a Scottish
bishop spoke of her work as a visiting nurse to expectant and new mothers for
the National Health Service. The NHS of Scotland guarantees at least one
prenatal visit and at least 11 visits in the first five years after the child’s
birth. This is a proactive, prolife policy it seems to me.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">Previous:
<a href="https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2022/08/lambeth-conversations-it-was-not-all.html" name="_Hlk111077308">Lambeth Conversations, Part 1 (it was not all about sex)</a></span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">Next:
<a href="https://www.archbishopofcanterbury.org/news/news-and-statements/letter-archbishop-canterbury-bishops-anglican-communion">Lambeth Conversations, Part 3 (some of it was about sex)</a><o:p></o:p></span></p>mattgunter1081@gmail.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14808597688160170927noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4534237549485136842.post-74346060840689454642022-08-10T13:01:00.008-05:002024-02-15T01:51:22.364-06:00Lambeth Conversations, Part 1 (it was not all about sex)<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnMrJKVVCSuIRth5Glp6A7mFW5QicgpAIf9arzyhvgH2weR5vuXW1ZPayx4WGxTLoP2EU2s1tZItvuGIsBXIvZhxJaRHEQJdIRx-wEXESG3WMmC_e8yaCRFYRluOfdfxtleLsdXEEClq7RM4qAltyVPyYBgUPdt0xYDohdB50imiK0q1H36wtQgAebyg/s3295/Lambeth%20Conference%20Bible%20Study.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1733" data-original-width="3295" height="168" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnMrJKVVCSuIRth5Glp6A7mFW5QicgpAIf9arzyhvgH2weR5vuXW1ZPayx4WGxTLoP2EU2s1tZItvuGIsBXIvZhxJaRHEQJdIRx-wEXESG3WMmC_e8yaCRFYRluOfdfxtleLsdXEEClq7RM4qAltyVPyYBgUPdt0xYDohdB50imiK0q1H36wtQgAebyg/s320/Lambeth%20Conference%20Bible%20Study.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My Lambeth Conference Bible Study Group</td></tr></tbody></table><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">The
2022 Lambeth Conference ended this past Sunday. I am still putting together my
thoughts for a more general assessment. But here are some gleanings from conversations I had with other bishops from around the Anglican Communion.
Interactions like these were as much as anything what the Lambeth Conference
was about.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">A bishop of the Church of
North India told me of the challenges of being a church in the context of Hindu
nationalism. When they start a new church, for example, they have to be careful
not to call it a church so they call them community centers. There are also
legal restrictions on evangelism and conversion.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">From indigenous Canadian
bishops, two women, one man, I heard stories of despair and suicide, especially
among young people.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">At the retreat before the
Lambeth Conference formally began, we were invited to share a story of
suffering in our life with our neighbor. I was sitting next to a South Sudanese
bishop. We introduced ourselves. I asked if he had anything he wanted to share.
He did. His mother and two of his brothers were killed last month in a raid
that was part of a conflict between herders and agriculturalists. His mother's
home was burned. He has been unbale to bury these family members. Rather than
share whatever I might have offered as an example of personal suffering, I
prayed and laid hands on this brother.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">In our Bible study, the
question was asked why it is hard to love others. We might have talked about
how some personalities are hard to love or disagreements about this or that.
But a South Sudanese bishop offered, “Maybe this person killed your mother or
your father. How can you love them? But with God’s help people do when the
person confesses and repents." This was not a theoretical statement.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">Another question in Bible
study was what the church might do in your context that would get people’s
attention and attract them. Again, one of the South Sudanese bishops (a
different one) said, “In the church we belong to one another and support and
encourage one another. For example, maybe your mother or father has died and
you are left an orphan and unable to bury them on your own. The church helps
you with the funeral and supports you in your grief.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">Many bishops of South
Sudan are unable to live in their dioceses full time due to instability,
violence, and lack of infrastructure. So, they live elsewhere and visit as they
can. One bishop in my Bible study is only 36. When I asked him how he became a
bishop so young, he simply said there was no one else in the area with
theological training. His diocese has been devasted by civil war – schools,
health centers, and churches destroyed.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">The wife and baby daughter of this young bishop
in South Sudan left the Lambeth Conference to return to a refugee camp in
Uganda. The bishop divides his time between living and ministering to his
people in the camp and crossing the border to minister to those who remain in
his diocese.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">That same young bishop spoke of negotiating with
rebel leaders who control part of his diocese so he could cross into “their”
territory to serve the people.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">The challenges many of these bishops and the
people in their dioceses face are hard to fathom. Their focus is on the most
basic of needs and they have almost no resources or infrastructure to address
them.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">Another bishop of South
Sudan talked about the problem of women being illtreated and disrespected.
There need to be more women leaders, including more priests and bishops, he
said. There is one woman bishop in South Sudan, but he thinks there should be
more.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">Another South Sudanese
bishop shared that his diocese is growing by 10% a year and his concern is that
he cannot train leaders fast enough.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">I had a conversation with
a bishop of Kenya whose diocese is mostly rural and agricultural and borders
Lake Victoria. We talked about how much our dioceses are alike.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">There
is so much hardship and suffering in the world. And the church in the thick of
it supporting and encouraging as it can. And preaching the gospel. Every bishop
I have spoken to has spoken of the goodness of God and they express a
generosity of spirit in spite of all the challenges they face.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif;">Next: </span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif;"><a href="https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2022/08/archbishop-justin-welbys-3rd-plenary.html">Lambeth Conversations, Part 2 (it was not all about sex)</a></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><a href="https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2022/08/lambeth-conference-conversations-part-3.html">Lambeth Conversations, Part 3 (sometimes it was about sex & sexuality)</a></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing">See also my reflections going into the Lambeth Conference:</p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><a href="https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2022/07/canterbury-cathedral-lambethconference.html">Lambeth Conference 2022</a></p>mattgunter1081@gmail.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14808597688160170927noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4534237549485136842.post-14888693469821489442022-07-24T16:51:00.003-05:002024-02-15T01:51:56.052-06:00Lambeth Conference, 2022<p><b><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi62WaiPAggyWpyin2jW77jSOTJdQH6fz-kZqpjCBZYMPhPnSn4LvSLljgBJuz4DoGEgyemX819gpKdno2tsXbH04ftwbqCcFXcHR147lyp9BugnxpFH08nmirNn2JsWXU3pJGd3BZI89XwpVU_n9B1XYT5lr3n6f9BI8lNrVLlTpSWtcK-iIoiHlKr4Q/s1200/Canterbury%20Cathedral.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="1200" height="160" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi62WaiPAggyWpyin2jW77jSOTJdQH6fz-kZqpjCBZYMPhPnSn4LvSLljgBJuz4DoGEgyemX819gpKdno2tsXbH04ftwbqCcFXcHR147lyp9BugnxpFH08nmirNn2JsWXU3pJGd3BZI89XwpVU_n9B1XYT5lr3n6f9BI8lNrVLlTpSWtcK-iIoiHlKr4Q/s320/Canterbury%20Cathedral.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Canterbury Cathedral</td></tr></tbody></table></b></p><p><b><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Lambeth
Conference, 2022</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Leslie
and I are on our way England to participate in the Lambeth Conference in
Canterbury. The Lambeth Conference is a gathering of the bishops of the Anglican
Communion which is made up of 41 provinces around the world of which the Episcopal
Church is one. It has been held approximately every 10 years since the first
one in 1867. Due to a covid delay and other things it has been 14 years since
the last one.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">I
am excited to be a part of this. The connectedness, the sense of belonging to
something bigger – the catholicity – of the Anglican Communion is one of the
things that drew me to the Episcopal Church. The Anglican Communion is a
reminder that to be a Christian is not an individual affair. It is to be a
member of the body of Christ, the church. It is to be bound to allegiances that
transcend national boundaries as well as other loyalties. Episcopalians in
Wisconsin are fundamentally united to members of the Anglican Communion around
the globe by a common heritage of faith, by bonds of affection and by the water
of baptism which is thicker than blood. We belong to one another. The gathering
of bishops at the Lambeth Conference is a sign of that belonging.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">What
we will be up to</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">We will be stayin g at Kent University in Canterbury. There
will be a retreat for the first couple of days. The Conference itself will
include worship at Canterbury Cathedral, prayer, small group Bible Study (Leslie and I have each been
asked to be facilitators of our respective groups), connecting through informal
and formal conversations and listening, discussing issues that face the church
and the world. The focus will be on exploring what it means to be ‘God’s Church
for God’s World’ in the decade ahead. Bishops will discuss several themes that
are to result in a set of “Lambeth Calls”. Those themes are:</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">•<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Mission and Evangelism<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">•<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Reconciliation<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">•<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Safe Church<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">•<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Environment and Sustainable Development<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">•<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Christian Unity<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">•<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Inter-faith Relations<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">•<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Anglican Identity<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">•<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Human Dignity<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">•<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Discipleship<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Consternation</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">We
received the drafts of these calls last week. I expect nearly all of them will
receive near unanimous affirmation. Controversially, the draft Lambeth Call on
Human Dignity includes the suggestion that we vote on affirming Lambeth 1:10 –
a resolution from Lambeth 1998 that says Christian marriage is only between a
man and a woman. This is a surprise to many of us. We certainly expected to
have conversations about a wide range of issues and it is not surprising that
this might be a topic of discussion. But voting on it strikes many of us as
problematic.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">It
should be no surprise that</span> <span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">many bishops will want to affirm the historic understanding
of marriage and this might well be a majority. On the one hand, this would not
be news. We know that the position the Episcopal Church and others have come to
that that historic understanding can be faithfully expanded to include
same-gender marriages is still a “minority report” within the Anglican Communion.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">But
such a declaration of a majority will do nothing to lessen the threat to the
lives and flourishing of LGBTQ people who are members of every province of the
Communion. It may well exacerbate it. Therefore, many bishops have expressed
concern and are committed to finding a different way. I am committed to finding
a different way.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">I
expect that if there is a “vote” it will reveal that the majority of bishops believe
what is generally referred to as the traditional view. But I also expect it
will reveal that that majority is not overwhelming, and we are far from one
mind. A vote will not change the reality in the Episcopal Church and other
provinces like Brazil, Mexico, New Zealand, Australia, Canada, Korea, Scotland,
Wales that have come to similar conclusions. It will not change the trajectory
of other provinces, including the Church of England. In fact, there is a
diversity of views on this in every province. I hope that before there is a
vote, the language is amended to better represent that diversity of conviction and
practice in our Communion.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">What
does this mean for us?</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">The
Anglican Communion is not like the Roman Catholic Church. The Archbishop of
Canterbury is not the Anglican pope. The office is more like Patriarch of
Constantinople in the Eastern Orthodox Churches– respected and taken seriously
but with no direct authority beyond the Province of the Church of England. Similarly,
the Lambeth Conference was never meant to be an authoritative body.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">What
the bishops affirm together is not insignificant, and we will want to take each
affirmation seriously. But nothing the bishops say there will be binding on every
province. The dioceses of Wisconsin, including Fond du Lac and Eau Claire have
made it clear that LGBTQ people are welcome in our congregations, most of which
have declared themselves prepared to celebrate same-sex marriages. It will also
not change the fact that we will continue to recognize that many of our members
disagree with that position. They, too, are welcome. Nor will it change the fact
that we will continue to strive to engage one another with </span><a name="_Hlk109480399" style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">honesty, charity, generosity, and holy curiosity</a><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">That
posture of honesty, charity, generosity, and holy curiosity is what Leslie and
I will be adopting and practicing while we are at the Lambeth Conference. Perhaps
it is fitting that the bishops and spouses will be studying 1 Peter together
which includes one of my favorite lines from the Bible, “Always be ready to
make your defense to anyone who demands from you an account of the hope that is
in you; yet do it with gentleness and reverence” (1 Peter 3:15-16).</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Communion
is hard</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">To
be a Christian is to be called together as members of one another in the body
of Christ. The body that is the Anglican Communion is made of a wide variety of
people from almost every continent with different theological convictions and a
profound diversity of cultural and political contexts. That can make belonging
to one another challenging. But it is also beautiful. And it points to God's desire that human diversity will be lived as a rich, harmoniuos solidarity. Leslie and I look forward
to experiencing a slice of it at the Lambeth Conference.</span></p>mattgunter1081@gmail.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14808597688160170927noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4534237549485136842.post-76399203822890931752022-06-01T07:25:00.002-05:002024-02-15T01:52:13.434-06:00Guns, Myths, Redemption & Conversion<p> </p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9y2X_IktyxFxPPLDsFPlCjlvMp7dKk6bcZlqwOoFaHA6IH_yodDlUH1031seG9eEy10JGGdJTLhDkAHvdd3Z6FSr5YEPL-6Da6MqI87hGLEdmNQR0zl5g8h5cQeN6Cp52rXReih099lZyRDpkPyZ9T5nSrVhlD5Of0eqL64X5LDWsE1gQGxbDbeL3pA/s1966/Mars%20Statue.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1966" data-original-width="1360" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9y2X_IktyxFxPPLDsFPlCjlvMp7dKk6bcZlqwOoFaHA6IH_yodDlUH1031seG9eEy10JGGdJTLhDkAHvdd3Z6FSr5YEPL-6Da6MqI87hGLEdmNQR0zl5g8h5cQeN6Cp52rXReih099lZyRDpkPyZ9T5nSrVhlD5Of0eqL64X5LDWsE1gQGxbDbeL3pA/s320/Mars%20Statue.jpg" width="221" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: small;">Statue of Mars, Hotel National des Invalides, Paris</span></td></tr></tbody></table><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">The
conversion to Christianity of European peoples with strong warrior cultures was
slow and convoluted. The hold on the imagination shaped by the pagan mythology
of the warrior hero was strong. Myths die hard because myths give
meaning. Perhaps the conversion was never complete in the first place.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">Those
who say America does not have a gun problem, but a sin problem are actually
onto something. We do have a sin problem. We have a sinful imagination
problem. A sinful myth problem. What those who say we have a sin problem, not a
gun problem miss is that guns and our infatuation with guns and the potential
violence they represent are a manifestation of the Sin at the heart our
imagination/mythology. We are in the thrall of the notion of redemptive
violence, i.e., violence is normal, in some situations good, and often
necessary to “save the day”. Violence is redemptive and salvific. It presumes
that some people who resort to violence are simply “good”. Most of our
fictional heroes, from Westerns to superheroes, resort to it and we glory in
it. We recount it in our history. It pervades our entertainment. It excuses vigilantism. I admit that I, too, am fascinated
by aspects of the mythology of the warrior. I have a sin problem.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">I
am referring to "myth" here not a something that some people believe
that is untrue though that is certainly the case for much that is part of the
myth of redemptive violence. What I mean by myth is a narrative or set of
narratives, some more or less historical, some fictional, that are are told and
retold to make sense of our lives and the world in which we live. More than just stories, myths are symbolic. They give our lives meaning
and shape our imaginations and our sense of right and wrong. Through our myth(s) we understand who we are and how the world works. This is partly what C. S. Lewis
and J. R. R. Tolkien meant when they referred to Christianity as the "true
myth".<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">The
myth of redemptive violence is <i>not</i> the true myth. It is but a
continuation of the old pagan myth of the violent warrior hero who slays the
enemy. It is a bloody redemption. But not the blood of the cross. The myth of
redemptive violence is at odds with the truth myth of redemptive sacrifice and
love we see in Jesus. But it remains compelling. It continues to shape our imaginations even of
Christians. We might go to church. We give thanks that Jesus died so we don't
have to go to Hell. But in our heart of hearts we often still worship the quite
different god whose name is Ares, Mars, Tyr, etc. Do we really want a savior who
looks like Jesus or one like Beowulf or John Wayne or Dirty Harry or
Batman? When we imagine ourselves as martyrs in the way of Jesus or warriors- in the way of the warrior? The pagan myth of redemptive violence shapes our imagination and how we engage the world. And it persists.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">This
is partly due to a bad or at least an incomplete theology of the cross and
redemption, i.e., Jesus died only to deliver us from Hell, from God's vengeance.
That theology is too narrow to account for the fullness of the witness of scripture and
tradition. It also leaves the myth of redemptive violence unchallenged. It misses
the point that in the death and resurrection of Jesus Death itself is defeated
and with it the fear of Death. If Death itself is defeated in the death of
Christ, then protecting ourselves from Death, whether our ultimate physical
death or all the little deaths along the way, is unnecessary. Even more, it is
an unfaithful witness to what Christ has accomplished. It reveals a lack of trust in
the resurrection. Because Death is defeated, we are free from fear and free to imitate Christ,
free to turn from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it (Psalm 34:14) with
non-defensive, non-retaliative patience, gentleness, generosity, hospitality,
forgiveness, etc. That is where Christian conversion takes us. It is a
reordering of our myths, our imagination, our values, our behavior. Otherwise,
our conversion is incomplete.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">We
have a sin problem. But another problem with the myth of redemptive violence is
that it does not take sin seriously enough. In fact, it mostly denies that the
one exercising redemptive violence on our behalf is all that much
of a sinner in any radical sense. In our fantasies, that includes ourselves potentially being the violent
savior hero. Either way the hero, however flawed, is the good guy and the enemy
is clearly the bad guy. Christianity, though,
asserts that even if we get our theology right and are as close to Jesus as we
can be and rejoice in whatever healing and forgiveness we have experienced, we will
still be infected with sin. This is true even if we are as sure as we can be
that our cause is just. Our hearts are still prone to selfishness, greed,
deceit (not least, self-deceit), and violence. <i>Our</i> hearts. <i>My</i> heart. <i>Your</i> heart.
Not just the “bad” guys. If we believe in sin at all, we believe it is
pervasive and universal. There are no “good” guys. Even the best of us is prone
to being a bad guy at crunch time. We all need redemption. We all need
conversion.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">And
so, the myth of redemptive violence makes it hard to see the need for
repentance and conversion. It allows us to presume that our violence is good
and our cause is always just, simply because they are ours. It makes it easy to
assume that our security or freedom are all that matters. It excuses, even
celebrates, vengeance. It allows us to pretend that we do not belong to one
another – even to our enemies. It creates a social environment in which
violence is acceptable, to be expected even. It allows us to presume our own
innocence. It minimizes or ignores the awesome gravity of the taking of
any human life – the very image of God. It minimizes or ignores the savagery,
suffering, and trauma inherent in all violence and experienced on all sides. It
excuses or pardons whatever "excesses" of violence are committed by <i>our</i> hero. Or denies them. It suggests that some people's suffering
and trauma don't matter as much. Or even that they don't really count as people
on the same level as us.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">And
that is where it really gets hard for us. Because the myth of redemptive
violence is often interwoven into the way we like to imagine our nation's
history. And we are resistant to acknowledge sin and the need of repentance
there. But there is nothing redemptive about the violent taking of the land and
decimation of native peoples. Or the violence of slavery and racism. Or the
violence against minorities and new immigrants. And given the pervasiveness of
sin it would hard to argue, from Christian perspective, that every war any country
including America has fought has qualified as a just war. Fundamental to
Christianity is self-reflection, confession, and repentance. Such things are anathema
to the pagan myth of redemptive violence.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">It
might be, given our broken and sinful humanity, that under certain prescribed
and circumscribed circumstances a degree of violence as a last resort is
necessary and therefore just. But that violence is reserved for those trained
and authorized to exercise it under the law and with discipline and dispassion
(there are reasons the rest of us are called civilians). We are grateful for
their service. Even so, that use of violence the is a concession to tragic
human reality shaped by Sin and not something – for Christians, anyway – to
bless, revel in, or glorify.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify;">
</p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;">Still,
we have a sizable portion of our fellow citizens – in the political society of
the Church as well as the political society beyond – who are enchanted by the
mythology/theology of redemptive violence and vengeance. That myth won't just
go away. Myths die hard because they give meaning. Attacking them head on might
not be the most effective strategy. We need to advocate for reform of our gun
laws and ensure that weapons are in fact "well regulated". But the problem that needs addressing is much deeper. It
goes to the heart of what makes so many think that the idea that sinful
unregulated civilians should possess weapons designed to kill humans is a good
one. Our hearts and imaginations need healing. The myth of redemptive violence
needs to be addressed. And we need to help each other as we wean ourselves from
it. It is about conversion.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal">See also <a href="https://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2022/05/gun-violence-again.html">Gun Violence. Again . . .</a></p>mattgunter1081@gmail.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14808597688160170927noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4534237549485136842.post-15328903215216287032022-05-25T09:57:00.005-05:002024-02-15T01:52:35.831-06:00Gun Violence. Again . . .<p> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk2aqMEm7EIIbsQBF_HqmBPTScBul75qTRFdf7lh9F6VK6E9qbf1z88mH_zTtvV0bop9-lNRxr5zTJdhky9_y8FjhlVcO4upWZerIDpjEqW316aU4rY-eMCqw30mHVNSz_z3KtCMpZOvR8EuKLvInPu5jlBcOaj-obx7dCw0XP7Pa6i6jlQoMfwfLLEA/s896/meloncholy%20(2).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="896" data-original-width="720" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk2aqMEm7EIIbsQBF_HqmBPTScBul75qTRFdf7lh9F6VK6E9qbf1z88mH_zTtvV0bop9-lNRxr5zTJdhky9_y8FjhlVcO4upWZerIDpjEqW316aU4rY-eMCqw30mHVNSz_z3KtCMpZOvR8EuKLvInPu5jlBcOaj-obx7dCw0XP7Pa6i6jlQoMfwfLLEA/s320/meloncholy%20(2).jpg" width="257" /></a></td></tr></tbody></table></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Melancholy
Sculpture by Albert György in Lake Geneva, Switzerland</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">On a January morning in 1989, I was with my students in the school library at Franklin High School in Stockton, CA. The librarian came to me looking distressed, her face pale. What school do you daughters attend? she asked in a hushed voice. I told her. She looked relieved. I asked her why? Because there had been a shooting at one of the other elementary schools in town. Eventually we learned that a shooter had killed five schoolchildren and wounded 31 other children and one teacher. The students were mostly of Southeast Asian descent. The killer killed himself as well. My initial relief that it was not my daughters’ school did not alter my outrage and grief in response to this senseless and horrific act. It seemed almost unprecedented at the time. Unimaginable. Sadly, scandalously, it no longer does. I was reminded of that awful day again yesterday with the news of yet another school shooting, this time in Uvalde, Texas. Again. After being reminded of it again, and again, and again in the years since. And again.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">I
am heartbroken and outraged at yet another mass murder in this country, this
time</span> <span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">at an
elementary school in Uvalde, Texas. So far, we know 19 children and two adults
were killed. And this just two weeks after the mass killing of people at a
grocery store in Buffalo. And it is not just mass shootings. Gun violence in
our major cities and elsewhere is epidemic. All of this is tragic. It points to
a disease infecting our society. And our own hearts.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">We
pray for those who were killed and those who mourn. We know that Jesus, who entered
into the heart of our violent world on the cross, is present in the heart of
this horror. We also know that Jesus calls us to something different.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">At
the very beginning of the Gospel story, in Luke 1:79 and 2:14, we hear that
Jesus, and the way of Jesus, are about peace. At his death on the cross, he
prayed forgiveness for his killers (Luke 23:34). Between these bookends, Jesus,
in his words and actions, demonstrates a consistent pattern of peace (while
being anything but passive). He declared that his peace is different from this
world’s (John 14:27). From the beginning to the end and in-between Jesus demonstrated
a consistent pattern of peace and rejection of violence.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">For
Jesus and his followers, it is not just about the weapons; it is about the
heart and the imagination. It is about reorienting our hearts and imaginations
away from a fascination with violence and from violent solutions to violence.
The way of Jesus is a pattern at odds with the pattern of this world with its
violence and vengeance and self/group-preservation along with selfishness, fear,
deceit, and greed which are not unrelated. This is the pattern of the world the
Apostle Paul warns us not to conform to in Romans 12. He goes on to outline the
same pattern as Jesus. Those who would be his disciples must embrace a peace
different from this world’s – in their hearts and imaginations, in their words
and actions.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">The
Church has decided that this does not mean absolute pacifism. But it does mean
cultivating a bias for nonviolence. It means being more suspicious of the use
of violence</span> <span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">than
is the worldly mindset. It means a determination to be peacemakers. It means it
is not consistent with the pattern of Jesus to endorse the easy proliferation
of firearms, especially those designed specifically for war. Society has a
stake in assuring that weapons, especially weapons of war, are “well regulated”.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">As
someone who has hunted with a gun, even since becoming a bishop, I am not
interested in banning all guns But, I am a member of <a href="https://bishopsagainstgunviolence.org/about-us/?fbclid=IwAR1MT_QVZMnnjEVIrHrGito2o0wMxN0D2WYO-GcT4nkSGVPiJZqHdEy-z6s">Bishops Against Gun
Violence</a>. With my fellow bishops, I endorse common sense gun safety measures which
polls consistently show enjoy the support of gun owners and non-gun owners
alike, such as</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Handgun purchaser
licensing<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Background checks on all
gun purchasers<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Restrictions on gun
ownership by domestic abusers<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Classification of gun
trafficking as a federal crime<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Encouragement for the
development of “smart gun” technology<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Federal funding for
research into gun violence prevention strategies<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Safe storage of firearms<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">We
need to find a different way. Christians are in fact called to a different way,
the way of Jesus with its pattern of peace and peacemaking. Let’s be about that
way. Let’s advocate for those things that address our disease and make for a
healthier, less violent society. We can reduce the number of mass shootings and
gun violence generally. If we really want to, we will, with God’s help.</span></p>mattgunter1081@gmail.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14808597688160170927noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4534237549485136842.post-12051798370028278032021-09-09T07:28:00.002-05:002024-02-15T01:53:07.705-06:00Not a Hobby – a Sermon on Luke 14:25-33<div style="text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxU-CDxTQq5pATWr5Y53Uysw9mu2Z4TNh89z7rGYOayKWKCgCs544EM1ozgVtgNp92P_QbFzpdlVHHNB7mrdthIp-36HbSmnSRi-fospAoAluwMMXz5_tmpIBvCNxyFlxmmtAk_hOvYMuS/s850/jesus_facepalm.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="850" height="181" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxU-CDxTQq5pATWr5Y53Uysw9mu2Z4TNh89z7rGYOayKWKCgCs544EM1ozgVtgNp92P_QbFzpdlVHHNB7mrdthIp-36HbSmnSRi-fospAoAluwMMXz5_tmpIBvCNxyFlxmmtAk_hOvYMuS/s320/jesus_facepalm.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">St.
Barnabas Episcopal Church, Glen Ellyn, Diocese of Chicago</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Pentecost
14, Proper 18, 9/9/01</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Deut.
30:15-20, Psalm 1, Philemon 1-20, </span><b style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Luke 14:25-33</b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;"><br /></b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">(Twenty years ago two days before 9/11)</span></div>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif;">It was a tough
week for religion in the news. On Monday, another Palestinian suicide bomber
blew himself up in an attempt to maim or kill others.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then, there were Protestants verbally
harassing and stoning little Catholic girls on their way to school in Northern
Ireland. The Taliban Islamic government of Afghanistan was also in the news
bringing some relief workers to trial, accusing them of seeking to spread
Christianity. And then yesterday, we heard about rioting in Nigeria between
Moslems and Christians in which at least 50 people have been killed so far. It
makes you wonder if you want to have anything to do with religion or god stuff
if it’s that problematic. Maybe those who say that religion has done more harm
than good in history are right after all.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif;">I’m wondering
because in this morning’s gospel Jesus calls us to a radical kind of loyalty.
What kind of loyalty is he calling us to and to what? To God? What kind of god?
No doubt each situation is more complicated than this, but in one way or
another in the past week we have seen people kill or attempt some sort of
violence in the name of some god. Or, at least, loyalty to an idea about god
was involved. Is it right to do such things, to kill or be killed in the name
of god? The question sounds preposterous to us. One reason, it sounds
preposterous to us is because in western society we have become immunized to
the power of faith. Culturally, and all too often, personally, we tend to think
of religion as a sort of hobby, one step above stamp collecting or bird
watching. Some people are into stamp collecting. Some people are into bird
watching. Some people are into Christianity. Others are into Buddhism or
something else. But it is all more or less a matter of private preference, a
hobby; certainly nothing you would kill someone over, nothing you would risk
dying for. Don’t those people in Palestine and Northern Ireland and Nigeria and
Afghanistan and everywhere else get that? Don’t they understand this is not a
matter of life and death?</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif;">Or is it? Is
it wrong to kill or die in the name of God? The more I thought about it this
week, the more it occurred to me that it is actually a rather interesting
question. I’m not sure the answer is altogether obvious. If God is the ultimate
reality, the ultimate and final good, what else would be worth killing or dying
for? If I won’t kill or die in the name of God, why would I kill or die for the
sake of something less? If not God, what about country? What about ideology,
justice, or freedom? Or, as Jesus questions so offensively this morning, for
the sake of family? For whom or what are we willing to kill? For whom or what
are we willing to die? What is worth the ultimate sacrifice of my own life or
the responsibility of taking someone else’s? To what to whom or to what do I
pledge such allegiance? If we can answer that set of questions we will get
pretty close to what “god” really is for us. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Whatever it is to which I am willing to give
over that kind of allegiance or loyalty, that kind of sacrifice, <u>is</u> my
god whether or not I call it religion. Is it O.K. to kill in the name of God?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Ultimately, it depends on what god we are
talking about, what god we are seeking to follow and please. To what or whom do
I pledge such allegiance?</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif;">Since their
inception, nations and governments have demanded the ultimate sacrifice from
their citizens. When your nation says go to this place and kill these people, you
are expected to obey – to kill and to risk being killed. Others have done the
same in the name of abstract ideas such as justice and freedom. More often than
not, a varnish of god-talk is usually added to all of these to lend legitimacy.
I don’t know if the suicide bomber did what he did for God or justice or
revenge or some combination of these. I don’t know enough about Islam to know
how he might have thought he was pleasing to the God he worshiped.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I do know that not all faithful Moslems would
agree with him.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif;">I do know a
little bit about Jesus. Following Jesus rules that kind of thing out. You don’t
have to be an absolute pacifist to read Jesus and find that his way is not the
way of violence. It is hard to justify killing in the name of the one who said,
“Turn the other cheek.” It is hard to justify killing in the name of the one
who said, “Love your enemy and pray for those who persecute you.” His is not
the way of retribution. His is not the way of meanness. Whatever else the
Protestants who were hurling invective and stones at the little Catholic girls
thought they were doing, they were not following the way of Jesus. Though,
tragically, it has been done; killing in the name of Jesus and the God we know
through Jesus is an oxymoron.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif;">To die in the
name of Jesus and the God we know through him is a different matter. In fact,
that is the point. When he says, “Count the cost. Decide now whether or not you
are going to be able to finish the building,” that’s what he has in mind. Following
Jesus into the heart of God is no hobby. In this morning’s reading from the
Gospel of Luke, Jesus is on his way to Jerusalem and he knows what is in store
for him there. He is on a mission, but it is a mission that he knows ends only
one way. It ends in his death. He is on his way to Jerusalem, the center of
power – political and religious power – and he intends to throw a wrench in the
works. He intends to throw a wrench in the usual way of things, the way of
intimidation and oppression, the way of coercion, the way of control, the way
of violence. More than throw a wrench into the works, Jesus intends to <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">be</i> the wrench in the works to upset the
usual machinery of violence and bondage.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif;">To those who
are following him, he lays out his agenda pretty clearly. “If you think you are
following me in some sort of victorious parade in which we are going to march
into Jerusalem, take things over, kick the Romans out, and set the temple
worship straight, you’ve got the wrong guy. If you want to follow me into
Jerusalem, take up the cross and follow me. Take up the cross and prepare to
die.” To follow Jesus is to follow him in that mission, the mission to upset
the usual way of things – the way of things we see in the nightly news and in
the morning paper. Sometimes that might mean actual martyrdom.” There have been
places and times when people have literally died for the sake of that mission. There
are people in the world now for whom that is a day-to-day possibility. But for
most of us, most of the time, it is the daily martyrdom of dying to self and
learning to live in love for the other. That, too, is taking up our cross and
following Jesus. As Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote, “When Christ calls a man, he
bids him come and die.” Nowhere does he bid us to kill.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif;">There is only
one cross. Sometimes people talk about “their cross to bear” as if each of us
had his or her own individual cross. “I have this problematic child and she is
my cross to bear.” Or, “I have this illness and that is my cross to bear.” Or,
“I am in this relationship where I am being abused and that is my cross to
bear.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That is a misappropriation of
what Jesus is calling us to. Taking up your cross and following Jesus is not
resigning yourself to being abused and trapped in a situation beyond your
control. It is a call to servanthood not servitude. Taking up the cross of
Christ is choosing freely to follow him in his mission of resistance, his
mission of proclaiming mercy and grace, peace and justice. There is only one
cross, and it is the cross of Christ.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Ultimately, he bears that cross with us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He is on the cross with us and before us.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif;">Jesus, in this
morning’s gospel, challenges us to put all other loyalties in the context of
his mission, all other loyalties in the context of the cross.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When Christians marry, they marry with that
mission in mind. Marriage is one place and one way we can serve the mission. We
can learn to love.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We can learn to give
totally of ourselves. We can create space where the stranger is welcome and
generosity is given. If we choose to be single, we choose to be single for the
same reason, because sometimes being single is the best way to serve the
mission. If we choose to have children that, too, is not something that just
happens. That’s something we do because having children is a way of witnessing
to the mission, to the kingdom, and to raise up new disciples, new witnesses. All
loyalties – families, friends, nation – are redefined in the context of that
ultimate loyalty to the way of Jesus, the way of the cross. Jesus does not say
focus on the family; he says focus on the cross. And there are no precious
moments on the way of the cross. Bonhoeffer wrote, “The cross of Christ
destroyed the equation that religion equals happiness.” That might be
overstating the case just a bit. As we sang in the opening hymn (483), the
cross is also our life and our health. It is the way of grace, the way of joy. But
certainly the call to take up our cross destroys the equation that religion, at
least religion that is true to Jesus Christ, equals sentimentality and
nostalgia. It also destroyed the equation that religion is compatible with the
way of violence.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif;">The way of the
cross is the way of Jesus and it is the way to which he calls us. It is the way
of dying to self and living toward the other. It is the way of servanthood. It
is the way of reaching out to the stranger, of proclaiming God’s favor, God’s
mercy. Those of us who have experienced that mercy are called to embody it to
those who do not yet know it. We are called to be the peace of Christ, not just
to pass it, but to <i>be</i> it. We are called to be people of forgiveness,
people who know how to love our enemy, people who know what it means to welcome
the stranger. Protestants welcome Catholics. Catholics welcome Protestants. Christians
welcome Jews. Christians love and welcome Moslems. We are called to a life of
resolute kindness and peace. It is the way of the cross. It is the way of
Christ. It is a call to resist all that says no to the goodness of God’s
creation and to the worth of each person. It is a call to be, in ways small and
great, wrenches in the usual way of things, to break up the machinery of the
way things usually go. It is a call to creatively and effectively disrupt the
cycle of violence. It is a call to live lives of gentleness, kindness, peace,
and justice in a world of violence and hate. It is a kind of martyrdom. It is
not a hobby.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"></span></span></p>mattgunter1081@gmail.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14808597688160170927noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4534237549485136842.post-76443063569506552702021-08-28T08:03:00.001-05:002024-02-15T01:53:41.985-06:00The Generous Hermeneutic of Augustine of Hippo<p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFk01YLVqYVCqEx2fkSqWm6u5lsHWR5UkzMnBhs_jAxZS80ZXwZhN2uIF4AQU6G_hZ90BvkkZNv8oksyCxEVl75Ft_VHC1_YOrV-lGrn3FyHOOBf0aW7AO3kw9ZSHlAaf-CniWZ5kJ6qgZ/s2048/Augustine+-+Fond+du+Lac.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1152" height="242" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFk01YLVqYVCqEx2fkSqWm6u5lsHWR5UkzMnBhs_jAxZS80ZXwZhN2uIF4AQU6G_hZ90BvkkZNv8oksyCxEVl75Ft_VHC1_YOrV-lGrn3FyHOOBf0aW7AO3kw9ZSHlAaf-CniWZ5kJ6qgZ/w136-h242/Augustine+-+Fond+du+Lac.jpg" width="136" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">(Relief from the pulpit of the Cathedral of St. Paul, Fond du Lac, Wisconsin)</td></tr></tbody></table></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">In
an essay on Augustine’s <a href="http://shell.cas.usf.edu/~thomasw/exegesis.pdf">Biblical Interpretation</a>, The Rev. Dr. <a href="http://profthomaswilliams.com/">Thomas Williams</a>
shows that the great saint and theologian was willing to allow that there might
be more than one true understanding and that the biblical author’s intended
meaning might not be the only true one:</span></p><p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Suppose,
then, that Augustine says Genesis 1:1 means x, and I say it means y; suppose
further that upon consulting Christ as Inner Teacher we find that both x and y
are true. The only question is, which did Moses mean, x or y? Augustine asks,
why not both?</span></p><p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">So when one person says “He meant what I say,”
and another says “No, he meant what I say,” I think it would be more pious to
say “Why not both, if both are true?” And if someone should see in his words a
third truth, or a fourth, or indeed any other truth, why not believe that Moses
saw all these truths? (Confessions 12.31.42)<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Somewhat
surprisingly, it is not pride but just good Augustinian theology (and
epistemology) to suspect that we might find truths in Moses’ writings that had
never crossed his mind:</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Finally, Lord, you who are God and not flesh and
blood, even if one who was merely a man did not see all there was to be seen,
did not your good Spirit, who will lead me into the land of uprightness, know
everything that you would reveal through these words to later readers, even if
the one who uttered them was perhaps thinking of only one of the many true
meanings? If so, let us suppose he was thinking of whichever meaning is most
exalted. O Lord, show us that meaning; or if you please, show us some other
true meaning. In this way, whether you show us just what you showed your servant,
or something else that emerges from the same words, we will in any event be fed
by you, not mocked by error (Conf. 12.32.43).6<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">[Augustine
is able to be generous in allowing more than one true interpretation because of
what he understands the purpose of scripture to be. Professor Williams
continues with reference to Augustine’s </span><i style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">De Doctrina Christiana</i><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;"> (On
Christian Teaching)]:</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">The
pursuit of knowledge for its own sake is bankrupt, as far as Augustine is
concerned. Such a pursuit springs from curiosity, which for him is no admirable
trait but a vice; he identifies it with that “lust of the eyes” of which John
wrote, “For all that is in the world—the lust of the eyes, the lust of the
flesh, and the pride of life—is not of the Father but is of the world” (1 John
2:16). So it is not surprising that when Augustine discusses the legitimacy of
rival interpretations of Scripture, he reveals a deep concern with the morality
of exegetical disputes. Undue attachment to one’s own exegesis manifests a sort
of pride, the love of one’s own opinion simply because it is one’s own opinion.
In Confessions 10 Augustine describes this as a form of the “pride of life,”
the third of the unholy trinity of sins from 1 John 2:16. It is more grievous
still when the exegete is driven by the desire for a reputation as a brilliant
scholar; “this is a miserable life and revolting ostentation” (Conf. 10.36.59).
Moreover, since truth is common property, one’s own opinion is not really one’s
own at all if it is true; it is the common property of all right</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">‐</span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">thinking people, and no
one has any individual stake in it: </span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">“</span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">No one should regard
anything as his own, except perhaps a lie, since all truth is from him who
says, </span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">‘</span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">I am the truth</span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">’”</span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;"> (doctr. chr. Prologue,
8). Also, only temerity and insolence could justify such confidence in
something we cannot actually know. We can know what Truth itself says, but we
cannot know with any degree of certainty what Moses or Paul was thinking when
he wrote the biblical text we are expounding. Most important of all, charity
demands that we abstain from all such “pernicious disputes.”</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">For
charity is the ultimate aim of all worthy exegesis. “Whoever thinks he has
understood the divine Scriptures or any part of them in such a way that his
understanding does not build up the twin love of God and neighbor has not yet
understood them at all” (doctr. chr. 1.36.40). Charity is, moreover, the
unifying and animating theme of Augustine’s treatise on biblical
interpretation, De doctrina Christiana (On Christian Teaching). Its message is
this: Be always mindful of the end, and be on your guard against the pernicious
tendency of means to encroach upon the ends. The end of all things, Augustine
insists, is God. He alone is to be loved for his own sake—“enjoyed,” in
Augustine’s terminology. Whatever else is to be loved should be “used,” that
is, loved for the sake of God. Even human beings, including ourselves, should
be “used” in this sense, which does not mean “exploited.” But Augustine cannot
quite bring himself to talk consistently of “using” ourselves and our fellow
human beings, and he defines charity as “the motion of the soul toward enjoying
God for his own sake and oneself and one’s neighbor for God’s sake” (doctr.
chr. 3.10.16). Its opposite, cupidity, is “the motion of the soul toward
enjoying oneself, one’s neighbor, or any bodily thing for the sake of something
other than God” (Ibid.). Scripture, Augustine says, “commands nothing but
charity and condemns nothing but cupidity [inordinate desire]” (doctr. chr.
3.10.15).</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Interest
in Biblical interpretation for its own sake is one such form of cupidity;
exegesis is to be used for the sake of charity, not enjoyed for its own sake.
In Augustine’s metaphor, it is not the distant land where we will be happy, but
merely a vehicle by which we may be conveyed there.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">The fulfillment and end of the Law and of all
divine Scripture is the love of a being that is to be enjoyed [i.e., God], and
of a being that can share that enjoyment with us [i.e., our neighbor]. . . .
That we might know this and be able to achieve it, the whole temporal
dispensation was made by divine providence for our salvation. We should use it
not with an abiding but with a transitory love and delight like that in a road
or conveyances or any other means. . . . We should love those things by which
we are carried for the sake of that towards which we are carried (doctr. chr.
1.35.39; see also 1.4.4).<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">So
overriding is this end that even misreadings of Scripture are scarcely
objectionable if they build up charity. Someone guilty of such a misreading is
to be corrected only on pragmatic grounds, not in the interest of scholarly
correctness (an ideal to which Augustine shows not the slightest allegiance):</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing">
</p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">He is deceived in the same way as someone who
leaves a road by mistake but nonetheless goes on through a field to the same
place to which the road leads. Still, he should be corrected and shown how much
more useful it is not to leave the road, lest his habit of wandering off should
force him to take the long way around, or the wrong way altogether (doctr. chr.
1.36.41).<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><br /></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing">See also:</p><p class="MsoNormal"><a href="http://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2015/05/how-i-came-to-change-my-mind-on-ssu_26.html">Some Thoughts on Interpreting Scripture</a><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"></p><p class="MsoNormal"><a href="http://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2015/08/faith-and-love-are-always-to-be.html">Faith and Love are Always to be Mistresses of the Law</a><o:p></o:p></p><br /><p></p>mattgunter1081@gmail.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14808597688160170927noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4534237549485136842.post-69784857104655209762021-06-25T07:31:00.003-05:002024-02-15T01:54:10.021-06:00Taste and see that the LORD is good. But is he safe?<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpoEGWz-foRwrvBTJp3qLuQB6hsUk6azwPuBXckt5R2_noeQpnQGhs_pEdhfmD5IaG4nuMAhIx2zMRLcXKUd3B2JN_FK9cISlbg4qfmmrO5PqudAjWYOHofnSEIIzkZks282bE7EI_aj77/s900/Not+Safe+But+Good.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="707" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpoEGWz-foRwrvBTJp3qLuQB6hsUk6azwPuBXckt5R2_noeQpnQGhs_pEdhfmD5IaG4nuMAhIx2zMRLcXKUd3B2JN_FK9cISlbg4qfmmrO5PqudAjWYOHofnSEIIzkZks282bE7EI_aj77/s320/Not+Safe+But+Good.jpg" /></a></div><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">I
am more than a bit baffled by what seems a sentimental, domesticated, and naïve
understanding of God, Jesus, and the Church as the body of Christ, and,
therefore, of the Eucharist. God is perfect love and truth, perfect goodness
and beauty. That perfect love, truth, goodness, and beauty is more awesome and
wilder than Niagara Falls, the Grand Canyon, or a powerful summer thunderstorm.
If you think about it, it is daunting to imagine being in the presence of such
given our own unlove and untruth. And yet, we believe God desires to draw us
into the divine Presence and make us able to bear it. Making us able to bear that
Presence—and even participate in it—is no small or comfortable thing. God is
not just a warm bath of affirmation. God is a consuming fire prepared to burn
away the dead wood of our sin (all that is unlove and untrue) making way for
new growth or to melt us down and draw off the dross, refining us into the
glorious beings of freedom, love, truth, and peace we are meant to be. That is
why “It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God” (Hebrews
10:31). As C. S. Lewis famously wrote of Aslan/Christ, he is good but that does
not mean he is safe.</span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">I
think here of Annie Dillard’s famous dissuasive to supposing God is tame, in </span><i style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Teaching
a Stone to Talk</i><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">:</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">On the whole, I do not find Christians, outside
of the catacombs, sufficiently sensible of conditions. Does anyone have the
foggiest idea what sort of power we so blithely invoke? Or, as I suspect, does
no one believe a word of it? The churches are children playing on the floor
with their chemistry sets, mixing up a batch of TNT to kill a Sun- day morning.
It is madness to wear ladies’ straw hats and velvet hats to church; we should
all be wearing crash helmets. Ushers should issue life preservers and signal
flares; they should lash us to our pews. For the sleeping God may wake some-
day and take offense, or the waking God may draw us out to where we can never
return.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">If,
as we often claim, we “believe what we pray” (</span><i style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">lex orandi, lex credendi</i><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">:
the rule of prayer is the rule of belief), we would do well to attend to the
logic of the liturgy which suggests a certain caution in coming into God's presence, particularly to receive the Body and Blood of our Lord. As Moses drew near to the strange sight of the burning bush, he was
commanded to remove his sandals for he was on holy ground. Just so,
symbolically, as we move through the eucharistic liturgy, we stop periodically
to remind ourselves that we are approaching holy ground and that doing so is an
awesome thing. The one into whose presence we are coming is awe-inspiring and,
while not wholly unknown, remains a mystery beyond our comprehension. We are
aware of our failure to live lives of love and truth and trust, and thus of the
distance between us and God.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Though
it is not often read these days, an exhortation before the rites of Holy
Eucharist in the Book of Common Prayer reads, in part:</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">if we are to share rightly in the celebration of
those holy Mysteries, and be nourished by that spiritual Food, we must remember
the dignity of that holy Sacrament. I therefore call upon you to consider how
Saint Paul exhorts all persons to prepare themselves care- fully before eating
of that Bread and drinking of that Cup.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">For, as the benefit is great, if with penitent hearts
and living faith we receive the holy Sacrament, so is the danger great, if we
receive it improperly, not recognizing the Lord’s Body. Judge yourselves,
therefore, lest you be judged by the Lord. </span><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">(BCP, p. 316)</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">The
liturgy is like an elaborate spiral dance in which we symbolically circle
around and around the altar, drawing closer to the eucharistic mystery. At
intervals in the dance, we stop to acknowledge our ignorance and sinfulness,
and ask for God’s mercy as we proceed deeper into the holy mystery. In the
Collect for Purity, we ask God to cleanse the thoughts of our hearts that we
may perfectly love him and worthily magnify his holy Name … and we dance a
little closer. We sing the Gloria, the Kyrie, or the Trisagion, each of which
asks again for mercy – closer still. Then, after hearing God’s word read and
proclaimed, we confess our sins against God and our neighbor, receive the
promise of forgiveness, and exchange the peace, before dancing yet closer to
the altar of the Prince of Peace. And on it goes—acknowledging God’s presence
as holy (the Sanctus) and asking for forgiveness (the Lord’s Prayer). In every
case, we acknowledge that we do not really know what we are up to, that the One
with whom we are dealing is holy, and that we are ignorant, sinful and broken
people in need of forgiveness and healing. And yet, by God’s amazing grace, we
are invited and encouraged to draw near with confidence “to the throne of
grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need” (Heb.
4:16)—a confidence that avoids presumption because it is born in baptism and
trusts that the one who demands our transformation, loves us beyond our
imagining.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif;">More here: <a href="http://anoddworkofgrace.blogspot.com/2015/06/baptized-into-eucharist-problem-with.html">Baptized Into Eucharist</a></span></p>mattgunter1081@gmail.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14808597688160170927noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4534237549485136842.post-67344120556595288092021-06-23T15:20:00.003-05:002024-02-15T01:54:27.482-06:00Whose Table is it? Who is the Host and Who the Guest?<p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;"></span></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgl5sPxejmPMUQKEmCnVzhX69_NdAEqkhULKU3Cxbk1Z1gQ4lAShpLe7MNcUomBy4LW5QCVFDf5Ey6A8vvi75WF2fVIu0vKufcHXXVxQ54KxMT4sI6tD6ULzq3OUyHjBWXTvkvR16tMGZyo/s960/St.+Pau%2527s+Plymouth+Altar.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="960" height="241" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgl5sPxejmPMUQKEmCnVzhX69_NdAEqkhULKU3Cxbk1Z1gQ4lAShpLe7MNcUomBy4LW5QCVFDf5Ey6A8vvi75WF2fVIu0vKufcHXXVxQ54KxMT4sI6tD6ULzq3OUyHjBWXTvkvR16tMGZyo/w241-h241/St.+Pau%2527s+Plymouth+Altar.jpg" width="241" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Altar, St. Paul's Episcopal Church, Plymouth, Wisconsin</td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12pt;"><br />The
Roman Catholic bishops of the United States have voted to draft guidance on the
sacrament of the Eucharist, advancing a push by conservative bishops to deny communion
to President Biden and other politicians because of their support for legalized
abortion. I am wary of criticizing another traditions application of the logic
of their teaching. I will only say I think it unwise and I suspect that it has
less to do with the logic of Roman Catholic teaching (the Pope has cautioned
against such a move after all) than it has to do with the peculiar dynamics of
American politics and culture war mentality.<o:p></o:p></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">The
actions of the Roman Catholic bishops have prompted a larger discussion in
their church and in others about the nature of the Eucharist. In particular, the
question “Whose table is it?” has been raised. But, the answer to that question
is less simple and less straightforward than some memes and soundbites suggest.
Whose table it is depends on who is the host and who is the guest.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">The
ultimate host of the Eucharistic Feast is God, the mutual giving and receiving
that is the Holy Trinity, manifested in Jesus and his self-sacrificial way on
the cross. To eat at the table of this Host is to participate in the life of
one who wills to reconfigure us in his own cruciform image.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">But
there is a penultimate eucharistic host, namely, the Church, the body of Christ
itself, re-membered in mutual communion. If the Church is the penultimate host
of the Eucharist, who then is the penultimate guest? Paradoxically, it is again
God. In the Eucharist, the body of Christ, the Church, is both guest and host,
and the divine Host is also the Guest.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">We
</span><i style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">invite</i><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;"> (as our guest) the Holy Spirit to “descend upon the gifts that
they may be the Body of Christ and his Blood of the new Covenant.” Because the
Guest is nothing less than the Holy Mystery at the heart of all, we pray that
we might be sanctified by the same Holy Spirit “that we may faithfully receive”
this Guest in the “gifts of God for the people of God.” We pray to be
sanctified so we can faithfully receive this Host because, as Chrysostom
writes, it is more awe-inducing than Elijah calling down fire from heaven in
his contest with the priests of Baal for the Church to dare to call down the
Holy Spirit upon the altar of the Eucharist.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">It
is significant that in the gospels Jesus is most often the guest at the table
of others rather than the host. And as Zacchaeus and Simon the Pharisee discovered,
hosting Jesus brings us face to face with the radical, life-altering
expectations of Jesus. Likewise, as ones who have been incorporated into the
community of hosts through baptism, we have some inkling of who our guest is
and the expectations that Guest places upon the community that seeks to
accommodate him.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">As
host and servant of Christ, the Church is the “steward of God’s mysteries” (1
Corinthians 4:1). And therefore, the Church has a stake in how the Eucharist is
celebrated and administered. The altar is also the Church’s table because God
has so authorized the Church.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Is
it not marvelous, this mutual hosting? That God is both Host & Guest while
empowering the Church to also be guest & host of the same feast is one way
God invites the us to participate in the life of the Trinity which is itself
mutual giving and receiving, hosting and guesting. It does raise the question,
though. What does it mean to be good guests and good hosts?</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Next:
Taste and see that the LORD is good. But is he safe?</span></p><p></p>mattgunter1081@gmail.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14808597688160170927noreply@blogger.com0