New US National Cathedral dean: We are a ‘pragmatic, evolving tradition’; Norway called beacon of hope one year after massacre; Mixing Bibles, bars and beer, missionaries head for the pubs
New US National Cathedral dean: We are a ‘pragmatic, evolving tradition’
The newly selected dean of Washington National Cathedral, the Rev. Canon Gary Hall, believes that mainline churches face “a crisis of credibility.”
He writes in the Washington Post
For those especially under 40, the Episcopal Church (and its companion churches and faith traditions) no longer seems a credible place in which to engage God, learn to pray or to give ourselves in ministry. We seem, to those outside us, exclusive and opaque.
Those of us who love the traditions (and habits) of institutional Christianity might feel somewhat wounded by the seeming disinterest in the practices we have come to live by. But if the Episcopal Church is to thrive in the 21st century, it must do three things. It must develop a clear, missional identity. It must project that identity outward and invite people into it. And it must take seriously the needs and concerns of those who come toward us and adapt to the new life and energy they bring.
Does that mean that we will no longer continue to worship in our stately Anglican ways? Of course not. But it does mean that we will need to find new modes of liturgical, musical, and theological expression to complement the great traditional strengths we already have. And this is not new behavior for Anglicans. Queen Elizabeth I forged a pragmatic consensus between Catholics and Protestants in 1559. Bishop William White of Pennsylvania led the first General Convention of the Episcopal Church to a uniquely American way of governance in 1789. The church opened itself up to the sacramental ministries of women bishops, priests and deacons in 1976. We have always been a pragmatic, evolving tradition.
Norway called beacon of hope one year after massacre
Bishop Munib A. Younan, president of the Lutheran World Federation (LWF), has called Norway a beacon of hope and inspiration for the way it has dealt with the horror and pain of last year’s massacre.
http://www.eni.ch/featured/article.php?id=5840
Mixing Bibles, bars and beer, missionaries head for the pubs
Theology at the Pub is a popular weekly event in Melbourne, Australia, aimed at “amateur theologians aged between 18 and 40 and any clergy who wish to enjoy a drink or two with anyone younger than the average parishioner.” In Norfolk, Virginia, Holy Trinity Catholic Church regularly lists in the weekly bulletin “Theology on Tap” at a local bar and grill. There a regular crowd gathers to ponder Christianity over…
http://blog.beliefnet.com/news/2012/07/bibles-brew-mix-as-missionaries-head-for-the-pubs.php