Generation Gap

The recent tallying in the case of Kevin Thew Forrester points to something that I have been saying for a while. As related on Anglican Centrist,

"Several of the leading members of what I will call the 'establishment Left' are quite upset with the lack of consents in the election of Thew Forrester. They are beginning to cry, 'witch hunt,' and 'theological oppression.' Others are beginning to cry, 'but he's actually orthodox.' Still others, 'this is the beginning of the end of true intellectualism in the Church.' Still others seem to have begun a process of shaming those 'fellow liberals' who voted against Thew Forrester.

What we are seeing is the Gap between parties in the Episcopal Church who have not historically been seen to be different. The party of theological 'free thinkers' who have eschewed since the 1960s any appreciation for theological and liturgical coherence are awakening to see that there are also Episcopalians who favor the ample and generous orthodoxy of the Prayer Book and Hymnal, and are looking for a more inclusive church, but who are not looking to tweak, revise, redact or avoid the core elements of the faith, or make revision and innovation the constant modus operandi of the church either."

This also causes consternation on the right, as it punches a hole in the entire "The consecration of Gene Robinson is only the tip of the iceberg with a trend towards liberal theology the part you can't see" argument. This argument is necessary for them because they need to to make schism more palatable - a gay bishop just won't do that.

The confusion on both sides is centered in the generation of baby boomers, who are used to breaking things down along clearly-defined lines. You must choose option A or B.

A - Liberal - Same-sex blessings and ordinations - Liberal theology (Spong, Borg) - Constant liturgical innovation

B - Conservative - Uphold "Traditional Marriage" - Conservative theology (Wright, Hays) - Stick to the Prayer Book (or roll back to 1928)

But what I experience among post-modern Episcopalians (those in Gen X and Y) is that these boundaries that have hardened over decades through constant political in-fighting just don't exist. There are very few young Episcopalians I have met who are obsessed with liberal theology or liturgical innovation in the way the previous generation was, but attitudes towards issues of sexuality are a lot more fluid. Younger Episcopalians are more interested in traditional liturgy and theology than their forebears, but may be more "progressive" in their outreach attitudes. This is often hard for boomers to understand, because their world has always been divided in a dualistic way, stemming from the politics of the 50s and 60s they were raised in.

As we head towards General Convention, I would hope that those in power would recognize that any "Victory" won by either side would be short lived. Those of us coming up through the ranks are tired of the constant conflict, the myopia on both sides, and the distraction from our mission of proclaiming the Gospel that this obsession of seeing the world in a strictly dualistic way creates.

At a Gen X clergy conference several years ago, one of my colleagues told PB Griswold, "Just don't destroy the church before we get a chance to lead." For me, that is my continued prayer. I don't think we will be particularly better at leadership, but I do believe that if the church is to survive and bring Jesus to those who should know him, the political power struggles of the last several decades must cease, or at lease cease to be the be-all end-all of the church. My hope is that we will be able to do that.

David+

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Further links:

Generation Gap and The Gap II at Anglican Centrist.

Comments

[Diezba]

"Just don't destroy the church before we get a chance to lead."

--I think it's too late: the current PB is well on the way to destroying the church through the litigation against rebel dioceses and parishes, squandering decades' worth of accumulated church funds.

[Daniel]

I couldn't agree more with what you wrote. None of those in my generation (on the far tail end of Gen X or he early parts of whatever we call after that) seem to be caught up in these battles. Most of my cohorts and I seem to be in strong support of traditional liturgy, and even a return to more high church services, but are more progressive theologically. Beyond that, there seems to be far less acrimony among our generation about issues, and a far greater willingness to live and let live. I can only second your colleagues plea to the previous generation...

"Please don't destroy the church before we get a chance to lead."