Robust Baptismal Theology

When the recent economic crisis struck North America, having an extra impact on the already struggling people of Allentown, The Rev Dr. Patrick Malloy and the congregation of Grace Church decided to renovate their building’s liturgical space. This was not the action of a parish out of touch with the surrounding community. Rather, it flowed from Grace’s normal pattern of worship doing justice doing worship.

As APLM Council devoted its first day of the 2010 meeting to exploring the implications of a robust baptismal theology in worship and in the overall Missional life of the church, Patrick Malloy, Professor of Liturgics at General Theological Seminary in New York, spoke from his rich experience as Rector of Grace Church, Allentown, PA. Throughout the afternoon session, he offered a series of talks, video and slideshow presentations, and times of discussion which demonstrated how liturgy can do and spark justice.

For a number of years, Grace has navigated the treacherous waters of economic downturn and social instability which have been characteristic of Allentown since long before the recent crisis. At one time on the verge of closing, the congregation decided not to follow in the footsteps of other churches and flee the core of the city. Instead, it found renewed vitality by engaging in ministry in/with/to the area in which its building stood. Over time, this congregation of only 55 people has developed an active food bank, a Montessori school, an AIDS services center, an employment agency, free legal counseling service, a rehab program for young offenders and a shelter for chronically homeless people.

What is telling is that all of this missional activity fuels and is fueled by the liturgical life of the church. As one member of the congregation put the matter, “In liturgy, we don’t just sit around here and watch somebody do something; we do it. So during the week we do it, too.” It’s not so much the words of the liturgy that form the parish, then, but enacted rites. The Christian life is not something passive; it’s about doing something. The congregation finds that there is no need to import texts focused on an economic-justice agenda to form people in and for God’s Reign. Instead, Grace has discovered that the 1979 Prayer Book liturgy has the capacity to “sustain and compel a Church as it confronts an inequitable economy…the layering upon them of justice-themed texts from outside the BCP tradition is, at best, unnecessary and, at worst, a distraction from the real business of enacting in ritual form life in God’s Reign.”

One key element in all of this was the liturgical renovation of the church building. Not only has this proved formative to the congregation through liturgical enactment, it has also provided purpose, economic stimulus and a show of stability to the surrounding area.

APLM plans to post further reflections and video clips of Patrick’s inspiring and enlightening presentation on our website and Facebook pages over the coming weeks and months. Please stay tuned…

We also encourage you to visit Grace Church’s website: www.graceallentown.org

The Baptismal Consultation

APLM continues to play a leading role promoting and strengthening baptismal ministry in the church. The 2009 General Convention of the Episcopal Church in Anaheim unanimously passed a resolution mandating a second baptismal consultation to produce a wide variety of resources that will be brought to the 2012 General Convention for action. The first consultation was co-convened by Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori and APLM in 2007 to shape the agenda that was subsequently endorsed by General Convention. The following outcomes will be offered in 2012:

• Theological reflection on the vision of baptismal community and ministry expressed in the Book of Common Prayer (TEC) and the Book of Alternative Services (Canada)
• Strategies and resources supportive of Christian formation in light of this vision
• Educational resources to foster Episcopal identity and the development of rites to celebrate "becoming Episcopalian"
• Training programs and rites for certifying leadership positions in the Episcopal Church
• Proposed revisions to canon law (TEC) to conform the canons to the baptismal theology of The Book of Common Prayer, removing obstacles to full baptismal ministry.

The members of the baptismal consultation were appointed in 2007 by the Presiding Bishop and APLM. They represent the diverse voices needed at the table for this project to succeed. These include bishops, theologians, liturgists, Christian educators, parish clergy, canon lawyers and justice advocates:

Neil Alexander, Henry Parsley, Joe Burnett, Wayne Smith, Wilfrido Ramos-Orench, Joe Doss, Ruth Meyers, Louis Weil, Jim Turrell, Lee Mitchell, Bill Petersen, Byron Rushing (co-convenor), Linda Grenz, John Westerhoff, Sharon Pearson, Ruth-Ann Collins, Marilyn Haskell, Ginger Paul, Hisako Beasley, Sally Johnson, Devon Anderson, Clay Morris, Georgia Beardsley, Michael Merriman, Stephanie Spellers, John Johnson, and Robert Brooks.

The baptismal consultation will meet in April, 2010, at Holy Cross Parish in Shreveport, LA, to prepare its materials for the church and its report to General Convention.

APLM welcomes and appreciates further donations in support of the Consultation and our ongoing efforts.

Baptismal Theology Resolution

The following Resoltion B013 was passed by The General Convention of The Episcopal Church to continue the work APLM is leading on Baptismal Theology:

Resolved, the House of _______ concurring, That the 76th General Convention of The Episcopal Church commend the Presiding Bishop for convening, with Associated Parishes for Liturgy and Mission, a national consultation on baptismal theology in October 2007, representative of bishops, theologians, liturgists, Christian educators, parish priests and justice advocates and inclusive of the diversity of this Church; and be it further

Resolved, That the 76th General Convention further commend the national baptismal theology consultation for identifying areas and resources needed to implement fully the baptismal theology of the Book of Common Prayer in the life of the Church; and be it further

Resolved, That the 76th General Convention commend the Theology Committee of the House of Bishops and the Colloquium of North American Anglican Liturgists for their meeting in January 2008, for identifying together the needs of the Church in ongoing baptismal formation and ministry and formation in Episcopal identity; and be it further


Resolved, That the 76th General Convention urge the national consultation on baptismal theology to continue its work in the next triennium and provide to the next General Convention educational resources for formation in Episcopal identity and rites to celebrate that identity, educational resources for training the baptized for leadership positions in the Church and rites for entering leadership positions, and any proposed revisions to the canons to conform them to the baptismal theology of the Book of Common Prayer.

EXPLANATION
The 75th General Convention in 2006 considered resolutions from the Dioceses of Connecticut, Northern Michigan, and California which called for conforming the Canons to the baptismal theology of the Book of Common Prayer. The cognate Committees on Liturgy and Music of the respective houses expanded the original diocesan resolutions to call for a national consultation on baptismal theology representative of bishops, theologians, liturgists, Christian educators, parish priests and justice advocates and inclusive of the diversity of the Church. The consultation was to prepare educational resources for formation in Episcopal identity, training programs for certification for leadership positions in the Church, and any revisions to the Canons to conform them to the theology of the Prayer Book. While Convention did not complete action on that resolution, the Presiding Bishop, working with Associated Parishes for Liturgy and Mission, convened a national consultation on baptismal theology in October 2007 that met the composition of the resolution. An agenda was identified to accomplish the work and task forces created to accomplish it. In January 2008, Bishop Henry Parsley and other members of the Theology Committee of the House of Bishops met with the Colloquium of North American Anglican Liturgists to identify the needs of the Church to implement the Prayer Book's baptismal theology. The national consultation on baptismal theology needs to continue its work in the next Triennium and bring its resources and recommendations to the 77th General Convention in 2012.

The Baptismal Life

To live as a Christian is to live the baptismal life as it is expressed and experienced in the liturgy. It is in the liturgical context that the implications of the Gospel for contemporary life should be drawn out, through preaching and pastoral ministry. If the liturgy does not provide answers to contemporary questions, such as nuclear disarmament, world hunger, or abortion, it does provide the context in which these issues can be considered, and it proclaims the theological principles we must learn to apply to them.

—Leonel L. Mitchell in Praying Shapes Believing

Open: Baptism or Confirmation?

Bishop Joe Morris Doss asks whether we really believe that Baptism is at the heart of Christian ministry in the Church. In thishistorical review, he warns us that recent General Convention actions are returning Confirmation to a central role we decided against over thirty years ago.

As a companion piece to Doss’ article, Robert Brooks reports on recent years’ efforts to respond to the canonical actions of General Convention, and the amazing coalition of theologians, bishops, educators, parish clergy and others who have been energized to bring Baptism back to the center of our understanding of ministry, while addressing the needs of the Church for adequate formation and leadership training.

The full text of the two companion articles is online in Adobe PDF format here: Baptism or Confirmation?

Do we really mean it?

The following is from the conclusion to the APLM booklet Holy Orders: The Ordination of Bishops, Priests, and Deacons

The contrast between what the rites of ordination say and mean, and the way in which bishops, priests, and deacons exercise their ministries today in the church is conspicuous to say the least. The present rites may in time shape a richer understanding of orders, just as the ordinal of 1552 brought the Anglican Communion to its present understanding of ordained ministry.

Those responsible for planning and carrying out ordinations in dioceses need to look at the rites carefully and thoughtfully. The focus of the rite is not an ecclesiastical Academy Awards ceremony, but rather a celebration of the ministry of the whole people of God in that place. The ordination of a bishop offers an opportunity for an entire diocese to understand baptism as well as to understand bishops. There is usually ample time for education on the meaning of the rites to be studied in the diocesan paper as well as parish education programs. It is also possible to do the same for ordinations of priests and deacons. If an ordination is seen as the recognition of the achievement of an individual, then the integrity of the rite has been lost along with the gospel.

The paschal mystery, which is the heart of the gospel, is enacted in every baptism, is present in every eucharist, and is manifested in every ordination. The mystery is Christ making himself known in the people whom he calls to be his own. There is no greater gift.