"Clearly written, The Episcopal Church in Crisis also displays great clarity of thought. This enables an understanding of the complex and often intertwined events, acts, reports which have fueled the controversies. This same clarity pervades the analysis of the issues involved. Although he is a liberal, Kirkpatrick's book is fair and displays intellectual integrity. His conclusions about the future of Anglicanism and the Episcopal Church deserve wide consideration." -- Rev. Dr. Alan C. Tull, Canon Theologian, Episcopal Diocese of Utah "With a discerning mind and a gentle touch, Frank Kirkpatrick demonstrates that the conservative arguments against the acceptance of gays and lesbians draw on the ancient Christian heresies of Donatism, Manicheanism, and Gnosticism. With Kirkpatrick, I long for the day when the real battles in our beloved church will be waged over how well we fulfill the mandate of Jesus to care for the least of these. This is an important and useful book." -- Randall Balmer, Episcopal priest and Professor of American Religious History, Barnard College, Columbia University "This is a must read, not only for anyone wanting to understand the current turmoil in the Anglican Communion, but also for anyone who cares about the future of American Christianity. The issues raised and the groups described here extend far beyond the American Episcopal Church and should concern anyone who cares about the direction of Christianity in the United States. While being clear about his own positions, Professor Kirkpatrick is to be commended for presenting all sides clearly and fairly. And he concludes with a historically accurate and theologically based presentation of the Anglican vision of Christianity. All this makes this volume an important contribution to the ongoing discussion." -- Rev. James W. Jones, Psy.D., Ph.D., Th.D., Episcopal Priest, Professor of Religion and Adjunct Professor of Clinical Psychology, Rutgers University
W.B. Yeats, The Second Coming Introduction Section One: The Beginnings of the Crisis Chapter One: The Resolution that Shaped the Debate and the Election that Shook the Communion Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world Section Two: The Way We Were: Historical Background Chapter Two: From Rome to Post-Establishment America By Way of Canterbury Things fall apart Chapter Three: The Bishops Assembled: The Lambeth Conferences from 1867 to the Present Surely some revelation is at hand Chapter Four: The Uncompleted Struggle for Womens Ordination: From Defective Men to the Conscience Clause The blood-dimmed tide is loosed Section Three: From Robinsons Election to the Present Chapter Five: From the Chapman Memo to the Windsor Report: The Tension Between Unity, Uniformity, and Episcopal Authority The centre cannot hold Chapter Six: From Dromantine to San Joaquin The worst are full of passionate intensity Section Four: Perspectives from the Discontented Chapter Seven: The Conservative Plea for Moral Certainty and Ecclesiastical Discipline Spiritus Mundi Troubles My Sight Chapter Eight: The Communion in Africa: From Imperially Colonized to Moral Colonizers Somewhere in the sands of the desert Section Five: Biblical Perspecctives on Slavery and Homosexuality Chapter Nine: Reconciling Natural Law, Biblical Truth and the Moral Abomination of Slavery Twenty centuries of stony sleep Chapter Ten: The Bible, Sex, and the Contest of Interpretations A gaze blank and pitiless as the sun Section Six: Conclusion Conclusion: The Shape of the Future Turning and Turning in the Widening Gyre Time-line Bibliography:
Frank G. Kirkpatrick is Ellsworth Morton Tracy Lecturer and Professor of Religion, Trinity College. He has published five books Community: A Trinity of Models, Together Bound: God, History, and the Religious Community, The Ethics of Community, A Moral Ontology for a Theistic Ethic: Gathering the Nations in Love and Justice, and John Macmurray: Community Beyond Political Philosophy. He has also published a general textbook in the field of ethics, Living Issues in Ethics with Richard Nolan, and numerous articles in scholarly journals, as well as op-ed pieces and topical analyses of current religious events.
Kirkpatrick (Trinity College, CT) neatly describes the crisis in
which the worldwide Anglican Communion is currently embroiled….This
excellent book provides a heavily researched and dense overview of
what promises to be an ongoing debate….Recommended.
*Choice*
Kirkpatrick….comprehensively addresses church history and beliefs
as a background for the complex issues affecting unity or division
within today's Episcopal Church….He covers pertinent details of
issues raised--e.g., biblical authority, church history,
ecclesiastical authority, and the place for human reasoning--in a
multiplicity of meetings and conferences….Recommended for academic
libraries.
*Library Journal*
It's one thing to know what's been happening, but quite another to
think through the clashing agendas and what they imply for the
future of Anglicanism….[A]nyone seriously concerned with the
current crisis will nevertheless need to take account of this book
and its analysis of The Episcopal Church's situation.
*The Living Church*
I don't think you can find in one place a better synthesis of the
historical, moral, theological, cultural, and ecclesiological
dimensions of the issues and interrelated matters. Kirkpatrick's
careful organization of an enormous volume of material and events
puts before the reader decades of cultural and political trends. He
does that in a very readable way, using engaging illustrations and
connecting some of the true ironies of recent and longago history
that got us where we are.
*The Episcopal New Yorker*
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