If there is a life after death, Torquemada must be clapping his hands in glee. My church, The United Church of Canada, has re-instituted the Inquisition. Torquemada, you may recall, headed the Inquisition, the Roman Catholic Church’s attempt to stamp out heresy. A week ago, a 23-member committee appointed by the United Church’s Toronto Conference recommended revoking the Rev. Gretta Vosper’s ordination. Her non-standard theology offended too many traditionalists. The mandate of the Inquisition -- sorry, the committee -- was to examine Vosper’s fitness for ministry. They did not do that. In their own words, “This interview did not assess whether Ms. Vosper meets the Standards of Practice with respect to administration, community outreach and social justice, continuing education, denomination and communities, leadership, pastoral care and self-care. The question that Toronto Conference asked this Committee to address was limited to her beliefs and her theology…” The implication is clear. Ministers could be incompetent, they could be embezzlers or sociopaths, they could even be pedophiles, but as long as they give the right answers to theological questions, they’re qualified to be ministers. Gretta Vosper did not give the right answers. So the committee voted 19-4 that Vosper “is not suitable to continue in ordained ministry because she does not believe in God, Jesus Christ or the Holy Spirit.”
The meaning of a-theism
All candidates for ministry are asked the same questions, defined in the Basis of Union, the United Church’s constitution. Neither the constitution nor the questions have changed significantly since the church was founded, in 1925. The primary question deals with a Trinitarian God -- God the Father Almighty, Jesus the only Son of God, and the Holy Spirit. Most candidates for ordination mask any misgivings they may have by declaring themselves “in essential agreement” -- a weasel phrase that has, until now, satisfied theological hard-liners A few candidates have declined ordination, not wanting their first official act to be a lie. Vosper has achieved some notoriety in recent years through her rejection of classical theism. She has even accepted the label of atheist. Or more accurately, a-theist. Theism, in general, presumes a God who lives “out there” or “up there” somewhere. Utterly separate from this sinful world. God-the-Father-Almighty audits naughty and nice, runs the universe, hands out rewards and punishments, and occasionally decides who will win the SuperBowl. As far as I know, classical theism is not encouraged in any United Church seminary any more.
Fellow travellers
Vosper has been honest enough to say that she no longer believes in a distant and capricious God who inseminated a Jewish virgin and makes human sacrifices to appease the powers of evil. Neither do I. Which, I suppose, makes me an atheist too. Once, I believed all of those things. Or at least, I accepted them. If everyone else believed them, why shouldn’t I? Not that it made much difference to my behaviour. Then life intervened. Learning intervened. I got introduced to other cultures. I no longer believe that those who fail to accept Jesus as their Lord and Saviour will go to hell, because I no longer believe in hell. I’m willing to wait and see about heaven. But that doesn’t mean I don’t experience God. I am far more aware of God now than when I held traditional beliefs. God flows through all relationships, all experiences, all life the way water permeates a sponge. That is, more or less, what Vosper told her inquisitors. Except that she doesn’t use the word God. The word itself, she says, automatically evokes too many of those outdated theistic images.
A giant step backwards
By all accounts, Vosper’s ministry to the West Hill United congregation is exemplary. Last Sunday, 200 worshippers gave her a standing ovation. But the committee ruled that the only qualification for effective ministry is belief in a Trinitarian God. They said, in effect, that once ministers affirm certain doctrines, they cannot learn. They may not grow or develop. Their theology must be mummified. I see that as a huge step backwards. For 90 years, the United Church has, as Star Trek might put it, “boldly gone where no church as gone before.” It ordained women. It introduced biblical scholarship to Sunday schools. It declared that fitness for ministry trumped sexual orientation. It elected to its highest office a lay person, a black man, a woman, an aboriginal person, a gay person. The committee’s recommendation to revoke Gretta Vosper’s ordination must now be approved -- or, hopefully, rejected -- by higher courts of the church. I hope my church will decide to stand with Luther, Galileo, and Tyndale. Not with Torquemada.
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Copyright © 2016 by Jim Taylor. Non-profit use in congregations and study groups encouraged; links from other blogs welcomed; all other rights reserved. To send comments, to subscribe, or to unsubscribe, write jimt@quixotic.ca
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YOUR TURN
About last week’s column, looking at the life and work of the late Phyllis Schlafly, Tom Watson commented, “I am over 70 so it's possible that I heard the name Phyllis Schlafly before, but it certainly didn't embed itself into my consciousness. I too hope her record of backing losing presidential candidates remains unbroken. “
Jean Hamilton wrote, “Phyllis Schlafly I remember well -- the walking, talking Stokholm syndrome. Fortunately, though, more women wanted to grow up than not.”
Rob Brown: “From Phyllis Schlafly to Biblical prophets. You’ve covered quite a waterfront! Unfortunately, I’m a bit more confused than usual. Status quo says ‘do justice, love kindness, walk humbly humbly with God.’ That is wrong because . . .?”
I replied that it was quite radical when Micah said it. To which Rob further replied, “If justice, kindness, and faithfulness really cease to be the cornerstones among the faithful, we are in deep trouble. Which is essentially the point I was trying to make in my first snippet to you.”
John Shaffer of Auburn commented: “Many of the things that Phyllis S. fought have come to pass without the equal rights amendment. It is good that equal wages for equal work, though not guaranteed, is being practiced in some professions. But we have a long way to go. Most large churches have yet to call or appoint a woman as their Senior Pastor. The danger is that we may regress. People like Ms Schlafly were successful at stopping the Equal Rights Amendment. When lies work, it is scary. We live in scary times.”
Isabel Gibson thought I had overstated my thesis: “Societies do change, but they don't always advance. Hitler's Germany, or Pol Pot's Cambodia, weren't the lurking ‘next truth’ for those societies. I know you didn't suggest that they were, but I do think Western societies over-value change, conflating it with progress. Even in technology, that's arguable. And sometimes the ‘old truths’ are, well, true. “I'd guess that both status quo defenders and attackers are always ‘wrong,’ at least in part, because no one has the whole truth. Equally, both are right about some things. I'm with Phyllis Schlafly on her stance against communism, which in practice has created totalitarian, repressive governments and impoverished entire countries, but I'm against her on her stance about same-sex marriage.”
Cliff Boldt added a further generatlization: “Further to your comments about the status quo: All generalizations are false! Forgotten who said that, but I use it often and hopefully in the right context.”
Michael Neill took a different angle: “What seems no longer to be the status quo is having children, or at least having enough of them to ensure humans are still here a few generations from now. Most countries that have embraced our ‘advanced’ economies are reproducing at a rate below replenishment. Only the people living in countries with poverty, or keeping the status quo with religion and the role of women and male dominance, are meeting or beating the levels needed to sustain human life… “I am not suggesting the status quo was the best. Evolution is built into nature. But I do wonder what the master plan is because the most fundamental requirement for sustainability of human life is the reproduction needed to replace our short time on this planet. The ‘advancement’ and adoption of western world philosophy is not fulfilling that basic need.”
Ted Wilson: “I hear you saying is that the only constant is change. And I agree with you. The wise person is the one who can discern what is improvement and what is just change for the sake of change. Sometimes it’s trial and error. Sometimes it’s ‘Bin dare. Done dat. Doan wanna do it again’.”
Charles Hill objected to a term I applied to employment in the Schlafly family: “What do you mean ‘low status?’ I was an elementary school teacher for 9 years and then spent 18 years as a college professor training teachers how to teach. If wages are the measure of status, then yes. If influence in shaping society and doing an incredibly difficult job in shaping society, that is very high status.”
Allen Edwards (from Australia, possibly his first response to a column) had some continued comments on the previous week’s column, about the environmental crisis: “Yes, all of us on planet earth face an uncertain future. I don't understand the reluctance by governments around the world to take action to limit/reduce climate change. If we take the recommended actions, what is the worst outcome? A cleaner, fresher environment which continues to become warmer. And the best outcome? A cleaner, fresher environment which does not continue to become warmer.”
Frank Martens took issue with last week’s letters: “People like Cliff Boldt don't realize that with every trip they take abroad they add to the pollution by increasing the CO2 level in our atmosphere. You don't have to go to Europe to see what is happening there. It's on TV every day -- PBS, Knowledge Network. It's in books and magazines. “Another writer asked: ‘What's a 75-year-old guy like me to do with my remaining days/years?’ “My suggestion to him is not to sit around and do nothing but to go out and spread the word about climate change. Make sure you have all the facts about temperature changes, about bird and fish migration, about glacier melting, about Greenland ice melting, etc. And then go out and preach the gospel according to Suzuki.”
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TECHNICAL STUFF
This column comes to you using the electronic facilities of Woodlakebooks.com. If you want to comment on something, send a message directly to me, at jimt@quixotic.ca. Or just hit the “Reply” button. To subscribe or unsubscribe, send me an e-mail message at the address above. Or subscribe electronically by sending a blank email (no message) to sharpedges-subscribe@lists.quixotic.ca. Similarly, you can un-subscribe at sharpedgesunsubscribe@lists.quixotic.ca. Unfortunately, the archived columns at http://edges.Canadahomepage.net have disappeared. The site was hijacked, and I haven’t been able to get it back I’m hoping to have a new website up fairly soon. I write a second column each Wednesday, called Soft Edges, which deals somewhat more gently with issues of life and faith. To sign up for Soft Edges, write to me directly, at the address above, or send a blank e-mail to softedges-subscribe@lists.quixotic.ca
PROMOTION STUFF… Ralph Milton ’s latest project is called “Sing Hallelujah” -- the world’s first video hymnal. It consists of 100 popular hymns, both new and old, on five DVDs that can be played using a standard DVD player and TV screen, for use in congregations who lack skilled musicians to play piano or organ. More details at www.singhallelujah.com Ralph’s HymnSight webpage is still up, http://www.hymnsight.ca, with a vast gallery of photos you can use to enhance the appearance of the visual images you project for liturgical use (prayers, responses, hymn verses, etc.) Wayne Irwin's “Churchweb Canada,” an inexpensive service for any congregation wanting to develop a web presence, with free consultation. <http://www.churchwebcanada.ca> Isabel Gibson’s thoughtful and well-written blog, www.traditionaliconoclast.com Alva Wood’s satiric stories about incompetent bureaucrats and prejudiced attitudes in a small town -- not particularly religious, but fun; alvawood@gmail.com to get onto her mailing list. Tom Watson writes a weekly blog called “The View from Grandpa Tom’s Balcony” -- ruminations on various subjects, and feedback from Tom’s readers. Write him at tomwatso@gmail.com or twatson@sentex.net
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