Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, "Who do people say that the Son of Man is?" And they said, "Some say John the Baptist, but others Elijah, and still others Jeremiah or one of the prophets." He said to them, "But who do you say that I am?" Simon Peter answered, "You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God." And Jesus answered him, "Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father in heaven. And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven." Then he sternly ordered the disciples not to tell anyone that he was the Messiah.
When I read this Gospel I am taken back to my former Roman Catholic thinking for a bit. Anyone who is or was Roman Catholic remembers that it is from this Gospel that they defend the supremacy of the Pope"s "authority" over the universal Church. Now that I am Episcopalian and given the struggles I have had to accept myself as a gay man and how that relates to my faith, I have had to look at this particular narrative quite differently. As I prayed about what direction my personal faith journey had been taken me, this narrative now has a whole new life giving understanding.
The faith and revelation that leads Peter to confess Jesus as the "Son of the Living God" is the same as that of all Christians, straight or gay, black or white, able or challenged, male or female. The mission of Jesus to Peter as the rock upon which the Church is being built even today is the mission of all Christians, not just some, and not just one with all of the authority of any single person or entity. The ministry and mission of building up the Church which includes binding and loosening is something that all Christians are called to engage in, in and through the various ministries that we are a part of.
One day I was reading through the Catechism or Outline of the Faith in the Book of Common Prayer pages 845-862. As I was reading through the section on Ministry (see pages 855 and 856) I found some things to be quite profound. First to the question: "Who are the ministers of the Church?" The answer is: "The ministers of the Church are lay persons, bishops, priests and deacons." To the questions: "What is the ministry of the laity, bishop, priest or deacon?" Each separate answer begins with the same sentence: "The ministry of (laity, bishops, priests, deacons) is to represent Christ and his Church" Each order of ministry represents Christ and the Church in a different way, but the first order of all ministers of the Church is to represent Christ and the Church in whatever capacity they exist. That says something very important. It means that everyone in the Church is called to represent Christ and the faith in Jesus as the Son of the Living God and to participate in building up the Church. The completion to the question: "What is the ministry of the laity?" The answer in the Catechism is: "The ministry of lay persons is to represent Christ and his Church, to bear witness to him where ever they may be; and, according to the gifts given them, to carry on Christ's work of reconciliation in the world; and to take their place in the life, worship and governance of the Church."
The Gospel and the Catechism say something very important for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered members of the Church. As God calls forth people in the Church who are LGBT, so God calls upon us to be part of Christ's work of reconciliation in the world, and to do so according to the gifts we are given. LGBT people have been given the most wonderful gift of our sexual orientation and/or gender expression/identity. Embedded within our sexual orientation and gender identity/expression is how we love other people. We can and must love other people within the Church and beyond according to who we are and how God has created us. God has already gifted people who are heterosexual with that gift, and continues to bless them with how they help build up the Church. God the Holy Spirit has also blessed LGBT people with gifts to carry on Christ's work of reconciliation and has called us to take our place in the life, worship and governance in the Church and society. There are also LGBT Christians who are being called by the Holy Spirit to participate in the ministry of reconciliation as Bishops, Priests and Deacons, so that it is understood that all of God's people are included in Christ's ministry and mission in the world.
As the struggle within the Anglican Communion as well as with many other more conservative Christians continues to look for ways to exclude lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered people from ministry in the Church, the question becomes is the Church about faith and mission, or about power and control? Through out the centuries of the Roman Papacy what was suppose to be a person who was called as a man of deep faith, and therefore empowered to be a spiritual leader, has become an internationalized centralized struggle for power. The Papacy has gone beyond just an office of spiritual wisdom and a symbol of deep faith, it has become how much one religion can dominate the world and force it's way into lands and territories to turn political and national powers towards it's own thinking and behaving. That power struggle has left centuries of destruction to the faith of billions of people. Is that really what the confession of Peter as Jesus "the Son of the Living God" and being given the "keys of the kingdom of heaven" is about? I tend to think, not. And now in the Anglican Communion, with the Archbishop of Canterbury telling Episcopalians that they are no longer members of the Anglican Consultative Council in ecumenical dialogues, is that about mission and ministry, or is it about power and control? Control to the point of violating the boundaries of other Churches within the Anglican Communion because they don't like the fact that we now have two openly gay bishops? With such power arguments, is it any wonder why so many LGBT and Questioning individuals would rather be part of no church?
As LGBT Christians who are caught in the middle of all of this, it is very important that we keep our attention on the fact that the Church is about faith and mission. What that faith and mission means to each of us, is for each of us to to decide for ourselves within our own prayer life. Yet, one thing we can all agree on is that Jesus Christ is one incredible Savior and Lord. In Jesus, God has come to save us from our sin, and to reconcile the world to God's Self and call us to be reconciled to each other. LGBT Christians are called to be part of that mission, in whatever capacity the Holy Spirit has moved upon our hearts and minds.
O God, from whom all good proceeds: Grant that by your inspiration we may think those things that are right, and by your merciful guiding may do them; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen. (Proper 5, Book of Common Prayer, Page 229).
Almighty and everlasting God, by whose Spirit the whole body of your faithful people is governed and sanctified: Receive our supplications and prayers which we offer before you for all members of your holy Church, that in their vocation and ministry they may truly and devoutly serve you; through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen. (Book of Common Prayer, Page 100).
Gracious Father, we pray for your holy Catholic Church. Fill it with all truth, in all truth with all peace. Where it is corrupt, purify it; where it is in error, direct it; where in any thing it is amiss, reform it. Where it is right, strengthen it; where it is in want, provide for it; where it is divided, reunite it; for the sake of Jesus Christ your Son our Savior. Amen. (Prayer for the Church, Book of Common Prayer, Page 816).
No comments:
Post a Comment