Echoes from GC 2009 Heard in the 2011 Diocesan Budget

In March 2010, the Episcopal Bishop of Washington D.C. gave permission for priests in his diocese to preside at civil marriages according to this report from Episcopal Pravda Online. In July 2010 the Living Church announced that the Diocese of San Diego joins Massachusetts, Southeast Florida, and Southern Ohio in allowing same-sex blessings to "move beyond" where we were.

On May 15, 2010 we were presented with the "joyous" consecration of Mary Glasspool.

Does anyone remember this statement from one of Upper South Carolina's deputies to last year's General Convention of the Episcopal church? (Posted July 14, 2009)

Please remain calm!


Once again, as in 2003, we are dismayed by sensational headlines written, in some cases, by folks who have no understanding of Episcopal polity, our Constitution and Canons, or our Baptismal Covenant. Before you let anyone send you into a panic over the passage of DO25, pull out a copy of our Constitution and Canons and refer to sections on elections, ordinations, etc. While the fear is that passage of DO25 will further antagonize our Anglican family (and, no, it will not be received well), the reality is that the resolution did not actually change anything. What it does, in essence, is to say that these are our canons, the ordination PROCESS is open to anyone, but there are no guarantees that someone who goes through the process will be ordained. Our bishop feels that this resolution does not negate BO33, which asks us to exercise restraint in the ORDINATION of anyone whose manner of life presents a challenge to the Anglican Communion and to restrain from the blessing of same-sex unions (but, stay tuned – that resolution will be coming to us soon).

I can hear the echoes now... Please...Please...Remain...Remain...Calm...Calm...

I know that she was just echoing the Bishop's party line, but do we really need echoing deputies? Maybe so, if you are really desperate like the Sheriff was in this cartoon clip:



While our diocesean deputy was playing echo in 2009, the T.E.C. rats were in the hen house planning for their dastardly ordinations and same-sex liturgies to occur 2010.

The effects of GC 2009 are still being heard.

Although the powers that be in the Diocese of Upper South Carolina say, "blame the economy" (I recently wanted to stand up and shout, "It ain't the economy stupid!" when I heard that from the mouth of an Upper South Carolina clergyman), I think the reverberations from GC 2009 are one possible cause for the continued decline in the diocese's budget projections ($300,000 less income predicted for 2011) (Track the progress of the budget here). Falling Sunday attendance is another reason. It is getting increasingly difficult to ask people to come visit your church once you mention the brand name, "Episcopal." In addition, once visitors come and are exposed to the heretical views of many of our clergy, they take their Bibles and flee for their soul's sake, never to return. As a result, people just aren't giving to the Episcopal church like they used to. Why should they? Why give money to an organization that has chosen to walk away from your first love, the Good News as presented in the Gospels, as handed down by the Apostles. T.E.C. has taken on new lovers. For one, Biblical revisionism has, like the adulteress, lured the church astray. Pimps and prostitutes now run the show in the Episcopal church.

Woe to the church that does not hear the echoes from the past.

Woe to the shepherds who blame the sheep for a lack of wool.

I think for the next General Convention in 2012 we should send that same old cotton pickin deputy back, along with our new Sheriff, Andy, to represent us so we can hear all the echoes...echoes...echoes... from... from... from... 2009...2009...2009... again...again...again...

Of course, we might not have enough money to pay for their trip!