Ok, M didn’t say the blog was boring, just that it was primarily academic and political and didn’t talk much about our family life. And she’s entirely right. And yes, part of the point is to let our friends scattered around the country know what we’re up to so I’ll write more about such things.

M told me last night that she’s been reading the blog and has decided that—particularly in reference to other’s like LP’s—my blog is boring. I talk too much about Anglican stuff. Yeah, she’s probably right. So—a bit of levity for your Friday, a thought from the day from one of my co-workers that I’ll pass on for the amusement of the twisted:

Some people are like "slinkies". They’re not really good for anything; but they still bring a smile to your face when you push them down a flight of stairs.

Ok—here’s my picks for how things are going down. My best guess is that by next Christmas we’ll have:

++Schori as Primate of TEC (Anglican Communion)

++Williams as Archbishop of Canterbury (Anglican Communion)

+Duncan as Primate of All America (Evangelical Communion)

+Nazir-Ali as Primate of All England (Evangelical Communion)

I’m actually not going to call where ++Akinola will fit into this whole picture; I think it’s still too soon to guess…

Thanks to the magic of the Internet, we’ve got a clarification. The author of the piece responded to my query on TA and said in part:

By "we understand" we mean "we draw the inference from the number and speed of current events" or "our reading of the direction of recent statements is". Very happy to replace "we understand" with "it is probable that".

So–it is a ratcheting up of rhetoric. The timing does make things look suspicious but there is no proof.

Thinking Anglicans has put up a statement by the InclusiveChurch. Apparently the famed Anglican reserve has been put on a shelf because they come out swinging:

1.0 Conservative Evangelicals are clearly trying to create a defining moment for the Anglican Communion. The declaration by the Anglican Church of Tanzania separating itself from all who ordain, who are, or who support homosexual people, together with Reform’s “Covenant” are the next stages in the rolling out of a strategy which will, if allowed to proceed destroy the Anglican Communion.

2.0 We are seeing the development of a long term plan developed by various people on various continents which is intended to bring the Anglican Communion out of its historically generous and open position, into a narrowly defined, confessional group of churches rooted in the religious right of the United States and extending from there across the world.

2.1 We understand that the Tanzania declaration was produced at the behest of others with the specific aims of undermining the Presiding Bishop of the United States, challenging the authority of the Archbishop of Canterbury, and derailing the moves towards an inclusive Covenant which the Communion is beginning to make. It is a deliberately incendiary move. The intention is to pre-empt any decisions the Primates’ Meeting in February might make so that elements from the Global South and disaffected elements of the Episcopal Church rebels can proceed with their plan to set up an alternative Communion.

3.0 Reform’s “Covenant” brings this strategy into England. [continues from here… Read the rest if the link worked…]

These are some very serious allegations, especially what’s written in 2.1. These things should not be said without supporting documentation—where is it? If it exists then it’s time for the fat lady to start singing; if not, then this means the left is raising their own schism-producing efforts to new levels.

Either way, I don’t like it. “It” being the plans-within-plans, the gossip-mongering, the he-said-she-said, the let’s-you-and-him-fight, etc. ad nauseum. I’m so at “nauseum.” In short, I’m really tired of the political motivated power struggles over resources and money. It’s expensive—because it costs us our Gospel. On both sides.  This is no way for a church to behave.

Now I completely realize that I’m not at stake in this fight either. I’m not gay and no one’s trying to either push me out of the priesthood or out of the church all together. I’m also not likely to be shut out of a discernment process for being too conservative. I do believe that female clergy is a big piece of this realignment puzzle and I am fully invested in that one… All this is to say, to the degree that I represent the not-at-stake Anglican, both extremes are becoming truly irritating; something’s got to give and soon.

Nothing says it’s a wonderful Monday in [Department] like Skinny Puppy…

If the rumors out of England are correct and tomorrow brings the English Evangelical organizations throwing down the gauntlet before ++Rowan, the future may become that much more clear. In the chess game that is the Anglican Communion,  the ABC is a pinned piece. The Network can use him as leverage against liberals through a concerted movement of GS Primates. That is, unity with the ABC is wielded as a weapon in the apparently all important property disputes a la ‘we didn’t leave them, they left us’. If the C of E itself splits, however, in some sense the pressure is off—the pin disappears or at least is weakened greatly. Because both sides can’t have the ABC and it looks like the English Evangelical wing isn’t bluffing. If they do calve off, the ABC will stay right where he is and the Network will have to answer some really tough questions about how and why they’re willing to stay linked to the Primate of an increasingly more liberal church (I.e., conservatives leave, C of E becomes more liberal by default…). I’m guessing this isn’t a move that appeared in the Chapman Memo…