More Congregations Leaving Episcopal Church

An article in the Ocala Star-Banner talks about the disintegration of the Episcopal Church which has been escalating over the last couple of years.

The Episcopal Church is made up of 110 dioceses, which includes about 7,600 congregations. According to a September 2007 report, 32 congregations have withdrawn from the church and 23 have voted to leave since 2003.

Here's what's been happening in recent years:

Conservative Episcopalians believe the church is losing its biblical and traditional roots because of what they describe as a growing liberal leadership. The division between liberal and conservative Episcopalians centers on issues from Bible interpretation to accepting homosexuals. Most notably was the consecration of Gene Robinson, an openly gay man in a committed relationship, as the Bishop of New Hampshire in 2003. Blessings of same-sex unions in some Episcopal churches also have drawn much criticism in the Communion.

But the embrace of homosexuality isn't the root problem the Episcopal Church has.

One of the big problems, Curran said, is the Episcopal Church has worked to "reinterpret" Scripture for its own purpose.

"It's all about doing good works. It's all about loving your neighbor. It's all about reaching out to somebody in need. That's all good stuff. We do that here at Grace . . . but it doesn't reconcile you with the Father," he said. "I mean that comes through the Son and the power of the Holy Spirit. That's why we have the cross. The Episcopal Church has lost its understanding of the meaning of the cross, totally lost it."

Any church, whether it's Episcopal, Baptist, Catholic, Lutheran, Presbyterian, Pentecostal, or any other denomination, that departs from the foundational doctrines of Christianity as outlined in the Bible, has lost its way.

It's sad when a church or denomination is divided this way; after all, one of Jesus' last prayers for His followers was for unity and oneness. But when a majority or the leadership of a group refuses to follow Christ's teachings, it's better to part ways in order to remain obedient than to stay and be led astray by apostates.