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Episcopal 101 Session III

EPISCOPAL 101
Session III
The Whole is Greater than the Sum of it’s Parts
Organization of the Church

I. Universal Church
A. Scripture
B. History-Refer back to our first meeting,

2. World Wide Anglican Communion
3. Christianity and England
a. We already know how Christianity got to Great Britian
b. Made the official church of the Crown
c. Church of England, like much of English culture, spread through imperialism.
II. Today, the Anglican Episcopal family consists of an estimated 80 million Christians who are members of 44 different churches.
A. http://www.anglicancommunion.org/tour/index.cfm
B. Primarily followed the expansion of the British Empire
C. The leadership of the Communion is a confederation known as the “Instruments of Communion” http://www.anglicancommunion.org/communion/index.cfm
1. Archbishop of Canterbury- The 104th Archbishop of Canterbury, the Most Revd and Rt Hon Rowan Douglas Williams, was enthroned on the Feast of Blessed George Herbert, 27th February, 2003. He was previously Archbishop of Wales. His immediate predecessor was the Rt Revd Lord Carey of Clifton. The Archbishops of Canterbury are seen by the Anglican Communion of churches as their spiritual leader. He is primus inter pares, first among equals of the other Primates (Chief Archbishops, Presiding Bishops) of the various provinces. He is the Primate of All England and Diocesan of the Diocese of Canterbury. His "seat" is in Canterbury Cathedral where there is also "St Augustine's Chair" that marks the significance of Canterbury to Anglicans
2. Lambeth Conferences- The Lambeth Conference of bishops meets every 10 years solely at the personal invitation of the Archbishop of Canterbury.
1st. In 1867 Lambeth Palace hosted the first meeting but as the numbers grew the conference moved to Canterbury,
2nd. 2008, the invited bishops gathered at Christ Church Cathedral and the University.
i. A design group assists the Archbishop in the planning of the conference.
ii. There are appointed staff members as well as co-operative efforts of many people that support the Archbishop of Canterbury's own ministry, at Canterbury, the Anglican Communion Office, Church House and more.
iii. The Secretary General of the Anglican Communion serves as the secretary of the conference
iv. Their meetings are held in various provinces, by invitations, every 2-3 years
3. Anglican Consultative Council
a. Between Lambeth Conferences the WWAF is guided by Anglican Consultative Council
b. Study issues and make policy recommendations
c. http://www.anglicancommunion.org/communion/acc/
4. Provinces
a. WWAF made up of up 34 provinces, 4 United Churches, and 6 other churches, spread across the globe.
b. http://www.anglicancommunion.org/tour/index.cfm2.
c. Primates:
1st. The use of the title PRIMATE in the context of meetings of the Anglican Communion denotes the chief archbishop or bishop of a province of the Anglican Episcopal family of churches.
2nd. The “chief” designation is of importance here as in some provinces, such as Ireland and England, there are actually two archbishops holding the title “primate” So the chief archbishop of these two provinces becomes Primate of “All” Ireland and “All” England.
3rd. In certain provinces the primate is also called Archbishop and/or Metropolitan, while in others for historical reasons, the term Presiding Bishop, or as in Scotland, Primus, is preferred. In some provinces the term is translated to their own language such as Obispo Primado, in the Province of the Southern Cone (South America).
4th. http://www.anglicancommunion.org/communion/primates/definition.cfm
5th. Primatial See- The cathedral which serves as the home church of the Primate. Primates Meetings- The Primates of the Anglican Communion are the chief Archbishops, Presiding Bishops, Chief Pastors of the various Provinces of the global church. Their churches are autonomous yet inter-dependent in their relationships with each other. The Archbishop of Canterbury chairs their meetings, which are held at varying intervals at various places in the Anglican World. The primates have no authority as a "body" and their own national churches determine how their ministry is carried out in their own context. The customs and responsibilities vary from Province to Province
d. Episcopal Church
1st. History
i. Broke from the “Church of England” following the US Revolution
ii. http://www.anglicancommunion.org/tour/province.cfm?ID=U2
iii. First Bishop Samuel Seabury
2nd. Organizational Structure of the US church
i. General Convention
1. national gathering
a. Every 3 years
b. There are two houses here, Bishops and Deputies
2. And they decide things, big and small
3. They also select a “Presiding Bishop” that holds office for 8 years. The Presiding Bishop is our answer to the Primates in other parts of the Communion
a. http://ecusa.anglican.org/78715_ENG_HTM.htm?menupage=25399
b. http://ecusa.anglican.org/67608_ENG_HTM.htm?menupage=59957
3rd. The US Church also has it’s own Provinces:
i. http://ecusa.anglican.org/directory.htm
ii. Our Province:
1. We are in # IV (Southeast)
2. .http://ecusa.anglican.org/directory_11153_ENG_HTM.htm
iii. Note: There are 110 Dioceses in ECUSA and each has a Bishop
1. Diocese:
a. http://episcopaldiocese-tn.org/
2. The Diocese of Tennessee
a. In 1829, representatives from four congregations met in Nashville to hold the first convention of the Episcopal Church in the State of Tennessee.
b. Today, three dioceses comprise the original boundaries:
i. Diocese of West Tennessee created in 1983,
ii. Diocese of East Tennessee in 1985
iii. The continuing Diocese of Tennessee.
c. Though separated, the three dioceses maintain a number of shared ministries. (http://www.tnbishopsearch.org/downloads/TNdiocesanprofile2.pdf )
3. 45 parishes and missions
4. Rt. Rev. John C. Bauerschmidt, Bishop
4th. Organization of Congregations
i. Parishes elect Vestries
1. Responsible for finances of congregation (income and expense)
2. Work with Rector in ministry
3. Work with Bishop in selection of ordained clergy
4. Positions
a. Senior Warden- Rep of Rector to Vestry
b. Jr. Warden-
i. Rep of congregation to Vestry
ii. Also building and grounds
ii. Missions elect Mission’s Councils
1. Responsible for finances of congregation (income and expense)
2. Work with Vicar in ministry
3. Bishop appoints ordained clergy
4. Positions
a. Senior Warden- Rep of Vicar to Vestry
b. Jr. Warden-
i. Rep of congregation to Vestry
ii. Also building and grounds
iii. Both Priests and Congregants go to Diocesan Conventions
1. On matters needing voting, each vote in their own “house”
2. Each house has the same value

Episcopal 101 Session II

Prayer Book- Our Guide for Worship—Both Private and Public
A. History and Purpose
1. http://www.stlukesredding.org/html/common_prayer.html A fantastic, and short, history of the Book of Common Prayer
2. A scholarly approach to the roots of the Book of Common Prayer (it’s Catholic antecedents) http://encyclopedia.jrank.org/POL_PRE/PRAYER_BOOK_OF_COMMON.html -
B. Overview of Sections
1. The Calendar of the Church Year, BCP 15-33
2. The Daily Office, BCP 36-146
A. For Private and Public Worship
B. Emphasize the strength in numbers concept
3. The Great Litany, BCP 148-155
4. The Collects of the Church Year, BCP 158-161
5. Proper Liturgies for Special Days, BCP 264-295
A. Lent
B. Holy Week
C. Easter
6. Holy Baptism, BCP 298-314
7. Holy Eucharist, BCP 322-409
8. Pastoral Offices, BCP 412-507
A. Confirmation
B. Christian Service
C. Marriage
D. Thanksgiving for a Child
E. Confession
F. Ministry to the Sick
G. “Last Rites”
H. Burials
9. Episcopal Offices, BCP 510-555
A. Ordination
B. Celebration of a New Ministry
C. Consecration of a Church
10. The Psalter, BCP 582-888
A. Bibles were insanely expensive
B. Were no such things as hymn books
C. Psalms were used as music in the services
11. Prayers and Thanksgivings, BCP 810-841
12. Catechism, BCP 845-862
A. Series of Questions and Answers
B. Set up in sections to explain Episcopal Theology
13. Historical Documents, BCP 864-878
A. Athanasian Creed
B. Thirty-Nine Articles
C. Chicago-Lambeth Quadrilateral
14. The Lectionary, BCP 898-1001
A. Complex Calendar
B. Readings for Holy Eucharist on a three year cycle
C. Readings for the Daily Office (public and private) on two year cycle

Episcopal 101 Session I

A Short Course in the Traditions and Practices of the Episcopal Church

EPISCOPAL 101
Session I.

A Broad History of the Christianity with Specific Attention to Episcopal Traditions

I. The birth of the church
A. View this website:
http://www.xenos.org/teachings/nt/acts/gary/act2-1.htm
B. How many were in attendance
C. What happened
D. How did God use that to show His power and purpose very soon

II. Extension of the influence of Rome http://britannia.com/history/narromhist.html
A. First invasion by Rome of Britain
B. Conquering of Britain by which Emperor, when, and how much force
C. What happened to much of English culture
D. What was the greatest tool of Roman travel which enabled its influence to extend. Great care and hard work were used to create.
E. The influence of Roman thought survived in which institution.

III. Information and pictures about the construction of the boundary at the end of what Rome could conquer and control http://www.northumberland.gov.uk/VG/romans.html
A. Year it was built
B. What was that area of Britain called then

IV. Go to this website, click on the “watch animation“ and see a short video (Note: there is sound and it uses flash images. Don’t watch if you are epileptic!!) http://www.hadrians-wall.org/
A. How long is the wall
B. How many forts remain?

V. Information about the earliest Christian influences in England are found at this website: http://sisterhood2.homestead.com/Arimathea2.html
A. Find the person said to be the earliest representative of Christ to England
B. Find two dates associated with his visit
C. Place most often noted as the center of his work
D. Two sources for information (Hint: one “could” be verbal but another is a directly quoted Early Church Father)

VI. Catholic Church
A. The first use of the word “Catholic”
a) ( Catholic )
b) The first use of the word “Catholic” (Circa 160-200 – The word “catholic” used by Bishops uniting to fight heresies. The church becomes more organized with Bishops, Presbyters (priests), Deacons, and Laity as distinct levels of ministry. Christian writings begin to be sorted and compiled for common worship. The earliest form of the Apostle’s Creed was used as a test for new Christians.)
B. Development of the Early “Catholic” Church
1. Much to Constantine's annoyance, God's harmony continued to elude the Christian Church - as churchmen disagreed over the exact nature of Jesus. I
a) In 325, he called for the Church's first ecumenical (general) council, which was to meet in the city of Nicaea for the purpose of deciding by committee the nature of Jesus Christ and other issues.
b) Of Christianity's 1,800 or so bishops, 318 attended the conference - most of them from the eastern half of the empire. Constantine presided over the meeting. One group of bishops, led by the bishop Arius, claimed that God and Jesus were separate beings, that because Jesus was God's son there must have been a time when Jesus did not exist. Another group of bishops could not accept the notion that Jesus had been created from nothing and insisted that he had to be divine and therefore a part of God.
2. Division of Church into regions
a) Death of Emperor Constantine (337 AD) divides “world” in East and West, thus dividing the church into “Eastern Orthodox” and “Roman Catholic.”)
b) Each of his three sons - Constantius II, Constantine II, and Constans - acquired the title Augustus.
(1) Constantius II inherited rule in the eastern portion of the empire.
(2) Constans, inherited rule in Italy, North Africa and Illyricum.
(3) Constantine II inherited rule in Spain, Britannia and Gaul,
(4) being the eldest son he claimed authority over his brothers, who were unwilling to submit, and in the year 340 he invaded Italy.
(5) Brother warred against brother, Christian against Christian. Constans won and Constantine II died.
C. St. Patrick (Patrick)
1. Establishment of Celtic Christianity in Britain (Northumberland Communities - Holy Island)
D. Augustine’s move to Britain
1. View this website: http://volokh.com/sasha/canterbury.html
2. What was Pope Gregory’s reason for sending Augustine?
3. How many did Augustine “get wet?”

VII. The change in the Brits alignment with Roman Church
A. Check: http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/15610a.htm
1. Note the comment about the source of the influence on the Northumbrian king
2. Find the date of the Synod
3. What was the “other church”?
B. Development of the English Church
1. To find information on these events: http://www.wsu.edu/~dee/REFORM/ENGLAND.HTM
2. Wyclif’s work to bring the Bible to the people in their own language
3. The first part of the Reformation (Hint: The guy is named “after” your great priest!)
4. King Henry VIII and Parliament begin the “Great Schism”
5. Thomas Cranmer makes a “church handbook” in English to explain what is happening to the people in the pew
C. The Establishment of the US Church
1. The War of Independence
2. The establishment of an American church with ties to the historic line through somewhere else but England
3. The growth of the church in America with the help of the Church of England

Link to Session II

Link to Session III