An Incarnational Theology for the 21^st Century

By Ethan Flad

Last night I bummed a ride from one meeting to another with a Muslim friend. As we drove across the Bay Bridge from Oakland to San Francisco, he told me, "You Episcopalians act the way Christians should. You are truly open to new understandings of spirituality and faith."

This was a bit of a shock. Based on the past three months of strife in the international Anglican Communion, I have had little sense that people believe that Episcopalians are the embodiment of faithful Christianity -- and hearing this from a dedicated follower of Islam certainly added to my surprise.

It became clear that he was most impressed by how this process has represented a theology of incarnation. What he views as the core of our church's belief is our ability to see Christ in one another, no matter what nationality or religion or sexuality . . .

Of course, he and I live in the relatively liberal region of northern California, and my friend holds good relations with some Episcopal leaders who have been dedicated to interfaith dialogue and understanding. But as we talked about his views of our denomination's stop-start attempts toward inclusion, it became clear that he was most impressed by how this process has represented a theology of incarnation. What he views as the core of our church's belief is our ability to see Christ in one another, no matter what nationality or religion or sexuality -- and for him, this is a metaphor for the most important spiritual discipline in any religion.

It certainly hasn't seemed easy to see Christ in "the other" lately. This has been a sad autumn season of angry finger-pointing and name-calling around our church. Words normally associated with (horrors!) Baptists and Pentecostals, such as "Satan" and "abomination," have been thundering from Anglican pulpits and flying around the internet.

In an email exchange on November 6^th on the popular U.S. Episcopal "House of Bishops & Deputies" listserve, liberal bishop Walter Righter and conservative priest Christopher Cantrell (who often appear to be ideologically polar opposites) seemed to come to an unusual agreement: ordained gays and lesbians should come "out" -- for the sake of the church.

This perspective appeared to be based on an argument that has been voiced by many progressive church activists in recent months, who have stated that the "real H word" related to Gene Robinson's episcopal election is "honesty," not "homosexuality." Many modern church leaders across the political spectrum acknowledge that for years closeted gays have served as priests -- and bishops -- in our church. So, argue both Cantrell and Righter (with different agendas, of course), let's be "honest" and know who these people are!

That's terrible reasoning. While it's true that some communities are exhibiting more openness to the presence of LGBT people, that doesn't necessarily make these communities truly welcoming -- or safe. Consider two of the most "progressive" cities in the U.S. In San Francisco, the so-called "gay mecca," hate crimes against LGBT people are an ongoing problem. Out of 1,592 hate crime offenses related to sexual orientation reported nationwide by the FBI in 2001, 50 took place in San Francisco -- a higher rate of offense per capita than the city-to-nation population. Across the country in New York City, a good friend came out earlier this year, only to have some of the people closest to him react in anger. After 40 years of trying to live a "heterosexual" existence, this devout Christian had finally accepted his sexuality -- and is now paying the price for disclosing it.

If this is what's happening in the most socially liberal cities in our nation, it's hard to imagine the reception to a church leader coming out as lesbian or gay in Texas, with all due respect to Mr. Cantrell from Fort Worth -- much less overseas. I can't possibly count the number of gay and lesbian people I have met from Africa, Asia and Latin America in the past couple years. Many of them have gone into self-imposed exile in other countries to avoid persecution at home. And these are the same countries where we now hear the voices of Anglican bishops denouncing homosexuality as a "Western cultural export." If someone is really interested in "outing" in the church, I would instead point to Brazilian theologian Mario Ribas' "outing theology" for the church as an institution.

Following the October meeting of Anglican Primates, four bishops speak to the press about their sense of the future of the worldwide church. [Photo by Ethan Flad]

Progressives in the U.S. church need to be cautious to not overreact to the angry rhetoric coming from some international Anglican sources. "African bishops oppose homosexuality" is the headline that conservatives seek to establish as a mantra. Yet the fact that some international bishops do state that position shouldn't make it the church's sole discourse.

The real challenge for progressives is to build long-term sustaining relationships with brother and sister Christians around the globe. Indeed, the fact that many on the left have been as easy to buy into the "anti-gay African" stereotype that the right has sought to sell speaks ill upon progressives' commitment to the Three R's.

I'm deeply disturbed by a growing perspective that "bishops in developing nations don't know any better" -- this is at least disrespectful, if not outright patronizing. Personally, I also see current efforts to accuse African bishops of not condemning polygamy in their communities to be a form of race-baiting.

No, these R's are not the education-based "Readin', 'Ritin', & 'Rithmatic" of our childhood -- but they reflect a new teaching model for the church: Relationships, Respect, and overcoming Racism. Without relationships, there is no respect, and without respect, a sense of racial and cultural superiority is tempting. While its true that bishops do not make the church, I'm deeply disturbed by a growing perspective that "bishops in developing nations don't know any better" -- this is at least disrespectful, if not outright patronizing. Personally, I also see current efforts to accuse African bishops of not condemning polygamy in their communities to be a form of race-baiting.

The real issues of importance to most of our fellow worldwide Anglicans are overcoming poverty and supporting economic development, creating affordable health care and ending the AIDS pandemic, and growing political capital and achieving human rights. It's true that Western culture is a serious concern for churches overseas, and its regrettable that some of those church leaders are lumping homosexuality into their definition of "Western culture."

Unfortunately, as one East African veteran missionary friend said to me, our colonial legacy is biting back. After years of "McWorld" culture being forced down their throats, some indigenous leaders seek to hold out anything they think is an outside influence. As Ira Rifkin writes, there is a sense that this is a "global monoculture that is burying countless regional and even national cultural expressions" (Spiritual Perspectives on Globalization: Making Sense of the Economic and Cultural Upheaval, Skylight Paths Publishing, 2003). Furthermore, with the control of their cultures and churches being a prime concern, sexuality is one thing that some leaders believe they can actually legislate (unlike the daunting list of social problems above).

What will help us move forward out of this mess? I believe that it will, indeed, emerge from a revitalized commitment to a theology of incarnation. As progressives, we need to be "truly open to new understandings of spirituality," like my Muslim friend says. Specifically, it is time to move well outside our local communities to directly engage the spiritual experiences of the worldwide church. We must build new partnerships with international colleagues -- seeking to discover the face of Christ in those who may radically differ with us -- in order to achieve the difficult long-term goals of overcoming homophobia, racism, and injustice.

Ethan Flad stands in front of Lambeth Palace during the meeting of Anglican Primates in October 2003.

 

Ethan Flad is editor of The Witness magazine, and is based in Oakland, Calif. He may be reached by email at ethan@thewitness.org