What's the mess in the Episcopal Church all about?

If you're not an Episcopalian or former Episcopalian, you may be confused by news stories about the huge war going on in the Episcopal Church of the USA (formerly known as ECUSA, now known as TEC.)

So I'm going to try to nutshell it for you.

The Episcopal Church is the US franchise of the Church of England, or Anglican Church. This historic church--which traces its roots clear back to Jesus Christ and the Apostles--is the 3rd largest church worldwide, in the form of the Anglican Communion.

The word "communion" is not limited to breaking bread or wafers and sipping wine to remember Jesus' wonderful sacrifice of His body and blood for us.

"Communion" means that a body of believers in Christ share the same beliefs. The problem arises when one member strays...and that is exactly what has happened in the Episcopal Church.

Newsflash: The Episcopal Church is NO LONGER CHRISTIAN! They do NOT believe that Jesus was divine, nor that He is the only name under which we may be saved...and this directly contradicts God's Word, the Bible. If you are in that church, please prayerfully consider leaving and joining an Anglican Church or a CANA or AMIA churh (google them) or a good Bible church.

John 14:6: "Jesus said, 'I am the way, the truth and the life, and no one comes to the Father but through Me.'"

How did this happen? It started in the 60's, with Bishop Pike of California. Don't get me wrong, Bishop Pike did some good work, including standing up for the civil rights of black folks.

However, he started saying that Jesus was not divine, that there were ways to get around Jesus and get to God, and saying that the Bible really wasn't relevant, and other heresies and blasphemies.

The church leaders met to decide what to do about this...and someone made the fatal mistake of deciding they should consult the media FIRST before they decided to try Bishop Pike for heresy, which would have been the right thing to do.

Word came back from influential media folk that no, you do not want to do a heresy trial, it will make the church look old-fashioned and you don't want that, do you?

At this point the proper thing to do would have been to stand up and say, YES, we don't care what it makes us look like, we want to do what God told us to do.

But they didn't.

They backed down.

They did end up censuring Pike, and he resigned. Later on, he and his wife went to Israel, got lost in the desert (a huge metaphor if I ever heard one), and he died in the wilderness of Judea.

This apparently emboldened John Shelby Spong, who became Bishop and began spouting even worse heresies and blasphemies in his horrible book, "Why Christianity Must Change or Die." As a Bishop, Spong participated in worship of the Hindu god, along with Allah, and Lord knows what else.

Spong has since retired, but continues to travel and speak, perpetuating his dangerous lies. For a lie is most dangerous when it has a kernel of truth in it, but then strays.

Needless to say, Spong was never censured or tried...and thus, Katharine Jefforts-Schori and a whole legion of clergymen and women were emboldened to stray from God's truth.

In 2006, Jefforts-Schori was elected Presiding Bishop of TEC (i.e., ArchBishop of the Episcopal Church.) She has refused to quit ordaining openly and actively gay Bishops and clergy, which directly contradicts scripture (hey, I know--I was gay myself for 15 years because I fell for the Big Liberal Lie that it's all OK, there is no sin if you just smile and click your heels 3 times...)

But the biggie is that Jefforts-Schori has said that Jesus is just "our vehicle to the divine," and not the only route. She says we need to go "beyond the Bible," which boggles my mind...how on earth do you go beyond God's Word? It is the ULTIMATE AUTHORITY!

So she finds herself on the outs with the Anglican Communion, because she has purposefully not shared their beliefs. And thus, the entire Episcopal Church's relationship with the larger Anglican Communion has been severely damaged.

See what happens when you don't nip something bad in the bud, like Pike's heresies?

I have been a life-long Episcopalian, but I no longer claim membership in the Episcopal Church. I cannot do it. They are against God and against Christ and they do not follow God's Word as written down in the Holy Bible.

The time is coming when we Christians will be GONE, and I will not be here to write this blog or explain anything.

If you have not drawn close to the one true God, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and made atonement for your sins by accepting the Messiah Jesus Christ's sacrifice of His life for YOU and for me, you need to do this NOW!

And yes, you HAVE sinned! I have, too...we all have, every single last one of us. Thoughts count, too, you know.

Just say a simple prayer like this: "Oh God, I am so sorry that I have sinned and fallen short of what you wanted for me. I humbly repent of my sins, and I happily accept the gift you sent me of your Son's life in exchange for my sins. I invite Jesus to live in my heart forever, praise God! Please guide me to live as You would have me live, and bless me with the gift of the Holy Spirit."