As Jesus said, “the Spirit will lead you into all truth.” We believe that scripture is the central form of authority, but that tradition and reason, inspired by the Spirit are also authoritative. As we engage in discernment over an issue, often for generations, it may seem we are all over the map, but we aren’t. We are allowing the Holy Spirit to guide us and lead us as a community to where God would have us go. Sometime people of good faith may come out and say something off the wall, but others in the church, over time will guide the church as a whole to God’s path. This is just the messiness of faithful discernment.

My Episcopal church, as well as many others, are growing.

What I wonder, the Episcopal Church’s sermons on abortion, that it is “one of God’s blessings”, have been received by other Christian churches? This would seem to be contradictory to the Christian faith. Has there been any calls of “heresy”?

This isn’t just one “priest” as Ragsdale is set to be head and President of the Episcopal Divinity School.
If you don’t ask your members to leave their brains at the door, just where do you guys put them?

Just curious.

And I had no difficulty finding the Rev. Ragsdale’s full sermon. While i may not agree with her, it’s typical that detractors are focusing on one or two paragraphs of a much larger sermon. When read in full context it’s a bit easier to see the point she’s trying to make.

And it’s probably hard for those of you who suffer from an authoritarian follower’s mindset to grasp but the opinions of one priest are hardly representative of the entire Episcopal Church, which encourages a wide variety of viewpoints on this and many other important issues. We don’t ask members to leave their brains at the door.