The Problem of Communion: The Danger of Denial

Or a very condensed recent history of The Episcopal Church

Within the hour of my posting on Cardinal McElroy last week, comments on other platforms downplayed how awful he is and how awful is the current situation in the Roman Catholic Church. It prompted me to quip that instead of titling it “You Don’t Know How Evil Cardinal McElroy Is”, I should have headlined it “You Don’t Want to Know How Evil Cardinal McElroy Is.”

Although those responses (and the heavy traffic that post has received — wow!) surprised me, I really should not have been surprised. For this sort of denial is typical of many Roman Catholics, ranging from very Trad to Vatican 2: Electric Bergoglio persuasions.

But my purpose here is not to give my Roman brethren a hard time, as tempting as that may be. So I will use a past episode of denial in a Protestant denomination to illustrate how it can become a serious problem that cripples right response to apostasy and other evils within the church.

But first an old joke. It is probably better said than written, but goes something like this. One Sunday, Reginald and Regina Churchgoer go to their usual church and sit down in their usual spots as they had for decades. When it comes time for the service to begin, the procession includes pride flags and rainbow banners. Then the non-binary priest says, “In the name of our manifold-gendered God, the Creator, the Redeemer, and the Sanctifier along with all of your God-selfs, Amen. The Mother of us all be with you . . .” For the scripture lessons, the Koran is read for one and the Bhagavad Gita for another. But there’s more. When the time nears for the consecration, there is an even newer innovation. Drag queen liturgical dancers sprinkle milk on the communion table.

At that point, Reginald grumbles to Regina, “I swear, if they commit one more abomination…”

Of course, part of the joke is that the Churchgoers have watched their church go step by step into apostasy and abomination through the years and did nothing except keep going to that church, sitting down in that same pew, and dropping their offerings in the plate. Though of a conservative mindset and giving an occasional grumble, they never put their foot down or walked out and likely never will. They were used to that church and somehow felt safe continuing to attend there.

The Churchgoers could have been 20th and 21st Century Episcopalians. When Bishop Pike and later Bishop Spong espoused blatant and very public heresies, denying just about every basic tenet of The Faith, rank and file Episcopalians wrote them off — “That’s just one nutty bishop.” They might have preferred Pike and Spong be disciplined but were not that concerned when they were not. Episcopalians are open-minded after all.

Then when bishop after bishop and diocese after diocese made it difficult for orthodox parishes to keep orthodox by taking away their Prayer Books and then running off orthodox priests and ordinands, those in dioceses that were safer (for a time) said, “That is those dioceses. Our diocese is fine, and our bishop is a good man.”

The consecration of partnered gay Gene Robinson as bishop finally shook up the Episcopal Church and led many to leave and form the Anglican Church in North America (ACNA). But many orthodox and somewhat orthodox still stayed. My parish, being the only non-TEC Anglican parish in town, expected unhappy Episcopalians to come our way. But few did. And Ephraim Radner was among those who insisted the orthodox should stay. And many, again, said, “That’s one bishop.” And, after all, perhaps their bishop did not approve of consecrating Gene Robinson.

But before long, it became close to impossible for a relatively orthodox diocese to elect an orthodox bishop and receive the necessary consents from the other bishops. And still some orthodox remain in The Episcopal Church, saying, “That’s not my parish.” And now there is even this Redeemed Zoomer character posting that orthodox Anglicans should return to TEC.

Denial upon denial upon denial. The results were:

Inaction or feeble action against apostasy while it was still feasible to combat it within TEC. When some finally did take action, it was already too late for The Episcopal Church. Many suffered as a result.

Once orthodox dioceses and parishes being overrun.

Resulting danger to souls accompanied by disobedience to the commands of Scripture to reject and evict false teachers from the church. (2 John 10, 11)

The death of a once august denomination.

In short, if it continues long enough, denial is deadly.

And congregational and non-denominational churches are not exempt, so I don’t want to see any Baptist grins. Ask people who had to leave David Platt’s McLean Bible Church. Ask those forced out of First Baptist Church of Naples, Florida in 2019. And I had a difficult experience with a power play at an independent church myself back in the 90’s. I was in denial for a time, but my eyes were eventually opened after great stress, and I got out. I still thank God I did.

This is becoming long already, and I’ve barely touched upon denial in the Roman Catholic Church — and that prompted this post in the first place. But at this point I best leave that to another post or maybe to a Roman Catholic writer.

For now it suffices to say that one cannot respond wisely to error in the church if one is in denial about error in the church and about the likely results of error. How can you respond to apostasy or other severe problems in a church if you deny there is a serious problem and that it affects you and yours, too?

Denial may give false comfort for a time, but it can be deadly in the end. Especially in this time of apostasy, Christians and churches must proceed with eyes open.