National Evangelism Conference Held in Texas
Episcopal News Service. January 23, 1976 [76014]
The Rev. John M. Good, editor of the INTERIM, Diocese of Missouri
GRAND PRAIRIE, Tex. -- More than 120 bishops, priests, and lay persons discovered that evangelism has both personal and social aspects at an evangelism conference convened by Presiding Bishop John M. Allin of the Episcopal Church, in Grand Prairie, Texas, January 15-16.
Almost half of the participants were leaders in areas of Church life other than evangelism, such as social and ethnic ministry, education, hunger, lay ministry, parish development, Episcopal churchwomen, seminaries, and religious communities.
Some speakers emphasized developing "a personal relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ," as the most important thrust of evangelism while others stressed the importance of renewing the fundamental convictions of the Episcopal Church and the moral demands for working to build up the kingdom of God in the world today.
The conferees heard two scholarly papers from the Very Rev. O. C. Edwards, president and dean of Seabury-Western Theological Seminary in Evanston, Illinois, and Dr. C. Eric Lincoln, professor of Religion and Sociology at Fisk University, Nashville, Tennessee. An ecumenical panel presented Baptist, Presbyterian, and Roman Catholic Church Growth models for evangelism strategy.
Both Dean Edwards and Dr. Lincoln called for renewed commitment to basic convictions as the first priority in evangelism. Dean Edwards suggested that Episcopalians reject the evangelistic methods of the fundamentalist churches which stress personal devotion to Jesus Christ. In his view conversion to religion from non-religion or conversion from one denomination to another is always a "change from an unorganized life to a life organized around a central idea" and involves moving "from membership in a group that constructs reality one way to a group that constructs it another way."
To this end, he believes evangelism will best be served by Episcopalians getting back in touch with those convictions "that were our reasons for becoming Episcopalians in the first place or for every getting enthusiastic about having been born that way."
Dr. Lincoln urged the conferees to recover the distinctive witness of the Church. Hitting hard at what he called "insufficient evidence of the Church's lack of hypocrisy," he argued that "our evangelistic effort is vitiated by the fact that many of today's churches and people have lost the conviction of sin and evil in the world." He said without this conviction there can be no recognition of man's spiritual need for reconciliation with God.
"We have come to use a kind of linguistic narcotic to cover the shock of our own sins," he said. "What is known in the Bible as fornication is known as 'experimental living' today. When the Church adopts the weaknesses of secular society and legitimizes them, then the Church may as well close its doors."
In small group discussions, the conferees attempted to identify those aspects of the Anglican tradition that would help them evangelize in the world. They also attempted to discover what new emphases would be needed in order to enhance Episcopal efforts to bring people to Christ.
Among the strengths the Episcopal Church already possesses, the conferees were reminded that the Church is "all over the map." A study done by the Glenmary Research Office (Roman Catholic) revealed that the Episcopal Church is the only non-Roman Catholic communion that is found in all parts of the country, with the possible exception of the United Methodist Church.
Those aspects of Anglicanism identified as strengths for evangelism were the Church's liturgical worship, its balance between subjectivity and objectivity, its roominess to accommodate various shades of belief, its distribution of authority among clergy and laity, its incarnational theology, and its commitment to serve the needs of others.
All of the small groups agreed that the evangelistic effort of the Church will be strengthened only as the laity is strengthened to make its witness to Christ. Several suggestions were offered for how the laity might be strengthened, including providing opportunities for lay persons to articulate their faith, developing a stronger sense of community in parishes, teaching that we can fail and still serve God, and overcoming the fear of sharing what Christ means to us.
Some groups pushed hard for the need for all persons to express, individually, Jesus as their personal Lord and Savior, saying that the Episcopal Church had not stressed this as much as other denominations do. Dean Edwards did not feel that this was an appropriate emphasis in Anglicanism. "It violates our understanding of the Trinity," he said, "as though Jesus or the Holy Spirit had gone into business for themselves. Prayer is always addressed to the Father, through the Son, in the power of the Spirit."
Still many at the conference perceived that the lack of a personal relationship to Christ and a burning commitment to serve him were responsible for the Episcopal Church's failure to be more successful in evangelism in the past.
Others at the conference expressed concern about the outreach of evangelism into the society. One delegate from Boston argued "I can't get too enthused about this personal relationship to Christ when the Church fails to address the problems my city is having." Boston still is in turmoil, he said, over the bussing of students to achieve desegregation.
Privately, several persons at the conference expressed the fear that renewed emphasis on evangelism would turn the Church inward upon itself to the detriment of its commitments to work for reform in the world. Just as many expressed the belief, however, that until Episcopalians renewed their faith and developed a commitment to witness to that faith, whatever efforts the Church makes to overcome social ills will not appear to be based on the Gospel and the saving grace of Christ.
Whatever point of view was expressed, almost everyone at the conference agreed that the conference had been useful in raising the consciousness of Episcopal Church leaders about evangelism.
The conference was organized by the Rev. A. Wayne Schwab, evangelism officer for the Executive Council.