Church in Brazil Observes Centennial, Enters New Century with Vigor and Serious Challenges
Episcopal News Service. July 10, 1990 [90185]
A century after two graduates of Virginia Theological Seminary began mission work in Brazil, the Episcopal Church of Brazil is celebrating its centennial with a grimly realistic assessment of the economic crisis facing the nation -- and a hopeful look at the future of its work.
"To celebrate a centennial today is more an act of faith than an assertion of triumph," Presiding Bishop Edmond Browning said in his June 3 sermon in Porto Alegre. It was in that southern city that missionaries James Watson Morris and Lucien Lee Kinsolving "opened the Book of Common Prayer in a public act of worship, thereby bringing to this huge and wonderful country the distinct Christian witness of Anglicanism," Browning reminded the congregation in his Pentecost sermon at the cathedral.
While acknowledging the immense problems faced by Brazilian society -- the largest third-world debt, rampant inflation and unemployment -- Browning added that the Episcopal Church in Brazil had "embarked anew on a voyage of self-discovery, of discerning anew the gifts with which you have been graced." The church also issued "a challenge to your mother church to join you in a new partnership, one based on new realities, for new times." The presiding bishop accepted the challenge and announced that he will appoint several members to join a commission "to begin to construct this new partnership."
The Episcopal Church of Brazil became a missionary diocese of the Episcopal Church in the USA in 1907 and became the 19th province of the Anglican Communion in 1965. By the time it became financially independent in 1982, it was obvious the national economic crisis made complete independence unrealistic. About 90 percent of the church's clergy, for example, need other jobs to support their families.
"The church in Brazil did not collapse, as some predicted, and it is now showing signs of new life," said the Rev. Patrick Mauney, the Episcopal Church's ecumenical officer who joined Browning on the trip to Brazil. "It is emerging from a very difficult period as a healthier church, one that is related more closely to the rest of the Anglican Communion," he said.
Mauney said he and the presiding bishop were received very warmly because it was obvious they had come to listen. "The presiding bishop expressed an eagerness to hear how the Brazilians might educate Americans on moral and ethical issues -- especially the effects of indebtedness," Mauney added. "They have powerful stories to tell, stories that the rest of us should hear."
Mauney said that the new partnership was important because "Brazil is an example of how a diocese moving toward independence should not be handled. They were left autonomous but unable to do mission." A new partnership might provide a more positive model.
"Lack of resources will continue to hamper them in their mission, but they are excellent stewards," Mauney said. "They are poised to be a dynamic new force in Brazilian culture -- and in the rest of the Anglican Communion," he asserted. He said the church has been blessed with some strong new leaders, it has a very ecumenical spirit and is working well with other churches in Brazil, and it is emphasizing lay training. And women are playing an increasingly important role in shaping the church's mission.
A three-day meeting that coincided with the centennial celebration, the Anglican Women's Encounter (AWC), brought 160 women from seven dioceses to plan for new involvement of women in the life of the church and society
. "The conference was guided by a vision that women need to claim their own power as leaders -- to transform their secondary roles to primary roles," said Ann Smith, executive of the Office of Women in Mission and Ministry for the Episcopal Church, who attended the conference.
"The strong message for women that they should no longer be victims of oppressive structures in their families, church, and society was creatively conveyed throughout the three days of the meeting," Smith said.
Regina Weber, a representative of the Latin American Council of Churches, told the AWC participants to see power in the light of courage. "The big problems we face in Brazil need bulldozers, not hand trowels. We need interdependence of male and female -- not the traditional dependent relationships -- if we are to build a new society," she said. "Men will not break the bonds of dependency, therefore women must be willing to move into new relationships."
"The conference assured women that they could make a difference -- both for the church and the society," said Elizabeth Miller, the Christian education coordinator of the Diocese of Pennsylvania, who attended the conference and the centennial celebration. "I saw an eagerness to be involved in social change on the part of women, and a desire to learn how to do that," she said.
Miller said that there is "a new generation of young women" who are challenging the traditional role of women in the Brazilian church. "The conference encouraged women to look at industrious women in the Bible. Participants realized that they could make a difference -- like Queen Esther in the Old Testament," Miller said. "As a result, many of the women went away from the conference asking how they could improve life in their local communities."
Many of the Brazilian women would return to assist the poor in nearby neighborhoods, according to Miller. "One woman said she would return to help train poor women in a nearby slum to sew. Another would involve women in Bible study."
Miller saw the struggle of women within the church and society as a mirror of the church's own challenge to do mission into a new century.
"The problem of the Brazilian debt reaches down to the women and children," Miller insisted, "and the church must figure out how to deal with the people who are affected. Throughout my visit I saw a great deal of anxiety because the Brazilian government has frozen bank accounts for a year. The condition of the poor and the unemployed is serious."
Miller reported that church-related schools have had a particularly difficult time making ends meet. "A lot of poor people send their children to the church schools. Since their salaries have been cut, they cannot afford to pay for schooling," she continued. "Therefore, many of the schools are operating under severe debt, and may have to cut back or even close down."
Miller visited one rural school that had been damaged by spring floods. "They haven't had money to do anything but clean up. None of the schoolbooks has been replaced yet," she said.
In spite of hardships, the churches and schools continue to function. "We saw tremendous concern in the church and schools about the environment and the burning of the rain forests in Brazil," Miller reported. "Children drew pictures about this and asked their teachers whether there would be any trees left when they grow up," she said. "Even the children realize that they have a responsibility in the future of their country."
Miller said that she believes the challenges ahead for Brazil and the Episcopal Church in that country will require the efforts of everyone. "On the surface it is hard to see how the church will make a difference in the life of the majority of the people in Brazil," she said. "Yet, in spite of all the obstacles, I am optimistic because I have seen that the church is making a difference in changing the lives of its people," she continued. "I don't think anyone has pulled the wool over their eyes. The Brazilian church realizes that it has tremendous challenges ahead, and it is committed to finding a way to make a difference."