The Rev. H. George Anderson, Presiding Bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), preached the fourth annual William Reed Huntington sermon at an ecumenical Eucharist at Grace Church, New York City, on Sept. 15.

Bishop Anderson, who had been invited to preach before the ELCA's approval of Called to Common Mission (CCM) [TLC, Sept. 5, 12], urged the congregation to be cautiously optimistic: "Although the ELCA approved a proposal for full communion by 716 to 317, I find that neither jubilation nor apology seems an adequate response ... prayer and thanksgiving are appropriate."

He explained that jubilation is premature because the Episcopal Church still needs to approve full communion at General Convention next July. Apology is unnecessary, he said, because the vote has taken place. He maintained it was time to move forward on full communion, which he defined as "learning and respecting the traditions of our Episcopalian neighbors and discovering areas of common heritage." Full communion, for Bishop Anderson, is a starting point, not an end.

Bishop Anderson began his sermon by tracing the work of Fr. Huntington, who was influential at the turn of the century and was Grace Church's sixth rector. Fr. Huntington is best known for his ecumenical leadership, culminating in the Chicago-Lambeth Quadrilateral, which was adopted by the Lambeth Conference in 1888 and remains the ecumenical standard of the Anglican Communion.

The "historic episcopate" motivated many of the 30 percent of Lutherans to vote against full communion at their Churchwide Assembly in Denver in August. Bishop Anderson, though, pointed out in his sermon that "full communion isn't about bishops, but about strengthening our witness to the world."

The Rev. Stephen P. Bouman, Bishop of the Metropolitan New York Synod (ELCA), read the first lesson, stood at the altar during the consecration, and administered the sacrament. The Episcopal liturgy contained hymns associated with the Lutheran Church.