Church practicing what they preach

Perhaps one thing is a given about faith. “The one unifying factor in

all religion is divisiveness,” said Rabbi Mark Miller of Temple Bat

Yam, a reform temple in Newport Beach.

The freedom to make that divide, engrained in our own

Constitution, is very much a part of why we feel that St. James

Church in Newport Beach has a right, with its refractory stance

toward the Episcopal church, to break from it. St. James Pastor

Praveen Bunyan and his flock of 1,200 congregants broke away last

month when they removed “Episcopal” from the church’s name, parted

ways from Episcopal Diocese of Los Angeles and the Episcopal Church

USA and took harbor with the Diocese of Luweero in the Anglican

Province of Uganda, Africa. St. James administrators and congregants

overwhelmingly voted to break away, citing the Episcopal Church’s

refusal to acknowledge Jesus Christ and the Bible as the only way to

salvation.

All Saints’ Church in Long Beach and St. David’s of North

Hollywood joined St. James in the exodus, which has riled Episcopal

church governors and surprised local church officials in the diocese.

Bishop J. Jon Bruno of the Los Angeles Diocese refused to release the

three churches, a prohibition supported by U.S. diocese Presiding

Bishop Frank T. Griswold.

But the decision isn’t theirs. While the issue of who owns the

church land and other belongings may be a matter for a court to

decide, the issue of what to believe is each person’s to make.

It was America, after all, that was a refuge for those fleeing

religious persecution in Europe in the 17th century. Roger Williams,

a 17th-century religious leader infused a rebel spirit into his own

writings, railing against uniformity of religion in the colonies. It

was the Church of England -- Anglicans -- that broke away from the

Roman Catholic Church, and the Puritans who broke away from

Anglicans. Judaism’s split into orthodox and reform strains is

another example of a break within a faith. In fact, we can find such

schisms in all faiths, Miller said.

But some words of caution.

“It can be a healthy thing, but often it is used to bash one

another, which I hardly think is pleasing to God,” Miller said,

referring to similar historical breaks. We trust it won’t come to

such a harsh ending and that congregation members’ desire to take

their own course -- to divide themselves from their church -- will

not lead to a divisive group in the community.

Most notably, though St. James opposed the Episcopal Church’s

appointment of an openly gay bishop, Bunyan said the break was not

because of a liberal attitude on homosexuality. We hope not. We also

hope he makes sure that the minority in his church, who did not vote

for a break, are not alienated, and that any gay members of his

church also are not pushed to a fringe.