Above: The Logo of The United Methodist Church
Image in the Public Domain
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READING THE BOOK OF PSALMS
PART LXXVII
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Psalm 133
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Psalm 133 extols the virtues of restored community–in this case, after the dedication of the Second Temple in 516 B.C.E. The text also holds out hope for the restoration of all the tribes. That hope remains unfulfilled as of the writing of this post.
The unity of faith community is frequently elusive. The Pauline tradition tells us down the corridors of time that Jesus erases barriers separating groups of people from each other. Yet the record of the Church from shortly after the beginning includes people erecting and maintaining boundaries. The complete erasure of denominational identities is unrealistic, but denominations and congregations can cooperate or common goals.
I am a convert to The Episcopal Church. I am a contented Episcopalian; I am on this planet to be an Episcopalian. The Episcopal Church suits my personality, intellectual bent, sacramental tendencies, and social conscience. My autobiography reveals, however, that my initial spiritual formation occurred in The United Methodist Church, but that my rising Roman Catholic tendencies led to my amicable departure for the The Episcopal Church when I was 18 years old. That autobiography also reveals subsequent theological developments (Single Predestination, for example) which prevent me from maintaining intellectual honesty and identifying as a Methodist of any stripe.
The slow-motion schism in The United Methodist Church pains me. Those who commit schism from the UMC in the name of faithfulness either imply or state overtly that people who think as I do (Apostolic Succession, Single Predestination, Transsubstantiation, and a 73-book canon of scripture notwithstanding) are apostates. I argue this point because, if I were still a United Methodist and an intellectually honest one, the schismatics would be getting away from people such as me. I fail doctrinal purity tests. The Global Methodist Church, if it were honest, would call itself the Donatistic Methodist Church. The intention of having a big tent is noble. Unfortunately, many people do not want to live under it.
The hope of Psalm 133 remains elusive in more than one way.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
FEBRUARY 20, 2023 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF HENRI DE LUCAC, FRENCH ROMAN CATHOLIC PRIEST, CARDINAL, AND THEOLOGIAN
THE FEAST OF HEALEY WILLAN, CANADIAN ANGLICAN ORGANIST AND COMPOSER
THE FEAST OF SAINT STANISLAWA RODZINSKA, POLISH ROMAN CATHOLIC NUN AND MARTYR, 1945
THE FEAST OF SAINT WULFRIC OF HALELBURY, ROMAN CATHOLIC HERMIT
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BLOGA THEOLOGICA 
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