A retired priest once summarized for me the sermons she heard as a girl growing up in a very proper old Virginia Episcopal parish. “There was a lot of talk about God, of course. Sometimes you would hear about Christ, as a sort of general principle. But Jesus? Never. That would have been too Baptist.”
Times have changed, if Wednesday was any indication. At the walkabout of the four nominees for presiding bishop, there was an awful lot of talk about Jesus. There was even an evocation of the old fire-breathing, altar-calling evangelist Billy Sunday. Candidates were asked questions like: How does the resurrection of Jesus factor into your vision for the church’s future? What’s the good news of Easter, and why does it matter? Do we as a church believe in the great commission?
Read Full Article »