Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1919-11-01
LEADING ISSUES BEFORE THE
RECENT GENERAL CONVENTION
OF THE EPISCOPAL CHURCH

damentaIs are embodied in Latin phrases
| in the seal of the diocese of Washing
| ton. namely. scripture, s3mbolum, mys-
terra, ordo.
These four principles. have been laid
| before all the religious bodies pro-
Tossing belief in our Lord, Jesus
Christ. as the Incarnate Son of God.
our Saviour. Hitherto the main diff
ficulty as to their acceptance has been
in the matter of holy orders.
In addition, however, to these pro-
posals. the general convention. some
years ago, created a commission on a
world conference for the considera-
ton Of questions touching faith and
order This commission has met with
kind consideration and its object has
received approval from all the main
religious bodies in our own land and
throughout the world. and especially
from the Greek church and the ortho-
dox churches of the near east. The
report of a deputation appointed to
visit Europe and the near east on be-
half of the commission, a pamphlet of
thrilling interest. was presented at
the convention in Detroit. The only
large communion refusing to enter
tain the proposition wss the Roman
Catholic Church. This conference will
undoubtedly meet within a year or
two.
These movements and the eXpe-
riences of the great war have led to
d strong ueSlTe IOT unity. Inc FTeS-
byterian Church has lately inaugural
ed an effort in this direction. In line
with these spiritual movements
number of members of the Protestant
Episcopal Church and of Congrega-
tional churches, without any official
sanction and purely on their private
initiative. conferred with each other
with a view to discovering a method
by which practical approach toward
making clear and evident the visible
unity of believers in our Lord. ac-
cordins to His will. might be made.
These proposals were made by a num-
Der of prominent bishops. presbyters
and laymen of the Episcopal Church,
and by leading ministers and laymen
of the Congregational churches. The
proposals eliminated in form of
canon recommended to be enacted by
the general convention. In general
this canon was intended to sanction
the ordination by a bishop of the
Episcopal Church under certain speci-
fled conditions, of ministers (who had
not received Episcopal ordination to
the deaconate and the priesthood,
without such minister denying his
mem bership or his ministry in the
communion to which he belongs. This
whole matter evoked much discussion
and not a little adverse criticism,
both in the Episcopal and Congrega-
tional churches.
In the general convention. in both
houses. it was discussed with great
seriousness and with a sympathetic
desire to find way to make the ap-
proach to unity a practical reality,
without the sacrifice of principle on
either side.
AS an evidence of the strong desire
of the convention to take practical
action on the proposals, a joint COM
mission of bishops. clergy and lay
men was appointed to continue con-
ference with the congregationalist
signatories to the said proposals and
to report to the next general con-
vention. First steps were taken to
effect a change in the constitution
which would. if approved, remove a
barrier in the way at present to such
ordinations.
This is. therefore. the most progress
sive action in the matter of organic
Christian unity that the general con-
vention has ever taken. but it is real
1y evolutionary from the standpoint
of the Chicago Lambett declaration
and not revolutionary. That it may
prove to be step in the direction of
healing the breaches between the
Episcopal Church and other -Epis-
copal communions is the earnest hope
and prayer of those who advocated
the course of action taken by the con.
vention.