Unity: 4th Sunday of Easter

On Easter Sunday, we gathered together, in unity with Bishop Kee Sloan and through him with all the people of the Episcopal Diocese of Alabama which he helps to govern. In unity, we broke ground on the new sacred space where we worship God together. And in unity we renewed our Baptismal vows. “Will you continue in the apostles’ teaching and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in the prayers,” Bishop Kee asked each of us, to which we responded, “I will, with God’s help.”

I hope you remembered all that when you heard this passage from Acts: “They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers.” Our Book of Common Prayer is filled with such echoes of Holy Scripture. In this brief description of the early church are what biblical scholars have seen as the four marks of the Christian church; then, now and always.

This past week, I attended the National Workshop on Christian Unity as the Ecumenical representative from this Diocese. There, I met with my fellow Episcopalians, Methodists, Lutherans, Moravians, Orthodox and Roman Catholics among others. And this passage from Acts supplied the theme for this year’s workshop: Together with Glad and Generous Hearts.

There has been much progress in our quest to be truly united in worship and community. We now have full communion agreements with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America and the Moravian Church. While respecting each other’s right to govern themselves, we have agreed that in our communion of bread and wine, it is the same Jesus Christ whom we receive. With these agreements, it is even possible for an Episcopal priest to serve in a local Lutheran or Moravian church, and vice versa. We are now in the beginning of a dialogue with the Methodist Church that, it is hoped, will lead to a similar agreement.

Each denomination will continue to preserve those practices and teachings that are most particular to themselves. But we are united in the four marks of the Christian Church. We seek a fuller understanding of the apostles’ teaching, together in fellowship. Together, we break the bread as Jesus told us to always do in remembrance of him so that he may be as present with us as he was with his first disciples. And together, we pray, sometimes as the Spirit moves us, but usually as our books of prayer teach us to pray.

At the same time, there have also been road bumps. Every year, there is a conference of the Episcopal, Lutheran and Roman Catholic bishops in Alabama. This year, our preliminary theme is “Winter of Ecumenism.” For decades, Anglicans and Roman Catholics have been in dialogue to find common ground. Through that dialogue, we have come to much more common understanding of the Real Presence of Jesus in the Eucharist. But more recently, the boundaries between us seem to be hardening. The current Pope has encouraged dissatisfied Anglicans to being their prayer book, and even their married priests, into the Roman Catholic Church as converts. Our respect for the freedom of Episcopal dioceses to do things their own way, even if we disagree with them, has certainly made it harder to find common ground with the Roman Catholic Church.

In fact, how easy is it to find unity in our own national church, in our diocese, in our parish? When you hear of the four marks of the Church, do they sound like a wonderful place in which we already live? Are they a vision to which we can hopefully aspire? Or as we hear of how so many churches struggling with declining budgets, declining membership and conflicting priorities, do these four marks of the early Church sound like an indictment of our failures?

That was the question which Dr. Mark Allen Powell raised at the Workshop. He led a Bible study of today’s passage from Acts. And he pointed us back to the beginning of Acts. Remember that Acts is Luke’s sequel to his Gospel. He begins the sequel by recalling that in his first book, he wrote about “all that Jesus began to do and teach until the day when he was taken up.” If Jesus only “began” to teach and do his ministry in the Gospel, then the book of Acts is about how Jesus continued to teach his church and work through his church.

Through the Holy Spirit, who in the words of our creed, “proceeds from the Father and the Son,” Jesus Christ continues to teach and do the works of God through his Church, broken as it is. So thankfully, all we need to do to be a united Church sharing the four marks of the early Church is to look for what God is already doing and get behind it.

I saw a church united last Friday, as Pauline’s family stood around her at Shepherd’s Cove. I led the litany for the dying, and then anointed Pauline for the healing of her soul. With our beautifully written prayers and sacramental actions, I did what we Episcopalians do best. And then Pastor Don Cotton prayed from his heart. And that opened the door for the Spirit to move through the hearts of Pauline’s family, as they all prayed with whatever words the Spirit gave them. Baptists and Episcopalians, we were united in the marks of fellowship and prayer.

I saw a church united on the Saturday before Easter. In the morning, with glad and generous hearts, we shared bread, actually in this case, beans and rice. But with the early church we took what you all have given and we distributed to those in need. Later in the day, we gathered as one fellowship, one community, young and old. With glad and generous hearts, we shared the joys of childhood. And together, we prepared this fellowship hall to be a beautiful offering to our Lord on the holiest day of the Christian year. We were united in fellowship, worship, and service.

Dr. Powell concluded his Bible study by saying, “God’s mission is going to get done, with or without you. But if you act fast, you can get in on it.” Let us be united in seeking out that mission, and getting in on it, wherever it is. If we act fast, then the marks of Christ’s Church will shine from us for all to see.