I’ve just finished my second year of Episcopal seminary. I’m frankly
appalled at how absent the living Christ is from the day to day discourse there.
Much of the biblical discussion revolves around things the bible got “wrong”. I
seem to be the only one there who believes in the virgin birth and the
resurrection. I get dirty looks whenever I refer to Jesus as “he”, and have been
ordered to never refer to God as “he”, “Father”, or “Lord”. God might as well be
“the force” rather than the loving Father I understand him to be.

I’m going to stick it out, get ordained (hopefully), and do the mission I
believe I’m called by Christ to do — use my ministry to open people’s hearts to
the Holy Spirit, so that they might believe and be saved. Some of this work will
be through evangelism, some will be through social justice work, some through
preaching, some through liturgy, some, hopefully, by example.

Much of what you said in your article is true. It’s very hard for me in a
very liberal mainline church to be a Christian as I, and it seems you, understand
what a Christian is.

Thank you for articulating so well my sources of frustration.

Yours in Christ,

[Name withheld]

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