This Far by Faith: Tradition and Change in the Episcopal Diocese of Pennsylvania

Introduction

Introduction david r. contosta The Episcopal Diocese of Pennsylvania—and its precursor, the Church of England in colonial Pennsylvania—have been shaped by complex historical forces. These include the history of Christianity, especially during its first centuries, the foundations of the Church of England in the sixteenth century, patterns of colonial society, an evolving American culture, world events, and life in southeastern Pennsylvania, where the diocese has been centered. Local Episcopalians have also been part of a national church that over the past two centuries has often been informed by dual impulses. Their church has seen itself as both Catholic and Protestant—a “reformed” church that claims apostolic succession for its bishops but allows for a large degree of decentralization and governance by the laity. Despite Episcopalians ’ strong roots in the Church of England, they eventually came to see themselves as the most American of all Christian denominations. This claim stemmed in large part from the disproportionate number of Episcopalians in national leadership positions. Of the forty-four presidents of the United States, eleven of them, or 25 percent, have been Episcopalians, although Episcopalians have never made up more than 3 percent of the U.S. population. The decision by the Episcopal Church in the early twentieth century to build the National Cathedral in Washington, D.C., often the setting for funerals and other services involving high-ranking officials, is a powerful symbol of its claim to be the national church of the United States. Another duality has involved the Episcopal Church’s emphasis on tradition , combined, in the best of times, with an openness to change as the wider culture presents new challenges. Tradition is grounded especially in the basic faith statement of the Nicene Creed and in the Book of Common Prayer. But respect for reason, as a divine gift and as an appropriate tool 2   this far by faith for reconciling tradition with present reality, has saved the denomination from rigid traditionalism. Episcopalians have approached the Bible in a similar spirit: different persons derive various meanings from scripture, and the Bible needs to be interpreted in the light of modern life. The Book of Common Prayer, which draws heavily on the Bible, also permits some latitude. While the words of the liturgy will be the same in every parish, actual worship practices might vary from Anglo-Catholic, at one end of the spectrum, to evangelical at the other. This “latitudinarian” approach to faith and worship has been part of the Church of England (and of the larger Anglican Communion, of which the Episcopal Church is now a part) since Queen Elizabeth I embraced a middle way that came to be known as the Elizabethan Settlement. This middle way has been one of the glories of Anglicanism, but it has also opened the door to controversy in every era. Without an infallible pope or a belief in a literal and unchanging understanding of the Bible, Episcopalians have been free to disagree about both faith and action. Yet, as one historian of the Episcopal Church has written, “Controversy is unpleasant but it is often a sign of life. A peaceful church is one that is slowly dying.” In the end, the Church of England’s middle way and conditions in colonial Pennsylvania meshed very well. Pennsylvania was the quintessential “middle colony” and then, following independence, “middle state.” Quaker tolerance did not allow for an established church in Pennsylvania. The Quakers’ belief in human equality, combined with their practice of toleration, also meant that immigrants were welcome from all over western Europe, making Pennsylvania a precursor of the religious and cultural diversity that would come to characterize the entire United States. Though members of the Church of England in colonial Pennsylvania were initially unhappy about their status as just one religious group among others, they eventually accommodated themselves to the situation. Pennsylvania’s middling position, geographically and culturally among the original states, made it the obvious place for founding the Episcopal Church after the American Revolution. William White, the rector of Christ Church, Philadelphia, and the Diocese of Pennsylvania’s first bishop, was able to use his sense of a middle way and a genius for compromise to persuade southern members of the faith, long wedded to lay control of their church, to accept bishops, without which the New Englanders would not have joined the fold. Meeting at Christ Church in 1789, the same year that the new Constitution of the United States of America took effect, White presided over...