Once upon a time I lived in the diocese of Virginia. During our stay in this great state I had an occasion to talk with Bishop David Lewis about the tenure of any given rector in the diocese. Bishop Lewis at that time set me straight. Vestries hire rectors but a bishop can fire a rector. Clearly, a rector serves at the pleasure of the Bishop of the diocese in which the rector serves. That conversation has stuck with me always. Rectors are at the beckon call of the Bishop.
In the diocese of San Joaquin this was never clearer than when the Conealonialists hijacked the diocese. Now, we get this statement from the Communion Partner Rectors:
For those of us who faithfully serve in dioceses that choose to reject or ignore the covenant, we ask our Diocesans not to impede the adoption of the Covenant by parishes in our dioceses. Such grace will allow these parishes and clergy to obey their consciences and calling to be members of the Anglican Communion and the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church.
The Communion Partner Rectors want desperately to follow their conscience and ignore the Bishop of their diocese in order to follow the bishop of Canterbury. Let's see, I do not like you as my bishop, despite the fact you gave me a job and through you I continue to gain both spiritual and physical sustenance in order to be a "a part of" the communion headed up by the bishop (okay, archbishop) of Canterbury. Does it not stand to reason if one will turn over one bishop in favor of another then that other bishop stands no better chance in the future? I get to be congregational when it serves me and diocesan when it serves me? Wow, what chutzpah?!
Clearly the Communion Partner Bishops are interested in an internal insurrection and now the Communion Partner Rectors are clearly a part of that. For those who may have one or more of these rectors please be very, very careful. They are not mavericks, as they would have us believe, these folks are scorpions waiting for one or more frogs to take them across the river.
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