"A Rector Resigns"

Rev. Al Kimel will join the Catholic Church.

At Pontifications, Thursday:

Below is the letter I sent to my parish today. St. Mark’s Church is a parish of approximately 200 members in the Episcopal Diocese of Pittsburgh.

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ,

Yesterday evening I submitted to the Vestry my resignation, effective July 1st. This was a very difficult decision for Christine and me. We have come to love Johnstown and the people of St. Mark’s. But we feel strongly that God is calling us to make this decision.

Twenty-five years ago, I was ordained into the priesthood of the Episcopal Church and into a vision of the catholicity of the Anglican Communion. The Episcopal Church has since become a very different kind of church. In the name of an ideology of radical inclusivity, the Episcopal Church has moved significantly away from the apostolic and catholic faith of Jesus Christ. With the decision made by General Convention two summers ago to approve the ordination of noncelibate homosexuals and the blessing of same-sex unions, it has, in my judgment, become heretical. I feel that I am a priest without authority. I cannot in conscience represent the Episcopal Church to the world, nor can I in conscience summon sinners into its fellowship. As a consequence I cannot function effectively as your parish pastor....

Lane Core Jr. CIW P — Sat. 05/21/05 06:43:48 AM
Categorized as Religious.