Episcopacy and the Reformed Faith

You can have a “school” of fish, a “court”of kangaroos, a “murder” of crows, and a “gaggle” of geese. However, recently I learned that the technical name for a group of episcopal leaders is called a “sherry of bishops,” sherry being their preferred beverage after 9.00 p.m.

I’m led to believe that Calvin, though preferring an elder-led model of church governance, was not radically opposed to  episcopal government outside of its Roman forms. In his book, On the Necessity of Reforming the Church, I am informed that he said this: “Let them give us  such an hierarchy, in which Bishops may be so above the  rest, as they refuse not to be under Christ, and depend  upon him as their only Head.” Apparently, Calvin and Bullinger also sent a letter to King Edward VI in 1549 that gave qualified approval to the episcopal system of government. In fact, Jacques Pannier said that “in authentic Calvinist doctrine, not only is there nothing contrary to the institution of the episcopacy, but everything is favorable to it, it is a necessary machinery, an organic element of the system boldly applied in its integrity.”

Now there are some bishops in the world who do for the kingdom of God what Hannibal Lecter does for vegetarianism. I was concerned and confused that my own names sake, Bp. Michael Bird of Niagra, was one of the first bishops in Canada to give his formal approval for the blessing of same-sex relationships knowing the costly divisions that it would cause. Some Anglican bishops remind me of a quote from Cyprian, “nec episcopus computari potest, qui evangelica et apostolica traditione contempta”. But it’s not all liberal dross, friends of mine have heard Bp Henry Orombi of Uganda preach and told me that they never knew an Anglican bishop could preach like that. I currently have my church history students writing an essay on Thomas Cramner, who is one of the evangelical “saints” of Anglicanism.

Over at Theological Theology, Mark Thompson gives an overview of the Sydney Anglican experience of an “evangelical episcopate”.