I'm wading in a little late--if three days after the fact in our rapidly paced media cycles means late--on what has played out of the nave in St. George's Chapel at Windsor Castle. The royal nuptials between Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have dazzled the planet, and rightly so, as royal weddings have captured the fancy of people worldwide for some time. I remember stumbling out into the Davis family room one early morning in July 1981 and saw my mother watching Charles and Diana tie the knot at St. Paul's Cathedral.
My post is not to critique whether Harry and Meghan are a good match. That's not my call. In fact, I had no beef with the service at all. Appropriate it was to have it at Windsor. Entirely fine it was to include variety, including the choral arrangement of "Stand By Me" (although I'd have preferred a more hymnodic medley, but then again, it's not my wedding). In fact, my most stringent complaint about the wedding was that it wasn't just held on the weekend (in contrast to many royal weddings being held during the week), but that it was held on the weekend of the FA Cup final at Wembley Stadium. But the wedding was at least energetic, in marked contrast to Manchester United's performance against trophy-lifters Chelsea FC and ManU manager Jose Mourinho's flaccid tactical coaching decisions.
What I found interesting was Michael Curry and his sermon at the royal wedding. Curry is the Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church in the United States. A number of my friends have been gushing praise over his homily; a number of my tribe have also been spending time on social media criticizing his words.
I don't want to lean to either pole...not because I fear commitment, but due to the fact I think dividing the question brings some helpful thoughts to the surface.
One thing I liked was that the service, and Curry's presence itself, showed the mosaic of how God calls people from every tribe, tongue, people, and nation. Curry is the first Black individual to hold the position of ECUSA Presiding Bishop. Meghan Markle, the new Duchess of Sussex (her post-wedding title), is bi-racial. The diverse makeup of the Kingdom Choir added to the mix. All this is cause to rejoice in a Gospel in which God is certainly not monochromatic.
As someone who believes in the power of preaching, I knew Curry would bring passion and energy to the pulpit, and boy, did he deliver. I watched the sermon and there is no doubt Curry packs a punch. What he says in verbiage is swollen with emotion. This is a man who believes that one's logos must be matched by full and proper pathos.
And Curry knew he was at a wedding service. There was no political protest in his speech, no social badgering. He spoke to everyone, but especially to the royal couple. And he spoke of love in all its dynamic elements. And to Curry, love can move mountains. This is a quality and disposition that can effect change. The sermon put him in alignment with the words of other such as the Apostle Paul, Dr. Martin Luther King, and others.
So can we leave it there? I don't think so. Here are my concerns:
(1) Curry spoke at a wedding, an event where admittedly you don't have much time to make your point, so you can't draw out implications of every idea in the beefiest fashion. I get that. But the idea of love--much like in Joseph Fletcher's Situation Ethics--ran through the sermon like a greased pig at a Kansas county fair. The emotive component of Curry's sermon was fine as long as one was willing to live with it. My issue is--and maybe this reveals I simply live within a Francis Schaeffer-like skin that wants concepts defined clearly--Curry didn't draw bright lines here. Years ago, Foreigner sang "I Want to Know What Love Is". Questions abounded here. What kind of love? And where is the source of this love? And what makes that love so dynamic? And why should we place our trust in its dynamism? Yes, I know Curry had limited time. But these are questions that need answers.
I also wondered why Justin Welby, the Archbishop of Canterbury, invited Curry. This is not an issue of Curry himself (although I'll ask questions of that nature in a bit), but the fact that the Episcopal Church that Curry leads--months ago--was sanctioned by the Anglican Communion in a provincial gathering at Canterbury, specifically regarding the ECUSA's plunge into affirming rites for same-sex marriage. One wonders why--at the very least in the name of hierarchical symbolic appearance--Welby extended Curry this invitation when the ECUSA is under sanctions. Just a question.
In addition, one could also ask why Curry preached at a service of heterosexual marriage when his own views on marriage conflict with the official views of ninety percent of the Anglican world. Curry has his hands on the leadership wheel of his own faith tribe with views on same-sex marriage (and transgenderism) that conflicts with everything that is specifically declared in Holy Scripture, especially the recorded words of Jesus Christ and the Apostle Paul. I don't say this out of hatred for gays, lesbians, or transgendered folks. And if you need to reserve judgment on that previous sentence, you'll just have to get to know me.
But what to do about this? Curry said some great things, some true things, with a great deal of passion. Some things were murky, and yes, I do believe that a fog in the pulpit becomes a mist in the pews. Therein lies the opportunity! If someone was inspired by the wedding sermon, or if someone has questions about it, ask why. "What," you may ask your friend or acquaintance, "do you find likable about what he said? And why?" If they are inspired about the idea of love, ask "Why do you think he made a big deal about it?" Ask, "Does love change everything? What if it doesn't? What does it need to sustain itself?"
Maybe those are just starter questions and you need to go deeper. But more questions and ideas will come. Maybe the greatest gift Curry has given people of Christian faith is an opportunity to have deeper conversations with their friends about matters of ultimate concern and eternal significance. Don't worry about if you'll get through or make full impact in one chat. Just get some conversations going and see where they lead.
If that's the case, no matter what you think about last Saturday's sermon at Windsor, you might find that Michael Curry equipped you for more beyond just a homily.
No comments:
Post a Comment