Dear Ones,
With thanks for God’s abundance, I am writing to tell you about a sign of new life and growth in our diocese. Over the last year, The Table, an Indianapolis congregation planted in 2015 as part of the Anglican Church in North America (ACNA), has discerned a call to leave that denomination and become part of the Episcopal Church. Last week, The Table’s congregation voted 44-4 to disaffiliate formally with ACNA and to pursue affiliation with the Episcopal Diocese of Indianapolis, and yesterday, that decision became final. The Table, which currently worships in the Broadway United Methodist Church on East 29th Street in Indianapolis, will now begin the process of applying to become a missional community under Canon 20 of the Diocese of Indianapolis.
Over the past year, Canon Brendan O’Sullivan-Hale, Canon Kristin White, and I have talked, prayed and worshipped with the Rev. Spencer Ruark, the Rev. Ben Sternke, and the Rev. Matt Tebbe, co-rectors of The Table. In them, we encounter a strong and faithful call to the Episcopal Church, and a hunger for deep formation and enculturation in our traditions and practices. They have told us that our diocesan mission pillars, especially our call to stand with all the vulnerable and marginalized, have helped them discern their path forward to us. They are committed to being a safe place for LGBTQ people and to joining with us in our work to dismantle systemic racism and discrimination. I give thanks for their willingness to set out on this journey and for their care for The Table’s congregation in the midst of this change.
As our conversations with The Table have developed, I have been in close touch with Presiding Bishop Curry and his staff to ensure that we are proceeding in accordance with the Constitution and Canons of The Episcopal Church and with love and respect for our siblings in Christ who have endured the pain and hardship of schism and property lawsuits with ACNA. I have also sought counsel from and had conversations with my fellow bishops, including the bishops of dioceses that were forced to reorganize after bishops and clergy left the Episcopal Church for ACNA as our church moved closer to the full inclusion of God’s beloved LGBTQ children. And I have talked with Bishop Todd Hunter of the Anglican Church of North America, whose diocese The Table is leaving, and am assured that he intends for their transition to be peaceful and free of conflict.
In the coming months, as we continue our journey with the clergy and laypeople of The Table, I invite your prayers for them and for all of God’s people who may long to share our ministry of bold witness and radical welcome.
Faithfully,
