Three Streams of the Christian River
Introduction
I recently changed my denominational affiliation from The Episcopal Church to the Charismatic Episcopal Church. This is a relatively new church organized in the 1990s. However, it is not a “new” thing. Rather it is theologically a blending together of three older traditional understandings of Christian theology. Purposefully joining together into one body three important traditions into one organized structure.
Three Streams: Charismatic
These three traditions are Sacramental, Evangelical, and Charismatic. It is obvious from the New Testament that the Charismatic is perhaps the most ancient form of the church. The outpouring of the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost has been understood by all churches as the birthday of the church. Moreover, the book of The Acts of the Apostles could easily be named the Book of the Acts of the Holy Spirit. It is full of Charismatic events. On Pentecost the Apostles are filled with the Holy Spirit and speak in languages they did not know. In the following pages, we read of healings and other miraculous events.
In addition, it is in the Letters of Paul to the churches he established that we read about the various Gifts of the Holy Spirit. For example the 7 fold gifts of the power to Say, Know, and Do. These are the gifts of Tongues, Interpretation, and Prophesy; Knowledge, Discernment, and Wisdom; Healing, Faith, and Miracles.
Indeed, these gifts were not experienced widely during most of the following Christian era; due to a misunderstanding, the idea that they were only given to” jump-start” the church. It is also true that they were known to have been experiencing sporadically until the Charismatic movement burst forth in the early 1900s. This movement became known as Pentecostal and remained marginalized until the 1960s when it spread into the Roman Catholic, Episcopal, and other mainline denominations.
Sacramental
The Sacramental expression of the Church also traces back to the earliest days of the church. The key Sacraments have always been known as baptism and communion. They also include Ordination through the laying on of hands. This is formally known as Apostolic Succession. This is the traditional belief that each successive Bishop has had hands laid upon them by at least three Bishops who also received ordinations in the same way back to Jesus. Plus all who have received the sacrament of Confirmation are therefore connected in like manner! The Catholic tradition accepted by the CEC also includes Matrimony and Anointing for healing.
Evangelical
The third stream of the CEC is Evangelical. This tradition likewise goes back to Jesus who came dead in the Gospel of Matthew that Christians are to make disciples of all nations. This stream began to flourish during the Protestant Reformation with the widespread publication of the Bible in the vernacular beginning with Luther’s Gutenberg Bible.
My Journey
My journey to embracing the CEC began with my personal experiences of the Three Streams. I was raised in the Episcopal Church and as a child and young person was very active. I severed as an acolyte and then as a crucifer. I received the sacraments of Baptism, Confirmation, and Eucharist (Communion). I was President of the EYC (Episcopal Young People) and even had a small outreach ministry taking library books to shut-ins.
However, I was lacking in a real living faith of Evangelical or Charismatic expression. When my Father died my church experience was empty. No one had told me of or helped me experience a real and personal relationship with Jesus. I became an atheist.
About 6 years later in a moment of deep depression, I cried out loud “Can’t I just be?” Then God spoke to me saying, “Yes, and I Am!” It was my return to faith and the beginning of my participation in the Charismatic stream.
I was rapidly carried forth by the Holy Spirit to visit a priest and find myself before a Bishop and projecting towards seminary the following year!
A year later the summer before seminary I was a Camp Counselor at Pine Mountain in New Hampshire I came down with an illness. Although at first thought to be spinal meningitis turned out to be a local virus of some kind. During the illness, while lying feverishly in bed I was looking up at the bare lightbulb on the ceiling. It seemed to me a ball of light descended from the bulb upon my head.
Seminary
Upon reaching seminary I soon discovered a few classmates who were also of the Charismatic persuasion and also a Charismatic prayer group in a local church. This was 1974 at the height of the Charismatic movement including Episcopal leaders like Dennis Bennet and Terry Fulham. There were many synchronicities in those early days convincing me of the veracity of real encounters with the Holy Spirit.
Later Years
In later years opportunities to experience Charismatic events and mentors were plentiful. Among my mentors were The Rev. Phillip Weeks (later to become a Bishop in the CEC) and Francis McNutt of Christian Healing Ministries. Phillip provided a way for my wife and I to make a pilgrimage to the Holy Land. Moreover, I went with him on a month-long mission trip to the The Philippines. While there, we worshiped at the CEC Cathedral.
Further experiences in the Charismatic tradition included several events with Episcopal Renewal Ministries and a month visiting Our Lady of Guadeloupe Roman Catholic Charismatic monastery.
Evangelical
The Evangelical part of my spiritual journey was strengthened by exposure to Protestants of other denominations at the Seminary. I attended Colgate /Rochester/Bexley Hall/ Crosier in Rochester, New York. The students and faculty included Baptists, Lutherans, Methodists, United Church of Christ, as well as a few Roman Catholic. The Baptist from Crosier added the experience of the Black Church tradition.
Although I remained an Episcopalian, upon graduation I took a position as Associate Pastor of a Lutheran church. My Bishop, The Rev. Alexander Stuart came from Massachusetts to ordain my Priest in Christ Lutheran church. Coincidently, my last full-time position was also as Pastor of a Lutheran congregation, First Lutheran, Shreveport Louisiana.
Over the years I became more and more disappointed in the Episcopal Church. Until recently when my concerns reached a decision point I reached out to the CEC. The Very Reverend Patriarch of the CEC Craig Bates and I shared ministry in the Episcopal Diocese of Western Massachusetts back in the 1980s and have maintained contact over the years through Facebook. He was most welcoming and helpful to me in the process of joining the CEC.
Switch to the CEC
In January of this year (2024) I traveled to Selma, Alabama to visit with Archbishop Charles Jones who officially received me into the church. In closing, I encourage anyone seeking a full expression of the three streams of Christian Faith to learn more about the CEC. Click here the following link .