From the Anglican-Orthodox dialogue at Nashotah House

Photo H/T: Voices from Russia

NASHOTAH HOUSE (Virtueonline) - Speaking at the afternoon session of "In the Footsteps of Grafton and ikhon", the Very Rev. Chad Hatfield, Chancellor of St. Vladimir's Seminary, ripped into liberal theological training. He was followed by Fr. Robert Munday, Dean of Nashotah House Seminary, who gave an uncompromising defense of the Church's teaching on Faith, Order and Morals.

Reminding the conference that clergy and the schools that trained them had once been trusted, Fr. Hatfield went on to state that this was no longer the case. Much of the fault for this lies at the foot of seminaries which have become "places of speculative theology and bad behavior."

The Orthodox chancellor went on to say that "faithful candidates arrive at our seminaries from across the country and walk out... wondering what it is they believe." This has had a disastrous effect on the Church, "A heavy diet of low-cal theology has left our Church emaciated and thin."

For Hatfield, the solution to this is a return to the substantial nourishment offered by the Fathers and Councils. Quoting Russian Archbishop Hilarion, he addressed the need to counter the twin threats of aggressive secularism and resurgent Islam: "Knowledge of the Fathers prevents Orthodox Christians from losing their way in the multitude of currents... the councils of the Fathers radiate a healthy spirit" a spirit that combats "sinful desires and promulgates good deeds." It's this spirit that will disprove the "forecasts" that "predict the disappearance of Christianity by the third millennium and its absorption by Islam."

Dean Munday followed, delivering an unequivocal "no" to the pansexualist agenda and the pantheist theology that supports it. He gave an uncompromising "yes" to "obedience to the Apostolic Tradition of Faith, order and Morals as consistently proclaimed in Anglican tradition."

Reading from the Nashotah House Statement of Identity, the Dean affirmed that sexual relations should be confined to men and women in the Sacrament of marriage. "We are committed to a morality which opposes... any false notion of inclusivity that denies... sexual differences, within the created order. Thus we maintain that sexual relations are appropriate only between a man and a woman who have been united in Holy Matrimony."

The Dean also spoke against abortion and assisted suicide, "Believing that all human life is a sacred gift from God to be protected and defended from conception to natural death, we shall endeavor to bring the grace and compassion of Christ to any who confronted with ethical decisions regarding abortion... or terminal illness."

Over and against theology which has lost sight of the given-ness of the Gospel and the central tenets of the Faith, Nashotah's Dean proposed fidelity to the "mystery of the Triune God", the Incarnation and the atoning death and bodily resurrection of Christ. In the face of Jesus' unique divinity and salvific action, religious relativism is not an option.

"Jesus Christ alone is the full revelation of God... All persons everywhere need to learn of him, come to know and believe in him, and receive forgiveness and new life in him, for there is no other name given under heaven by which we must be saved (Acts 4:12)," concluded Fr. Munday.

It is this message that the world needs to hear - both Dean and Chancellor delivered it.