Why An Ordinariate?

"As the Father has sent me, even so I send you.”

John 20:21

For many who live their lives in a western cultural context, the Gospel message does not seem to possess a significant reservoir of love. With the rise of Christian Nationalism, the condemnatory, painful, and often bigoted language used by some who profess Christ, and the ongoing failure of institutional Churches to protect those committed to her care, the Church is all too often seen as an enemy – not to culture, or the status quo – but to individual people in their day-to-day struggles. While the Church should challenge that which is unjust, harmful, and hate-filled at any level, the fact of the matter is that individuals have become the collateral damage of many contemporary Christian philosophies which functionally endorse shame and judgement as principal methods of evangelization and control in society.

Because we are convinced that the Church should never be a secular ruler, we oppose all practices within the corporate Church that would seek to coerce the consciences of anyone – believe or unbeliever – to walk in the way of Jesus Christ. All should be invited to loving relationship with God, not obliged by societal demand or forced by secular edict, to walk in a particular worldview or religious pathway.

Because of this conviction, we seek to establish a pathway for those who serve in the world today in the ministry of Christ Jesus to do so in fellowship with others who share the same beliefs, and who ultimately acknowledge that our understanding of Scripture, Tradition, Reason, and Experience – indeed our understanding of all things – must be unwaveringly rooted in our core conviction: “God is love.”

Thus, our Ordinariate is established. Those who practice Christian ministry as members of this Ordinariate are called to embody this core confession of divine love in their every word and work, and to allow themselves an equal measure of compassion and care when they themselves fail to see or to live out divine love in their day-to-day life.

The structure of an Ordinariate allows us to function in ways that meet unique needs with nimble responsiveness, and with a priority given to creative ministry on the part of a clercius of formed conscience, lived experience, and gentle compassion.