Bishop Minns’ Visit to All Saints by Alice Goodwin
June 9, 2011
Ballard Hall was filled to overflowing on Sunday evening, March 27, as members of two parishes gathered to hear Bishop Martyn Minns teach on evangelism during the Bishop’s Reception at Koinonia. Visitors from the recently formed Holy Trinity Anglican parish joined All Saints parishioners in singing with the praise band, which performed an eclectic blend of contemporary and traditional music. Father Chip ended the music session with prayer and invited Bishop Minns to speak.
Bishop Minns, the Missionary Bishop for the Convocation of Anglicans in North America (CANA), is internationally known for his leadership in the faith. He, his wife Angela, and daughter Rachel have visited All Saints before, and during his previous visit, he taught listeners that “God is good all the time; all the time God is good.” This year Bishop Minns spoke about the passage in Luke (4:14-30) in which Jesus, returning from the desert filled with the Holy Spirit, goes to synagogue in Nazareth on the Sabbath and reads from Isaiah 61:1-2. Jesus concludes the reading by stating, “Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.”
Bishop Minns went through each of Isaiah’s phrases that described the role of Messiah, applying them to the Lord. According to Isaiah, the Messiah was anointed by the Holy Spirit to preach good news to the poor, proclaim freedom for prisoners, recovery of sight for the blind, and release for the oppressed. Then, according to Bishop Minns, the Lord sets people free from the lie that we have value only because of what we have or do. While Jesus healed physical blindness, He also reached out to those whose blindness was caused by hardness of heart that prevented them from seeing God’s love in the world around them.
Because the Lord continues his Messianic mission through those who serve Him, Bishop Minns talked about evangelism, not as a technique, but as a way of life–a way of love. He recounted how seven-year-old Emily reached out in love to Norma McCorvey (“Jane Roe” in the Roe-vs.-Wade decision legalizing abortion). Over time Emily was instrumental in bringing Norma to church, where she gave her life over to the Lord. Bishop Minns also told the story about the way in which his daughter Rachel started a conversation with someone most people would have avoided. Learning from Rachel’s example, Bishop Minns also began to talk with the man, who eventually came to see him for counseling. Over time the man’s appearance and business changed positively as the result of being valued and loved. According to Bishop Minns, we are all called to carry out today, through the Holy Spirit, the mission of Christ as described in the passage from Isaiah. The heart of evangelism is building relationships with people by accepting and loving them.
A delicious potluck dinner followed the Bishop’s teaching and many lingered over the meal to visit with friends and meet new people. We look forward to Bishop Minns’ next visit with greatanticipation.
Photo by Melissa Crawford
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