[an error occurred while processing this directive] Daniel L.
Garrett Benjamin Franklin invented bifocals in 1784, the same
year the Methodists invented a new church in America. Franklin
was attempting to deal with two focal points in a single lens.
Methodism has struggled with a dual focused view of church,
alternating between classic ecclesial definition and evangelical
movement. The capacity to see both elements in our ecclesial
life defines the Methodist lens on Church. It requires a
balancing act to hold both sides in tension at once. In doing
so, we are better able to understand some of the dynamic
tensions within our church and between Wesleyan and other
ecclesial traditions. This dialectical way of doing church
provides a method for understanding United Methodist doctrine,
polity, and worship. I want to use as a case study a course I
taught at Eastern Mennonite Seminary in the spring of 2007:
Sacramental Theology and Liturgical Practice. The dialogue
between United Methodists and Anabaptists as they e