Split in church is tragically real
“Recent opinion pieces published in the Gazette about divisions in the Episcopal Church reveal more than intended.
One writes that only ‘four bishops’ have left the church and that ‘the vast majority of Episcopal churches’ don’t want to leave. This is the Episcopal Church’s oft repeated mantra — division in the church is numerically minor, therefore wildly overblown. This rhetoric fuels the crisis it seeks to deny. It isn’t helpful to claim that there is some smoke but no fire when there are flames everywhere. …”
– Suzanne Schwank, Chairwoman of the Diocece of South Carolina’s Department of Christian Faith Formation writes in The Beaufort Gazette.
(Photo from the Presiding Bishop’s visit to South Carolina in 2008.)
Abortion and Obama’s first few days
Here was President Obama’s statement on abortion yesterday, released late in the day:
“On the 36th anniversary of Roe v. Wade, we are reminded that this decision not only protects women’s health and reproductive freedom, but stands for a broader principle: that government should not intrude on our most private family matters. I remain committed to protecting a woman’s right to choose. …”
– Justin Taylor at Between Two Worlds provides the text of the President’s statement as well as some reflections.
Just where is the church?
Today I was briefly looking online at a paper by a certain Colin Podmore, titled The Governance of the Church of England and the Anglican Communion, to be presented at the next General Synod in February. In it we find what I consider to be the ‘institutional revisionist’ understanding now dominant in the Church of England …
– John Richardson responds to the assertion that ‘the church’ = ‘the diocese’ – at The Ugley Vicar.
Fort Worth Asst Bp Wantland ‘removed and released’ by TEC Presiding Bishop
“Dr. Schori:
This will acknowledge electronic receipt on this date of a letter apparently not mailed to me, but dated January 15, 2009, purporting to ‘accept’ my letter to you dated November 15, 2008 as a Renunciation of my Orders.
As you must know, my letter specifically declared that ‘I am not resigning my Orders’. …”
– Assistant Bishop William C. Wantland of the Diocese of Fort Worth responds to a letter from the TEC Presiding Bishop. Read it on the Fort Worth website. (And here’s the Episcopal Life version.)
‘Magic’ goat arrested for armed robbery
“Police in Nigeria are holding a goat on suspicion of attempted armed robbery.
Vigilantes took the black and white beast to the police saying it was an armed robber who had used black magic to transform himself into a goat to escape arrest after trying to steal a Mazda 323. …”
– Report at ABC News. (image adapted from Google maps.)
Episcopal diocese funds frozen
Financial services firm Morgan Stanley has frozen the accounts of the Episcopal Diocese of Pittsburgh because it is unsure who should be allowed to access them. …
In October, a group that represents about 60 percent of the local parishes voted to join the more theologically conservative Anglican Province of the Southern Cone. …
On Nov. 20, the group that voted against leaving the diocese wrote to Morgan Stanley about the assets. Its leaders claim they have not been able to use any of the $20 million in diocesan assets or personnel files since the split. …
– Read the full report from The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
Pittsburgh Anglican website. Pittsburgh Episcopal website.
There’s probably no bus
Steve Kryger at Communicate Jesus links to a witty response in The Church Times to the ‘Atheist Bus’ campaign in the UK.
(Photo: Jon Worth / British Humanist Association.)
Rick Warren’s prayer
Rick Warren’s prayer at the inauguration of President Barack Obama may be seen here on YouTube.
Transcript here.
And the text of Gene Robinson’s prayer on Sunday is here.
Disconnecting Gene Robinson
“Gene Robinson is not confused. He knows where he is going. On hearing the news that Rick Warren had been invited to lead the invocation he told the New York Times that ‘it was like a slap in the face,’ adding that ‘the God that he’s praying to is not the God that I know.’…”
– writes Charles Raven, Director of The Society for the Propagation of Reformed Evangelical Anglican Doctrine.