Wednesday 27th June 2007
“Punch Line Optional”
“How’s this for an idea? A translation of Scripture that takes postmodern inclusiveness to the furthest extreme, dumbs down the text to something less than MTV level, and changes all the politically-incorrect parts to make them teach the opposite of what they mean?It's been done. Seriously. I’m not making this up. Titled Good As New: A Radical Retelling of the Scriptures, this atrocity actually carries a foreword by Rowan Williams, Archbishop of Canterbury, the highest-ranking minister in the Anglican Church...” By Phil Johnson on Pyromaniacs.
Wednesday 27th June 2007
“Sydney ponders alternative Lambeth”
“The Sydney Diocese’s Standing Committee has urged Archbishop Peter Jensen and his five regional bishops to make crystal clear Sydney’s protest at Lambeth’s guest list if they decide to accept the Archbishop of Canterbury’s invitation to attend next year’s conference of the world’s Anglican leaders...” From SydneyAnglicans.net.
Tuesday 26th June 2007
Resolutions from the Meeting of the Standing Committee of the Diocese of Sydney
– Monday 25th June 2007 At last night’s meeting of the Standing Committee of the Diocese of Sydney, resolutions were passed concerning –
1. Consecration of Canon Bill Atwood Canon Atwood is well known to and respected
by many diocesan leaders in Sydney. He was a friend to many during the
episcopate of Archbishop Harry Goodhew; he has maintained these relationships
since the election of Archbishop Peter Jensen and is especially highly
regarded and respected by Archbishop Jensen. The Standing Committee voted as follows: “Standing Committee requests the Diocesan
Secretary to inform the Rev Canon Dr Bill Atwood of the deep pleasure
of the Diocese of Sydney at the news of the announcement by Archbishop
Nzimbi, Primate of Kenya, of the forthcoming consecration of Dr Atwood
as Suffragan Bishop of All Saints’ Cathedral Diocese, Nairobi on
30 August 2007. We assure Dr Atwood of our continuing prayer
for his ministry as he supports Kenyan clergy and congregations in North
America.”
2. Invitations to Lambeth Being aware that Archbishop Peter Jensen,
Archbishop of Sydney, and his five Regional Bishops – The Rt Rev
Robert Forsyth, Bishop of South Sydney; The Rt Rev Glenn Davies, Bishop
of North Sydney; The Rt Rev Peter Tasker, Bishop of Liverpool; The Rt
Rev Ivan Lee, Bishop of Western Sydney; and The Rt Rev Alan Stewart, Bishop
of Wollongong – had all received personal invitations from Dr Rowan
Williams, Archbishop of Canterbury to attend the Lambeth Conference to
be held in 2008; and also being aware that Archbishop Williams
had requested a reply to the invitation by 23 July, 2007, Standing Committee engaged in a lengthy discussion
about Lambeth 2008 with the Archbishop and Bishops of the Diocese. Archbishop Jensen commenced the discussion
by commenting on the present situation of the Anglican Communion as he
observed it and the implications of the invitation to most Bishops in
the Episcopal Church, including those who had agreed to or participated
in the consecration of the Bishop of New Hampshire, but excluding Bishop
Gene Robinson and also Bishop Martyn Minns. In response to the discussion, the Standing
Committee resolved the following advice to the Archbishop and Bishops: “Standing Committee notes that disregarding
the clear requests of many bishops, the Archbishop of Canterbury has
issued invitations to attend the Lambeth Conference in 2008 to the bishops
of the Episcopal Church of the USA who agreed to and/or participated
in the consecration of the Bishop of New Hampshire.
Standing Committee therefore – (a) respectfully requests the Archbishop
of this diocese to communicate to the Archbishop of Canterbury our dissatisfaction
at the attempt to maintain union with the unrepentant while continuing
to refuse fellowship to faithful and orthodox Anglicans such as the
Church of England in South Africa, (b) respectfully requests the Archbishop
and bishops of this diocese not to accept the invitation to Lambeth
without making public in protest, speech and liturgical action, both
prior to and at Lambeth, our diocese’s principled objection to
the continued participation of those whose actions have expressed a
departure from the clear teaching of scripture, and who have consequently
excluded orthodox Anglicans from their fellowship, and (c) respectfully requests the Archbishop
and bishops of this diocese to approach other orthodox bishops of the
communion with the purpose of meeting in England at the time of the
Lambeth Conference for Christian fellowship and the planning of joint
action within the Anglican Communion to contend for the faith of the
Apostles once delivered to the saints.”
(Also available as a separate page here. With thanks to Margaret Rodgers.)
Monday 25th June 2007
“Urgent Call To Prayer – Final Vote – Human Embryo Cloning Stem Cell Bill” – press release “The Rev Hon Fred Nile Nile and Rev Dr Gordon Moyes have called for urgent Prayer to defeat the Human Embryo Cloning Stem Cell Bill when the final vote is held in the NSW Legislative Council, (the Upper House) at 2.30 pm Tuesday 26th June 2007. The Bill’s misleading title is ‘Human Cloning and Other Prohibited Practices Amendment Bill 2007’ . Currently, two Ministers of the ALP Government in the Upper House, Hon Tony Kelly and Hon John Della Bosca, have announced they will vote against the Bill. The Liberal Leader, Hon Michael Gallacher, also will vote against the Bill. The National Party Leader, Hon Duncan Gay, will vote for the Bill. Invitations to Lambeth At this stage it seems the majority of Members will vote for the Bill, particularly the female Members, which is very disappointing as it is a Conscience : Free Vote. However, with Prayer, it is possible to change Members’ attitudes and influence some who are still undecided. If passed, Rev Fred Nile will move eight Amendments to the Bill.
Yours in Christian fellowship, Hon Rev Fred Nile MLC and
Hon Rev Dr Gordon Moyes MLC NSW Legislative Council.” – from a CDP Press Release.
Monday 25th June 2007
Same-sex blessing motion narrowly defeated in Canadian General Synod The Anglican Church of Canada General Synod came close to approving motion A187 –
The proposed motion said, “Be it resolved that this General Synod affirm the authority and jurisdiction of any diocesan synod
a) with the concurrence of the diocesan bishop
b) in a manner which respects the conscience of the incumbent and the will of the parish
to authorize the blessing of committed same sex unions.”
The votes were – yes 78 no 50 House of laity (passed)
yes 63 no 53 House of clergy (passed)
yes 19 no 21 House of Bishops (not passed).
Sunday 24th June 2007
“Debate continues on same-sex blessings” in Canadian General Synod “In its first full day of debate on issues concerning same-sex blessings, the General Synod on June 23 rejected calls that the issue be decided by a greater margin than usual. Synod members are being asked to decide whether the Anglican Church of Canada will permit blessing services for gay couples and whether that is consistent with church doctrine... ‘I have to come to accept that some people are ordered toward the same gender. The church needs to adjust its views...’ said Dorothy Davies-Flindall of the diocese of Ontario.” From The Anglican Journal. See also this resolution passed on the evening of June 23rd by the Synod.. “...this General Synod accept the conclusion of the Primate’s Theological Commission’s St. Michael Report that the blessing of same-sex unions is a matter of doctrine, but is not core doctrine in the sense of being credal, and that it should not be a communion-breaking issue.”
– However see J.I. Packer’s response to the St. Michael Report. You can see live video coverage of the Canadian General Synod at the General Synod website. (Someone seems to have thought the message they posted on the Anglican Church of Canada’s website – for when a file is not found – was funny. What do you think?)
Sunday 24th June 2007
“[Canadian] Anglicans choose Maritime bishop as new leader” “After an extremely close election, a moderate liberal male bishop prevailed over a conservative female bishop today to become the new national leader of the Anglican Church of Canada. Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island Bishop Fred Hiltz – whom supporters of same-sex blessings consider an ally – was elected primate on the fifth ballot, defeating Edmonton Bishop Victoria Matthews...” From The Vancouver Sun.
Saturday 23rd June 2007
 “The Church, the Bible, and the Body of Christ” “Dr. Rowan Williams, the Archbishop of Canterbury, faces an incredible challenge as he attempts to hold the worldwide Anglican Communion together. The communion is torn apart by debates over sexuality, biblical authority, and a range of related issues. Nevertheless, homosexuality stands as the most divisive issue of contention. In the current issue of The Christian Century, the Archbishop raises some basic issues about the church. Though he offers no developed ecclesiology, his thinking does point to at least two reasons why his communion is having such difficulty holding together – a wrong understanding of diversity and a weak affirmation of Scripture...” Helpful thinking from the Blog of Al Mohler.
Friday 22nd June 2007
“Under the Radar... and Over the Cliff” “By now, most readers in the Anglican blogosphere are familiar with the story of The Rev. Ann Holmes Redding. She is an Episcopal priest in Washington State who also claims to be a practicing Muslim. Her story first appeared in the Diocese of Olympia’s newsletter. In the article, titled ‘On being Christian and Muslim,’ Redding made statements about Jesus Christ that are nothing short of astonishing for anyone who claims to be a Christian, but even more so for someone ordained as a Christian priest:..” From Greg Griffith on Stand Firm.
Friday 22nd June 2007
“Summer solstice celebrated at Stonehenge” “Druids, drummers, pagans and partygoers welcomed the sun Thursday as it rose above the prehistoric monument of Stonehenge on the longest day of the year — the summer solstice. Clad in antlers, black cloaks and oak leaves, a group of druids cheered and danced at the Heel stone — a twisted, pockmarked pillar at the edge of Stonehenge...” Story from MSNBC.
Wednesday 20th June 2007
“Anglican Second Life Inhabitants Construct Medieval Cathedral” “A group of Anglican Second Life users from around the world have pooled resources to purchase an island in the virtual world, and build as its epicenter a decidedly medieval cathedral. The ‘Epiphany Island’ group is led by Mark Brown, CEO of the Bible Society of New Zealand. So why a medieval cathedral? In Brown’s opinion, the few churches already operating within Second Life are, for the most part, ‘poor imitations of what exist in real life’...” Story from Wired.
Wednesday 20th June 2007
 “Fort Worth Leadership Responds to Executive Council Actions” “The adversarial relationship between the Diocese of Fort Worth and the leadership of The Episcopal Church was exacerbated by two decisions made by Executive Council during their June 11-14 meeting, according to a June 19 statement issued jointly by the Rt. Rev. Jack Leo Iker, Bishop of Fort Worth, and the diocesan standing committee. During its meeting in Parsippany, N.J., Executive Council rejected a pastoral scheme proposed by the primates last February in response to a request for alternate primatial oversight made by seven dioceses. In Resolution NAC-023, Council also declared ‘null and void’ amendments made by four dioceses Fort Worth, Pittsburgh, Quincy and San Joaquin – qualifying their accession to the constitution and canons of the General Convention...” Full story from The Living Church. See also this Statement from Fort Worth (pdf).
Monday 18th June 2007
“I am both Muslim and Christian” (?) “Shortly after noon on Fridays, the Rev. Ann Holmes Redding ties on a black headscarf, preparing to pray with her Muslim group on First Hill. On Sunday mornings, Redding puts on the white collar of an Episcopal priest. She does both, she says, because she’s Christian and Muslim...” Full story from the Seattle Times. See also the Diocese of Olympia Newsletter – page 9.
 Monday 18th June 2007
Helpful Resources for Preachers Take some time to see the very helpful list of resources for preachers – on the website of Gilnahirk Baptist Church in Ireland. There are links to many encouraging articles and audio files. Gilnahirk Baptist Church website.
Saturday 16th June 2007
“Anglican fight back at ‘Nasty Party’ slurs” “Now a fightback is beginning, with a strong open letter of support for Turnbull posted this lunchtime on the AM website. One of the signatories is the distinguished evangelical Richard Bewes. Before flying to the US this morning for the funeral of Ruth Graham, Dr Bewes told me: ‘This campaign against Richard has all the hallmarks of a personal vendetta which will one day be exposed...’ ” From Ruth Gledhill’s blog on The Times website. See the letter of support – “An open letter in support of Wycliffe Hall” – from evangelical leaders such as Mark Ashton, David Banting and Richard Bewes.
Friday 15th June 2007
“Ruth Bell Graham dies at 87” “Ruth Bell Graham, wife of evangelist Billy Graham, died at 5:05 EST June 14, surrounded by her husband and five children at her Montreat, N.C., home. She was 87...” Baptist Press.
Friday 15th June 2007
New Council of the ACL elected At last night’s Annual General Meeting of the Anglican Church League, a new Council was elected for the coming year. Here’s the list of the new Council members (36kb PDF file).
Thursday 14th June 2007
“Kenyan Primate to Consecrate Former Episcopalian as U.S. Bishop” “The Most Rev. Benjamin Nzimbi, Primate of Kenya, has announced he will consecrate the Rev. Canon Bill Atwood as a suffragan bishop to oversee the U.S.-based congregations of the Anglican Church of Kenya (ACK). The Aug. 30 consecration of Canon Atwood as ‘Suffragan Bishop of All Saints’ Cathedral Diocese, Nairobi’ is ‘part of a broader and coordinated plan with other provinces,’ Archbishop Nzimbi said on June 12, to ‘support the international interests of the Anglican Church of Kenya, including support of Kenyan clergy and congregations in North America.’ ” Story from The Living Church. See also the reaction from Fort Worth.
Tuesday 12th June 2007
“The Principles of Arrogance” – How did the Episcopal Church get to where it is now? “... Though many will continue to deny it, the principles used to justify the ordination of women as priests and bishops, when watered and cultivated, grew into the justification for homosexual priests (and bishops) and for homosexual ‘marriage.’ ...” – Opinion-piece in The Living Church from The Very Rev. John R. Spencer, Vicar of St. Francis’ Church, Dunlap, Illinois.
Monday 11th June 2007
“An Open Letter to the Members of [the Canadian] General Synod 2007” “Dear Members of General Synod: As men and women who have experienced same-sex attraction in our own lives and who still strive to live chastely in accordance with traditional Christian teaching, the members of Zacchaeus Fellowship are gravely concerned by the motions before Synod that would bless and affirm same-sex unions. Contrary to what is implicitly suggested by the recent direction of our Anglican Church of Canada, not all persons with same-sex attractions want these attractions affirmed. We are especially concerned for those whom we describe as “silent sufferers” in the pews. These are the many individuals who adhere to the traditional Christian teaching on sexuality and wish for the church neither to condemn them as persons nor to encourage them to act on those same-sex attractions. To approve Resolution A186 or A187 would pull the rug out from under such people...” Open Letter on behalf of the Zacchaeus Fellowship.
Monday 11th June 2007
“Brown to give up power to pick Church leaders” “Gordon Brown is preparing to give up the prime minister’s historic right to choose the Archbishop of Canterbury – and other Church of England bishops. The move to grant ‘operational independence’ to the Church will represent one of the biggest changes to its relationship with the state for centuries. It is just one of a swathe of ‘royal prerogative’ powers, held by the prime minister, which Mr Brown is planning to do away with once he takes over at Number 10 later this month...” From The Telegraph.
Saturday 9th June 2007
New issue of ‘The Australian Church Record’ available The team at The Australian Church Record have just published the latest edition – with contributions by John Chapman, Peter Bolt, Jane Tooher, and others. Here’s a taste of the challenging article by John Chapman –  “Our present age is one which is marked by great prosperity. Can anyone remember a time when we were better off materially?
Medical science is such that we are living longer. Hedonism marks our age. The great Australian dream is to have two holidays a year of six months duration. If this is so we can hardly think about death because it laughs at hedonism. If we won’t think about death we won’t think about the Judgment Day or life after death. As Christians we are warned not to be conformed to the spirit of our age. It is worldliness and it has dire consequences. ... Could it be that we have forgotten the terrible consequences of a person meeting the Lord Jesus on the judgment day unprepared? ...” |
Download the 1.2MB PDF file of the ACR from their website – www.australianchurchrecord.net.
Friday 8th June 2007
Live Blog on the Embryonic Stem Cell issue – Gordon Cheng The Sydney Telegraph newspaper has invited Sydney minister Gordon Cheng to answer questions and comment on the debate. See it here.
Thursday 7th June 2007
 “Interview – The Authors of Pierced For Our Transgressions” “The history of the Church is quite simply the history of unlikely heroes who God raises up to meet the challenges of the hour. It was a great delight for me to recently spend some time with two such heroes — Dr. Andrew Sach and Dr. Steve Jeffery. They are both Anglican ordinands studying at Oak Hill Theological Seminary and yet, together with their new Principal-Elect, Dr. Mike Ovey, they have written a book that is shaking the evangelical world. As we sat and ate mushroom soup in a very ordinary flat, I couldn’t help but give thanks to an extraordinary God who uses ordinary people for His purposes. Pierced For Our Transgressions is a substantial theological book, yet it outsold its first print-run in just a few days. It has also had the longest list of endorsements of any recent evangelical book. When I spoke with Andrew and Steve, it had not been long since N. T. Wright had issued his strong rejection of their work as ‘profoundly unbiblical.’ I asked the two of them how they felt about Wright’s rejection of their work and the acclaim it had received from others. They both exuded the quiet, unconcerned response of those who know they have been commissioned by God. Yes, they had expected opposition, but no, they hadn’t realised it would come from N. T. Wright. As far as the long list of endorsements is concerned, this was to them not so much a reflection on the quality of the book itself as on the absolute importance of the topic to such a broad sweep of evangelical leaders. This is what Andrew said:...”
– from Adrian Warnock’s blog. Worth reading – and following the links in the article.
Wednesday 6th June 2007
“Catholic MPs to defy Pell over bill” “Two of the state’s highest-profile practising Catholics, the Premier, Morris Iemma, and his deputy, John Watkins, will defy the church's warnings that they face ‘consequences’ in their religious lives to support a bill to expand stem cell research in NSW. The Archbishop of Sydney, Cardinal George Pell, said Catholic MPs would need to think seriously about taking Holy Communion, the sacrament central to Catholic life, if they voted for therapeutic cloning...”
– from The Sydney Morning Herald. See also, “I’ll go to hell before obeying Pell” in the SMH – “... Mr Stewart, who is a Catholic, said he will risk his shot at the afterlife if it will make a difference to people with life-threatening diseases. ‘Maybe I’ll go to hell but if I go to hell I’m going to do so by saving a lot of lives, because that’s what this bill is about,’ he told Southern Cross Broadcasting.”
Wednesday 6th June 2007
“Archbishop Freier encourages prayer for the broken hearted” “Anglican Archbishop of Melbourne, Dr Philip Freier, encourages the people of Victoria to pray for the people who are shocked, angry and devastated by the horrific train crash near Kerang yesterday afternoon.
Dr Freier says at such times of immense grief and trauma, people need prayers of comfort and reassurance, that in the midst of these shocking circumstances, they may find some peace. “An accident of this magnitude brings home the everyday risks people are exposed to as we catch public transport or travel on the roads,” Dr Freier said. “When things go wrong in this routine activity, it has enormous consequences.”
The Archbishop sends his condolences to communities and families who are bereaved. “I join all Victorians in expressing appreciation to the emergency services workers who responded so magnificently to this tragedy.” “I will continue to pray for the injured, that they will recover quickly from their physical wounds, and I pray that God will, over time, heal them of their emotional wounds.”
The Archbishop will be contacting the Bishop of Bendigo to see if there is any pastoral support the Melbourne Diocese can make to the churches and communities in these shattered regions.” – Media release from Anglican Media Melbourne.
Saturday 2nd June 2007
“We’ve never had it so good, so why are we still unhappy” “...The Relationships Forum research, published in March, showed Australia is the only high-income country that combines very long average working hours with a high level of work at unsocial times – during weeknights and weekends – and a significant proportion of casual employment. After incremental change in working patterns over 30 years Australia has emerged as one of the world's most intensely work-focused countries, but it has created a human tragedy...” Story from The Sydney Morning Herald.
Friday 1st June 2007
 Peter Jensen – Presidential Address to the NSW Provincial Synod “A minor fuss has been created by the suggestion that potential citizens of Australia be asked to acknowledge the Judeo-Christian ethos of our culture. The main criticism has come, I believe, not so much from those who embrace some other religion, but from those who represent secularism. They seem to think that their belief system is the natural one and must be the default position in any discussion of what Australia stands for and what Australian values consist of. Secularism, understood as non-religion, rules. For a long time Christians in Australia have allowed this sort of thinking to pass almost unchallenged. I think that we have believed that it so self-evidently wrong that there is little need to refute it. But when a position is often repeated and never challenged, it gradually becomes a sort of orthodoxy and people start act as though it is true, or, at least the whole truth...” Read the full text of Archbishop Peter Jensen’s Presidential Address to the NSW Provincial Synod. (220kb PDF)
Friday 1st June 2007
“I didn't say you’ll all go to hell” “Giles Fraser’s comment column on Wycliffe Hall challenges our integrity, claiming that the hall is part of a ‘new wave of reactionary evangelicalism’, and that ‘it has no love in its heart for the values of learning’ (Not faith, but fanaticism, May 29). Wycliffe Hall is a permanent private hall of the University of Oxford. It was founded in 1877 for the training of ‘godly ministers’ for the Church of England within the evangelical tradition. Giles referred to Wycliffe ‘drawing upon a long-standing tradition of evangelical anti-intellectualism’, and said ‘the low esteem in which many evangelicals hold academic inquiry is a function of fear’. This comment lacks the very academic rigour the author complains is missing from evangelical scholars... I know of no homophobia or misogyny at Wycliffe. If there is any evidence then it must be produced. For Giles to say that I believe 95% of people will ‘burn in hell’ is a misrepresentation when the rest of my sentence, ‘unless the message of the gospel is brought to them’, is excluded...” A response by Dr. Richard Turnbull to be piece linked below. In The Guardian.
Friday 1st June 2007
“Not faith, but fanaticism” “the thought that Wycliffe has been taken over by Christian fundamentalists is ruffling senior common room feathers all over the university. For having a cell of religious extremists succeed in claiming one of its precious institutions does little to enhance Oxford’s reputation... Of course, what should really happen is that the bishops of the Church of England stop using colleges like this to train its priests. Places such as Wycliffe are turning Anglicanism into a cult. But it’s a symptom of how bad things are in the C of E, and how frightened its bishops have become of the financial muscle of conservative evangelicals, that they won't find the gumption to cut Wycliffe adrift.” Some fairly emotive language in this opinion piece in The Guardian – with some interesting reader comments posted below the article.
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