Who am I to Judge? The Pope, the Press, and the Predicament
“The Pope did not signal in any way a revolution in Catholic moral teaching. The judgment on homosexuality within the Catholic tradition is consistent and very clear. At the same time, the Pope was trying to differentiate between homosexuality and persons struggling with homosexual inclinations.
When the Pope spoke of a gay Catholic who ‘seeks the Lord’ he was speaking of a gay person who is seeking to live in faithfulness to Catholic moral teaching. …”
– Albert Mohler looks at what the Pope really said.
Is God Anti-Gay?
In the light of today’s comments ascribed to the Pope (“who am I to judge?“), Sam Allberry’s new book Is God Anti-Gay? may be particularly helpful.
“Every minister should read this book and we should endeavour to get it into the hands of as many of our congregation as possible.” – Paul Levy.
More on the book from Justin Taylor – and The Good Book Company has it on special.
First GAFCON 2013 prayer bulletin available
“A series of prayer bulletins is being issued in the weeks leading up to the October conference.
This allows provinces, churches, organisations and individuals to read about the preparations and to uphold GAFCON in prayer.”
– Download the first one from this page.
The St. James’ Massacre remembered
On Thursday evening, the congregation of St. James’ Kenilworth in Cape Town met to remember the terrible massacre of Sunday 25th July 1993.
The sermon preached by the current Rector, the Rev Dr Mervyn Eloff, is now available. Well worth hearing and passing on.
And a ten minute video, made shortly after the massacre, can be seen here (h/t George Athas).
Earlier post by David Manfield.
J.I. Packer’s conversion and C.S. Lewis
“Just this week, J.I. Packer celebrated his 87th birthday. We asked him to explain the formative role and influence of C.S. Lewis’s writings on his teen years, his conversion, and his later ministry, which he explains in this three-minute video.”
– from Tony Reinke at Desiring God.
‘Premier wrong to push for same sex marriage’ — NSW Council of Churches
“The NSW Council of Churches today reiterated its call to Premier Barry O’Farrell not to lend support to a push to legalise same sex marriage in New South Wales. …”
– Media release from the NSW Council of Churches.
‘Ugandans honour Australian aid worker Irene Gleeson’
“Up to 10,000 people have attended a memorial service in Uganda to celebrate the life of an Australian woman who cared for a generation of children traumatised by war. …”
– Story and image from ABC TV. More from The Bible Society.
Upholding the Administrator in prayer
After the retirement of Archbishop Peter Jensen, the Administrator of the Diocese of Sydney is the Bishop of South Sydney, Robert Forsyth. Please be encouraged to include him in your prayers in this time, and as he prepares to chair the Election Synod.
(Please also pray for the staff of St. Andrew’s House in this busy period of preparation for the synod.)
‘NSW set to back same-sex marriage’
“NSW could become the first Australian state to legalise same-sex marriage after an inquiry on Friday paved the way for fresh legislation that is supported by MPs across the political spectrum …”
– Report from The Sydney Morning Herald. Photo: NSW Government.
In what are we united?
“Organizational unity instead of Gospel unity is death. The failure of Christian ministries, be they church or para-church, commences when they lose their direction and become organizations that demand organizational unity over theological unity in the service of the gospel.
We all can see how churches have lost their way over time, but the para-churches can just as easily lose their way.…”
– Dean of Sydney, Phillip Jensen, writes in his weekly column.
Megachurch gallery
“It is estimated the number of megachurches in North America has risen from only 50 in 1980 to over 1,800 today. …”
– Wired has an interesting photo gallery of some US ‘megachurch’ “sanctuaries’.
Why you can rely on the Canon
“When it comes to the canon of Scripture, are 66, 39, and 27 the right numbers? How can we be sure which books belong and which do not?
Mark Mellinger recently sat down with Michael Kruger, president of Reformed Theological Seminary in Charlotte, to discuss this ever-relevant issue of Scripture and canon.”
– Read the article and watch the video here.
Related: 10 Basic Facts about the NT Canon Every Christian Should Memorize.
What is an Archbishop?
Phillip Jensen continues his brief series on the coming Archbishop’s election, and asks; “What is an Archbishop?”
“When it comes to electing an Archbishop the natural questions are ‘What does the role involve?’ and therefore ‘What are the characteristics or competencies that we are looking for in a candidate?’ However, the answers to these questions are quite different to most people’s expectations as they are not the most appropriate questions to ask.”
A one-sentence summary of each of Screwtape’s Letters
“In The Screwtape Letters, C. S. Lewis masterfully ‘teaches in reverse’ by wryly using demonic points of view to enforce a biblical one. He calls it ‘diabolical ventriloquism.’ Here is a one-sentence summary of each of Screwtape’s thirty-one letters that advise Wormwood how to tempt his ‘patient’…”
– from Andy Naselli.
Remembering the St. James’ Massacre
“Man’s evil trumped by God’s good – always!
Today (July 25) marks the 20th anniversary of the 1993 massacre at St James Kenilworth in suburban Cape Town. A commemorative service will be held at St James today to mark the occasion.”
– David Mansfield writes at SydneyAnglicans.net.
What we believe
The message at the heart of Christianity is really quite simple…