WA Provincial Council votes against Human Sexuality resolution

“The Anglican Church’s Provincial Council of Western Australia today voted unanimously against adopting the resolution on human sexuality passed by the Synod of the Diocese of Perth in October 2013.”

– Full release via the Diocese of Perth.

Archbishop Wabukala defends GAFCON

On Tuesday night, Archbishop Eliud Wabukala, Chairman of the Global Fellowship of Confessing Anglicans spoke at The Ridley Institute in South Carolina.

He spoke on “In Defense of GAFCON” with reference to The Thirty Nine Articles.

His address deserves wide distribution and is most encouraging. Archbishop Wabukala’s address begins 16 minutes into the video recording. (The address runs for about 45 minutes, followed by the question time which begins, after a break, at 1 hour 15 minutes into the recording. Also worth watching.)

Update: The text of his address is now available (PDF) on the GAFCON website as well as at The Ridley Institute.

Here’s a quote:

“I am so thankful to God that Christianity as moralism was not, on the whole, the gospel brought from England and the West to Africa and what we now call the Global South during the great missionary initiatives of the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Although the GAFCON movement coined the phrase ‘Confessing Anglicans,’ Provinces like mine which are the fruit of missionary endeavors have always been ‘confessing.’ For many of us the writings of John Stott and J.I. Packer simply were normal Anglicanism and too many of us assumed that the rest of the Communion thought the same way!

However, in the past thirty years it has become clear that the West has finally exhausted the capital of its Christian heritage. The combination of secularization and the growth of global media and communications has laid bare a fundamental theological divergence between Western secularized moralistic Anglicanism and confessional Anglicanism. The resulting strains have seriously damaged the Communion — many faithful orthodox Anglicans have been marginalized or even ejected from the formal structures of their Churches. Sexual immorality has not only been tolerated but held out to be holy and the Archbishop of Canterbury and the other formal instruments of Communion are no longer able to fulfill their basic purpose of gathering the Communion. …”

Stay in Noah’s Ark — or get into the lifeboat?

“I’ve just completed four years of training for ministry in the Church of England, and, God willing, have ahead of me many years of gospel ministry in the Anglican Church.

However, there seems to me to be more pressure than ever to doubt the integrity of that position. How can an evangelical who takes seriously his stewardship of revealed truth, ever with a good conscience take office in the Church of England? …”

– At The Church Society, Oak Hill graduate Matt Graham asks if it’s worth sticking with the Church of England. (PDF file.)

What Bugged Me in Church

“Strange things happen in church but to see a cockroach cross the floor of the cathedral can distract attention from the sermon.

My first thoughts were to get up and squash the thing. But what if some bug loving attendee was offended by my callous heel? Where would be the reputation of the Bishop then?

I remained motionless, trying to get my attention back on the sermon but that jolly roach was bugging me. …”

– Bishop of Armidale Rick Lewers and the lesson from a cockroach.

Introducing Bishop Greg

The Diocese of Newcastle website introduces recently-elected diocesan Bishop Greg Thompson to their readership.

Australian Christian Lobby welcomes defeat of NSW same-sex marriage bill

“The Australian Christian Lobby welcomes the defeat of the NSW same-sex marriage bill 21 to 19 votes in the upper house today. ACL Managing Director Lyle Shelton said it was time for state parliaments to stop using parliamentary time to debate a federal issue. …” – Media release from the Australian Christian Lobby.

Free ESV Study Bible web app

Crossway are giving away free access to the web version of The ESV Study Bible, in celebration of their 75th anniversary. It’s a companion module to their ESVBible.org.

Be sure to sign up before the end of November 2013 to get it free.

Rector bashed outside Sydney church (updated)

“The Rector of Naremburn/Cammeray, Canon Rick Smith, is recovering after being bashed by a group of drunken youths at the weekend.

The incident happened at the front of the church building at 9.30 pm on Saturday night, after several youths had held up a pizza delivery boy and stolen pizzas. …”

– Russell Powell has the story at SydneyAnglicans.net.
Please pray for Rick and his family.

Update: Police media release, “Anglican minister assaulted – North Shore”, 13 November 2013.

Your spiritual appetite

“This day was the best that I have seen since I came to England.… After Dr. Twisse had begun with a brief prayer, Mr. Marshall prayed largely two hours, most divinely, confessing the sins of the members of the Assembly, in a wonderful, passionate, and prudent way. Afterwards, Mr. Arrowsmith preached an hour, then a psalm … Dr. Twisse closed with a short prayer and blessing.”

‘So wrote Robert Baillie, one of the Scots commissioners at the Westminster Assembly, about one of the best days he had in England.’

– Food for thought. Read the whole post by Jeremy Walker at Reformation21 for a challenge, and then, over at the Proc Trust, see Adrian Reynolds brief words.
(Image: University of Glasgow.)

Chapel Messages from the RTS

Lots of helpful and encouraging Chapel Messages from the Reformed Theological Seminary in Jackson (including the John Reed Miller lectures – speakers include Mark Dever, Steve Lawson, Kevin DeYoung).

Chris Edwards to be Bishop of North Sydney

“The Archbishop of Sydney, Dr Glenn Davies, has announced that a church planter, with experience in Australia and overseas, is to be the next Bishop of North Sydney.

The Rev Chris Edwards was the founding minister of Holy Trinity Adelaide Hills, in South Australia, which grew more than tenfold under his leadership. He later led St Paul’s Anglican Church, Tervuren, Belgium and was chairman of its school. He is 52 years old.

Since returning to Australia, Mr Edwards has been the Mission Director of Anglican Retirement Villages, ARV, in Sydney.”

– Announcement via SydneyAnglicans.net.

And from Moore College:

Moore College graduate Rev Chris Edwards has been appointed the new Bishop of North Sydney. Moore’s Prinicipal Dr Mark Thompson moved the motion at last night’s Diocesan Standing Committee to confirm the Archbishop of Sydney’s appointment of Rev Edwards.

In his speech Dr Thompson remarked: “Many of us here might not know him — that’s true, he has spent 17 of the last 20 years outside of this diocese — but those of us who do will be confident that he will continue the good work done by Glenn in the northern region of our diocese.”

“He is a son of this diocese who understands us and will champion what we stand for. He values our heritage, loves our College, understands both our strengths and our weaknesses”

North West Australia could opt out of weddings

“The Bishop of North West Australia has warned that if the state or federal governments legalize same-sex marriage, Anglican clergy in his diocese would no longer serve as marriage registrars.

The statement by the Rt. Rev. Gary Nelson follows the decision last month by the Australian Capital Territory to legalize same-sex marriage…”

– George Conger reports for The Church of England Newspaper.

Don’t go it alone!

“It is no accident that so many of the commands given in the New Testament letters involve ‘one another’:

welcome one another; care for one another; bear with one another; forgive one another; submit to one another; admonish one another; exhort one another, and so on. Don’t judge one another, deprive one another, lie to one another, speak evil of one another, envy one another…etc, but do comfort one another, encourage one another, edify one another, and – above all – love one another.

The reason for all these injunctions is quite obvious: clearly, we need one another! …”

– William Philip at The Tron Church in Glasgow with a great reminder about the importance of church. (Photo: Russell Powell.)