Thanksgiving service for Margaret Rodgers
It’s been announced that there will be a Thanksgiving service for Deaconess Margaret Rodgers (who died on 31st May) at St. Andrew’s Cathedral in Sydney at 2:00pm on Thursday 19th June.
Breakfast with Dick Lucas
“While we were away in the UK, Her Majesty the Queen turned 88 years old, having been born on 21 April, 1926.
This makes the Queen six months younger than Dick Lucas, who for nearly 40 years was the Rector of St Helen’s, Bishopsgate in London. Dick used to be a regular visitor to speak at Christian conventions in Australia. Dick is still mentally and physically active, preaching most weeks. The day I visited he was working on Jude and had his language aids and thesaurus at hand. …
Maxine and I had breakfast with Dick at Joe’s Eats, a local café near where he lives … in between orange juice and coffee and a hearty serving of eggs benedict, these are Dick’s insights after so many years of Christian ministry. …”
– David Cook shares them at The Moderator General’s Comments (11 June 2014).
N T Wright on Same Sex ‘Marriage’
N. T. Wright was recently interviewed on the topic of same sex ‘marriage’ and spoke about what happens when words are redefined. See it here.
BCA Jazz concert
There’s a Jazz Convert in support of The Bush Church Aid Society – at Oatley West on Friday 11th July 2014.
Details in this PDF flier.
‘Complete the Great Commission’ — new SBC President
Newly elected President of the Southern Baptist Convention, Dr. Ronnie Floyd, has called for Christians everywhere to be committed to the Great Commission and to Prayer, being mindful of the lostness of the world.
“Mohler, in his nomination speech, said Floyd, 58, has ‘the Great Commission in his heart’… ‘At this crucial hour, we Southern Baptists desperately need a leader who can … articulate our message in the midst of most trying times… He will stand without compromise, articulate with clarity, and lead us with confidence.’…” – Baptist Press report.
See also Dr Floyd’s Press Conference video.
9Marks Interview — John MacArthur on Fellowship
In the latest 9Marks Interview, Mark Dever speaks with John MacArthur about Fellowship, smart phones, and Twitter.
41 minutes. Worth hearing.
Chappo’s 20%
“When I first started preaching I was given a series of videos by the Australian evangelist John Chapman (now in glory) on how to prepare a sermon. Anyone who has heard Chappo will know that he was a great communicator of the gospel and that a central strength of his preaching was his tremendous clarity and simplicity. …”
– At the Proclamation Trust, Jonathan Griffiths shares some advice from Chappo.
David Peterson interviewed on ‘Encountering God Together’
Books at a Glance (the subscription Christian-book-summary service) interviewed David Peterson on his book “Encountering God Together”.
Renovated St Mark’s Library rededicated
“The library of St Mark’s National Theological Centre, Charles Sturt University, was filled to overflowing on Wednesday 4 June with students, friends and staff for its dedication by Bishop Stuart Robinson and the Revd Dr Jane Foulcher with prayer and thanksgiving…”
– from the Diocese of Canberra & Goulburn.
Keeping in touch with the Pressies
The latest issue of New Directions, from the Presbyterian Church of Queensland is now out.
It’s a good way to be encouraged by (and to pray for) what’s happening elsewhere.
(h/t Gary Ware.)
CMS annual appeal 2014
The Church Missionary Society is holding its annual appeal. You can donate here.
VCC Mourns Bishop John McIntyre
An exceedingly sad announcement from the Victorian Council of Churches –
“We stand with our Anglican Community today as we mourn the passing of a beloved, Bishop, Ecumenical companion, family man and friend.”
Please be encouraged to join in prayer for John’s family and friends, and also for the churches of the Diocese of Gippsland.
See also: The Gippsland Times.
Update: David Ould has some information about plans for John’s funeral. (It seems previous information was incorrect.)
Photo: Diocese of Gippsland.
The evil be ever mingled with the good
“‘In the visible church, the evil be ever mingled with the good.’
This is a phrase which comes from Article 26 of the Thirty-nine Articles – which considers the ‘unworthiness of the ministers, which hinders not the effect of the sacraments.’
… But the throwaway line about the presence of evil within the visible church of Christ is what grabbed my attention.…”
– For Church Society’s Formulary Friday, Simon Scott sees the application for today’s church. Related: The Thirty-Nine Articles.
‘One of the finest Biblical commentaries’
Job: The Wisdom of the Cross – a new Commentary by Christopher Ash – is receiving an enthusiastic reception.
“This is one of the finest Biblical commentaries I have had the privilege to read, and certainly the best I know on the wonderful but perplexing book of Job.” writes John Woodhouse.
Other reactions at Between Two Worlds.
‘When we get it wrong’ — Southern Cross
“Some months ago, the team at Southern Cross started planning to do a cover story on prayer.
They say everybody talks about the weather but nobody does anything about it. With prayer, we don’t talk much about it and do it even less (myself included).
Article complete, we went about trying to illustrate it. It seemed ‘knee fitness’ might be catchy and contemporary. Because we don’t have the funds to stage our own photography, we used a stock image of a woman in fitness gear.
In an effort to focus on the knees to make the theme work, the cover unhelpfully drew attention to other parts of her body and cut off her head, depersonalising the image.
Let me be clear. This was a mistake. With the best of intentions we actually did the opposite of what we were trying to do. …”
– Russell Powell, CEO of Anglican Media Sydney, issues an apology. An exemplary way for Christians to respond.
And you can now download the updated version of Southern Cross – with lots of great content – here as a 5.3MB PDF file.
What we believe
The message at the heart of Christianity is really quite simple…