“Legal fight over same-sex faith as blokes not welcome in Anglican Church for getting married”

“A recently married, churchgoing couple living contentedly in the mountains of northern NSW are at the heart of an issue that is currently tearing apart the Anglican Church in Australia. They’re a loving couple who happen to be blokes. …

early next month, at a hearing before the NSW Anti-Discrimination Board, the bishop and the two Peters will attend a compulsory mediation.”

– The Australian’s Weekend Magazine has another story on the same-sex marriage challenge in the Diocese of Armidale. (Subscription.) A matter for prayer.

An earlier opinion:

The Final Stone – David Robertson writes at AP (Australian Presbyterian), 15 October 2021.

Reflections — David Cook

“We have been attending the St Helens City Summer School at Ashburnham, a gathering of City of London business people and their families, just down the road from Canterbury where the Lambeth conference is being held, a meeting for Anglican Bishops.

As the bishops debate and politic and try to navigate their bibleless way through the same sex marriage debate, down the road at Summer School there is gospel preaching and praying about the need to reach out into the lost city of London with the good news of Jesus. Lambeth has not been mentioned, attendees have bigger gospel shaped concerns. …”

– At the Expository Preaching Trust, David Cook shares his reflections, six weeks into a ten week trip to the UK.

While there, he’s been doing a spot of preaching at St. Helen’s. Last weekend he spoke on Psalm 100.

* To be fair, not all the bishops at Lambeth ignored the teaching of the Bible, even if far too many did.

Bathurst Pastoral Letter concerning the establishment of the Diocese of the Southern Cross.

Bishop Mark Calder has written a pastoral letter to members of the Diocese of Bathurst concerning the establishment of the Diocese of the Southern Cross.

“Dear friends,

While headlines such as the Sydney Morning Herald’s ‘Anglican church splits as conservatives form breakaway’ and the ABC’s ‘Australia’s Anglican Church splits over same-sex marriage…’ may be effective in attracting readers, they do not accurately convey reality.

I’m writing today as some of you have raised questions and expressed fears over these and related news reports this week. …”

– The full letter is posted on the Diocesan Facebook page.

A PDF copy may be seen here.

Newcastle asks Clergy to declare any “Interest” in GAFCON

“The Bishop of Newcastle, Rev Dr Peter Stuart, has asked all his clergy to declare any ‘interest’ in GAFCON or participation in the recent GAFCON Australasia Conference.

The instruction was issued in a letter from the Corporation Secretary and Registrar …”

– David Ould has published the text of the letter.

Photo: Bishop Stuart. Image source: Diocese of Newcastle.

False teaching revisionists caused the Australian Church schism – with Foley Beach, Glenn Davies, Richard Condie and Jennifer Hercott

On a special edition of The Pastor’s Heart, Dominic Steele speaks with –

Richard Condie, Bishop of Tasmania and Chair of Gafcon Australia

Glenn Davies, Bishop of the new Anglican Southern Cross Diocese and Former Archbishop of Sydney

Foley Beach, Primate of the Anglican Church in North America, and Chair of the Gafcon Primate’s Council

Jennifer Hercott, Member of Gafcon Australia Board and registrar of the Diocese of Central Queensland.

– Watch or listen here. 30 minutes. (Main programme starts at 55 seconds.)

Related:

An open letter to the Archbishop of Brisbane – 11 July 2022.

Archbishop of Brisbane’s Presidential Address  – 25 June 2022 (PDF file).

Dr Robert Tong on the Appellate Tribunal Opinion – 12 November 2020.

Many posts relating to General Synod 2022.

The Line in the Sand: The Appellate Tribunal Opinion and the Future of the Anglican Church in Australia – Joint publication of The Australian Church record and The Anglican Church League.

The Line in the Sand Author Interview: Glenn Davies.

‘Learn the Gospel’ book and videos

A new study book and videos from Matthias Media:

“Whether building a house or building a life, solid, square and true foundations are vital.

If you’re just starting out in the Christian life – or considering it – you want to get those foundations in place from the start. Even if you’ve been a Christian for a while, it’s important to occasionally check your foundations – they might have shifted or been attacked by white ants, or perhaps they weren’t laid quite as straight as you originally thought.

In this Learn Together book, we’ll thoroughly inspect our gospel foundations and make our understanding of that gospel sound and biblical.

Through reading, studying the Bible, watching some video input and discussing what we’re learning together, we’ll go deep into the gospel of Jesus Christ – understanding each of its parts, how they fit together, and what implications the gospel has for our lives.

This is Two Ways to Live grown into a study book for small groups and classes. Each of the six points are fleshed out with Bible study, discussion and video and text input.”

– The book is available from Matthias Media.

Plus you can watch or download the accompanying videos here.

Jesus Club Community opens disability-inclusive ministry for adults at Tamworth

Here’s a press release from Jesus Club Community:

Jesus Club Community, an evangelical Christian organisation, has partnered with Oxley Vale Anglican Church to open a new Bible-reading club for adults with intellectual disabilities (I.D.) in Tamworth, NSW.

Jesus Club Tamworth is in Oxley Vale, just minutes from Tamworth, with a population of over 63,000, of which 5.6% or around 3000 have some form of disability. The club is the region’s only ministry dedicated to sharing God’s good news to adults with I.D. in a meaningful way.

Simon and Margaret from Oxley Vale Anglican Church approached Jesus Club in March this year with this idea for their community. At the time, they had four people with disabilities in their congregation and they wanted to set up a dedicated Christian ministry for people with disabilities to have fun, form genuine friendships and learn the gospel in a way they could understand.

What attracted her to the Jesus Club program were its gospel-centred vision and extensive library of over 100+ Biblical-teaching resources for adults with I.D.

“I like that [Jesus Club] provide the [teaching] material… and that there are a number of programs written already, that include suggestions for songs, craft, and worksheets. We didn’t have to keep reinventing the wheel… It just makes running [a disability ministry] so much easier!” said Margaret.

The other big plus was Jesus Club’s newly developed online training program which helped their volunteers quickly train up in the ins and outs of disability ministry.

“We viewed the recommended videos over four or five sessions and read [the corresponding] parts of the orientation book… [Their training] is very comprehensive,” said Margaret.

So when Jesus Club Tamworth opened in May, the club’s volunteers felt thoroughly prepared, having trained in everything from the Jesus Club vision to information about different forms of intellectual disabilities, safe ministry and helpful practices for communicating and relating to adults with intellectual disabilities.

Their club now meets once a month, and the first report from volunteers was very encouraging:

“We were all very pleased about our first meeting. All aspects went without a hitch, with six members, six leaders, and one carer. The feedback from members was that they enjoyed the singing, the game, the dressing up and the video of the Great Banquet… Next meeting, we may have three potential new members!” said Margaret.

About Jesus Club:

Jesus Club’s purpose is to make Christ known to adults with I.D. so they can have a friendship with God forever. Since 2017, they have helped many churches grounded in the gospel to establish disability-inclusive ministries that share God’s good news with adults with I.D.

It now equips 20 churches to run the Jesus Club program and has a network that spans from Lower Mountains to Northern Beaches and Turramurra to Albury. Their new online training allows them to set up a Jesus Club anywhere in Australia.

Here’s their website.

GAFCON leading the way

“A game of AFL is taking place on a local oval when a small group jump the fence and start kicking a round ball along the ground. The game stops. Players approach the group and ask them to desist.

They retort, ‘we’re also playing football’.

The players answer, ‘no, you’re playing a different game. Different ball, different shaped ground, different goals….if you’re interested, you can join us but first of all, get rid of the soccer ball’.

The group insist, ‘no, we are playing football. We can all play together at the same time.’ …

A significant announcement was made this week, one which may change the Church landscape in Australia. The decision is not so much about changing the game but is confirming that we will not change the game. GAFCON is responding to what is a tireless intrusion onto Christian Churches by certain bishops and leaders who are trying to change the Gospel beyond recognition. They are not playing the same game as Christians Churches, but something quite different.”

– Murray Campbell looks at why it was necessary to form the Diocese of the Southern Cross.

FAQ on Diocese of the Southern Cross

GAFCON Australia has sought to answer some of the most-asked questions about the new Diocese of the Southern Cross:

“Gafcon Australasia Conference was held in Canberra with 360 people present from across Australia, New Zealand, and the South Pacific. The theme of the conference was ‘Proclaiming Christ Faithfully’ and the focus was on mission.

However the conference also formally announced the creation of the Diocese of the Southern Cross. This will be a parallel Anglican jurisdiction for those who have had to leave the Anglican Church of Australia because of revisionist teaching. …

Member churches will commit to uphold the 39 Articles, the Book of Common Prayer, and the Ordinal. It is overseen by an Anglican bishop. It has been recognised by the Gafcon Primates, Anglican leaders who represent the majority of Anglicans worldwide.”

– Full FAQ here.

Anglican Unscripted 755 – A New Diocese

In the very latest Anglican Unscripted video, David Ould speaks with GAFCON Australia Chairman Bishop Richard Condie and Dr Glenn Davies, today (Thursday 18 August) to be commissioned as the first Bishop of the new Diocese of the Southern Cross.

Bishop Davies:

“So this diocese is like a lifeboat – a safe refuge a safe haven – for people who want to remain Anglican but not under the current Anglican structure in the Anglican Church of Australia.

I love the Anglican Church of Australia. I’ve been a member of that all my life. But to see it in this disarray is very sad.

So, it’s not a triumphalist feeling I have with regard to this. Rather, it is a sense of sadness – but joy for those who want to remain Anglican – that I may, with the gifts that God’s given me, maintain that relationship for these congregations.”

He also asks us to pray that the evil one will be restrained.

“But let our focus be on spreading the good news of the gospel to all Australia. That’s what we’re all about. We want to be faithful disciples of Jesus and proclaim Christ faithfully to our nation.”

Watch it all. 9 minutes.

Join us for the 2022 ACL Synod Dinner

The ACL’s 2022 Synod Dinner will be held on Monday 12th September. All Synod members and ACL members are invited. Newly commissioned Bishop of the Diocese of the Southern Cross, Dr Glenn Davies, is speaking.

Update: Booking have closed.

Please pray for Synod in the Greenfields

Archbishop Kanishka Raffel has recorded this brief message of encouragement.

He speaks about the September Synod which begins in the growing areas of Sydney’s West and South West.

CMS Summer School 2023 registration is now open

Registration for the NSW & ACT CMS Summer School 2023 at Katoomba is now open.

Southern Cross: The New Anglican Diocese

“This week over 350 Anglicans from around Australia, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, and Vanuatu, are gathering in Canberra for the Gafcon Australasia Conference. The conference had been postponed from previous years due to COVID but, in God’s wisdom and providence, it has come at just the right time.

The conference opened with the announcement of the establishment of the Diocese of the Southern Cross, an extra-provincial Anglican diocese in fellowship with the majority of the world’s Anglicans through the Primates’ Council of the global Gafcon network. The conference will close with the commissioning of former Sydney Archbishop, Dr Glenn Davies as the Initial Bishop for the diocese. …”

– At The Gospel Coalition Australia, Dr Claire Smith explains the reasons behind the formation of the new diocese.

Diocese of The Southern Cross

Here’s the website for the just-launched Diocese of the Southern Cross.

“We’re a new Anglican diocese made up of churches all across Australia dedicated to faithfully proclaiming the gospel. Sometimes, that can feel a little isolating – but we’re here as a network to provide fellowship, assistance and recognition to you and your church. As part of the Diocese of the Southern Cross, you’ll find home.”

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