Marcus Loane on The English Reformation

Archbishop Sir Marcus LoaneIn 1954, Marcus Loane – later Archbishop of Sydney and Sir Marcus – published his landmark “Masters of The English Reformation”.

It was republished in 2005 by Banner of Truth. If you haven’t read it, you ought to. (Availability.)

Here’s the Introduction —

“It was Martin Luther who declared that the doctrine of Justification by Faith Only is the article of a standing or falling church. The recovery of this doctrine was the key to the Reformation in Europe. It was the corollary of the translation of the Bible into the language of everyday life and its circulation in the homes and hands of ordinary people. These two momentous factors were to penetrate the Realm of England during the reign of Henry VIII and will forever be associated in a special sense with the names of Thomas Bilney and William Tyndale. These two, and many others as well, were to die at the stake as a result of their unswerving loyalty to the doctrines of Grace as made known in the Word of God. Nor did they die in vain. The supreme authority of Holy Scripture in all matters of faith and conduct was written into the sixth of the Articles of Religion; and the doctrine of Justification by Faith Only was summed up in unforgettable language in the Eleventh Article. Those two “Articles of the Christian Faith” are the bedrock on whIch the history of the Church of England since the Reformation must stand or fall.

But the pivot of the Reformation in England during the reign of Edward VI was the doctrine of the Lord’s Supper. Ridley’s discovery of the work of Ratramnus led him to reject the doctrine of Transubstantiation and the Sacrifice of the Mass as totally foreign to the teaching of the New Testament. Ridley was able to convince Cranmer that Ratramnus was right; they came to believe that the bread and wine are “the pledges” of God’s redeeming love and that the presence of the Lord Jesus is not to be found in an earthly altar, but in the hearts of those who feed on Him by faith with thanksgiving. Ridley was to expound this doctrine with clarity and dignity in his Treatise on the Lord’s Supper, and Cranmer was to defend it with great learning in his controversy with Gardiner. This was the doctrine enshrined in the Source of the Holy Communion in the Book of Common Prayer in 1552.

When Queen Mary came to the throne, Ridley, Latimer and Cranmer were the outstanding Reformers who were thrown into prison. In all the debates which ensued, in their trial and condemnation for heresy, and in the sentence of death which consigned them to death by fire, the one basic issue was their doctrine of the Lord’s Supper as opposed to the dogmas of the church with regard to Transubstantiation and the Mass. If the Church were right and they were wrong, they were not only condemned to a terrible form of death as heretics but were doomed to a lost eternity. Their real greatness was seen in the fact that they dared to stand by their convictions, formed as a result of intensive study of the Scriptures, and to die at the stake rather than yield to the pressures that were brought to bear on mind and feeling. And the candle they lit is one which by the grace of God will never go out.

What happened more than four hundred years ago is still vitally relevant. The integrity and authority of the Bible have been under constant assault from many quarters and it is no longer the one Book in the homes and hands of all. Many people today think that a good life, a good name, and a good reputation will somehow make them acceptable to God. And the reformed doctrine of the Lord’s Supper has been obscured by an emphasis on the Real Presence which approximates more and more towards medieval teaching and practice. Let Bilney and Tyndale speak again; let Latimer and Ridley and Cranmer be heard afresh. They witnessed “a good confession” for their heavenly Master and sealed it with their lives.

May this book renew the impact of their life and death on another generation “in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the Spirit of our God” [1 Cor. 6:11].”

Photo: Ramon Williams. (This is a repost from 2014 in remembrance of the martyrdom of Archbishop Thomas Cranmer on 21 March 1556.)

Ashley Null on Thomas Cranmer

In 2001 we spoke with Dr Ashley Null about Thomas Cranmer, Archbishop of Canterbury, and primary author of the Book of Common Prayer.

“Thomas Cranmer was born in 1489 and baptised into the medieval catholic church. He studied at Cambridge, receiving a Doctorate of Divinity in 1526, and served there as a don.

As a theologian, Cranmer was very much influenced by Erasmus’ emphasis on going back to the original sources for the Christian faith, in particular, of course, the Bible.

In the late 1520s, the authority of Scripture was at the centre of the most pressing English political issue of the day – Henry VIII’s divorce case. …”

– In this interview Dr. Null speaks about why it is important for Anglicans to know about Archbishop Thomas Cranmer.

The Class of Chappo — A night to mark the 10th anniversary of Chappo’s departure to be with Christ

Tuesday 22 November 2022. 7:30pm

A night to mark the 10th anniversary of Chappo’s departure to be with Christ.

The evening will include:

Details and booking from Moore College.

Illustration from a Department of Evangelism videocassette cover, 1986.

Regent College Vancouver gives thanks for Dr Gordon Fee

“It is with great sadness that we announce the death of Professor Emeritus Dr. Gordon D. Fee. Gordon died October 25, 2022, in New York City.

Gordon was a beloved member of Regent’s faculty, serving as Professor of New Testament from 1986 to 2002. Following his retirement and appointment as Professor Emeritus, Gordon served the College as a favorite sessional instructor until 2009. He was a treasured colleague, teacher, friend, and pastor to many.

Gordon brought a remarkable store of intellect and pastoral concern to New Testament scholarship and to his teaching. He was often quoted as saying, ‘The concern of the scholar is primarily with what the text meant; the concern of the layperson is usually with what it means. The believing scholar insists that we must have both.’…”

– Read the full tribute from Regent College Vancouver.

See also this story from Christianity Today.

Photo with thanks to Regent College.

Reformation Sunday & Slogans

“Friends in Christ, this Sunday we celebrate Reformation Sunday (including Bach’s cantata 79, written for the occasion, as part of the 10:30am service).

The Reformation began as a series of protests (hence ‘Protestant’) against abuses of the mediaeval Roman Catholic Church, perhaps most notably the sale of indulgences. By the way, in this context, an indulgence is not something to do with giving into luxury, one too many chocolates or wines. Nor is it the collective noun for grandparents, as in an ‘indulgence of grandparents’!

The word had and still has a special meaning for Roman Catholics. That Church taught that God forgives believers the eternal punishment for our sins. But we must also purify ourselves from the ‘temporal punishment’ due to every sin, either in this life, or after death in Purgatory. Purification takes place through prayer, acts of charity, patiently bearing suffering, and so on – or via gaining an indulgence. …”

– At the Cathedral website, Dean of Sydney Sandy Grant explains why Reformation Sunday is worth celebrating.

Anglican Church Comes to Crossroads Over Teaching on Homosexuality — Will It Compromise in the Name of Unity?

In his The Briefing for Thursday 27 October 2022, Albert Mohler comments on what’s happening in the Anglican world. He responds to an article originating from New Zealand –

“…this takes us back to an article that also ran in the Times just a matter of a few weeks ago, and the headline tells you a lot about how the mainstream media messaged this kind of story.

The headline in the article by Pete McKenzie is this, ‘Anglican Church Delivers A Kick In The Guts To Gay Parishioners.’

… Pete McKenzie in this article, which was date-lined from Wellington in New Zealand basically is unabashed in arguing that it’s the conservative Anglicans who are holding the church back, and they are doing great harm.”

– Listen or read at AlbertMohler.com.

A visit to Grace Presbyterian Assembly in NZ

“As Moderator during the covid pandemic, I visited a few places in person – notably Hurstville for the ordination of two elders and New Dunesk for its opening as the centre of the work of the Presbyterian Inland Mission. Then there were the Zoom meetings.

But from 3-7 October 2022 I was able to visit the Grace Presbyterian Assembly in Auckland. …”

– We are so thankful for the formation of the Church of Confessing Anglicans Aotearoa New Zealand (CCAANZ) in response to the liberal trajectory of the Anglican Church in NZ.

Peter Barnes, Moderator of the Presbyterian Church of Australia briefly reports on another response to liberal theology in NZ – this one by faithful Presbyterians.

New Anglican Bishops for England and Europe

“It was a great privilege to journey from Oxford to Yorkshire last Friday (21 October) to witness the consecration of two of our distinguished Wycliffe Hall alumni as new Anglican bishops. There was a buzz of excitement in the air at the inauguration of their new ministries, and exhilaration at the gospel bonds which draw together the global Anglican family.

In a variation to the usual liturgy, the new bishops were doffed on the head with a Bible and exhorted, “Remember that you are always under the Word of God.”

We weren’t gathered, however, in the Gothic glories of York Minster, but in a converted warehouse on an industrial estate in Hull, lent for the occasion by a local Vineyard church. This was not the Church of England, but a much younger ministry, the Anglican Network in Europe.

Global leaders in the Anglican Communion, associated with Gafcon, gave the consecration their full backing. … The platform was a wonderful global array.”

– At Psephizo, Andrew Atherstone shares his impressions of Friday night’s consecrations in Leeds, as well as giving some background to the Anglican Network in Europe and the Anglican Mission in England. He also has some suggestions for the future of ANiE and ACE.

Calls for Archbishop Welby to repent – with Foley Beach, James Wong and Andy Lines

From The Pastor’s Heart:

Claims today that the global leader of the Anglican Church is out of step with God.

The Primates of the Global Anglican Fellowship (GAFCON), meeting in Kigali Rwanda, have said that Archbishop Justin Welby has,

‘Departed from the authentic exercise of his office by normalising and praising those who have departed from biblical teaching and practice…and giving equal place to practices contrary to biblical norms, as Anglicans have received them.  We urge him to repent.’

And the Archbishop of Canterbury’s explanations are described as disingenuous if not duplicitous.

The Gafcon Primates statement comes on top of the statement from the Global South Fellowship of Anglican Churches, which if anything, is even stronger.

The Global South Fellowship says,

‘Archbishop Welby’s first position is lamentable; his second is repugnant to our understanding of the authority and clarity of Holy Scripture. The notion of ‘pluriform’ truth is contrary to the Anglican Ordinal which binds duly consecrated bishops to be responsible for the guarding, teaching and imparting of divine truth in Holy Scripture.’

Archbishop Welby’s actions, which have provoked the criticisms, are his appointment of a new Dean of Canterbury (the lead minister of Canterbury Cathedral in the UK) of a man in a civil same sex partnership.

The Global South statement says,

‘It feels as if the present Archbishop of Canterbury has shut the door of the [Canterbury] Cathedral to orthodox bishops, clergy and members of the [Anglican] Communion.’ 

We are speaking today with:

Watch or listen here. A very sobering situation.

Last one out, please turn off the lights

“It has been three decades since the Rt. Rev. C. FitzSimons Allison took his first step away from his life as one of the Episcopal Church’s strongest evangelical voices. …

Now the 95-year-old bishop has officially resigned his status as an Episcopal bishop, making his departure official. Two weeks ago, he wrote U.S. Presiding Bishop Michael Curry to clarify that he had been received into the Anglican Church in North America – a body recognized as valid by many Anglican bishops in Africa, Asia and the Global South, but not by the Archbishop of Canterbury or leaders in the U.S. Episcopal Church.”

– Story from Terry Mattingly at Get Religion.

Read and be thankful for faithful ministers of the gospel like Bishop Allison.

Image from a fascinating 2013 interview by Anglican TV in which he outlines the tragedy of the Episcopal Church and also tells his own story of Christ’s mercy. Well worth watching, saturated with the gospel.

Stopping the Rot

“Andrew Thorburn’s recent ejection from the CEO’s role at Essendon has heightened the concerns many of us already have about the direction of our society.

We seem to be headed to a place where, not only will life be harder for Christians, but many destructive evils are being allowed to spread unchecked—all kinds of sexual immorality, substance addiction, and greed. At the same time, many freedoms we have taken for granted, like freedom of speech and freedom of association, are being curtailed.

What should we do about it?…

the Lord Jesus has told us the way that he wants all of us to influence our society”

– Neil Chambers has some encouragement for you at The Gospel Coalition Australia.

Consecration of new Assistant Bishops for the Anglican Network in Europe

Early this morning (22 October 2022), Australian time, Tim Davies, Lee McMunn and Ian Ferguson were consecrated as Assistant Bishops in the Anglican Network in Europe at a service in Hull in the UK.

The service was introduced by Bishop Andy Lines, Presiding Bishop of the Anglican Network in Europe.

Many international guests were present. Archbishop Foley Beach presided at the consecration. Archbishop Laurent Mbanda, Primate of Rwanda, preached and called his hearers to take Jesus’ command, The Great Commission, seriously.

Watch the full service here. Most encouraging.

‘Church of England spokesman’ responds to ‘inaccurate’ statements from GSFA and GAFCON

The Anglican Communion News Service has published an article purportedly correcting “inaccurate” statements from the Steering Committee of the Global South Fellowship of Anglican Churches and the GAFCON Primates Council about the appointment of the new Dean of Canterbury Cathedral.

The unnamed spokesman claims the statements misunderstand –

• the nature of civil partnerships into which “some gay and lesbian English clergy have entered”, and

• the claim that the Archbishop of Canterbury has no “authority to discipline or exclude a church of the Anglican Communion” – even though the Archbishop chose to invite to the Lambeth Conference bishops in same-sex marriages.

– Read the full article here.

Related:

Communiqué from the Steering Committee of the Global South Fellowship of Anglican Churches – 17 October 2022.

Excerpt:

“We are deeply saddened, but not totally surprised. The present ABC’s action is part of the direction he had set in the recently concluded Lambeth Conference. There, he indicated that he is not willing for the office of ABC to be used to discipline member provinces in keeping to the Church’s teaching. He also indicated that he felt that the Communion should allow for ‘a plurality of views’ on what the Holy Scriptures teach [1]. Archbishop Welby’s first position is lamentable; his second is repugnant to our understanding of the authority and clarity of Holy Scripture. The notion of ‘pluriform’ truth is contrary to the Anglican Ordinal which binds duly consecrated bishops to be responsible for the guarding, teaching and imparting of divine truth in Holy Scripture.

It saddens us that in this recent appointment of the Deanery of Canterbury, the ABC shows yet again, that his oft-expressed assurance that Lambeth 1.10 remains ‘the official teaching of the Church’ is merely lip-service [2]. If it is the official teaching of the Church, then it ought to be followed through in the ‘faith & order’ of all Provinces. The appointment of a person in same-sex civil partnership to a senior clerical position clearly contravenes the spirit of Lambeth 1.10, which not only rejects ‘homosexual practice as incompatible with Scripture’, but goes on to declare that the Lambeth Conference of 1998 ‘cannot advise the legitimising or blessing of same-sex unions.’

The GSFA Churches are committed to upholding Lambeth 1.10 in its entirety. This means that while we hold fully to the moral teaching of Scripture expressed in 1.10 , we also commit ourselves to “assure homosexual persons that they are loved by God and … that all baptised, believing and faithful persons, regardless of sexual orientation , are full members of the Body of Christ.” We heed the words of Jesus to all sinners: “Repent and believe in the gospel.” (Mk 1:15).

It is in our Christian faith to love a person for who he or she is, regardless of the person’s sexual orientation. But this love for the person is always in the context of honouring and obeying God’s revealed Word. The first cannot be at the expense of the second. Indeed, to love a person is to help usher the person, by our word and deeds, into the life-transforming power of the Gospel as revealed in Holy scripture. That, as GSFA understands it, is the unchanging mission of the Church.

So, we take exception to the Church of England’s accommodation of a person in a same-sex union being appointed to an office of spiritual authority over the flock of God’s people.

Looking back, perhaps the rot in upholding biblical doctrine on this matter had set in with the consecration of an openly homosexual bishop in the Diocese of New Hampshire in 2003 in TEC. The rot has since spread through the woodwork of the Communion, and this recent appointment is foreboding because the rot is now blatantly visible in the Communion’s ‘mother church’ under the guise of love, tolerance and human rights.

As GSFA Churches, we believe in the mutual accountability of Anglican provinces to one another, and that we are duty-bound to God to admonish (‘warn with tears’) one another not to compromise ‘the faith once delivered’ (Jude 3) . We shall therefore be writing a personal letter to the Archbishop of Canterbury and the bishops in the Church of England on the seriousness of this action.…”

Communiqué from the GAFCON Primates Council – 20 October 2022.

Excerpt:

“The original GAFCON in Jerusalem in 2008 was born out of the tragic cost that has come from Provinces that have departed from clear biblical teaching and established historic Anglican Formularies that were unquestioned until recent years. Those departures continue and are even spreading. We were deeply grieved by the recent appointment of a man who lives in a same-sex civil partnership as Dean of Canterbury Cathedral. It is a heartbreaking provocation that such a departure from biblical standards would be thrust upon the Communion in the historic See of Canterbury and in opposition to the established teaching and practice of the majority of Anglicans.

The announcement from the Archbishop of Canterbury distanced himself from this appointment, as it was the recommendation of a Selection Panel, requiring the Queen’s approval. Yet it is difficult to see how a Diocesan Bishop, let alone the Archbishop of Canterbury, could not influence the appointment of the Dean of his own Cathedral, especially given the published process for the Appointment of Deans. Moreover, filling this position was the responsibility of Mr Stephen Knott, the Archbishop’s Secretary for Appointments, who is himself in a same-sex marriage. It is disingenuous, if not duplicitous, for the Archbishop to claim that the Church of England has not changed its doctrine of marriage …”

Mark 7:1-23 – ESV.

Image: Anglican Communion News Service web banner.

‘Men Have Forgotten God’: Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn

Back in 2018, to mark the one hundredth anniversary of the birth of Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, The National Review republished an article adapted from his 1983 Templeton Address.

Among his remarks are these words which have great relevance today –

“Within the philosophical system of Marx and Lenin, and at the heart of their psychology, hatred of God is the principal driving force, more fundamental than all their political and economic pretensions.

Militant atheism is not merely incidental or marginal to Communist policy; it is not a side effect, but the central pivot. To achieve its diabolical ends, Communism needs to control a population devoid of religious and national feeling, and this entails the destruction of faith and nationhood. …”

– Read it all.

Photo: US Library of Congress, via The National Review.

The Greater Love Declaration

From the UK:

“The Greater Love Declaration is a statement by Ministers and Pastoral Workers from across the different Christian Denominations as a statement of classic, orthodox Christian teaching on marriage, sex and identity.

In it we affirm the essential and unchangeable place of this teaching in Christian theology, its foundation in Christ’s own example of self-giving love, and our duty and commitment as ministers of the gospel to uphold, teach and proclaim it.”

– ‘The Greater Love Declaration’ was launched last week by ministers from several denominations. The website states,

“It is our hope that this will be of use to Ministers, who wish to declare their loyalty to Biblical, and historic Christian teaching; to all Christians, who wish to understand their own beliefs better; and to anyone else who wants to understand standard, orthodox Christian teaching on Marriage, Sex and Identity.”

The initiative has been commended by a range of Christian leaders.

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