Southwark Declaration
“It is with great sadness that I posted the Southwark Declaration in Canterbury Cathedral.
This building that stands sentinel over the Church of England has been a symbol of Anglican leadership with, perhaps, the greatest global reach for centuries.
Now it has become synonymous with abdication and dereliction of duty; it stands accused as a distracted and negligent parent that has abandoned its children. …”
– Kent Vicar, the Rev. Stephen Rae, has issued a press release (PDF) to explain why he posted the Southwark Declaration on the doors of Canterbury Cathedral on Reformation Day.
Anglican Mainstream has links to a number of relevant articles.
‘I should have thought that one through’
“Asked … if gay sex was sinful, [Archbishop of Canterbury Justin] Welby said: ‘You know very well that is a question I can’t give a straight answer to. Sorry, badly phrased there. I should have thought that one through.’…”
– Story from The Guardian.
Related: a warning from Albert Mohler:
“This is a moment of decision, and every evangelical believer, congregation, denomination, and institution will have to answer. There will be no place to hide.
The forces driving this revolution in morality will not allow evasion or equivocation. Every pastor, every church, and every Christian organization will soon be forced to declare an allegiance to the Scriptures and to the Bible’s teachings on marriage and sexual morality, or to affirm loyalty to the sexual revolution.
That revolution did not start with same-sex marriage, and it will not end there. But marriage is the most urgent issue of the day, and the moment of decision has arrived.”
– from Which Way, Evangelicals? There is Nowhere to Hide, June 10, 2015.
Statement on the Consecration of Gavin Ashenden by the CEC
“Bishop Gavin Ashenden is a winsome and courageous defender of the Christian faith who has been prominent in supporting the same gospel values for which Gafcon stands, but his consecration was not an initiative taken by Gafcon. The Christian Episcopal Church, of which he is a bishop, is not part of the Anglican Communion and is not a constituent Church of the Gafcon movement.
Gafcon is committed to reforming our Communion from within and it was in accordance with this great vision that Bishop Andy Lines was consecrated as a missionary bishop for the United Kingdom and Europe by Primates representing the majority of the world wide communion in Chicago earlier this year.
We recognize that there is a spiritual vacuum caused by the silence and even compromise of much traditional leadership in the West and it is not surprising that new leadership should emerge. Our preference is that it will emerge from the highest level of cooperation and collaboration between these initiatives, so that those who uphold ‘the faith once delivered to the saints’ (Jude 4) work together as far as the integrity of their church polity allows. Nonetheless, we pray that the ministry of Bishop Ashenden, and all Christian leaders who love the truth, will bear much fruit for the gospel.
Dr Peter Jensen
GAFCON General Secretary.”
— A statement from GAFCON on 28 September 2017.
For background, Kevin Kallsen speaks with Gavin Ashenden (YouTube) about the Anglo-Catholic Christian Episcopal Church.
Most people who call themselves C of E never read the Bible — survey
“Figures show that 60 per cent of self-declared followers of the Church [of England] admit they never read the Bible. Meanwhile, 36 per cent say they never attend church and one in three says they never pray. …“
– Report from Premier UK.
Fundamental shifts in the Church of England General Synod
“The decisions taken in the February and July 2017 sessions of the General Synod crossed a line never before reached.
Its failure to take note of the definition of marriage as that between ‘one man and one woman in lifelong commitment’, and its embrace of key LGBT agenda (banning so-called ‘conversion therapy’ for unwanted same-sex attraction, liturgy to mark a person’s gender transition) has caused serious consternation, anger and anxiety in the Church of England, and beyond.
It was the scale of defeat of orthodoxy in the July sessions that is most shocking. …”
– At the GAFCON website, Dr. Chik Kaw Tan, a 12-year veteran of General Synod, shares his reflections on the significant shifts which have taken place, and possible consequences.
A Letter to the Anglicans of Great Britain — how to ensure a faithful ecclesial future
This letter has been published at The Anglican Mission in England website, and elsewhere. We reproduce it here for you to read in full:
“Many will share our dismay at the recent decisions of the General Synod of the Church of England and the pursuing principles, values and practices contrary to Holy Scripture and church Tradition.
Given the persistent failure of the majority of the House of Bishops to fulfil the God-given duties which they have sworn to discharge these tragic developments were, sadly, not wholly unexpected.
Accordingly, and in preparation for such eventualities we, as some of those committed to the renewal of biblical and orthodox Anglicanism have already started to meet, on behalf of our fellow Anglicans, to discuss how to ensure a faithful ecclesial future.
We now wish that we have done so to be more widely known.
Our number is drawn from bishops, clergy and laity, from across Great Britain and from a breadth of traditions. Much more importantly, however, we meet joyfully united by a shared endorsement of the terms of the Jerusalem Declaration.
We will meet again, as planned and with external facilitation, mediation and episcopal advice, in October. It is our intention to welcome on that occasion an even greater diversity of contributors.
We would value your prayers and any expressions of interest from those who feel they might be able to make a valuable contribution to our deliberations.
Anyone desiring to contact us can do so through any of the organisations or churches listed.
Revd Dr Gavin Ashenden, Former Chaplain to the Queen
Mrs Lorna Ashworth, General Synod of the Church of England, Archbishops’ Council
Revd Nigel Atkinson, Vicar St John’s, Knutsford and Toft
Revd Andrew Bawtree, Chair of the House of Clergy, Diocese of Canterbury
Revd Mark Burkill, Chairman of Reform
Rt Revd John Ellison, Anglican Mission in England Executive
Rt Revd John Fenwick, Bishop Primus, Free Church of England
Rt Revd Josep Miquel Rossello Ferrer, Free Church of England
Ven Dr Amatu Christian-Iwuagwu, Vicar St Mary’s Harmondsworth & PiC Anglican Igbo Church of the Holy Trinity, London
Rt Revd Paul Hunt, General Secretary, Free Church of England
Canon Nigel Juckes, Incumbent, Llandogo, Monmouth
Mr Daniel Leafe, Gafcon UK
Mrs Susie Leafe, Director of Reform
Rt Revd Andy Lines, ACNA Bishop with Special Mission
Revd David McCarthy, Coordinator of the Scottish Anglican Network
Revd Lee McMunn, Mission Director, Anglican Mission in England
Revd James Paice, Trustee, The Southwark Good Stewards Trust
Rt Revd Jonathan Pryke, Senior Minister Jesmond Parish Church, Anglican Mission in England Executive
Revd Dr Peter Sanlon, Convenor of Anglican Partnership Synod
Ven Dr Will Strange on behalf of the Evangelical Fellowship in the Church in Wales
Revd Andrew Symes, Executive Secretary, Anglican Mainstream.”
GAFCON Chairman’s Letter July 2017
“False teaching is restless and relentless, and the Church of England itself is in grave spiritual danger. It is much to be regretted that there has been far more concern about alleged ‘boundary crossing’ than about the contempt of God’s Word that made a missionary bishop necessary. In fact, the Bishop of Edinburgh, who has strongly supported the Scottish Episcopal Church’s adoption of same sex ‘marriage’ was invited as a guest of honour to the Church of England’s July General Synod meeting.”
– The Chairman of the GAFCON Primates Council, The Most Rev’d Nicholas D. Okoh, has released his Chairman’s letter for this month.
General Synod July 2017: Five steps away from Biblical Christianity
“In the space of four days, the General Synod of the Church of England have, in effect, rejected the doctrines of creation, the fall, the incarnation, and our need for conversion and sanctification.”
– Susie Leafe, Director of Reform, sums up the rolling tragedy of the Church of England General Synod. At The American Anglican Council.
Radical Christian Inclusion…?
“General Synod felt like it reached the watershed this last long weekend.
Superficially we did the usual things: passing obscure legal provisions – for example, giving official permission not to have to wear robes at main services… the valiant effort to put something to do with mission on the agenda… We even had the obligatory “current affairs” motion…
However, the watershed came apparent from the other seemingly obligatory controversial agenda items. This time, on conversion therapy and transsexual liturgy…”
– At Church Society’s blog, Dr Rob Munro, Rector of St. Mary’s Cheadle, near Manchester, observes how much things are changing in the Church of England.
Church of England General Synod votes to ‘welcome’ and ‘affirm’ transgender people
A motion passed at the Church of England’s General Synod, meeting in York:
“That this Synod, recognising the need for transgender people to be welcomed and affirmed in their parish church, call on the House of Bishops to consider whether some nationally commended liturgical materials might be prepared to mark a person’s gender transition.”
— from the Church of England website.
“Church of England bishops ‘delaying same-sex equality’ move”
“Church of England bishops have been accused of kicking the issue of same-sex equality into the long grass by offloading the topic to a series of working groups that will not report until 2020 at the earliest.
The archbishops of Canterbury and York, the two most senior figures in the church, have established two main groups and four subgroups to advise on pastoral issues and produce a new teaching document on human sexuality. …”
– Report from The Guardian.
A clear biblical focus is not apparent in much of the discussion. Watch Saturday morning’s proceedings from York at this link.
Also from the C of E General Synod: General Synod backs ban on conversion therapy.
‘Beware C of E free-for-all, new Gafcon bishop warns’
“The Rt Revd Andy Lines, consecrated ‘Missionary Bishop for Europe’ within the Anglican Church in North America (ACNA), has warned against a ‘free-for-all’ in the Church of England.
Speaking on Wednesday, Bishop Lines, formerly an honorary canon with permission to officiate in the Church of England, said that he expected a ‘small number’ of churches in England to seek his oversight. He rejected the Archbishop of Canterbury’s description of his move as a ‘cross-border intervention’.…”
– Story from Church Times. Photo: ACNA.
Archbishops criticised for inviting proposer of Scottish gay-marriage motion to York
“A group of the General Synod’s laity and clergy have been placed in an ‘invidious’ position, they say, by the ‘entirely wrong’ invitation to the Bishop of Edinburgh, the Rt Revd John Armes, to the Synod’s York meeting this weekend. They argue that it looks like an endorsement of the Scottish Episcopal Church’s change to its canons to allow same-sex marriage in church. …”
– Story from The Church Times.
(Photo of Bishop Armes courtesy The Scottish Episcopal Church.)
GAFCON and Evangelical Ministry
“I’m at the annual Evangelical Ministry Assembly organised by the Proclamation Trust. Around 900 men and women, mostly from Anglican, Baptist and Evangelical Free churches are here at the Barbican Centre in London; the majority are vicars, pastors and church apprentices wanting to be inspired and encouraged in their ministries.
The primary conviction of the Proclamation Trust is that when the Bible is faithfully preached, God’s voice is heard, and that intentional training is needed for preaching and evangelism, as well as experiencing the thrill, balm and challenge of hearing God’s voice for our own souls. …”
– Anglican Mainstream’s Andrew Symes shares a little of what’s happening at this year’s EMA in London.
Meanwhile: Church of England and Methodists to consider full communion – Anglican Communion News Service.
Loose Canons? Andy Lines and the Canons of Nicaea
“On Friday 30th June, Andy Lines will be consecrated at a meeting of the Anglican Church in North America (ACNA), as a ‘missionary bishop’ for Europe. This is in response to the recent decision of the Scottish Episcopal Church (SEC) to modify its definition of marriage to include same-sex couples, placing it at variance with scripture and with the majority of the Anglican Communion.
In a letter to the Primates of the Communion, Archbishop Justin Welby expressed profound concern over the upcoming consecration of Canon Lines. For Welby, the Church’s continued commitment to ‘those with differing views’ (exemplified by the role of the Bishop of Maidstone in providing oversight for those who oppose the ordination of women), made the appointment of a missionary bishop unnecessary. Such an argument rests, of course, on a theological parity being drawn between disagreements over ordained ministry, and over sexual ethics – a parity that is by no means self-evident, as Lee Gatiss argued last week.
What was most intriguing, however, was what the Archbishop went on to say next: …”
– At Church Society’s blog, Mark Smith takes a look at the Canons of the Council of Nicaea, to which the Archbishop of Canterbury appeals. What do they really say?
What we believe
The message at the heart of Christianity is really quite simple…