Dr Gavin Ashenden resigns as Chaplain to the Queen
“After a conversation instigated by officials at Buckingham Palace, it is with regret that the Rev’d Dr Gavin Ashenden – theologian, academic, columnist and occasional contributor to [The Archbishop Cranmer] blog – has decided to resign his position as Chaplain to the Queen.
It was, he says, “the most honourable course of action” following “attempts to silence or defenestrate” him…”
– News from “Archbishop Cranmer”.
And you can read Dr. Ashenden’s full statement here.
“I have held the position for the last nine years. But over the last few years people who objected to my defending the Christian faith in public wrote to both Lambeth Palace and Buckingham Palace to try to get the association ended. …”
Remnant in Scotland finding hope through GAFCON
GAFCON has posted this video message from The Rev. David McCarthy, Rector of St. Thomas’ Church, Edinburgh.
GAFCON General Secretary Dr. Peter Jensen writes, “In this video, Revd David McCarthy, rector of St Thomas’s Edinburgh, laments the crisis which hit the Scottish Episcopal Church in June 2016 when the General Synod rejected the bible’s teaching by voting to change the church’s Canon on marriage.
However, reminded how in the recent past the Gafcon Primates came to the aid of Anglicans in North America, David and fellow orthodox Anglicans in Scotland are encouraged by support from within the wider communion and ask for our prayers.”
The Archbishops’ Statement on the Reformation
“The Archbishops of Canterbury and York have released a joint statement on the 500th anniversary of the Reformation. The statement recognises that ‘many Christians will want to give thanks for the great blessings they have received to which the Reformation directly contributed’. Furthermore it includes among those blessings, ‘clear proclamation of the gospel of grace, the availability of the Bible to all in their own language and the recognition of the calling of lay people to serve God in the world and in the church’. The Archbishops make clear that the Church of England will be participating in the celebrations of this anniversary, ‘including sharing in events with Protestant church partners from Continental Europe’.
So despite how some of the more popular press might try to spin it, this statement is not a repudiation of the Reformation nor of its doctrine. …”
– At Theological Theology, Moore College Principal Dr Mark Thompson asks if “the departures from biblical truth that occasioned the split at the time of the Reformation have been addressed by the Roman Church”.
40th anniversary of the Granville train disaster
“A former Police Rescue officer who personally rescued two people from the rubble of the Granville train disaster has reflected on the tragedy 40 years ago today.
Chief Inspector Gary Raymond APM, OAM (Retired) was a young member of the Police Rescue Squad which responded to the train derailment and bridge collapse in 1977 that claimed 83 lives and injured 213 others. Read more
Brazilian Anglicans ask for prayer support
Members of the Anglican Episcopal Church of Brazil have written to the ACL and other Anglican groups asking for prayer.
“We are a group of clergy of the Anglican Episcopal Church of Brazil, we are being persecuted for defending a biblical position of marriage and asking that the Anglican episcopal church of Brazil maintain its unity with the Anglican communion, which in turn, in voice through the chamber of the bishops want to approve this position by imposition.”
They include these links –
1. Creation of the alliance movement. (Select the English Version tab.)
2. Response of the Bishops – Original Portuguese. English translation
3. Letter from Bishop Sebastião (Emeritus Bishop in the Diocese of Recife) to the Bishops – Original Portuguese. English translation
4. Letter of Covenant to Bishops.
Related:
Earlier posts on happening in the Diocese of Recife.
Report from Virtueonline.
Overseas Muslim marriages and Australian law
“Two cases involving purported marriages under Islamic law, entered into overseas by Australian residents, have received recent press coverage.
The decisions of the courts involved seem to be clearly correct, and they helpfully illustrate some important principles of Australian law. A person whose home is Australia cannot legally travel outside this country and enter into a valid marriage with a minor, or enter into a second marriage when already lawfully married under Australian law. …”
– At Law and Religion Australia, Neil Foster looks at the operation of Australian law and overseas marriages.
Qur’an in the Eucharist?
“I have just returned from Paris where I was invited to be part of a conversation with three imams sponsored by Lebanese TV.
I thought they were kind, impressive and delightful people. It was a privilege to meet them and talk to them. We had many things in common, but most of all a deep attraction to God who made us, whose intentions towards us, we know, are love and mercy.
The strength of the encounter was the friendship and mutual admiration it produced. The weakness was that we did not speak at all about ‘the problem’. …
What is the significance, then, of a Muslim standing at the lectern in a Christian cathedral and publicly proclaiming words from the Koran which announce that the Gospel writers were engaged in a blasphemous deceit?”
– The Rev. Gavin Ashenden writes at ArchbishopCranmer.com to reflect on a recitation from the Qur’an at service of The Lord’s Supper for Epiphany in the Cathedral of the Scottish Episcopal Church in Glasgow.
See also:
In response to the Qur’an recitation in St Mary’s Cathedral, Glasgow – Bishop Michael Nazir-Ali.
This Qur’an recitation was not the first at Glasgow Cathedral. Carol Service, December 2014.
Tribute to Dr Mike Ovey by Archbishop Glenn Davies
Here’s a Public Statement released by Archbishop Glenn Davies on the death of Dr Mike Ovey, Principal of Oak Hill College:
“Dr Mike Ovey was a gifted student of God’s word whose ability to convey the truths of Holy Scripture and their contemporary application was outstanding.
Mike’s scholarly analysis of current trends in philosophy and theology was astute and penetrating, always with a view to strengthening the Christian’s understanding of the nature of God’s kingdom and his sovereign rule over our lives. A gracious and godly leader, Mike’s presence and counsel will be sorely missed not only at Oak Hill College, where he served as Principal for a decade, but throughout England and the world.
We in Sydney have lost a true friend whose frequent trips to our city will be sadly missed.”
via SydneyAnglicans.net.
The Grace of God – or the World of the West? – Dr Mike Ovey
At the CMS NSW Summer School today, Rector of St. Helen’s Bishopsgate, William Taylor, paid tribute to Dr. Mike Ovey as “one of the great generals of the Christian faith”.
Take the time to thoughtfully watch this challenging and Christ-honouring address, given by Dr. Ovey, at GAFCON II in Nairobi in October 2013, to see why. Watch it here, courtesy of Anglican TV.
“My first really significant encounter with worldwide Anglicanism came at theological college.
It was 1990 and an east African priest was on secondment with us. He preached in the college chapel. He posed a question. Which gospel, he asked, which gospel do you westerners want us to believe? The one you came with or the one you preach now? Which gospel? I was horrified, not because what he said was not true. I was horrified because it was true.
My east African brother’s question has nagged away at me ever since. But how has it come about that we have a different gospel now from the one we first preached. What is this difference between what we westerners say now and what we said then? …”
Full text PDF from GAFCON.
GAFCON Chairman’s New Year Message for 2017
“As you will have seen from our end of year review, GAFCON is increasingly active. We are extending our reach, growing in influence, standing with the marginalised, strengthening our organisation and equipping key leaders, but all these things are the outworking of faithful prayer in the power of the Spirit. We are a spiritual movement in a spiritual battle and at the heart of the struggle is the challenge to the Word of God.
This is nothing new. Right at the beginning of bible history, the serpent says ‘Did God really say?’ (Genesis 3:1) and this is the question the traditional leadership of the Communion seems unwilling or unable to resolve. For instance…”
– Read Archbishop Okoh’s New Year message for 2017.
Is GAFCON the problem?
“An interview with the Secretary General of the Anglican Communion, Archbishop Josiah Idowu-Fearon, was recently published as an article in the Church of Ireland Gazette. The newspaper’s website carried the audio of the interview in full here.
For a self-confessed Ambassador and reconciler, Archbishop Josiah Fearon uses some undiplomatic language. The frank expression of his views on the Anglican Communion and the sexuality debate, and his sweeping dismissal of GAFCON and African church leaders have caused considerable dismay. However they reveal the thinking of the Anglican Communion Office and presumably those who endorse its leadership…”
– Archbishop Dr Peter Jensen, GAFCON General Secretary, responds to strong criticism of GAFCON, and what that criticism appears to say about the senior leadership of the Anglican Communion. Well worth taking the time to read. (link fixed)
God will meet all your needs — you can be sure of it
“What can we be sure of for 2017?
I can send you a New Year’s card with the most sincere expression of goodwill: wishing you the happiest year, seeking better outcomes for you and hoping for improved health. But can we, in any way, be sure of such things? Can we be sure that this year will be any better than last? Can we be sure of anything?
It’s the uncertainties of life that are certain. What remains true is that in terms of happiness, better outcomes and good health: 2017 is a complete unknown. BUT, what we can be sure of is that the Apostle Paul is right when he says: ‘God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus.’
What remains absolutely true is Paul’s testimony in Philippians 4:19. …”
– Presbyterian Church of Australia Moderator-General John P Wilson has released this God-honouring New Year’s message.
GAFCON Review of 2016
GAFCON General Secretary, Dr Peter Jensen, writes,
“As 2016 draws to a close we thought you might like to join us in reflecting on some key moments in the Gafcon year. You can find a short review of 2016 here. [PDF file.]
Archbishop Nicholas Okoh says in his introduction ‘we give great thanks to God for his grace at work in us’.
Please, therefore, use the review to fuel your prayers of thanksgiving and praise.”
Update on 2016 Law and Religion issues and preview for 2017
“It seems a good time of the year to take stock of the current status of some important Law and Religion issues discussed this year, and to flag some upcoming issues for the New Year.”
– At Law and Religion Australia, Neil Foster provides a concise summary of some of the key issues in 2016, plus a heads-up on another Parliamentary Inquiry, this one into “the status of the human right to freedom of religion or belief“.
GAFCON 2018 ‘To free our churches’
“GAFCON has confirmed the dates for its third international conference. Between 17-22 June 2018 it will return to Jerusalem, the venue of the first Global Anglican Future Conference in 2008 (from which the movement takes its name).
The GAFCON announcement explains that ‘The city stands as a constant reminder of the birth of the gospel and the movement’s determination to remain true to the teachings of our Lord and his Word’ and so, to appreciate the significance of the 2018 conference, it is worth recalling how it all began. …”
– Charles Raven writes at Evangelicals Now, via Anglican Mainstream.
What we believe
The message at the heart of Christianity is really quite simple…