Church of Scotland votes to allow ministers to be in same-sex marriages
“The Church of Scotland’s highest law-making body has voted to allow its ministers to be in same-sex marriages.
The church’s general assembly, which opened in Edinburgh on Saturday, voted in favour of extending a law passed last May that permits ministers to be in same-sex civil partnerships.
The decision, after years of deliberation, means the church maintains the traditional view marriage as between a man and woman, but allows individual congregations to ‘opt out’ if they wish to appoint a minister or deacon in a same-sex marriage or civil partnership…”
– Story from The Guardian. (Photo credit: Church of Scotland.)
Related (from June 2012): St. George’s Tron, Glasgow, secedes from Church of Scotland.
“We believe the Church of Scotland is choosing to walk away from the biblical gospel, and to walk apart from the faith of the worldwide Christian Church.”
Labor plans to appoint discrimination commissioner to ensure LGBTI people ‘feel safer’
“Labor has announced it will appoint an LGBTI discrimination commissioner to the Australian Human Rights Commission if it wins government in July…”
– ABC News has this report.
(Photo: Senator Penny Wong’s website.)
GAFCON Statement on the New Kenyan Primate
“On behalf of the worldwide GAFCON movement, I warmly congratulate Bishop Jackson Ole Sapit on his election as the Sixth Primate of the Anglican Church of Kenya and Bishop of All Saints Cathedral Diocese.
Under successive Archbishops, the Kenyan Church has been an inspiration to many. It has stood firm for biblical truth, courageously defended democracy and the rule of law, and kept its spiritual vigour.
We thank God for the gifts that Archbishop elect Sapit brings to his Church for this new season of its life and as we assure him of our prayers, we look forward to the Anglican Church of Kenya’s continued fellowship in the GAFCON family.
May our Lord Jesus, the Great Shepherd of the sheep, equip him with for every good work to watch over his people and proclaim the transforming Gospel of grace to the world.
Archbishop Peter Jensen, GAFCON General Secretary.
20th May 2016.”
– from GAFCON.
Bishop Jackson Ole Sapit elected Archbishop of Kenya
“Reverend Jackson ole Sapit of Kericho Diocese elected the new Anglican Church of Kenya Archbishop…”
– News from The Standard, Kenya.
See also: Bishop Jackson Ole Sapit of Kericho elected ACK head – Daily Nation.
The Anglican Church of Kenya has this profile. (PDF) Photo: Church of Kenya.
Update: Announcement from the Anglican Church of Kenya.
‘The Wabukala Succession: Lessons from Past ACK Archbishops’
The Anglican Church of Kenya is due to elect a new Archbishop today (20 May 2016). Please pray for the outcome.
The Kenyan newspaper, The Star, has published an informative history:
“The curtains are closing on the seven-year tenure of the fifth Archbishop of the Anglican Church of Kenya (ACK), His Grace The Most Rev (Dr.) Eliud Wabukala.
Archbishop Wabukala was elected and thereafter enthroned on July 7, 2009. He retired on account of attaining the age limit for serving in the office…”
Earlier: Primate approaches retirement with call to trust. (Anglican Communion News Service.)
“Six bishops are standing in the election to become the seventh Archbishop of Kenya: Joseph Masamba, of Mbeere; James Kenneth Ochiel, of Southern Nyanza; Joel Waweru, of Nairobi; Lawrence Kavutsu Dena, of Malindi; Jackson Nasoore Ole Sapit, of Kericho; and Julius N Wanyoike, of Thika.”
Click the image for the Anglican Church of Kenya website, which has profiles of the candidates.
See also: Anglicans get new archbishop today – The Standard (Kenya).
“By 2pm today, one of the six bishops will be declared the archbishop-elect and await the consecration and enthronement to be conducted on July 3, when he will officially assume the reins of the Archbishop of the Province of Kenya, who also doubles as the bishop of the All Saints Cathedral diocese. Speaking to The Standard yesterday, ACK Chancellor Tom Onyango, who also doubles as the Electoral College chairman, said the new archbishop could be known as early as 1pm.”
Online Bible Study with Abp Justin Welby
“The Archbishop of Canterbury was joined by thousands of Christians around the world today for his first live Bible study on Facebook…”
– Some encouraging news from the Anglican Communion News Service.
Moore College Missions 2016
“How joyous and encouraging has it been to follow each Moore Missions team this week?
Having arrived at the mid-week mark of the annual missions week, we can praise God for how easy it is for us to share in what the teams are doing. Thanks to the one-stop-shop at the Moore Missions site, we are steadily updated about the 13 teams of Moore students and faculty.”
– Thanks to the new-fangled Internet, you can get the latest to help you pray for Moore College missions across Sydney and further afield. Please be encouraged to do so.
Greens promise to end religious exemptions to Sex Discrimination Act
“The Greens have promised to remove religious exemptions to federal anti-discrimination law and increase funding to the Safe Schools anti-bullying program.
The promises are contained in broad-ranging Greens policy for LGBTI rights to be released on Tuesday by their LGBTI equality spokesman, Robert Simms, and gender identity spokeswoman, Janet Rice…”
– From The Guardian. (h/t SydneyAnglicans.net)
See also The Greens policy statement.
Looking for a See Change?
“The Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, is seeking an adviser for Anglican Communion affairs, to work from Lambeth Palace, his London home and office.
The successful applicant, who will be a priest or bishop in the Anglican Communion, will ‘serve and support the Archbishop in all matters relating to his Anglican Communion responsibilities.’
The closing date for applications is 9 June; and Lambeth Palace say that ‘Given the nature of this role, applications are welcome from all [priests and bishops] of the Anglican Communion, particularly those from the Global South.’…”
– Details from The Anglican Communion News Service.
(Photo of Lambeth Palace courtesy archbishopofcanterbury.org.)
Archbishop Freier renews calls for Asia Bibi to be released
“It is nearly seven years since a young Pakistani Christian mother was condemned to die for blasphemy, and she still languishes in death row in a Pakistani prison.
Her crime: to drink water from the same bucket as her Muslim co-workers, then to defend herself against their accusation that she was unclean and had polluted them…
The worldwide Anglican Consultative Council, at its meeting in Lusaka, Zambia, last month, heard in detail about this young woman’s unjust and inhumane treatment.”
– Anglican Primate Philip Freier, renews calls for Asia Bibi to be released.
Voting on July 2 — David Cook
David Cook, Moderator-General of the Presbyterian Church of Australia, turns to the Federal election in his latest comment:
“It is rare for an election to have as a major issue, a matter of morality, as much as this forthcoming poll.
The single issue is Same Sex Marriage, the ALP has said, that if elected they will legislate in the first 100 days for SSM. The Coalition parties, if elected, promise a national plebiscite on the issue.”
Full text below: Read more
Petition calls on Bill Shorten to support a marriage plebiscite
The Australian Christian Lobby has launched an online petition calling on Opposition Leader Bill Shorten to support the proposed plebiscite on same-sex marriage.
As the Australian Christian Lobby’s Managing Director Lyle Shelton notes, under current policy, an ALP win in the Federal election would mean same-sex marriage being legalised in Australia by early October.
Photo credit: ALP.
The Anglican Communion and GAFCON: Interpreting the Peter Jensen interview
“Peter Jensen, the retired Archbishop of Sydney and the current general Secretary of GAFCON, has given an extensive interview to VirtueOnline in which he expressed frankly some of his views on the current state of the Anglican Communion, and the mission of the Christian church in contemporary culture. The Virtue piece also contains some excerpts from talks that Jensen gave to the recent CANA meeting in Pennsylvania. It is worth giving these comments some analysis, as they give voice to the thinking behind GAFCON, as well as bringing to light some of the problems in global Anglicanism that derive from very different perceptions and interpretations of events…”
– Andrew Syme at Anglican Mainstream provides his analysis of the reported interview with Dr. Jensen.
Church of England uses ‘trendy’ Post-it notes in new service celebrating the role of godparents
“The Church of England has been accused of ‘dumbing down’ after drawing up a new service in which worshippers use Post-it notes, clap like football fans and move their fingers like ‘twinkling stars’.
The new liturgy will be used in hundreds of churches for the first time today to celebrate the role of godparents.
But in an outspoken attack, the former Bishop of Rochester, Michael Nazir-Ali, said it reflected the Church’s ‘now familiar desire for being trendy’…”
– Story from Mail Online.
Here’s The Church of England’s Godparents’ Sunday site, with the liturgy mentioned in the article (PDF file).
Archbishop Nicholas Okoh elected as GAFCON Chairman
“Archbishop, Metropolitan and Primate of All Nigeria, the Most Rev’d Nicholas D. Okoh has been elected the new chairman of the Global Anglican Future Conference (GAFCON) Primates’ council.
A statement issued by the Church of Nigeria (Anglican Communion) secretariat, which was made available to LEADERSHIP Weekend yesterday said Archbishop Okoh was elected during a meeting of the Primates’ council held in Nairobi, Kenya from 18 to 22 April, 2016…”
– from Leadership (Nigeria) via Anglican Mainstream.
What we believe
The message at the heart of Christianity is really quite simple…