Archbishop Welby denounces as un-biblical the decision of African Primates to skip the Lambeth Conference

“The Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, has written to the Primates of Nigeria, Rwanda and Uganda to tell them that his invitation to bishops from their provinces to attend the Lambeth Conference of Anglican bishops remains open.

In a joint letter with the Secretary General of the Anglican Communion, Archbishop Josiah Idowu-Fearon, Archbishop Justin said: ‘God calls us to unity and not to conflict so that the world may know he came from the Father. That is the very purpose of the church globally.‘…”

– Published last week by Anglican Ink.

See Archbishop Welby’s letter here (PDF file).

The Archbishop of Canterbury states that “the Church of England, has not in any way changed its teaching on marriage or the place of sexual relations”.

However, Archbishop Welby, who promised in his consecration vows to be “ready, with all faithful diligence, to banish and drive away all erroneous and strange doctrine contrary to God’s Word; and both privately and openly to call upon and encourage others to the same” has invited several bishops who are in same-sex marriages to the Lambeth Conference.

Honoured for fostering love

“North Shore couple Carolyn and David Stedman, who have fostered 74 children, are among several Sydney Anglicans honoured in this year’s Queen’s Birthday Honours…”

– SydneyAnglicans.net has the story.

Image: Seven’s Sunrise via Anglican Media Sydney.

GAFCON Sunday 2022

GAFCON Sunday 2022 is coming up on June 26.

Quiz Worx would be glad of your support

Quiz Worx is running their 2022 End-of-Financial-Year Appeal – to help them share Jesus with kids everywhere – using puppetry, music, drama, stories and fun. They have been such a blessing to so many.

See their website to learn more of what Quiz Worx does.

Click the image above for a larger version.

Download their appeal video from this link.

African church leader to address GAFCON Australasia

“A national church gathering of the Global Anglican Future Conference (GAFCON) Australasia will hear from international leaders including GAFCON General Secretary, Archbishop Ben Kwashi. …”

– Russell Powell at SydneyAnglicans.net gives a preview of the conference.

Photo: Archbishop Kwashi with Archbishop Peter Jensen in Jerusalem in 2018.

The anatomy of an Anglican service

From The Australian Church Record:

“Today we begin a new series of five articles on the elements that make up an Anglican service.

These pieces by the Moore College student orientation team were developed in 2022 to help new students understand the theological logic behind the Anglican services – based on the Book of Common Prayer – that are followed in Moore College chapel.

We’re sharing these because they help to demonstrate how and why Anglicans do what we do in church, for the encouragement and building up of the saints to maturity in Jesus Christ. We hope that you find them beneficial!”

Published so far –

More to come at The Australian Church Record.

Portrait of Thomas Cranmer by Gerlach Flicke.

A message for Sorry Day and Reconciliation Week

The Rev. Michael Duckett, who leads Macarthur Indigenous Church, has shared a prayer and video message for Sorry Day and Reconciliation Week.

The video could be downloaded for use in church.

“As God’s people, and as his church, we have the responsibility to be ambassadors of reconciliation. So I want to encourage us … that we would be bringing the true message of reconciliation to this country.”

Read and watch at SydneyAnglicans.net.

Unborn babies have taken another battering in Victoria today

Here’s a media release from The Australian Christian Lobby, 24 May 2022 –

“Commenting on Bernie Finn’s expulsion from the Victorian Liberal Party today, the Australian Christian Lobby’s (ACL) National Director, Wendy Francis, said,

“Abortions are only going to increase whilst pro-life speech is regarded as disrespectful, particularly when it applies to politicians who have the capacity to vote and change laws on life issues. Media reports indicate that Bernie Finn’s commitment to ‘pray for an end to abortion’ was the final straw for the Party who voted to expel him from their ranks today.”

Whilst, sadly, pro-life speech such as this will always sound disrespectful to those that don’t want to hear it, advocating for the child in the womb is perfectly respectful. It’s encouraging to witness  a new, young, pro-life generation rising up around the globe.

“The Liberal Party of Victoria has seriously underestimated the impact this move has had on their pro-life conservative base,” Ms Francis continued. “It will be a tough journey for them to regain their confidence in the leadup to the State election in November.

“Freedom of thought, worship, speech and association are basic tenets of the Liberal Party of Australia. And yet, today, a democratically elected member has been expelled from the Liberal Party of Victoria for exercising these very rights.”

Annual General Meeting 2022

The Annual General Meeting of the Anglican Church League will be held on Thursday 16th June 2022 from 6:00pm at St Andrew’s Cathedral School, 474 Kent Street, Sydney.

Financial members may vote. (Renew here.)

Agenda here.

Entry & room arrangements:

Election survey probes parties on faith freedom

“A survey of political parties and candidates on their attitude to religious discrimination has revealed varying levels of support – and in some cases, no support – for measures to ensure religious freedom. …”

– Russell Powell at SydneyAnglicans.net writes about the religiousdiscriminationsurvey.au website.

Related:

The Australian Christian Lobby (not associated with the Anglican Church League – we just have the same initials) has produced a page of “various documents and videos to help you make an informed choice on Election Day”, including this page where they share the answers given to their questionnaire in each electorate as well as each candidate for the Senate.

And not forgetting the call to pray –

“First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way.

This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Saviour, who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all, which is the testimony given at the proper time.” – 1 Timothy 2:1-6.

Allowah Children’s Hospital Dollar Matching Appeal

We’ve previously mentioned the attempts by the Allowah Children’s Hospital in Dundas (run by Presbyterian Church) to find funding.  They are “the only hospital dedicated to the health of children with disabilities in NSW”.

They’ve launched a new appeal – see a video about it here.

Freedom22 – National Conference 2022

It’s just a week to the Freedom for Faith: Freedom22 Conference in Parramatta:

“Religious Freedom in Australia has reached a crisis point.

The promised protections in the Federal Religious Discrimination Bill have been put on hold, and new State laws have removed several religious freedom rights from faith communities.

These new issues include unprecedented intrusions into prayer, unsympathetic treatment of conscience exemptions, reduced employment rights for religious schools, and a troubling surge in discrimination cases against Jewish, Muslim and other minority faith groups.

Will there be room for authentic expression of faith in Australia’s future?

Register for the Freedom22 National Conference on May 3 at Parramatta’s Park Royal Hotel to hear our distinguished speakers explain the content and consequences of these laws, as well as how we arrived at this cultural moment.

The Freedom22 speakers are:

Book via the Freedom for Faith website.

SC Supreme Court rules some breakaway churches must return properties to Episcopal Diocese

“The S.C. Supreme Court ruled some of the parishes that broke away from the Episcopal Church more than a decade ago must hand over their properties to the national church and its affiliated South Carolina diocese.

The court’s April 20 ruling orders 14 of 29 parishes that split from the Episcopal Diocese of South Carolina to begin the legal process for handing over ownership of the properties to the Episcopal Church. …”

– From The Post and Courier, Charleston, South Carolina.

See also this Pastoral Letter from Bishop Chip Edgar of the Anglican Diocese of South Carolina:

“The ruling raises many issues that will have to play out in the coming weeks before any actions are taken, so our first response must be to quiet our hearts before the Lord as we pray for grace to meet the days ahead. Some of our churches are relieved that the court ruled their property does indeed belong to them. Some are grieving deeply, as the courts ruling went the opposite direction.”

This has been a very long running dispute – and not all the websites linked in our archival posts are still active, but the post summaries will give some perspective.

Bishop Chip Edgar began as Bishop of the Diocese last month, succeeding Bishop Mark Lawrence who has been Bishop of the Diocese since 2008.

Update:

Lawyer AS Haley, The Anglican Curmudgeon, has posted what may be his last of many posts on the subject –

South Carolina Supreme Court Divides the Baby

His conclusion:

“There will be one final chapter to this desultory story once the federal courts dispose of the name and trademark claims, probably in ECUSA’s favor.

I shall not return here to comment; I am done with everything that involves the Episcopal Church. Let it reap what it has so assiduously sown.”

ePetition: “Please unanimously reject the Voluntary Assisted Dying Bill 2021”

In order to oppose and stop the passage of the Voluntary Assisted Dying Bill 2021 through the NSW Legislative Council, an ePetition has now been launched.

The text reads:.

“To the President and Members of the Legislative Council, the petitioners of New South Wales state that that they are completely opposed to the passage of the Voluntary Assisted Dying Bill 2021, in any form, which provides for state sanctioned/funded assisted suicide/euthanasia.

A cornerstone of our legal system is that ALL human life has inherent value and must be treated with dignity and respect. The petitioners request that the House unanimously oppose the bill, in any form, and reject it.”

The ePetition can be accessed via the Legislative Council’s ePetitions page.

Those signing the ePetition need to declare that they are a resident of New South Wales.

The ePetition closes on 25th April 2022. 

Related:

Kevin Conolly, MP for Riverstone, explains the NSW euthanasia bill – AP.

Kevin Conolly explains the NSW euthanasia bill – part 2.

GAFCON 4 goes to Rwanda

“After two meetings in Jerusalem in 2008 and 2018, and one in Nairobi in 2013, the organisers of the five-yearly Global Anglican Future Conference have decided that the 2023 meeting will be held in Kigali, Rwanda.

The conference has been a landmark in international Anglicanism. …”

– Russell Powell writes at SydneyAnglicans.net.

Image: GAFCON.

← Previous Page — Next Page →