Pastoral letter from Bishop Mark Short to the Anglican Parish of Cobargo

Bishop of Canberra and Goulburn, Mark Short, has sent this pastoral letter to the Anglican Parish of Cobargo. In this fire season across Australia, each loss is locally felt, and this is one.

January 1 at 12:27 PM ·

Dear sisters and brothers of the Parish of Cobargo,

I write as your Bishop at a time of shared loss and grief.

You have lost treasured buildings, valued homes and beloved friends and neighbours. Many of you have faced overwhelming situations and have worked selflessly to care for others .

The Bible assures us that God is close to the broken-hearted and it is right and healthy to grieve. The Bible also assures us that in Jesus Christ God is able to bring restoration and hope. This journey of hope will take time, and it is a journey we will make together. Be assured of the prayers of the rest of the Diocese and our readiness to work with you as, with God’s help, we renew and rebuild.

Almighty God,
In your wisdom you have so ordered our earthly life
that we must walk by faith and not by sight:
give us such trust in your fatherly care
that in the face of all perplexities
we may give proof our faith by the courage of our lives;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. APBA, p465

In the love of Jesus,

+Mark Short

The Bishop’s pastoral letter includes the prayer, written by the Dean of St Andrew’s Cathedral, The Very Reverend Kanishka Raffel, to be read on Sunday:

“Lord of all days and years, and time and eternity, You made this land and have blessed us with its riches and beauty.

You are a refuge to all who seek your shelter, our strong defence in trial and tribulation.
Send rain we pray to extinguish flames and heal our land.
Mercifully protect life and property.
Give help and hope to our neighbours assailed by fire.
Comfort and provide for those who grieve.
Uphold those who suffer loss,
Give peace and hope to those bewildered and broken-hearted.

We thank you for men and women of courage and selflessness.
We thank you for brave communities of care and support, We thank you for those who share your comfort and hope, We thank you for those at a distance giving and praying.

Lord, you sent your Son so that we would know your power to save, your presence with your people in this world of turmoil, and your promise to renew the whole creation. Turn our hearts to you, that we may have faith for this day and hope for eternity.

We ask in Jesus’ name. Amen.”

“St Saviour’s Church Quaama in the Parish of Cobargo. Locals tell me that the bell-tower always appeared to be the most rickety part of the structure. Yet it still stands [top photo]; a reminder that in the most challenging circumstances our call to summons people to find comfort and hope in the Lord Jesus Christ endures. Thank you for your prayers as the communities of the Diocese face a difficult weekend.”

(With thanks to Ramon Williams for forwarding this letter and images.)

A Prayer for protection amid bushfire emergency

“Archbishop Glenn Davies has appealed for Christians to be in fervent prayer as New South Wales enters a State of Emergency because of bushfires raging around the state.

As the state of emergency was declared, at least 17 people had died in Australia and more than 1,400 homes have been destroyed in bushfires since October. Three bushfire fighters have lost their lives in New South Wales.

Archbishop Davies wrote to churches noting that many, especially in the Wollongong Region have been arranging special prayer meetings as well as practical offers of support to those affected.

“Our January Sunday services will give us all an opportunity for bringing our prayers to God for his mercy to flow, and indeed for rain to fall.” Dr Davies said.

The Archbishop issued a special prayer, which asks for protection for the firefighters…“

– The full prayer is available at SydneyAnglicans.net.

Related: At the time of writing, the CMS Summer School at Katoomba is still going ahead.

2019: A Ground-Breaking Year for GAFCON

“A lot has happened during 2019, and we give praise and thanks to God for His faithfulness to this growing movement of Global Anglicans. Watch our round up of 2019 here and we hope that you will stand with us as we move forward into the new year …”

– Encouragement from Chairman of the GAFCON Primates Council, Archbishop Ben Kwashi.

Church leaders use Christmas message to spread hope for the new year

“Millions of Australians have today celebrated the spirit of Christmas with family and friends.”

– Report and Image from Seven News Sydney (on Facebook).

New Archbishop of York, and other news from the UK

“It has been announced this morning that the new Archbishop of York will be Stephen Cottrell, currently Bishop of Chelmsford.

Stephen Cottrell is the President of Affirming Catholicism, an organisation which is ‘seeking to bring together and strengthen lay and ordained people who recognize the positive, inclusive and joyful currents in the Catholic tradition of Christianity.’ Among other things, they are seeking to allow same sex marriage and the ministry of people in same sex relationships within the Church of England. …”

– See Church Society’s website for more. Photo: Diocese of York.

The Church of England website has a story.

In other news from the UK, Bishop Gavin Ashenden, who joined the Anglo-Catholic Christian Episcopal Church two years ago, has now announced that he is ‘crossing the Tiber’.

Related:

Rome Scholars & Leaders Network, June 15th-19th 2020.

“Evangelicalism currently has an incoherent relationship with Roman Catholicism. Many evangelicals are uncertain about what Roman Catholics actually believe. Do they believe in the same Gospel, or something entirely different?…”

Swimming the Tiber? by Mark Jones at Ligonier Ministries.

Advent Letter from Archbishop Ben Kwashi

“Peace be with you!

Our Advent card celebrates the wonderful truth that our Lord Jesus who first appeared in the humility of the incarnation will most certainly return in glory, ‘For all the promises of God find their Yes in him’ (2 Cor 1:20).

The gospel brings a hope that nothing and nobody else can give and living myself in a situation where Christians risk their lives for faithfulness to Christ, I know the power of this hope to sustain and strengthen. …”

– Gafcon General Secretary, Archbishop Ben A Kwashi, shares his Advent 2019 message.

Reflections on leaving the Church of England

“Having served for 23 years as an ordained minister in the Church of England, I was recently licensed as minister of Emmanuel, Morecambe in the Free Church of England, a smaller Anglican denomination which formed in the mid-19th century. …

People have asked me what has changed in the CofE in recent years such that I have decided to leave it now and whether this decision has involved some soul-searching.”

– Julian Mann shares something of his journey, at VirtueOnline.

Second draft of Religious Discrimination Package released

“The Commonwealth Government has released a second version of its draft legislation dealing with religious discrimination issues, for further comment before it is formally introduced into the Federal Parliament in the New Year. There are a number of important changes from the previous drafts which in my view make it a much better package of amendments. But there are areas for improvement…”

– At Law and Religion Australia, Associate Professor Neil Foster, shares his response to the updated draft legislation.

Diocese of Sydney Response to Second Exposure Draft of the Religious Discrimination Bill

Anglican Church Diocese of Sydney

Media Statement

The Release of the Second Exposure Draft of the Religious Discrimination Bill

We appreciate the thorough way in which the government has approached this issue and takes seriously the deeply-held views of people of faith.

In particular, I am encouraged by a number of changes in the second exposure draft. The respect given to faith charities is an important model for the future harmony of Australian society.

Personal faith and the activities of religious communities touch so many areas of our lives. As the Prime Minister has pointed out, we have laws preventing discrimination on race, sex, age or disabilities and faith should likewise be protected.

We look forward to providing further feedback on the updated Bill.

Glenn N Davies,

Archbishop of Sydney

10 December 2019.

Source: SydneyAnglicans.net

Advent 2019 Message from Archbishop Foley Beach

“In his Advent letter to the family of global Anglicans, Archbishop Foley Beach reflects on his time in Pakistan, the launch of Gafcon’s weekday devotion ‘Lift Up Your Hearts’, and despite hostility, he encourages us to press forward in Jesus, the Coming King.“

Gafcon Ireland pushes back against claims it is un-Anglican

Here is a letter printed in the Irish Times in response to the open letter from liberal Irish clergy urging the Irish bishops to reject the election of David McClay as Bishop of Down and Dromore due to his support of GAFCON.

_______

Sir, – It saddens me that once again The Irish Times has allowed its pages to be used to spread vicious and untrue rumours about Gafcon (Analysis, November 18th, Rite and Reason, November 19th). Far from being schismatic, Gafcon has allowed the vast majority of the Anglican Communion to remain united despite attempts from some to tear the very fabric of our common life.

The pleas of brothers and sisters across the globe have been ignored and the plain teaching of Scripture has been abandoned. Instead there has been a persistent and prolonged attempt to drive the Church of Ireland away from its true Anglican heritage shared by millions across the world. It was my privilege to be at Gafcon in Jerusalem last year, the biggest international gathering of Anglicans in over 50 years. Men and women from more than 50 countries gathered in that great city to proclaim Christ faithfully to the nations.

Every Church of Ireland minister is committed to this. At their ordination, they promise to expound the Scriptures and teach the doctrine of the Church of Ireland to all irrespective of gender, race or sexuality.

Anyone reading the Jerusalem Declaration, which sets out the beliefs of the Gafcon movement, will notice that it merely upholds the classical authorities of Anglicanism, the Bible as the word of God written, the Creeds and Councils of the early church, the Articles, the Book of Common Prayer and the Ordinal. This is something that every bishop in the Church of Ireland is called to do and what the average church-goer in Ireland expects from their bishop. These are the things that unite us. – Yours, etc,

Rev Timothy Anderson, Chair, Gafcon Ireland

– from GAFCON.

Preparing for GAFCON Kigali 2020

Archbishop Foley speaks briefly about why evangelism is a key theme for the Kigali 2020 conference being planned by GAFCON.

Evangelical Anglicans on the Fault Line in New Zealand

“I have been privileged to visit New Zealand twice this year. On my first visit in May I had time to explore a little of this beautiful land from alpine mountains to the lush forests bordering restless volcanic lakes, but I am still haunted by the sight of the ruined Christchurch Cathedral, its west end still open to the elements after the spire collapsed in the 2011 earthquake.

My second visit in mid-October was for the consecration of the Revd Jay Behan as the first bishop of the new Church of Confessing Anglicans Aotearoa, New Zealand …”

– GAFCON’s Charles Raven reflects on what’s happening in New Zealand.

Attending to the National Soul: Book launch Thursday 12 December

Here’s an invitation to all ACL members and others interested in Australian history:

Attending to the National Soul – Evangelical Christians in Australian History 1914 – 2014 by Stuart Piggin and Robert D. Linder follows the highly awarded book The Fountain of Public Prosperity – Evangelical Christians in Australian History 1740–1914, which was published in 2018.

Both volumes are the result of thirty years’ research and writing. Read more

Archbishop calls for compassion for bushfire victims

In a tweet today, Archbishop Glenn Davies has urged all Christians to continue to show compassion for bushfire victims, and to pray for the threat to ease.

He refers to Luke 13:1-5, where Jesus warns against ascribing a particular tragedy as a direct judgment of God.

Related:

Media Release from The Australian Christian Lobby:

The Australian Christian Lobby is responding to requests from the media to comment on Israel Folau’s recent sermon.

“Sermons don’t lend themselves to quick soundbites, and the media’s attempts to paraphrase a sermon has caused some unnecessary angst,” said ACL Managing Director, Martyn Iles, “For one thing, Israel did not claim to know that the current bushfires are God’s direct judgement for same-sex marriage.”

“Nobody knows God’s mind, nor do they understand ultimately why bad things happen,” Mr Iles added, “We do know that the Bible says God is sovereign over everything, and He is ‘our ever-present help in times of trouble.’ (Ps 46:1)”

“A call to turn our minds and hearts to God in challenging days such as these is supported by all Christians,” Mr Iles confirmed, “Churches across Australia are not only offering practical support to victims, firefighters, and communities, but are also praying for rain, for repentance, and for God’s plan in people’s lives to be strengthened even through difficulty.”

“Not all Australians will resonate with these beliefs, but the many who do shouldn’t be threatened or lose their freedoms,” Mr Iles urged.

The Australian Christian Lobby calls on Australians to pray for our nation, and to help those who are doing it tough, including victims, firefighters and their communities.

ENDS.

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