Preliminary thoughts on the Appellate Tribunal ruling — Dr Mark Thompson warns of devastating consequences

“It is with great sadness that I note the opinion of the Appellate Tribunal of the Anglican Church of Australia on the matter of proposed services to bless same-sex unions. Setting aside the unanimous advice of the House of Bishops and the unanimous advice of the Board of Assessors, the majority of the Tribunal has decided that there is no impediment to such services of blessing going ahead.

This opinion, if acted upon, may indeed have devastating consequences for the Anglican Church of Australia, as similar decisions have done elsewhere in the world, but it cannot change the revealed will of God. …”

– Read all of Canon Dr. Mark Thompson’s preliminary thoughts at the Moore College website.

See also:

Appellate Tribunal Issues Majority Opinion Backing Same-Sex Blessing Liturgy – David Ould, 11 November 2020.

“Attention now moves to the House of Bishops who meet tomorrow and the Standing Committee of the General Synod who begin to meet on Friday.”

Earlier:

‘Newcastle Anglicans support gay marriage’ – 27 October 2019.
Wangaratta Blessing “Delayed” – 10 September 2019.

Lucknow’s St John the Evangelist Anglican Church sells for $430,000

“Lucknow’s 147-year-old bluestone church was tipped to draw a crowd on auction day, and even with COVID-19 restrictions, that’s exactly what it did. …”

– from The Central Western Daily. (subscription)

Seasonal Thanksgiving

“The road from Moree to Collarenebri was unusually busy.

As the miners’ dusty dreams are carried from the beneath the ground, harvester dust was in the air as their GPS’s plotted the gathering of a wealth unseen through the previous 6 years of drought. The tourists seem to vanish with the heat but our western towns seemed busy as the diesel pumps worked overtime to keep the grain moving…”

– Bishop of Armidale, Rick Lewers, gives thanks.

New Vice Principal of Moore College

“The Moore College Principal, Dr Mark Thompson, has … announced that the current Vice Principal, Dr Colin Bale, will conclude his service in that role at the end of 2020. Dr Bale will continue to serve as a member of the Moore College faculty until he retires in the second half of 2021. …

This decision has led to the need to appoint a new Vice Principal, and Dr Thompson announced that he had asked the Rev Dr Simon Gillham to take up that office. …”

– News, last week, from Moore College.

Sponsor a Bible college student

“This unique program gives Australian Christians the opportunity to sponsor an emerging leader from a developing country to receive culturally appropriate training at a trusted Bible college.

You can choose to sponsor a student as an individual, family, Bible study group, or Church.

By sponsoring a student you will enable a future pastor to be fully prepared to defend the truth of the gospel and faithfully share the good news with their nation.”

– A wonderful initiative from Anglican Aid.

See also:

A new twist on sponsorship – back a Bible student – SydneyAnglicans.net.

Bishop Gary Nelson: “The furthest church from me is a 6000-kilometre return drive.”

“The Diocese of North West Australia is so large it could easily fit in the whole UK three times over – reaching from Geraldton on the coast to Kununurra on the border of the Northern Territory.

A population of 150,000 is scattered across 2 million square kilometres, and Bishop Gary Nelson and his team work hard to share the gospel with each person who passes through the world’s largest land-based Anglican diocese.“

– Encouragement to pray, from SydneyAnglicans.net.

Anglican Church of Tasmania finalises $3.65 million of compensation to survivors of sexual abuse

“The Anglican Church of Tasmania has confirmed it will pay $3.65 million in compensation to 24 survivors of sexual abuse, but will look at selling more assets after its liability estimates more than doubled. …”

– Report from ABC News.

November 2020 issue of Southern Cross

The November issue of Southern Cross is now available at magazine.sydneyanglicans.net

Stories include –

• Rejoicing at the opening of Stanhope Gardens
• Getting the most out of church
• The War you didn’t know about.

Feature articles include –
• Discipling screen-native kids,
• The new Christian sports show
• Cranmer’s strategy for evangelism.

Archbishop Glenn Davies gives Thanksgiving prayer for the end of drought

Archbishop of Sydney, Dr. Glenn Davies, leads in prayer at the end of the drought, and also prayers for those labouring for a COVID-19 vaccine.

Thanks be to God for his many mercies.

New Dean of Christ Church Cathedral Darwin Commissioned

The Rev. Rob Llewellyn was commissioned as the new Dean of Christ Church Cathedral in Darwin last weekend.

The service can be seen at the Cathedral’s Facebook page.

Bishop Greg Anderson preached. Most encouraging.

Mask and number restrictions easing in churches

“Churches can now open to up to 300 people, subject to the 4m2rule and masks are no longer needed in services after talks with the State government on COVID safety…”

– The latest from Russell Powell at SydneyAnglicans.net.

Photo: Anglican Media Sydney.

Reflections on my expectations of Ministry Fifty years ago

“Following a year of teaching secondary school English and History, I entered Moore Theological College in 1966 (aged 21). Ordained in Sydney (deacon, 1969; presbyter, 1970), I was assistant minister at Yagoona, St Michael’s Wollongong, and then Eastwood, before undertaking a New Testament research degree at Durham University, UK. Returning to Australia in 1976, I was invited to start a new church in Wanniassa …”

– In The Australian Church Record’s 2020 Winter Journal, John G. Mason reflected on fifty years of ordained Christian ministry.

Obeying government and obeying God

“The Bible’s teaching on our relationship to human authorities is quite clear. Those who govern us are set in place by God. …”

– In his column in the October 2020 Southern Cross, Archbishop Glenn Davies considers the relationship of Christians and the government – in these ‘COVID-19’ times.

Hopeful signs

This morning, Archbishop Glenn Davies tweets,

“I met with Minister Brad Hazzard yesterday. I assured him of our prayers as we all work together to stop COVID-19. We spoke about inconsistencies in current rules and he assured me that an announcement tomorrow will help churches better serve our communities.”

Update, 21 October 2020:

“From this Friday, the number of people who can attend religious gatherings will be lifted from 100 to 300, subject to the 4–square-metre rule.”

– ABC News.

A place of hope opens in Sydney’s West

“’To the Glory of God and the growth of His Kingdom’ – so says the plaque unveiled at the official opening of Sydney’s latest Anglican church building.

The 21st-century design of the Stanhope Anglican Church was projected on the screen in the auditorium as Archbishop Glenn Davies joined the church’s pastor, Steve Reimer, members of the church and invited guests in opening the building. …”

– Good news from Russell Powell at SydneyAnglicans.net.

← Previous Page — Next Page →