Pray with us for Afghanistan
Archbishop Kanishka Raffel has called for prayer for the troubled nation of Afghanistan.
In a video issued today, he addressed the situation after the withdrawal of western forces and prayed for the nation, its people, especially the women facing persecution and repression and Christian churches.
He also prayed for Australian defence personnel who had served in that land, saying “for soldiers who returned from there bearing the scars of war, and their families, these have been days of anger, grief and disbelief.”
See the video from the Archbishop, and download the prayer written by the Rev Mark Charleston at SydneyAnglicans.net.
Lockdown brings us to our knees
“Prayer is everywhere, and not just for the pandemic. Extended periods of isolation at home have meant that people, stripped of a busy life of commuting, events and travel, are putting prayer at the forefront of their day. …
Last week the Archbishop and bishops organised regional meetings of leaders of churches across the Diocese to pray for our locked-down communities.
Archbishop Raffel is also joining other church and community leaders in a special prayer event in Wednesday, 18 Aug (click here to register on zoom). The group, organised by Family Voice, includes former Deputy Prime Minister John Anderson, and former Wallabies captain Nick Farr-Jones. …
On twitter, the Archbishop also called for urgent prayer for the nation of Afghanistan, especially for vulnerable people, after the takeover by the Taliban.”
– Russell Powell writes at SydneyAnglicans.net.
Should Christians accept the COVID-19 vaccine?
In an updated piece at SydneyAnglicans.net, Dr. Megan Best addresses the question “Should Christians accept the COVID-19 vaccine?”.
Image: Dr Best with Chase Kuhn and Dominic Steele on The Pastor’s Heart in August 2020.
Sandy Grant to be Dean of Sydney
“The Archbishop of Sydney, Kanishka Raffel, has appointed Canon Sandy Grant, of St Michael’s Cathedral Wollongong, to be the new Dean of Sydney.
He will be the 13th Dean of Sydney, a post with a history stretching back to 1858 when William Macquarie Cowper was appointed as the first Dean.
Canon Grant has been the Senior Minister of St Michael’s in Wollongong since 2004 and will take up his ministry at Sydney’s St Andrew’s Cathedral in December. …”
– Read the news from SydneyAnglicans.net.
Southern Cross for August 2021
Once more, it’s not possible to distribute printed copies of Southern Cross magazine (in fact, it wasn’t printed this month) – but Anglican Media Sydney has posted the full issue online.
From Archbishop Kanishka Raffel’s column (Sickness, COVID and the hope to come, page 15):
“John’s Gospel records an episode in the life of Jesus that is both deeply personal and powerfully universal.
As far as Scripture records, Jesus never experienced illness himself. He did, however, experience hunger, thirst, the barbarous physical cruelty of flogging and crucifixion. And of course, Jesus experienced death.
Jesus is famously recorded on numerous occasions being swamped by people who were ill or suffering from some mental, physical or demonic affliction. His reputation as a healer was documented even by non-Christian ancient sources.
In John chapter 11 we are given a window into how Jesus was affected by the sickness of others. …”
Thanks to Jane Tooher, there’s also a profile of “A woman who did not give in to fear” – Dorothy Mowll. (page 16).
Read online (or download the PDF file) at magazine.sydneyanglicans.net.
Archbishop Kanishka Raffel’s message for churches for Sunday 1st August 2021.
Archbishop Kanishka Raffel has recorded this message for churches for their online gatherings on Sunday, 01 August, 2021.
We’re sure you’ll find it an encouragement.
Russell Powell has more at SydneyAnglicans.net.
Sydney Synod 2021 postponed
Due to the uncertainties of the current COVID outbreak, Archbishop of Sydney Kanishka Raffel has postponed the forthcoming session of the Synod which was to have to commenced on 6th September.
At this time a new date has not been decided. However elections to boards, councils and committees will continue as planned.
The Importance of Children’s and Youth Ministry
“It is no surprise to ACR readers that Australia is radically and rapidly changing as a nation.
Whether or not it is accurate to describe the initial colonies or federated states as a “Christian” nation, it is abundantly clear that as we enter the third decade of the 21st Century, Australia is increasingly a post–Christian and post–church society.
In 2017 45% of Australians identified as Christian and 25% of Australians were described as ‘cold’ towards Christianity. Only 15% stated that they attend church monthly or more.
As confessional Anglicans, we are not specifically concerned with Australia being a culturally Christian nation. However, we are passionate about Christ and his Kingdom. We are passionate about making disciples of all nations by evangelising the lost and discipling the saints …”
– At The Australian Church Record, Tim Beilharz writes to encourage clarity on Children’s and Youth Ministry.
Cling to God, care for each other
“We were hoping COVID lockdown wouldn’t happen again in NSW but, once the cases kept coming, it was not surprising when the Premier extended the stay-at-home order yesterday for Greater Sydney.
Just like 2020, our work and life patterns have been mucked up. And, just like 2020, anxiety and depression have reasserted themselves in the lives of many people – if they ever went away.
‘For people who have still not recovered from last year, this has pushed all sorts of buttons,’ says the Rev Dr Keith Condie, co-director of the Mental Health and Pastoral Care Institute and Mary Andrews College. …”
– Encouragement amidst COVID restrictions from Judy Adamson at SydneyAnglicans.net.
The Election of Archbishop Mowll: A Decision with Consequence
“The Conservative Evangelicalism which permeates the diocese of Sydney today has not always characterised the diocesan leadership. Although Sydney may always have had an Evangelical flavour, in the early 20th century the leadership of the diocese represented a more liberal emphasis.
The election of H.W.K. Mowll as Archbishop (1933-1958) changed the trajectory of the diocese toward a more conservative theological position. The significance of Mowll’s leadership was not merely a result of his duration in office, but rather the growth, innovation and theological consolidation which he instigated. …”
– Dr. Ed Loane, Warden of St. Paul’s College, University of Sydney, reflects on a turning point for the Diocese of Sydney.
Moore College recognised as a University College
“Moore Theological College has today (01/07/21) been registered in the new University College category by the Australian government Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency (TEQSA). In the TEQSA media release, TEQSA Chief Commissioner Professor Peter Coaldrake explained the significance of the University College category:
‘[T]he new University College category […] recognises high-quality institutions and provides them with new opportunities to develop course offerings that meet the future needs of students, employers, industry and communities. The updated standards also include augmented research requirements for universities.’
‘TEQSA […] congratulates NIDA, AFTRS and Moore Theological College for being the first three providers to be registered in the new University College category.”
“Each of these providers demonstrated to TEQSA that they offer high-quality higher education and meet the standards for registration as University Colleges.’…”
– Good news from Moore College.
Can’t get to church to pick up Southern Cross?
Even if you can’t get to church to pick up the latest edition of Southern Cross magazine from Anglican Media Sydney, you can still download your copy – or read it online.
It includes Archbishop Kanishka Raffel’s column.
In part, he writes, reflecting on Prayer in Partnership and the Letter to the Philippians:
“God has committed himself to the salvation of his people, including their preservation until ‘the day of Christ’. What God began, he will complete.
No wonder Paul says, ‘Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God’ (4:6).
In troubling and anxiety-inducing circumstances, prayer to a God who hears us, and is committed to our perseverance until the last day, results in ‘the peace of God, which transcends all understanding’ (4:7).”
Now, it’s a total lockdown
“With just hours before Sunday church services, Greater Sydney, the Blue Mountains, Wollongong and the Central Coast have been thrown into a lockdown.
Premier Gladys Berejiklian announced that Greater Sydney, the Blue Mountains, Wollongong and Central Coast will enter a two-week lockdown as of 6:00pm on the 26th June. …”
– The latest from SydneyAnglicans.net, including links to find churches with online services.
ACL Annual General Meeting 2021 — Report
The 2021 Annual General Meeting of the Anglican Church League took place on Thursday 10th June at Moore Theological College, Newtown.
ACL President the Reverend Andrew Bruce (pictured) spoke on Acts 1:1-14. He encouraged the meeting with the reminder that Jesus is the ascended Lord, that his gospel will go to the ends of the Earth, and that this will happen through the testimony of his disciples, in the power of the Holy Spirit. He pointed out that the apostolic mission began with earnest, dedicated and united prayer.
Reverend Bruce exhorted all present to wait on the Lord and engage in devoted prayer as we continue this significant task of gospel proclamation. Humanly speaking, the “odds” of being able to proclaim Jesus to the ends of the earth seem impossible. Yet this impossibility is the normal situation for God’s people. In the end, the risen and ascended Lord will see his gospel go out. Thus, we can only engage in this mission through prayer and the power of the Holy Spirit.
Andrew then moved on to provide some thoughts on some of the aspects of Sydney Diocesan life. He emphasised the need to be reinvigorated in our lives and our churches with gospel confidence. As a Diocese, we are in constant danger of focusing on the “urgent” matters that our world sees as priorities, rather than the truly important things of gospel ministry: prayer, godliness, evangelism, and recruiting and training.
Reverend Bruce exhorted us to ensure that the “urgent” does not take up all of our resources so that we neglect the important. We do not have unlimited resources – indeed we are quite stretched – and so we need to be wise, courageous and sacrificial in saying “no” to things that seem urgent but are not central to what we do.
He also exhorted us to reinvigorate our evangelism. All ministry today is cross-cultural, because of the vast difference between our aggressive secular culture and our gospel culture. So evangelism must be relational and person-to-person. This means we need to engage deeply with the laity, since one-to-one mission is primarily lay-led. This requires gospel courage and endurance.
We must also reinvigorate our recruiting and training. We need to ensure there are strong numbers of Anglican candidates in training at Moore College, that they sign up in good time for us to evaluate them, that we recruit Rectors, and that we retain those we have trained.
The ACL can play a key role in advocating for Diocesan structures to make courageous and bold decisions to seek always to value the important over the “urgent”.
The President closed his address with a reading from Romans 12:1-2 and prayer for our Diocese.
The meeting received the Treasurer’s Report, approved positions for Elections Secretary, Recruitment Secretary, Membership Secretary and Communication Secretary, and elected office holders. Office holders for 2021-2022 are listed here.
Update on restrictions as of 18th June 2021
SydneyAnglicans.net’s COVID page has the latest recommendations as of 18th June 2021.
What we believe
The message at the heart of Christianity is really quite simple…