Call to prayer for next UK government

From Anglican Mainstream:

“O Lord, you give the rulers of your people wisdom, discernment and insight in order that they might govern with justice, compassion and righteousness. As the leaders of our political parties negotiate the formation of the next government, we ask you so to move the hearts and wills of our leaders and people that in righteousness we may be led, and in righteousness may gladly follow; the the honour of your name, through Jesus Christ our Lord,  Amen.”

Dr Philip Giddings (Convenor)
Canon Dr Chris Sugden (Secretary)

(A good idea in the light of 1 Timothy 2:1-6.)

‘Scripture classes lose half of students to ethics, say Anglicans’

“The controversial trial of secular ethics classes has ‘decimated’ Protestant scripture classes in the 10 NSW schools where it has been introduced as an alternative for non-religious children, with the classes losing about 47 per cent of enrolled students…”

– report from The Sydney Morning Herald.

Paul White Dinner Lecture

SMBC’s annual Paul White Memorial Dinner / Lecture is set for Wednesday 26th May, with Archbishop Peter Jensen speaking on the place of mission in the local church.

See the SMBC website to book.

Great Jazz to help theology students in poor countries

Moore College External Studies has a great idea to raise support (and awareness) for theology students in poor countries (esp Nigeria, Fiji and Cuba). It involves jazz.

Read about it here – and tell your church!

Presbyterians in the fight for SRE

Presbyterian Youth NSW is also encouraging Christians to go to the Make a Stand / Save Our Scripture website and to make their views known to the NSW government.

See their videos and other resources here.

SRE on Trial

“On November 25, 2009, the former NSW Premier Nathan Rees made an unprecedented intervention to waive regulations, giving students in State schools the choice between SRE (Special Religious Education) and the trial of Ethics-based classes.

This is against long-standing assurances given by governments and current legislative guidelines where no secular subjects can be taught during the period assigned for SRE.”

See the website.

‘Help defend marriage’

A press release from FamilyVoice Australia –

“Until now marriage – the union of one man and one woman to the exclusion of all others, voluntarily entered into for life – has been the only couple relationship that could be registered under New South Wales law. The reason for this unique treatment of marriage is that:

•    only marriage provides the best environment for raising children – stability plus complementary male and female role models (Mum and Dad);
•    men and women complement each other in marriage – benefiting each other and society.

Now the Keneally government has introduced the Relationships Register Bill 2010, to enable unmarried and same-sex couples to register their relationships in the Register of Births, Deaths and Marriages.

On 23 April, government MP Barry Collier, on behalf of Deputy Premier Carmel Tebbutt, said: “Unmarried couples, whether in heterosexual or same-sex relationships, will be able to register their relationships, receive a certificate of registration, and know that their relationship is respected and recognised in New South Wales.”   Read more

Archbishop Mouneer Anis on the Global South

Archbishop Mouneer Anis spoke at last week’s Global South to South Encounter in Singapore. He gave an historical overview of the global south Anglican movement and spoke of the future –

“we are not creating a new Anglican Communion, because we are the Anglican Communion. We need a structure not to compete with the current dysfunctional structure of the Anglican Communion, but to move forward…”

See his address at Anglican TV. (Thanks to Kevin Kallsen.)

Government trial decimates SRE

“If ethics classes compete directly with SRE next year as planned, then Scripture enrolments will be slashed by up to 60 percent, the NSW Government’s own trial demonstrates.

Across the ten trial schools, Anglican and Anglican-Protestant scripture classes lost 123 students or 47 percent of those enrolled“”

– Jeremy Halcrow reports at SydneyAnglicans.net

Related: Save our Scripture.

FCA General Secretary responds to the Global South to South Encounter

Archbishop Peter Jensen:

“In my judgment, the assembly was unresponsive to the Archbishop of Canterbury’s video greetings. I don’t think that what he said was obscure. It just seemed to be from another age, another world. His plea for patience misjudged the situation by several years… He seemed to suggest that the consecration of a partnered lesbian Bishop will create a crisis. In fact the crisis itself has passed. We are now on the further side of the critical moment; the decisions have all been made; we are already living with the consequences.”   (Read it all.)

The Fourth Blast of the Trumpet

The image of the trumpet blast seems to be an over-dramatic description of the communiqué issued from the latest Global South Encounter. In fact, the response to it has been somewhat muted. But as a guest at the conference, I believe that it fully deserves the title ‘trumpet’ and will in time be regarded as an historic statement.

One reason why it fails to create a strong reaction is that it simply confirms the obvious. The crisis moment has now passed. Many of the Global South provinces have given up on the official North American Anglicans (TEC and the Canadian Church) and regard themselves as being out of communion with them. They renew the call for repentance but can see that, failing something like the Great Awakening, it will not occur. The positive side to this is that they are committed to achieving self-sufficiency so that they will cease to rely on the Western churches for aid. That is something the Global South has been working on for some time, with success.

In my judgment, the assembly was unresponsive to the Archbishop of Canterbury’s video greetings. I don’t think that what he said was obscure. It just seemed to be from another age, another world. His plea for patience misjudged the situation by several years and his talk of the Anglican covenant was not where the actual conference was at. He seemed to suggest that the consecration of a partnered lesbian Bishop will create a crisis. In fact the crisis itself has passed. We are now on the further side of the critical moment; the decisions have all been made; we are already living with the consequences. And it was in working out the consequences that the communiqué may eventually be seen to be historic.   Read more

N. T. Wright to leave Durham

“The Bishop of Durham, Dr N. T. Wright, has announced that he will be retiring from the See of Durham on August 31 …  and will take up a new appointment as Research Professor of New Testament and Early Christianity at the University of St Andrews in Scotland…”

– from the Diocese of Durham and also the University of St. Andrews.

(Photo: Diocese of Durham.)

New Bishop of Bunbury

“On Saturday, 17th April 2010 Anglicans from around the South West and Great Southern gathered together in Bunbury and elected The Rt. Revd. Allan Ewing to be the ninth bishop of the Diocese of Bunbury. Currently Bishop Allan is serving in the Diocese of Canberra/Goulburn.”

– from the Diocese of Bunbury website.

ANZAC Day message from Peter Jensen

The video of Archbishop Peter Jensen’s ANZAC Day message is available from SydneyAnglicans.net.

Fourth Trumpet — from GSE4

The Fourth Anglican Global South to South Encounter (meeting at St. Andrew’s Cathedral, Singapore, 19th – 23rd April 2010), has issued this Communique.

Here are some excerpts.

“We welcomed the election of the Most Rev’d John Chew as the new Chairman, the Most Rev’d Henry Orombi as Vice-Chairman, The Most Rev’d Mouneer Anis as Secretary, the Most Rev’d Nicholas Okoh as Treasurer …

15. As a sign of our fellowship and an encouragement to our purpose, at the beginning of our assembly God sent into our midst two Nepalese Anglicans, members of the new Anglican Church in this principally Hindu and Buddhist nation. … We rejoice with them in their newfound faith and their determination to be obedient to the Word of God in a setting where such obedience is very costly. …

16. In contrast, we continue to grieve over the life of The Episcopal Church USA (TEC) and the Anglican Church of Canada and all those churches that have rejected the Way of the Lord as expressed in Holy Scripture. …

17. We uphold the courageous actions taken by Archbishops Mouneer Anis (Jerusalem and the Middle East), Henry Orombi (Uganda) and Ian Ernest (Indian Ocean) and are encouraged by their decision not to participate in meetings of the various Instruments of Communion at which representatives of The Episcopal Church USA and the Anglican Church of Canada are present. …

19. We were pleased to welcome two Communion Partner bishops from The Episcopal Church USA (TEC) and acknowledge that with them there are many within TEC who do not accept their church’s innovations. We assure them of our loving and prayerful support. …

Read it all.

GSE4 Day 3 — 21st April 2010

“What does it mean for the Churches in the Global South to be a ‘Light for the Nations?’

The day started with Archbishop Robert Duncan presiding at Holy Communion. In his homily, Abp Peter Jensen reminded us that we, who are “deeply, truly and permanently loved” are truly free. We do not “go our own way” to find freedom, but we come to Jesus, the bread of life…”

– The report on Day 3 of the fourth Global South-to-South Encounter, in Singapore, from the Global South website. (Photo: Global South Anglican.)

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