Paul Barnett’s tribute to John Stott

“Two World Wars and the Depression left Christianity in a poor state in the post-World War II era, compounded by the influence of sceptical Biblical Criticism. Amongst those God raised up in these difficult times were C.S. Lewis, Billy Graham, F.F. Bruce, J.I. Packer, and John Stott.

Stott was deeply committed to the theology of the Reformation, as may be seen in his magisterial The Cross of Christ and his commentaries on Romans and Galatians. …”

– Bishop Paul Barnett adds his own words of thanks for the life of John Stott.

Evangelism cannot be enough for Evangelicals

John Richardson writes of what it is to be an Evangelical in the Church of England:

“We have an ‘honoured’ place in the institution, but the price exacted from us is to identify ourselves as a ‘tradition’ — one amongst the many different traditions which make up the all-embracing comprehensiveness of the Church of England.

But, … at least from our own perspective, this is a betrayal not only of ourselves but of everyone else. To accept this definition of ‘evangelicalism’ is to cease to be Evangelical. …”

– Read it all at The Ugley Vicar.

 

Christ abolished death

“The death of the evangelical Anglican preacher and author John Stott at the age of 90 has been greeted with acclamatory obituaries in the leading newspapers of the English-speaking world. This was a man named by Time magazine as among the top 100 influential people on the planet in 2005. So what was all the fuss about?…”

– at the ABC Religion & Ethics blog, Michael Jensen writes about John Stott and what made him tick.

Making Sense of the Senseless

“Last weekend’s bombing and shooting in Norway is awful. The pain and suffering of the innocent citizens and their families is incalculable. The actions were more than painful, they were wicked and evil. There is no excuse.

While there is no excuse, we still search for reasons. From the outset of media commentary, people have been struggling to understand the reason.…”

– Read the full article by Phillip Jensen, Dean of St. Andrew’s Cathedral in Sydney.

Evangelical Drift

“This is my 51st and final issue as editor of Cross†Way. The magazine, and those that preceded it in the Church Society family line, have been concerned to uphold Biblical teaching within the Church of England. We might prefer to only concentrate on good things, but we learn from Scripture, more or less from beginning to end, that teaching the truth means opposing what is false. From the beginning of Church Association this organisation has identified itself as evangelical.

It is striking therefore to discover that many now consider that evangelicals are the dominant group in the Church of England and see this being demonstrated in senior appointments. If this is so then what passes as evangelical today is not what our forebears considered such…”

– David Phillips looks at the changes in ‘evangelicalism’ in the last decade or so, in the Summer 2011 issue of Cross†Way. (PDF file.)

One way of looking at it

“On July 10, 2011 clergy of the Anglican Network in Canada (ANiC) who since May 2008 had been occupying the Anglican Church of Canada building on Guilford Drive in Abbotsford left that building to conduct worship in Grace Church a few blocks away. Worshippers who support those ANiC clergy also left the Anglican Church of Canada building to worship with those clergy…”

– The Bishop’s Warden of the Anglican Church of Canada parish at Abbotsford in Vancouver in a letter to BC Local News. (Photo: Diocese of New Westminster.) h/t Anglican Essentials Canada blog.

No Fault Today, No Marriage Tomorrow

“I do not generally seek advice about marriage from celebrity models, but I could not help noticing that Christie Brinkley said she’ll ‘never get married again’. …”

– Phillip Jensen writes on the end point of the ‘no fault divorce’.

Place Sensational Headline Here

“Lindsay Tanner’s book “Sideshow” argues how the media has undermined the capacity for proper policy debate in our society. The media’s recent presentation of our Archbishop’s statement on the redefinition of marriage is a classic illustration of the point.

The homosexual community has called society into a debate about the nature of marriage. Through the influence of the Greens, the members of parliament are to inquire of the electorate about changing the law to allow same sex marriage. The Labor party is going to debate its policy on this issue at its national conference.

It would seem right and proper therefore, for any person to present a view on this matter, especially leaders of community groups who have a particular interest or concern to express their views.

As one such community within society, Christians have every right to hold a particular interest in the nature of marriage. We have had a long-term interest in marriage – our ministers are registered by the Government as authorised celebrants and about a third of the community turn to the church for their weddings.  Furthermore, rightly or wrongly, we believe that our view is for the good of society as a whole. …’

– Phillip Jensen, Dean of St. Andrew’s Cathedral, Sydney, writes at PhillipJensen.com. (Also at SydneyAnglicans.net.) Related: Real Marriage, by Archbishop Peter Jensen.

It’s official: Australia is unfair

“The debate about processing asylum seekers in Malaysia has distracted Australians from an even more concerning injustice brewing in our own backyard – the Federal Government’s proposed changes to the ‘character test’ in the Migration Act are politically expedient and fly in the face of measured, compassionate governance. …”

– Andrew Cameron, Chair of the Social Issues Executive of the Diocese of Sydney, has his say on The Drum today.

From subtle exclusion to overt discrimination

“Since 1993 I have chosen to belong to a church that ordains women priests, and before I retire it is likely I will belong to one that consecrates women bishops. Yet this is a practice that I believe to be mistaken, so why am I still here? …

In 1993, as the ordination of women to the priesthood was brought in, the Church of England similarly committed itself to treat those on both sides of the debate equally. Thus the Episcopal Ministry Act of Synod (which is still in force) stated as its first principle that,

There will be no discrimination against candidates either for ordination or for appointment to senior office in the Church of England on the grounds of their views about the ordination of women to the priesthood.

Unfortunately, that commitment was never upheld, and has now effectively been overturned.”

– John Richardson laments shifts taking place in the Church of England.

False Prophets, False Teachers, and Real Trouble

“Andy Warhol was wrong. Fame doesn’t last just fifteen minutes. After all, Harold Camping is still in the news, more than a week after his prophecy that the world would end on May 21 at 6:00p.m. turned out — as expected — to be false …”

– Albert Mohler writes on the fallout from Harold Camping’s predictions.

‘Judgment day’ coming for TEC Rectors

In his weekly column, Bishop David Anderson, President of the American Anglican Council, outlines likely consequences of a far-reaching change to the Episcopal Church’s disciplinary canon.

“In July of this year, less than six weeks from now, the changes to the disciplinary canon (Title IV) go into full force and effect, and revisionist bishops will be able to remove parish leaders on the flimsiest of charges. Likewise, if a bishop doesn’t fully go along with Presiding Bishop Jefferts Schori’s agenda, she will be able to remove the bishop on the flimsiest of charges. It no longer is required that someone has done something to damage “the church,” only that they intend to do so, or that they might do so, as determined by the Presiding Bishop.”

Read more

United Church of Canada: ‘celebrating post-theism’

“The United Church of Canada, which was formed 86 years ago with the grand vision to bring Protestants together “in one glorious national church,” is undergoing one of the most precipitous slides in modern religious history.

In the midst of a breathtaking erosion in its membership, the church is undertaking what some call a great experiment to redefine itself through an intense engagement with the surrounding secular world; whether it be through advocating for the environment, fighting for the rights of homosexuals to marry or taking on the cause of the Palestinians, the church has attempted to blur the boundaries between religion and the broader society.…”

– Opinion-piece by Charles Lewis in the National Post of Canada.

(As the Anglican Essentials Canada blog points out, it makes the Anglican Church of Canada “look like a bastion of orthodoxy”. Example. Photo: UCC Moderator Mardi Tindal from her Easter message.)

Naviget: GAFCON Unfurls its Sails

“I sense that the GAFCON Primates’ Nairobi Communiqué issued this week has about it this quality of divine summons; it is an expression of obedience to the call of the gospel. The GAFCON Primates who met in Nairobi last month have plenty to occupy them in their own backyards. They have growing vibrant churches which need vigilant oversight, many have to grapple with pressing issues of poverty, some of their Provinces are on the frontline of militant Islam and in an African context they are also often called to act as statesmen too.

The temptation to focus on their own immediate challenges and disengage from a Communion which is in a crisis not of their making must be very powerful. But it has been determined that GAFCON must unfurl its sails for the sake of the gospel and I see the Nairobi Communiqué unfolding the vision established at Jerusalem in 2008 in two areas which are vital to the re-evangelisation of the West.…”

– Charles Raven comments on the latest developments from GAFCON.

Lessons from History

“Today there are groups like the Pentecostals who have grown remarkably. Sydney Anglicans have not witnessed comparable growth but we have an important role to play in Australian Christianity. In particular, we can provide a theological and ecclesiastical stability that will buttress and support Christianity in our nation…”

– Wise words from Bishop Paul Barnett – over at SydneyAnglicans.net
(Photo courtesy Paul Barnett’s blog)

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