Gospel Flourishing in a Time of Confusion — new book from Church Society

Posted on February 19, 2019 
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At Church Society’s website, there’s news of a new book to help evangelicals in the midst of a very confused Church of England.

Creating a culture of doctrinal literacy

Posted on February 18, 2019 
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“My favourite book on Christian doctrine is Peter Jensen’s At the Heart of the Universe.

It’s short, sharp, soaked in Scripture, and came about as a result of research for presenting the material orally. Best of all, it begins with eschatology – something that sets it apart, in a good way, from most (if not all) other approaches to Christian doctrine.

But whenever I pick up a book on Christian doctrine, I expect to hear some sort of apologetic for its very existence, and Dr Jensen’s work is no exception. In the introduction he writes …”

– Ben Pakula shares some ideas at The Australian Church Record.

Stephen Noll and Lambeth 2020 — Anglican Unscripted 489

Posted on February 17, 2019 
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On the latest Anglican Unscripted, Kevin Kallsen speaks with Dr. Stephen Noll about Lambeth 2020 and the current state of play.

(Dr. Noll also writes at Contending Anglican.)

28 new Deacons ordained in Sydney

Posted on February 17, 2019 
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“There were too many smiles to count as the ordinands of 2019 filed into a packed St Andrew’s Cathedral in Sydney to be made deacons by the Archbishop of Sydney. …”

– Russell Powell has the story at SydneyAnglicans.net.

Same-sex spouses of Bishops will not be invited to Lambeth – but the Bishops in those same-sex marriages will

Posted on February 16, 2019 
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“I need to clarify a misunderstanding that has arisen. Invitations have been sent to every active bishop. That is how it should be – we are recognising that all those consecrated into the office of bishop should be able to attend.

But the invitation process has also needed to take account of the Anglican Communion’s position on marriage which is that it is the lifelong union of a man and a woman. That is the position as set out in Resolution I.10 of the 1998 Lambeth Conference. Given this, it would be inappropriate for same-sex spouses to be invited to the conference. The Archbishop of Canterbury has had a series of private conversations by phone or by exchanges of letter with the few individuals to whom this applies. …”

– ‘Secretary General of the Anglican Communion’, Dr Josiah Idowu-Fearon speaks of “the global excitement about the Lambeth Conference”. (Link added.)

Pictured:

Bishop of Toronto Kevin Robertson (left) who is in a same-sex ‘marriage’, is being invited to the 2020 Lambeth Conference, as is Bishop Susan Bell of the Diocese of Niagara (centre), who officiated at the marriage ceremony in St. James’ Cathedral, Toronto.

Mohan Sharma (right), as spouse of Bishop Robertson, has not been invited. (Thanks to Anglican Samizdat.)

The Apostle Paul and Lambeth 2020: “Have nothing to do with them”

Posted on February 16, 2019 
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“The faithful bishops who attend Lambeth will probably be shepherded by Anglican Communion Office ‘minders’ to various huddles and gatherings apart from their fellow Biblically faithful bishops. In past conferences, their comments have been mysteriously omitted from official reports leaving no opportunity for dissent.

They were also shepherded to a ‘photo-op’ with the Archbishop of Canterbury and the other bishops. If you are a Biblically faithful bishop present at Lambeth 2020, your smiling presence in the conference photograph will be taken as your unconditional public approval of what is expected to be the reversal of Resolution 1.10 (1998), the Biblical standard among Anglicans on the clarity and authority of the Bible as it speaks to matters of human sexuality, marriage, Holy Orders and leadership standards within the Church.

Dear Bishops, what else can you expect on the agenda of the Lambeth 2020 Conference of Bishops?

The Anglican Communion Office Strategic Plan and the Redefinition of Anglican Identity 

…

Please note that there is no reference or even acknowledgement of the Scriptures, the Creeds or the Anglican formularies (The Thirty-Nine Articles, The Book of Common Prayer 1662 and its Ordinal) as providing the authoritative limits within which such Anglican diversity is practiced. …

The Strategic Plan goes on to hint at what and whom may be driving the redefinition of Anglican identity when it concedes that, ‘Provincial Contributions [to the ACO] have been dominated by two Provinces providing 67% of the total [income]’ and identified ‘Risk 403,’ ‘Concentration of income from small number of provinces with vulnerability to loss of support from a significant Province.’

Does anyone want to hazard a guess who that ‘significant Province’ is and the support they may be threatening to withdraw if things don’t go their way?

…

This week, the Archbishop of Canterbury wrote to the primates suggesting a season of repentance and prayer across the Communion to coincide with Lent 2020, and in preparation for Lambeth 2020.

May I offer a suggestion? …”

– You really ought to take the time read the full post (and last week’s) by Canon Phil Ashey of The American Anglican Council.

Religious ‘vilification’ not unlawful in NSW

Posted on February 15, 2019 
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“In an important decision on religion and free speech in NSW, the NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal has ruled today in Ekermawi v Nine Network Australia Pty Limited [2019] NSWCATAD 29 (15 Feb 2019) that it is not a breach of the law in NSW to make offensive comments about a religion.

However, the case involved some difficult issues of law, and while the outcome seems correct, it may foreshadow a restrictive approach to free speech in other cases in the future…”

– Assoc. Professor Neil Foster writes at Law and Religion Australia.

‘Anglican splinter group grows as first same-sex blessing goes ahead in Canterbury’

Posted on February 15, 2019 
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“Another Anglican vicar has resigned over the decision to allow same-sex blessings as the first ceremony takes place in Canterbury under the new rule.

Rangiora vicar Andrew Allen-Johns resigned from his parish earlier this month and established a new church in central Christchurch called Anchor. The move comes as a male couple became the first in Canterbury to have a same-sex blessing under the Anglican church.…”

– Story from Stuff.co.nz.

Ordinands 2019

Posted on February 15, 2019 
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Over at SydneyAnglicans.net, there’s a list of those to be ordained at deacons tomorrow, Saturday 16th February, at St. Andrew’s Cathedral in Sydney.

It’d be good to pray for them and their families!

Never mind the naysayers: Franklin Graham’s visit is good news for Australia

Posted on February 14, 2019 
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“US evangelist, the Rev. Franklin Graham, has begun his Australian tour. From 9-24 February, he is holding a series of evangelistic rallies in Perth, Darwin, Melbourne, Adelaide, Brisbane and Sydney. Rev. Graham is the son of the late evangelist, the Rev. Billy Graham (1918-2018), and his Australian tour is timed to coincide with the 60th anniversary of his father’s epochal 1959 crusades in Australia.

Throughout his public ministry the forthright evangelist has courted controversy for his frank pronouncements on contentious issues. His occasional wading into the political fray has raised the ire of many, both inside and outside the church, yet his visit to Australia this month is good news. …”

– David Furse-Roberts writes at ABC Religion & Ethics.

Senate committee report on “Religious Schools and Discrimination” bill

Posted on February 14, 2019 
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“The Senate Legal and Constitutional Affairs Committee has now (Feb 14, 2019) tabled its Report on the Sex Discrimination Amendment (Removing Discrimination Against Students) Bill 2018, a Private Senator’s Bill introduced last year by Senator Wong with the support of the ALP. (The background to the Bill can be found in previous posts on this blog, starting here, the most recent of which was here.)

The recommendation of the majority is that the Bill not be approved, and instead that the Bill and related issues “be referred to the Australian Law Reform Commission for full and proper consideration” (para 3.86). …

However, in the current Parliamentary situation in Australia at the moment … it is worth noting the dissenting ALP senators’ report.”

– Assoc. Professor Neil Foster provides an update on the Senate committee report on the proposed “Religious Schools and Discrimination” bill.

From two murder victims to one

Posted on February 14, 2019 
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“The horror of abortion seems to appear daily and in ever deadlier form in the nation’s headlines as states across the country pledge their support for late-term abortion laws. …

Before the ink could dry on New York’s ‘Reproductive Health Act,’ a story appeared in the New York Times that reported,

‘As Democrats in New York last month celebrated Governor Andrew M. Cuomo’s signing of a law expanding abortion rights in the state, anti-abortion campaigners predicted it would eliminate criminal penalties for violence that ends women’s pregnancies. The debate resurfaced over the weekend after the Queens district attorney, Richard A. Brown, cited the new law… as the reason for dropping an abortion charge against a man who the police say fatally stabbed his former girlfriend when she was 14 weeks pregnant.‘…”

– Albert Mohler has been busy this week, commenting on the latest fallout from the push for greater freedom in abortion.

“Culture Eats Strategy for Breakfast”

Posted on February 13, 2019 
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“Culture can eat Strategy for breakfast. But here is a possible tactic to create a culture that serves God’s infallible strategy …”

– Good stuff from Richard Chin, via The Gospel Coalition Australia. (Image: AFES.)

The Power of the Gospel and the Meltdown of Identity Politics

Posted on February 13, 2019 
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“American politics increasingly resembles a soap opera and, at least for now, Virginia has taken center stage. The drama in the state continues to unfold as the Commonwealth’s top three Democrats face pressure to resign. …

Virginia serves as a prime example of the self-destructive nature of identity politics – a political philosophy that expansively designates identity by race, social background, or gender at the expense of other identities.”

– Southern Seminary President Albert Mohler argues that “the biblical worldview is the only antidote to identity politics” in his latest column.

Glorify God in Your Body – new book from Martin Davie

Posted on February 12, 2019 
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The latest Podcast from Church Society discusses an important new publication by Martin Davie – Glorify God in your Body. The book’s subtitle is Human identity and flourishing in marriage, singleness and friendship.

Clear biblical teaching on these topics is much in need in today’s church.

From the cover of the book:

“This study, written by Dr Martin Davie in collaboration with a representative group of other Evangelical theologians, is commended by the Church of England Evangelical Council as a resource in the discussions taking place in the Church of England in relation to the House of Bishops’ ‘Living in Love and Faith: Christian teaching and learning about human identity, sexuality and marriage’ project.

It explores a Christian approach to human identity, marriage, singleness, friendship, sex and family life in the light of the worldview that is laid out for us in Scripture and the classical Christian tradition. It considers the current challenges to this approach arising from the sexual revolution and from technological developments in the fields of birth control and infertility treatment and looks at how Christians should respond to them in ways that will enable them to fulfil St. Paul’s injunction to ‘glorify God in your body’. (1 Corinthians 6:20).

From the Church of England Evangelical Council website, you can download the complete 324 page book as a PDF file, or in Kindle and ePub versions. There’s also a link to purchase printed copies from the Latimer Trust.

Read the Press Release accompanying the publication of the book (PDF file).

Two current stories highlight the need to not only understand God’s word, but also to live by it.

The Reality of Sexual Abuse Hits Home: What Happened? What Do We Do Now? – Albert Mohler.

“A massive investigative report appeared in the Sunday editions of the Houston Chronicle and the San Antonio Express-News. The headline was direct — ‘20 years, 700 victims: Southern Baptist sexual abuse spreads as leaders resist reforms.’…”

Thomas Brown elected 10th bishop of Maine in historic vote – Episcopal News Service.

“Brown will become The Episcopal Church’s only openly gay and married bishop currently leading a diocese. … The church currently has one other openly gay bishop. The Rt. Rev. Mary Glasspool was elected as bishop suffragan of the Diocese of Los Angeles in December 2009…”

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