Assisting people to die would dehumanise our society for ever — Archbishop Welby
Posted on September 6, 2015
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“The archbishop of Canterbury and other faith leaders are urging [British] MPs to oppose a change in the law as they fear it would mean crossing an ethical Rubicon…”
– The Guardian. (Image: BBC.)
Syrian crisis ‘too great to be ignored’ — Archbishop Davies
Posted on September 6, 2015
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“Sydney’s Anglican Archbishop Dr Glenn Davies has called on the Federal Government to develop a comprehensive response to the Syrian refugee crisis.
‘One of the most significant characteristics of a civilised society is the way it treats those who are the most vulnerable…”
– Read the full story at SydneyAnglicans.net.
Jail time for Kentucky County Clerk
Posted on September 5, 2015
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“The internet is full of reports and comments about Kim Davis, the Kentucky county clerk who has been sentenced to jail for contempt of court in refusing to issue marriage licenses. …
Questions raised by this incident are similar to those being raised all over the Western world in countries where same sex marriage has been recognised. To what extent should the religious freedom of those called on to celebrate or support such marriage ceremonies be recognised? This blog won’t be able to answer all those questions, but I would like to set out some considerations that I think policy and law makers should take into account, and to comment briefly on this decision.”
– Neil Foster’s latest post at Law and Religion Australia shows important freedom of religion questions need to be considered if same sex marriage is to be recognised in Australia.
Is Tim Keller down on Exegesis?
Posted on September 4, 2015
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“It is unsurprising that when Timothy Keller brings out a book about preaching, lots of people will be eager to consume it.
Preaching: Communicating In An Age Of Skepticism has drawn some notable reviews of a positive nature, but it has also raised a few questions.”
– Colin Adams at Unashamed Workman asks Tim Keller some questions about his new book.
‘In this world you will have trouble’
Posted on September 4, 2015
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“The Commonwealth of Kentucky is now the setting for a dramatic display of judicial arrogance, even as the larger story points to the sweeping moral change that is transforming the nation’s landscape. Today, U.S. District Judge David Bunning ordered Kim Davis, County Clerk of Rowan County, to go to jail for refusing to obey an order of his court requiring Mrs. Davis to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples…
What are government officials now to do? This story centers on a County Clerk in Kentucky, but the questions will eventually extend to any office holder, anyone wearing the uniform of the United States military, and virtually any government employee. The same pressures will come on anyone teaching on a secular college campus and anyone working for a Fortune 500 corporation.”
– Albert Mohler writes about the latest fallout from the US Supreme Court decision on same-sex marriage.
Instant library: 22 free eBooks from R.C. Sproul
Posted on September 3, 2015
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From Ligonier Ministries:
“To further help Christians know what they believe, why they believe it, how to live it, and how to share it, in May 2013 we made the ebook editions of R.C. Sproul’s Crucial Questions series free forever. We continue to publish new ebooks in this series and this year have added Can I Lose My Salvation? and What Is the Great Commission?”
– Find them – for Kindle or iOS – at this link.
Packer on Preaching
Posted on September 3, 2015
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“When did you last hear a sermon that spent 50% of the time on application? J. I. Packer has insightfully analysed contemporary and historic approaches to preaching over his years as a pastor and scholar. In this featured article, drawn from the summer edition of Churchman, Benjamin Dean outlines Packer’s approach to preaching…”
– Today’s post on Church Society’s blog.
‘Tamworth’s Anglican Ministers take marriage equality concerns to Barnaby Joyce’
Posted on September 3, 2015
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“A group of Anglican church leaders from Tamworth have used a meeting with New England MP Barnaby Joyce to call for a balanced debate on same sex marriage…”
– Report from and audio ABC New England.
Rod Chiswell from St. Peter’s South Tamworth was interviewed – worth listening. (Photo: Barnaby Joyce Facebook.)
Church of England appoints third female bishop
Posted on September 2, 2015
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“No 10 Downing Street has announced this morning that Her Majesty The Queen has approved the nomination of the Venerable Christine Hardman … for election as Bishop of Newcastle…”
– Diocese of Newcastle (C of E). (h/t Anglican Mainstream.)
The visit of Dr Ryan Anderson
Posted on September 1, 2015
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“Dr Ryan Anderson is the William E Simon Senior Research Fellow at the Heritage Foundation in the USA and Founder and Editor of the online journal Public Discourse. Dr Anderson recently visited Australia … I attended his Sydney meeting held in the Strangers’ Dining Room at NSW Parliament House. …
Dr Anderson stressed the need to engage with our culture over the issue, saying that churches which had not done so in the US now regret their inactivity. Our pulpits, he said, are a place to inform congregations about what God says about marriage and they must not be silent.
I am a member of the pastoral staff of the Chinese Presbyterian Church in Sydney. At our recent staff retreat, we planned the preaching program for 2016. Unusually for a Chinese church we have dedicated three Sundays next year to preaching on what God says about marriage and sex. …
The need for Christians to engage their mind, to think clearly, faithfully and lovingly is always apparent but has never been greater.
In my next column I want to outline how we will preach the three week series and some useful resources to help preachers.
I urge you all to preach about this issue as a plebiscite/referendum is an imminent possibility and such a series on such a subject will always be helpful.”
– Presbyterian Moderator-General, David Cook, with an exhortation to all Christians, and especially to Pastors. (Image: St Helen’s Bishopsgate.)
Bishop John Harrower reflects on 15 years in Tasmania
Posted on August 31, 2015
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The Diocese of Tasmania is preparing to elect a new Bishop on 27-28 November. Nominations closed on Friday.
Last month, in an interview with Dean of Hobart, Richard Humphrey, Bishop John Harrower reflected on his 15 years as Missionary Bishop of the diocese.
Related:
A prayer of thanks – Bishop John’s blog.
My intention to retire – Bishop John’s blog.
“Following much prayer and consultation with family, senior colleagues and close friends, I believe God is leading me to draw my ministry as the 11th Bishop of Tasmania to a close mid-September.”
Please pray for the churches of Tasmania as the election synod draws near.
The Word: One to One
Posted on August 31, 2015
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The Word: One to One evangelistic resource is now available in Oz. The idea is simple:
“Many people are totally ignorant as to what the Bible really says. The Word One to One is a resource that helps you walk through John’s Gospel with your friends. As you turn over the pages with them they’ll see what the Bible says about who Jesus is, and what He came to do.”
Read about it at their website – and watch the video intro by Rico Tice.
Available locally from Matthias Media.
Thomas Cranmer and the fear of death
Posted on August 28, 2015
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“On 21st March 1556, Thomas Cranmer, was marched out to Oxford’s University Church.
However many thousands of services he had attended in over twenty years serving as Archbishop of Canterbury, this was to be his last. Condemned as a heretic, he was to be burned, like so many of his protestant colleagues and friends under the short but bloody reign of Mary. A small cobbled cross on Oxford’s Broad Street still marks the spot to this day…”
– For Church Society’s Formulary Friday, Sam Brewster draws us to consider the ninth Homily, ‘An Exhortation Against The Fear Of Death”.
My Bishop, a liar and a schemer
Posted on August 28, 2015
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“The latest biography of the late B.A. Santamaria, by Gerard Henderson, records an interesting incident.
Santamaria had cooperated with the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Melbourne, Daniel Mannix, to see the successful establishment of the Democratic Labor Party in Victoria, but had less success with the church’s Sydney hierarchy…”
– Presbyterian Moderator-General David Cook on the foundation of the Christian faith.
Schools, same sex politics and religion in NSW
Posted on August 27, 2015
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“So there is no doubt the film is ‘political’, as dealing with a matter of highly charged debate in the Federal Parliament and in the public sphere. Yet the school was proposing to cancel classes and direct all students to attend, while also encouraging (if not directing) all of them to wear the colour purple as a mark of support for homosexuality…”
– at Law and Religion Australia, Associate Professor in Law, Neil Foster looks at the controversy over the planned screening of a film at Burwood Girls’ High.
Related:
Gayby Baby imbroglio – Denials, fear and a lack of tolerance – Miranda Devine, The Telegraph, 28 August 2015.
“A department spokesperson was quoted in The Guardian on Wednesday, saying: ‘The school has not received any complaints from Burwood High School parents.’
That just wasn’t true…”
What we believe
The message at the heart of Christianity is really quite simple…