Archbishop Peter Jensen on Q&A next week

Posted on September 3, 2012 
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Archbishop Peter Jensen will be on ABC TV’s Q&A next week (Monday September 10).

Q&A’s tag line is “Adventures in democracy” – so you may like to consider making your voice heard by being part of the studio audience, e-mailing questions, or by posting comments on Twitter.

(Image of a previous Q&A: ABC TV.)

Boak Jobbins (1947–2012)

Posted on September 1, 2012 
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Mark Thompson writes a very personal tribute to Canon Boak Jobbins –

“Boak was a fine pastor. He knew the people God had given him to love and he sought to love them genuinely. I remember many, many examples of his deep compassion, genuine sympathy, and gentle pastoral care. I remember watching him at funerals, visiting those in hospital, and talking with people after church. There was always a lot to learn from Boak. …”

– Read it all at Theological Theology.

Former Dean of Sydney dies

Posted on September 1, 2012 
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“The Reverend Canon Boak Jobbins, OAM, a former Dean of Sydney, has died at the age of 65. Canon Jobbins died suddenly at his home in Sydney on the morning of 1st September…”

– Sad news from SydneyAnglicans.net.

Canon Jobbins was Dean of Sydney 1992–2002. During that time he oversaw the major restoration work at St. Andrew’s Cathedral. In 2003, he was honoured with the Medal of the Order of Australia.

Boak was a member of the ACL for many years, and was also a long-serving member of Standing Committee and the Presentation Board. He chaired the group which produced the Sunday Services liturgical resource published in 2001.

Most importantly, he knew and loved the Lord Jesus.

Please uphold in your prayers Boak’s family and the church at Darling Point, where he was Rector.

Photo: St Mark’s, Darling Point.

The Power of a Dependent Father

Posted on August 31, 2012 
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“When you are little your father is very big; you are weak, but he is very strong; you know very little and he seems to know everything, you feel feeble compared to his powerful presence.

When your father is very powerful, you are able to do so much. You feel safe and secure in his great arms. You are comfortable, if not confident, to ask him for anything. He takes you to places, shows you things, entertains you, houses, feeds, clothes and educates you. And when you go to school you can boast about how great your father is – how much greater than other children’s fathers.

But when you grow up and become a father, you realise how difficult life is; how weak and inadequate you are; how complex the world has become; how vulnerable you actually are; how few resources you have to care and provide for your family. …”

– from Phillip Jensen’s weekly column.

Prayers for Defence Chaplains and those in their care

Posted on August 31, 2012 
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This would be a good time to especially uphold in prayer the Defence Chaplains and those to whom they minister.

Word-watch: lessons from a naïve blogger

Posted on August 30, 2012 
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“A few days ago I wrote a short article in which I used the word ‘submission.’ I’ve just now realized that by using this word, I was being a bit naïve. The realization of my own naivety came when I read Kara Martin’s helpful review of the book Fifty Shades of Grey on the Sydney Anglicans website…”

– Lionel Windsor’s post at The Briefing is a good reminder that words have a context, and that can affect how we are heard.

Atheists in the Pulpit

Posted on August 30, 2012 
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“It is hard to think of any other profession which it is so near to impossible to leave.” That is the judgment of Richard Dawkins, perhaps the world’s most famous living atheist, as he welcomes unbelieving pastors to join the Clergy Project, a group designed to help unbelieving pastors make their way out of the ministry. …

Dennett and LaScola made a very interesting and important observation in their research report. They acknowledged that defining an unbelieving pastor is actually quite difficult. Given the fact that so many liberal churches and denominations already believe so little, how is atheism really different? In the name of tolerance, the liberal denominations have embraced so much unbelief that atheism is a practical challenge.”

– Albert Mohler writes about “The Clergy Project’.

Tasmanian Anglicans urge rejection of Same-Sex Marriage bill

Posted on August 29, 2012 
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MEDIA RELEASE:
ANGLICANS URGE PARLIAMENT TO REJECT SAME-SEX MARRIAGE BILL

The Anglican Church in Tasmania has today urged Members of Parliament to reject the Premier’s same-sex marriage Bill, which was tabled in Parliament yesterday.

Assistant Bishop Ross Nicholson, said, “We are very disappointed that The Premier, Lara Giddings, has gone ahead with this legislation. It is a clear break of Labor’s promise made to Tasmanians before the 2010 election not to do this.”  Read more

Best books on Preaching

Posted on August 28, 2012 
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Adrian Reynolds at The Proclamation Trust has been posting a series of brief thoughts on the books on preaching. He’s up to number 7 in his list –

“When The Trellis and the Vine came out, many of us thought ‘this is an excellent book, but where is preaching mentioned or championed?’ The answer was – if only we knew it – that we were waiting for volume 2. And it was worth the wait.”

His posts so far:

1. I Believe in Preaching by John Stott,
2. The Glory of Preaching by Darrell Johnson,
3. Expository Preaching by Haddon Robinson,
4. The Priority of Preaching by Christopher Ash,
5. Preaching and Biblical Theology by Ed Clowney,
6. Preaching and Preachers by Martyn Lloyd Jones,
7. The Archer and the Arrow by Phillip Jensen & Paul Grimmond.

‘Anglican Church denies new wedding vows are sexist’

Posted on August 25, 2012 
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“The Anglican Church says new wedding vows which involve a woman pledging to ‘submit’ to her husband are not sexist.

Introduced as an alternative to the traditional vows that use the word ‘obey’, the new promises were written by the liturgical panel of the church’s Sydney diocese. …”

– Perhaps a slow news day at the ABC, but a good opportunity to speak of the Lord Jesus and what he has done for his Bride.

Update: The story was probably prompted by this in today’s Sydney Morning Herald – To love and to submit: a marriage made in 2012. (h/t Roger G.)

Related:

Shock! Horror! Church Believes The Bible! (23 February 2010.)
Don’t let the facts… (23 February 2010.)

Jim Elliot’s little-known brother

Posted on August 25, 2012 
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Justin Taylor draws attention to this powerful message from Randy Alcorn about Jim Elliot’s younger brother Bert, who went home to the Lord in February.

Free book — first draft of The Point of the Sword

Posted on August 24, 2012 
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Chris Green, Vice Principal of Oak Hill College in London, gave the Annual Moore College Lectures which concluded this morning. The theme of his lectures was – The Point of the Sword: Applying the Bible to applying the Bible.

He has kindly made available the text of his talks as a book-in-progress.

“I recently gave the Moore College lectures on applying the Bible. The aim is to finish writing them up and publish, but in the meantime here is the first draft, warts and all…”

You can download the 850kb Word file from Chris’ blog.

In addition, videos of his lectures as delivered are available here.

A Statement on Civility

Posted on August 24, 2012 
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“Political campaign ads are full of misrepresentations. Voting records are twisted, legislation is misstated, and generalizations are made. Then the other side just ups the ante and the vicious cycle continues…”

– Ed Stetzer makes some observations – and appeals – concerning political discourse in the USA.

1. We are too quick to label others who disagree with us.
2. We misrepresent others’ views to make them look stupid or evil.
3. We use fear as a weapon against the uninformed.

Beware of Anglicans bearing gifts

Posted on August 23, 2012 
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The American Anglican Council’s Phil Ashey reflects on statements by the Anglican Communion Office’s Secretary General on the relationship of TEC to the Anglican Communion.

Canon Ashey writes:

“This is like an arsonist’s victim saying ‘What is surprising and heartening is that we are in conversation with the arsonist, and that even though our house has burned down the conversation has been a great learning experience for all of us.’

Secretary Kearon’s statement is important because it gives insight into the mind of those who are shaping the agenda for the upcoming Anglican Consultative Council meeting (ACC-15) in Auckland, New Zealand in October.”

– Read it all here.

With thanks for Keith Young

Posted on August 22, 2012 
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Mr Keith E A Young, long time member of the ACL’s Council, died in Adelaide last Tuesday. A Memorial Service is being held in Adelaide today.

The ACL gives thanks for Keith’s friendship and fellowship in the Lord Jesus over many years.

Keith was the ACL’s Honorary Treasurer until around 1990, and he also served as the Honorary Treasurer for the CMS NSW branch. He hailed originally from St. Clement’s Mosman, but for many years Keith was an active member of St. Andrew’s Roseville, and served as a parish nominator. He had also been a member of the Presentation Board and the Finance & Loans Board of Sydney Diocese.

Former ACL President Bruce Ballantine-Jones recalls that Keith was a loyal and committed evangelical who was a blessing to his parish, to the ACL, CMS and the Diocese. He is remembered for his cheerful disposition and his ministry of encouragement. Gordon Robinson remembers Keith as a longtime friend and as a dedicated behind-the-scenes worker.

Keith and his wife Barbara were married for 62 years. Please uphold before our heavenly Father Keith’s family and friends in these days.

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