Bishop John Harrower’s Christmas message
Posted on December 18, 2009
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Bishop of Tasmania, John Harrower, has released this Christmas message –
Enjoying God, enjoying life
Apparently, coming to a bus near you is a Tasmanian version of the UK bus ads, ‘There’s probably no god. Now stop worrying and enjoy life.’
While Christians are enjoying life and celebrating Christmas precisely because there is a loving God [the Christmas message is ‘Emmanuel, God with us’]; some atheists are worrying that there is probably no God.
This is sad. Read more
‘Lampooning literalism’
Posted on December 18, 2009
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StandFirm linked to this chat by The Venerable Glynn Cardy, Vicar of St. Matthew-in-the-City, Auckland.
He gives the background to the billboard causing offense in Auckland and explains that “Progressive Christianity believes the Christmas stories are fictitious accounts designed to introduce the radical nature of the adult Jesus”.
(Tip: Keep your expectations low.) Video update from TVNZ.
‘Jesus-era’ burial shroud found
Posted on December 16, 2009
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“A team of archaeologists and scientists says they have for the first time found pieces of a burial shroud from the time of Jesus in a tomb in Jerusalem…”
– Report from BBC News.
‘Being Faithful’ now available
Posted on December 16, 2009
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“Being Faithful: The Shape of Historic Anglicanism Today” is now available for purchase. Details from GAFCON.
Sovereign Grace church plant coming to Sydney
Posted on December 16, 2009
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Sovereign Grace Ministries have today announced their planned church plant in Sydney will be ‘in the Hornsby area’.
See this video for the reasons for coming to Sydney.
Christmas songs for download
Posted on December 16, 2009
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At Between Two Worlds, Justin Taylor has received permission to make some Christ-centred Christmas songs and hymns available for free download.
T. F. Torrance on the meaning of the cross
Posted on December 16, 2009
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“As many of us await the endlessly delayed second volume of T. F. Torrance’s lectures on the person and work of Christ, I thought I would share a purple passage from the end of volume one, Incarnation: The Person and Life of Christ …”
– Read it at ACL President Mark Thompson’s blog.
Learning from a Liberal mistake
Posted on December 15, 2009
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Charles Raven has written a characteristically insightful article on the latest happenings in the Anglican Communion:
“the orthodox should not be in a hurry to draw the simplistic conclusion that my enemy’s enemy must be my friend…”
Learning from a Liberal mistake
As GAFCON was launched in Jerusalem last year, Archbishop Peter Jensen spoke of the ‘extraordinary strategic blunder’ by the Episcopal Church of the United States in consecrating a practising homosexual, Gene Robinson, as a bishop in 2003 which awoke the “sleeping giant that is evangelical Anglicanism”.
Now liberals have committed a second strategic blunder. Not so much the emergence of partnered lesbian Mary Glasspool as suffragan bishop elect by the Diocese of Los Angeles – such a move was entirely predictable after this year’s General Convention rejected Rowan Williams call for ‘gracious restraint – but their very public hostility towards Dr Williams following his rather cool and disapproving response. Read more
12 Days of Christmas
Posted on December 15, 2009
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Each day, for twelve days, the Centre for Public Christianity is releasing a short video on a Christmas-related theme.
“There’s a mixture of vox pops drawing on the public’s attitudes to the meaning of Christmas, interviews, book reviews, and brief discussions on the historical and philosophical questions surrounding the birth of Jesus.”
– See them (as they are released) here and consider how you might use them.
Presbyterian propectus online
Posted on December 15, 2009
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The prospectus for the Presbyterian Theological Centre in Sydney is now online for any who may be interested.
Church in Quebec is ‘dying’
Posted on December 13, 2009
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The Diocese of Quebec is all but dead, its bishop told the Canadian House of Bishop at their fall meeting in Niagara Falls, the Anglican Journal of Canada reports.
The Rt. Rev. Dennis Drainville said his diocese was “teetering on the verge of extinction” according to an account given by the church’s official newspaper.
Of the diocese’s 82 congregations, 50 were childless and 35 congregations had an average age of 75. These graying congregations often had no more than 10 people in church on Sundays, he said. “The critical mass isn’t there, there’s no money anymore,” he said. …
(R)etired marketing expert Keith McKerracher … said, “…We’re losing 12,836 Anglicans a year. That’s 2 percent a year. If you draw a line on the graph, there’ll only be one person left in the Canadian Anglican church by 2061.”
– Read George Conger’s full story written story for the Church of England Newspaper. (Photo of Bishop Drainvolle: Diocese of Quebec.)
Follow up on BC Supreme Court decision
Posted on December 12, 2009
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“ANiC chancellor Cheryl Chang has written to the four Vancouver-area churches involved in the recent court proceeding reporting on a meeting held November 30 with the leaders of the four churches and their legal counsel. She says that while there are clear grounds for appeal, no decision has been made.…”
– Report from the ANiC newsletter for December 10, 2009.
J I Packer on New Mission
Posted on December 12, 2009
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Dr J I Packer recently preached on “New Mission” from Acts 8:1-25, at St. John’s Shaughnessy.
Characteristically helpful, encouraging, and challenging. Hear it from the St. John’s website. (Direct link to mp3.)
Photo: Oak Hill College.
Barry Newman on the Soul
Posted on December 11, 2009
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Barry Newman, having written about the sacraments and Christ-centred communion at his blog, now turns to the soul.
Lots of insights and worth following.
(h/t Gordon Cheng at The Sola Panel.)
Mark Dever plugs The Trellis and the Vine
Posted on December 10, 2009
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Mark Dever recently gave a very strong plug for The Trellis and the Vine by Colin Marshall and Tony Payne.
Watch the video of his unsolicited endorsement here – any get the book here. (Video from WST Books.)
What we believe
The message at the heart of Christianity is really quite simple…