American Anglican Council weekly message, Sept. 5

Via email, from Bishop David Anderson of the American Anglican Council [boldface mine]:

Beloved in Christ,

In the United States, there is high interest in what will happen at the TEC House of Bishops meeting in late September. Will Presiding Bishop Katherine Jefferts Schori heed advice being given her and leave Bishop Duncan alone for the time being, or will she proceed with her deposition plans for him? If she tries to depose him based on what he might do in the future, will she succeed or fail? Also, will the fact that the dioceses of Pittsburgh, Fort Worth and Quincy are all poised to take votes in their respective Diocesan Conventions with regard to separation from the Episcopal Church affect the proceedings?

Presiding Bishop Schori seems to have only one response to crises and that is to invoke the names of "Dewey, Sue'm & Howe" and commence litigation. We would suggest to her a great little book called "Getting to Yes" which might offer a few more options in conflict situations. If Bishop Schori opens up too much litigation all at once she may find herself in the same position that some nations have been - fighting in too many theatres of battle at once and unable to maintain adequate material and resources for each one. If she thinks she can use the trust fund reserve or the pension fund, she should look down the hall to the picture of Ellen Cooke, former TEC treasurer, who was sent to the "time out" box for just such actions.

North of the border in Canada, things are tense as the Anglican Church of Canada in the Diocese of New Westminster continues its assault on the orthodox Anglicans occupying their own property. The attacks by TEC and the Anglican Church of Canada on faithful Anglican believers continue unabated in courtrooms across the North American continent.

In the US, most of the churches that TEC is suing are still able to occupy their buildings and hold services while litigation is underway, whereas in Canada several churches have effectively been thrown out onto the curb, pending full trial. Cheryl Chang, a lawyer and legal director for the churches, reported that the judge "ordered us out at both churches and gave both churches to the diocese until full trial."

The reality is that the orthodox primates of the Anglican Communion can help those under attack in North America with provincial recognition and strong intercommunion and missional ties, but when it comes to litigation, the provinces overseas can do little to help us win the court battles.

Recognition of a new North American province for the orthodox, and revocation of provincial status for the Anglican Church of Canada and TEC would both be helpful, but the latter is unlikely.

Across the pond in the United Kingdom, the election of a new bishop for Bangor, Wales occupies much space in the news and on the blogs. As we reported last week from a reliable source, plans are afoot to place the name of Dean Jeffrey Johns on the slate. Since he identifies himself as a celibate gay priest who is in a registered civil partnership, his becoming an Anglican bishop would pose problems for a great part of the global Anglican Communion. With the opposition mounting and threats by one senior cleric in Wales to quit if this happens, one wonders if Dean Johns' name will be officially put forward, and if so, whether he would gain sufficient support for election. His elevation to the episcopacy would pose a significant problem for many bishops, archbishops and primates, yet in the case of New Hampshire in the United States, the diocese went ahead regardless of the problems caused.

Surely Archbishop Barry Morgan advised Dr. Williams about this prior to it becoming public; if not, the Archbishop of Canterbury (the former primate of Wales) might have just cause to be cranky when reading of it in the London papers. Although, since the release of the Pitt letters, it is painfully clear that the arch primate himself shares a sympathetic view of homosexual issues, surely for the sake of the church he is charged with defending he can arrange for this to be turned aside. As we noted last week, everyone is aware of the situation in advance of the election and there are therefore no free passes.

Some claim that since Dean Johns identifies himself as being celibate, thus meeting the letter of the church's official standard, and since civil partnerships are legal, there should be no obstacle to his appointment. But consider this: does the church's rule need amendment? Is a bishop in a same-sex civil partnership a wholesome example to the flock?

It is time for Christian leaders to be clear about what they believe, speak boldly and publicly in such a way that removes ambiguity, and let their yes be yes and their no be no. So much of what bishops and leaders say today is double-meaning spiritual mush designed to offend no one. The Good News of Jesus Christ requires plain, clear, simple speech that can reach both the executive in his corner office and the plough boy in the field. May we recover that virtue and grace.

Blessings and Peace in Christ Jesus,

The Rt. Rev. David C. Anderson, Sr.
President and CEO, American Anglican Council

Free Mark Steyn!

For those wondering what Binky's been up to these days, he's been performing a very valuable public service in Canada, covering the Mark Steyn/Maclean's trial before the British Columbia Human Rights tribunal.

Check out info here and here. What a farce (and scary, too)! I, however, could read Mark Steyn and Ezra Levant all day--whether you agree with them or not, they are both a joy to read.

AAC weekly message from Bishop David Anderson

Via email [boldface mine]:

Dearly Beloved in Christ,

This week let me begin with a personal praise report. My grandson Palmer has this week passed his five year cancer-free date, and the doctors have pronounced him cured. It was a long battle and at several time we worried that we might lose him, but the prayers of thousands around the world and the Grace of God preserved and healed him. He has no cognitive damage, nor any physical impairment that we can ascertain. He is very intelligent, very loving, and a good soccer player. To God be the glory.

We note the letter of Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori to Archbishop and Primate Henry Orombi telling him to stay out of "her domain." She of course sent a copy to Bishop Henry Louttit, who is under pressure to continue litigation against Christ Church, Savannah, the Mother Church of all Georgia and the Rev. John Wesley's American parish. She also sent a copy to the Archbishop of Canterbury. The interesting thing is she waited to notify Orombi until he was already within a stone's throw of Georgia, leaving him to discover her letter posted on the Internet. It is clear that this was ninety percent theatrics on the part of Schori.

What is quite remarkable is the response from His Grace, Henry Orombi, to Jefferts Schori, pointing out that he is not visiting one of her churches, but rather one of his own! The problem is that TEC doesn't recognize anyone's ability to leave TEC. Like a pitcher plant, once you have alighted on the great blossom, you are stuck fast, never to be free again... except, in the real world of churches, anyone and everyone is able to vote with their voice, with their wallet, and finally, with their feet.

Continuing this theme of the "Hotel California" where "you can check out but you can never leave," Bishop Rob O'Neill has pulled a new dirty trick out of TEC's bag of scurrilous actions. According to journalist David Virtue, who is covering the story, seven years ago then-Bishop Winterrowd legally transferred clergy out of Colorado and into the Province of South East Asia by Letters Dimissory. This international transferability of Holy Orders has been a keystone of the Anglican Communion. Now seven years later, the current bishop, Rob O'Neill, has decided to void those legal transfers and canonically depose those clergy for "abandonment of communion of this Church." Do you remember the book "Alice in Wonderland"? That is what it is like living either in the Episcopal Church, or even next door to it. The meanness and fear which these punitive actions show is evidence of how afraid TEC is of the growing orthodox Anglican presence around the nation. The Anglican Church of Canada, similarly fearful, is commencing like-minded retribution against those who have left or are trying to leave.

On the international scene, we remember that it was only a few weeks ago that the Rt. Rev. Tom Wright, was telling everyone that a "get tough" letter was coming from Lambeth Palace to the TEC bishops who didn't support the Covenant and were part of the group who consecrated Gene Robinson. Many of us wondered whether Tom Wright was going to be "wrong again" or whether, given his close contact with Lambeth, maybe he was onto something - or then again, maybe he was being used. The long-awaited Lambeth Letter has come out, and it is a "cream puff" of a letter. What went wrong? Why did Wright get it wrong?

Bishop Tom may have gotten it right to start with, but when a large number of liberal revisionist English bishops told Rowan Williams that if he excluded those Americans, they wouldn't come either, it appears that the Primate of Primates caved in and changed the letter. Tom Wright was left with the ground cut out from under him. Wright could have gotten it right if the left hadn't muscled in. Apparently, the revisionist English bishops are less afraid of pushing back than their orthodox colleagues; why is that?

Lastly, we have received word that the gay and lesbian advocacy groups are planning a major assault on the Lambeth Conference, and are raising money to finance it. Information can be found here. The stage is being set for a media and public relations battle at Canterbury as well as an attempt to sway the bishops present. Things do not look very pretty for Lambeth.

In the Name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, we worship our God, three in one. Have a blessed Trinity Sunday and weekend.

The Rt. Rev. David C. Anderson, Sr.
President and CEO, American Anglican Council

Canada: St. Margaret's community evangelist proposal

I found this a very interesting post from the rector of St. Margaret's. It encapsulates so many of the issues currently at play in the mainline denominations, from the declining (relative to the area's growth), older congregation to the desire to hire someone from the outside to start the program on evangelism to the inherent structural plan that outlines so much before that evanglism even begins.

From St. Margaret's Anglican in Edmonton, Alberta [boldface mine]:

Background
The area around our church has been growing rapidly, but for the last few years attendance at St. Margaret’s has pretty much stayed the same. Also, according to the most recent census figures our church demographics are wildly out of sync with the demographics for our neighbourhoods, in which 40-45% of the population are between the ages of 20-40.

As a congregation we are very good at reaching out to the poor and needy, around the world and in our city, but we have not yet found the secret of connecting with the people in our own neighbourhoods.

Proposal
Thanks to a generous legacy from a former member, this congregation currently has a lot of money in the bank. We have explored the idea of using it to expand the building, but there does not seem to be the energy to see that task through. I therefore propose (with the support of Bishop Jane) that we shift our focus from growing the building and concentrate on growing the church community through evangelism.

I would therefore propose that St. Margaret’s hire a community evangelist for a two-year term period. The goal of this position would be to share the gospel with the people of our immediate neighbourhoods, with the aim that people come to faith in Jesus Christ and to participation in the life of our parish.

Specific aspects of the job description would include:

• Finding creative ways to connect with the people in our neighbourhoods in order to share the gospel with them, to make new disciples for Jesus, and to help them find a home in our church.


• Mobilising members of our congregation, and motivating and equipping them to take part in this evangelistic task.


• Assisting St. Margaret’s to identify the necessary changes to our life as a congregation which would enable a younger demographic to feel more at home with us (which might include, but not be limited to, changes to the way we do worship, or the addition of another service specifically targeted at a different demographic).


• Planning for the future, including the raising up and training of people in the congregation, so that this work does not end at the conclusion of this two-year term position.


• This position should not include any ‘in-house’ administrative responsibilities and should include only a limited liturgical responsibility with existing Sunday services. The community evangelist should be set free to do the specific work we need him or her to do, without being distracted by in-house tasks.


• It is anticipated that, after a reasonable period of time to familiarize him or herself with our neighbourhood, the community evangelist would develop specific plans for outreach, in consultation with the rector and vestry. It is also anticipated that at regular intervals during the two-year term progress would be evaluated and any necessary adjustments made.

Costs
Salary and benefits for 2009/10 (Diocesan pay scale): $149,927
Program costs (guess): $20,000
Office rental if necessary: $8000
Total: $177,927

We currently have sufficient money in the bank to fund this proposal, and may also be able to access some money from the diocesan ‘Neighbourworks’ fund to cut down a little on our own expenses.

Time Frame
The projected start date for this position would be January 1st 2009.

Weekly AAC message from Bishop David Anderson

Via email [boldface mine]:

Dearly Beloved in Christ,

In North America, there is a continuing battle between the revisionist Primates and Bishops and those who are orthodox Christian Anglicans. We note with approval the visit of the Presiding Bishop of the Southern Cone, the Most Rev. Gregory Venables, to both Canada and the United States. In Fort Worth, ++Gregory met with clergy from that diocese and apparently discussed options available in view of the accelerating conflict with the Episcopal Church's Presiding Bishop, Katharine Jefferts Schori. A Chinese military strategist from the 6th Century B.C., Sun Tzu, wrote that the most expensive information that you can acquire is outdated information. It is always prudent, when faced with a conflict, to have current and correct information about options. Jesus himself counseled his followers to be meek as doves [ed: hey, that should be innocent as doves], but wise as serpents. Obtaining accurate, current information is the wise course.

TEC Primate Schori was, of course, not pleased with Venables' visit, and complained loudly to the Southern Cone Primate in a letter. She urged him "not to bring further discord into the Episcopal Church." She did not, however, explain how she was herself working to diminish the discord, since she is one of the primary causes of it, with her DSH approach (Dewey, Suem & Howe). Bishop Iker of Forth Worth responded to her open letter with some great Texas straight talk: "You should know that under the canons this does not require either your approval or your support. You have no say in this matter. A diocesan bishop is free to invite other bishops to visit and speak in his diocese.....Once again, you are the one meddling in the internal affairs of this diocese, and I ask you to stop your unwelcome intrusions." Schori may have gotten away with telling Bishop Lee of Virginia that there is a new sheriff in town, but clearly in Fort Worth, Jack Iker is still in charge.

Journalist George Conger is reporting that there is a legal memorandum circulating in the American House of Bishops which concludes that sufficient legal grounds exist for presenting Schori for ecclesiastical trial on 11 counts of violating the Constitution and Canons of the Episcopal Church. Could anything come of this? I don't think so. Remember the Bishop Walter Righter trial? Accused of knowingly ordaining a practicing homosexual, he went before a panel of judges (some of whom had already themselves done exactly the same thing - for example, Bishop Fred Borsch of Los Angeles), and as a panel of peers who shared his viewpoints, the judges decided that neither the doctrine nor the discipline of the Episcopal Church at that time prohibited the ordination of a non-celibate homosexual person living in a committed relationship. Trial over, Righter acquitted. There is no justice when the judges are as guilty as the defendant.

This brings us to the advisability of pushing for a trial of Schori; does it make a good faith statement to attempt to bring her to justice, or is it a counterproductive waste of effort? I hope that those contemplating bringing such a presentment would quietly and carefully weigh the gains and the losses from such an attempt, and try to anticipate the collateral effects as well. I don't think there is any chance in the Episcopal Church of getting a conviction, despite the apparent evidence that is in the public domain, for the same reason that, in my opinion, Walter Righter never got his just day in court. If Schori could be convicted, it would be a huge victory for the orthodox, but can anyone imagine the Episcopal junta letting the presentment get far enough to even get to an open trial?

In the bigger picture, I would rather see money and effort spent defending the Los Angeles area churches who are being sued by the Episcopal Diocese and TEC, or helping the Virginia churches who are being sued by the Episcopal Diocese of Virginia and TEC for their property, or the churches in the northern Ohio area who are being sued, etc., etc. Favorable decisions in these areas would allow people to keep the churches they have paid for and maintained. Decisions in these areas might well set precedent in other states and dioceses and affect the scope and duration of other possible litigation.

Speaking of trials, several years ago the Methodist Conference of California and Nevada lost a judicial decision on property in California, which went all the way to the California Supreme Court. That decision awarded the property and assets to the local former Methodist Congregation. The Methodist denominational leaders were not happy with this, and now in Virginia the Methodists are back, asking to join the TEC/Diocese of Virginia suit against the departing Virginia Anglican congregations.

The Methodists haven't done everything wrong, however, since at their church's General Conference meeting in Fort Worth, Texas, the delegates voted to adhere to the church's position that marriage should not include same-sex unions and that homosexual acts are not compatible with Christian teaching. Now the question is, will they discipline those who willfully defy their church order?

The Presbyterians, perhaps from their Scottish ancestral thriftiness, are looking at negotiation instead of litigation for a departing congregation. The largest Presbyterian church in Northeast Ohio is offering a $550,000 buyout to its denomination so it can move to a more conservative church body. Unlike the Episcopal Diocese of Ohio, which is using the above-mentioned Dewey, Suem & Howe approach, the Presbytery of the Western Reserve is negotiating with Bay Presbyterian. Let us commend their efforts at a peaceful resolution.

North of the border in Canada, events are boiling. The Most Rev. Fred Hiltz tried to block ++Gregory Venables' visit to minister to Canadian Anglicans who have realigned with the Southern Cone. The Canadians, with two realigned Canadian Bishops, and many churches and clergy, are now under the Province of the Southern Cone. I'm not sure if you would call it "Southern Cone Norte"... but now that Province stretches from Tierra del Fuego to the Arctic Circle.

In other Canadian news, the archbishop of Athabasca issued a letter confirming his diocese's commitment to the Canadian church and the Anglican Communion after its synod passed motions supporting churches that have left the Anglican Church of Canada and criticizing bishops who have gone to court over property issues. Now this is fairly amazing: the synod voted to give encouragement to those who have left the Canadian Anglican Church, and then the bishop has to give assurances to Primate Fred Hiltz that they are still loyal to the Canadian Anglican Church. It sounds like there is more going on here than appears in print. The letter was made public after the Primate of the Anglican Church of Canada asked the archbishop to explain his synod's motions. One of the resolutions said that the synod, meeting in High Prairie on April 24 to 27, voted to "inform the parishes and the bishops who have joined the Anglican Network in Canada and the Province of the Southern Cone that we are in full communion with them."

Finally a note about GAFCON: The numbers of bishops signed up continues to grow. Additional rooms may have to be sought if all goes well.

Blessings and Peace in Jesus Christ,

The Rt. Rev. David C. Anderson
President and CEO, American Anglican Council

Anglican Communion: Burning down the house

• Letters and responses.


• Letters of explanation written before memos on presentment even come out.


(What a week - and AnglicanTV covered parts of it here and here and here, with more to come when Kevin posts his interview with +Venables.)


• Rumor had it that Bishop Robinson would not be allowed to preach in England, but actually it's a ban on officiating in the Province of Canterbury only.


• Another response to the St. Andrews draft of the Anglican Covenant.


• Another visit by the Presiding Bishop.

And we haven't even gotten to Canada yet. . .

Hold tight, wait till the party's over
Hold tight, we're in for nasty weather
There has got to be a way
Burning down the house

Here's your ticket, pack your bag: time for jumpin' overboard
The transportation is here
Close enough but not too far, maybe you know where you are
Fightin' fire with fire

Talking Heads

Archbishop Fred Hiltz, Primate of the Anglican Church of Canada, ask Archbishop Gregory Venables to cancel his visit

From the Anglican Church of Canada (Archbishop Hiltz wrote the letter after consulting with the Canadian House of Bishops):

April 21,2008

The Most Revd Gregory James Venables
Rioja 2995,1636 Olivos,
Province of Buenos Aires,
B1636DMG , Argentina

My Brother in Christ:

In this Easter Season I greet you in the name of our risen Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.

It has come to my attention that you will be participating in the Anglican Network in Canada conference, "Compelled by Christ's Love" taking place in Vancouver, B.C., April 25-26,2008. Your visit to Canada is without any reference to or consent from my office or that of the Bishop of the Diocese of New Westminster. This represents a breach in what is considered normative in protocol among Primates and Bishops throughout the Communion.

I brought this matter before the House of Bishops meeting in Niagara Falls, Ont., last week. While we recognized that your motivation may be pastoral, there was a strong consensus that your visit at this time will further harm the strained relations between the Anglican Church of Canada and the Anglican Network in Canada.

The Bishops believe that we have made adequate and appropriate provision for the pastoral care and Episcopal support of all members of the Anglican Church of Canada, including those who find themselves in conscientious disagreement with the view of their Bishop and Synod over matters of human sexuality. This provision known as Shared Episcopal Ministry was approved by the House of Bishops in November 2004 and commended, in September 2006, by an international Panel of Reference appointed by the Archbishop of Canterbury. With this provision in place we believe there is no need for pastoral interventions by Primates or Bishops from jurisdictions outside of the Anglican Church of Canada. In fact such interventions are inappropriate. The Archbishop of Canterbury in a recent letter to me which was made public said he cannot "support or sanction" such actions. . .

Read it all.

AAC weekly message from Bishop David Anderson

Via email [boldface mine]:

Beloved in Christ,

This week I want to start with the good news. Judge Bellows, who is trying the Virginia litigation between the Episcopal Diocese of Virginia (EDV) and the Anglican District of Virginia (ADV), has issued a ruling, finding in favor of the departing parishes with regard to the Virginia 1867 Division Statute. As one of our readers commented, "...the Court found that a division within the meaning of the Virginia Division Statute occurred in a church or religious society to which the CANA Congregations were attached. It is now a court finding that there is a division within the worldwide Anglican Communion, The Episcopal Church and the Diocese of Virginia." This is a most important and favorable ruling for the orthodox Anglicans in Virginia, and if it holds up through the Appeals Court process, important for the orthodox in many other states as well.

When other judges read the opinion, even though the overall statute at stake may not be directly relevant to another state, the body of evidence and findings within the case and the 88 page ruling are informative and useful. You can find the full ruling on our AAC website. The next stage of the same trial will deal with a second challenge that the Episcopal Church (TEC) has raised, and that is the constitutionality of the Virginia statute - whether it unconstitutionally interferes with the right of churches to order their own internal affairs. This right of churches is not absolute, however, for obvious reasons. An organization calling itself a church could decide to do things internally that violate public safety or contravene reasonable state law. You cannot, for example, reconstitute the Old Order Aztec Church, complete with daily human sacrifice, even if the victims are willing.

If churches and religious denominations wish to own property which is tax exempt because it is used for religious purposes, and have their offering income be tax exempt, and their donors receive tax exemption for those donations, then churches have already intertwined themselves to a degree with the government. This is seen as permissible because no one church is favored, and the benefits are available to all of the organizations which are formed as churches. In the same vein, it would seem that the Virginia statute, which is applicable to all churches and denominations that might find themselves in this situation, does not encroach on the U.S. Constitution's non-establishment clause, because it does not favor any one church. We will follow the development of the arguments in this case with great interest.

One of the sad things is that the litigation - initiated by the EDV under pressure from Presiding Bishop Jefferts Schori - is not only using up valuable EDV mission dollars but is also forcing the ADV to spend corresponding amounts. Although the ADV has been raising its money as the case proceeds, the EDV has been borrowing the money for its legal offensive, and has now gone through approximately two million dollars. If there were promises of financial aid made to Virginia to push them into the litigation battle, apparently they have not materialized. Other TEC dioceses take note: it's not what she says, it's whether she gives you the money to litigate up front and lets you bank it in advance - otherwise you might wind up like Virginia and Los Angeles, paying for it all yourself. For those dioceses which haven't yet commenced litigation against departing parishes, you may wish to seriously consider mediation, and make some money instead of spending huge amounts you don't have.

While we are speaking of legal issues, Katharine Jefferts Schori and her chancellor, David Booth Beers, have been put on notice by an attorney representing Bishop William J. Cox, with a letter demanding that she publish a correction of her announcement concerning his deposition. Since she failed to achieve the canonically required majority of "the whole number of bishops entitled to vote," the vote was invalid. In legal terms, it was null and void. The letter goes on to require several things: first that Schori cease defamation of character of Bishop Cox by saying and distributing assertions that are not true and are injurious to him; and then right the wrong by withdrawing the pronouncement of deposition and publishing it in the same manner that she did the deposition. If she doesn't (or perhaps, when she doesn't), the implications are clear. The letter was a legal demand letter which precedes further action. This is one to watch also.

On the West Coast of the USA, the battle of San Joaquin is still in the formation stage. There appear to be three Standing Committees: the one that belongs with the Diocese of San Joaquin/Southern Cone; the Standing Committee that claims it never resigned and never left TEC; and the Standing Committee that Schori cobbled together as part of her "rump" Diocesan Convention of San Joaquin/TEC reconstituted. To our knowledge, Presiding Bishop Jefferts Schori is the first Presiding Bishop to run roughshod over Canons, both diocesan and national, yet at the same time invoking them as gospel whenever she finds one that is useful to her. Since eventually the orthodox will leave TEC, become revisionists themselves, or die of old age, those who will eventually be left to enjoy this legacy of tyranny are the revisionist bishops, clergy and laity themselves. Pity them, for they shall finally inherit the poisoned fruit of their labor, and it will be bitter unto them.

Not only have Schori and her TEC assistants set up a Potemkin Village San Joaquin Diocese, claiming it to be the real thing, but they have now taken over the website of the real Diocese of San Joaquin/Southern Cone. Since the website was hosted by an Anglican organization, the Society of Archbishop Justus, which is friendly to TEC, they reassigned the address to Schori's group. Can they really do this? They did. If your website is hosted by any group friendly to either TEC or the Anglican Communion Office (ACO), you might wish to investigate moving to an orthodox-friendly site, or to a neutral independent provider. It is a nasty thing to wake up and discover that your internet identity has been stolen.

Adding insult to injury, the London Anglican Communion Office (ACO), which operates hand in glove with the TEC top leadership, is quite naturally listing the Diocese of San Joaquin as VACANT, to underscore Schori's contention of a deposition. It is understandable when one considers how much money flows from TEC to the ACO to keep their doors open and the lights on. Previously when we checked, one of the major ACO staffers, Fr. James Rosenthal, is actually being funded by TEC using Missionary dollars. If Jim is a missionary, we might inquire what is his message, and who is his target for conversions? Is this what TEC Mission Dollars were intended for? It appears in many ways that the Anglican Communion Office is 'TEC East'.

In the international scene the issue of free speech and freedom of religion are becoming issues in the Western world. Who would ever have thought that an English bishop would be convicted by a court for REFUSING to employ a practicing homosexual in his diocese's youth services? The Bishop of Hereford was fined 47,000 GBP (a bit over 90,000 USD) and made to attend a re-education course. We might wonder how long we can read the Bible out loud in church, especially certain passages that deal with sinful conduct. How long can we preach the 2000-year-old message from the pulpit before we are handcuffed and dragged away?

Maybe not as long as you think. Bob Unruh, writing in WorldnetDaily, reports that the Canadian government has ordered a Christian ministry which teaches doctrine and the differences between Christians and cults shut down because its reference materials were "critical" of the beliefs of those who are not Christian. The organization, MacGregor Ministries, has had to move to the USA and be re-created under the name MM Outreach Media Ministries.

With the European and British governments passing onerous legislation supposedly banning "hate speech" (but in reality banning Christian free speech about sin and its consequences), it becomes illegal not only to say certain things, but to write them, publish them, post them on the internet, etc. Is it now possible that something written in one country halfway around the world, where it is protected and legal, may be read in another far distant country and cause someone to be offended, and thus become an infraction of the law? Is the law broken where something is done or where it is received, or both? Are you ready to go to jail over free speech and free expression of the Christian religion?

And across the pond in England we are aware that the General Synod will be meeting just before the mini-Lambeths, and Lambeth itself. We have heard rumors that the Presiding Bishop of TEC and a few other liberal USA bishops might "independently" be planning trips to "accidentally" be in the neighborhood of the General Synod. Not on purpose of course, but then things being what they are, if any of them might bump into an English bishop that they know... well it would, under those circumstances, only be neighborly to ask her or them to say a word or two, to bring greetings from TEC-land to the Synod. Are these rumors true? In the past we have found that their reliability is better than half, but we shall have to wait and see. Any volunteers for Katharine spotters?

Now finally, the American Anglican Council has been assisting the Global Anglican Future Conference and Pilgrimage (GAFCON) with registration and other administrative tasks that need some attention, and we are pleased to see the number of paid registrations adding up, hotel reservations filling up, and planning shaping up. Nigeria has checked in already with its full allotment paid for by monies raised within Nigeria. Scholarships are being sought for bishops in other provinces who can only raise part of their costs to attend, and if you are able we encourage you to assist this gathering of orthodox bishops, clergy and laity who will help shape the future of Anglicanism in the century ahead. You can do this on the AAC website or at this link.

Blessings and Peace in Christ Jesus,

The Rt. Rev. David C. Anderson, Sr.
President & CEO of the AAC

Canada: York University blocks abortion debate between pro-abortion atheist and pro-life worker

LifeSiteNews.com has a follow-up to this earlier post on the abortion debate cancellation:

An abortion debate was shut down on February 28 by a student federation at York University on the premiss that abortion is a non-debatable right.

The York University Student Centre cancelled the debate, entitled "Abortion Debate: A Woman's Right or a Moral Wrong?" a mere two hours before it started. As a result, dozens of students were turned away at the door. The debate was to have been between pro-abortion atheist Michael Payton from Freethinkers, Skeptics and Atheists at York, and Jojo Ruba of Calgary's pro-life Canadian Centre for Bio-Ethical Reform. It was intended to be a balanced debate on abortion, moderated by the York Debating Society.

"We would not have a debate over something that is racist or homophobic," said Gilary Massa, vice-president equity of the York Federation of Students. "This debate is sexist … when it comes to free speech there is a line. … They are talking about taking away women's rights. We would not allow a debate asking if women beating should be allowed.". . .

"The Student Centre has made sure that anyone with different views than theirs can't express themselves, even if both points of view are represented," said [Margaret] Fung, [President of Students for Bioethical Awareness, an official York University club and co-sponsor of the debate]. "They don't seem to understand that we live in a free, democratic society. A university is supposed to be a marketplace of ideas not a propaganda machine for political extremists."

Robert J. Tiffin, vice-president of students, emphasized in his letter to the National Post that the cancellation of the debate was done without the knowledge or consent of York University, but was rather done by students who ran the Student Centre.

"A debate on the subject of abortion was cancelled at York University by the student executive of the Student Centre, without the knowledge or participation of the university," he wrote. "York encourages civic participation and open debate on issues of local, national and international importance. The fact that both sides of the debate wanted to proceed and were prevented from doing so makes the incident all the more regrettable."

The National Post has reported that the York University administration is currently working on a compromise that will allow for students to use some on-campus venue where such a debate can happen in the future. . .

Read it all.
H/t to SoCon or Bust.

Canada: Abortion debate cancelled by York University Student Union

From a press release issued by Students for Bioethical Awareness, one of the debate hosts [boldface mine]:

The York University Student Centre shut down an event entitled “Abortion Debate: A Woman’s Right or a Moral Wrong?” at York University only a couple of hours before it was scheduled to take place late Thursday afternoon.

Margaret Fung, President of Students for Bioethical Awareness (SBA), one of the hosting clubs, describes what happened: “I was told in a meeting by members of the York Federation of Students that debating abortion is comparable to debating whether a man should be allowed to beat his wife. They said that there is freedom of speech to a limit, and that abortion is not an issue to debate. They demanded that the event not take place and shut us down.” Present at this meeting in addition to Fung were Jeremy Salter, Executive Director of the York Federation of Students (YFS), Fuad Abdi, VP Operations of the YFS and also the Secretary of the Executive Committee of the Student Centre, and Amir Mohareb, President of the York Debating Society.

SBA, an official York University Student Club, worked with the York Debating Society to organize the debate. The debaters were Michael Payton from Freethinkers, Skeptics and Atheists at York for the pro-choice side and Jose Ruba from the Canadian Centre for Bio-Ethical Awareness for the pro-life side. It was to be an organized debate moderated by the York Debating Society. Both sides were ready and willing to debate, but after it was demanded the event be shut down, dozens of students planning on attending the event were turned away at the door. . .

This action at York University comes in the wake of statements by the Canadian Federation of Students (of which the YFS is a part) comparing pro-life student groups to the KKK, and announcing their intention to support student unions who ban pro-life student clubs. “Salter also compared pro-lifers to the KKK,” concludes Fung, “And such comparisons are incredibly ignorant and, quite frankly, hurtful”.

Read it all.

More on the situation of Dr. J.I. Packer

From TitusOneNine, a letter from Lesley Bentley:

I am the spokesperson for St. John's Shaughnessy Anglican Church in Vancouver. Dr. Packer has been an honourary assistant at St. John's for well over 20 years. We are a church in serious theological dispute with the Diocese of New Westminster which was the first diocese in the worldwide Anglican Communion to write a rite for the blessing of same sex unions and then allow them to happen. This is, of course, only a symptom of the underlying theological dispute which is currently ripping the worldwide communion apart.

Two weeks ago St. John's voted by a 97.7% margin to accept an offer of temporary emergency episcopal oversight from the Province of the Southern Cone under Archbishop Greg Venables. Dr. Packer strongly supported this move. To see Dr. Packer's specific views on the situation in the Anglican Church I encourage you to check out a YouTube posting where he discusses the issue with a reporter. You can find it on YouTube by searching for St. John's Shaughnessy. It is a 10 part video (115 minutes in all) with our rector, David Short, and Dr. Packer giving a very comprehensive explanation of the Anglican Church's situation right now. . .

Read it all, and check out the YouTube videos starting here.

From Michael Daley:

Below is a brief outline of the nature of the charges brought against Dr. Packer by the Diocese of New Westminster, under the leadership of Bishop Michael Ingham:

Dr. Packer together with the other clergy at St. John’s have been served with a Notice of Presumption of Abandonment of the Exercise of the Ministry under Canon XIX. According to Bishop Michael Ingham of the Diocese of New Westminster, the notice is based on the following “facts”:

• that he has publicly renounced the doctrine and discipline of the Anglican Church of Canada; and


• that you have sought or intend to seek admission into another religious body outside the Anglican Church of Canada.

The notice also states that if Dr. Packer does not take advantage of provisions under the Canons to dispute the facts stated above, Dr. Packer’s spiritual authority as a minister of Word and Sacraments conferred in ordination will be revoked on April 21, 2008.

The legal team of ANiC is reviewing and considering the validity and alleged consequences of such a “Notice of Presumption of Abandonment”.

Check it out.

AAC weekly update from Bishop Anderson

From Bishop David Anderson of the American Anglican Council via email [boldface mine]:

Beloved in Christ,

In every age, there are a few leaders who become legends in their own time, iconic and larger than life. The people who attain to this level are nearly always unaware of it and not quite understanding of it, thus they are surprised that so many hold them in such high esteem. The Rev. Dr. James I. Packer certainly falls in this category, and so it is with surprise and disbelief that we learn that the controversial and revisionist bishop of New Westminster (Canada), the Rt. Rev. Michael Ingham, has threatened the most orthodox Dr. Packer with suspension of his clerical license for ministry.

In both Canada and the United States, if you love Jesus and take his teachings and commands seriously, the Anglican Church of Canada (ACC) or the Episcopal Church (TEC) will come after you with harmful intent. Pray for Dr. Packer as he endures harassment once again from Bishop Ingham. Why is Ingham on the warpath again? It might be over the entire Anglican Church of Canada’s largest church, located physically in Ingham’s geographical area, St. John’s Shaughnessy, Vancouver, voting to affiliate with former ACC Bishop Don Harvey, now of the Province of the Southern Cone, and Archbishop Gregory Venables. The vote was 474 to realign, 11 voting no, and 9 abstentions. This action taking the church out of the ACC ensures that the laity, clergy and congregations are able to maintain their orthodox Anglican Christian faith and, within a new jurisdiction, remain a part of the worldwide Anglican Communion. Things are becoming critical in Canada, and the persecution of the faithful up there will probably grow worse in the future.

News pertaining to the USA, but involving as usual the Archbishop of Canterbury, seems centered on a pastoral care scheme put forward by some orthodox TEC bishops as a way for some TEC dioceses and churches to have orthodox primatial and episcopal oversight, and for them to be able to have another channel of relating to the Archbishop of Canterbury and the global primates other than just through Presiding Bishop Jefferts Schori. The plan does little to give respite to those orthodox congregations (hopelessly?) trapped in revisionist dioceses with revisionist bishops over them. Why are these congregations hopelessly trapped? Often the challenge of expensive litigation or walking away from deep attachments to their property simply is more than they can muster, so they stay, but in a very endangered capacity.

Although many parishes have walked away, often without their property, and several bishops and dioceses are considering leaving, albeit with their property, there are congregations and orthodox bishops and dioceses for whom this seems to be too much to ask. This scheme put before Dr. Williams is thought to address this, and the ABC seems enthused over the prospect. Unfortunately, it is a formula for disaster. If the world has learned anything, it is that TEC can’t be trusted to keep its word, and in this plan which is being set before Presiding Bishop Jefferts Schori, the details aren’t even worked out. If there is any hope of it working, everything must be thought through and noted and agreed upon in the document before any signatures are attached. A further difficulty is that without the permission of the local revisionist TEC bishop, no congregation that petitions for help can be assisted. The lambs can only have a watchdog if the wolf gives permission. Bishop Howe of Central Florida commented, “We (Episcopal Visitors) will visit no congregation without the diocesan bishop’s invitation and permission.” Duh! Does that make sense? If the local bishop was at all accommodating of conservatives, the need for protection wouldn’t be there in the first place. Because the need is there, you have to have permission from the person who is the greatest danger to those asking for help. Some of our orthodox bishops wrote this and the Archbishop of Canterbury likes it, and even Jefferts Schori might agree to it. Help me make sense of this. Additionally, can this be legally done without the TEC House of Bishops concurring with the Presiding Bishop in agreeing to such a proposal? We will have to wait and see, but I see this as various stages and degrees of collaboration which offers false hope to a few and puts many at grave risk. I urge the bishops thus involved to reconsider their plans. Bishop John Howe remarks, “If we do this right, it will strengthen the hands of the Presiding Bishop and the Archbishop of Canterbury.” Pray tell, why does Bishop Howe wish to strengthen the hand of Presiding Bishop Jefferts Schori who is suing the pants off most of the orthodox who have left and now has been handed up to $500,000 of TEC trust fund income to advance the litigation further, especially against Bishop Howe’s brother bishops in the Anglican Communion Network?

Meanwhile, as TEC raids trust fund income for $500,000 worth of upcoming litigation, some money is found to spread around poorer parts of Africa on what is called by some "The Charm Offensive." Money from TEC, funneled through Bishop Pierre Whalon, a francophone, is being used to attract African primates and bishops to the American cause. Whalon recently delivered money to buy Archbishop Fidèle Dirokpa and Bishop Henri Isingoma new automobiles.

Meanwhile all over the United States, the Common Cause Partners federation churches are preaching the Gospel, seeing men and women’s lives change by Christ, planting and growing churches, and equipping more and more individuals being called by God to enter the ordained ministry to preach the Truth. God is Good...All The Time.

Blessings and Peace in Christ Jesus,
The Rt. Rev. David C. Anderson, Sr.
President & CEO of the AAC

JI Packer threatened with suspension

I'm sure you all have already heard about this - it was all over the web yesterday. From Michael Daley at The Lambeth Conference:

As evidence of the escalating crisis in the global Anglican Communion, today one of the of the world’s most esteemed Christian theologians, Dr. J.I. Packer, received a letter threatening suspension from ministry by the controversial Bishop of New Westminster, Michael Ingham. Bishop Ingham accused Dr. Packer, hailed by Time Magazine as the “doctrinal Solomon” of Christian thinkers, “to have abandoned the exercise of ministry” after the church where he is a member voted to separate from the diocese and join the Anglican Province of the Southern Cone under the oversight of Anglican Archbishop Gregory Venables. Dr. Packer, who was ordained in the Church of England, is the author of the Christian classic, “Knowing God,” and joined Billy Graham and Richard John Neuhaus as one of Time Magazine’s 25 most influential evangelicals in 2005.

Dr. Packer, who received his theological education at Wycliffe Hall, Oxford, was ordained a deacon (1952) and priest (1953) in the Church of England. He was Assistant Curate of Harborne Heath in Birmingham 1952-54 and Lecturer at Tyndale Hall, Bristol 1955-61. He was Librarian of Latimer House, Oxford 1961-62 and Principal 1962-69. In 1970 he became Principal of Tyndale Hall, Bristol, and from 1971 until 1979 he was Associate Prinicipal of Trinity College, Bristol. In addition to his published works, he has served as general editor for the English Standard Version of the Bible. He currently serves as the Board of Governors’ Professor of Theology at Regent College in Vancouver, British Columbia.

He will be 82 in July.

Check it out.

CBC radio: Anglican split

I haven't listened to this yet, but I'm posting it anyway since it includes an interview with ++Gregory Venables talking about the situation in Canada:

Parishioners at three Anglican churches -- two in British Columbia and one in Ontario -- have voted to split from the Anglican Church of Canada and join up with the Province of the Southern Cone. That's the part of the Anglican church that covers South America.

In all, ten parishes have now split with the Canadian church, all of them because of a fundamental disagreement over its stance on blessing same sex unions.

Joyce Lee is a member of the Church of the Good Shepherd in Vancouver. That's one of the parishes that voted to leave the Anglican Church of Canada. The Current caught up with her after the vote to hear her thoughts.

The fight over the issue has left Steve Schuh in an awkward situation. He's a member of the Anglican Church of Canada's General Synod. He's also a spokesperson for Integrity Canada, a national organization for gay and lesbian Anglicans. And he worships at St. John's Shaughnessy in Vancouver, a parish that voted to split with the Canadian church earlier this month.

We spoke to Steve Schuh from Vancouver. Also joining us was The Most Reverend Gregory James Venables, Presiding Bishop of the Province of the Southern Cone. He's also the Bishop of Argentina and the leader of the parishes that have split with the Anglican Church of Canada. Archbishop Gregory James Venables spoke to us from Buenos Aires.

Listen to The Current: Part 1

Anglican coverage in Canada

If you're interested in what's going on to the north of us, check out the WebElf Canada website. From Michael Daley:

Dear readers,

Thank you so much for the incredible prayer and other support that you have given us over the past week.

LambethConference.Net/Canada was started just one week ago as a result of what I saw as an overwhelming lack of established bloggers that were covering the situation in the Anglican Church of Canada, and your response has been overwhelming. By providing you - the Canadian reader - with a voice that is heard around the world, we hope to effect a change in how bishops at the Lambeth Conference perceive Canada. That is, that contrary to what the national church is saying, all is not well.

To do that - in conjunction with our parent blog (LambethConference.Net) - we need your prayerful cover and support. But it doesn’t stop there. Making your voice heard on this blog is equally as important both in encouraging us to carry on and showing the world that this church is not just dealing with a 'small, ultra-conservative’ group.

All this costs money, of course. Trips to various churches to cover their Sunday services when the diocese shows up - again, to be sure both sides are seen and heard - costs money and time. So will our trip to Lambeth, where we will be stationed with the rest of the press feeding you back up-to-the-minute information about the goings-on at Lambeth.

With years of experience in the blogging and press world (I ran the General Convention 2006 CaNNet blog, while there working with the Anglican Communion Network press team), we hope to do all this with excellence, humility, charity and truth.

Would we like to attend GAFCON for you, too? Well, yes. But right now, our sights and financial goals are set on three things:

1. Keeping this blog online ($50/mo), with the gracious help of our brother Greg Griffith at Stand Firm and our sister Kate Sanderson, who has just joined us a writer.
2. Having a stable of finances from which to draw to travel to churches within Ontario and hopefully across Canada to cover events as they unfold.
3. Raising enough financial support to get our cameras and audio devices to Lambeth.
None of this is possible without your support.

Please, would you consider partnering with us both in prayer and financially? One-off donations are very helpful - in any amount. As are monthly giving plans. We’ll have the facility set up to allow for monthly giving shortly, but for now we are only asking for one-off donations to get us through the next month.

At present, we need just over $200 to cover our expenses at Oakville and Milton, this weekend.

I’ll be posting frequent updates on our financial status, including a donation thermometer, shortly. But for now there is a real and immediate need.

Please, would you consider a gift at this time? On our sidebar is a SECURE PayPal transaction processor that does not require a PayPal account to use.

Pax Christi,

Michael Daley for LC.Net and LC.Net/Canada

"Freedom of conscience within a framework of historic faith"

From the National Post (Canada) [boldface mine]:

Anglican split could spread worldwide

The battle taking place inside the Anglican Church of Canada is a microcosm of a larger problem that could see the worldwide Anglican Communion end in division, said the South American archbishop who has been taking dissident churches under his wing.

In the past week, seven Canadian parishes in five dioceses have split from the national church and have put themselves under the authority of Archbishop Gregory Venables, head of the Province of the Southern Cone, which encompasses parts of South America. This week, the Diocese of Niagara in Ontario said it will replace the clergy at its two churches that voted to separate and went on to say that breakaway parishes "are no longer considered officially Anglican." Two ministers in British Columbia have also been suspended.

Archbishop Venables, speaking from Buenos Aires, said he is not happy about the potential for a global division, or what is happening in Canada, but he believes the worldwide Anglican Church has been on this course for more than 100 years, and he is becoming less hopeful for a resolution.

"It ends up you have two versions of Christianity," he said. "There are two positions that have moved apart over the last century: the Bible-based orthodox Christianity that goes back to the early years of the Church and a post-modern Christianity that believes everybody can find their own truth. And those two things cannot work together."

He said because the church does not have a central leadership, in the way that the Roman Catholic Church does, it is more difficult to impose a solution from above.

"In one sense, Anglicanism brought this upon itself because of the way we are. And in a sense, too, that is good because we maintain freedom of conscience within a framework of historic faith."

But that inevitably brings us to a situation where there must be a divide where people are not in agreement, and that is better, I think, than holding people together under a false sense of unity.". . .

He said it is unfortunate that the debate has played out over the issue of same-sex blessings "because it catches the public attention in a way that doesn't allow people to understand what's really going on. And it's very unpleasant that [the debate appears] geared against certain people in society who the church would never be against."

But, at the same time, he said there is no way a church can perform same-sex blessings and still call itself Christian. Archbishop Venables said he has had to tell gay couples that he would not perform such a rite.

"I respect them for their sincerity and I love them. But Scripture does not allow me to bless anything that God hasn't blessed. The relationship between male and female in marriage is something God blessed. He created the relationship between man and woman. He put them together in the Garden of Eden. Jesus himself performed his first miracle at a marriage between a man and a woman in Cana. All the things we bless are all the things God has shown us to bless. There is no indication in the whole of the Bible that God would bless a relationship between two men or two women.". . .

Read it all.

Ezra Levant: Denormalization

I don't know how many people have been following what's been going on with the Alberta Human Rights Commission and Ezra Levant, editor for The Western Standard (now defunct), but it's very similar to Mark Steyn's situation with the Canadian Human Rights Commission and freedom of speech. Ezra Levant has an interesting blog entry, What Can Be Done? that outlines the concept of "denormalization" - somehow this seems apropos to the current Anglican troubles [boldface mine].

I'm fighting the human rights commissions from inside the belly of the beast. I appreciate the generous help I have received towards my legal bills. (Thank you.) But what can people do besides help with my case?

I can think of two things:

1. Denormalize the commissions; and

2. Press legislators to act.

The first makes the second possible.

By "denormalizing", I mean bringing the public's perception of these commissions in line with the awful facts about them. Denormalizing the commissions means demonstrating how they disrespect Canadian values, showing how they have become a sword, attacking human rights, rather than a shield protecting them.

These commissions aren't normal. It's not normal to haul publishers before the government to ask them about their political thoughts. It's not normal for a secular state to enforce a radical Muslim fatwa against cartoons. These human rights commissions are counterfeits; they improperly benefit from the reputation of real courts, but they also destroy respect for the whole legal system -- that's just what counterfeit currency does amidst real currency.

Denormalizing the commissions is important, especially since most people have never heard of them, and when they do, they hear three positive words: "human rights commissions". It's sort of like the old Communist countries, like the "German Democratic Republic", which was neither Democratic nor a Republic, but it sounded good. Same thing here.

Denormalizing the commissions is something the blogosphere can be particularly good at, by spreading information widely and inexpensively. I think the reason my YouTube videos were so popular (320,000 views so far) is because they contained information the public has never seen before about how a commission actually works, and it was startling. Of the eight videos I've uploaded so far, the most popular has been the one where Officer McGovern asks me about my intentions -- what Orwell called a "thought crime". We should all be encouraged by the public reaction to these videos. Now let's just change that number from 320,000 people to 3 million or more.

Denormalizing the commissions can best be done by highlighting the two central qualities of the commissions:

1. They erode Canadian values such as freedom of speech, freedom of religion and diversity of opinion. I'd call this the substance of the commission -- what they're trying to achieve; their mission or purpose. It's unCanadian.

2. They erode Canadian values such as fairness from a government agency. This is not about the purpose of the commissions; it's how the commissions achieve their purpose. It's the means to the end; their internal procedures and rules. Those are unfair -- they reward nuisance suits, violate normal Canadian rules of procedure and evidence, etc.

Over the past few days, I have posted a great deal of evidence demonstrating both the foul substance and foul procedures of these commissions. Other than the videos, I think the best resource is to actually read the crazy decisions these commissions make. Here is a list of the Alberta decisions. This is where you'll find cases like the restaurant that was fined $4,900 for firing a kitchen manager who had Hepatitis-C. Tour through them -- they are bizarrely inconsistent. To me, the worst decision was the one I mentioned in several of the videos, the Boissoin case. That's the case where panellist Lori Andreachuk ruled that the right of busy-body activists not to be offended trumped a Christian pastor's right to write a letter about his religious views. (It's also the first time I have ever encountered the word "trisexual" -- see paragraph 44.). . .

Read it all.

Canada: St. Peter's ends 96 years with baptism

From the Diocese of New Westminster:

The parish of St. Peter's, Rosedale, is no more. It closed at the end of 2007 after serving people in the eastern Fraser Valley for 96 years.

The closing service was held on Sunday, December 30. Bishop Michael Ingham presided and preached. He took as his text Ecclesiastes 3, "For everything there is a season." There was a time for St. Peter's to open, to flourish, and now to close, he said.

Part of the last service, held in the afternoon, included the baptism of Kaiden Harvey Blank, son of Kim Prest and Dwayne Blank, by the Rev. Graham Witcher, who had served as priest for several Sundays in the fall.

A special vestry (membership) meeting of the parish, with 16 of the 22 people on the parish rolls present, on December 9 voted to petition Bishop Michael Ingham to close the parish.

The congregation of St. Peter’s, Rosedale, after their last Sunday worship service
"There was sadness on the part of many people," said Don Rodger, the People's Warden. "But they understood.”

Rodger said most of the parish was elderly, with only a few people under sixty. "I'm 71 and I'm one of the youngest guys in the congregation."

The church building was nearly 100 years old, built in 1911-12 with volunteer labour, and had many problems. It needed a new roof, windows, and wiring, which would easily take around $40,000 to repair, and there just isn't the money.

Parishioners can't do the repairs, he said: "You can't have 80 year old guys climbing up ladders.”

At Diocesan Council, Legal Assessor Jennifer Dezell, one of the diocese's legal officers, said the parish would soon send a letter to the bishop asking him to close the parish, as stipulated by diocesan Canons. He can do this since three-quarters at the vestry meeting voted to close.

"They have made this decision entirely on their own volition," said Bishop Ingham.

Rodger said what brought on the decision to ask the bishop to close the parish was basically a lack of energy to continue on.

"I asked how many people would be willing to serve on Parish Council come next February. Nobody was." There was no one who could take on the Ministry Assessment Process (the "MAP") as requested recently by the diocese of parishes in the east end of the Fraser Valley.

"If this was a business, this church would have been gone a long time ago. It was just sucking up money from the diocese," Rodger said. . .

Read it all, and also check out the diocesan editorial on the closure.

Beer could supplant sacramental wine in historic church

From Canada.com:

GATINEAU, Que. - A local businessman wants to convert the Ottawa Valley's oldest Protestant house of worship, a deconsecrated Anglican church, into an industrial brewery and brew pub with nightly entertainment.

Alain Geoffroy, president of Brasseurs du Temps Inc., has offered to buy the former church, which was closed in September 2006 because its congregation had shrunk to a handful of parishioners. . .

"I am not happy that this place could become a brewery because people on city council told me it could only be used as a church," said Blaine Meadows, a former member of the St. James congregation, adding that he and three or four supporters still hold prayer services on the sidewalk in front of the church every Sunday morning. "As far as we are concerned, it is still our church, even though the diocese changed the locks and stole our church."

"I don't know whether we could have our prayer meetings inside if the building became a brew pub. It gets kind of complicated."

Geoffroy, however, said the church would be an ideal home for a microbrewery because its basement has a ceiling high enough to accommodate brewing equipment. Some of the world's most famous beers are brewed by religious orders in Belgium, he argued.

Geoffroy also noted that the main floor has excellent acoustics and religious artifacts that could be preserved in a pub.

"We intend to enhance and promote the historic, brewing and industrial heritage of the city," Geoffroy said. "It will be a cultural place that would offer classical music and performances by small groups.". . .

Read it all.

H/t to The Lead at the Episcopal Cafe.

Bishops without borders launched in Canada

From Anglican Mainstream [boldface mine]:

. . . Dr James Packer, now 82, underlined that this was not schism, despite the protestations of his own (former) Bishop Ingham of New Westminster in the press.

Dr Packer said “Schism means unjustifiable dividing of organized church bodies, by the separating of one group within the structure from the rest of the membership. Schism is sin, for it is a needless and indefensible breach of visible unity. But withdrawal from a unitary set-up that has become unorthodox and distorts the gospel in a major way and will not put its house in order as for instance when the English church withdrew from the Church of Rome in the sixteenth century, should be called not schism but realignment, doubly so when the withdrawal leads to links with a set-up that is faithful to the truth, as in the sixteenth century the Church of England entered into fellowship with the Lutheran and Reformed churches of Europe, and as now we propose gratefully to accept the offer of full fellowship with the Province of the Southern Cone. Any who call such a move schism should be told that they do not know what schism is.”

“The present project is precisely not to abandon Anglicanism but to realign within it, so as to be able to maintain it in its fullness and authenticity”. . .

Read it all.