Catholic radio station to kick Protestants off the air

From The Lead at the Episcopal Cafe [boldface mine]:

The Hartford Courant reports that WJMJ-FM, a station owned by the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Hartford, will end the ecumenical format of its programming and use the station to reach out mainly to Roman Catholics.

The station has included many home-grown programs that reflect the religious diversity of the area. The Episcopal Diocese of Connecticut has broadcast Sundays at 6 hosted by Fr. Christopher Rose for 24 years.

There appears to be a difference between how the Archdiocese wants to communicate the change and how the station management understands the upcoming changes.

The Archdiocesan communications officer, Fr. John Gatzak, said in a phone interview with the newspaper that "the identity of the station will be Catholic, yes, but that does not mean we will not reach out to other Christian denominations to invite them to participate."

On the other hand, the station's general manager, John Ellinger, told the Courant that he believed that the archdiocese's plan was to take every Protestant show off the air by May. . .

Read it all. It's a little unclear if anyone knows exactly what's really going on, but all I can think is that maybe the Roman Catholics are starting to shake the dust from their feet as far as giving ECUSA a platform.

A new Common Cause church

From the New Hope Anglican Church website:

Watertown Churchgoers Walk Away from 243-year-old Episcopal Parish, Start New Anglican Church

Watertown, CT, December 30, 2007 Members of Christ Church Parish today held their last service before leaving their church building forever to found a new Anglican congregation in town.

Parishioners along with the church's rector, Rev. Allyn Benedict, chose to walk away from Christ Church after a years-long disagreement with the Episcopal diocese of Connecticut. Rev. Benedict, one of the priests of the churches known as the Connecticut Six, will resign as rector, along with the entire vestry of the church, effective December 31.

"Making the decision to depart hasn't been easy for any of us," said Rev. Benedict. "Our church family has stood, witnessed and prayed together for several years before taking this step. Having 'counted the cost' of leaving, we are now paying the price as we go out, taking nothing with us. But Jesus is faithful, our heavenly Father is our provider, and the Holy Spirit has anointed us to preach good news to the poor, to bind up the broken hearted and to proclaim freedom for the captives. We have everything we need. We go out in new and living hope!"

Christ Church Parish has a 243-year history in Watertown. It was formed in 1764 by decree of King George III of England and helped establish The Episcopal Church, which, up until the present time, has been the American branch of the global Anglican Communion. However, TEC's unbiblical innovations contrary to the teaching of the Communion have lead to a break between TEC and many Anglican provinces, including a majority of the membership of the worldwide Anglican Communion; they also forced Christ Church's parishioners to break from the Episcopal diocese of Connecticut.

"For five years now, we engaged in the debate, took a stand, let our voices be heard, and tried to make a difference says Paul LePine, who as senior warden was the ranking lay member of Christ Church Parish. "At this stage, it appears that there is nothing more that this faithful little community can do to reform The Episcopal Church as an organization. So we have decided to surrender the fight and move on."

Many, if not all, of Christ Church''s parishioners and Rev. Benedict are forming New Hope Anglican Church in Watertown. The new church is part of The Common Cause Partnership, which is a federation of Anglican Christians in North America.

New Hope Anglican Church will hold worship services in the Anglican tradition beginning on Sunday, January 6, 2008 at the Thomaston Savings Bank, 565 Main Street, Watertown.

"We're excited to see what God has in mind for New Hope Anglican Church," offered Kevin Kallsen, senior warden of the new church. "The people here are committed to worshipping in the Anglican tradition and reaching out to the community with the good news of Jesus Christ.

For more information about New Hope Anglican Church, call 860-631-5170, visit http://www.newhopeanglican.org/index.cfm or e-mail bdonlon@newhopeanglican.org.

H/t to Transfigurations.

Connecticut diocese seeks damages from former Bristol vestry

So when they say they want "reconciliation," be sure to ask for their definition. From The Living Church:

The Diocese of Connecticut has initiated legal action against the former rector and vestry of Trinity Church, Bristol, asking the court to order the 11 defendants to pay $15,000 in diocesan legal fees as well as unspecified punitive damages.

I don't know about you, but this makes me feel very "reconciled." As always, read it all.