Wildfires in San Diego

       
Prayers, please. The Santa Ana winds started blowing yesterday and we now have four or five fires going all around the county. Schools and businesses are closed. We don't have "snow days," we have "fire days"!

Sunday night proverbs

There is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death.
Proverbs 16:25

All a man’s ways seem right to him, but the Lord weighs the heart.
Proverbs 21:2

Many are the plans in a man’s heart, but it is the Lord’s purpose that prevails.
Proverbs 19:21

Nigeria: Two Christians murdered in Kaduna

From Compass Direct News:

KADUNA, Nigeria, October 22 (Compass Direct News) – One man has been killed with a sword and another bludgeoned to death in this city in central northern Nigeria following Muslim leaders’ appeal to wage violent jihad against youthful Christians.

Muslim extremists on October 12 murdered Henry Emmanuel Ogbaje, a 24-year-old Christian, at an area known as Gamji Gate. The following day, church leaders said, a young Christian identified only as Basil was beaten to death with wooden clubs in the same area.

Ogbaje was a Sunday school teacher with the Military Protestant Church at Kotoko Barracks in Kaduna, while Basil, church leaders said, was a member of the Our Lady of Apostles Catholic Church. He was from Kagarko Local Government Area.

Elder Saidu Dogo, secretary of the northern Nigeria chapter of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), told Compass that Islamic leader Sheik Gumi had urged Muslims to wage jihad against Christians during Tafsir, the reading and interpretation of the Quran, in televised broadcasts during the Islamic month-long observance of Ramadan.

“I saw Sheik Gumi on the television, NTA [Nigeria Television Authority], during that period preaching this inciting sermon – in fact, the same sermon was again broadcast by NTA Kaduna, on September 21 and 22,” Dogo told Compass. “He specifically called for a jihad, and that when they go killing they should not kill the elderly people, because the elderly have spent their years already, but that Muslims should kill young Christians.”

. . . The Rev. Joshua Magaji, assistant secretary of the Kaduna state chapter of CAN, said the killings were meant to provoke Christians into angry retaliations and trigger another religious crisis in the state, which has seen tens of thousands of deaths from religious violence in the past three decades. Violence has broken out several times since the imposition of sharia (Islamic) law in 2000.

“We thank God that Christians in the state have restrained themselves from avenging the killing of these two, and we would like to appeal that they continue in this spirit,” Magaji said. . .

Read it all.
H/t to Gateway Pundit.

ACI: A statement regarding upholding the ministry of faithful bishops

From TitusOneNine, a reaction from the Anglican Communion Institute on Bishop Howe's recent letter from the Archbishop of Canterbury:

The Archbishop of Canterbury has recently written Bishop Howe of Central Florida, in a letter now made public, concerned that traditionalist parishes ought to see the Diocese, in distinction to ‘the National" or "provincial Church,' as the main unit of Christian faith and teaching, in sacramental unity with the Anglican Communion through his own office. (This view has been generally accepted as a definition of fundamental Anglican polity and has been explicitly assumed in all of the recent Anglican-Roman Catholic Agreed Statements.) The Primates have also recognized bishops like Howe who uphold the Camp Allen principles. In a climate where the ‘National Church' may seek to arrogate to itself more authority than the Archbishop of Canterbury believes is proper, individual Dioceses appear vulnerable to many - especially when alternatives present themselves in the name of offering a more secure reality, outside of TEC altogether.

One of the useful aspects of the Network was its granting to ‘traditionalists' a measure of identification, still inside TEC, but laterally with other Dioceses, as the main unit of Christian faith and teaching, to pursue the Archbishop's stated concern. Bishops like Howe, Stanton, Salmon and others availed themselves of this for this reason, and also because it was consistent with what the Archbishop here writes. In the meantime, however, the Network as originally intended has collapsed, and in its place or alongside it a new reality has emerged in the form of a Common Cause College, whose mechanisms for ‘unity in faith' are different to what the Archbishop describes. This has made the plight of Bishop Howe and others more complicated, precisely as parishes seek to leave and find places in this College or somewhere else.

What is necessary, then, is for the diocesan unit, in conjunction with other dioceses who affirm the Communion's teaching and discipline as Windsor and the Camp Allen principles outline them, to find the place that the Network sought to provide, and to build on what the Archbishop is here underscoring. . .

Read it all.

When things are not as they seem

From Father Stephen at Glory to God for All Things [boldface mine]:

. . . At the pace we travel, rushing about, there is very little that we actually see – or that we see for more than a blur. The Scriptures tell us that the pure in heart are blessed for they shall see God. We are not the pure in heart – nor is our heart slow enough to even begin the process of becoming pure.

Traveling at the speed of modernity – blinded by the flicker of screens that constantly interpret our world – we must be more and more certain that whatever things may seem to us they surely are otherwise. Our hearts are far from pure and thus we see no God and in our rush to some other vision we are redefining reality into no reality at all.

The call of the Church, of the Gospel, is a call to repentance. But that call is a very slow call. Repentance, even in the case of “quick cases” like the Apostle Paul are deceptive in their speed. His repentance had long been preceded by “goads” from God. Saul had been wrestling with God long before he met a blinding light. And he continued in his slow change for years to come, even enduring “buffeting” from Satan for the sake of his salvation.

There is a slowness that belongs naturally to children – a timeless quality to their wonder – when not interrupted by new strange sights and sounds that do not actually belong to the world. There is a slowness that can see angels.

The same speed of life beckons to us all: “Be still and know that I am God.” It is a stillness that may require a lifetime for in that stillness can be found the very purity for which our hearts were created.

Read it all.

Two important letters from the Diocese of Central Florida

Two important letters from Bishop John Howe of Central Florida posted on TitusOneNine. The first is Bishop Howe's pastoral letter concerning the parishes in his diocese that wish to disaffiliate from ECUSA:

. . . “On Thursday, October 18, 2007, the Rectors and Senior Wardens of seven Parishes of the Diocese of Central Florida and two Church Planters met with Bishop John W. Howe and representatives of the Diocese to discuss the possible scenarios by which all or part of the congregations may disaffiliate from The Episcopal Church.

“Each Parish will now enter a process of conversation and negotiation with the Diocese based on its particular circumstances. Bishop Howe reiterated his commitment to provide pastoral care both to those who leave and to those who wish to remain.

“All parties agreed to enter into these negotiations in good faith using Biblical principles in an effort to avoid litigation and scandal to the Church of Christ”.

As Bishop of the Diocese of Central Florida, and as stated above, I remain committed to providing pastoral care both to those who wish to leave and to those who wish to remain. Individuals who wish to leave the Diocese of Central Florida and form another congregation are to be honored as brothers and sisters in Christ. The Diocese will do everything in its power to make their departure from the Diocese of Central Florida and The Episcopal Church a peaceful one without rancor or recrimination.

At the same time the Diocese is bound to work within the Constitution and Canons of The Episcopal Church which state that a Parish holds in trust all real and personal property for the benefit of the Diocese and The Episcopal Church. We have a solemn responsibility to protect the interests of the Diocese and the larger church. We cannot and will not abandon those who wish to remain as members of The Episcopal Church and we will work diligently to determine whether in fact there is a sufficient number of Episcopalians in a given congregation to constitute a viable continuing congregation able to meet and worship in its own current facilities.

We are developing a detailed protocol for dealing with those who wish to disaffiliate, and I will discuss it with the clergy at our annual Clergy Conference this week. . .

Read it all.

The second letter, also from Bishop Howe, includes a letter he received from Archbishop Williams and that he quoted in the first letter. Interesting reading, if not clear as to all the ramifications. The quote below is from the Archbishop's letter:

. . . At this stage, I can say only two things. The first is that I have committed myself very clearly to awaiting the views of the Primates before making any statement purporting to settle the question of The Episcopal Church's status, and I can't easily short-circuit that procedure. The second is that your Rectors need to recognize that this process is currently in train and that a separatist decision from them at this point would be irresponsible and potentially confusing. However, without forestalling what the Primates might say, I would repeat what I've said several times before - that any Diocese compliant with Windsor remains clearly in communion with Canterbury and the mainstream of the Communion, whatever may be the longer-term result for others in The Episcopal Church. The organ of union with the wider Church is the Bishop and the Diocese rather than the Provincial structure as such. Those who are rushing into separatist solutions are, I think, weakening that basic conviction of Catholic theology and in a sense treating the provincial structure of The Episcopal Church as if it were the most important thing - which is why I continue to hope and pray for the strengthening of the bonds of mutual support among those Episcopal Church Bishops who want to be clearly loyal to Windsor. . .

Read this all as well, since the Archbishop requests that the letter be read in its entirety.

Rowan Williams: Britain's abortion debate lacks a moral dimension

From the Guardian (U.K.), a piece by Rowan Williams, Archbishop of Canterbury [boldface mine]:

Most of those who voted for the 1967 Abortion Act did so in the clear belief that they were making provision for extreme and tragic situations: conception as a result of rape, foetal or perinatal complications threatening a mother's life. Forty years on, many of these same people have expressed their dismay at what has happened. As some of the issues are reopened in connection with the proposed legislation on embryo research, it is important to think about where this unease comes from and whether it has any lessons for us now.

Many supporters of the 1967 Act started from a strong sense of taking for granted the wrongness of ending an unborn life. What people might now call their 'default position' was still that abortion was a profoundly undesirable thing and that a universal presumption of care for the foetus from the moment of conception was the norm.

But the rapidly spiralling statistics - nearly 200,000 abortions a year in England and Wales - tell their own story. We are not now dealing with a relatively small number of extreme cases (and clinical advances have in fact reduced the number of strictly medical dilemmas envisaged in 1967 act's supporters). When we hear, as in a recent survey reported in the Lancet, that one-third of pregnancies in Europe end in abortion, we may well ask what has happened.

Recent discussion on making it simpler for women to administer abortion-inducing drugs at home underlines the growing belief that abortion is essentially a matter of individual decision and not the kind of major moral choice that should involve a sharing of perspective and judgment. And that necessarily means that certain presumptions have changed. Not only has there been an obvious weakening of the feeling that abortion is a last resort; the development of embryo research has brought with it the hint of a more instrumental approach to the human organism in its earliest days.

Paradoxically, the language of 'foetal rights' has strengthened over the last few decades, leading to a real tension with this growing normalisation of abortion. The pregnant woman who smokes or drinks heavily is widely regarded as guilty of infringing the rights of her unborn child; yet at the same time, with no apparent sense of incongruity, there is discussion of the possibility of the liberty of the pregnant woman herself to perform the actions that will terminate a pregnancy. . .

. . . But when do we get to the point where accepting the inevitability of tough decisions that may hurt the conscience has become so routine that we stop noticing that there ever was a strain on the conscience, let alone why that strain should be there at all?

The process is one that can be traced in other, more familiar, areas. You start with the presumption that abortion is unavoidably the ending of a life, but perhaps there are situations where it is the least awful outcome, and so you reluctantly conclude that some provision should be made for these situations. Or you start from the presumption that marriage is a lifelong union, but it is appallingly cruel to refuse relief to people who are being systematically damaged by deeply unhappy marriages and you accept more rapid paths towards divorce. You take it for granted that marriage and family life are foundational things in a properly nurturing and stable society, but many mature and responsible people choose to live in partnerships other than marriage and because no one wants to see them suffer hardship or discrimination because of this, you accept the case for the benefits of civil partnership.

And it's difficult to deny that because of all these reasons, something has happened to our assumptions about marriage and family, just as something has happened to our assumptions about the life of the unborn child.

The history of the 1967 Act's implementation is an object lesson in how slippage can occur between thinking compassionately about exceptional cases and losing the sense of a normative position. . .

Read it all.

Diocesan Conventions this weekend

From Anglicans United:

• POST FALLS, Idaho: Diocese of Spokane


• TOPEKA, Kansas: Diocese of Kansas


• DALLAS, Texas: Diocese of Dallas


• SAGINAW, Michigan: Diocese of Eastern Michigan


• PHOENIX, Arizona: Diocese of Arizona


• HARTFORD, Connecticut: Diocese of Connecticut


• ALBUQUERQUE, New Mexico: Diocese of Rio Grande: new bishop search begins


• APPLETON, Wisconsin: Diocese of Fond Du Lac


• CALIFORNIA: Diocese of California: voting on rites for same-sex blessings


• MOLINE, Illinois: Diocese of Quincy


• VENICE, Florida: Diocese of Southwest Florida to meet in convention


• PUERTO RICO: Diocese of Puerto Rico to meet in convention

The rise of cyber-religion

From Cranmer:

The BBC has discovered that a third of ‘web worshippers’ actually prefer their cyber church to the real thing, and this got Cranmer thinking of the extent to which these virtual creations have supplanted reality, and what might be the consequences.

St Pixels is, apparently, a mega-church. It has 2000 members, for whom its existence ‘is the main or only contact with traditional Christianity’. Since Cranmer has not visited or heard a cyber-sermon, he has no idea if this is the BBC’s ‘traditional Christianity’, or if it is truly orthodox. But that aside, it is an undeniable challenge – as real as that faced by the Early Church when it had to communicated a Hebrew gospel to a Greek audience – of profound missiological importance.

Blogging, Podcasting, Facebook and other cyber pursuits have become the commonplace tools of communication for many religions. They meet the need for immediacy and immanence; they bring a feeling of individual significance, and offer escape from the inconveniences and conflicts inherent in dealing with real people. Perhaps more importantly, they afford the possibility of being what one is not; creating a virtual life to compensate for the mundane inanities of the tedium of existence; escape from the repetitive boredom associated with the modern era. They provide a cyber fellowship of cyber friends dispensing cyber advice without the need to ever meet face-to-face or to look one’s friend in the eye. As one 19-year-old student observes:

I've no idea what I'd do without the friends I've made in St Pixels - though I've never met them. I've made tons of close buddies in Scotland, Korea and England. No matter who you are, or where you're from, you will ALWAYS find someone here to talk to. It's like a family home, where the door is always open for friends and their friends. I was baptised a Methodist but that's as far as it goes. I don't currently attend a physical church.

St Pixels is supported by the Methodist Church, and may indeed offer a spiritually life-saving service for some who take part in discussions, pray for each other, worship together and play games. But one cannot ignore the addictive dimension of the virtual world. When one has tasted the Magic Kingdom, escaped to world without night, or pain, or crying, or shame, the need becomes increasingly stronger to visit it daily for the very necessary ‘fix’. Indeed, one’s day seems somehow incomplete if one has not cyber-communed with one’s congenial cyber-communicants, and felt their adulation, or heard their adoration.

But Cranmer refuses to be sucked into the world of postmodern relativism in which all knowledge is subjective and where subjectivity is truth, or where there is nothing but praise and appreciation. Religion is political, and politics brings a sword of division. . .

. . . Cyber-religion is utterly postmodern insofar as it contributes to the undermining of rationalism and foundationalism. There are no longer any universal intellectual tools such as logic, and there are no indubitable first principles from which to interpret ideas or experience. . .

Read it all.

The Division Continues: Diocese of Quincy takes new steps toward realignment

From BabyBlue Online:

Just in from the Diocese of Quincy's Synod which has just concluded:

The synod took steps to consider possible relationships with other branches of the Anglican Communion. Quincy is presently affiliated with the Episcopal Church in the US. A number of decisions were made that open the door for possible alignment with a different branch of the world-wide Communion.

“As a Diocese our goal is to remain in fellowship with the wider Anglican Communion,” said the Rt. Rev. Keith L. Ackerman, Bishop of Quincy. “Over a year ago we asked for alternative oversight from an archbishop outside the US. We re-affirmed that request at this synod.”

“No final decisions were made about our affiliation at this synod,” according to Fr. John Spencer, press officer for the Diocese. Spencer said a number of decisions are currently being made in various parts of the Anglican Communion that will affect not only the US church, but all 38 provinces of the Communion. “Decisions will be made in the next few weeks about who will or will not attend next year’s Lambeth Conference,” a meeting of all Anglican bishops held every 10 years. . .

Read it all.
Also, here's an interview I did with Bishop Ackerman in March of this year for AnglicanTV.

Bishop Jack Iker: “We have concluded there is no future for us in the Episcopal Church”

From TitusOneNine:

Listen to the "Report from FiF North America" by the Bishop of Forth Worth, Jack Iker, at the Forward in Faith International Assembly.

Listen here (mp3).

We have come to the end of the road in the Episcopal Church. . .
- Bishop Jack Iker

AnglicanTV interviews Bishop Martyn Minns, CANA Updates I & II

Update II: Here is the Bishop Minns interview in Google.

Update I: And Kevin, in the context of the interconnectedness of our journey together, has faced the challenge of diverse computer configurations, and has acknowledged that, until we are all as computer progessive as he is, so that we can be "in a less tense place," he will accommodate those of little technological understanding and

Until January 1st I will post a Google video and a DIVX video for each posting. This will give you time to save your pennies for a new computer. . . I will post the Google video of Bp Minns Tomorrow.

Of course, he is just giving us enough time to undergo the listening process that will show us the superiority of his comprehension of the evolving Truth of the computer world. But, as we all know, resistance is futile, and soon, "all our computers be his."

Initial post: From AnglicanTV, Kevin is doing a New Thing, so go to the site to see what you might need to download for your computer in order to watch this interview. Kevin says:

AnglicanTV is experimenting with new technology to deliver you a higher quality multimedia experience. We are also developing a new social networking site to further encourage the ministry of the Anglican Communion. To view the above video you will have to install a DIVX plugin for your browser, but it is well worth it. If you have an older windows98 system you may have to install a few windows updates as well. Let me know if you have any problems and I will help you out.

YOU MAY HAVE TO RESTART YOUR BROWSER OR COMPUTER AFTER YOU INSTALL THE PLUGIN.

Heretical Friday: Gnosticism

Continuing on my “heresy list,” I’ve chosen Gnosticism for this week because it seems to be the foundational heresy for some of the others I was interested in learning about. I had heard of Gnosticism before and read a little about it, but I had no idea that it had been around before Christ and had so many permutations. I’ve given a very superficial explanation here, so please, check it out yourself!

Gnosticism

Derived from the Greek gnōsis, ‘knowledge’ or ‘secret knowledge’, it is the name given to a complex religious movement based on a myth of redemption; perhaps pre-Christian in origin, but it became prominent in the second century A.D. and had Christian as well as pagan forms.

In general, gnosticism designates a wide assortment of sects, numerous by the second century. A.D. that all promised salvation through an occult knowledge that they claimed was revealed to them alone. The various sects combined Christian and pagan elements. Central importance is attached to ‘gnosis’, revealed but secret knowledge of God and of his nature, enabling those who possess it to achieve salvation.

Gnosticism takes from pagan thought the concept of a demiurge or subordinate god, who directly rules the world. The material world is associated with evil, but in some men there is a spiritual element that, through knowledge and associated ritual, may be rescued from the material world and allow them to attain a higher spiritual state. Christ was never truly embodied, nor died, but was associated in a distant way with that which appeared to the disciples.

Gnosticism holds that human beings consist of flesh, soul, and spirit (the divine spark), and that humanity is divided into classes representing each of these elements. The purely corporeal (hylic) lacked spirit and could never be saved; the Gnostics proper (pneumatic) bore knowingly the divine spark and their salvation was certain; and those, like the Christians, who stood in between (psychic), might attain a lesser salvation through faith.

The term Gnosticism itself was not coined until the 17th century, when it was applied somewhat indiscriminately to ancient Christian heretical sects, especially those described by their orthodox contemporaries as radically dualistic and world-denying, and those who sought salvation through esoteric revelation and mystical spirituality. In the late 19th and the early 20th centuries, that view of Gnosticism was replaced with several groupings, and the discovery of the Nag Hammadi texts in 1945 greatly enhanced the understanding of Gnosticism.

The relationship with ancient Christianity remains uncertain, but the Gospel of Thomas and the Gospel of Mary (which portrays Mary Magdalene as a leading apostle) are generally seen as being grounded in Gnosticism. They emphasized the teachings of Jesus, rather than his death and resurrection, as the key to salvation.

As Christianity grew within and without the Roman Empire, Gnosticism spread and claimed to be the only true form of Christianity, unfit for the ‘vulgar’ crowd, but set apart for the ‘gifted and the elect.’ The earliest church fathers devoted their energies to uprooting it. Though in reality Gnosticism is utterly alien to Christianity, it then seemed to the unwary only a modification or refinement.

The last words of Paul in his First Epistle to Timothy are usually taken as referring to Gnosticism, which is described as "Profane novelties of words and oppositions of knowledge falsely so called [antitheseis tes pseudonomou gnoseos -- the antitheses of so-called Gnosis] which some professing have erred concerning the faith."

The first anti-Gnostic writer was Justin Martyr (died. ca. 165). But the most important is the anti-Gnostic work of Irenæus, Elegchos kai anatrope tes psudonymou gnoseos, usually called "Adversus Haereses". It consists of five books, evidently not written at one time; the first three books about A.D. 180; the last two about a dozen years later. Irenæus knew the Gnostics from personal dealings and from their own writings, and gives minute descriptions of their systems.

The greatest anti-Gnostic controversialist of the early Christian church is Tertullian (b. 169), who practically devoted his life to combating this heresy. Gnosticism was in rapid decline from the beginning of the fourth century, although elements can be seen today.

Sources:
New Advent Catholic Encyclopedia
Answers.com: Gnosticism

Previous heresy posts:
Pelagianism

AAC weekly update from Bishop-elect David Anderson

From the American Anglican Council weekly update:

A Message from Bishop-elect David C. Anderson

Beloved in Christ,

Telling the truth is so much easier; you can remember what you said, and you can repeat it without fear that you haven't quite got it right. When a person or an organization sets out to deceive it is not remarkable that along with deception goes confusion and controversy. In their recent meeting in New Orleans, TEC Presiding Bishop Jefferts Schori and the House of Bishops approved a carefully nuanced document designed to SEEM TO SAY something that the Archbishop of Canterbury and the Joint Standing Committee could point to as if it were true. Rowan Williams had to know that deception was afoot - if indeed the House of Bishops was not in fact coached on what to say - and so even though it was clear that their statement DID NOT meet the requirements of Dar es Salaam, the JSC moved to declare it acceptable. Dr. Williams, apparently unwilling to call a special meeting of the Primates, chose to tackle them one by one, mano a mano, to find enough of the Primates who were either uncertain or willing to accede to the JSC report, thusly enabling him to declare that the Primates are of a divided mind and allowing him to dismiss any Primatial concern. Can Dr. Williams run roughshod over the Primates in this manner? At the moment, probably yes, but at a price.

Dr. Jefferts Schori meanwhile is collecting some heat from the gay and lesbian activists who feel sold out. Actually they were, sort of. They are supposed to know that the HOB statement, along with a wink and a nod, really means "be patient and we will deliver." But the gays and the lesbians are dealing with the same slippery TEC leaders that the Communion has to deal with, and some of them are not totally confident that they and their radical agenda aren't going to be sold out.

The intransigence of the revisionist TEC leaders is born out by the Diocese of California (the see city is San Francisco) as they consider passing a resolution calling for trial use of three same-sex blessing rites endorsed by the diocesan Commission on Marriage and Blessing. The dishonest revisionist bishops who passed the carefully nuanced HOB statement from New Orleans will most likely not even honor their agreement among themselves. If passed by convention, Bishop Andrus would be expected to approve it on a trial basis, which of course is not OFFICIAL, because it is TRIAL usage. At the same time a similar move was made by the Canadian Anglican diocese of Ottawa.

What is being soft pedaled of recent are the theological statements that TEC Bishops know could be used publicly to show heresy. Quiet for the moment are stories about allowing Holy Communion and church membership without first requiring Holy Baptism. This is common in many liberal parishes around the country, but it is being kept quiet so as to not upset the Communion more. Also statements about "many ways to God" and Jesus is "a way" or "a savior" instead of Jesus is THE Way and THE Savior are for the moment muted. Not gone away, not repented of, not diverged from, but for the moment strategically muted. What the world needs to understand, and what the print and electronic media won't touch, is that it is heresy on the part of TEC about Jesus and the Bible that got us to the homosexual agenda being embraced. You can't fix part of the problem without fixing the entire problem, for sin knows its own default setting.

Christ Church of Savannah, Georgia, the mother church of all churches in the state of Georgia, the church where the Rev'd John Wesley was once rector, has voted to return to its original roots. It once was orthodox Anglican, then after the American Revolution it was Episcopal, and now it has left TEC to once again be orthodox Anglican, affiliating with the Anglican Church of Uganda. It is a painful separation, and the TEC Bishop of Georgia has issued his perfunctory statement that they can't leave, and all property is his and he will sue - but leave they have and the words "Free at last, free at last, thank God Almighty I'm free at last," have been heard from more than one set of Savannah lips. Christ Church predates both the United States of America and the Episcopal Church.

Startling news is coming from the UK with the announcement by the UK Reform organization that unless major changes are made soon, people and parishes are prepared for "irregular action." This bears watching as events in the UK continue to unfold.

Late breaking news in the USA concerns the actions of several orthodox congregations in the Diocese of Central Florida who are leaving TEC and their current bishop John Howe.

Blessings and Peace in Christ Jesus,
Bishop-elect David C. Anderson
President & CEO of the AAC

Seven parishes enter negotiations to leave Central Florida

From Stand Firm:

A statement from the Diocese of Central Florida

On Thursday, October 18, 2007, the Rectors and Senior Wardens of seven parishes of the Diocese of Central Florida and two church planters met with Bishop John W. Howe and representatives of the Diocese to discuss the possible scenarios by which all or part of the congregations may disaffiliate from The Episcopal Church.

Each parish will now enter a process of conversation and negotiation with the Diocese based on its particular circumstances. Bishop Howe reiterated his commitment to provide pastoral care both to those who leave and to those who wish to remain.

All parties agreed to enter into these negotiations in good faith using Biblical principles in an effort to avoid litigation and scandal to the Church of Christ.

The parishes are:

Cocoa, Gloria Dei Church
The Reverend Paul Young, Rector
Frank Travassos, Senior Warden

Crystal River, St. Anne's Church
The Reverend Kevin Holsapple, Rector
Victor Hernandez, Senior Warden

Maitland, Church of the Good Shepherd
The Reverend John P. Nyhan, Rector
George C. Madill, Senior Warden

Mount Dora, St. Edward's Church
The Reverend Woodleigh Volland, Rector
Charles Cronebaugh, Senior Warden

Ocala, Grace Church
The Reverend Donald J. Curran, Jr., Rector
Dr. Jim Wilkerson, Senior Warden

Vero Beach, Trinity Church
The Reverend D. Lorne Coyle, Rector
Mrs. Nancy N. Reichardt, Senior Warden

Winter Haven, Holy Cross Church
The Reverend Andrew S. Doan, Rector
Bill Johnson, Senior Warden

The church planters are from:

Lake Nona, St. Philip's
The Reverend Paul Jagoe, Church Planter
Melinda Tedder, Lay Representative

Poinciana, St. Nicholas
The Reverend Geoffrey Boland, Church Planter
Charles Secord, Lay Representative

Thousands of Christians in N. Korea prisons:Report

From Spero News:

Group estimates the number of underground Christians to be at least 200,000 and it's likely that there are as many as 400,000 to half a million

The number of North Koreans who are imprisoned in concentration camps is much greater than previously assumed, according to Open Doors, an organization serving persecuted Christians.

"It is not inconceivable that the number of prisoners has passed the one million mark," says Simon, who is in charge of the work of Open Doors in North Korea. "Many camps are so large that they are not recognized as camps on satellite photos. They consist of entire villages." For security reasons, Simon doesn't reveal how the research was done. "There are many lives at stake," he states.

The eight prison camps for political prisoners probably contain between half a million and a million people. In addition to this, hundreds of thousands of North Koreans are made to work every day in 30 other camps. This is reported by Open Doors - an international ministry which supports and strengthens persecuted Christians in 45 countries - on the basis of research conducted inside the country.

Simon, who has contact through networks with tens of thousands of Christians in North Korea, estimates the number of underground Christians to be at least 200,000 and it's likely that there are as many as 400,000 to half a million. At least a quarter of the Christians are imprisoned for their faith in political prison camps from which people rarely get out of alive.

"In North Korea, it is strictly forbidden to be a Christian," said Simon. "Anyone who has a Bible is sent to a camp, along with his or her whole family. . ."

Read it all.
H/t to the WebElf Report.

Jefferts Schori reflects on Church's mission, House of Bishops meeting [Corrected]

From EpiscopalLife Online:

Opening with an overview of the mission-driven September 20-25 House of Bishops meeting in New Orleans, Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori set the tone October 16 for her second webcast held at the studio facilities of Trinity Church, Wall Street, in New York City.

"We met intentionally in New Orleans, as an act of solidarity with the people of Louisiana and the Mississippi Gulf coast, so that we might represent the prayers and concern of the whole church, and offer a small contribution to the rebuilding effort," Jefferts Schori said in her opening remarks of the one-hour webcast, anchored by the Rev. Jan Nunley, executive editor of Episcopal Life Media. . .

As Chris Johnson BabyBlue said, how would the HOB meet unintentionally in New Orleans, just show up by happenstance?

. . . She described the first part of the meeting as "an opportunity for the bishops to hear from our Anglican Communion visitors, including the Archbishop of Canterbury, and to share our own joys and concerns with them."

"We heard some challenging words about different contexts around the Communion, and shared our own. We discovered, as we did in our labors in New Orleans and Mississippi, the reality and depth of our interconnectedness," she explained. "When one part of the body suffers, all suffer. When one part rejoices, the spirits of all are lifted."

Once again, we hear the buzz words - challenging, contexts, interconnectedness.

She said the statement that was produced in the latter part of the meeting represented "a remarkable consensus among the bishops."

"The truly surprising aspect of this statement was its almost complete unanimity," she said. "With the exception of a small number who did not stay for the rest of the meeting following the Archbishop's departure, the overwhelming majority of bishops engaged in the work of developing the statement with profound respect for one another. While there are parts of the statement that challenge each of us, we were able to stand together in offering it to the wider church."

I don't know if that's completely accurate, based on comments from other bishops, but I'll give it to her, since other bishops did not speak up.

According to Jefferts Schori, the statement "both affirms the church's commitment to the full dignity of gay and lesbian persons and cautions us to wait before their full sacramental inclusion."

In other words, resistance is futile - just give us enough time and we shall own it all.

She concluded her opening remarks by quoting one of her predecessors, Edmond L. Browning, "who was fond of saying 'in this church there will be no outcasts.'"

"I concur, and I challenge each one of us to consider who it is we would most like to be rid of," she said. "That person, my friends, is the image of Christ in our midst. There will be no outcasts in this church, whether because of sexual orientation or theological perspective. God has given us to each other, to love and to learn from each other. May God bless each and every part of this body.". . .

No outcasts because of theological perspective??? Just think about that for a moment - we can invite the Druids back in (but somehow the openness to theological perspective does not flow to those orthodox believers - huummm. . .)

Questions from the live studio audience, and those calling and emailing ranged from how Jefferts Schori was handling her first year as Presiding Bishop to the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and climate change. . .

Another caller asked what is the Episcopal Church going to do to lift up and support the institution of marriage. Jefferts Schori said there was both a "theological and pastoral" answer.

"In terms of theological discussion, we have not had a discussion as a church or certainly as a Communion on the theology of marriage for a very long time," she said. "The Prayer Book that we use now in this church acknowledges that companionship and assistance to the other partner in growing up into the full stature of Christ is really the aim of marriage, not reproduction. That’s a significant change in the history of the church."

She cited programs such as Marriage Encounters, in the church, as offering support.

Well, at least she articulated the problem. But I have to admit, I would never go to an ECUSA Marriage Encounter - how could one listen to anything ECUSA has to say on that with a straight face?

A question via email asked whether membership was increasing in the Church. The Presiding Bishop acknowledged an increase from the immigrant, Asian, and gay and lesbian population. . .

Numbers and stats, please. (I didn't think so.)

. . . "This time we are in a less tense place than we were at the end of February and the questions were much broader," said Jefferts Schori. "People weren't so focused on the presenting issue."

Easy for her to say - I definitely am not "in a less tense place," especially since we lost Bishop Steenson.

Read it all (especially the comments quoted from seminarians in the audience - I'm sorry, but it's just sad that there seems to be so little logic, much less theology).

Shoe Thursday:Acid flashback

Okay, there has been some grumbling that I still have too much “east coast” in me when it comes to shoes – so how about these? (And, yes, you can actually buy them!)

Maine Middle School to offer the Pill

From the Associated Press:

PORTLAND, Maine (AP) - Pupils at a city middle school will be able to get birth control pills and patches at their student health center after the local school board approved the proposal Wednesday evening.

The plan, offered by city health officials, makes King Middle School the first middle school in Maine to make a full range of contraception available to students in grades 6 through 8, according to the state Department of Health and Human Services.

There are no national figures on how many middle schools, where most students range in age from 11 to 13, provide such services.

"It's very rare that middle schools do this," said Divya Mohan, a spokeswoman for the National Assembly on School-Based Health Care.

The Portland School Committee voted 5-2 for the measure.

Chairman John Coynie voted against it, saying he felt providing the birth control was a parental responsibility. The other no vote came from Ben Meiklejohn, who said the consent form does not clearly define the services being offered.

Opponents cited religious and health objections.

Diane Miller said she felt the plan was against religion and against God. Another opponent, Peter Allen, said he felt it violated the rights of parents and puts students at risk of cancer because of hormones in the pill.

A supporter, Richard Verrier, said it's not enough to depend on parents to protect their children because there may be students who can't discuss things with their parents.

Condoms have been available since 2002 to King students who have parental permission to be treated at its student health center.

About one-fourth of student health centers that serve at least one grade of adolescents 11 and older dispense some form of contraception, said Mohan, whose Washington-based organization represents more than 1,700 school-based centers nationwide. . .

Read it all. Not even addressing how wrong this is on so many levels, there are serious long-term health issues on taking contraceptives at such a young age.

Gender and the Episcopal Church subject of ISU presentation

From Idaho State University:

Gender and religious issues will be the subject of a free public presentation at Idaho State University on Oct. 18 at noon in the Heritage Room of the ISU Pond Student Union Building.

The Reverend Anne Beatty will present “Why I Didn’t Become the Minister’s Wife.” Beatty’s talk is part of the sixth annual Every Other Thursday Brown Bag Lecture Series: Gender and Religion, presented by the Janet C. Anderson Gender Resource Center.

Beatty has been an Episcopal priest for 14 years, and a rector for the last five, at the Trinity Episcopal Church in Pocatello.

The Every Other Thursday series spotlights gender-related research conducted by ISU faculty, staff, students and, occasionally, Pocatello community members. The lectures are an opportunity for ISU and Pocatello community members to join the ongoing dialogue on a variety of gender issues.

Other scheduled talks will include:

• “Gender and Wicca” presented by Claudia McCoy, assistant director of the ISU Women’s Studies program, on Oct. 31 in the Heritage Room of the PSUB. This will be the only talk scheduled for Wednesday. Attendees are encouraged to wear costumes.

• “Gender and Jehovah’s Witnesses” presented by Dee Adair on Nov. 15 in the Heritage Room of the PSUB.

One in 10 Christians persecuted

From Nick McKenzie at Religious Intelligence:

ONE IN 10 Christians worldwide are subject to severe restrictions or hostilities, according to a new edition of the German yearbook Martyrs 2007.

The survey claims that at least 200 million Christians are either suffering persecution or discrimination, and for many of those the situation has deteriorated over the last year.

The Middle East, India and Pakistan are listed as some of the flashpoints, with three out of every four Iraqi Christians fleeing their homeland fearing harassment, assassination or kidnap.

Anyone getting bored here?

Maybe it's just me, but I'm getting very bored of the continual back and forth among all the sides in the ongoing Anglican conflict. It usually progresses something like this:

• Inital action of deceit, subterfuge, or chicanery by a bishop in the Episcopal Church ("Camp Allen," "Windsor," "revisionist," or "progressive," it doesn't seem to matter)


• Outrage, condemnation, concern, and pain from those working to stay in the Anglican Communion and uphold the teachings of the Church catholic


• Justification, arrogance, belittling, and circumlocution from those interested in continuing on ECUSA's current path of working both sides of the aisle (wanting the prestige of belonging to a global religious community without any requirements or conditions)


• Wait for the next action to occur or become public


• Go through the above steps again (and again and again)

For an example of the perfect storm on this, see Sarah Hey's posting, Bishop Andrus - How Could You? [Content Warning], at Stand Firm.

I'm beginning to agree with Captain Yips when he wrote:

Outraged comment is no longer very interesting, nor productive. All of these events are natural outcomes of trends and traits long established in western culture.

So does this mean I ignore events, or is this a natural emotional swing given the ups and downs we've all experienced over the past few years, or is the Holy Spirit trying to tell me something?

As someone said to me recently, "when you pray, don't forget to listen" and so I shall.

AnglicanTV fundraising update

From Kevin at AnglicanTV:

I have raised
$195 --
$140 to go

Thanks Jillie, Greggory (3 times), Keith and Texanglican

Go here to donate!

Another American parish quits

From George Conger:

The unraveling of the American Church continues as parishioners at one of the Diocese of Arizona’s “cardinal parishes” announced on Sept 28 they were quitting the Episcopal Church to come under the Church of Uganda.

Approximately 40 percent of the active congregation of Christ Church of the Ascension in Paradise Valley withdrew from the Episcopal Church last month to come under the authority of Uganda’s missionary bishop in the US, the Rt. Rev. John Guernsey.

One of the largest and most prosperous Episcopal churches in Arizona, it was the church home of American conservative icon, the late Barry Goldwater. The founder of the modern conservative movement who counted Presidents Ronald Reagan and George W. Bush among his acolytes, Senator Goldwater donated the land for the church, was a long time parishioner and is interred at the parish.

The rector of Christ Church, the Rev. Ken Semon announced he was leaving the parish, to take a call in the conservative diocese of the Rio Grande. Mr. Semon told the Arizona Republic his decision took place as “the parish was about to split because the bishop was threatening the conservative majority that he would sue us if we aligned with a conservative Anglican group.”. . .

Read it all.
H/t to TitusOneNine.

Via Media Fort Worth: Legal help requested

From Katie Sherrod's blog, a plea for legal help for those wanting to stay in ECUSA in the Diocese of Fort Worth. Interesting comments on the lack of help from 815 [boldface mine]:

. . . I confess to being baffled at how much difficulty we are having getting legal advice on all this from the national church. What’s more, they don't say, "Well, we can't help until you get your own lawyer," or "Here are the steps you need to take before we can help you," or "Jump through these hoops to prove you are worthy of our help."

We would gladly do whatever we need to do -- if we had the slightest idea what that is.

We are not canon lawyers. The lawyers we are talking with are not canon lawyers and will have to do research on this. Texas courts are very reluctant to intervene in a church fight and, we are told by lawyers here, they always defer to the canons of hierarchal churches. Well, that sounds good. But nothing I've been able to find talks about what to do when a bishop is trying to take everything in a diocese with him.

That changes the dynamic in ways 815 doesn't seem to grasp.

Everyone tells us it will have to be fought out in court. OK. But when? And by whom? And with what money? And what should we be doing in the meantime?

Most of the clergy here are in the bishop’s pocket. Those who are not are few, and pretty beat up.

So it is us lay people [basically Fort Worth Via Media] who are struggling to find ways to stay in TEC. We do not have diocesan resources to help us, and few of the parishes are willing to use their resources to help us. Trinity, my parish, is clear it wants to stay in TEC but it’s not getting any more help than FWVM is getting.

Other parishes whose congregations might want to stay in TEC are being led by clergy in Bishop Iker's pocket and so those people are essentially being told to sit down and shut up. . .

. . . Of course, most priests in charge do not allow any open forums on it either. There is almost NO DISCUSSION on this that is not tightly controlled by the diocese. And the local newspaper is not covering this well at all.

So we've been writing letters to the editor, sending out personal letters to various people, having meetings in private homes, and announcing FWVM meetings as widely as we can. We are making contacts in every parish that we can.

We are bringing Tom Woodward on Oct. 29 to speak and there will be a Q&A session after that. We are buying ads in the newspaper to publicize it.

We will be handing out information at every opportunity, which, of course, the bishop will attempt to stop.

This is all incredibly labor intensive and EXPENSIVE.

We know that all this will pass at diocesan convention -- although by a much slimmer margin that the bishop expects, I think.

Then, of course, we have to have a second convention to pass it all again.

So, here we are -- a bunch of lay people who are struggling to stay in TEC.
Does TEC care?. . .

(Maybe it's just me, but it seems oxymoronic to state in your profile: "[Katie] has been given many awards for her consistent advocacy of women's reproductive freedom and for her 25 years of writing about efforts to combat family violence." I don't know about you, but I'd call abortion "family violence.")

The one reader comment on this posting ends thus:

. . . The more I see B033, the NOLA statements, and the rest of the mess from 815, the more I realize we need some serious house cleaning after we loose the fundamentalist heretics to Africa.

Busted: Stephen Prothero

From BustedHalo.com, an interview with Stephen Prothero, author of American Jesus: How the Son of God Became a National Icon, on his new book, Religious Literacy: What Americans Need to Know:

BH: In American Jesus you talk about the many resurrections of Jesus. What do you expect for the next resurrection of the image of Jesus?

SP: I’m a historian, not a futurist, but the trend is toward a Jesus who capitulates to culture, and changes regarding our fads and preoccupations in the moment. After 9/11 it was the terrorized Jesus in Mel Gibson’s movie. I don’t know what the next image will be, but it will have its roots in American culture.

BH: Do you see any irony in the fact that America has constantly reshaped Jesus, but still want Him out of their places of work and education?

SP: The irony may be wanting Him on our own terms. I make the point at the end of American Jesus that Jesus is more of a pawn than a king in American culture, and the recasting of his image is a prime example.

I’m hopeful that the naïve thinking of not talking about religion is going away because current events have made it difficult to bury our head in the ground about talking about Christianity and other religions. We can communicate and educate about religion without force feeding God to our kids in our educational system.

BH: Do you think Americans remold the image of Jesus to justify our own sins of genocide, racism and sexism? Does it make people feel less worried about their sins if we make Him look like us?

SP: Yes. That is one of the dynamics about American Jesus. You call Him in to anoint your pet project. Hate groups like the Ku Klux Klan have used Jesus to oppress blacks and women from having equal rights. Abolitionists and feminists have used him as well. Jesus has played both sides of the fence in almost every political issue in U.S. history.

Read it all.

Marc Robertson: What should we do? What God has done

From the Savannah News, an opinion piece by the Rev. Marc Robertson, rector of Christ Church Savannanh, in response to an earlier piece by Kevin Clark:

. . . [Kevin Clark's] column goes on to present Jesus as a great example for us to follow. He is presented as a "rebel" and a "liberal street activist" who spurned all forms of institutional religion and set forth metaphysical principles for us to follow.

I would question whether this picture of Jesus is accurate or balanced on a number of fronts, but the most important aspect to consider is Jesus' primary role as a moral example. If Jesus came to be an example to humanity, it would appear from Kevin's own assessment mentioned above that Jesus failed in His mission.
But what if His mission was different?

Maybe what we need is not just an example. If Jesus was only an example, then it all depends on what we do. It is all up to us to "live up to" that incredible example, and that can lead us to frustration, disappointment, even despair.

But what if Jesus was not only an example, but also a sacrifice? And this sacrifice can restore us to God, heal our woundedness, and actually give us a new heart - a heart that can learn to love? If Jesus came to be a sacrifice, then it's not about what we do, but about what God has already done - what God has done on the cross on Good Friday.

Moreover, it is the bodily resurrection of Jesus from the grave that we celebrate on Easter that confirms God's authority and power to transform an unloving and broken heart.

It is our greatest sorrow that The Episcopal Church will not affirm Jesus as God's unique sacrifice for our salvation. In 2003, at the General Convention of The Episcopal Church, the House of Bishops failed to pass resolution B002, which affirmed the Holy Scriptures as "containing all things necessary to salvation," the historic Creeds, and the sacraments of Baptism and the Lord's Supper (by a vote of 84 "no" to 65 "yes," and eight abstentions).

In 2006, additional efforts to affirm Christ's sacrifice (resolution D058) were refused consideration, and a resolution affirming the Bible as the Church's "supreme authority" (resolution D069) also failed as presented. We believe such fundamental beliefs define us as Christians, and offer us the hope of a world transformed by Christ's sacrifice, and as such have taken careful and considered action to preserve this hope by aligning ourselves with an Anglican Province (Uganda) that will support us and encourage us in this mission, while maintaining continuity with our Anglican past. . .

Read it all.

Primates to star on top of Christmas trees

From the Telegraph (U.K.):

They have already ascended to the highest offices in the Church of England, but now two of the country's most senior clergymen are set to climb to the top of the Christmas tree.

With the festive season fast approaching, a souvenir company has produced miniature versions of the Archbishop of Canterbury and the Archbishop of York which it hopes will prove a popular alternative to the usual star.

Like the archbishop Dr Rowan Williams himself, the Canterbury decoration is distinguished by a Father Christmas-like white beard.

The York decoration may not bear the closest resemblance to Dr John Sentamu – the absence of his gap-toothed smile being the most obvious omission – but he has given it his blessing.

Caroline Apfel, of St Nicolas, the company that makes the decorations, said that she had been asked to design the Sentamu ornament after an approach by a representative from York Minster.

"It's an alternative to your traditional Christmas fairy," she said. "He looks brilliant – very cute.". . .

The ornaments have been hand-made by women working in cottage industries in Thailand.

The 6in decorations are being sold for £5.99 each and a proportion of the proceeds will go towards York Minster's £30 million restoration and the Save Canterbury Cathedral appeal.

Read it all and order early!

Chancellors’ Report: How real property is held within the Episcopal Diocese of Fort Worth

From Stand Firm:

In the early 1980s, a decision was made to carve a new Diocese – the Diocese of Fort Worth – from the old Diocese of Dallas. It would include Tarrant County and 23 other western and neighboring counties.

At this same time, there were discussions on how to retitle the property within the new diocese. Prior to this time the property had been held in the name of the Bishop of the Diocese of Dallas or his successor in office. This was traditional in most dioceses of the Episcopal Church and had served well for literally decades. In these new times, however, there were occasions when our bishop would be away from the diocese for extended periods. Therefore, real estate closings had to be continued until such time as the bishop was back in residence. Today fax machines, e-mails and FedEx would help us keep things going but those were not universally available, if at all, in the early 1980s.

A new plan was adopted to retitle the real property of the diocese in the name of a corporation which would be called “Corporation of the Episcopal Diocese of Fort Worth.”

This not-for-profit corporation was set up to hold and service the real property within the diocese, and it became infinitely more efficient than waiting for the bishop to return from an extended trip since the corporation was always open for business. It did, however, take a far-sighted and gracious bishop to agree to relinquish the real property traditionally held by him. . .

Read it all.

My favorite proverb

Like a gold ring in a pig's snout is a beautiful woman who shows no discretion.
Proverbs 11:22

AnglicanTV fundraising update

Update from Kevin at AnglicanTV on his fundraising:

I have raised
$165 --
$170 to go

Thanks Jillie, Greggory, Keith and Texanglican

Help if you can!

Sunday night proverbs

Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding
Proverbs 3:5

The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.
Proverbs 9:10

'God has blessed our socks off'

From the Philadephia Inquirer:

Half a dozen years ago, a congregation looked one last time toward the building raised by members' hands and out across the graves in the churchyard, and wept. Then, the churchgoers turned and left.

This week, they'll install a new rector, welcome the public to a talk by an Anglican bishop from Rwanda, and play host for the second time to a regional meeting of their new affiliate, the Anglican Mission in the Americas.

"God has blessed our socks off," said the Rev. Kenneth Cook, assistant to the rector at what was St. John's Episcopal Church of Huntingdon Valley and now is St. John the Evangelist Anglican Church of Churchville.

"It's a cool church," said the Rev. Mark E. Rudolph, scheduled to be installed as its rector Thursday. Rudolph, who was ordained in the Reformed Episcopal Church and served seven years as rector at St. Philips in Warminster, described his path to St. John's as "circuitous."

And it was, at least compared to the path walked by members of St. John's Montgomery County parish – which was decisively away from the Episcopal Church USA. They were among those who broke with the Episcopal Diocese of Pennsylvania over church trends they feared veered too far from fundamental beliefs.

They were not among those who plunged into legal battle with the diocese over "sticks and bricks," as they call it.

"If we are going to live and die for this property," Cook said, remembering the agonizing talks, "we might as well admit this is an idol for us."

So they made their way, first to borrowed quarters in a Methodist church. There, leaders were moved to find "everybody here" on the first Sunday, said Michael McTigue, the rector's warden. He added: "The risk was that we could lose the entire organization."

They didn't.

In Huntingdon Valley, membership was put at 360. Today, an estimated 225 people attend Sunday services in the Jesus Focus Ministry complex, at the end of a wooded drive not far from the Churchville Nature Center. The Episcopal Province of Rwanda provides oversight for the congregation.

The congregants' five-year tenancy at the Jesus Focus Ministry, a nondenominational Bible-study ministry, has run smoothly, they said. There are no schedule conflicts, and members of each organization take part in the other's activities.

"It's been an unbelievable match," McTigue said, grinning at St. John's good fortune. "Over and over, it's the same thing for us. Last year, we were behind in budget $25,000 with a month to go."

The rector at the time, the Rev. Phil Lyman, who had moved with the congregation from Huntingdon Valley, sent church leaders home to pray. And the money appeared.

"If you focus on numbers and money, you get lost," McTigue said. . .

Read it all.

Abortion: “Best predictor” of breast cancer

From the StatGuy at Magic Statistics:

"A longitudinal study of national cancer registry data has found that induced abortion is the factor with the greatest explanatory power in accounting for the incidence of breast cancer. Fertility and age at first birth were also determined to be important risk factors. The study examined data on abortion and breast cancer from 1971 through 2004 in eight European countries with comprehensive medical records.

Recent trends in breast cancer incidence by age and socio-economic status were compared with trends in potential explanatory variables.

Seven known risk factors were examined as an explanation for these trends:

• When a woman is nulliparous [never given birth to a child], an induced abortion has a greater carcinogenic effect because it leaves breast cells in a state of interrupted hormonal development in which they are more susceptible.


• A low age at first birth is protective.


• Childlessness increases the risk.


• A larger number of children (higher fertility) increases protection.


• Breastfeeding gives additional protection.


• Hormonal contraceptives are conducive to breast cancer.


• Hormone replacement therapy (HRT) is also conducive to breast cancer.

The researcher, Patrick S. Carroll, of Pension and Population Research Institute (PAPRI), London, then used the results to model breast cancer incidence in England and Wales.

Previous forecasts using the same model and incidence data for years through 1997 for England & Wales are compared with numbers of cancers observed in years from 1998–2004 in an Appendix. The forecast predicted 100.5% of the cancers observed in 2003, and 97.5% of those observed in 2004.

The study was published last week in the Journal of American Physicians and Surgeons, a peer-reviewed journal of the Association of American Physicians and Surgeons."

Read it all.

Christ Church Savannah votes to leave ECUSA, continue in Anglican Communion

From TitusOneNine:

October 14, 2007- Savannah, GA. By a decisive margin of 87% the congregation of historic Christ Church voted overwhelmingly to affirm the vestry’s September 30, 2007 decision to place itself under the pastoral care of The Rt. Reverend John Guernsey, Rector of All Saint’s Church in Woodbridge, VA and a bishop of the worldwide Anglican Communion’s province of Uganda, Africa. The action followed a prolonged process of disciplined prayer and discernment.

“It saddens us that The Episcopal Church (TEC) has chosen to walk apart from the rest of the Communion. We have been an Anglican parish since the founding of the Colony of Georgia, and it is important to us that we continue to participate as members in good standing with the rest of the worldwide Anglican Communion,” said Steve Dantin, Senior Warden.

TEC, the U.S. “branch” or province of the worldwide Anglican Communion, received a final call from the Anglican Communion to return to orthodox Christianity and to signify the same by taking certain actions no later than September 30, 2007. TEC failed to comply, and thus it abandoned the communion previously existing between TEC (including the Diocese of Georgia) and Christ Church. Therefore, Christ Church appealed to Bishop Guernsey and Archbishop Orombi for their pastoral care and oversight, which has been granted.

“This has been a long and arduous journey,” said Dantin. “It was gratifying to see the large number of parishioners participate in this process. Our congregation has spoken clearly.”. . .

Read it all.

Mississippi: 'Redoing church'

From the Mississippi Clarion-Ledger. I found this article somewhat confusing - mentioned are Anglican churches under Kenya, but then it says that no Mississippi churches have left ECUSA, so I'm assuming the Anglican churches are all new plants. Also, incorrect national numbers are used (did you know that only 55 churches have left ECUSA?) and some other errors are present, but the situation is so confusing, I don't blame the reporter.

RAYMOND — A framed document hangs in a dining room-turned sanctuary on the outskirts of this tiny central Mississippi city that reads, "Diocese of Thika, the Anglican Church of Kenya."

The certificate shows who has authority over the two-month-old congregation, called St. Michael and All Angels Anglican Church.

"We gave them what I call 'the kiss of peace goodbye,' " said St. Michael's priest the Rev. Linda Berry about her break from the Episcopal Church U.S.A. "Our main focus is on what we're doing now, which is redoing church."

Berry is part of a national movement of former Episcopalians and other believers aligning their congregations with conservative Anglican churches in Africa. Those seeking African oversight say they've become disillusioned with what they consider to be an increasingly secular drift in the Episcopal Church U.S.A.

And while church leaders battle over theological issues, many worshippers are seeking the African-affiliated Anglican churches for wholly different reasons. . .

. . . Therese Baker of Jackson, who had been baptized and confirmed in the Episcopal church, started worshipping at St. Michael's because she found most area Episcopal churches too large and unwelcoming.

"Unless you knew someone you were ignored," the former veternarian's assistant said.

About a half dozen people worship at St. Michael's, where churchgoers sit in a semi-circle in front of an altar set up in Berry's dining room.

Surrounded by the aroma of scented candles, believers help conduct the liturgy by taking turns reading the day's Scripture.

"They're so small right now you feel like you're actually part of something," Baker said. "I want to become closer to God and I feel like I'm getting that here."

Colorado transplant Lana Mapes, the daughter of a Presbyterian minister who led small mission churches, attends St. Michael's because she finds a more authentic form of Christianity than among the people she's encountered in big, established churches.

"I see a lot of hypocritical behavior," Mapes said. "It's all about them, what's good for them, what's good for the pocketbook."

People attending St. Michael's also say they value such rituals as infant baptism and regular Holy Communion.

"That's always been a very basic part of our religion," Mapes said about sharing the Eucharist.

David Hein, a religion professor at Hood College in Maryland who specializes in Episcopal and Anglican history, said the new Anglican churches in the United States seem well positioned to attract evangelicals who want to connect with their faith's apostolic roots, but consider the Episcopal church too liberal.

"Some are moving away from churches that emphasize a glamourous preacher and are looking for an association with thoughtful holiness, which they find in traditional Anglicanism," he said. "There's a movement of evangelicals who are dissatisfied in large preaching temples.". . .

. . . "People think the split was about homosexuality," said Berry, 61, who was ordained a priest in August by a Kenyan bishop. "But that wasn't really it."

A major rift formed in 2003 between the U.S. Episcopal church and the more conservative leaders of the 77 million member global Anglican Communion when Episcopal church leaders elected their first openly gay bishop.

But Berry and other members of the new Anglican churches in Mississippi say they left the Episcopal Church U.S.A. - the name of the Anglican church in America - because of what they saw as an increasing emphasis over the past two decades on intellectualism over biblical authority, such as raising doubts about the virgin birth and the divinity of Jesus.

"We had to make a choice," said the Rev. Ruth Urban, who leads the Kenyan-affiliated Holy Apostles Anglican Church in Brandon with her husband John. "Are we going to uphold the Scripture or uphold the church?". . .

. . . The Kenyan churches are part of a small network of Anglican churches in the state including metro-area congregations St. Stephen's Reformed Episcopal Church in Flowood - which formed in 1984 before the current crisis in the Anglican Communion - and the Rwandan-affiliated Holy Trinity Anglican Church in Flowood.

The churches have not broken away from the Episcopal Diocese of Mississippi. However, most attract some Episcopalians disenchanted with their national church.

And even though only the Kenyan-affiliated church ordains women - which many consider a major theological difference - Anglican churches in Mississippi and elsewhere in the United States are working toward forming their own U.S. jurisdiction.

As of September, 55 of the 7,679 congregations in the Episcopal Church U.S.A. have either withdrawn from the organization or voted to leave, said the church's communications director Robert Williams.

No Mississippi parish has broken from the Episcopal church. . .

. . . Bishop Duncan Gray III of the Episcopal Diocese of Mississippi said he believes there's enough room in the Episcopal church for divergent views.

"I think there is within the Episcopal church within Mississippi both diverse congregations and diversity within congregations and that there's a place for everyone," he said. "I would hope that we could find what unites us and deepens that rather than spend enormous energy on defining what divides us."

But people involved in the new Anglican congregations in Mississippi say they expect the network of Anglican churches will soon form its own province in the United States. . .

Read it all.

Unity in opposition & conflict in power

From Dr. Peter Toon at the Prayer Book Society:

Let us suppose that the aim of the Common Cause Partnership is in due time and through due process to become a Province that is accepted as authentic by at least part of the present Anglican Communion – say the Global South.

Let us also suppose that the model for unity in the process and as a Province is a federation, fellowship, and partnership of ten or more autonomous “Anglican” denominations, jurisdictions and ministries.

Now let us reflect upon this model of provincial unity.

First of all, let us be clear that the doctrinal foundation—if not regrettably the practical theology guiding the weekly activity—is that of the Church of England and the majority of the Provinces of the Anglican Communion as it is now—the classic Formularies of 1662. This undoubtedly is good, for it means that it can be built upon rock rather than the sand of the 1979 formulary of The Episcopal Church (TEC).

Secondly, we may note—and note clearly—that this scheme and model of unity accepts the reality of the American religious scene. It works from, rather than seeks to oppose, the American supermarket of a variety of religions, even a variety of one type with different brand names. That is, it accepts as semi-permanent reality the various groups formed by, or to be formed by, secession from TEC.

In the third place, we may note that such a scheme/model is clearly innovatory in the Anglican Way. It has NEVER been tried anywhere else. Further, it appears to be a total denial of the Anglican principle of one province as one jurisdiction with several constituent dioceses in one geographical area, as was The PECUSA from 1785 to modern times. . .

. . . What I fear—and this haunts me in the day and night—is that the unity created by common opposition to outrageous revisionism in, and infidelity by, TEC will give a false sense of security and achievement not only to the CCP partners but also to their sponsoring African bishops. And that this will lead inescapably to insufficient patience, perseverance, ecclesial comprehensiveness and wise counsel, creating a situation where the ending of the process is not an improvement on the beginning. To secede is difficult, but to secede and then to unite graciously with fellows seceders is an altogether more problematic exercise—as many cautionary tales from American religious history illustrate. . .

Read it all.

Twelve flying bishops

From Sam Keyes at Covenant:

Count them. First there was the initial proposal from New Orleans:

Eight bishops have accepted Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori’s invitation to serve as “episcopal visitors” to dioceses that have requested this provision.

Read the rest of that report.

And to make a round apostolic dozen:

Four additional bishops have accepted Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori’s invitation to serve as “episcopal visitors” in dioceses requesting this provision.

Read that report here.

That report doesn’t seem to note that no diocese has actually requested “this provision,” and it seems unlikely that any diocese will. . .

Read it all.

AnglicanTV: Planning to attend the Diocese of Fort Worth convention

Kevin Kallsen (recovered now, I hope, from all of his travels), AnglicanTV, is planning to attend the Diocese of Fort Worth convention in mid-November. Please contribute to the cause if you can!

Ok. I have had a lot of requests to attend the November 16-17 convention in Fort Worth. I would be happy to go and have been in contact with the diocese about wifi and video.

To go I will need:

• Flight bdl to dfw roundtrip: $279 with taxes


• Airport Parking: $36


• Enterprise rental car: $160 with taxes


• Gas: $20


• Room and Board: I have several couches I have been offered.

So, I will need to raise $495 $335 to attend. I will update how much I have raised each night at 11pm est. Thank you in advance for all of your help. You can also buy DVD's to help defray my cost.

You can donate by sending a check to:
AnglicanTV
PO Box 535
Thomaston, CT 06787

Or send paypal money to AnglicanTV@gmail.com

Or click a subscription button in the upper right hand corner of this page. If you send a check please email me at anglicantv@gmail.com so I can update the total nightly.

Thanks

Kevin
- - - - - -
Update: My expenses to Fort Worth have been cut in half because of the generosity of the Matocha family. They hosted me for the ACN Council meeting in July and are graciously opening their guest room to me again. Mrs. Matocha is also a delegate to the convention so I won't be needing that rental car either.

I have raised $35 -- Thanks Jillie and Greggory

Heretical Friday: Pelagianism

I’ve been reading The History of Christianity by Paul Johnson, and while it’s very interesting and well-written, the author supposes that his readers are familiar with early church heresies—he writes about them, but doesn’t always explain what a particular heresy is about. So, I’ve started a “heresy” list and will post one a week.

Caveat: obviously I am no theologian, so this is definitely a layman’s superficial understanding. With that in mind, I’ll be tackling them in no particular order, so I’ll start with:

Pelagianism

Named after Pelagius, an ascetic monk (born ca. 354 in the British Isles, died ca. 420/440, possibly in the Middle East)

Pelagiaism is the teaching that the human will, tempered in good deeds and disciplined asceticism, is sufficient to live a sinless life, that man has the capacity to seek God in and of himself apart from any movement of God or the Holy Spirit. Right action on the part of human beings is all that is necessary for salvation and the grace of God is only an added advantage - helpful, but not essential.

Pelagius did not believe in original sin (since human nature was created from God and therefore divine), but said that Adam had condemned mankind through bad example, and that Christ’s good example offered humanity a path to salvation, not through sacrifice, but through instruction of the will. Men were taught by Christ’s works, but not saved. According to Pelagian doctrine, since humanity is no longer in need of any of God's graces beyond the creation of will, Jesus' sacrifice does not redeem men.

The basic tenets of Pelagianism can be seen in these six theses outlined by Celestius (a friend and follower of Pelagius):

• Even if Adam had not sinned, he would have died.


• Adam's sin harmed only himself, not the human race.


• Children just born are in the same state as Adam before his fall.


• The whole human race neither dies through Adam's sin or death, nor rises again through the resurrection of Christ.


• The (Mosaic Law) is as good a guide to heaven as the Gospel.


• Even before the advent of Christ, there were men who were without sin.

Pelagianism was opposed by St. Augustine , who asserted that human beings could not attain righteousness by their own efforts and were totally dependent upon the grace of God.

Condemned by two councils of African bishops in 416, and again at Carthage in 418, Pelagius and Celestius were finally excommunicated in 418 and Pelagianism was branded a heresy in eight (or nine) canons summarized as follows:

• Death did not come to Adam from a physical necessity, but through sin.


• New-born children must be baptized on account of original sin.


• Justifying grace not only avails for the forgiveness of past sins, but also gives assistance for the avoidance of future sins.


• The grace of Christ not only discloses the knowledge of God's commandments, but also imparts strength to will and execute them.


• Without God's grace it is not merely more difficult, but absolutely impossible to perform good works.


• Not out of humility, but in truth must we confess ourselves to be sinners.


• The saints refer the petition of the Our Father, “Forgive us our trespasses,” not only to others, but also to themselves.


• The saints pronounce the same supplication not from mere humility, but from truthfulness.


• Some codices contain a ninth canon: Children dying without baptism do not go to a "middle place" (medius locus), since the non reception of baptism excludes both from the "kingdom of heaven" and from "eternal life."

These canons (except the last) afterwards came to be articles of faith binding on the Church, but the controversy was not immediately over. Julian of Eclanum continued to assert the Pelagian view and engaged Augustine in literary debate until the latter's death in 430. Julian himself was finally condemned, with the rest of the Pelagian party, at the Council of Ephesus in 431.

Another heresy, known as Semi-Pelagianism, flourished in southern Gaul until it was finally condemned at the second Council of Orange in 529. The Semi-Pelagian teaching, derived from the earlier Pelagian teaching about salvation, said that it was necessary for humans to make the first step toward God and then God would complete salvation.

Sources:
New Advent Catholic Encyclopedia
Encyclopedia Britannica Online

First Things: The Politics of Bioethics

An excerpt (subscription) from Richard John Neuhaus's article on "The Politics of Bioethics" in the November issue of First Things where he discusses the concept of "human dignity" [italics his; boldface mine]:

. . . In general, our political life is not heavily burdened by theory, or at least not by the explication of theory. That is because knowing and judging the good things of human life is not so burdened.

In the realm of bioethics, however, and specifically with respect to the dignity of the human person, such explication is sometimes required. An obvious example is abortion and the many issues inseparably tied to abortion. The most consequential political event of the past half-century in the United States was the Supreme Court’s Roe v. Wade and Doe v. Bolton decisions of January 1973. Numerous political analysts have described how those decisions have dramatically reconfigured the nation’s cultural and political life. And, of course, those decisions are intimately tied to many other hot-button issues in bioethics. As an act of “raw judicial power” (as Justice Byron White called it in his dissent), Roe removed a preeminently political, which is to say moral, question from public deliberation. The abortion decisions were a profoundly anti-political act and are accurately described as instances of the judicial usurpation of politics. By attempting to remove the question from public debate, the Court turned it into something very much like the vortex of American politics.

The moral question is not, as the court majority claimed, about when a human life begins. That is a biological and medical question on which there is no serious dispute. The moral question can be put this way: At what point in its existence ought we, and for what reasons ought we, to recognize that a human life should be protected in law?

On this issue, if no other, Peter Singer has it right. As the noted Princeton advocate of infanticide said in a June 20, 2005, letter to the New York Times rebuking Mario Cuomo for his confused thinking about abortion: “The crucial moral question is not when human life begins, but when human life reaches the point at which it merits protection. . . . Unless we separate these two questions—when does life begin, and when does it merit protection?—we are unlikely to achieve any clarity about the moral status of embryos.”

That moral question is also and unavoidably a political question. One might make the case that it is the most fundamental of political questions. If politics is deliberating how we ought to order our life together, there can hardly be a more basic question than this: Who belongs to the we? Although ostensibly removing it from politics, the abortion decisions forced into the political arena an issue that was thought to have been settled in the centuries of civilizational tradition of which our polity is part. Namely, that it is morally wrong and rightly made unlawful to deliberately kill unborn children.

If a principle is established by which some indisputably human lives do not warrant the protections traditionally associated with the dignity of the human person—because of their size, location, dependency, level of development, or burdensomeness to others—it would seem that there are numerous candidates for the application of the principle, beginning with the radically handicapped, both physically and mentally, not to mention millions of the aged and severely debilitated in our nation’s nursing homes.

It may be objected that of course we as a people are not about to embark on such a program of extermination. To think we might do so is simply bizarre. And as a culturally and politically contingent fact, that is true. But under the regime of Roe, a regime extended to embryonic stem cell research and other bioethical controversies, we have no “clear and unambiguous” agreed-on rule precluding such horrors. We do have in our constituting texts, notably in the Declaration of Independence, a commitment to natural rights, and we do have deeply entrenched in our culture and politics a concept of the dignity of the human person.

The question, then, is, Who belongs to the community for which we as a community accept responsibility, including the responsibility to protect, along with other natural rights, their right to life? This is a preeminently political question. It is not a question to be decided by bioethicists. Bioethicists, by virtue of their disciplined attention to such questions, are in a position to help inform political deliberations and decisions about these matters, but these questions are— rightly and of necessity—to be decided politically. They are rightly so decided because our constitutional order vests political sovereignty in the people, who exercise that sovereignty through prescribed means of representation. They are of necessity so decided because in this society the views of moral philosophers—whether trained as such in the academy or acting as such on the bench—are not deemed to be determinative. Witness the democratic non-ratification of the Supreme Court’s imposition of the unlimited abortion license.

To say that such decisions are rightly decided politically is not to say that the resulting decisions will always be morally right. Those who disagree with the decisions that are made must make their case in the political arena. . .

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