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April 25-26 “Compelled by Christ’s Love” conference registration
Our primary conference hotel is now fully booked, so we are now recommending that conference goers book at the Delta Town and Country Inn. Make you reservation by calling 1-888-777-1266. Ask for the group rate for the “Compelled by Christ’s Love” conference – $99 plus tax. The cut off date is April 15. Again, this is a small hotel so please don’t procrastinate. We will arrange a shuttle service between this hotel and the conference venue.
If you would like to share accommodation in the hotel, we will try to find a roommate for you. Just make a note on your registration that you are willing to share a room and split the cost.
Website hiccup
We have experienced some website problems due to server administration work during the past two weeks. If you sent us an email via the “Contact Us” website page and did not get a response, please contact us again. Or if you had trouble with the conference registration form or PayPal payment, please contact conference coordinator Zenia Cheng. Registration confirmation will be sent after payment has been received. Those paying by PayPal will receive confirmation sooner. Those paying by cheque will receive confirmation only after your cheque is received. .
Network “moves” again
Since we now have an office in Burlington, we’ve moved our mailing address to that city as well. The Network’s new postal address is: Anglican Network in Canada, PO Box 1013, Burlington, Ontario, L7R 4L8. (The old post box will be retained for a few months to facilitate the transition.)
Parish developments
Greater Vancouver ANiC churches
Bishop Michael Ingham’s notice to Dr J I Packer (and other ANiC clergy) of “presumption of abandonment of ministry” continues to make waves. See Christian Today and Anglican Mainstream. This is the diocese’s version.
Brandon, Manitoba – Church of the Resurrection
65 adults and 12 children gathered in a WWII air base canteen to mark Palm Sunday and the launch of Church of the Resurrection. See Phil’s report on the inaugural Sunday worship service, as well as photos and a newspaper article. Easter Sunday was similarly joyous. Next Sunday, March 30, Church of the Resurrection will worship for the first time in the Seventh Day Adventist Church, at 34th Street and Park Avenue, Brandon.
Toronto – St Chad’s
St Chad’s held its first service on Easter Sunday in Toronto Heritage Adventist Church, 24 Innes Avenue. Flowers provided by parishioners, scrounged communion items and a home-made alter all contributed to the celebration of Jesus’ resurrection. ”It was good to realize that from the little we had, we had enough,” says the Rev Barbara Richardson. “We had many “Alleluias” in gratitude for how God had blessed us.”
This location will be St Chad’s home for the immediate future. Services are at 11am on Sundays. Please pray for St Chad’s vestry meeting (the second of a two-part meeting) on Sunday, March 30th, for God's choices in the elections and appointments, and for joy, unity and a new sense of mission for this little parish that has gone through so much.
Niagara – St Hilda’s, St George’s (Lowville) and Church of the Good Shepherd
March 20 saw parishioners, wardens and clergy from St Hilda’s, St George’s Lowville and Church of the Good Shepherd in a Hamilton court once again. At stake was access to parish properties while the bigger legal issues around rightful ownership are sorted out. Madam Justice Milanetti, reserved her decision until an unspecified later date. The diocese indicated that it would offer services at Lowville United Church, but there was no indication that there would be similar alternative services near St Hilda’s (Oakville) or Good Shepherd (St Catharines).
Media coverage of Anglican Network in Canada
The National Post – March 18 08 – Anglican schism not catastrophic: theologian
The National Post – March 20 08 – Decision on breakaway churches put on reserve
The Globe & Mail – March 20 08 – Dissident Anglicans retain church use
Anglican Planet – March 20 08 – Niagara Network churches celebrate Easter in their buildings
Anglican Journal – March 20 08 – Judge reserves decision in dispute over Niagara parishes
Halifax Chronicle Herald – March 21 08 – Anglican church ownership back before Ontario court
Toronto Star – March 21 08 – Breakaway Anglicans to stay put for Easter
Toronto Star – March 22 08 – A house of worship divided
Winnipeg Sun – March 22 08 – Joseph Quesnel – People want scripture not theology
St Catharines – March 22 08 – Judge reserves decision in church ownership dispute
Hamilton Spectator – March 22 08 – Easter ease for rebel churches
In the blogs
Phil Varcoe writes fellow Anglicans in Manitoba explaining the crisis in the Anglican Communion
Supplies for Church Plants
Steve Lenaghan has started a new website designed to link church plants with items needed for worship services
News shorts – USA and North America
Bishop Bob Duncan responded to Presiding Bishop Jefferts Shori on March 14 declaring he had not abandoned the Communion as charged and had faithfully kept his ordination vows, including his vow to “banish and drive away all strange and erroneous doctrines contrary to God’s Word.’ Bishop Bob’s lawyer also wrote to point out that canonical processes were not being followed and that Bishop Duncan's response met the requests Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori had set out so "we expect that there will be no further action" against Bishop Duncan. Jefferts Schori is polling TEC bishops in an attempt to set up a May meeting of the House of Bishops to consider Bishop Duncan’s case. Bishop Duncan faces the prospect of civil lawsuits and expulsion.
Bishop David Bena of CANA comments on the costly litigation in Virginia initiated by the diocese at the behest of the TEC. He calls for the diocese to return to the amicable negotiations which had been abruptly stopped when Presiding Bishop Jefferts Schori strong-armed the diocese into litigation.
See Virtueonline for more discussion regarding the TEC’s blatant disregard of its own canons in deposing Bishops Cox and Schofield. Also see the Anglican Communion Institute’s paper on this and a series of other recent canonical violations perpetrated by the TEC.
In the US, Presbyterian churches are also separating from their denomination over liberal theology.
After being denied a licence to minister in North Dakota, a priest who identifies herself as lesbian has taken her grievance to the broader TEC leadership.
Bishop John Howe (Central Florida) has blasted the three TEC senior bishops for not acting on the illegality of the House of Bishop vote to depose +John David Schofield and +William Cox, saying, “I have no illusions that the outcome of the despicable vote to depose John-David and William will be reversed, but AT LEAST we might want to obey the canons.”
TEC Presiding Bishop Jefferts Schori visited Jerusalem to preach on Palm Sunday and to give almost $160,000 dollars to the Bishop in Jerusalem Suheil Dawani. According to the Episcopal online story, “The main objective of her visit, Jefferts Schori says, is to explore ways the U.S.-based Episcopal Church can be more supportive of and helpful to the Episcopal Diocese of Jerusalem…”
News shorts – International
Victoria Matthews, the former bishop of Edmonton and current bishop-in-residence at Wycliffe College (Toronto), has been elected the next bishop of Christchurch, New Zealand. She will be invested August 30. The Anglican Journal also commented.
GAFCON
GAFCON is appealing for financial assistance to help subsidize the costs of bishops whose Provinces can’t afford to fully pay their way. Canadians can donate through ANiC, making the cheque payable to Anglican Network in Canada, but specifying “for GAFCON international subsidies” in the “notes” area of the cheque. We will send the funds on to GAFCON and provide you with a tax receipt at year end.
Some new materials and resource documents have been added to the GAFCON website.
Global South Primates Steering Committee statement
Five Primates, members of the Global South Steering Committee, met recently and released a statement encouraging a definitive draft of the Covenant by May 2009. The five, Archbishops Peter Akinola, Greg Venables, Emmanuel Kolini, Mouneer Anis and John Chew, specifically decried the Archbishop of Canterbury’s snub of North American bishops consecrated by Global South Provinces, saying “…these responses would not have continued if the requirements of the unanimously agreed Communique of the Primates’ Meeting at Tanzania of TEC had been adequately complied with.” They also said, “Unless the primary reason for the current crisis and division in the Communion is properly addressed, and the broken and impaired communion restored, the common life of the Communion cannot be expected to continue normally.”
They then said that the focus of the 4th Global South Encounter would be “leadership and development” and “deepening …(the) foundation and framework for… covenantal Anglicanism”. This 4th Global South Encounter would, they said, likely “…have a broadened representation”. Finally, the statement concludes with the doxology from Jude (verses 24-25). Jude, one of the shortest books in the Bible deals primarily with false teaching.
Covenant process
George Conger tell us that “The Archbishop of Canterbury’s Anglican Covenant is not scheduled to be implemented until 2015, the Presiding Bishop of the Middle East and Jerusalem reports.
“In a statement released following the Feb 29 to March 4 meeting of the joint standing committee of the Anglican Consultative Council and the Primates, Bishop Mouneer Anis of Egypt stated he had “lost many of the hopes” he had had for preserving the Anglican Communion from collapse due to delay, obfuscation and mendacity.
“A member of the primates’ joint standing committee, he described an institution trapped in a culture of bureaucratic inertia that saw “conversation” as an end in itself. Bishop Anis said he was “shocked” to hear from the staff of the ACC the Anglican Covenant would not be enacted until 2015.
“This “gives the impression that we are not in a state of crisis and that there is no desire to move towards a solution. In my opinion, if we wait until 2015 or even 2012 the Communion will be fragmented,” he wrote.
David Virtue also comments.
Lambeth conference
The House of Bishops of the Anglican Province of South East Asia has released a statement which suggests some division in the ranks about Lambeth attendance. While the statement encourages S.E. Asia bishops to attend, it acknowledges that some would decline on principle.
Dr J I Packer gives testimony to a God of “happy surprises”
Dr Packer has writing an encouraging article in Christianity Today, the publication for which he serves as senior editor, giving testimony to God’s “happy surprises” in his life.
Just for laughs
A new clergyman was visiting the homes of his parishioners. At one house it was obvious the parishioner was home, but no one answered the priest’s persistent knocks. Frustrated, the priest took out his card and wrote on the back “Revelation 3:20”, then stuck the card in the mail box.
The next Sunday, when the offering was processed, the card was found amongst the gifts – but with this cryptic message added: “Genesis 3:10”.
Reaching for his Bible, the priest burst into gales of laughter.
Revelation 3:20 begins, “Behold, I stand at the door and knock…”
Genesis 3:10 reads, “I heard your voice in the garden and I was afraid for I was naked.”
Food For Thought
You have to choose joy; it doesn’t choose you.
When you throw mud, you lose ground.
Those who bring sunshine into the lives of others cannot keep it from themselves.
And now a Word from our Sponsor…
Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Philippians 4: 4-8 (ESV
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