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Handle with prayer!
News – ANiC and AEN
Do you live in or near Guelph, Kitchener-Waterloo or Centre Wellington (Ontario)?
Some ANiC who are members “Anglican Orphans” in this area would like to meet for mutual encouragement and support. The Rev Zena Attwood and D'Arcy Luxton are eager to form a fellowship with like-minded Anglicans with the possibility of eventually establishing an ANiC church plant or outreach project in the area. If interested, please contact Zena or D’Arcy at credocw@gmail.com or call 519-846-0483.
ANiC parish news
St George’s (Burlington, ON) is hosting a women’s conference at Crieff Hills on May 8, 9am-5pm. The theme is Disciples making disciples (mentoring and discipling women) with speaker Rosetta Del Monte from the Navigators. Cost is $40. For information, contact Donna at office@stgchurch.ca
St John’s (Vancouver, BC) – Aaron Roberts and Keith Ganzer will be ordained to the diaconate by Bishop Donald Harvey on Sunday, Apr 25th at 3pm. The ordination will take place at First Baptist Church (corner of Burrard and Nelson Streets in downtown Vancouver) because the Diocese of New Westminster has been adamant that no episcopal acts were to be conducted in any of the disputed church facilities until the question of property ownership is resolved. Unless the parishes had agreed to this term, another court hearing would have been necessary.
St John’s (Vancouver, BC) is mentioned in a Vancouver Sun article on obscure facts about Vancouver. The article says, “11th century fragments of stained glass from England's Canterbury Cathedral were used in the stained-glass windows at St John's Shaughnessy Anglican Church at Nanton and Granville Streets in Vancouver. The cathedral had been bombed during the Second World War.”
Calendar of upcoming events – for your interest and prayer support
April 17-24 –Church of the Good Samaritan (St John’s, NL) mission to Guatemala
April 25, 3pm – St John’s Vancouver ordinations at First Baptist (Burrard & Nelson, Vancouver)
May 4, 2:30pm - St John Sudanese (Surrey, BC) baptism & confirmation service
May 8, 91m-5pm – St George’s (Burlington) women’s conference: “Disciples making disciples”
May 14, 7pm – Church of the Ascension (Langley) banquet celebrating parish’s 1st anniversary
June 3-11 – Anglican Church of Canada General Synod, Halifax, NS
June 7 - 11 – ACNA House of Bishops, Provincial Executive and Council meet in Amesbury, MA
Nov 3 – Clergy day, Ottawa, ON
Nov 4-6 – ANiC synod with Bishop Michael Nazir-Ali, Ottawa, ON
News shorts – Canada
Diocese of BC passes motion authorizing same sex blessings
Noted on page three of the diocesan newspaper – but curiously absent from the post-synod news release – is news that the recent Diocese of BC synod passed a motion requesting the bishop “…grant permission for clergy… to bless duly solemnized and registered civil marriages between same-sex couples… and that he authorizes an appropriate rite and guidelines.” Interestingly, the Diocese of BC’s June 2008 synod had passed this motion, “That the Synod of the Diocese of British Columbia not entertain motions related to the approval of same-sex unions until the matter has been considered and decided upon by General Synod.”
An ANiC member also points out that the Diocese of Huron has posted liturgies and protocols for blessing same-sex couples.
The “holy heresy” of “original sin”
The Diocese of BC newspaper includes another article, “Holy Heresy”, on page eight where a retired priest attacks “toxic liturgies” which perpetuate the doctrine of original sin. He says, “This word [atonement] identifies the reason why I, like most of my Anglican friends, cringe my way through the Sunday Eucharist with the constant references to uncleaness, sin and generally what a rotten lot humans are… [T]he doctrine of Original Sin… is the foundation of our toxic liturgies… is why the Church is still lumbered with the concept of the need for a human sacrifice (Jesus) to put us to rights with an angry God… The current, approved said liturgies are larded to the hilt with the ramifications of the concept of Original Sin. Let us begin to “retire” Original Sin… “It is obvious that the majority of Canadians have long ago given up buying into the mindset required by the concept of Original Sin… We have outgrown our allegiance to this capricious, petty and easily offended God…”
A shrinking Church
On page nine of the Diocese of BC newspaper, yet another article by the Rev Dr Gary Nicolosi states that “… our biggest challenge in evangelizing the culture is evangelizing ourselves. If we are
not converted, we can’t convert others.” The article goes on to provide the following statistics:
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“…the Anglican Church of Canada has lost almost 60 percent of its membership since 1961” |
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“…70% of Baby Boomers are church drop-outs” |
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“…people under 55 constitute only about 12 percent of the average Sunday attendance at the average Anglican Church” |
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“…the majority of our children stop attending the Anglican Church when they become adults”. |
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“while the age of the average Canadian is 30-something, the age of the average Anglican is 60-something” |
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“…if the present trend continues, the last Anglican will leave the Anglican Church by 2061”
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News shorts – United States
Legal update
The Loudoun Times reports that the legal appeal brought by TEC’s Diocese of Virginia against a number of ACNA parishes will hear oral arguments on April 13. A lower court had awarded the church property to the ACNA congregations. The Anglican Curmudgeon provides a breakdown and interpretation of the case. The chancellor of the ACNA parish in South Carolina that won a decisive legal victory against TEC’s claim to their property told VirtueOnline that “Virginia is the case to watch. If the Virginia churches prevail in the Virginia Supreme Court, the hole in TEC's dike would become a river, in my opinion.” Please pray for these congregations, their legal counsel, the judge, and for God’s will to be done.
News shorts – International
Archbishop Orombi calls for primates meeting excluding primates of ACoC and TEC
In a masterful letter (well worth reading!) to the Archbishop of Canterbury, Uganda’s Primate, Archbishop Henry Orombi supports his fellow orthodox Primate, Bishop Mouneer Anis (Church of Jerusalem and the Middle East) in his decision to step down from the Communion’s Joint Standing Committee. (Bishop Anis’ February letter is posted to the Diocese of Egypt website .) While Archbishop Orombi did not resign from this same committee, he reiterates Bishop Anis’ concerns, chronicling the Archbishop of Canterbury’s actions and inaction over the past three years “undermining our instruments of communion” – especially the Primates Meeting.
Archbishop Orombi writes:
“…meetings of the Joint Standing Committee have included the Primate of the Episcopal Church (TEC) and other members of TEC, who are the very ones who have pushed the Anglican Communion into this sustained crisis. How can we expect the gross violators of Biblical Truth to sanction their own discipline…?
“…The Primates made specific and clear requests of TEC and the Anglican Church of Canada. Suddenly, though, after the 2007 Primates Meeting in Dar es Salaam, the Primates no longer had a role to play in the very process they had begun. The process was mysteriously transferred to the Anglican Consultative Council and, more particularly, to the Joint Standing Committee…
“Anglicanism is a church of Bishops and, at its best, is conciliar in its governance. The grave crisis before us as a Communion is both a matter of faith as well as order. Matters of faith and order are the domain of Bishops.
“What has emerged, however, is the Standing Committee being given “enhanced responsibility” and the Primates being given “diminished responsibility,” even in regard to a process begun by them. Indeed, this Standing Committee has granted itself supreme authority over Covenant discipline in the latest draft. Under these circumstances, it has not been possible for me to participate in meetings of the Joint Standing Committee that has taken upon itself authority it has not been given.
“There is an urgent need for a meeting of the Primates to continue sorting out the crisis that is before us… The Primates Meeting is the only Instrument that has been given authority to act, and it can act if you will call us together… Finally, the meeting should not include the Primates of TEC and the Anglican Church of Canada who are proceeding with unbiblical practices that contradict the faith of Anglicanism. We cannot carry on with business as usual until order is brought out of this chaos”.
Just days earlier, in a letter to the Primates, Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori confirmed she will consecrate bishop-elect Canon Mary Glasspool, a partnered lesbian, saying, “It represents the mind of a majority of elected leaders in The Episcopal Church, lay, clergy, and bishops…” However, she urged a continuation of discussion within the Communion.
The Archbishop of Ireland, although not noted as a “conservative”, responded saying, “The decision of The Episcopal Church in respect of the confirmation of an election and subsequent consecration of a partnered gay person to the episcopate has clearly signalled the end of ‘gracious restraint’. This is a development which I deeply regret. Whatever may be ‘the mind of a majority of the elected leaders in The Episcopal Church’, it does not reflect the mind of a majority of those in positions of leadership in the Anglican Communion and it is bound to create even greater stresses within the Communion….”
GAFCon Primates communiqué
Following their meeting April 5-9 in Bermuda, the GAFCon Primates issued a communiqué which announced that they had elected the Most Rev Gregory Venables as chairman and the Most Rev Emmanuel Kolini and the Most Rev Eliud Wabukala as the Vice-Chairmen. The GAFCon Primates, a group that formed in 2008 at the Global Anglican Future Conference in Jerusalem, consists of Primates representing the majority of active Anglicans globally. They are: Archbishops Akinola (Nigeria - retired), Akrofi (West Africa), Duncan (Anglican Church in North America), Kolini (Rwanda), Mokiwa (Tanzania), Venables (Southern Cone), Wabukala (Kenya), Okoh (Nigeria), Orombi (Uganda – represented at the meeting by one of his bishops) and Jensen (Diocese of Sydney).
The communiqué stated:
We acknowledged that the issues that divide our beloved Communion are far from settled and that the election of the Reverend Mary Glasspool, a partnered lesbian, as a Bishop in Los Angeles in The Episcopal Church (TEC), makes clear to all that the American Episcopal Church leadership has formally committed itself to a pattern of life which is contrary to Scripture.
This action also makes clear that any pretence that there has been a season of gracious restraint in the Communion has come to an end. Now is the time for all orthodox biblical Anglicans, both in the USA and around the world, to demonstrate a clear and unambiguous stand for the historic faith and their refusal to participate in the direction and unbiblical practice and agenda of TEC.
We recognise that the current strategy in the Anglican Communion to strengthen structures by committee and commission has proved ineffective.
Indeed we believe that the current structures have lost integrity and relevance. We believe that it is only by a theologically grounded, biblically shaped reformation such as the one called for by the Jerusalem Declaration that God’s Kingdom will advance. The Anglican Communion will only be able to fulfill its gospel mandate if it understands itself to be a community gathered around a confession of faith rather than an organisation that has its primary focus on institutional loyalty.
Pray for important Global South meeting, April 19-23
Next week’s 4th Global South Encounter in Singapore could be pivotal in the life of the Anglican Communion – particularly in light of recent events. It has the theme: “The Gospel of Jesus Christ: Covenant for the People, Light for the Nations.” The Global South website states that 130 participants are currently registered for the meetings, including representatives from 20 Global South provinces and guests from Australia, New Zealand and Polynesia, North America and England. VirtueOnline reveals that among the guests are Bishop John Howe (Central Florida), Bishop Mark Lawrence (South Carolina) and Archbishop Robert Duncan (ACNA). Pray for a clear response from this meeting to Archbishop Orombi’s letter.
Sudan elections create fear and increased instability
Please pray for the Sudanese elections April 11-13. The Globe and Mail reports a prevailing fear of violence and vote-rigging in this first election in decades in the war-torn country. AllAfrica.com quotes a UN diplomat saying, “This is probably the most crucial period in Sudan's history since its independence in 1956.” However, the difficulties include:
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“Nearly 2.7 million people are displaced in Darfur… while the conflict continues to directly affect two million more... |
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“Across the country, the UN World Food Programme (WFP) estimates that some 4.3 million people will require food assistance at some point this year. |
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“In the South, according to the UN, at least 450 civilians have been killed and 40,000 displaced in inter-communal violence since the beginning of the year, bringing the total number of newly displaced people in that region to 440,000. |
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“There is also concern that with a high illiteracy rate of 40 percent among the population, most of whom have never voted, the elections face serious challenges, especially in the South, where people will take part in 12 different ballots”. |
Pray for peace to prevail during the elections, and for peace and security to come to this devastated country in the months and years ahead. Pray for Archbishop Daniel Deng Bul and the Episcopal Church of the Sudan as they both serve and provide leadership in that country.
News in brief from around the world and the Communion
Nigeria – Prior to his retirement, Archbishop Peter Akinola publically opposes the suggestion by Libyan leader Col. Muammar Ghaddafi that Nigeria be divided into a Moslem north and a Christian south. Archbishop Akinola said this was not a workable solution due to the demographic of indigenous Christians located in the north, and Moslems living in the south. “We should discard Col. Muammar Ghaddafi’s comments and those of people calling for a division of the country… if Nigeria should burn, nobody would be spared.”
Rwanda – The Church of England Newspaper reports that the trailblazing Bishop of Shyira, the Rt. Rev. John Rucyahana, is to retire. Bishop Rucyahana was one of the first bishops to offer alternative Episcopal oversight to orthodox Anglicans in America. His actions propelled the formation of the American Mission in America (AMiA).
Britain – Writing in the Daily Mail, Dr Taj Hargey, a Muslim, defends Christianity. He writes, “Christianity is under siege in this country… a new form of virulent secularism is sweeping through society - and its target is Christianity… As a Muslim, I am filled with despair at the attitude of our politically correct officials towards Christianity… To undermine religion is to undermine society itself. It is no coincidence that as Christianity is repeatedly attacked, so the social fabric of Britain becomes increasingly frayed. As we lose our strong moral compass, family breakdown and violent crime are at record levels, while our once famous sense of community spirit is evaporating. In the face of this kind of aggressive secularism, Christians and Muslims should be natural allies.
Australia – The Church of England Newspaper reports that the Anglican Church of Australia House of Bishops has decided the Covenant needs lengthy study before a decision can be taken. The Primate, Archbishop Phillip Aspinall, is quoted saying, “There are implications for the Anglican Church of Australia if we sign up to the Covenant and that’s why the bishops thought that any decision should not be rushed.”
Soul food
Prayer tips
An article on the Diocese of Sydney website offers some tips to assist us in prayer:
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keep watching for things that happen in your day that you can thank God for |
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carry a verse in your pocket for the day. Read it when you have a moment and turn to pray[er] as a result |
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attach prayer to things you do or places you pass: for example tying your shoelaces or driving around a certain corner. |
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pray about anything and everything |
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pray for people when they, for some reason, come to mind |
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don’t think prayer must be long |
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pray with someone else |
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begin (and end) a time with other Christians in prayer |
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turn what you hear in the media or read in the paper to prayer |
Just for fun – Sunday School tales
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A Sunday school teacher was telling her class the parable of the Good Samaritan. She asked, "If you saw a person lying on the roadside, all wounded and bleeding, what would you do?" A thoughtful little girl broke the hushed silence, "I think I'd throw up." |
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A Sunday school teacher asked, "Johnny, do you think Noah fished when he was on the ark ?" "No," replied Johnny. "How could he, with just two worms." |
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A Sunday School teacher decided to have her young class memorize Psalm 23. She gave the youngsters a month to learn the chapter.
Little Rick was excited about the task, but he just couldn't remember the Psalm. After much fruitless practice, he could barely get past the first line.
On the day that the kids were scheduled to recite Psalm 23 in front of the congregation, Ricky’s nervous excitement was palpable. When it was his turn, he stepped up to the microphone and blurted, "The Lord is my Shepherd, and that's all I need to know." |
Please pray...
For funding of the Anglican Relief & Development Fund Canada’s Kenya Malaria Prevention Project – as well as for funds for Chile earthquake relief.
For ANiC projects, church plants and parishes, especially as they seek to proclaim the Good News to those in their communities who desperately need new life in Christ.
For the Church of the Good Samaritan (St John’s, NL) mission to Guatemala, April 17-24
For our bishops and clergy and their families.
For legal cases and disputes involving ANiC congregations:
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For the Vancouver-area parishes which are appealing the earlier court decision and for their legal counsel, Geoff Cowper and Stanley Martin as they prepare the appeal. |
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For all the congregations involved in court proceedings and disputes. Pray for a continued focus on, and blessing upon, their ministry in the midst of this turmoil. Pray for peace for the wardens and trustees who are on the front lines and bear the burden of risk and responsibility. |
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For the leaders and parishioners of the dioceses pursuing eviction of and damages against ANiC congregations and wardens in court. |
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That God will be glorified in all court proceedings. |
For the court cases involving ANCA congregations in the US – especially the hearing on April 13 involving churches in Virginia.
For the work of the Anglican Communion Alliance (ACA) at the ACoC’s General Synod in June and for the pre-synod ACA-sponsored cross-Canada speaking tour of Canon George Kovoor.
For peace in the Sudan, for the elections, and for Archbishop Deng Bul and the Sudanese Episcopal Church as they provide godly leadership.
For Christians facing violence and persecution in Nigeria and other Muslim and Hindu lands.
For those devastated by natural disasters in Chile and Haiti.
For the pivotal Global South meeting on April 19-23 in Singapore. Also for a decisive response to Archbishop Orombi’s letter.
For our nation, Canada, for a return to God and His moral principles.
And now a word from our sponsor
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. For as we share abundantly in Christ's sufferings, so through Christ we share abundantly in comfort too. If we are afflicted, it is for your comfort and salvation; and if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which you experience when you patiently endure the same sufferings that we suffer. Our hope for you is unshaken, for we know that as you share in our sufferings, you will also share in our comfort.
For we do not want you to be ignorant, brothers, of the affliction we experienced in Asia. For we were so utterly burdened beyond our strength that we despaired of life itself. Indeed, we felt that we had received the sentence of death. But that was to make us rely not on ourselves but on God who raises the dead. He delivered us from such a deadly peril, and he will deliver us. On him we have set our hope that he will deliver us again. You also must help us by prayer, so that many will give thanks on our behalf for the blessing granted us through the prayers of many.
2 Cor 1:3-11 (ESV)
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