"For a day in Thy courts is better than a thousand; I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God, than to dwell in the tents of wickedness."
Psalm 84:10 KJ21
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Message from Bishop David Anderson
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Bishop Anderson
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Bishop Anderson was not able to write a message this week.
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The Chaplain's Corner
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 By The Rev. Canon Phil Ashey Chief Operating and Development Officer, American Anglican Council
A Shining Moment in AnglicanismDear Friends in Christ, I am finally catching up on all the wonderful "loose ends" and opportunities that came out of our work and presence at the ACNA provincial meetings in Ridgecrest last week. Among other things, I was deeply involved in the presentation of the new Diocese of the Carolinas, the new Diocese in Formation in Texas, and amendments to the ACNA Constitution and Canons. We presented the amendments to constitution and canons four times: At Executive Committee and Archbishop's Cabinet, the College of Bishops, Provincial Council and Provincial Assembly. I must confess that I was a little punchy by the time we had our fourth presentation! I really love these gatherings; they are both joyfully exhausting and energizing! Gatherings like these are a blessing not only as a visible sign of our unity in Christ, but for the renewal of relationships, spontaneous moments of stopping and praying for each other, sharing testimonies of how Christ is at work in our lives, and exploring opportunities to partner in ministry. But the moment I loved the most by far came almost as an afterthought, at the end of the Opening Eucharist on Thursday. |
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That moment was the transfer of Anglican Mission clergy by Archbishop Onesphore  Rwaje of Rwanda to the ACNA. It brought everyone in Spillman Auditorium to their feet, and many like myself to tears, because it was a moment in which the best of the Anglican way of following Jesus broke through. Let me explain why it was so significant and meaningful as I unpack what Archbishop Rwaje actually said and did.
1. It was an act of SACRIFICIAL LOVE: "We bring our greetings and love from your brothers and sisters in the Province de L'Eglise Anglicane au Rwanda [PEAR]." These were the first words out of ++Rwaje's mouth, and echoed the words he repeated again and again at the Anglican Relief and Development dinner two evenings before and throughout our week together. Apparently, according to Archbishop Duncan, ++Rwaje said to him in that final embrace "You must take good care of them," referring to the AMiA clergy he had just transferred to ACNA. To those of us who have been privileged to be in canonical residence in places like Uganda and Rwanda, the loving care of African bishops is not surprising. But it is deeply, deeply touching, especially when you come to know the personal sacrifices they make in their time and prayers for the American clergy who are so distant geographically. The distance seems to make no difference, however, in their hearts and prayers, and it is truly humbling. I long to walk in the same way of Jesus, and in the same way of Anglicanism, that bishops like ++Rwaje do. And I truly understand why clergy transferring directly into ACNA, or through the ACNA/PEAR/PEAR-USA protocol, will want to maintain these loving relationships through ongoing missionary partnerships for years to come.
2. It was SOLEMNLY SACRAMENTAL: "At this juncture, I would like to request some of you who are among us here, those who have been under the oversight of PEAR, bishops, presbyters and deacons, please stand..." In our great ancient and catholic tradition of recognizing by outward and visible signs an inward grace about to be received, this was a solemn and joyful sign of the grace these clergy were about to receive with a blessing as they were transferred from one Archbishop to another, and one Anglican province to another. That's right - from one province to another, as His Grace Archbishop Rwaje said personally, plainly, and with authority: "I, Onesphore Rwaje, Archbishop and Primate of PEAR by the Grace of God, hereby canonically and officially transfer these bishops, presbyters and deacons from PEAR to the province of the ACNA." (emphasis added). It is not an accident that ++Rwaje chose the context of Holy Communion, and a congregation gathered around that Holy Table - not a press conference - as the place to make the transfer. This transfer is not an exercise in politics and governance; it is in fact a sacramental act, full of God's grace both visible and invisible.
3. It was CLEARLY CANONICAL: "Archbishop Bob, according to the Canon 23 section 6 of our provincial canons, upon the request done individually by each one of the bishops, presbyters and deacons, and also upon [to] your support writing to me backing them that you are ready to welcome them..." Archbishop Rwaje cited the chapter and verse of the canons of PEAR authorizing the transfer, the required personal requests, and the written acceptance from the receiving jurisdiction. Constitutions and canons serve our Anglican tradition of observing what St. Paul admonished us to do: "But everything should be done in a fitting and orderly way." (I Corinthians 14:40 NIV). No human documents, no church law, however brilliantly drafted, however well intentioned, will ever be able to close the loophole of the wickedness and deceitfulness of the human heart. But what Archbishop ++Rwaje did was fitting and orderly, public and transparent, in the best tradition of Anglican governance.
4. It was CLASSICALLY CONCILIAR: From the same declaration above, it is clear that both Archbishops and colleges of bishops - from PEAR and ACNA - have been working together to effect this Godly governance and transfer. In fact, one mark of this journey has been the ACNA rejection of our American culture of unilateral decision making in favor of our submission to a classically Anglican and conciliar method of decision making. If you want to understand why our Archbishop and College of Bishops together have chosen to respond they way they have in this time of transition within the Anglican Mission, you need only look at this ancient principle of church governance by councils. This principle has guided our commitment to act in the closest possible unity with the Archbishop and College of Bishops within a sister Anglican province (Rwanda) "with whom we share a common consent to an agreed upon deposit of faith and worship and mutual submission of elders in the Spirit."
This phrase comes from The Rev. Dr. Stephen Noll's essay on "Communion Governance: The Role and Future of Historic Anglicanism which we published here in March of 2010. Dr. Noll goes on to explain that classical Anglicanism chose the conciliar form of governance over a centralized bureaucracy (the Roman model) because it reflects the tradition of bishops with jurisdiction meeting in council to guide the Church in matters of doctrine and discipline, with the Primates or Archbishops having the role of interpreting and applying such guidance. Noll rightly observes that this model goes back to the Council of Jerusalem in Acts 15 and proceeds to the ecumenical councils of the undivided church, upon which Anglicanism was based. The "agreed upon deposit of faith" in turn involves a reading of scripture by bishops in council that is consistent with the ecumenical creeds and historic confessions of the undivided church. This is precisely the kind of exchange that has taken place between the Archbishops and bishops of ACNA and Rwanda, an exchange that led to this moment, modeling the ancient and future role of conciliar governance for Anglicans all over the world.
5. It was UNIFYING AND MISSIONAL: "Brothers and sisters who have taken this decision," said ++Rwaje, "you have requested to be transferred from one room where you are to the next room in the house." And that is the moment at which we all rose to our feet and applauded. I think we all wanted to receive the grace imparted by this transfer, and to stand in solidarity together in this same Anglican house - one room in North America, another in Rwanda, but both under the same roof. How else could our Archbishop respond than to turn to ++Rwaje and say "..the doorway between the rooms is a very well worn doorway and it will remain so and your Grace will always be welcome here..." How good and pleasant it is when brothers live together in unity! (Psalm 133:1)
But this was much more than a visible mark of unity. It was an exercise in godly governance that promotes and invites us to mission together. "So, brothers and sisters, God bless you as we walk together in this house and as we labor in the vineyard of our Lord," concluded ++Rwaje. Unity for the sake of mission - and neither one sacrificed for the other. One of the things I look forward to is the charism that Anglican Mission clergy will bring to the ACNA, a charism that fuels their commitment to reach secular people with the transforming love of Jesus Christ through church planting.
For all these reasons and more, I hope you will join me in praising God for this historic moment in Anglicanism in North America!
Yours in Christ,
Phil+
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Straight Talk on Hell
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Canon Ashey's sermon from June 10 at Christ Church Atlanta:
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ACNA goes local: Provincial Assembly wraps up
| Source: IRD
June 11, 2012
By Jeff Walton
This past week saw delegates from the Anglican Church in North America (ACNA) gather in North Carolina for their second assembly after the group was inaugurated in 2009. While delegates heard from religious liberty advocate Baroness Caroline Cox and Anglican Archbishops from Africa, Asia and South America, the unmistakable emphasis was on the development of the local congregation.
Election of a new bishop (Steve Wood, rector of St. Andrew's Mt. Pleasant, SC) and
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ACNA closing Eucharist
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recognition of new dioceses in the Carolinas and Texas were also on the agenda, but most of the keynote addresses were on how to grow churches and plant new ones.
The U.S.-based Episcopal Church that many of ACNA's members split from was largely unmentioned, but the divergent direction of the two churches was apparent. The Episcopal Church became increasingly centralized in the past 100 years, with more and more authority placed in the office of the Presiding Bishop and the denomination's General Convention. Subsidiarity - placing responsibility with the lowest unit capable of carrying out a function - often fell by the wayside.
ACNA seems to have realized this, instead keeping the church at the provincial (national) level relatively streamlined....
If the ACNA and its Lutheran and Presbyterian peers (the newly-formed North American Lutheran Church and the Evangelical Covenant Order of Presbyterians) continue in promoting the local church as the center of ministry, rather than self-perpetuating bureaucracies, then they will have placed themselves on a significantly different trajectory than the mainline bodies they emerged from.
The rest of the article may be found here.
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Raleigh, NC: PEARUSA Celebration Assembly Regroups Following AMIA Break-Up
| Source: VirtueOnline
By the Rev. Don Schulze
June 11, 2012
A substantial number of clergy who have determined to be identified as a Missionary District of the Province of Rwanda responded to the invitation of the Primate of that Province, the Most Rev. Onesphore Rwaje to gather here in Raleigh to Celebrate what God has done in and for this group over the last five months. A noticeably smaller, but more clearly unified crowd than that of five months ago came to celebrate. There was an atmosphere of sincere but subdued joy at the seriousness of the task before them. A sense of Divine purpose and presence was before the assembly.
A Little History
In January of 2012 Archbishop Rwaje of the Anglican Church of Rwanda (PEAR) hosted a Sacred Assembly at the Church of the Apostles. That meeting was a time of seeking God for how clergy and churches could "Move Forward Together" following the rupture in the relationship between the leadership of the Anglican Mission in America and the Province of Rwanda.
At that meeting, the tension in the air, the grief, and the sense of confusion, even restrained anger, were all palpable as one moved among the crowd in the lobby, the corridors and the auditorium.
That Sacred Assembly truly provided an opportunity for repentance, prayer, and reconciliation. A true beginning of healing was made. The wisdom and love and gravity which the Rwandan leadership of that meeting provided, together with God's immediate presence redeemed what could have been a strife-filled gathering and transformed it into a very holy time. However, as the January discussions about the reality of the desires, hopes, and expectations of participants went on, it became evident that not everyone would be able to actually "Move Forward Together". It was also clear that there would need to be an acute realignment among those who did want to remain under the Provincial authority of the Rwandan Province. There would have to be a new and clear definition of the relationship of the former AMiA clergy and churches to PEAR and ACNA and to each other.
The result was an American steering committee put in place by Rwaje to help provide a clear path forward for those who wanted to move from canonical residency in Rwanda to the ACNA or to a new canonical status, if possible, with the former AMiA. The goal was to see that the process for transition be as cordial, collegial, and co-operative as possible. Every effort was made by Rwaje and the Steering Committee to see that the changes were an opportunity for healing rather than pain. The Steering Committee was also charged by Rwaje with the task of constructing a petition for the formation of a Missionary District of Rwanda and designing a new charter for ministry both of which would be discussed by the Rwandan House of Bishops until agreement is reached among all parties as to the will of the Lord....
The rest of the article may be found here.
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Pope's representative applauds US bishops' fight with government
| Source: The Church Report
June 13, 2012
ATLANTA - The pope's ambassador to the United States is praising American bishops for confronting the government over religious freedom.
Archbishop Carlo Vigano expressed full support for the bishops' efforts and repeated past words of encouragement from Pope Benedict XVI.
Vigano spoke Wednesday at an Atlanta meeting of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. It's the bishops' first meeting since they filed a dozen lawsuits against a mandate from the administration of President Barack Obama that employee health insurance cover birth control. Obama has offered to soften the rule for religious employers, but bishops say that doesn't go far enough.
Critics say the lawsuits appear politically partisan, especially during a presidential election.
The bishops say it's not about politics. They plan religious-freedom rallies for two weeks leading up to July 4. (AP)
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Church of England Response to the Government Equalities Office Consultation "Equal Civil Marriage"
| Source: Anglican Communion News Service
From the Church of England
12 June 2012
In its submission to the Government consultation on same-sex marriage, which closes on June 14, the Church of England states it cannot support the proposal to enable "all couples, regardless of their gender, to have a civil marriage ceremony".
It adds that the consultation paper wrongly implies that there are two categories of marriage, "civil" and "religious" - "this is to mistake the wedding ceremony for the institution of marriage". Changing the State's understanding of marriage will, therefore, change the way marriage is defined for everybody and, despite the government's assurances to the contrary, will change the nature of marriages solemnized in churches and other places of worship.
The official Church of England submission sent to the Home Secretary under a short covering letter from the Archbishops of Canterbury and York also points out:
Several major elements of the Government's proposals have not been thought through properly and are not legally sound. Ministerial assurances that the freedom of the Churches and other religious organisations would be safeguarded are, though genuine, of limited value given that once the law was changed the key decisions would be for the domestic and European courts.
Such a change would alter the intrinsic nature of marriage as the union of a man and a woman, as enshrined in human institutions throughout history. Marriage benefits society in many ways, not only by promoting mutuality and fidelity, but also by acknowledging an underlying biological complementarity which includes, for many, the possibility of procreation. The law should not seek to define away the underlying, objective, distinctiveness of men and women.
The Church has supported the removal of previous legal and material inequities between heterosexual and same-sex partnerships. To change the nature of marriage for everyone will deliver no obvious additional legal gains to those already now conferred by civil partnerships.
The submission concludes that "imposing for essentially ideological reasons a new meaning on a term as familiar and fundamental as marriage would be deeply unwise".
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Telegraph Editorial: Church and state collide over same-sex marriage
| Source: Telegraph (UK)
June 12, 2012
On Thursday, the public consultation will end for what would be one of the most profound social reforms of our time, the legalisation of same-sex marriage. In truth, this was never a consultation in the strictest sense of the word. People have not been asked whether or not they approve of gay marriage, since the Government has already made up its mind to bring forward legislation later this year. This exercise is about how to implement that decision. However, many respondents are against the idea in principle, notably the churches. Campaigners maintain that the views of religious groups should not be accorded any special weight because the proposals are intended to apply only to civil marriage. But as the Church of England points out in its submission, published today, this is a false distinction. The implication that there are two categories of marriage, civil and church, mistakes the ceremony for the institution. Matrimony, as the word suggests, involves the union of a woman and a man and legislation is not going to change that fact. The last government, in a widely welcomed reform, ensured that the same legal rights were available for same-sex couples by introducing civil partnerships.
It is disingenuous of campaigners to argue that legalising same-sex marriage would not have an impact on the churches because it is restricted only to civil ceremonies. To begin with, it is unclear whether human rights and anti-discrimination laws could require churches to carry out same-sex marriages even if exemptions are enshrined in a new Act. Moreover, there is the potential for the biggest clash between canon law - which sets out the Church's definition of marriage - and the law of England since the Reformation. As the Church of England says: "Changing the state's understanding of marriage will change the way marriage is defined for everybody and, despite the Government's assurances to the contrary, will change the nature of marriages solemnised in churches and other places of worship."
In addition, if the concept of gender is removed from marriage, it cannot be left in place for civil partnerships, a point that is also made by supporters of gay marriage. Why should heterosexual couples - or two sisters living together - not be granted civil partnership rights? The Government believes the reform demonstrates its commitment to equality and modernity. Yet it risks opening a serious breach with the established Church while also alienating other religious groups, and laying down a legal minefield that will benefit only lawyers. If this has been a true consultation, then David Cameron should make sure these objections are given proper consideration.
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Hundreds of Canadians have faced legal proceedings for opposing same-sex 'marriage'
| Source: Christian Concern
June 12, 2012
Hundreds of Canadians have faced legal proceedings for opposing same-sex 'marriage' in the public sphere following its introduction in 2005, it has been reported.
Within five years of marriage being redefined in Canada, an estimated two to three hundred cases have been brought against individuals, mostly Christians, who have opposed same-sex marriage in the public sphere. The proceedings have been brought at employment boards, courts, and human rights commissions.
A number of employees have been dismissed from their jobs because they have maintained a conscientious objection to same-sex marriage. Businesses have been sued and churches have been threatened with sanctions over their religious beliefs.
Examples from Canada
Recent examples include:
- A television anchor on a prominent sports show was immediately dismissed after he posted his support for "the traditional and true meaning of marriage" on Twitter.
- A Roman Catholic bishop in Alberta, Fred Henry, was charged with a human-rights violation for writing a letter to local churches outlining the Catholic position on marriage.
- A Christian organisation in Ontario working with some of the most marginalised disabled people in Canada was taken to court after objecting to the marriage of one of its homosexual employees. The organisation faced an ultimatum and had to choose between changing its hiring and employment policy or being closed down.
- An evangelical Christian marriage commissioner in Saskatchewan was successfully sued for refusing to marry a homosexual couple, despite assisting the couple by putting them in touch with another marriage commissioner who would be willing to conduct the ceremony.
- A campaign has now begun in Canada to remove tax-free status from churches that refuse to perform same-sex marriage ceremonies. Some Canadian provinces are even considering laws to forbid teachers in private schools from teaching that traditional marriage is the ideal.
Michael Coren, writing for the National Review Online, said:
"Once gay marriage becomes law, critics are often silenced by the force of the law. The Canadian litany of pain, firings, and social and political polarization and extremism is extraordinary and lamentable, and we haven't even begun to experience the mid and long-term results of this mammoth social experiment...."
The rest of the article may be found here.
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England: Women-bishops supporters might send Measure back
| Source: Church Times
June 15, 2012
by Gavin Drake
There are growing signs that a procedural motion will be tabled to delay the women-bishops legislation when it goes to the General Synod for final approval next month.
Under Section 94 of the Standing Orders, a motion can be moved from the floor of the Synod to send the draft Measure back to the House of Bishops for further consideration. Supporters of women bishops have expressed their reluctance to vote for the Measure since the Bishops added two amendments (News, 25 May).
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Church of England General Synod
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If the Synod were to adjourn the debate, the soonest it could be reconsidered would be February 2013, unless the business committee decided to reassemble the Synod in November.
The object of such a move would be to prevent the possible rejection of the legislation, which could lead to a much greater delay. The Measure needs to pass by a two-thirds majority in the Houses of Bishops, Clergy, and Laity. The opponents of women bishops, although some welcomed the Bishops' amendments, are still unlikely to vote in favour, and to their number will be added those who cannot stomach the changes introduced by the Bishops.
Sally Barnes, spokeswoman for the campaign group WATCH, said on Wednesday: "It is quite likely that this [postponement] will happen. But there is a debate to be had about what the House of Bishops might do if it gets back to them."
Dr Elaine Storkey concurred. "The alternative is to pass a Measure that a large number of people don't want." Supporters did not want women bishops "at all costs. . . We must have something that works not just for dissenters but also for those who want women bishops."
Dr Storkey, who says that she cannot now support the Measure, hoped that the Synod's business committee would make the procedural issues clear to Synod members when they gathered in York (6-10 July)....
The rest of the article may be found here.
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