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"And walk in love, as Christ also has loved us and given Himself for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God..." Ephesians 5:2 NKJV
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Message from Bishop David Anderson
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Bishop Anderson
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Dear Friends in Christ,
Here we are in the last week of the Lenten Season, at the end of Holy Week, and for almost all of us our eyes turn to the cross. Three years of intense ministry were drawing to a close, and still Jesus was often misunderstood even by his closest disciples. What was it about Jesus that drew Judas to him, and yet at the end caused him to betray him? In a sense it wasn't just Judas betraying Jesus, it was also the religious establishment, if you will, the Jewish "Church" of which Jesus had been a part since his circumcision at eight days of birth. Some of you, my readers, have been betrayed by a loved one, and many have been betrayed by a church to which you belonged, and you have something of an idea of the internal pain that Jesus was feeling as Judas and the temple police closed in on him in the Garden.
Some thought Jesus to be another impostor Messiah, others thought that he needed to lead an earthly revolt and crush the Roman legions, others thought him to be the Messiah, but were fuzzy on how all of this was supposed to work out. For three years Jesus had taught them about the Kingdom of God, and yet the key missing piece only he could deliver at the very end. And so those closest to him broke bread with him Thursday night, were with him when he was seized early Friday morning in the Garden, and were bewildered by the sudden trial, execution, and the tomb that was sealed by Friday sunset. If this was it, the end of three years, none of this made sense, and it was this bewilderment and deep sense of loss that engulfed the disciples through Saturday. Sunday morning, however, the surprise was the reversal of fortune: the tomb was empty and the face cloth was neatly folded as one does at a dinner table when you have just stepped away for a moment, but will return.
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The joy of seeing Jesus, accompanied by the shock, had to raise the question in their minds, "How can this be?" But it was clear that it was Jesus standing among them. The Lord God Almighty has all the time in the world, but when he decides to act, it can be in a split second. The preparation can last for centuries, even thousands of years, but when the hand of God decides to move, move it does. Keep your eyes on Jesus, and on the hand of God, and when it moves, move with it.
May the joy of Jesus' resurrection, and his freely given gift of his life for yours and mine fill you from your deepest hurts to your highest rejoicing, and refresh both your faith and your hope for the future. Have a blessed Easter and celebration of the resurrection.
+David
The Rt. Rev. David C. Anderson, Sr.
President and CEO, American Anglican Council
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A Message from Canon Ashey
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Canon Ashey
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Dear friends, beloved in Christ,
On Easter Sunday, all over the world, millions of people will be shouting these acclamations of victory: Christ is risen! He is risen indeed, ALLELUIA! An incredible worldwide family, including millions of Anglicans, are united in these acclamations by the conviction that Jesus Christ really and truly rose from the dead. After substituting himself in our place, and suffering the penalty for all of our sinful habits, hurts and hang-ups, Jesus rose from the dead bodily and triumphed over sin, the world and satan himself, and He lives! Jesus' triumph over death is a double victory. First, Easter is the vindication of Jesus himself. The power of all the forces of evil and death cannot silence and destroy Jesus of Nazareth. Every claim He made about himself, the world, you and me... and every promise he offered has now been vindicated by His rising on that Easter morning. He lives and reigns in authority. But Christ's victory also vindicates us! Because He lives and reigns in authority, his promises and claims and high hopes for you and me have also been vindicated. They are absolutely trustworthy: - Jesus said, "Whoever lives and believes in me will never die." (Jn 11:26) At the end of your life does not stand an abyss. At the end of your life stands Jesus Christ, who can meet you and usher you into a life that will never end - far beyond anything you and I can ever imagine! And that certainty gives us hope for living today.
- Jesus said, "Anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I go to the Father." (Jn. 14:12) You and I not only have a purpose, we have a power that Jesus Christ has released through His Resurrection - to do the same things on earth that He did, and even greater things! Because Jesus lives, you have the potential to make an eternal difference, an eternal impact, on your world, your church, your workplace, your friends, and your family - if you live in the Risen Lord Jesus Christ.
This Easter, we pray that you will find his victory for you. We pray that you will not be discouraged by the world, the flesh or the devil-- or even the Church! For we know the end of the story. We pray you will live in the hope, the purpose, the trustworthiness, the power and the victory of Jesus Christ and him alone. Christ is risen! He is risen indeed, ALLELUIA! Your brother in Christ, Phil+ The Rev. Canon Phil Ashey Chief Operating and Development Officer, American Anglican Council Back to top |
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Wishing you a blessed Easter
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Fearless Ephraim Radner+ Brings ECUSA's Ham-handedness to Court's Attention
| Source: Anglican Curmudgeon
March 23, 2013
By A.S. Haley
My hat goes off to the Rev. Dr. Ephraim Radner. He has done what ECUSA's thought police never expected anyone to do -- he has called them on their crass witness-intimidation scheme, by writing directly to the justices of the Texas Supreme Court in the pending Ft. Worth case...
On first learning of this letter, and seeing that it was stamped "Received" -- but not "Filed" (and it looks as though the clerk doing the stamping forgot to set the proper month on the stamp, since it obviously should read "MAR 11 2013") -- I was afraid that the Court clerk would treat it as an ex parte communication, in this case from a non-party. (Any communication to a court -- written or oral -- made by a party without involving or notifying the other parties to a case is deemed "ex parte" and hence improper; judges are not allowed to receive such communications.)
However, I am reliably informed by counsel in the case that the Court has treated the letter as a supplemental amicus filing, so that it is now an official part of the record in the case. That means that the justice who is currently writing the Court's opinion in the case will have seen it, as will all the other justices on the Court. And your Curmudgeon (for one) fervently hopes it stirs up their ire against ECUSA! Ham-handed attempts to intimidate and punish testimony in court should always get the treatment they deserve.
ECUSA will now have to respond to the letter, in some fashion....
The rest of the article and the letter may be found here.
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Marriage in the Dock - The Supreme Court Considers Same-Sex Marriage
| Source: Albert Mohler blog 
March 26, 2013
By Dr R. Albert Mohler
The next two days are destined to stand among the most significant days in our nation's constitutional history, but the issues at stake reach far beyond the U.S. Constitution. Nothing less than marriage is in the dock, with the nation's highest court set to consider two cases that deal with the question of the legalization of same-sex marriage.
The first time the issue of same-sex marriage came before the Court, back in 1972, the Court dismissed the question succinctly: "The appeal is dismissed for want of a substantial federal question."
But now the Supreme Court is faced with two cases that demand a more substantial response. One case deals with a challenge to the constitutionality of the federal Defense of Marriage Act, and the other addresses Proposition 8, the amendment to the California constitution defining marriage as the union of a man and a woman....
Justice Anthony Kennedy, widely thought to be a crucial swing vote on this question recently told a group in Sacramento: "A democracy should not be dependent for its major decisions on what nine unelected people from a narrow legal background have to say." Nevertheless, it was Kennedy who wrote the sweeping decision for gay rights in the 2003 case, Lawrence v. Texas.
From the Court's conservative wing, Justice Antonin Scalia has commented: "It is one of the unhappy incidents of the federal system that a self-righteous Supreme Court, acting on its Members' personal view of what would make a 'more perfect union'... can impose its own favored social and economic dispositions nationwide."
No one knows yet how the Court will decide these cases. But this much is clear - the future of marriage in our society is very much at stake. We can hope and pray that the justices will protect marriage and honor its historic reality, but there is reason to believe that huge challenges will face us in the aftermath of the Court's rulings....
The rest of the article may be found here.
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France: 1.4 million French march against gay 'marriage'; police tear gas crowd
| Source: LifeSiteNews
March 25, 2013
By Jeanne Smits
 LifeSiteNews reporter Jeanne Smits directly witnessed the events that took place during this extraodinary event. She confirms the enormous numbers claimed by organizers and reports on many aspects either ignored or distorted by French and other media. This LifeSiteNews exclusive reports on what really happened during the demonstrations, including the totally uncalled for police tear gassing of some of her peaceful and prayerful friends and relatives.
Analysis:
According to organizers, nearly one and a half million people joined the third demonstration in five months against the legalization of same-sex "marriage" by the French government in Paris, on Sunday.
Meanwhile, large numbers of demonstrators who were unable to join the main venue - which had filled up by 3 p.m. - or who headed straight to the largest and most prestigious Parisian thoroughfare, the Champs-Elysées, were sprayed with tear-gas and beaten as they neared the presidential palace.
The rest of the article may be found here.
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