Bishop John-David Schofield: October 6, 1938 - October 29, 2013

October 29, 2013

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

It is with a heavy heart but a joyful spirit that I must share with you the passing of our beloved brother, the Rt. Rev. John-David Schofield. Bishop Schofield died peacefully at home sometime last night sitting in his favorite green chair and was found this morning by friends. My heart is heavy because I am selfish and desire my brother by my side, but also joyful because I know that at this moment he has heard the words of our Lord, "Well done good and faithful servant." I can picture +John-David sitting at the banquet table of our Lord with his sister and parents who have gone before him.

As I write this note to you all I am in Rome with my wife, but will be returning home as soon as humanly possible. Dean Carlos Raines has anointed Bp. Schofield and begun the sad task of making funeral arrangements. We have nothing specific to share with you at this moment, but will let you know as soon as possible what the arrangements are for Bp. Schofield's funeral.

God Bless you all!

Bishop Menees
Here

"Oh God whose mercies cannot be numbered: Accept our prayers on behalf of thy servant John-David, Bishop, and grant him an entrance into the land of light and joy, in the fellowship of thy saints; through Jesus Christ thy Son our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever." Amen

If He prayed who was without sin...

If He prayed who was without sin, how much more ought sinners to pray; and if He prayed continually, watching through the whole night in uninterrupted petitions, how much more ought we to watch nightly in constantly repeated prayer! ...St. Cyprian image

Haley on Obamacare; Mohler on marriage and family; Three-parent embryos....

Ecumenism in the Chaplaincy
Last week I was sitting in my office at the chapel when one of our chaplain assistants came in and told me that an Airman was on his way in and wanted to talk with a chaplain. He wanted to know if I was available to see this particular Airman. I said that I was, but inquired further if the Airman expressed any denominational preference. “Did the Airman want to see a particular kind of chaplain?” The chaplain assistant assured me that the in-bound Airman didn’t have a preference; he just wanted to see a chaplain.

When he finally arrived and was escorted into my office, we were both a little surprised that we knew each other. “Oh, hi, Father,” he said. I, likewise, addressed him by his name and invited him to take a seat. This particular Airman is a practicing Catholic and attends Mass faithfully each week. We went through the counseling session and I believe I was able to help him. Furthermore, I think he was appreciative that it was I, his priest, who was the one available to meet with him. Still, the question hit me, almost immediately, “Why didn’t he ask to see the priest?” Was his request to speak with “any chaplain” an endorsement of the high quality of the chaplains we have on our staff, or in the Air Force in general, or an open-minded act of ecumenism; or was it rather a sign of the creeping religious indifferentism that affects so many people, especially in the younger generation?...

A.S. Haley: Finally: a Clear Explanation of What’s Unfixable about Obamacare
...“Horrific management” does not begin to describe the problems with Obamacare. They began with a bill that was passed solely by Democrats in Congress, in violation of the rules and without any opportunity to read what was in it, and that had been drafted mostly by the lobbyists for, among a myriad of special interests, Big Insurance and Big Pharmaceutical—who wanted to ensure that their clients would gain, and not lose, from the politically popular (but financially very costly) changes being made in coverage requirements.

They continued with a hare-brained scheme to subsidize the huge increase in costs by forcing everyone to purchase the new insurance, so that premiums paid by the young and healthy would offset the premiums for those with pre-existing conditions and other health disabilities. Enforcement would also be supported by the fact the insurance companies would have to cancel millions of existing policies in order to replace them with ones having all the fillips and curlicues required by Obamacare...

No, You Can’t Keep It
Ultimately, the only way to allow people to keep (and buy) the insurance they want is to repeal the law and foster a true market in health insurance. Until then, the wrecking ball of Obamacare swings.

Obama admin. knew millions could not keep their health insurance
...Buried in Obamacare regulations from July 2010 is an estimate that because of normal turnover in the individual insurance market, “40 to 67 percent” of customers will not be able to keep their policy. And because many policies will have been changed since the key date, “the percentage of individual market policies losing grandfather status in a given year exceeds the 40 to 67 percent range.”

That means the administration knew that more than 40 to 67 percent of those in the individual market would not be able to keep their plans, even if they liked them.

Yet President Obama, who had promised in 2009, “if you like your health plan, you will be able to keep your health plan,” was still saying in 2012, “If [you] already have health insurance, you will keep your health insurance.”...

Creation of Human Embryos With Three Parents Facing Massive Opposition

Albert Mohler: A Clear and Present Danger: Religious Liberty, Marriage, and the Family in the Late Modern Age — An Address at Brigham Young University
...Heterosexuals did a very good job of undermining marriage before same-sex couples arrived with their demands. The marriage crisis is a moral crisis and it did not start with same-sex marriage, nor will it end there. The logic of same-sex marriage will not end with same-sex marriage. Once marriage can mean anything other than a heterosexual union, it can and must mean everything. It is just a matter of time.

Of course, one of the issues we must confront is the fact that marriage is a pre-political institution, recognized and solemnized throughout history by virtually every human culture and civilization. But we are living in an age in which everything is political and nothing is honored as pre-political. In the recent words of Justice Antonin Scalia, we are all now waiting for the other shoe (or shoes) to drop.

This has all been made possible by a breakdown in the immune system of human society—and this breakdown was no accident. Immunologists will explain that one of the wonders of human life is the fact that each of us receives from our mother an amazing array of defenses within our immune system. Throughout time, we develop further immunities to disease, or we grow sick and vulnerable. A severely compromised immune system leads to chronic disease, constant vulnerability, and potential death. If this is true for an individual, it is also true of a society or civilization.

We have forfeited our immunity against the breakdown of marriage, the family, and integrity of human sexuality. We can point to others who have been the prophets and agents of this self-injury to society, but we must recognize that we have all contributed to it, in so far as we have embraced essentially modern understandings of love, romance, liberty, personal autonomy, obligation, and authority...

Teaching Children Death Panels: School Pushes Euthanasia Assignment on Kids
...When news about the assignment spread, people invoked the “death panels” that figure in the debate over health care reform. While understandable, making that connection misses a far larger and more pernicious point.

The assignment was a lesson in utilitarian ethics, the kind made famous—or infamous—by Princeton professor Peter Singer. The students were being taught to value a person’s worth and dignity on the basis of what kind of contribution they could make to society.

And it’s a lesson they took to heart: The students’ choices reflected the person’s social prestige and/or age. The top three were the doctor, lawyer and teacher. The bottom three were the college student, ex-convict, and the disabled person...


Brain bending Honda car commercial...


Behind the scenes...

Gafcon roundup...

NAIROBI: "On Christ the solid rock I stand all other ground is sinking sand"
...For the more than 1300 evangelically driven GAFCON delegates here who are several decades older, the singing of Stand up, stand up for Jesus, are words with meaning, especially in the face of bitter persecution. There was no equivocation, no second-guessing, or no doubts. Before the Throne of God I Stand, In Christ Alone and the more sturdy and robust, what the Aussies call rugby hymns, like Faith of our Fathers and Be Thou my Vision and Lift high the Cross, thundered through the cavernous nave of the cathedral.

These evangelical Anglicans are in the vanguard of the explosive growth of Christianity in the Global South that would make Augustine proud. Now they are the majority in the Anglican Communion. They stand on the front line of a vigorous and dynamic growing church and nothing will stop them or hold them back. They are sweeping across the deserts, plains and mountains of Africa telling the timeless story of Jesus to anyone who will listen, including Muslims, animists and those with no religion at all.

When they turn their eyes westward, they are shocked and stunned by what they see and hear. They view the West as having largely lost the plot, swept away by a sea of moral relativism and post modernism leading to doubt, despair and unbelief.

They marvel that it was Western missionaries who brought the gospel to them a century ago, bringing liberation from sin and death, with an authoritative and binding Bible that they now hold tightly. Now they watch with incredulity and despair as the West gives it all up for immoral sex and with it a compromised theology of uncertainty and doubt...Virtueonline

The Faces of GAFCON
At Lent and Beyond: The photographers recording the GAFCON II conference this past week deserve a huge SHOUT OUT and a sustained wave of applause for capturing so many just absolutely STUNNING images.

These pictures bring to life just what it means to be One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church – a people bought by Christ to be His own from every tribe, tongue, people and nation.

Here are 30 or so of my favorite pictures from the week...(Please check these out, the pics are awesome! -PD)

Top 10 Things You May Not Have Expected About GAFCON
The Global Anglican Future Conference is meeting this week in Nairobi, Kenya, gathering together almost 1,400 delegates from across over 40 countries and 27 Anglican provinces. Here is our top 10 list of the things about GAFCON you might not expect...

Gafcon 2013: Nairobi Communique and Commitment

GAFCON 2013: THE NAIROBI COMMUNIQUE (pdf)
You are no longer foreigners and aliens, but fellow citizens with God’s people and members of God’s household, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone. (Ephesians 2:19-20)

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, we, the participants in the second Global Anglican Future Conference (GAFCON) – 1358 delegates, including 331 bishops, 482 other clergy and 545 laity from 38 countries representing tens of millions of faithful Anglicans worldwide – send you greetings from East Africa, a place of revival in the last century and of growth in the Anglican Church today.

Introduction
We met with great joy in Nairobi from 21st to 26th October 2013. We gathered each day for prayer and praise, studied Paul’s letter to the Ephesians and shared in the Holy Communion at the beginning and end of our conference.

It was very poignant that our meeting took place only a month after the violent terrorist attack in Nairobi at the Westgate Shopping Mall in which so many innocent men, women and children lost their lives. Our hearts go out to those families who have lost loved ones and to all of those who still suffer. We continue to remember them in prayer. In meeting here we have been able to express publicly the hope that Jesus Christ brings to a world in which brokenness and suffering find frequent expression.

In our gathering, we reaffirmed our view that we are a global fellowship of confessing Anglicans, engaged in a movement of the Holy Spirit which is both personal and ecclesial. We appreciated that the Archbishop of Canterbury sent personal greetings via video and gave us the assurance of his prayers, and we likewise pray for him. We believe we have acted as an important and effective instrument of Communion during a period in which other instruments of Communion have failed both to uphold gospel priorities in the Church, and to heal the divisions among us.

The Formation of the Global Fellowship of Confessing Anglicans
In 2008, the first GAFCON was convened in order to counter a false gospel which was spreading throughout the Communion. This false gospel questioned the uniqueness of Christ and his substitutionary death, despite the Bible’s clear revelation that he is the only way to the Father (John 14:6). It undermined the authority of God’s Word written. It sought to mask sinful behaviour with the language of human rights. It promoted homosexual practice as consistent with holiness, despite the fact that the Bible clearly identifies it as sinful. A crisis point was reached in 2003 when a man in an active same-sex relationship was consecrated bishop in the USA. In the years that followed, there were repeated attempts to resolve the crisis within the Communion, none of which succeeded. To the contrary, the situation worsened with further defiance. As a response to the crisis, we adopted The Jerusalem Statement and Declaration which commits us to biblical faithfulness, and has since provided the framework for renewed Anglican orthodoxy to which we, in all our different traditions – Evangelicals, Anglo-Catholics and Charismatics – are committed. We also formed the Global Fellowship of Confessing Anglicans (GFCA).

Since then, we have become a movement for unity among faithful Anglicans. Where, in taking a stand for biblical faithfulness, Anglicans have been marginalised or excluded from provincial or diocesan structures, the Primates’ Council has recognised and authenticated them as faithful Anglicans. The GFCA has been instrumental in the emergence of the new Province of the Anglican Church in North America, giving formal recognition to its orders and welcoming it as a full partner province, with its Archbishop having a seat on the Primates’ Council. The GFCA has also prevented the original Diocese of Recife from being isolated from the Anglican Communion. At the same time, local fellowships have been set up across many provinces. These have been a vital support to ministers and congregations alike, as the pressures on faithful gospel witness have increased.

The GFCA and the Future of the Anglican Communion
The fellowship we enjoy as Christians is distinguished from all other associations by the fact that it is at its heart a common ‘fellowship with the Father and his Son Jesus Christ’ (1 John 1:3). For this reason it has a particular character. It involves repentance and ‘walking in the light, as he is in the light’ (1 John 1:7–9). The character and boundaries of our fellowship are not determined by institutions but by the Word of God. The church is a place where the truth matters, where it is guarded and promoted and where alternatives are exposed for what they are — an exchange of the truth of God for a lie (Romans 1:25).  Our willingness to submit to the written Word of God and our unwillingness to be in Christian fellowship with those who will not, is clearly expressed in The Jerusalem Statement and Declaration. This means that the divisions in the Anglican Communion will not be healed without a change of heart from those promoting the false gospel, and to that end we pray.

There is much we can learn from the East African Revival about having a change of heart. Beginning in the last century, the Revival has touched millions of lives across many countries as the Holy Spirit has moved lay men and women, as well as clergy, to share the gospel with others. Two significant features of great relevance to our situation are —

• Real repentance for sin demonstrated both in confession of guilt and a desire to make amends
• A confidence that the gospel has the power both to save the lost in all the world and to transform the church, rather than seeing the church conformed to the world.

We urge those who have promoted the false gospel to repent of their unfaithfulness and have a renewed confidence in the gospel. We repent of indifference, prayerlessness and inactivity in the face of false teaching. We remind them – as we remind ourselves – that the sins from which we must repent are not simply those which the world also believes are wrong; they are those that God himself abhors and which are made clear in his Word.

The 1998 Lambeth Resolution I.10 on Human Sexuality states that sexual activity is to be exclusive to marriage and that abstinence is right for those who are single. We still hold to that authoritative statement. Sexual temptation affects us all, and we pray therefore for faithfulness to God’s Word in marriage and singleness.

We grieve that several national governments, aided by some church leaders, have claimed to redefine marriage and have turned same-sex marriage into a human rights issue. Human rights, we believe, are founded on a true understanding of human nature, which is that we are created in God’s image, male and female such that a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife (Matthew 19:6; Ephesians 5:31). We want to make clear that any civil partnership of a sexual nature does not receive the blessing of God. We continue to pray for and offer pastoral support to Christians struggling with same-sex temptation who remain celibate in obedience to Christ and affirm them in their faithfulness.

The gospel alone has the power to transform lives. As the gospel is heard, the Holy Spirit challenges and convicts of sin, and points to the love of God expressed in his Son, Jesus Christ. The sheer grace of God in setting us free from sin through the cross of Christ leads us into the enjoyment of our forgiveness and the desire to lead a holy life. This enables the relationship with God that Jesus makes possible to flourish. Moreover, just as individual lives can be transformed, so can the life of churches. We therefore commit ourselves and call on our brothers and sisters throughout the Communion to join in rediscovering the power of the gospel and seeking boldness from the Holy Spirit to proclaim it with renewed vigour.

Strengthening the GFCA
We are committed to the future of the GFCA and to that end have decided to take steps to strengthen our fellowship.

First, we have resolved to be more than a network. We are an effective expression of faithful Anglicanism and therefore, recognising our responsibilities, we must organise ourselves in a way that demonstrates the seriousness of our objectives. These are threefold.

• Proclaiming and contending for the gospel of Jesus Christ. Examples of work we wish to resource are the preparation of convincing theological rebuttals of any false gospel; supporting a network of theological colleges whose students are better oriented to ministry, whose faculties are well-trained, and whose curricula are built on the faithful reading of Scripture.  
• Building the fellowship. We need to find new ways of supporting each other in mission and discipleship.
• Authorising and affirming faithful Anglicans who have been excluded by their diocese or province. The main thrust of work here would be devoted to discerning the need for new provinces, dioceses and churches — and then authenticating their ministries and orders as Anglican.

Second, pursuing these objectives will require GFCA to operate on a more systematic basis and to that end we shall organise around a Primates’ Council, a Board of Trustees, an Executive Committee and regional liaison officers, who will be involved in fostering communication among FCAs.

Third, we recognise that moving the GFCA on to a new footing will involve making substantial new resources available. We must, therefore, invite provinces, dioceses, mission agencies, local congregations and individuals formally to become contributing members of the GFCA. In particular, we ask provinces to reconsider their support for those Anglican structures that are used to undermine biblical faithfulness and contribute instead, or additionally, to the financing of the GFCA’s on-going needs.

Our Priorities
Our Lord’s command is ‘to go and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you’ (Matthew 28:19–20). We believe therefore that our first priority must be to make disciples. This means that our movement must be committed to -

• Evangelising areas of our world where clear gospel witness has become obscured or lost and bringing the gospel to unreached peoples. Much of our energy must be devoted to bringing the gospel to children and young people and developing the leaders of the future. We also recognise the need to pray for, love and witness to Muslims with the gospel of Jesus. We call upon churches to train their members in such outreach.
• Supporting genuine gospel initiatives, recognising that there are times when the maintenance of structures can constrain the proclamation of the gospel. In line with The Jerusalem Statement’s expectation that the Primates’ Council would intervene to provide ‘orthodox oversight to churches under false leadership’, the Primates’ Council will carefully consider working beyond existing structures as an obedient response to Jesus’ commission to take the gospel to all nations.
• Guarding the gospel. We shall continue publicly to expose any false gospel that is not consistent with apostolic teaching and clearly to articulate the gospel in the church and in the world.

Our second priority must be to deepen discipleship. We must keep stressing that our identity is primarily found in Christ rather than in national, ethnic or tribal attachments. In addition, there are many pressures on Christians today which require a degree of maturity in order to withstand them. These include aggressive secularism, where increasingly Christians are being told that their faith must only find expression in private, and not in public life, and where the contribution of Christianity to the public good is denied; militant Islamism which continues to threaten the existence and ministry of the church in some places; and seductive syncretism which introduces supposedly alternative approaches to God and thereby denies the uniqueness of Christ.

Countering these pressures and promoting the gospel in difficult circumstances requires Christians to accept that their witness involves suffering for Christ (2 Timothy 3:12); to stand with those who are suffering for Christ; to be alert to the ways in which the Scriptures are being falsely undermined by opponents; to engage graciously in the public square; and to refuse to be intimidated when subjected to persecution.

As a third priority, we must witness to the transforming effect of the gospel in working for the transformation of society, so that the values of the eternal Kingdom can be seen here and now. We therefore believe that it is right to engage in the public arena with gentleness and respect (1 Peter 3:15–16), but without allowing our priorities to be shaped by the world’s agenda; that our churches should work for the protection of the environment and the economic empowerment of those who are deprived of resources; and that we should not ignore the cries of the marginalized and oppressed who need immediate aid.

We affirm the ministries of women and their vital contribution to the life of the church: their call to the task of evangelism, discipling, and building strong marriages, families, churches and communities. GAFCON 2013 upholds the Bible's teaching that men and women are equally made in the image of God, called to be his people in the body of Christ, exercising different gifts. We recognize that we have differing views over the roles of men and women in church leadership.

It grieves us that in many communities women and children are marginalized through poverty, lack of education, HIV/AIDS, the mistreatment of widows and orphans, and polygamy. Furthermore, they suffer domestic violence, sexual abuse, trafficking and abortion. We repudiate all such violence against women and children and call on the church to demonstrate respect for women, care for marginalized women and children around the world, and uphold the sanctity of human life from conception to natural death.

We are conscious of the growing number of attacks on Christians in Nigeria and Pakistan, Syria and Egypt, Sudan and many other countries. Where our brothers and sisters are experiencing persecution, we must all call on governments and leaders of other religions to respect human rights, protect Christians from violent attack and take effective action to provide for freedom of religious expression for all.

Conclusion
We are conscious of many pressures on faithful gospel witness within the church, but equally conscious of the great need the world has to hear the gospel. The need for the GFCA is greater now than when we first met in Jerusalem in 2008. We believe the Holy Spirit is challenging us and the rest of the Anglican Communion to remain faithful to our biblical heritage; to support those who suffer as a result of obedience to Christ; to deepen the spiritual life of our churches; and to respond to anti-Christian pressures with a renewed determination to spread the gospel. The seriousness with which we take our mission and our fellowship will be reflected in the way individual churches make the GAFCON vision their own, and in how we resource the work the GFCA seeks to initiate. We invite all faithful Anglicans to join the GFCA.

Finally, we make the following commitment to strengthen our fellowship and promote the gospel.

The Nairobi Commitment
We are committed to Jesus Christ as the head of the Church, the authority of his Word and the power of his gospel.  The Son perfectly reveals God to us, he is the sole ground of our salvation, and he is our hope for the future. We seek to honour him, walk in faith and obedience to his teaching, and glorify him through our proclamation of his name.

Therefore, in the power of the Holy Spirit —

1. We commit ourselves anew to The Jerusalem Statement and Declaration.
2. We commit ourselves to supporting mission, both locally and globally, including outreach to Muslims. We also commit to encouraging lay training in obedience to the Great Commission to make and mature disciples, with particular attention to recruiting and mobilizing young people for ministry and leadership.
3. We commit ourselves to give greater priority to theological education and to helping each other find the necessary resources. The purposes of theological education need clarifying so that students are better oriented to ministry, faculty are well-trained, and curricula are built on the faithful reading of Scripture.
4. We commit ourselves to defend essential truths of the biblical faith even when this defence threatens existing structures of human authority (Acts 5:29).  For this reason, the bishops at GAFCON 2013 resolved ‘to affirm and endorse the position of the Primates’ Council in providing oversight in cases where provinces and dioceses compromise biblical faith, including the affirmation of a duly discerned call to ministry. This may involve ordination and consecration if the situation requires.’
5. We commit ourselves to the support and defence of those who in standing for apostolic truth are marginalized or excluded from formal communion with other Anglicans in their dioceses. We have therefore recognized the Anglican Mission in England (AMiE) as an expression of authentic Anglicanism both for those within and outside the Church of England, and welcomed their intention to appoint a General Secretary of AMiE.
6. We commit ourselves to teach about God’s good purposes in marriage and in singleness. Marriage is a life-long exclusive union between a man and a woman. We exhort all people to work and pray for the building and strengthening of healthy marriages and families. For this reason, we oppose the secular tide running in favour of cohabitation and same-sex marriage.  
7. We commit ourselves to work for the transformation of society though the gospel. We repudiate all violence, especially against women and children; we shall work for the economic empowerment of those who are deprived; and we shall be a voice for persecuted Christians.
8. We commit ourselves to the continuation of the Global Fellowship of Confessing Anglicans, putting membership, staffing and financing onto a new basis. We shall continue to work within the Anglican Communion for its renewal and reform.
9. We commit ourselves to meet again at the next GAFCON.

Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen. (Ephesians 3:20-21)
26 October 2013

GAFCON II: A Master List of the Most Important Resources

Here at TitusOneNine
All you need to know about Gafcon II...


GAFCON Friday Press Conference from GAFCON GFCA on Vimeo

Gafcon II: October 25, 2013

GAFCON latest: The dual challenges of an aggressive secular world and increasingly worldly established church
There is nothing in Anglicanism like GAFCON. The Lambeth Conferences have all the bishops and their wives; the Anglican Consultative Council has a few representatives from each province. The Third Divine Commonwealth Conference in Nigeria from November 18-22 with 5000 people is largely composed of members of the Church of Nigeria.

GAFCON2013 is made up of bishops, clergy and lay people drawn from 38 countries numbering over 1300 people.

The Archdeacon of Cardigan, the Venerable Will Strange, describes the worship, led by a choir and a drummer as fantastic. The morning bible expositions of the Book of Ephesians have been spectacular and models of their kind.

Mini-conferences which include topics such as Gospel and Culture, Being Women of God and Episcopal Ministry have continued. There is an extraordinary energy in the Cathedral precincts where coffee, tea and meals are served as people are eagerly engaged in conversation...

GAFCON Day 4 - Global Anglicanism in its Natural State-David Ould
...They’re not the only things we’ve seen here in Nairobi just as they should be, not in a faked western presentation. The most overwhelming sense you get from this GAFCON week is that this is how it’s meant to be. There is a genuine sincerity, love and warmth being expressed between delegates that flows out of a genuinely shared commitment to and unity in the Lord Jesus Christ. That unity is being increasingly expressed in a desire to stand together in the issues facing us as a movement and in the wider Communion...

Behind the scenes of Gafcon
Accusations that Gafcon II would a political rally for the right paid for by American conservatives and fronted by their docile African allies have proven to be unfounded, so far.

Gafcon II is self-funded the Rt. Rev. Martyn Minns told Anglican Ink, with the costs of the conference evenly divided between the delegates.

Nor have forecasts of chaos proven true.  Backed by a cadre of Kenyan volunteers and an Australian-American management team, 1352 delegates have been efficiently fed, housed, moved and organized .

Gathered on the campus of All Saints Cathedral in Nairobi the conference has held its plenary sessions and informal worship in the main auditorium of the Trinity Center. The main auditorium in the three story parish hall has been able to accommodate the 30 archbishops, 301 bishops, 541 priests and deacons, and 487 lay people from 27 provinces drawn from 40 countries...

Revival and the Anglican Way
...Prof. John Senyonyi, vice-chancellor of Uganda Christian University offered a historical overview of the revival and its contemporary relevance for Anglicans. "If you are to get anything from East Africa at Gafcon 2, revival begins with an individual,” he declared.

"Revival doesn't begin with the church, it begins with me when the Holy Spirit convicts me [of my sin], I bow and say 'Lord, may you begin with me’,” he said.

Sin was ever present in our lives and we must endeavor to pursue personal holiness however, Archbishop Rwaje warned. Rwanda had been the birthplace of the revival  and he had come to faith through its influences. However, Rwanda was also the home of the genocide – a mark of human depravity.

One of the marks of the revival was the conviction of the human heart. Through the Holy Spirit "God brought unflagging zeal for revival and conviction of sin" to the hearts of man Prof. Senyonyi said...


Oct 25, 2013
The Rev. Canon Phil Ashey along with two other American Anglican Council staff members are on the ground in Nairboi, Kenya for GAFCON 2013. The AAC has been working with conference communications and led a mini-conference on the future of the GAFCON movement.



GAFCON II: Bishop Nazir Ali
Oct 23, 2013


GAFCON Thursday Highlights from GAFCON GFCA on Vimeo.


GAFCON II: Rev. Paul Perkin
October 23, 2013

Gafcon II Pics

October 24, 2013-Raymond sent these from Nairobi-click to enlarge.

 

 

Brenda and Julian Dobbs in front-Raymond to the right and behind

 

 

 

 

Gafcon II: October 23, 2013

GAFCON II: Archbishop Peter Jensen addresses Gafcon Primates
Oct 23, 2013

General secretary of the Global Fellowship of Confessing Anglicans, Dr. Peter Jensen, speaks at the luncheon in Nairobi during the Archbishop of Canterbury's visit.
 

GAFCON II: Archbishop Peter Jensen opens
Oct 22, 2013 


GAFCON II: The Lonely Church
Oct 23, 2013

David Ould: GAFCON Day 2 - A Clear Challenge to Welby and much more
...There is a tangible expectation around me that something big will be produced. As one delegate put it to me, “I didn’t just come here to network, as good as that has been. We came here to make a massive difference”. What that different will be remains to be seen, but it will not be negligible. What GAFCON has shown today is that none of us are alone and together we can effect real changes...

Legacy of East African Revival Frames GAFCON Opening Night
Appeals to scriptural authority and the urgency of a revival that spread across East Africa characterized the opening session of the Global Anglican Future Conference (GAFCON) in Nairobi, Kenya on Monday 21st October, 2013. The evening spotlighted the experience of Global South Christians who are both hosting the conference and leading the renewal movement...


GAFCON 2013 Tuesday Highlights from GAFCON GFCA on Vimeo.
(Catch a glimpse of our bishop Julian Dobbs!)

GAFCON II: Opening Press Conference

Oct 21, 2013
The opening of GAFCON II In Nairobi, Kenya

Lent and Beyond: Favorite Tweets, Quotes, Snippets from GAFCON so far…

The Chairman’s Address at the GAFCON 2013 Plenary 22nd October
The Most Rev Dr Eliud Wabukala: Primate of Kenya and Chairman of the Global Fellowship of Confessing Anglicans

Crisis in Anglican Communion is behind us, says Chair of GAFCON Christian Today

NAIROBI: Bishop Michael Nazir-Ali Attacks Secularism, Islam and Syncretism
Introducing speakers on the first full day of GAFCON II, retired Bishop of Rochester, Michael Nazir-Ali identified three major threats to Christian culture, he believed cannot be turned away from or denied any longer.

For Nazir-Ali, these threats are aggressive secularism, radical Islam and a syncretism that holds all religions to be essentially the same. The bishop went on to describe these in greater detail, beginning with secularism, which he felt "infects much of the West" and has increasing influence in other countries.

Citing research that shows human beings to have a spiritual dimension innately within themselves, Nazir-Ali acknowledged that Western people have a personal, instead of social understanding of spiritual life. Religion, which he equated with spirituality in its social aspect, has become a "bad word" in the West, and this has led inevitably to "excessive individualism."...

George Conger: Whither Gafcon II?
Gafcon is a movement in search of a mission, George Conger reports from Nairobi on the first day of the Second Global Anglican Future Conference (Gafcon).

Gafcon II began on a different key than its first assembly in 2008. The anger-tinged passion that drove the Jerusalem conference is absent from Nairobi and there is a confidence in the vigor of the global reform movement.

Yet, for its successes – playing midwife to the birth of the Anglican Church in North America, expanding the circle of supporters across the globe, garnering acknowledgement from Canterbury -- the movement is in the midst of a reimagining of its identity.

“Who are we” asked Dr. Peter Jensen, the Gafcon General Secretary in the opening address to the 1352 delegates from 40 countries representing 28 provinces. Will we be here in five years, he mused...

David Ould: GAFCON Day 1 - The Church Gathered and a Firm Word for Archbishop Welby

Surgery for US Archbishop Duncan
The Archbishop of the Anglican Church of North America underwent an emergency dental procedure in Nairobi yesterday, relieving pain and inflammation from an abscessed tooth...

Nairobi conference confirms major realignment in Anglican Communion
Opening news conference, Monday 21st October 2013

The second Global Anglican Future Conference, which opens today in Nairobi, is confirmation that the churches involved in the GAFCON movement are committed to the Anglican Communion and modelling how the communion should operate in the 21st century.

Organisers say the movement has grown since the first conference in Jerusalem in 2008.

"We have exceeded the first GAFCON both in number and reach" said the General Secretary of the Fellowship of Confessing Anglicans, Dr Peter Jensen. "We have also surpassed all expectations here in Nairobi."

Although initially expecting 1100, the final total is 1,352 Archbishops, Bishops, clergy and lay people, men and women, from almost 40 countries.

The number of bishops attending is 331, of whom 30 are Archbishops...

Churches tempted to ‘change Christian faith’ for culture
Leaders of the Global Anglican Future Conference (GAFCON) refuted characterizations in the western press of the gathering as a breakaway movement, with recently retired Archbishop Peter Jensen of Sydney responding that "nothing could be further from the truth."

Instead, the FCA General Secretary portrayed the movement as seeking to model how the worldwide Anglican Communion can function "particularly when the Communion insists on strong theological standards" centering on the bible...

GAFCON II: Archbishop Welby addresses Gafcon

Oct 20, 2013

In a surprise visit to Nairobi, Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby preaches from All Saints Cathedral. He spoke of his fondness for the goals of GAFCON and his love for the Kenyan people as they recover from the Westgate Mall attack.

BBC: Archbishop of Canterbury makes Kenya detour on way to Iceland
Archbishop Justin Welby, who arrived on Saturday night, gave sermons at All Saints Cathedral on Sunday morning.

He made the "last-minute" 24-hour trip to offer condolences after the Westgate centre attack, Lambeth Palace said.

He is also meeting conservative Church leaders who are in Nairobi for this week's conference of the breakaway world Anglican group, Gafcon.

Archbishop Welby was due to fly to Iceland - via London's Heathrow Airport - on Sunday night.

In Iceland, he will attend a primates' meeting of the Porvoo Communion, formed of churches mainly in northern Europe... BBC

Anglican structures need updating, says Archbishop
...The Secretary of the Council, Bishop Peter Jensen, former Archbishop of Sydney, said following the Archbishop's sermon that "Archbishop Justin opened the door to a changed Anglican Communion which gives us hope, although he will need to hasten to catch up with the Anglican Future which began five years ago."... Christian today

Canterbury greetings for ACNA Archbishop Duncan
The Archbishop of Canterbury, the Most Rev. & Rt. Hon. Justin Welby, greeted the Archbishop of the Anglican Church of North America, the Most Rev. Robert Duncan, before the start of services at All Saints Cathedral in Nairobi... Anglican Ink

Welby backs GAFCON vision for a renewed Church
Nairobi: The Archbishop of Canterbury offered his qualified personal endorsement to Gafcon today, telling the congregation of All Saints Cathedral in Nairobi his vision for the future of the Anglican Communion was of a Bible-based church dedicated to mission and evangelism – goals shared by the Gafcon movement of the Fellowship of Confessing Anglicans (FCA).

While Archbishop Justin Welby stopped short of giving Gafcon his formal imprimatur, he conceded the existing instruments of communion were no longer fit for purpose in ordering the life of the Anglican world.

 The archbishop also hinted the Communion may not be able to count upon the Church of England to hold the line on issues close to the heart of the Gafcon movement. Archbishop Welby recounted his strong public opposition to the British government’s same-sex marriage bill, noting it had come at a great “personal cost” to him as the culture and government were hostile to the church. However, he was silent on whether the Church of England would permit the blessing of gay civil unions.

The archbishop’s multi-layered sermon evolved over its two presentations – after being all but silent about Gafcon in his first sermon, in its second reading the archbishop spoke three times about the forthcoming Gafcon conference, set for 21-26 October 2013, at All Saints Cathedral... Anglican Ink

Okoh leads 470 Anglicans to Nairobi for GAFCON

Gafcon II: Media release October 20, 2013

Media release October 20, 2013
Thousands packed multiple services at Nairobi's All Saints Cathedral on the eve of the Global
Anglican Future Conference (Sunday 20th October).
Leading the joyous congregants was the Primate of Kenya and chairman of GAFCON, Eliud Wabukala, along with members of the GAFCON Primates Council and the Archbishop of Canterbury.

Archbishop Justin Welby joined Archbishop Robert Duncan, Primate of the Anglican Church in North America, Presiding Bishop Tito Zavala of the Southern Cone, Archbishop Daniel Deng Bul of Sudan, Archbishop Nicholas Okoh of Nigeria and Archbishop Henri Isingoma of the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Archbishops Duncan and Bishop Zavala joined in celebrating communion while Archbishop Welby preached, in a truly international event.

The Archbishop of Canterbury spoke of a 'new Anglican Communion' saying new structures were needed for the 21st Century.

Later the Primates and Archbishop Welby attended a luncheon reception.

"It is a great privilege to have shared this lunch with you and to be here as you set off on this extraordinary week which I hope and pray will move the whole Anglican Communion forward."
The General Secretary of the Fellowship of Confessing Anglicans Dr Peter Jensen said "I believe that the new Anglican Communion could be seen at the first GAFCON in 2008."

"This great gathering in Nairobi is a model for our partnership with each other within the Anglican Communion, based on the truth of the Bible." Dr Jensen said.

Photos available at GAFCON 2013 photos

Twitter feeds include GAFCON Event Feed and Official ACNA Feed

 Current Time in Niarobi Kenya -

GAFCON II set to open in Nairobi

October 19, 2013-Raymond packed and on his way to Nairobi, Kenya for Gafcon II.

G2 Program Schedule

Anglican leaders gather in Kenya
GAFCON News Release
October 17, 2013

The second Global Anglican Future Conference will get underway in Kenya on Monday 21st October, following a meeting of the Primates Council, comprising leaders of some of the world's largest Anglican churches.

1200 delegates, clergy and laity, men and women from across of the Anglican Communion will gather in Nairobi for a week-long meeting.

Among them will be victims of religious persecution in various parts of the world who will tell their story.

The programme includes 'mini-conferences' on topics such as gospel proclamation and culture, theological education, economic empowerment and the church, marriage, family and sexuality, and engaging with Islam.

The gathering is the second conference since the landmark GAFCON meeting in Jerusalem in 2008.

The Archbishop of Canterbury will make a flying visit to Nairobi just before the start of the conference to talk to the Primates. Delegates will gather at All Saints Cathedral on Monday for the opening session.

ACNA keeps the filioque clause

by George Conger
posted October 19, 2013

The decision to keep the filioque clause in “Texts for Common Prayer” represents a victory of common sense over special interests writes George Conger and is a mark of the political and theological maturity of the Anglican Church of North America.

On 18 October 2013 the ACNA released its long awaited Eucharistic liturgies. The document entitled “Texts for Common Prayer” retained the language of the double procession of the Spirit, the filioque, but permitted its omission when reciting the creed.

A draft text released in June had called for the omission of the “and the son” or filioque clause following the statement: “We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life, who proceeds from the Father.” the rest

The Oxford Martyrs and GAFCON

by Bart Gingerich
October 17, 2013

Yesterday, all self-respecting Anglicans raised a glass to the Oxford Martyrs, brave souls of whom the world was not worthy. After the gradual dissolution of the relationship between the Church of Rome and the Church of England during the reign of King Henry VIII, clergy also began to institute such corrections that became known as the English Reformation. Liturgist Thomas Cranmer was consecrated the 83rd Archbishop of Canterbury, allowing for moderate reform to continue (only 2 bishops left their posts after the break). When Henry’s son Edward VI acceded to the throne, the Church moved in an increasingly Protestant direction. Two low churchmen rose to prominence at the time: Hugh Latimer (a court preacher) and Nicholas Ridley (eventual Bishop of London). Ridley was famous for his moderating influence, holding Continental Reformation excesses at bay while correcting what he saw as grievous abuses.

When King Edward VI fell mortally ill from a lung infection, he named Lady Jane Grey, great-granddaughter of Henry VII, as the next monarch through his will. The Privy Council, which included Cranmer, signed off on the document. The Protestant leaders, of course, were scrambling to keep Edward’s Roman Catholic half sister Mary from assuming the crown. This contradicted the much stronger Third Succession Act, which granted succession rights to both Mary and her half-sister Elizabeth. Mary quickly gathered a military force of Roman sympathizers and was granted the monarchy. She immediately executed political opponents and began to hunt down religious leaders. This was an age when people died and killed for their faith. Ridley, Latimer, and Cranmer were incarcerated in Bocardo prison to stand trial at Oxford.  the rest

In this context of anything goes, Anglicans across the world and especially in the Global South have rejected the spirit of the age. They still hold to such old-fashioned approaches as having Scripture, tradition, and reason be the guides for doctrinal matters. So shamefully impolite and uncooperative!  They dare enforce absolutes and limits, for that is what a commitment to the truth demands of us. How inconvenient and inflexible! And in the unity of truth, these Anglicans will soon meet together in Nairobi at GAFCON. May their orthodox catholic naughtiness light yet another candle in this dark world.

Teen pregnancy drops as Planned Parenthood vanishes; War on Christianity; Obamacare website crashes trying to get your financial info...and more

The homosexual Left’s new crusade: Normalizing adult-child sex
...There is categorically a movement to normalize pedophilia. I’ve witnessed it firsthand and, despite “progressive” protestations to the contrary, the “pedophile rights” movement is inexorably linked to the so-called “gay rights” movement...

Why The DC Cops Stood Down During The Face Off With Our Veterans
The Obama Administration sent out the Metropolitan DC police to forcefully remove or arrest aging military veterans from their own monuments.

The cops were out in force armed with guns, stun guns, clubs, tear gas and riot helmets. When it came to the point of the veterans refusing orders to disperse or to discontinue their dismantling park service barricades the cops simply backed off of their mission and allowed the veterans to carry on.

First and foremost the veterans were peaceful and did not represent a public safety threat. They simply made a strong stand against the fascist Obama junta.

In a stunning display of disobedience the police actually stood down rather than engage in violence against the veterans. There can be no doubt that Whitehouse officials are livid that the cops allowed the veterans to dump hundreds of barricades at the entrance of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue...

A Worldwide war on Christianity
...The war on Christians is not just abroad. It came to Boston this year just in time for the marathon. Two Islamic radicals blew up dozens of civilians. I guess they thought killing women and children would somehow make a religious or political point.

 You might argue that they didn’t target Christians but they certainly didn’t target a mosque either. Their motive, if you can perceive one, was not against our government but against us as a people, a Christian people.

How someone could believe that killing innocent people would further one’s cause is beyond me.

Shortly after the attack, I met one of the Boston policemen who responded to the scene. He described his feelings as he witnessed the horror of a war zone. He described his sadness as he applied tourniquets and tried to save people. He described his anger as he helped pursue the bombers through the streets of Boston.

But he also described a special appreciation for American justice after the younger bomber was apprehended.

He said, “We didn’t drag him through the streets. We didn’t beat him to death with tire irons. He will get a lawyer. He will get a trial. That’s what separates us from them...

The war on Christians: The global persecution of Christians is the unreported catastrophe of our time

Teen pregnancy drops as Planned Parenthood vanishes
...The study comes from the pro-life American Life League, but it uses government figures to reach its conclusions. It analyzed one section of the nation – the Texas Panhandle region – where over the course of several years 19 Planned Parenthood businesses closed or left.

The result? Teen pregnancies dropped from 43.6 per 1,000 girls to 24.1 among a stable population of about 13,000 teen girls aged 13-17.

“People don’t realize that Planned Parenthood must work hard to replace the 43 percent of its customers it loses each year,” said Rita Diller, national director of ALL’s STOPP International project. “It normally does this by promoting sexual promiscuity to teens. This study suggests that when Planned Parenthood leaves, teens are more likely to embrace chastity.”...

Obamacare Might Well Be Imploding
The disastrous rollout of the federal insurance exchange could spell doom...

Reason For ObamaCare Website's Crashes? Because the System Is Built to Hide the Truth from the Customer
...Instead of showing the plans' prices, they first collect all of your financial information so they can determine your subsidy level, which allows them (in theory; the system doesn't work) to show not the price of the plan, but rather the price of the plan as reduced by the subsidy.

That step about collecting all your financial information, then swarming it all back to the central hub, then calculating a subsidy, is the part that's causing the main bottlenecks on the user side now. (But note: There are lots of problems on the insurer's side, too, as the post will discuss later.) Showing the costs of policies would be no problem, as various e-insurance referral sites demonstrate a thousand times per hour.

But they were determined to hide the cost of ObamaCare from the people, and the system, like HAL, has had a breakdown...

October rose

Raymond took this lovely photo of a late blooming rose in our backyard. This autumn weather has been so mild that many of my perennials and outdoor potted plants are still going strong.  In other years, I would have cleaned out much of the garden by now.  -PD

DOD Bars 50 Priests from Mass, Locks Up Eucharist, Priest Sues

October 15, 2013
By Terry Jeffrey

After the Obama administration locked approximately 50 Catholic priests out of saying Mass at U.S. military facilities around the world for the second Sunday in a row, Father Ray Leonard, who serves as the Catholic chaplain at Naval Submarine Base Kings Bay in Georgia, has filed suit against the Department of Defense, Defense Secretary Charles Hagel, the Department of the Navy, and Navy Secretary Ray Mabus.

DOD locked out Father Leonard and the other priests even though two weeks ago Congress passed, and President Barack Obama signed, a law that instructed DOD to maintain on the job and keep paying contract employees who were supporting the troops.

DOD took this action because Hagel determined that the Catholic priests did not, among other things, “contribute to the morale” and “well-being” of service personnel.

"Father Leonard was told that if he practiced his Catholic faith on the Naval Base, even on a volunteer basis, he would be subject to arrest,” says the lawsuit. the rest

Trying to do the Lord's work in your own strength...

Trying to do the Lord's work in your own strength is the most confusing, exhausting, and tedious of all work. But when you are filled with the Holy Spirit, then the ministry of Jesus just flows out of you. ...Corrie Ten Boom image

Albert Mohler: Falling on Deaf Ears?—Why So Many Churches Hear So Little of the Bible

October 14, 2013

Excerpt:
 In many churches, there is almost no public reading of the Word of God. Worship is filled with music, but congregations seem disinterested in listening to the reading of the Bible. We are called to sing in worship, but the congregation cannot live only on the portions of Scripture that are woven into songs and hymns. Christians need the ministry of the Word as the Bible is read before the congregation such that God’s people—young and old, rich and poor, married and unmarried, sick and well—hear it together. The sermon is to consist of the exposition of the Word of God, powerfully and faithfully read, explained, and applied. It is not enough that the sermon take a biblical text as its starting point.

How can so many of today’s churches demonstrate what can only be described as an impatience with the Word of God? The biblical formula is clear: the neglect of the Word can only lead to disaster, disobedience, and death. God rescues his church from error, preserves his church in truth, and propels his church in witness only by his Word—not by congregational self-study.  the rest   image

Rescue at Nairobi Mall; Homeschooling family sends kids to college by age 12; Obamacare glitches; Duck Dynasty and more...

Hospitals cutting thousands of jobs amid falling insurance payments and inpatient visits
...Health care providers announced more layoffs than any other industry last month — 8,128 — largely because of reductions by hospitals, according to outplacement firm Challenger Gray and Christmas. So far this year, the health care sector has announced 41,085 layoffs, the third-most behind financial and industrial companies...

Family's rescue at Nairobi mall: as if 'whole world was praying'  ...Walton said many "God things" happened that day. There was another American family in the store who recognized her boys -- Blaise, 14, and Ian, 10 -- when the attack began and got them to safety. The girls -- Portia, 4, and Gigi, 2 -- went into a type of "sleep mode" during the four- to five-hour siege, maintaining quiet and unnatural composure. Petra, 13 months, cried long and hard but others said later that they didn't even hear her.

Walton made eye contact with the terrorists several times, yet they never seemed to see her, though they were calling others out and shooting them. The woman who shielded Portia in the initial round of gunfire was injured, yet Portia remained unharmed...

US Adults Score Below Average On Worldwide Test
It's long been known that America's school kids haven't measured well compared with international peers. Now, there's a new twist: Adults don't either.

In math, reading and problem-solving using technology - all skills considered critical for global competitiveness and economic strength - American adults scored below the international average on a global test, according to results released Tuesday.

 

Adults in Japan, Canada, Australia, Finland and multiple other countries scored significantly higher than the United States in all three areas on the test. Beyond basic reading and math, respondents were tested on activities such as calculating mileage reimbursement due to a salesman, sorting email and comparing food expiration dates on grocery store tags....

Homeschooling Family Sends Six of Ten Children to College By Age Twelve
...Kip and Mona Lisa Harding state that they are simply raising the “average family,” but credit their children’s success to homeschooling and encouraging their children to pursue their passions at a young age.

“We just felt like it was our responsibility,” mother Mona Lisa told reporters about the decision to homeschool. “That’s a big choice, and [we] wanted to be totally in control and make sure they had the right upbringing, and they accelerated because of it.”...

From the Start, Signs of Trouble at Health Portal
...“These are not glitches,” said an insurance executive who has participated in many conference calls on the federal exchange. Like many people interviewed for this article, the executive spoke on the condition of anonymity, saying he did not wish to alienate the federal officials with whom he works. “The extent of the problems is pretty enormous. At the end of our calls, people say, ‘It’s awful, just awful.' ”...NYT

Duck Dynasty: Walks and Talks Like a Hit
...For all of their peculiarities, the Robertsons are a stable and loving family who actually enjoy one another’s company. The men—despite their bellowing—love their wives. The women—despite their rolled eyes—love their husbands. The children—despite their ages—respect their parents. They are a family that works together, plays together, and—oh yes—prays together, and it is for these reasons that the Robertsons feel so familiar to so many people...

Food Stamp Glitch Leaves Walmart Shelves Bare: ‘Like a Tornado Had Came Through’
“It was worse than any Black Friday”

Anglicans could receive Roman Catholic communion, Archbishop suggests

The ban on Anglicans receiving Roman Catholic Holy Communion could be relaxed as part of moves to bring the two churches together after centuries of division, one of Britain’s most senior Catholic clerics has suggested.
By John Bingham

11 Oct 2013

 

The Archbishop of Birmingham, the Most Rev Bernard Longley, signalled that restrictions, which can be traced back to the Reformation, might be “reconsidered” as a result of “deeper sharing” between the two churches.

 

Although he insisted that he was expressing a “personal view”, the Archbishop’s comments will be closely watched as he is the senior Catholic cleric responsible for dialogue with the Anglican churches.
 

His remarks were warmly welcomed by leading figures in the Church of England who said it was time for closer ties. the rest

Powerful Cyclone Phailin forces massive evacuations in India

By Mark Magnier

October 12, 2013

NEW DELHI -- India was battered by a massive cyclone Saturday as nearly half a million people evacuated to shelters in vulnerable coastal and low-lying areas amid power outages, large storm surges and canceled trains and flights.

Officials said Cyclone Phailin was expected to affect 12 million people in the eastern states of Odisha and Andhra Pradesh with the potential to become a “super cyclone,” which occurs when wind speeds exceed 135 miles per hour.

"This is one of the largest evacuations undertaken in India," Shashidhar Reddy, vice chairman of the National Disaster Management Authority, told reporters in the capital, New Delhi. “Our priority is to minimize loss of life.”  the rest

A.S. Haley: Judgment in Quincy; Chicago Denied Substitution, $1.1 Million Released

Friday, October 11, 2013

On October 9, 2013, Judge Thomas H. Ortbal of the Adams County Circuit Court entered a final judgment against ECUSA and its (no-longer-existent) “Diocese of Quincy”. The judgment decrees and declares that the Anglican Diocese of Quincy is the sole owner of its real and personal property, including approximately $4 million in its bank accounts that has been frozen ever since ECUSA first wrote a letter to its bank in January 2009.

In order to keep the funds frozen, ECUSA had filed a motion to stay enforcement of the judgment pending its appeal to the Fourth District Court of Appeals. It also filed a motion to substitute, in place of its former “Diocese of Quincy”, the Episcopal Diocese of Chicago, into which the former Diocese of Quincy merged ecclesiastically effective September 1.

In a separate order, also entered October 9, Judge Ortbal denied on technical grounds the motion to substitute in the Diocese of Chicago, and stayed the main judgment as to all but the real property and $1.1 million of the funds on deposit. He did not require any bond from either side.
The judgment as entered makes several key findings of fact: the rest

Comments at Stand Firm

SC Judge upholds injunction against TEC
St. George, SC, October 11, 2013 – South Carolina Circuit Judge Diane S. Goodstein today ruled in favor of the Diocese of South Carolina’s position that her injunction, which prohibits The Episcopal Church (TEC) and the Episcopal Church in South Carolina (ECSC) from using the names and seal of the Diocese of South Carolina, should remain in place.

Judge Goodstein issued the injunction and temporary restraining order in January.

“I’m not going to disturb the injunction,” she said.  The judge said it will remain in place to protect the diocese’s duly registered marks. Under South Carolina civil law those are entitled to protection.
“I’m encouraged by this ruling, for the clarity it allows us in continuing with the mission and ministry of the Diocese,” said the Rt. Rev. Mark Lawrence, bishop of the diocese...

Archbp. Welby on confession; Porn: the new narcotic; Britian in danger of becoming anti-Christian...more

Another ObamaCare Success Story: Thousands of Connecticut Doctors Fired by United HealthCare
...In the midst of major changes in health care, United HealthCare has sent thousands of pink slips to Connecticut doctors.

Termination letters went to physicians caring for Medicare patients.

Those letters were sent out to doctors caring for ‘Medicare Advantage’ patients...

'Catholic' confession is good for the soul - says Archbishop of Canterbury
The Archbishop of Canterbury is encouraging Anglicans to adopt the practice of going to confession, a tradition more commonly associated with the Roman Catholic Church.

Priest Threatened With Arrest, Says Mass in Park
...For a man who has offered sacraments under fire, one imagines government bureaucracy is not a very intimidating challenge. Undeterred by the restrictions he faced against saying Mass on base, Fr. Shaughnessy found a way to serve the soldiers he is so dedicated to...

Bishop Nazir-Ali warns Britain in danger of becoming “anti-Christian”

...Drawing on his own experience of persecution, both personally and as President of OXTRAD, Bishop Nazir-Ali said that persecution "always begins with marginalisation and discrimination in the workplace and in public life".

He added that Britain is in danger of becoming not just "unchristian" but "anti-Christian" unless the growing marginalisation of Christian faith in Britain is addressed...

Mennonite Art Gallery Owners Sue State Civil Rights Commission Over Hosting Same-Sex Marriages  ...The Odegaards allege that their "religious beliefs forbid them from planning, facilitating, or hosting wedding ceremonies that contradict their religious understanding of marriage."...

Albert Mohler: How Pornography Works: It Hijacks the Male Brain
...And then, enough is never enough. “If I take the same dose of a drug over and over and my body begins to tolerate it, I will need to take a higher dose of the drug in order for it to have the same effect that it did with a lower dose the first time,” Struthers reminds us. So, the experience of viewing pornography and acting out on it creates a demand in the brain for more and more, just to achieve the same level of pleasure in the brain.

While men are stimulated by the ambient sexual images around them, explicit pornography increases the effect. Struthers compares this to the difference between traditional television and the new high definition technologies. Everything is more clear, more explicit, and more stimulating...

Porn: The New Narcotic
...Neurological research has revealed that the effect of internet pornography on the human brain is just as potent—if not more so—than addictive chemical substances such as cocaine or heroin...

CT: Outlawed Episcopalians, now Anglicans, Given Baptist Church for Free

By David W. Virtue
October 8, 2013

It took them five years of persistent prayer, fasting and believing God would answer their prayers.

This week He did just that. Trinity Episcopal Church in Bristol, Connecticut (now Holy Trinity Anglican Church), one of the original Connecticut 6 who stood up to the Diocese of Connecticut and its Bishop Andrew D. Smith and the Episcopal Church over the authority of Scripture, the public acceptance of pansexual behaviors and said "NO MORE", unexpectedly saw God answer their prayers.

"We prayed persistently and with faith for the Holy Spirit to guide us to our future home. After 5 years in the 'desert' (read Forestville, Conn.), our prayers were answered. A Baptist parish about two miles from our worship home had lost all but 6 of its members and decided to close its doors. They graciously gave us his church building and property. No strings attached, no cost, no hidden charges," said Fr. Don Helmandollar, rector of Holy Trinity Anglican.

Their minister met with Fr. Don, now an Anglican priest in the Convocation of Anglicans in North America (CANA), which reports to the Church of Nigeria Anglican Communion. CANA is a constituent member of the Anglican Church in North America (ACNA). Their new bishop is the Rt. Rev. Julian Dobbs.  the rest

What 'gay marriage' did to Massachusetts

Oct 7, 2013

The consequences of homosexual marriage: Most people have no idea what REALLY happens when "gay marriage" is imposed.

The decline of the art of Anglican lying

by George Conger
posted October 9, 2013

Excerpt:
The political currents in the Church of England do not favor Archbishop Welby’s public embrace of the Gafcon movement. At the 2008 Gafcon meeting in Jerusalem, Bishops Michael Nazir Ali and Wallace Benn of the Church of England were among the leaders of the gathering. While there will be a large number of English participants at Gafcon, I do not believe there will be any bishops.

And, the battles within the Church of England over women bishops and human sexuality, coupled with a hostile culture and government have focused the church’s gaze inward in the past few years. There is not the overt hostility to Gafcon this time around as there was in 2008 in some quarters – but the case has yet to be made to the institutional CoE why the global reform movement should be embraced, not feared.

Factor into this equation the fact that of all the diocesan bishops, Justin Welby of Canterbury is likely the most favorable to the ideals of the Gafcon movement. The African bishops understand Justin Welby cannot deliver his church, cannot deliver upon a commitment without synodical and episcopal backing.

As of Friday of last week the Anglican world had reached equilibrium over Gafcon. Archbishop Welby would be there in spirit, but not in person. The scenario that was likely to unfold was that the conference leaders would produce a grand statement laying out their beliefs and points of contention with the progressive wing of the church. But they would also find a way to give aid and support to Justin Welby – even if they managed a kick or two in the Church of England’s shins over civil partnerships.

Monday’s announcement that Justin Welby would be meeting with the Gafcon primates before the conference will  enlarge but not alter this scenario. We will still see a statement of beliefs from the conference around their future hopes for the Communion, but I expect a greater degree of sympathy for Archbishop Welby’s position within the Church of England.  the rest