Anglican diocese of Leeds in serious financial crisis

From The Guardian-

The Church of England’s largest diocese, Leeds, is facing a serious financial crisis, forcing it to make staff redundant, close its pension scheme and review salaries.

The diocese of Leeds has drawn up an action plan in an effort to tackle a £3m deficit. It has told staff that up to 14 people will lose their jobs, inviting them to apply for voluntary redundancy. It may also impose compulsory redundancies.

Its defined benefit pension scheme will close at the end of the year. It will reduce four pay scales to one, and evaluate jobs “to ensure the correct levels of pay” have been set.

A letter sent to all members of the Leeds diocesan synod – its ruling body – said the diocese had run a “significant deficit in 2017 and continues to do so”.

The proposals to tackle this had been explained to staff, and a number of them had been given “very difficult news”, the letter said. Synod members were asked to “keep them in your prayers through this difficult time”.

More here-

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/jul/30/c-of-e-leeds-diocese-anglican-financial-crisis

Almost half of C of E cathedrals face financial crisis and could be forced to charge for entry to avoid closing

From The Daily Mail-

Almost half of England's Anglican cathedrals are facing financial crisis and could be forced to start charging for entry to avoid closing their doors, it has emerged.

Deans are meeting in London this week for crisis talks amid fears over the spiralling running costs of the ancient buildings at a time when public funding is drying up.

About 11 million people visit a cathedral each year but daily running costs can reach well into the thousands of pounds.

It has forced nine of the historic properties so far - including St Paul's in London and York Minster - to start charging an entry fee with many more set to follow suit if a solution is not found.
The remaining 33 rely on donations and grants as well as income from commercial sources.


Read more:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-4439408/Half-Church-England-cathedrals-face-financial-crisis.html

Churches may be stripped, CBC warns after ruling

From The Church Times-

A RULING authorising a central-London church to sell an 18th-century painting could tempt other churches to sell off their treasures "to the highest bidder", Anne Sloman, who chairs the Church Buildings Council (CBC), has warned.

A judgment handed down on Wednesday of last week (see story below), in the Consistory Court, by the Diocesan Chancellor, the Worshipful Nigel Seed QC, granted a faculty to St Stephen's, Walbrook, to sell the painting Devout Men Taking the Body of St Stephen, by Benjamin West. The picture has been bought by an anonymous foundation for $2.85 million (£1.88 million), and will be loaned to the Museum of Fine Art, Boston, the website Art History News reported last Friday.

Judge Seed said that the painting compromised the integrity of Sir Christopher Wren's design of the building, and that the painting had probably been introduced to the church in 1776 without a faculty.

The CBC was party opponent to the faculty. Its legal counsel and witnesses acted pro bono. In a witness statement, Mrs Sloman said: "We understand the temptation for churches to sell off valuable works of art; but if such sales are given validity through success in even one or two instances, the parish churches of England could quickly be stripped of many of the treasures that make them unique."

More here-

http://www.churchtimes.co.uk/articles/2013/19-july/news/uk/churches-may-be-stripped,-cbc-warns-after-ruling

Statement from Bishop Gibbs: A reminder of why we must pray, place our faith in God

From Michigan-

 Dear Sisters and Brothers in Christ,
 
The past several days have provided an opportunity for a range of emotions. First, court watchers were informed of the verdict in the trial of George Zimmerman and then the region, the nation and the world heard the news of the bankruptcy filing affecting the City of Detroit. 

With regard to the Zimmerman trial, for some the 'not guilty' verdict was a stunning disappointment, for some it was a matter of justice served; for many the verdict was confirmation of a less than equal justice system, for others it was a validation that the rule of law works. For me, as a man of African descent, the verdict was a major red flag that the struggle for racial equality in this country is far from over. As a person of color, the verdict is a warning sign that those who do not share my ebony heritage have yet to grasp the reality of privilege claimed by the majority culture in all levels of our society. As a black man, the verdict is an indication that the election of an African-American to the highest elected office in this nation does not signal a lessening of racial tensions in this country, and, that black families must still caution their kin to be watchful in certain neighborhoods and communities lest they be arrested, attacked or killed based solely on their skin color.

More here-

http://archive.constantcontact.com/fs140/1112627673537/archive/1114210302844.html

New York's Financial District in Chaos on 'Occupy Wall Street' Anniversary

From US News and World Report-

There was sound and some fury — and dozens of arrests — Monday as the Occupy Wall Street movement marked its one-year anniversary by trying to bottle-up the fat cats in the Financial District.

But the demonstrators quickly found themselves penned-in by cops, who arrested 63 people as of 10 a.m., police sources said — including retired Episcopal Bishop George Packard, a decorated Vietnam vet who served as a military chaplain during the Iraq War.

There was plenty of raging against the man, but no reports of serious violence between police and protesters.

Demonstrator Robert Cammiso said the activists’ goal is to be heard — not necessarilly get arrested.

"This may be the last opportunity we have before the election to have the voices of the people heard," said Cammiso, 47, a construction worker from Brooklyn.

More here-

http://www.usnews.com/news/articles/2012/09/17/new-yorks-financial-district-in-chaos-on-occupy-wall-street-anniversary

Giles Fraser: The danger of being respectable

From The Church Times-

Judging from the number of phone calls I have had recently, the academics are beginning to get their teeth into the Occupy protests. Mostly, they ask the same things, and get the same replies. But, this week, a particularly well-informed post-graduate asked me a question that unexpectedly opened up a portal into my soul. He simply used the phrase "reputational risk". The hairs on the back of my neck stood up.

"Reputational risk" was a phrase often used at St Paul's Cathedral, and in the City generally, and one that a number of us especially disliked. What would the man who was attacked for hanging out with prostitutes and tax-collectors have made of "reputational risk"?

Surely he would have had no place for it. Indeed, he was the stone that the builders rejected, and yet became the cornerstone. So how is it that the Church built in his name has become so concerned with its own reputation? In a sense, if the Church does not have a bad reputation - or, perhaps better still, if it were indifferent to the fact that it might - it would not be doing its job properly.

More here-

http://www.churchtimes.co.uk/articles/2012/17-august/comment/columnists/giles-fraser-the-danger-of-being-respectable

Church giving drops $1.2 billion reports 2012 Yearbook of Churches

From NCC-

Churches continue to feel the effects of "the Great Recession" of 2008 as contributions dropped $1.2 billion, according to the National Council of Churches' 2012 Yearbook of American & Canadian Churches.

Membership trends in denominations reporting to the Yearbook remain stable, with growing churches still growing and declining churches still declining, reports the Rev. Dr. Eileen Lindner, the Yearbook's editor.

The 80th annual edition of the Yearbook, one of the oldest and most respected sources of church membership and financial trends in the U.S. and Canada, may be ordered for $55 each at www.yearbookofchurches.org.

Not all churches report their financial information to the Yearbook, Lindner said, but the downward trends are reasons for concern.

The nearly $29 billion contributed by nearly 45 million church members is down $1.2 billion from figures reported in the 2011 Yearbook, Lindner said.

"This enormous loss of revenue dwarfs the $431 million decrease reported last year and provides clear evidence of the impact of the deepening crises in the reporting period," Lindner wrote.

In terms of per capita giving, the $763 contributed per person is down $17 from the previous year, according to Lindner, a 2.2 percent drop. The decline "took place in the context of ongoing high unemployment and a protracted economic downturn," Lindner wrote.

More here-

http://www.ncccusa.org/news/120209yearbook2012.html

Bishop of Durham issues hard hitting New Year message

From England-

The Bishop of Durham has issued a hard hitting message for the New Year.

In it, Bishop Justin calls for confidence, optimism and hope based on God's love and urges generosity and courage to make a stance against the downturn in the economy and the impact on jobs.

"I would love to see business leaders making sane plans for expansion, investment and creation of jobs. Lets remember that investing in people is the very best asset any business can possess."

Bishop Justin
"I'm setting myself three New Year Resolutions to seek at all levels, generosity, care about moral values and spiritual renewal," he said.

"These are key messages for all of us to take to our hearts in what is sure to be a very challenging new year in 2012.

"But, if we all work together for the common good, we can turn these difficult times into something that can have a significant beneficial effect.”

More here-

http://www.thenorthernecho.co.uk/news/local/darlington/9444055.Bishop_of_Durham_issues_hard_hitting_New_Year_message/

St. Mark's Cathedral to Occupy Seattle: No room in the parking lot

From Seattle-

St. Mark's Cathedral, while professing its love for social justice, has denied a request by Occupy Seattle to pitch tents as "offices" in the cathedral's parking lot, a few blocks north of the movement's recent Seattle Central Community College encampment.

The pre-Christmas no-room-in-the-parking-lot decision was made by St. Mark's governing Vestry, which has in the past allowed the Tent City homeless encampment to pitch multiple tents in the lot of the Episcopal cathedral.

"The heart of the cathedral community is in social justice, but legal and financial constraints made it unrealistic for us to approve the request," said the Rev. Canon Rebecca McClain, senior priest on the cathedral staff.

Coast-to-coast actions by churches show that the nimbus of the Occupy movement is wearing thin.

Trinity Church, the wealthy Episcopal congregation in New York's lower Manhattan, has fed and clothed Occupy Wall Street protesters -- but has refused to let them camp on a church-owned gravel lot. Several demonstrators were arrested there last weekend after scaling a chain-link fence onto the lot.

More here-

http://www.seattlepi.com/local/connelly/article/St-Mark-s-Cathedral-to-Occupy-Seattle-No-room-2418633.php

Episcopal clergy arrested after entering Trinity Church property

From ENS-

Retired Episcopal Bishop George Packard and at least two other Episcopal priests were arrested Dec. 17 after they entered a fenced property — owned by Trinity Episcopal Church, Wall Street — in Duarte Square in Lower Manhattan as part of Occupy Wall Street‘s “D17 Take Back the Commons” event to celebrate three months since the movement’s launch.

Livestream video showed the former Episcopal bishop for the armed forces and federal ministries, dressed in purple vestments and wearing a cross, climbing a ladder that protesters erected against the fence at about 3:30 p.m. and dropping to the ground inside the property. Packard was the first to enter the site. Other protesters followed, including the Rev. John Merz and the Rev. Michael Sniffen, Episcopal priests in the Diocese of Long Island.

More here-

http://episcopaldigitalnetwork.com/ens/2011/12/18/episcopal-clergy-arrested-after-entering-trinity-church-property/

Desmond Tutu Backs Occupy Wall Street Push for Duarte Square

Form New York-

Occupy Wall Street protesters seeking long-term use of a Trinity Church-owned lot in Hudson Square gained a powerful backer Thursday night, when Archbishop Desmond Tutu urged the house of worship to allow protesters to use the space.

In a "message of solidarity" posted to OccupyWallStreet.org that addressed protesters as "Sisters and Brothers," the South African Nobel Peace Prize winner likened his country's and the protesters' struggles and asked Trinity to work with them.

"I appeal to [Trinity] to find a way to help you," he wrote. "I appeal to them to embrace the higher calling of Our Lord Jesus Christ — which they live so well in all other ways."

Tutu added on Friday that protesters seeking to occupy land at the northeast corner of Varick and Canal streets, where demonstrators and a DNAinfo photographer were arrested Nov. 15, should not use his statement to justify breaking the law.

"It is not necessary to forcibly break into property. Nor is it [necessary] to reinforce or build higher the barriers between people of faith who seek peace and justice," he said.

Read more:

http://www.dnainfo.com/20111216/greenwich-village-soho/desmond-tutu-backs-occupy-wall-street-push-for-duarte-square#ixzz1gnEc3hPf

Episcopal bishop urges restraint from Occupy NYC

From The Wall Street Journal-

The top bishop of the Episcopal Church is asking Occupy Wall Street protesters not to trespass on the property of a New York City church that has supported them.

In a rare comment on a local issue, Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori (SHOHR'-ee) said in a statement Friday it's "regrettable" Occupy members want to seize fenced-in property owned by Trinity Wall Street Episcopal church in Manhattan. She says it could result in "legal and police action."

Occupy press representatives say protesters may take over Duarte Square on Saturday to mark three months of the movement against economic inequality.

The protesters were cleared from their encampment at lower Manhattan's Zuccotti Park on Nov. 15. They have asked church officials to let them occupy the church-owned property but have been denied.

http://online.wsj.com/article/AP0de3284907504b0a9d9d974d1a9e0dfa.html

London moves to evict protestors near cathedral on Occupy movement's 'action day'

From ENS-

Protestors around the world joined those in New York and other parts of the United States who marched and demonstrated on Nov. 17 in a Global Action Day marking the two-month anniversary of the Occupy Wall Street movement.

Morning livestream video views of Wall Street marchers ran beside views of marchers in Greece. The OWS website listed plans for university student strikes in Spain, Belgium and Germany, and "spontaneous solidarity actions in Tokyo."

Begun Sept. 17 and inspired by the Arab Spring movement, OWS protests against greed and economic inequality have spread to more than 2,400 locations across the country and around the world. Recent days have seen police in many locations working to oust encampments of protesters, from New York to Portland, Oregon, to Halifax in Ontario, Canada.

In England, the City of London Corporation on Nov. 17 proceeded with eviction notices for protestors camped on the land it owns surrounding the precincts of St. Paul's Cathedral, giving them until 6 p.m. (1 p.m. EDT) to clear the "public highways" or face legal action. The protestors have said they have no intention of moving from the site.

Cathedral officials initially supported legal measures to clear protestors, but following widespread criticism – resulting in two senior clergy resigning – agreed to suspend such action.

More here-

http://www.episcopalchurch.org/81808_130544_ENG_HTM.htm

Faith overtones in Occupy protests but leaders wary

From Reuters-

Religions condemn greed. The "Occupy Wall Street" protests around the world condemn greed. So theoretically, religious leaders should find common ground with the rallies denouncing the inequalities of capitalism.

Some activist clergy have turned up at protest camps. Not long after Occupy Wall Street began in New York, some Christians arrived in Zuccotti Park with papier-mache statues of a golden calf, a Biblical symbol of idol worship.

But the hierarchies have kept their distance - or tried to - even though the protests have religious overtones with appeals to equality, charity and justice. When protesters camped at St Paul's Cathedral in London, its Church of England staff found itself torn between God and Mammon.

In the United States, Roman Catholic bishops are meeting this week without economic inequality on their agenda. The Jewish Week newspaper called the Occupy movement a "new third rail for the Jewish mainstream".

Some imams have joined the protests to speak about the advantages of Islamic finance, which bans interest and focuses on investing in the real economy. But the movement has not been a central issue for most large Muslim organizations.

More here-

http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/11/16/us-protest-occupy-religion-idUSTRE7AE0WX20111116

Episcopal clergy continue support following Occupy Wall Street camp breakup in New York

From ENS-

As Occupy Wall Street (OWS) protestors regrouped after New York police ousted them in a pre-dawn Nov. 15 raid from the movement's original encampment in Manhattan's Zuccotti Park, Episcopal clergy and other interfaith leaders in New York continued their support and planned for the future. Efforts included trying to secure meeting space for protestors and lining up shelter for occupiers if they are not allowed to camp in the park.
In a morning press conference, New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg said he authorized the park clearing because of public health and safety concerns and that protestors would be allowed to return but not to camp in the privately owned park.

"Protestors have had two months to occupy the park with tents and sleeping bags. Now they will have to occupy the space with the power of their arguments," he said.

Clergy leaders who have supported the movement said they were prepared to help protestors to do just that.

More here-

http://www.episcopalchurch.org/79425_130515_ENG_HTM.htm

News UK news Occupy London St Paul's brought to its knees by confusion and indecision

From London-

It is a national icon, rebuilt by Wren after the Great Fire of London, which became a symbol of British resolve during the Blitz, but the clergy of St Paul's Cathedral have through their bizarre and indecisive handling of the protest on their doorstep conspired to create a crisis unprecedented in the institution's history.

Two leading figures in the clergy have stepped down in less than a week along with a part-timer, another member of staff is off sick with stress and there is the possibility of a violent Dale Farm-style eviction from the steps of the cathedral.

Even if that can be avoided, as all parties say they want, the decision to start legal proceedings against the Occupy the London Stock Exchange movement will almost certainly lead to an expensive and lengthy court battle.

Paul Handley, editor of the Church Times since 1995, cannot remember a crisis to have engulfed an Anglican cathedral on such a scale or with such publicity. "It's not just about the Church, it's the Church and a political event. The Church is capable of shooting itself in the foot. All those rows about gay sex that occupy it, we're used to it. But when it's something that touches the life of the nation, it's on a different scale altogether. It's beyond their ken.

"St Paul's is a place where many different forces collide, it is a national icon, it is in the City of London. The dean has had the mayor of London, the home secretary and David Cameron all on his back. There's been a huge amount of pressure."

More here-

http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2011/oct/31/st-pauls-knees-confusion-indecision?newsfeed=true

ENGLAND: St. Paul's Cathedral dean announces resignation

From ENS

The dean of St. Paul's Cathedral, London, has resigned saying his position "was becoming untenable" due to mounting criticism of the way the cathedral has responded to some 200 anti-capitalist protestors who've been camped outside since Oct. 16.

Dean Graeme Knowles, who made the announcement during an Oct. 31 press conference, said that the last two weeks have "been a testing time" for the chapter (senior cathedral clergy) "and for me personally." He said that he believes he is no longer the right person to lead the cathedral.

Knowles' resignation comes four days after the Rev. Giles Fraser left his post as canon chancellor because the cathedral had decided to support legal action to remove the protestors.

Fraser said he could not support what he said might be "a course of action that could mean there will be violence in the name of the church."

Since the arrival of the Occupy London protesters, Knowles said that the cathedral staff has "been put under a great deal of strain and ... faced what would appear to be some insurmountable issues. I hope and pray that under new leadership these issues might continue to be addressed and that there might be a swift and peaceful resolution."

More here-

http://www.episcopalchurch.org/81808_130361_ENG_HTM.htm

Bishop silent on bid to 'cleanse' cathedral

From Lomdon-

London's Anglican Bishop Richard Charters ducked questions on the church's plans to smash the anti-poverty protest camp at the foot of St Paul's today.

Dr Chartres met face-to-face with members of Occupy London Stock Exchange for the first time yesterday morning - but his message was much the same.

The bishop has repeatedly called for the 300-odd protesters to abandon their camp, erected in St Paul's Square more than a fortnight ago after police barred them from a privately owned square directly outside the exchange.

But the cathedral's clerics sparked a public outcry on Friday when they said in a statement that they were prepared to take legal action to evict the protesters.

The move cracked open a rift within the church, pitting church leaders, who said the protest had made its point, against grass-roots groups who accused the cathedral of abandoning Christian principles - and the building's ancient tradition of sanctuary.

Others have alleged pressure from the City itself in light of the Cathedral's dependence on wealthy, well-connected trustees and FTSE-listed corporate donors.

More here-

http://www.morningstaronline.co.uk/news/content/view/full/111376

Religion Flocks to Wall Street

From The American Spectator-

Because they are Americans, the Wall Street Occupiers are suffused with messianic purpose, as are nearly all our nation's American political crusades. But the often raggedy Occupiers themselves do not seem specifically oriented towards organized religion.

Not to worry. Religious Leftists of all sorts have rallied to the Occupiers' bedraggled banners. Guided by the Social Gospel's emphasis on social justice over theological details, these religionists discern God's Kingdom among the squatters' tents and sleeping bags. One group of clergy visited while carrying a mock golden idol shaped like the dreaded Wall Street Bull, the very incarnation of greed.

Praising the Occupation is a gamble for liberal evangelicals, who have tried so hard to appear centrist in recent years, anxious to softly persuade suburban churchgoers to abandon their conservative voting habits. Oldline Protestant elites, along with left-wing Catholic activists, of course welcome the Occupation as a long overdue 1960s reviva

More here-

http://spectator.org/archives/2011/10/28/religion-flocks-to-wall-street

300 religious leaders back Occupy Wall St.

From UPI-

About 300 religious congregations and spiritual leaders have signed a statement supporting the values of Occupy Wall Street activists, a New York church said.

The places of worship and clergy people "support the spirit of Occupy Wall Street," the Rev. Donna Schaper of New York's Judson Memorial Church, affiliated with American Baptist Churches USA and the United Church of Christ, told the online TV Odyssey Networks.

"We're not an organization. We're not trying to join Occupy. We're really here to make a moral and spiritual statement in support of a new democratic energy," said Schaper, whose church came up with the idea.

"Our traditions are clear," the statement says. "The impoverishment of the many for the benefit of the few destroys us all. The cries of our people are clear -- the American dream is compromised, the middle is slipping away, and in our politics, fairness is dissipating.

Read more:

http://www.upi.com/Top_News/US/2011/10/21/300-religious-leaders-back-Occupy-Wall-St/UPI-53801319184000/#ixzz1bR6XAkSa