In Good Faith: A Flintstones’ Christmas

From Minnesota-

Did you know, there’s a Christmas episode of “The Flintstones”? It originally aired on Dec. 25, 1964, as part of the original cartoon series. In it, Fred gets a part-time job at Macyrock’s department store to help finance the family’s Christmas. Mr. Macyrock initially fires Fred for being his usual doofus self, but reconsiders when he learns that the store’s regular Santa Claus has the flu. Fred proves a natural at entertaining the children and by the end of his stint, Mr. Macyrock proclaims Fred as the best Santa they’ve ever had.

Oh, but that’s not the end of the story. On Christmas Eve, two of Santa’s elves, named Blinky and Twinky, appear to Fred as Macyrock’s is closing for the night. They explain to Fred that the real Santa Claus is sick and they ask him to help deliver presents to children around the world. As Fred steps in to save the day, we see him perched atop Santa’s sleigh shouting “Merry Christmas” in French, Italian, German, Dutch, English and Swedish.

This is all very nice; until you do the math. And you think, “Wait a minute. The Flintstones took place in the Stone Age. That was 2.5 million years before Jesus was born in Bethlehem!”

More here-

http://www.crookstontimes.com/opinion/20181220/in-good-faith-flintstones-christmas

St. Paul’s braces for change as popular reverend prepares to retire

From Philadelphia-

The Rev. E. Cliff Cutler, the 11th rector of the 150-year-old Saint Paul’s Episcopal Church, is the first to admit that change is certain to bring about anxiety among his 400 parishioners.

Last month, in a two-page letter to the community, Cutler wrote that after much prayer and discernment, he will retire at the end of April 2019. By then he will be 70 years old.

Cutler noted that one young mother opened the letter and just cried.

“Her emotions were very touching,” he said. “So yes, there is sadness, but I want the church members to know how resilient we are, and they can be confident in their ability to go forward and find a new leader. There are exciting opportunities ahead and it’s time to let someone else take the next step. I’ll miss the people here; they are gifted in so many ways. There is a lot of warmth, talent and love here and everything will work out.”

There were several factors that convinced Cutler that it was time for a change.

Last winter, he suffered double pneumonia and other respiratory issues that sent him in and out of the hospital.

More here-

https://www.chestnuthilllocal.com/2018/12/20/st-pauls-braces-for-change-as-popular-reverend-prepares-to-retire/

ACK priests who sued church over gay claims get Sh6.8m

From Kenya-

Three Anglican Church of Kenya priests from Nyeri who were initially suspended from pastoral duties over allegations of engaging in homosexuality have finally received a compensation of Sh6.8 million from the church after a four-year court battle.

The compensation is for psychological trauma flowing from the circumstances their ministerial services in the church were terminated.

It also covers withheld salaries and benefits for the period their preaching licences had been withdrawn.

They were suspended from officiating church services in August 2015 and were reinstated by court in September 2016 after a finding that the suspension was unlawful.

COMPENSATION AMOUNTS

Archdeacon John Gachau will receive Sh2.4 million while James Maigua and Paul Warui will get Sh2.2 million each.

More here-

https://www.nation.co.ke/counties/nyeri/ACK-priests-in-gay-case-get-Sh6-8m/1954190-4903728-fhn993z/index.html

Anglican Priest to Face Off with Baro

From New Guinea-

For the first time, Papua New Guinea will witness an Anglican priest, Father David Smith, also known as the Fighting Father Dave, take on local boxer from Wanigela Luke Baro in Saturday’s first-ever Oceania Professional Boxing championships.

One wonders as to why a priest is getting involved in the boxing contest but the Sydney-based Anglican parish priest has something to share and hopes the sport of boxing can be a tool for change.
When asked about being a priest and involving in professional boxing, Smith said he got involved in the sport to change ways and lives of the people around him.

“I spent 28 years of my life as a parish priest in Sydney. I was in Sydney’s south before I was moved to Dulwich Hill (Sydney’s inner-west) where that place or area was rife for drugs. I began teaching and working with young people with drug problems and opened the church hall as an area where local youths could do fitness and martial arts training,” Smith said after arriving in the country.

More here-

https://postcourier.com.pg/anglican-priest-face-off-baro/

Bishop of Ahoada Diocese, Clement N.Ekpeye kidnapped

From Nigeria-

Daredevil kidnappers abducted the Rt.Reverend Clement N.Ekpeye, JP, honourable Bishop of Ahoada Diocese of the Anglican Communion at about 7pm on Tuesday, December 18.

The dastardly incident happened ,at Bishop’s Court,,which his official residence at Odiemerenyi road,in Ahoada town,in Ahoada East local government area ofthe State.

The incident was made known to our Correspondent last night,Tuesday December 18 at about 10 pm through a terse by the Clerical Synod Secretary of the Diocese,the official Spokesman of Ahoada Diocese.

At the time of going to the press,no further details surrounding the kidnap was given, except the Clerical Synod Secretary calling for prayers fo the Bishop’s quick release by his abductors.

More here-

https://www.thenewsnigeria.com.ng/2018/12/bishop-of-ahoada-diocese-clement-n-ekpeye-kidnapped/

Pacific Anglican leaders call for West Papua action

From New Zealand-

The leaders of Anglican churches in New Zealand and four Pacific Island countries are calling for an end to human rights abuses in West Papua.

In a public statement on Friday, ten bishops and archbishops in New Zealand also said West Papua must put on the agenda at international forums.

The Bishop-Elect of Polynesia, which represents Fiji, Tonga, Samoa and the Cook Islands, also signed the statement.

The Anglican leaders called on their governments to support bringing the issue of West Papua to the United Nations.

They said the sale of natural resources sourced in West Papua should be investigated and restricted or banned.

Attention on restive Papua in recent weeks has centred on the massacre of at least 16 Indonesian workers by the West Papua Liberation Army.

The Liberation Army claimed the workers were military spies.

More here-

https://www.radionz.co.nz/international/pacific-news/378624/pacific-anglican-leaders-call-for-west-papua-action

‘World’s most loved carol’ turns 200

From Florida-

In Austria today, “Stille Nacht” is considered a national treasure, and tradition says the song should not be played before Christmas Eve. Commercial use of the 202-year old carol is forbidden.
During the last 200 years, the song has been translated into more than 300 languages. In the mid-1800s, it was an Episcopal priest with Florida ties, John Freeman Young, bishop of Florida from 1867-85, who gave us the English translation we sing today.

The carol also enjoyed great recognition as early as World War I, when soldiers on each side of the frontline laid down their weapons on Christmas Eve and sang the carol across no man’s land.
Another beloved Christmas carol was written by a preacher after a memorable Christmas Eve.

“O little town of Bethlehem, how still we see thee lie!

More here-

https://www.waltonsun.com/news/20181218/worlds-most-loved-carol-turns-200

National Cathedral: The nation’s church

From Kentucky-

Upon its construction, its purpose was to serve as the nation’s spiritual home. But is the Washington National Cathedral, formally dedicated as the Cathedral Church of St. Peter and St. Paul in the City and Diocese of Washington, DC, a Christian-based house of worship or an impressive national site? Perhaps the cathedral is a combination of both.

Although some ornamental work continues, construction began in 1907 and continued until 1990. The cathedral is the seat of the Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church and the Bishop of the Diocese of Washington.

It has been the scene, most recently, of the funerals of former President George W. H. Bush and Senator John McCain. The cathedral also played host to the funerals of President Ronald Reagan, President Gerald Ford and President Dwight D. Eisenhower, as well as many memorial services, including one for the victims of the September 11, 2001 attacks, and for presidential prayer services following inaugurations. When not in use for formal ceremonies, the cathedral is open to visitors.

More here-

https://maysville-online.com/uncategorized/161723/national-cathedral-the-nations-church

Presiding Bishop Michael Curry Christmas message 2018

From ENS- (with video)


“Love came down at Christmas, because God so loved the world, that he gave,” Episcopal Church Presiding Bishop and Primate Michael Curry said in his Christmas Message 2018.

The video of the presiding bishop’s message, recorded at Bryant Park in New York, is here.

The text of the presiding bishop’s message follows:

 Presiding Bishop Michael Curry Christmas Message 2018

In the Third Chapter of John’s Gospel, Jesus says at one point, “God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that all who believe in him should not perish but have everlasting life.”
For years, I’ve often thought that that passage only referred to Jesus giving his life as a sacrifice on the cross. And to be sure, that is part of what it means. But some years ago I was reading a commentary by Raymond Brown, on the Gospel of John, and Professor Brown said that that passage not only speaks of Jesus willingly giving his life on the cross, but it actually speaks of Christmas, of God giving his very self, his very son to the world, not for anything God could get out of it, but for the good and the welfare and the well-being of the world. Of us.

More here-

https://www.episcopalnewsservice.org/2018/12/18/presiding-bishop-michael-curry-christmas-message-2018/

The Jewels of England

From First Things-

In a recent issue of the center-right magazine Standpoint, the retired Anglican bishop of Rochester, Michael Nazir-Ali, argued that a post-Brexit Britain needs the “moral and spiritual framework” that can only be supplied by the “centrality of the Judaeo-Christian tradition in national life.” Certainly, the constant appeal to British “values” after every terrorist attack always begs the question of what precisely those values are, and on what they are based. However, while I do not disagree with Bishop Nazir-Ali’s hopeful plea and pious hope, the main conduits for providing the Christian “moral and spiritual framework” for the revival of national life—namely both the Anglican and the Catholic Church—seem to be unsure of their purpose and increasingly unwilling to proclaim the saving power of the gospel. Nature (or culture and society) abhors a vacuum. And as Benedict XVI wrote of an increasingly secular Europe and United States, where such a vacuum exists, something will fill it: either the growing totalitarianism of aggressive secular liberalism, or Islam, aided by large-scale immigration. 

More here-

https://www.firstthings.com/web-exclusives/2018/12/the-jewels-of-england

Demo permit filed for St. Michael’s Episcopal Church

From Florida-

Residents of Suburban Heights rallied earlier this year to shut down a possible development in northwest Gainesville that would have turned a church and conservation land into a shopping plaza with drive-thru services.

But that battle isn’t over.

Earlier this week, the Jacksonville-based Episcopal Diocese of Florida, which owns the dormant St. Michael’s Episcopal Church, 4315 NW 23rd Ave., filed a permit with the city of Gainesville to demolish the building.

The move comes after the church’s owners got wind that the city’s preservation board was set in January to vote and recommend designating the building a local historic landmark. That would place a one-year hold on any possible demolition.

The church has been closed for about two years.

Morris Hylton, president of Gainesville Modern, a local organization dedicated to preserving unique local structures built from 1945 through 1975, has been fighting to save the building despite the owner’s wishes.

More here-

https://www.gainesville.com/news/20181217/demo-permit-filed-for-st-michaels-episcopal-church

Ugandan LGBTQ refugees find a home in Long Beach’s ‘gayborhood’

From Los Angeles-

This story is the first in a two-part series looking at how St. Luke’s Episcopal Church in Long Beach helps immigrants.

Up until a few years ago, life was good in Uganda for Lucy. She had just graduated from a local university in 2013 and was looking forward to what came next. Unfortunately, what came next, a year later, was Lucy being forced to flee to Kenya to seek asylum after someone exposed a secret she had been keeping for some time: she was bisexual.

“They told all the people around me, the community and family,” said the 27-year-old who asked that her real name not be used.

She was threatened but received no support from her family.

“They were coming up to me, the whole community was coming up to me, so I had to run,” Lucy said. “[They said] ‘You’re an outcast, that’s not allowed here, how can you do stuff like that?’ No one physically got me. They were threatening me, they were coming to my house where I grew up.”

More here-

https://lbpost.com/immigration/escaping-intolerance-ugandan-lgbtq-refugees-find-a-home-in-long-beachs-gayborhood/

Surfing Milford priest rides the waves year round

 From Connecticut

Other times the sport buoys him spiritually through the grandeur of nature and life lessons that surfing teaches, including preparation, persistence, effort, planning, decision-making and patience in waiting for the right wave or one’s turn in the lineup of surfers.

The beauty of the world and the dynamics of nature as seen from the water put Lindeman in touch with God, he said.

“When I’m truly present with God, it diminishes my own agenda,” Lindeman said. “When reminded of god’s bigness and my smallness, it has a way of organizing things.”

Lindeman became an avid surfer as a young teen when his parents, both Episcopal priests, moved to San Diego.

More here-

https://www.nhregister.com/news/article/Surfing-Milford-priest-rides-the-waves-year-round-13470511.php

Bishop Michael Curry Delivers Sermon in Raleigh

From North Carolina-

A powerful message about love heard around the world resonated through a Raleigh church Sunday.

• Bishop Michael Curry spoke at Saint Ambrose Episcopal Church as the congregation celebrated its 150th anniversary.
• Many may remember him from the Royal Wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle this past spring when his riveting sermon gained international attention.
• He has strong ties to the Tar Heel state. He was previously bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of North Carolina.

Bishop Michael Curry spoke at Saint Ambrose Episcopal Church as the congregation celebrated its 150th anniversary.

Many may remember him from the Royal Wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle this past spring when his riveting sermon gained international attention.

More here-

https://spectrumlocalnews.com/nc/triangle-sandhills/news/2018/12/16/bishop-michael-curry-delivers-sermon-in-raleigh

Brexit debate needs a change of tone, Anglican bishops say

From AP-

The Brexit debate needs a change of tone, the Church of England's bishops said Saturday, calling for national unity following a week of divisive discussions around Britain's efforts to leave the European Union.

The Anglican leaders urged politicians and the public to insert civility into the debate amid intense discussions over Prime Minister Theresa May's Brexit deal. Amid turmoil, the bishops offered prayer.

"We urge everyone - our political leaders and all of us - to bring magnanimity, respect and reconciliation to our national debate," the bishops said. "There is now an urgent need for the United Kingdom to recover a shared vision and identity to help us find a way through the immediate challenges."

More here-

https://www.sfgate.com/news/article/Anglican-bishops-appeal-for-change-of-tone-in-13468607.php

Baptism-style ceremony for men who ‘transition’ to female? Why Church of England has imploded

From Life Site-

I mention this due to the fact that earlier this week, I spotted this headline in the Telegraph: “Church of England to offer baptism-style services to transgender people to celebrate their new identity for first time.” As it turns out, Canterbury’s rush to irrelevance (clerics warn that steadily plunging attendance numbers will only increase in the years ahead) now includes the bizarre heresy of creating a new sacrament, specifically tailored to celebrate the delusions of “sex-reassignment” surgery for "transgender" people.

The Church of England’s tailspin has been strange to watch, not because they are the first or the only mainline denomination to collapse under the weight of its own compromises. Here in Canada, for example, the United Church campaigned for legal abortion, celebrated the destruction of the Christian ethic of sexuality, and now has at least one atheist minister. They have been only somewhat jokingly referred to as “the NDP at prayer.” But the brazenness with which the clerics of the Church of England have spat on their own heritage has been jarring, to say the least. From the Telegraph:

More here-

https://www.lifesitenews.com/blogs/baptism-style-ceremony-for-men-who-transition-to-female-why-church-of-engla

Anglican Primate Call On Buhari To Sign Electoral Bill

From Nigeria-

Ahead of the 2019 general election, the Primate of the Church of Nigeria, Anglican Communion, Nicholas Okoh, on Thursday called on President Muhammadu Buhari to sign the Electoral Bill into law.

He urged Nigerians making provocative statements to be careful not to set the country on fire.

“They should not set us in conflict with ourselves because if you look at it, most statements are made from the point of self advancement. They calculated that their own chances are slim and limited and they begin to talk. So, we appeal to everyone, whatever is your position, speak in such a way that there will be a country because if there is a country, all of us will be in good condition. But if there is no country, everybody will scatter and it is not in the interest of anyone”, he advised.

More here-

https://www.naijanews.com/2018/12/14/anglican-primate-call-on-buhari-to-sign-electoral-bill/

Curry named Religion Newsmaker of the Year

From The Cafe-

Members of the Religion News Association has named Episcopal Church Presiding Bishop Michael Curry its newsmaker of the year.

RELIGION NEWSMAKER OF THE YEAR

 
Episcopal Church Presiding Bishop Michael Curry, whose riveting sermon at the royal wedding “stole the show,” according to the British press, and raised his profile as a progressive religious voice.
OTHER NEWSMAKERS ON THE BALLOT

Evangelist Billy Graham, whose death at 99 caps the most influential ministry in modern evangelical history.

Pittsburgh

 

Rabbi Jeffrey Myers, who emerged as a voice of lament and peace after an anti-Semitic gunman killed 11 at his Tree of Life / Or L’Simcha synagogue.

More here-

 https://www.episcopalcafe.com/curry-named-religion-newsmaker-of-the-year/?fbclid=IwAR0FP926NE4Ul0LSGmhhPjMEaQK34Gmn2e-NgBp_Fjw_GTho9Jj6wDl6cus

 

Bishops and astronauts gather in Washington to remember Apollo 8

From RNS-

Sometimes, the most profound truths about humanity — and God — are revealed when we take a small step back. Or rocket ourselves about 238,000 miles into space.

Astronaut James Lovell had that epiphany 50 years ago as he became one of the first astronauts to orbit the moon.

“I remembered a saying I’d often heard: ‘I hope to go to heaven when I die.’ I suddenly realized that I went to heaven when I was born,” said Lovell.

Lovell spoke at the Washington National Cathedral on Tuesday night (Dec. 11) as part of a celebration of the 50th anniversary of the 1968 Apollo 8 mission that sent Lovell and fellow astronauts William Anders and Frank Borman into space to circle Earth’s gray satellite.

The mission, which lasted from Dec. 21 to Dec. 27, 1968, included an unusual religious element: As the trio of spacefarers rounded the moon on Christmas Eve, they paused to read the first 10 verses from the Book of Genesis.

More here-

https://religionnews.com/2018/12/13/bishops-and-astronauts-gather-in-washington-to-remember-apollo-8/

Heretic of the week: James Pike

From Catholic Herald-

James Pike (1913-1969) had an enormous importance. Born and raised a Catholic (and believing he might have a vocation), Pike lost his faith studying under the Jesuits at the University of Santa Clara in the early 1930s. Moving on to UCLA, USC and Yale Law School, he served in naval intelligence during the Second World War. He had been received into the Episcopal Church in 1938. After the war, Pike decided to enter the Episcopal ministry and was ordained in 1946. Three years later, he was made Episcopal chaplain at New York’s Columbia University. On rather spurious historical grounds he claimed the post was a “Royal Peculiar”, subject only to the Queen and not to the Episcopal Bishop of New York. Given the radical nature of his sermons, this deception was useful; it did not prevent him being appointed dean of the Cathedral of St John the Divine. Thence he fulminated against the Catholic Church’s opposition to birth control. 

More here-

https://catholicherald.co.uk/magazine/heretic-of-the-week-james-pike/

The leap of faith': Trinity Episcopal embarks on restoration project

From Upper South Carolina-

Restoration is a go for the historic Trinity Episcopal Church, thanks to groups joining forces and more than $700,000 to begin the project.

To jump start things, the independent nonprofit, Friends of Trinity, is granting $43,000 of money it has raised to Preservation South Carolina, according to Ann Waigand of Camden, Maine, whose mother has been a longtime historian for the church.

That announcement was made at a community meeting at the Abbeville Chamber of Commerce Thursday night, along with other details of the collaboration to restore the house of worship.

Waigand, who was baptized at the church, along with her children, said Friends of Trinity started in 1995.

More here-

http://www.indexjournal.com/news/the-leap-of-faith-trinity-episcopal-embarks-on-restoration-project/article_7d719ab7-66f1-5f0a-9706-8337b4c69e15.html

 

As one historically black Episcopal church closes, others face strong headwinds

From RNS-

On a chilly December morning, 100 years and one week after its sanctuary opened, All Saints’ Episcopal Church, an African-American congregation with a proud history, was formally closed.
Bishop Samuel Rodman presided over the Eucharistic service in an elementary school a block away from the church, where weekly services ended more than three years ago. Several longtime members returned to read Scriptures and sing hymns. Afterward, the group of 100, including history buffs and well-wishers from North Carolina and Virginia, shared a meal of fried chicken and baked beans.

All Saints is hardly alone among mainline Protestant and Catholic congregations. Faced with dwindling members, crumbling infrastructure and costly maintenance, some 6,000 to 10,000 churches shutter each year, according to one estimate. More closures may be in the offing as surveys point to a decline in church attendance across the country.

More here-

https://religionnews.com/2018/12/11/as-one-historically-black-episcopal-church-closes-others-face-strong-headwinds/?fbclid=IwAR2fAQrbw8ROs1GusUKT4FaAodl81qlB-N1F76qd85uvSgjfboXQybw-ufk

Herdsmen: What we’ll do to Anglican bishops if they ask Buhari to declare us terrorists – Miyetti Allah

From Nigeria-

MIYETTI Allah Cattle Breeders Association, MACBAN, yesterday, flayed Anglican Bishops for describing it as a terrorist organisation, saying the group is made up of herdsmen, not terrorists.

Read more at: https://www.vanguardngr.com/2018/12/were-not-terrorists-herdsmen-warn-anglican-bishops/

 The Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria, MACBAN, on Tuesday threatened to institute a legal action against Anglican bishops for describing violent herdsmen as terrorists.


The Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria, MACBAN, on Tuesday threatened to institute a legal action against Anglican bishops for describing violent herdsmen as terrorists.

Recall that an Anglican bishops in Nigeria had called on President Muhammadu Buhari to declare armed herdsmen as terrorists.
However, MACBAN, while insisting they are not terrorists, admonished the bishops to withdraw their remark.

Speaking with Vanguard, the National Coordinator of MACBAN, Alhaji Garus Gololo said herdsmen have the right to graze anywhere across the country.

According to Gololo, “We are not happy with this comment coming from the Bishops who are spiritual heads of the Anglican Church; we want them to withdraw it.

More here-

http://dailypost.ng/2018/12/12/herdsmen-well-anglican-bishops-ask-buhari-declare-us-terrorists-miyetti-allah/

MIYETTI Allah Cattle Breeders Association, MACBAN, yesterday, flayed Anglican Bishops for describing it as a terrorist organisation, saying the group is made up of herdsmen, not terrorists.

Read more at: https://www.vanguardngr.com/2018/12/were-not-terrorists-herdsmen-warn-anglican-bishops/

MIYETTI Allah Cattle Breeders Association, MACBAN, yesterday, flayed Anglican Bishops for describing it as a terrorist organisation, saying the group is made up of herdsmen, not terrorists.

Read more at: https://www.vanguardngr.com/2018/12/were-not-terrorists-herdsmen-warn-anglican-bishops/

Killer herdsmen should be declared terrorists like Boko Haram – Anglican Archbishop tells Buhari

From Nigeria-

The Archbishop of Ibadan Province of the Anglican Communion, Most Rev. Segun Okubadejo, has insisted that armed herdsmen are terrorists just like Boko Haram insurgents.

Okubadejo said this while faulting President Muhammadu Buhari’s refusal to proscribe violent herdsmen across the country.

Addressing newsmen yesterday in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, he said, “Our nation is filled with disturbing evil acts; rapes, ritual killings, kidnappings, armed banditry and herdsmen terrorists.

“Though the president is refusing to declare them terrorists but to us, we know that they are terrorists in disguise just like Boko Haram.

“We say no as things will not continue like this; we need the inward transformation of every Nigerian and unless that happens God may not intervene in our situation.’’

More here-

http://dailypost.ng/2018/12/11/killer-herdsmen-declared-terrorists-like-boko-haram-anglican-archbishop-tells-buhari/

Two vibrant Anglican congregations in Winnipeg

From Canada-

When United Church of Canada minister Paul Derry moved to Winnipeg, Manitoba, in the early 2000s, there were seven United Church congregations in his quarter of the city. At the end of 2018, he told me, there was only one. The rest have closed and sold for condos or been merged with other congregations.

Most mainline pastors paying attention these days—in Canada as well as the United States—know that their parish is perhaps ten minutes away from closing. If there is a future for this kind of church, it will be one in which every pastor is something of a church planter, seeding life in the midst of the enormous upheaval in institutional religious life. Not many pastors were trained for this work. How do we do it?

I traveled to Winnipeg because I had heard about two Anglican churches there that were doing innovative things and growing in significant ways. I’d also heard that they represented two opposing wings in the Anglican Church.

More here-

https://www.christiancentury.org/article/features/two-vibrant-anglican-congregations-winnipeg

Episcopal parties seek summary judgment in lawsuit

From South Carolina-

The Episcopal Church in South Carolina and The Episcopal Church have asked the U.S. District Court to grant motions for summary judgment and call a halt to the “pervasive” public confusion caused by a group that broke away from the church yet continues to use Episcopal names and marks.

The motion asks U.S. District Judge Richard M. Gergel to prohibit false advertising and the use of confusing names and marks by the breakaway group and its affiliated churches. A motion for summary judgment is a request for the court to rule that the other party has no case, because there are no facts at issue.

“The public confusion resulting from Defendants’ conduct is pervasive,” according to a memo filed by TECSC on Dec. 7 in support of the motion. “It is undeniably causing irreparable harm to The Episcopal Church, and more locally, to TECSC and its Bishops. All that the Plaintiffs seek in this action is declaratory and injunctive relief, not damages (for which they could easily make a case).”

More here-

https://thetandd.com/news/local/episcopal-parties-seek-summary-judgment-in-lawsuit/article_f6e1198d-1005-52b5-98bf-a77aa1f0020c.html

‘We have saved St. Augustine’s.’ Raleigh university removed from probation.

From North Carolina-

The university has made numerous budget cuts in recent years, such as in 2014 trimming its full-time workforce, not rehiring dozens of adjunct faculty and furloughing employees. In April, the university announced it was laying off 22 employees as part of a restructuring.

Ward said that accreditation agency was impressed by how the university invested $1.7 million in a project addressing its financial processes. He said the university has gone from doing its accounting manually to using software. 

Ward also praised the alumni and the Episcopal Diocese of North Carolina, which founded the school in 1867, for their financial support. He also singled out the faculty and staff for standing by the university.

“I know how hard it has been and you have stood with us in the most difficult times because you never failed to believe that we would not reach this day,” Ward said.

More here-

 https://www.newsobserver.com/news/local/article222943610.html?fbclid=IwAR2X5dx2785HL9-Rfzrn_zuC_hmhO2T0cOD_ZSnIMOIezOdnkcZ_aeSVlL8

Read more here: https://www.newsobserver.com/news/local/article222943610.html?fbclid=IwAR2X5dx2785HL9-Rfzrn_zuC_hmhO2T0cOD_ZSnIMOIezOdnkcZ_aeSVlL8#storylink=cpy

Church of England to offer baptism-style services to transgender people to celebrate their new identity for first time

From The Telegraph-

The Church of England has encouraged its clergy to create baptism-style ceremonies for transgender people to welcome them into the Anglican faith.

New pastoral guidance, published on Tuesday, advises clergy to refer to transgender people by their new name, though it stops short of being a baptism.

The guidance, which was approved by the House of Bishops on Monday night, also details how elements including water and oil can be incorporated into the service.

It also advises that as part of a special service, they can be presented with gifts such as a Bible inscribed in their chosen name, or a certificate.

More here-

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2018/12/11/church-england-offer-baptism-style-services-transgender-people/?fbclid=IwAR0JgOwDv1rd6qLpBxGnH7-Pr1beTz5MZoc0bQHdB3AATlDEblQuo9DsOt4

Ian T. Douglas: Our job is not to keep the church in business

From Faith and Leadership-

As bishop of the Episcopal Church in Connecticut, the Rt. Rev. Ian T. Douglas takes seriously his administrative duties.

But, he says, he also enjoys “throwing all things up in the air, causing chaos, inviting imagination and encouraging folk, particularly by virtue of their baptism.”

Specifically, he points to efforts, at both the diocesan and the parish level, to send Christians out into the world, open to the work of the Spirit.

“How do we join in that faithfully, and what does it mean to be a disciple, a follower of Jesus today, who is sent into the world as an apostle to join God in God’s mission?” he said.

Douglas, who was elected bishop in 2009, serves approximately 168 parishes and faith communities in the state of Connecticut.

More here-

https://www.faithandleadership.com/ian-t-douglas-our-job-not-keep-church-business?fbclid=IwAR0oqsFB8oK_jDhJXoXwMk-C0qfQXi76L1t8aUwZYZhPlPN-1CYqt3W28RA

Pittsburgh, 9 Churches Settle Disputes

From Pittsburgh-

The Episcopal Diocese of Pittsburgh and nine churches of the Anglican Diocese of Pittsburgh announce that they have reached an agreement regarding disputed properties:

“Even though the issues resolved here originated through division and were often the cause of great pain, we know that as Christians we are called to be ambassadors for Christ and ministers of reconciliation, first among ourselves, and then with the larger world. The Episcopal Diocese and the Parishes have come to recognize that our mutual desire to live according to the Gospel and to share with others the Good News of Jesus Christ far outweighs any differences we have with each other, and this agreement frees us to carry out that mission as we believe God is calling us to do,” said Bishop Dorsey McConnell of the Episcopal Diocese.

Bishop James Hobby of the Anglican Diocese of Pittsburgh issued the following statement in support of the parishes entering into this agreement: “I feel that the settlement is quite remarkable, given the litigious culture in which we live. Clearly, hard work and difficult conversations were part of the negotiations. But, biblical principles and a shared commitment to follow Christ provided a healthy context for pursuing the discussions with mutual respect and understanding. A commitment to our fundamental mission was greater than our differences. While differences remain between the parties, I pray that Jesus’ prayer for unity in Him and His truth will one day find expression throughout the Church.”

More here-

https://livingchurch.org/2018/12/11/pittsburgh-9-churches-settle-disputes/