Anglican bishops: Hostility in Brexit debate ‘not worthy of our country’

From England-

The bishops of the Church of England have issued a call for respect on all sides amid growing acrimony over the debate on Britain’s withdrawal from the European Union.

A joint statement issued on behalf of the Church of England’s College of Bishops has called for a new tone of listening and respect in debates and describes the use of language in some cases as “unacceptable”.

It urged for the 2016 referendum to be honoured and for the rule of law and impartiality of the courts to be upheld.

 “We should speak to others with respect. And we should also listen. We should do this especially with the poor, with the marginalised, and with those whose voices are often not heard in our national conversation,” it reads.

More here-

https://www.premier.org.uk/News/UK/Anglican-bishops-Hostility-in-Brexit-debate-not-worthy-of-our-country

Former Youngstown church, ‘heart’ of north side neighborhood torn down

From Ohio (with video)-

The heart of a once-thriving North Side neighborhood in Youngstown was demolished Thursday.
 
The former Saint Augustine Episcopal Church on Parmalee Avenue was built in 1921, but the congregation got its start years before — in 1907. 

The building was labeled a historical site in 2008 by the Ohio Historical Society because it was the oldest African American congregation still in its original building in Youngstown. 

The nearly century-old building was a staple on Youngstown’s North Side.

Church members watched it fall Thursday afternoon while they shared their memories.
“Life moves on, yeah. So I guess we gotta move with it,” said member Donna Wynn. 

Wynn and Mary Ruth Hallacre stood as the former Saint Augustine Episcopal Church came down in a pile of rubble. The two best friends called it the end of an era. 

More here-

https://www.wkbn.com/news/local-news/former-youngstown-church-heart-of-north-side-neighborhood-torn-down/

Rev. Ohmer, Rector of F.C. Episcopal Since 2012, Announces He’s Leaving

From Virginia-

The Rev. John Ohmer, who has served as the rector of the historic Falls Church Episcopal Church since 2012, issued a letter to his congregation today saying he will be leaving his post for a new assignment in Asheville, North Carolina, in November. Ohmer has overseen a considerable revival of the church following a contentious seven-year struggle to regain control of the church property from a group of defectors in the church who refused to relinquish it following their vote to defect in 2005.     

By 2012 the Diocese of Virginia had secured the site following a number of court rulings, including a final refusal of the U.S. Supreme Court to hear an appeal by the defectors, who had identified themselves as an arm of the Nigerian Anglican church. They defected on grounds of their opposition to the U.S. Episcopal Church’s election of an openly-gay bishop in 2003.  

More here-

https://fcnp.com/2019/09/26/rev-ohmer-rector-of-f-c-episcopal-since-2012-announces-hes-leaving/

Controversy in Cornwall town as vicar starts new church accused of extremism and homophobia

From England-

There are concerns in a Cornish town that a new church, which meets for the first time next week, is “extremist” and “homophobic”.

The Vicar of Fowey has resigned in order to start a new Anglican church in the town, under the auspices of an organisation which has been dubbed right wing.

The Rev Philip de Grey-Warter has resigned as Vicar of Fowey and Priest-in-Charge of Golant after 17 years to “plant” a new church community, Anchor, under the auspices of GAFCON, a controversial global movement of conservative Anglican clergy.

Mr de Grey-Warter decided to leave the Church of England when the House of Bishops allowed the baptism liturgy to be used for those who are transitioning gender.

More here-

https://www.cornwalllive.com/news/cornwall-news/controversy-cornwall-town-vicar-starts-3360310

Ndukuba named new primate of Anglican Church, successor to Archbishop Okoh

From Nigeria-

The Church of Nigeria’s House of Bishops meeting at St Peter’s Cathedral in Asaba has elected the Most Rev Henry Chukwudum Ndukuba, the Bishop of Gombe and Archbishop of Jos as the next of Archbishop and Primate of All-Nigeria.

He will become the 5th head of the Anglican Church when he succeeds Okoh next year.

Details of the election have not yet been made public, but the Anglican Cable Network Nigeria has released this biography of the new archbishop.

The Most Revd Henry Chukwudum Ndukuba, hails from Ogberuru in Orlu (Imo State). He was, however, born in Anambra state in September, 1959.

He was ordained into the Holy Orders in September, 1989 and rose though its rank.

He was elected Pioneer Bishop of the Diocese of Gombe and consecrated on the 21st September, 1999. 

More here-

https://www.pmnewsnigeria.com/2019/09/25/ndukuba-named-new-primate-of-anglican-church-successor-to-archbishop-okoh/

Episcopal Church holds 'Bob Dylan Mass' in tribute to famed folk singer

From Christian Post-

A Louisiana-based congregation of The Episcopal Church will hold a “Bob Dylan Mass” as a tribute to the famous folk singer and to focus on the messages of his music on Sunday.

Christ Episcopal Church of Covington, whose membership is around 1,200, will hold a “tribute mass” at the 9 a.m. and 11:30 a.m. services, with musical preludes starting 15 minutes before each service.

The tribute mass will include meditations on three of his songs offered by clergy as well as performances of selections from Dylan’s music, including “Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door,” “The Times They Are a-Changin,'” “Forever Young,” “Mr. Tambourine Man,” and a gospel song Dylan wrote titled “Pressing On.

More here-

https://www.christianpost.com/news/episcopal-church-holds-bob-dylan-mass-tribute-famed-folk-singer.html

Renowned Chelsea church makes history by naming its first female, Asian-American pastor

From NYC-

St. Peter’s Episcopal Church in Chelsea has announced a new priest-in-charge, who will break barriers as its first ever female pastor and its first Asian American priest.

Rev. Christine Lee will be formally commissioned at St. Peter’s Chelsea, which is at 346 W. 20 St. between Eighth and Ninth Aves., during a service set for this January.

This isn’t Reverend Lee’s first time making history. In 2012, she became the first Korean-American woman ordained as a priest in the Episcopal Church.

Lee was recently vicar at All Angels Church on the Upper West Side. She is currently a Doctor of Ministry student at California’s Fuller Theological Seminary, where she focuses on leading organizational and congregational change.

She will bring that focus on change to St. Peter’s Chelsea, starting a new church vitalization program that includes a Sunday School for kids, leadership training and other congregational development programs.

More here-

https://www.thevillager.com/2019/09/renowned-chelsea-church-makes-history-by-naming-its-first-female-asian-american-pastor/?fbclid=IwAR1i3D2ct0ALGdWwiLfZB0zVoX9aHx6tbUHFZ3fKNpk-Gw67cqAR-GGSFRM

Archbishop-elect Kaziimba talks adversity, ministry and triumph

From Uganda-


Rt Rev Dr STEPHEN SAMUEL KAZIIMBA MUGALU is the incoming archbishop of the Church of Uganda after the House of Bishops elected him on August 28. 

Kaziimba is thoughtful and has a charismatic character. At 57 years, the theology doctor is the outgoing bishop of Mityana and will head the Anglican Church for the next eight years. He opened up to Nicholas Bamulanzeki and Dunstan Mukalazi about his tough upbringing, challenges as a priest, inspirational lessons as well as his future plans.

On the way to the residence of Dr Kaziimba, the three-kilometre stretch from Mityana town to Namukozi hill is littered with several monuments attributed to him. Our guide, a land broker in the town, assured us that Kaziimba has had a profound imprint in Mityana.

More here-

https://observer.ug/lifestyle/62071-archbishop-elect-kaziimba-talks-adversity-ministry-and-triumph 

Anglican Church in Ghana consecrates two new Bishops

 From Ghana-

The Anglican Church in Ghana has consecrated two Bishops in Kumasi to lead the Tamale and the Dunkwa-on-Offin Dioceses of the church. 

The consecrated Bishops are Venerable Canon Dennis Debukari Tong for the Tamale Diocese and Rev. Canon Paul Appiah-Sekyere for the Dunkwa-on-Offin Diocese.

The principal consecrator and celebrant was the Archbishop and Primate of West Africa, the Most Rev. Dr Jonathan Bonaparte B. Hart, with other Bishops of the Church of the Province of West Africa as co-consecrators and celebrants.

The Archbishop per the traditions of the church, demanded the mandate for the consecration of which was read out by the Registrar of the Church of the Province of West Africa, and the constituent of legal teams of the two Dioceses presented the legal instruments for the two Bishops elect.

More here-

https://www.ghanabusinessnews.com/2019/09/24/anglican-church-in-ghana-consecrates-two-new-bishops/

Only Anglican priest in Iraq says a secular government would improve life for Christians

From Premier-

Iraq's first ordained Anglican vicar tells Premier he never doubts that God is good because evil is done "through what our hands do".

There are nearly 20,000 ordained ministers in the Church of England; in Iraq there is just one.
That one Anglican vicar is Rev Faez Jirjees, who, aged 53, is the parish priest at St George's Church in Baghdad where Canon Andrew White used to work.

Christians make up about one per cent of the population in Iraq but many of them fled when Islamic State (IS) were at their most brutal.

Despite being bombed several times, St George's Church in the capital has, for a long time, bucked the trend by being a hub for interfaith relations, providing healthcare to Christians, as well as Shia and Sunni Muslims through its clinic, dentist's, pharmacy and laboratories.

More here-

https://www.premier.org.uk/News/World/Only-Anglican-priest-in-Iraq-says-a-secular-government-would-improve-life-for-Christians

Judge finds breakaway diocese infringed Episcopal TMs

From South Carolina-

A US judge has ordered a former South Carolina diocese of the Episcopal Church to change its name, after concluding the breakaway group was infringing the Episcopal Church’s trademark-protected diocesan shield.

On Thursday, September 19, District Judge Richard Gergel issued an injunction against the breakaway diocese, ordering the group not to use nine trademarks associated with the Episcopal Church and its The Episcopal Church in South Carolina, an affiliate of the national church.

The lawsuit, which was filed in March 2013, arose out of a schism in 2012, when then-bishop Mark Lawrence departed from the national church.

More here-

https://www.worldipreview.com/news/judge-finds-breakaway-diocese-infringed-episcopal-tms-18674

Abu Dhabi's churches and Hindu temple receive official legal status

From UAE-

Senior Anglicans in the UAE on Sunday said they welcomed “a new beginning” for the Christian community in the country after more than a dozen non-Muslim places of worship received official legal status.

Abu Dhabi’s oldest church, together with the UAE’s first Hindu temple, were among 18 places of worship registered by authorities for the first time.

Many of the churches have existed in the Emirates for decades, with some having been given the land they are built on by Sheikh Zayed, the nation’s Founding Father.

Now, however, after an award ceremony, the sites will have official legal protection under a Department of Community Development initiative.

“Today marks the coming of age between the church and the United Arab Emirates,” said Rev Canon Andrew Thompson, senior Anglican Chaplain of St Andrew’s Church – one of the churches to receive a licence.

More here-

https://www.thenational.ae/uae/heritage/abu-dhabi-s-churches-and-hindu-temple-receive-official-legal-status-1.913528

The mysteries of "God Friended Me"

From CBS-

Joe Morton was raised Catholic, but says that a lot of his TV character was based on the sermon delivered at the wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle by Episcopal Church Presiding Bishop Michael Curry.

"Those who do not love, do not know God. Why? For God is love! … That's what love is. Love is not selfish and self-centered. Love can be sacrificial, and in so doing, becomes redemptive."

Morton said, "So, I watched him during the wedding. And I thought: That's interesting, because he comes across as a Baptist as opposed to Episcopal. And I like that a lot."
Violett Beane plays Cara Bloom, a journalist who joins Miles in his attempts to mend troubled souls. "She's definitely more of a believer than I am personally," said Beane, who was raised a Quaker. "It's a really interesting religion; it's very open. And I think that trickles down to me as an actor being open and responsive."

More here-

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/the-mysteries-of-god-friended-me-brandon-micheal-hall/

Young Life Voted Off Campus at Duke

From Christianity Today-

Duke University’s student government has denied the Christian organization Young Life official status as a student group on campus, citing its policy on sexuality.

The decision by the Duke Student Government Senate on Wednesday comes amid ongoing clashes nationwide between religious student groups and colleges and universities that have added more robust nondiscrimination policies.

Young Life, like many evangelical groups, regards same-sex relations as sinful. Its policy forbids non-celibate LGBTQ staff and volunteers from holding positions in the organization.

More here-

https://www.christianitytoday.com/news/2019/september/duke-university-young-life-voted-off-campus.html

Anglican congregants exchange blows in service

From Zimbabwe-

An ugly fist fight broke out during service inside St Agnes Anglican Church in Mutare on Sunday, pitting Masvingo Provincial Development Co-ordinator Mr Fungai  Mbetsa, on one side and Mr Tinotenda Magada on the other.

St Agnes Anglican Church for a while has been a hotbed of factional fights and on Sunday a normal praise and worship session came to a halt as members from feuding factions clashed.

Video scenes typical of a nightclub brawl have since gone viral on social media depicting chaos that rocked the church service on Sunday with members insulting, pushing and shoving each other.

Mr Mbetsa concurred that the church session did not come to a logical conclusion because of "political issues in the Anglican church".

More here-

https://bulawayo24.com/index-id-news-sc-national-byo-171020.html

Downtown scaffolding collapse damages church building, crushes cars

From Texas-

Crews are trying to remove a huge mass of scaffolding that was ripped off the side of a downtown high rise and thrown against a church building across the street by strong, gusty winds last night.

The scaffolding that was on the AT&T building now looks like a ball of intertwined roller coasters about four stories high.  It  damaged a VIA bus, crushed several cars, overturned a couple of bus benches and damaged St. Mark’s Episcopal Church parish house.

Three people were hurt while running away from the scene of the collapse last night on East Martin Street between Jefferson and Navarro Streets. They suffered minor injuries and did not require hospitalization.

A man who works at a downtown business told KTSA News the winds picked up and then he heard a loud crash.

“I was working just a couple of blocks away and when I heard it,  we came out and saw what was going on,” he said. “It was pretty indescribable and I’m thinking my car was underneath it.”

More here-

https://www.ktsa.com/downtown-scaffolding-collapse-damages-st-marks-episcopal-church-building-crushes-cars/ 

and here-

https://spectrumlocalnews.com/tx/san-antonio/news/2019/09/21/mangled-scaffolding-damages-part-of-historic-church-in-downtown-san-antonio

Episcopal bishop who refuses to allow gay marriage in diocese to face hearing

From Christian Post-

A bishop of The Episcopal Church who has appealed a punishment for refusing to allow same-sex marriages in his diocese will go before a hearing panel to argue his case.

Bishop William Love of the Episcopal Diocese of Albany was punished last year by The Episcopal Church for refusing to enforce a recently enacted resolution allowing congregations in his regional body to bless same-sex marriages.

In a statement released Wednesday while attending the fall House of Bishops’ Meeting in Minneapolis, Minnesota, Bishop Love announced that the Title IV Reference Panel voted to refer his appeal to the Hearing Panel.

More here-

https://www.christianpost.com/news/episcopal-bishop-who-refuses-to-allow-gay-marriage-in-diocese-to-face-hearing.html

Episcopal House of Bishops September 2019: A Message of Love and Solidarity from the Bishops and Spouses to The Episcopal Church

From ENS-

The House of Bishops and their spouses met for their interim meeting at the Courtyard Marriott in downtown Minneapolis. At their September 20 business meeting, they adopted the following:

A Message of Love and Solidarity from the Bishops and Spouses to The Episcopal Church

For many bishops and bishops’ spouses of The Episcopal Church, next summer’s Lambeth Conference has become the occasion for a mixture of joy and sorrow, hope and disappointment. We cherish the bonds of affection that we enjoy with our Anglican siblings around the world. Gathering in prayer, study, and fellowship with our spiritual family is a gift for which we are profoundly grateful.

We, bishops and spouses choose to remain in community with each other as we navigate this passage in our common journey. We choose to remain one in the love of Jesus.
Our hearts are, however, troubled. The Lambeth Conference 2020 intentionally recognizes and underscores the important role bishops’ spouses play in the ministry of the episcopate. And yet, spouses of bishops in same-gender marriages have received no invitation to participate. Their exclusion wounds those who are excluded, their spouses, and their friends within and beyond the House of Bishops.

More here-

https://www.episcopalnewsservice.org/pressreleases/episcopal-house-of-bishops-september-2019-a-message-of-love-and-solidarity-from-the-bishops-and-spouses-to-the-episcopal-church/

Albany Episcopal Bishop Being Disciplined Over Same Sex Marriage Views

From Albany-

The Episcopal Church says Albany Bishop William Love will face a disciplinary hearing over his views on same-sex marriage.

In November of last year, Rev. Love vowed to continue prohibiting same-sex marriages in defiance of a church resolution.

He wrote that sexual relations between two men or two women were never part of God's plan, and as such, is to be avoided.

That led to controversy, with parishioners burning copies of Love's edict on the steps of St. Andrew's while it was being read inside.

According to the Times-Union the disciplinary arm of the church has voted to refer Love to a five-person hearing panel.

More here-

https://wgy.iheart.com/content/2019-09-19-albany-episcopal-bishop-being-disciplined-over-same-sex-marriage-views/

Bishops step up preparations for Lambeth Conference amid anxiety over spousal invitations

From ENS-

Diocese of New York Assistant Bishop Mary Glasspool left no ambiguity about her plans to attend the Lambeth Conference 2020. She is going, even if her wife was specifically denied an invitation.
“The Diocese of New York needs to be represented. We need to be at the table,” Glasspool said Sept. 19 during an informal group discussion about Lambeth during the House of Bishops’ fall meeting.

The question of whether to go to Lambeth or to stay home has fueled anxiety this week among some of the Episcopal bishops and spouses gathered at the Courtyard by Marriott hotel in downtown Minneapolis. Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby’s decision to exclude spouses of gay and lesbian bishops from next year’s Lambeth Conference sparked an uproar within The Episcopal Church and in some other corners of the Anglican Communion.

More here-

https://www.episcopalnewsservice.org/2019/09/19/bishops-step-up-preparations-for-lambeth-conference-amid-anxiety-over-spousal-invitations/

Federal judge rules in favor of Episcopal Church in South Carolina in trademark infringement case

From ENS-

U.S. District Court Judge Richard Gergel ruled in favor of The Episcopal Church in South Carolina today on the trademark infringement and false advertising lawsuit filed in 2013. Saying that “The time has come for this dispute to be resolved,” Judge Gergel granted the plaintiff’s (the Bishop of The Episcopal Church in South Carolina(TECSC)) motion for summary judgement, and declared that the group that disassociated from The Episcopal Church (TEC) in 2012 (and all affiliated churches) can no longer use the name “Diocese of South Carolina” nor use the “diocesan seal” or “Episcopal shield.”

The federal case, known as vonRosenberg v. Lawrence, was filed in March 2013, a few months after Mark Lawrence and a breakaway group announced they were leaving The Episcopal Church. The suit involves a claim of false advertising under the federal Lanham Act. At that time, Bishop Charles vonRosenberg was the only bishop recognized by The Episcopal Church and the Anglican Communion as bishop of the Diocese of South Carolina. According to the lawsuit, by continuing to represent himself as bishop of the diocese, Mark Lawrence is committing false advertising.

More here-

https://www.episcopalnewsservice.org/pressreleases/federal-judge-rules-in-favor-of-episcopal-church-in-south-carolina-in-trademark-infringement-case/

Progressive seminary students offered a confession to plants. How do we think about sins against nature?

From The Washington Post-

When I was a child, I spoke to trees. I knew my secrets would be safe with these great green friendly things. And I thought the trees spoke back to me. I’d press my ear against their trunks to hear the reverberating, strangely musical sound of branches knocking against one another in the wind, a sound that seems to be traveling to my ear from the decades coded into each tree’s annual growth rings.

I’m comfortable talking to plants, but I’m not sure if I could do so through a microphone in front of a bunch of seminarians, as a student at Union Theological Seminary is doing in a photo tweeted out Tuesday by the seminary’s account:

Today in chapel, we confessed to plants. Together, we held our grief, joy, regret, hope, guilt and sorrow in prayer; offering them to the beings who sustain us but whose gift we too often fail to honor.

What do you confess to the plants in your life?

More here-

https://www.washingtonpost.com/religion/2019/09/18/progressive-seminary-students-offered-confession-plants-what-are-we-make-it/

Presiding Bishop’s sermon at opening Eucharist of House of Bishops’ fall 2019 meeting

From ENS-

Good morning.

Welcome to all bishops and spouses, who are here gathered today and thank you to the Diocese of Minnesota for hosting us.

Allow me to interpret one text, actually two, which is not going to be as long as you think. To interpret the epistle and the gospel from the lens of the third text from the Hebrew scripture, from the Epistle from Colossians (3:14, 17)

Above all, “Above all, clothe yourselves in love.  And in everything you do, in word and in deed, do it in the name of the Lord Jesus.”

Above all, clothe yourselves in love, and in everything you do, do it in the name of the Lord Jesus.
And the gospel from John, chapter three.

God so loved the world, he gave His only begotten Son to the end that all that believed in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. God so loved the world that He gave Jesus.

More here-

https://www.episcopalnewsservice.org/pressreleases/presiding-bishops-sermon-at-opening-eucharist-of-house-of-bishops-fall-2019-meeting/

Disciplinary hearing ahead for Albany Episcopal bishop

From Albany-

The Albany Episcopal Diocese bishop who vowed to continue prohibiting same-sex marriages in defiance of the church's orders will face a disciplinary hearing, the Episcopal Church announced Wednesday.

In November 2018, the Rev. William H. Love spurned Episcopal Church Resolution B012, which had been passed earlier in the year and ordered bishops not to impede same-sex weddings. In an eight-page letter, Love wrote that Episcopalians who embraced same-sex relationships had been deceived by Satan, and said the Episcopal Church and "Western society" had been "hijacked by the 'Gay Rights Agenda.'"

"Sexual relations between two men or two women was never part of God's plan and is a distortion of His design in creation and as such is to be avoided," Love wrote. "To engage in sexual intimacy outside of marriage between a man and women, is against God's will and therefore sinful and needs to be repented of, NOT encouraged or told it is ok."

More here-

https://www.timesunion.com/news/article/Albany-bishop-who-refused-Episcopal-acceptance-of-14450905.php 

and here-

http://anglican.ink/2019/09/18/further-action-on-bishop-william-loves-november-10-2018-pastoral-letter-and-pastoral-directive/?fbclid=IwAR3PPq6WmnYmM5oeDngue9R1BLsPNzO0_2ZqqnCLJtJSPx7jp_RaN1YA_sY

Southwark Cathedral criticised for hosting scantily clad London Fashion Week show described as 'antithesis of Christian gospel'

From England-

Southwark Cathedral has been accused of promoting the “antithesis of the Christian gospel” by allowing its nave to be used as a catwalk to sell clothes. 

British designer Julien MacDonald brought his collection to the place of worship on Monday night as part of London Fashion Week, turning the aisle into a parade of scantily dressed models. 
It was described by the 48-year-old British designer as a “celebration of women” and attracted celebrity guests including the actor Ed Westwick and socialite Lady Victoria Hervey. 

However, a leading Anglican clergyman has questioned whether the cathedral should be “giving a platform” to an event which promotes “a narcissistic self-referential display for the very rich”.
High-profile catwalk shows are big money-spinners for fashion houses which build the reputation of designers and cement their links with wealthy and influential customers. 

More here-

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2019/09/17/southwark-cathedral-criticised-hosting-scantily-clad-london/

St. John the Divine Cathedral Is in Recovery Mode

From New York-

All eyes are on Paris’s fire-ravaged Notre-Dame, which President Emmanuel Macron of France has pledged to restore in five years. But a great cathedral in New York is also recovering from a conflagration that occurred on Palm Sunday — one day before the medieval French Notre-Dame was overcome by flames.

The fire at the Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine, a Gothic-style landmark in the Morningside Heights neighborhood of Manhattan, was far less catastrophic. It was confined to a windowless room in the crypt, and no one was injured. The cause has been declared unknown.

Still, oil paintings and an 18th-century icon were destroyed and other artworks damaged. And the plumes of smoke that rose up through heating vents in the floor into the cathedral’s vast interior left soot everywhere.

More here-

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/09/17/arts/design/st-john-the-divine-cathedral-fire.html

House of Bishop opens fall meeting with discussions of same-sex spouse exclusion from Lambeth 2020

From ENS-

The Episcopal Church’s House of Bishops gathered here on Sept. 17 to begin a four-day meeting where the question of the Lambeth Conference 2020 loomed from the outset, both as a point of punctuation in Presiding Bishop Michael Curry’s opening sermon and as the scheduled topic of discussion for the first afternoon.

Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby, in calling all bishops in the Anglican Communion to attend the Lambeth Conference next summer, chose to invite gay and lesbian bishops but not their spouses, a plan he saw as a way to balance the divisions in the communion but one that drew criticism, including from within The Episcopal Church. By the time Lambeth starts on July 22, The Episcopal Church will have at least three bishops with same-sex spouses.

More here-

https://www.episcopalnewsservice.org/2019/09/17/house-of-bishop-opens-fall-meeting-with-discussions-of-same-sex-spouse-exclusion-from-lambeth-2020/

Archbishop Okoh: The church is in crisis

From Nigeria-

The Primate of all Nigerian Anglican Communion and Bishop of the Diocese of Abuja, the most Reverend Nicholas D. Okoh has given reasons there is so much crises in the Church today.

At a dedication of a new place of worship for the parishioners of All Saints Anglican Church Wuse Zone 5, Abuja, Okoh blamed the idea of relativism as the main cause of the crisis.

There was a time, he said, when there was a clear cut difference between what is acceptable and what is unacceptable, and what is Christian and what is unchristian.

According to him, today, people have reasoned things so much that anything has become acceptable and people, including those who profess to be Christians, now talk of relativism, whereby there is no absolute truth.

More here-

https://www.pmnewsnigeria.com/2019/09/17/archbishop-okoh-the-church-is-in-crisis/

Being an activist and spiritual often go together

From Austin-

Not long before retiring from the Texas Civil Rights Project and beginning a trajectory toward ordained ministry, I was a panelist at a Concerned Philosophers for Peace conference at Austin Community College. The theme was setting standards for peace in public life.

There were four of us “activists,” as we were called; and we related our hard stories of the difficult struggle for peaceful change in society. During the Q&A session afterwards, a student participant asked us each to explain what kept us going in the face of so many nearly insurmountable hurdles.

I wasn’t sure how to answer. For me, the Gospel had always been my life-long motivation for human rights work; but I was in a secular setting, representing a nonprofit organization. Fortunately, the answers started at the other end of the table, which gave me time to consider my response.

More here-

https://www.austin360.com/entertainmentlife/20190916/being-activist-and-spiritual-often-go-together

Living with Dementia: Tracey Lind Tells Her Story From The Inside Out

From New Jersey-

Arden Courts, a memory care community, invited the The Very Reverend Tracey Lind to speak of her journey living with Frontotemporal Dementia (FTD) at St. Michael's Episcopal Church in Wayne.
 
Since Lind's FTD diagnosis, she set out on a pilgrimage with her wife Emily Ingalls, to travel the nation and world to tell their story and help destigmatize the "dementia" diagnosis. Visit her website and follow her blog. Lind was seen on 60 Minutes in May 2019 when they introduced millions of television viewers to Frontotemporal degeneration, the most common dementia for people under 60. [The segment was re-aired on Sunday, Sept. 15.]

"Out of pain comes joy," said Lind. She is facing this disease. "I am going to see what I can do with it. My curiosity is getting me through it. Otherwise I’m going to roll up in a ball." Lind is telling her story and sharing "the lessons I am learning and the gifts that I am receiving and the grace that I'm discovering." She is stimulating conversation with the groups she speaks to.

More here-

https://www.tapinto.net/sections/health-and-wellness/articles/living-with-dementia-tracey-lind-tells-her-story-from-the-inside-out-8