Pope's remarks on sexuality 'will widen Anglican rift'

From the Guardian. With that hat it looks like he's working Santa's side of the street!

To the fury of homosexual groups the Pontiff said that the defence of heterosexual relationships was as important to humanity as preventing the destruction of rainforests.

In a Christmas address to prelates in the Vatican the Pope, known as God's rottweiler because of his hardline views, said that the Roman Catholic Church had a duty to "protect man from the destruction of himself". He urged respect for the "nature of the human being as man and woman".

As homosexual groups condemned the Pope, his remarks drew applause from conservative Anglican groups in Britain. They welcomed the "clarity" of the Pope's thinking which they contrasted with Dr Rowan Williams, the Archbishop of Canterbury.

Dr Williams is battling to prevent a schism in the Anglican church as many of his own clergy are in openly gay relationships in defiance of church policy.

The Catholic Church teaches that while homosexuality is not sinful, homosexual acts are. It opposes gay marriage and, in October, a leading Vatican official called homosexuality "a deviation, an irregularity, a wound".

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/religion/3919612/Popes-remarks-on-sexuality-will-widen-Anglican-rift.html

Episcopal property dispute may head to Va. Supreme Court

A long-awaited property- settlement decision in Fairfax Circuit Court apparently will not be the end of a two-year-long conflict between a minority group of conservative congregations in the Episcopal Church that broke away from the church to join the Anglican District of Virginia.
On Dec. 19, Fairfax Judge Randy Bellows upheld the long-debated Division Statute, which was the backbone of the Anglican Church's case.

The break-away congregations include several from Fairfax and Loudoun counties. They decided to break off from the Episcopal Church after determining that church leadership was not following a proper reading of Scripture, particularly on the issue of homosexuality.
The Civil-War-era Division Statute is the key factor in determining the legal ownership of the breakaway churches, including Truro and The Falls Church.

An appeal of Bellow's decision to the Virginia Supreme Court is being prepared by the Episcopal Diocese of Virginia.

Both sides have already spent about $2 million each in court costs.

http://www.fairfaxtimes.com/news/2008/dec/23/episcopal-property-dispute-may-head-va-supreme-cou/

"Whole Bird Christianity"

An interesting piece by E.J. Dionne about how the face of evangelicalism is changing from single issues and theological purity to a more integrated engagement with the world. He uses Rick Warren and the inaugural as the spring board.

Mr. Warren wouldn't back down and offered ABC News a delightful explanation for his political apostasy. "I'm a pastor, not a politician," he said. "People always say, 'Rick, are you right wing or left wing?' I say 'I'm for the whole bird.' "

Many liberals hope -- and a lot of conservative fear -- that the rise of "whole bird" Christianity will break up right-wing dominance in the white evangelical community.

Mr. Obama never forgot what Mr. Warren did for him and brought the episode up last week in explaining why he had asked the pastor to pray at his inauguration. "A couple of years ago," Mr. Obama recalled, "I was invited to Rick Warren's church to speak, despite his awareness that I held views that were entirely contrary to his when it came to gay and lesbian rights, when it came to issues like abortion."

One need not be too pious about any of this. Both Mr. Warren and Mr. Obama are shrewd leaders who sense where the political winds are blowing.

Mr. Warren understands that a new generation of evangelicals has tired of an excessively partisan approach to religion. Evangelical Christianity's reach will be limited if the tradition is seen as little more than an extension of the politics of George Bush, Karl Rove and Sarah Palin.

An opening to Mr. Obama is the right move for this moment, and Mr. Warren appears to be genuinely interested in broadening evangelical Christianity's public agenda.

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/08358/936963-109.stm

In Hard Times, Houses of God Turn to Chapter 11 in Book of Bankruptcy

This is from the Wall Street Journal and focuses on a Conservative break away Anglican Congregation which after 17 years of struggling finally had to file for bankruptcy. The first link below is to the article the second to the church's web site. I can't tell if they are affiliated with one of the Common Cause partners or not.

St. Andrew, the recently auctioned Maryland church, opened 17 years ago in a former sporting-goods store in downtown Easton. The town of historic colonial mansions and sprawling farms was once home to Frederick Douglass. More recently, the town has become a retreat for Washington's elite.

Bats in the Belfry
The rector of St. Andrew, Bishop Johnson, attracted like-minded conservatives who disliked Episcopal innovations, such as ordaining female priests. In 2005, the church borrowed $850,000 to buy a much larger space that had once belonged to a Roman Catholic parish.

The 1868 Gothic revival structure was large for Bishop Johnson's congregation of 50 people. But the gregarious Midwesterner, who once raised money for a ballet troupe and orchestra, said he was confident his ministry and donations would grow. "I'm well liked, I'm a lucky man," he says he felt at the time. He wooed real-estate agents, bankers and well-heeled locals -- some of whom didn't even attend the church -- and received pledges worth $200,000.

Food Pantry
Some donors said they were impressed with the bishop's generous food pantry and help given to local Hispanics. For a time, Bishop Johnson said Mass in Spanish on Friday nights for workers at a crabmeat processor, and the parish also offered English classes.

"He served a part of this community that often times does not get served well," says Lee Denny, president of the local General Motors dealership. Mr. Denny, an elder in Easton's Presbyterian Church, donated $10,000.

But expenses mounted. There were mice in the basement and bats in the belfry. It cost about $45,000 to stanch creeping black mold. Once the local Catholic parish began saying Mass in Spanish, it drew off most of St. Andrew's immigrant members. Weekly donations dropped to about $600 from $1,425 three years ago, says Bishop Johnson. And many of those who had pledged $200,000 toward the mortgage payments told the bishop they needed to delay their gifts, saying their stock portfolios were down.

The rest is here-

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122999261138328613.html?mod=googlenews_wsj

St. Andrew's web site here.

http://www.saintandreweaston.org/

Good Stuff in TEC: Ohio

Church to Explore questions about Christianity

LEBANON — St. Patrick's Episcopal church, located on the corner of East and Main Streets in Lebanon, invites residents to explore questions about Christianity through four evenings of non-threatening conversation and hospitality.

The evenings will include a light supper, a short video and follow up round table discussion. All people need to bring is an interest in learning how the Episcopal Church understands life's spiritual questions. The meetings will take place from 6:30-8:30 p.m. Wednesday evenings from Jan. 7-28. Those who would like to join or the video and discussion only, come at 7 p.m. There is no cost and attendance at all four sessions is not required. For more information or to make reservations, call (513) 932-7691.

http://www.western-star.com/n/content/oh/story/news/local/2008/12/22/ws122508commbriefs.html

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Good Stuff in TEC: North Carolina

Area residents package 15,000 meals for families around the world

One Wilmington family gathered together with loved ones on Monday evening to help and make a difference in the world this Christmas.

Instead of a normal holiday party this year, the Whitesides and their party guests packed the St. James Episcopal Church and packaged 15,000 meals for hungry families in other countries.

From measuring rice to sealing bags, over 100 people helped put together the packages together.

"It's easy to get caught up in all the going and the shopping...but we want to get caught up in the giving and the sharing," explains hostess Barbara Whitesides.

Barbara and her husband Ed Whitesides say the party was the best Christmas gift they've ever given or received.

"We hoped that this could be a way that we could spend time with people we really care about and do something good," says Barbara Whitesides.

With a lot of hard work and a whole lot of hands it only took about an hour to package all the meals.

http://www.wect.com/Global/story.asp?S=9568860&nav=menu157_2

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The 25 top Religion stories of 2008

The top Religious News Stories as determined by Religion News Service. The Schism in The Episcopal Church is #6. Top three below the rest are at the link.

These are the year's top 25 religion events, in order based on
voting:

1. Controversial sermons delivered in recent years by the Rev. Jeremiah Wright surface, resulting in pressure on Barack Obama, who eventually withdraws his membership in his church, Trinity UCC, Chicago. Meanwhile, John McCain rejects the endorsements of evangelists John Hagee, a critic of Catholicism, and Rod Parsley.

2. Democrats, especially Barack Obama, make a conscious effort to woo faith-based voters. Obama participates in a faith-based debate with John McCain moderated by California mega-church pastor Rick Warren. Unusual attention is paid to evangelicals at the Democratic National Convention.

3. Sarah Palin's nomination as Republican vice president leads many evangelicals, who had planned to sit out the election, to support the GOP ticket. The choice causes a dilemma for some religious conservatives who oppose women in leadership roles.

http://www.rna.org/2008top10.php

Good Stuff in TEC: Bethlehem (PA)

Episcopal churches get social grants

Three area Episcopal churches – two in Wilkes-Barre and one in Scranton – are among six in Northeastern Pennsylvania that will receive social outreach grants totaling nearly $100,000.

This distribution by the Diocese of Bethlehem – the Episcopal Church in 14 counties of eastern and northeastern Pennsylvania – marks the first of five years of grant awards for local social ministry projects that will be made from $1.1 million in New Hope campaign funds.

The largest award – $40,000 – will go to Good Shepherd Church on Washington Avenue in Scranton toward the establishment of a men’s shelter.

The multi-year plan, for which $200,000 will be awarded over five years, includes preparing for use of the undercroft of the church as a emergency shelter on winter nights and on occasions when families in the community are displaced from their homes.

The shelter project is an expansion of the Seasons of Love program that serves healthcare needs of the homeless and working poor, said Canon Bill Lewellis, diocese spokesman.

http://www.timesleader.com/news/Episcopal_churches_get_social_grants_12-23-2008.html

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Mockingbird Director Robert Mulligan Dies at 83

The director of my favorite movie has died. "Miss Jean Louise, Miss Jean Louise. Stand up you're father's passing".

The obit headlines have it right. For all of Robert Mulligan's impressive credentials in his 40-year career as a director of television and movie dramas, his signature achievement was the 1962 film version of Harper Lee's Pulitzer Prize-winning novel To Kill a Mockingbird. The picture — which won three Academy Awards, including Best Actor for Gregory Peck, and earned Mulligan his only Oscar nomination — had an immediate and lasting impact.

Back then it provided a Hollywood echo of the civil rights agitation that had roiled the South and seized the nation. But Peck's role as Atticus Finch, a crusading attorney who is also a gentle single dad to his two young kids, had staying power. In 2003 the American Film Institute chose Atticus as the top hero in U.S. movie history. (See TIME's All-Time 100 Best Movies.)

Mulligan, who died Saturday at 83 of heart disease, had been Finch's gentle shepherd, and deserved at least a share of Peck's Oscar both for casting him and for eliciting the actor's best work. But the director's heart, here as in so many of his films, was with the Finch children. If Mulligan had an abiding interest, it was troubled youngsters on the cusp of discovering themselves by confronting the world around them.

This theme occupied him from his first feature film to his last. The 1957 Fear Strikes Out gave Anthony Perkins his first lead role as Boston Red Sox star Jim Piersall, reduced to bipolar rage by a domineering parent (sort of a Psycho in Center Field). In The Man in the Moon, Mulligan's swan song in 1991, Reese Witherspoon made her film debut as a 14-year-old wracked with first love for a 17-year-old boy who covets her older sister.

http://www.time.com/time/arts/article/0,8599,1868089,00.html

Science proves Anglicans smartest

From The Guardian and a candidate for the "You Can't Make This Stuff Up" Department.

OK, it's a naughty headline, but no less true than the one put on this survey at the aggressively atheist Sandwalk blog, which said "Atheists are smarter than agnostics". Both readings are justified. A large-scale analysis of the religious allegiance and measured IQ of a representative sample of 3,742 American adolescents found a clear trend: the more fundamentalist denominations had the more stupid believers, so that the bottom four places were occupied, from the bottom, by Pentecostalists, Baptists, Holiness churches and "Personal Philosophy", which I presume means a new-age-ish syncretism, while the top four places, again in ascending order, were taken by agnostics, atheists, Jews, and Episcopalians (Anglicans). So, atheists are smarter than agnostics, Jews are smarter than atheists, and Anglicans the smartest of the lot ...

But we should always be careful about science which tells us what we think we already know.

It's all here-
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/andrewbrown/2008/dec/19/religion-iq-atheism

Bishop translated 'Silent Night' poem into a song

Here's an interesting piece of Christmas trivia. The second Bishop of Florida translated "Silent Night" into English. Well some Christmases are more silent than others (Right Buddy?)

You may not know the name John Freeman Young, but it's possible you've been singing or humming a song he translated from German into English way back in 1859: Silent Night.

Episcopalians may know Young (1820-1885) as the second bishop of the Jacksonville-based Diocese of Florida. Becoming spiritual leader of the diocese in 1867 - when it still covered the entire state - he worked to establish religious and educational freedoms for freed slaves in the post-Civil War era, diocesan historian Mike Strock said.

But he was more widely known as the man who translated the popular Christmas tune that was already internationally popular, said Shannon Palmer, executive director of the Cemetery Recovery and Preservation Trust of Jacksonville.

"Apparently one of his hobbies was collecting European hymns and translating them into English," Palmer said.

The rest is here-

http://www.jacksonville.com/news/metro/2008-12-22/bishop_translated_silent_night_poem_into_a_song

Good Stuff in TEC: Bethlehem (PA)

Giving help to homeless goal of area groups

On any given day there may be close to 100 homeless people in Luzerne County, according to advocates for those with no place to call their own. Of that number, 75 may be housed in shelters but the remainder refuse help, said Bill Jones from the Wilkes-Barre Volunteers of America.

To reach out to them, St. Stephen’s Episcopal Procathedral and the Luzerne County Homeless Coalition in Wilkes-Barre conducted the third annual “Homeless Persons’ Memorial” service on Sunday, the day of the winter solstice.

It was part of the National Homeless Persons’ Memorial Day commemorated in 90 communities across North America, according to organizers.

The reason some homeless don’t want help is because they don’t “trust” the agencies trying to help them, Jones said. “They don’t want to be part of the system,” he said.

Charitable organizations along with county government agencies try to assist the homeless, he said.

Homelessness is not necessarily an economic issue, said Jim Davis, community volunteer. Often the homeless are mentally ill, suffer from substance addictions or are victims of abuse, he added.

http://www.timesleader.com/news/Giving_help_to_homeless_goal_of_area_groups_12-21-2008.html

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Good Stuff in TEC: North Carolina

DATE ANNOUNCED FOR SECOND ANNUAL RUN FOR YOUNG

Christ Episcopal Church (www.christchurchraleigh.org) has announced that the second annual Run for Young event will be held at 2 p.m. on Sunday, Jan. 11 at Christ Episcopal Church, located at 120 E. Edenton St. Run for Young is an event to raise community awareness about the dangers of drinking and driving. The race honors the memory of Sadiki Young, who was a member of Christ Church and a senior at Wakefield High School when he lost his life as a passenger in a drunk driving accident last year. All proceeds from the race will go toward the Christ Church Youth endowment Fund, set up in Sadiki’s memory, and the Wakefield High School Just Think First Program. For more information or to register for the event, visit www.active.com or call (919) 834-6259.

Between 1995 and 2007, more than two-thirds of all accidental deaths of Wake County Public School System students were traffic related and more than half of the fatal accidents that happened when teens were driving were the result of unsafe driving behaviors. According to a 2007 report released by Students Against Destructive Decisions, SADD, motor vehicle crashes remain the leading cause of death among youth ages 15-20. In 2005, there were 7,460 youth motor vehicle deaths, including both drivers and passengers, and 28 percent of the drivers who were killed had been drinking.

“Last year’s inaugural Run for Young filled the street with people remembering our dear friend Sadiki Young, tragically killed in an automobile accident in 2007,” said Rev. Winston Charles, current rector of Christ Church. “Our participation as runners and walkers on this beautiful day helped young people make good life decisions so that they and others will not know the pain of loss but rather the joy of fullness of life. Please join us again this year for a day of fun in the sun celebrating the precious gift of life.”

http://pr-usa.net/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=152442&Itemid=96

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Recession in mind, church keeps eye on budget & tithes

From East Tennessee, a report on how churches are reordering priorities in light of the economic climate.

As Christmas draws near, churches in East Tennessee are adding greenery to their sanctuaries in preparation for Christmas Eve services. But there's another kind of green on their minds.

Service at St. James Episcopal Church this Sunday followed the normal routine: singing, praying, preaching, and the offering.

But these days, the small silver plates hold some uncertainty.

"We haven't seen any big impact yet but I think we will," said St. James Interim Rector Rev. David Hackett.

It's a concern that's entering into future plans for the church.

"We're in the throes of setting up the budget and it's very flexible at this point," Rev. Hackett said.

They may have to cut some programs in order to maintain priorities like their annual Christmas food pantry, which saw an increase of more than a 30% increase in applicants this year.

"We're going to have more and more folks showing up on our doorstep, needing help. We're willing to make some adjustments in our priorities to see that [that need] is met."

http://www.wbir.com/news/local/story.aspx?storyid=72338&catid=2

Good Stuff in TEC: Wyomng

Sargent Foundation grants

The Episcopal Foundation for Wyoming has announced that more than $550,000 in grants have been awarded to support projects across the state. These Sargent Foundation for Episcopal

Ministry grants are the result of the generosity and vision of the late Newell Sargent, a well-known philanthropist and businessman from Worland.

"Newell was a true Christian who ministered to the poor, the needy, the sick and the afflicted; always tried to help others help themselves. Like the biblical Abraham, Newell was blessed, but, more importantly, was a blessing to others," said Charles W. Smith, president of the Sargent Foundation.

John Masters, executive director of the Episcopal Foundation of Wyoming, noted that Sargent had given his foundation broad discretion in its funding policies, which enabled the board of directors to approve a wide variety of applications. The 2009 grants total $114,420 to individual parishes and $440,000 to Episcopal Diocese of Wyoming programs supporting youth and local parishes statewide.

http://www.jacksonholestartrib.com/articles/2008/12/22/features/home/3bfaa90e655c3ff38725752500267738.txt

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Gordon, Overlooked Yankee, Gets His Due

Missed this earlier in the month. For you soccer fans out there, the veterans committee considers players for the Hall of Fame whom they feel the sportswriters have overlooked.

When baseball’s Hall of Fame announced last Monday that a veterans committee had elected Joe Gordon, an All-Star second baseman for the Yankees during the Joe DiMaggio era, elderly fans who consider their gray hairs to be pinstripes nodded knowingly. But younger Yankees followers might have wondered, Joe Who?

Nearly 60 years since Gordon last played, he had been pretty much forgotten if not ignored, even by the Yankees. His name seldom appeared except when a Yankee was voted the American League’s most valuable player. Gordon earned that award in 1942 with a .322 average, 18 homers, 103 runs batted in and a dazzling glove for a pennant-winning team, even though Ted Williams won batting’s Triple Crown that season.

DiMaggio endured as the Yankee of that era, but Gordon once prompted his manager, Joe McCarthy, to say, “The greatest all-around player I ever saw, and I don’t bar any of them, is Joe Gordon.”

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/14/sports/baseball/14anderson.html?8dpc

"Drama of the Eucharist"

From the Telegraph in London. Rowan has a new book - sort of.

The Lent book is not by Dr Rowan Williams, but by the well-known writer Timothy Radcliffe, who used to be in charge of all the Dominican friars in the world. His book is called Why Go to Church? (Continuum, £9.99). The theme is in the subtitle, "The Drama of the Eucharist".

"It may seem an odd topic for a Roman Catholic to choose when commissioned by the Archbishop of Canterbury," he writes, for Anglicans and Roman Catholics do not share Communion with each other. He hopes that "if we can understand one another's faith, hope and charity better, then we will, with the grace of God, come to share the Eucharist too".

The engagingly expressed thesis of the book is that the Eucharist is a drama in three acts, linked to faith, hope and charity (love), each of which is a sharing in God's life.

In Act I, by listening to the word of God we grow in faith and become ready to say the Creed. In Act II, during the Eucharistic prayer, in touch with the death of Jesus, we hear the words, "This is my body, given for you." So, "faced with failure, violence and death", we are given hope. In Act III, hope culminates in love as we prepare for Communion.

This is not merely a big subject, it is the central point of Christianity, since Jesus commanded his followers to "do this" – perform the Eucharist – in memory of him. Timothy Radcliffe rightly connects this drama of the Eucharist with the whole of life outside church.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/comment/columnists/christopherhowse/3853560/The-words-that-train-the-ear.html

Nick Willhite dies at 67; former pitcher for the Dodgers and Angels

Journeyman pitcher Nick Willhite dies. He pitched a shutout in his first major league appearance! For you soccer fans out there, a shutout is when you don't allow the other team to score a run.

Nick Willhite, 67, a left-handed pitcher whose five-year baseball career was highlighted by the shutout he threw in his debut with the Dodgers in 1963, died of cancer Sunday at a son's home in Alpine, Utah.

Willhite was born Jan. 27, 1941, in Tulsa, Okla., and grew up in Denver, where he starred in baseball and football in high school. He was signed by the Dodgers in 1959, earning a $50,000 bonus, and called up in June 1963.

A 6-foot-2, 195-pound starter and relief pitcher, Willhite was shipped to the Washington Senators after the 1964 season but was reacquired by the Dodgers early in the 1965 season. The Dodgers won the World Series that year, but he did not make an appearance in the series against the Minnesota Twins. After the 1966 season the Dodgers again traded him, to the Angels, who then traded him during the 1967 season to the New York Mets. He was out of baseball by age 26, with an overall record of 6-12 and a 4.55 earned-run average.

http://www.latimes.com/sports/baseball/mlb/la-me-passings18-2008dec18,0,2251309.story

More people to shop online on Christmas Day than go to a church service

So what will you be doing Christmas day? From the London Telegraph.

Some 5.24 million people will log on to shop for bargains over the internet on Christmas Day, according to the online retail trade group IMRG. It calculates that people will spend a total of £104 million, averaging nearly £20 per person.
This compares to an estimated 4.5 million people who attend an Anglican, Catholic, Methodist, Baptist or Pentecostal church service on Christmas Day.

The figures are the most conclusive proof yet that consumers are going to great lengths to track down bargains in the economic downturn. It is also evidence, analysts said, of the increasing power of online retailers over their high street peers.

However, the figures have alarmed senior Church figures, who said Christmas Day should be a day for people to think about their families, not about shopping.

The Rt Rev Stephen Lowe, the Church of England's Bishop for Urban Life and Faith, said: "It does seem to me very sad that at the time when people should be focusing on relationships and family life, they get caught up in the chase for a bargain as if somehow this will bring them greater happiness.

"I would have thought this is at least one day in the year when the focus should be on people, not goods."

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/retailandconsumer/3851370/More-people-to-shop-online-on-Christmas-day-than-go-to-a-church-service.html

Good Stuff in TEC: Virginia

Helping Culpeper’s homeless

A month into a new program in which Culpeper churches are opening their doors overnight to the homeless, local faith leaders say it’s been a success.

But more churches are needed to keep the program of the Culpeper Ministerial Association going year-round.

For the past three weeks, the parish hall at St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church downtown has served as the physical and support location for housing the homeless, with members of various other churches — City On A Hill and Mountain View Community — also providing overnight volunteers and support.

One night, as many as 13 homeless people took shelter in the historic St. Stephen’s, said the Rev. Chad Whaley, pastor at New Salem Baptist.

His church on Sperryville Pike lodged guests during the program’s first week, providing meals and a warm place to sleep for seven people every night during the week of Thanksgiving.

http://www.starexponent.com/cse/news/local/article/helping_culpepers_homeless/26597/

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Good Stuff in TEC: Northern Indiana

A report about a church service and repentance. My good friend Ed Little Bishop of Northern Indiana is featured.

The church also welcomed the Rev. Edward Little, the bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Northern Indiana, who did a fine job weaving ancient scripture and modern scenarios to help bridge 2,000 years.

First, he confessed his "unholy fascination" with the popular TV show "Deal or No Deal," explaining that it illustrates human greed at its worst. He weaved this pop culture epiphany into our primal instinct of wondering "what's next?" in our lives. He also hemmed it into the Christian season of Advent, wryly wondering, "What does Jesus have in his briefcase for all of us?"

Little then confessed about a heated e-mail exchange he recently had with a fellow bishop, leading to one last angry e-mail that he later regretted sending. In the middle of the night, Little was awoken by guilt and compelled to send another e-mail apologizing for his cyberspace outburst.

But, for some reason, the angry-outburst e-mail never reached the other bishop, he was told, sort of absolving him of his cyber-sin.

"It proves that God wipes the slate clean, even on the Internet," he joked, prompting laughs from the three dozen parishioners in attendance.

Little also explained the definition of "repent," meaning to change your mind or change your direction about something.

"Repent has since come to mean something else, but that's not true," Little told us.

http://www.post-trib.com/news/davich/1342152,davich.article

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Answering God's call: Bishop Urban

Here's a splinter group I've never heard of, although I have met Ruth at some point. I guess they won't be a part of the "new province" where women bishops are forbidden.

Urban will be consecrated as a bishop at Holy Apostles Anglican Church (which meets inside Northeast Christian Church) in Madison today at 1:30 p.m. The event, which is open to the public, marks the first time a woman has been ordained as a bishop in the conservative breakaway churches of the Anglican religion.

Urban, along with her husband, John, are now priests at Holy Apostles, a congregation they established in 2004 that is now under the umbrella of All Nation's Anglican Church in Amarillo, Texas. The couple plans to move to Texas next year so that Urban may fulfill her duties as bishop. The Rev. Larry L. Bain, a priest who currently serves with the Urbans, will lead Holy Apostles, and others may be appointed to join him.

When Ruth Urban assumes her new position, she will have a nongeographic missionary diocese and responsibilities that include creating new churches and ministering across multiracial and multiethnic lines. She will also mentor clergy and continue a healing ministry.

Ruth Urban explained that the Anglican Communion International has 38 provinces that are under the See (seat of authority) of Canterbury. The Episcopal Church is one, and there are breakaway churches that are not under the see, like the Urbans' Holy Apostles church that is affiliated with the Texas-based All Nation's Anglican Church.

http://www.clarionledger.com/article/20081220/FEAT04/812200328/1023

Good Stuff in TEC: Missouri

Mission team will spend Christmas in Sudan

In the latest development of the companion relationship between the Episcopal Diocese of Missouri and the Diocese of Lui -- part of the Episcopal Church of the Sudan -- a team of eight missioners will spend the Christmas and New Years holidays in Sudan. Eight Missouri Episcopalians, including the wife of Bishop Wayne Smith, arrived in Lui on December 18. They will return to the United States on January 8.

The Dioceses of Lui and Missouri entered into a companion relationship in 2006.

The purpose of the trip is to pursue four major objectives:
• a medical assessment to ascertain how the Diocese of Missouri can contribute to health care in the Diocese of Lui;
• assist in the set-up of a grinding mill operation, which Missouri is helping to fund through a United Thank Offering Grant of $19,000;
• explore how parish-to-parish relationships between Missouri and Lui congregations might be established; and
• further establish infrastructure (buildings and technology) in Lui.

http://www.episcopalchurch.org/81803_103911_ENG_HTM.htm

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Good Stuff in TEC: Georgia

‘This is what Christ had in mind … a church without walls’

They just showed up. On foot. From all directions. As if risen right out of the same downtown streets that many of them live on.

About a dozen homeless men and women, joined by volunteers and other churchgoers, sat shoulder to shoulder in the cold last Sunday in front of the fountain at the north end of Woodruff Park. They wore hats and gloves and heavy coats. They toted backpacks and black plastic garbage bags. One guy chewed on a cheese sandwich.

They were ready for church.

“I appreciate all you huddled people,” began Carole Maddux, the Episcopal deacon leading the service. “Let us take a moment to be silent and claim this place. And call on God … to make his presence known.”

A MARTA bus rumbled by, drowning out her last few words. A car horn bleated. Dry leaves skittered past Maddux’s sneaker-clad feet.

Surrounded by downtown skyscrapers, she stood in front of a folding table topped with a silver cross, a chalice, a plastic bottle of grape juice to be served with communion —- “Some of our people don’t need to drink wine,” Maddux said.

The Church of the Common Ground was in session.

http://www.ajc.com/services/content/printedition/2008/12/20/homelesschurch.html

You can see all of the Good Stuff posts by clicking on Good Stuff in the labels below.

Statement from the Diocese of Virginia

Looks like the Diocese is bringing out the big guns now.

The Fairfax County Circuit Court today affirmed that petitions filed by the CANA congregations do not include the endowment fund of The Falls Church (Episcopal) in Falls Church, Va. As a result, the endowment fund was not subject to the congregational vote and the following legal action taken by the CANA congregations seeking to take this property.

Despite the positive aspect of this ruling, the Diocese believes that serious constitutional issues remain. In order to pursue those issues and restore constitutional protections for hierarchical churches in Virginia, the Diocese also announced today that Professor A.E. Dick Howard has joined the diocesan legal team to assist in its appeal of this case to the Supreme Court of Virginia. Professor Howard is a professor of law at the University of Virginia School of Law and is a renowned constitutional scholar. He served as the executive director of the Commission on Constitutional Revision, which revised the constitution of Virginia. Professor Howard has also served as counsel to the General Assembly of Virginia.

“We continue to believe the Division Statute is a violation of the United States and Virginia constitutions because it intrudes into the freedom of the Episcopal Church and other hierarchical churches to organize and govern themselves,” said the Rt. Rev. Peter James Lee, bishop of Virginia. “Within the Episcopal Church, we may have theological disagreements, but those disagreements are ours to resolve according to the rules of our own governance.” Bishop Lee further stated, “We call on the CANA congregation occupying The Falls Church property to drop their claim on the endowment fund, and thus allow The Falls Church Episcopal to use the endowment for desperately needed outreach in the Falls Church area, in line with the original purpose of the fund.”

“We are grateful to have someone of Professor Howard’s stature and talent on our team,” said the Rt. Rev. Shannon S. Johnston, bishop coadjutor of Virginia. “There may be no other legal expert in Virginia who is as knowledgeable of the state constitution. We are preparing our appeal now and are confident in our position that this law cannot stand constitutional scrutiny. Together, we will explore every option to ensure that faithful Episcopalians in Virginia are guaranteed the right to worship as they please, without interference from the state.” The Diocese expects to file its appeal to the Supreme Court of Virginia shortly.

http://www.thediocese.net/News_services/pressroom/newsrelease68.html

Conservatives win court case in Va. church dispute

AP story on yesterday's decision in the Virginia property case. Virginia has a unique statute that deals specifically with this situation. No other state has such a law. The Episcopal Life article follows the AP link

Nearly a dozen conservative church congregations in Virginia have won a lawsuit in which they sought to split from the U.S. Episcopal Church in a dispute over theology and homosexuality.
The final rulings came Friday from a Fairfax County judge who said the departing congregations are allowed under Virginia law to keep their church buildings and other property as they leave the Episcopal Church and realign under the authority of conservative Anglican bishops from Africa.

Several previous rulings had also gone in favor of the departing congregations. The diocese said it will appeal.

Eleven Virginia congregations were involved in the lawsuit, including two prominent congregations that trace their histories to George Washington — Truro Church in Fairfax and The Falls Church in Falls Church.

The congregations voted to realign in late 2006. Since then, the rift in the Episcopal Church has grown, and entire dioceses have voted to leave the denomination. Similar property disputes are expected there as well.

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5hpOXgHjPxhwsDgnk33vT0I2MRaxAD9561RV80

Episcopal Life Online-

http://www.episcopal-life.org/81803_103915_ENG_HTM.htm

Randy Gumpert -Former Red Sox pitcher dies at 90

Randy Gumpert who had a ten year major league career with six teams died recently. He is known for giving up Mickey Mantel's first home run. For you soccer fans out there Mantel retired with 536 home runs (15th of all time).

The brief news item on the sports page noted that former major league pitcher Randy Gumpert had died at age 90 in Wyomissing, Pa.

What a flood of memories were released by that name.

In the summer of 1956, Randy Gumpert was the manager and third base coach for the Kearney Yankees in the rookie Nebraska State League. Ol’ Clark was an umpire in the league.

The Yankees were a solid club. The center fielder was Deron Johnson, who had a 16-year major league career; Phil Mudrock, who pitched a no-hitter (which Ol’ Clark umpired) and logged one major league inning; and Ken Bracey, who never made it to the big leagues but spent more than 40 years as a major league scout, mostly with the San Diego Padres, led the pitching staff.

The third baseman was Jay Ward, a native of Brookfield, who eventually played in 27 major league games, and hit .163 in 49 at bats over three short stops with the twins and the Reds. Jay was a career Triple A guy and later a longtime minor league manager and instructor. He hit exactly zero major league home runs.

Gumpert had pitched in the majors for 10 years with five organizations, finishing in 1952 with a 51-59 record and a 4.17 earned run average.

http://www.columbiatribune.com/2008/Dec/20081210Feat001.asp

Judge Rules in Favor of Breakaway Va. Congregations

Washington Post article filed less than thirty minutes ago. I'm sure there will be more later.

Nearly a dozen conservative church congregations in Virginia have won a long-running lawsuit in which they sought to split from the U.S. Episcopal Church in a dispute over theology and homosexuality.

A Fairfax County judge made the final rulings today. He said the departing congregations are allowed under Virginia law to keep their property as they leave the Episcopal Church and realign under the authority of conservative Anglican bishops from Africa.

The Episcopal Diocese of Virginia argued it was the true owner of the church property and that the congregations' votes to leave the Episcopal Church were invalid.

The diocese said it will appeal the rulings.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/12/19/AR2008121901580.html

Baseball loses one of its true good guys

Dave Smith, one of the best relief pitchers of his era dies young of a heart attack. For you soccer fans out there, a relief pitcher is brought in late in the game to "relieve" the starting pitcher.

Former Astros reliever Dave Smith was a giving person, and he made sure his younger teammates learned to value others as they adjusted to life in the majors. Smith’s name is atop or near the top of several of the Astros’ relief categories.

But as his former teammates coped with his death Wednesday, they didn’t talk about his 199 saves for the Astros or his team records for appearances (562), relief wins (53), relief innings (760) or most games finished (400). Instead, Smith’s friends and former teammate remembered the former San Diego State pitcher’s generous nature and cool California demeanor after he died of a heart attack Wednesday at age 53.

Smith’s mark extended far beyond the mound and into clubhouses, restaurants and airports throughout America. “He was probably one of the most giving people I ever met,” former Astros reliever Charlie Kerfeld said of Smith via phone Wednesday. “He was probably known around the league as the best tipper around the league. (The news of his death) is a tough one. You ain’t supposed to go this early.”

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/headline/sports/6170450.html

Good Stuff In TEC: Oregon

Children donate to help fight rising hunger on South Coast

For three decades the Ecumenical Emergency Food Cupboard has been feeding the hungry in the Bay Area, but long-time volunteers say this year they could be seeing their biggest need yet.

Located beneath the Emmanuel Episcopal Church in Downtown Coos Bay, the Food Cupboard has been very busy of late, but Thursday was a good kind of busy.

On that day they were busy unloading two huge donations from area school children(over 2,000 items from Bunker Hill Elementary students in Coos Bay and over 3,000 items from Hillcrest Elementary students in North Bend).

And it really is true that every little bit helps, but perhaps this year more than ever.

Margaret McMullen, who has been with the Food Cupboard for 20 of their 30 years, is the group's President. She says they've been pleasantly surprised that, given the economy, they have not seen any drop in their number of donations at this time of year.

http://www.kcby.com/news/36418189.html