From Lost Boy to Bishop

From The Living Church-

The Episcopal Church of Sudan’s Diocese of Aweil has consecrated the Rt. Rev. Abraham Yel Nhial as its first bishop. He was elected on July 16 and consecrated two days later.

The election had been postponed from the spring because of Sudan’s historic national elections. The new diocese covers the entire Southern Sudan state of Northern Bahr el Ghazal, and is divided into seven archdeaconries. The other candidates in the election were the Rev. Angelo Yuet Aguer and the Rev. Mathew Garang Chimiir.

Born in Wun Lang village, Aweil District, in 1978, he was forced to flee in 1987 when troops sent by the National Islamic Front regime in Khartoum attacked his village, killing everyone except those taken as slaves.

Like most of the other “Lost Boys of Sudan,” Nhial survived only because he was not home during the attack. Nine-year-old Nhial was one of 35,000 boys who fled toward Ethiopia. After a four-year sojourn when Ethiopia’s civil war forced them to flee again, he was one of fewer than 16,000 to survive and grow up in Kenya’s Kakuma Refugee Camp.

The new bishop was one of the Lost Boys chosen to come to the United States in January 2001, an event documented by 60 Minutes. Living in Atlanta, Ga., Nhial first earned a G.E.D. and then a bachelor’s degree from Atlanta Christian College before joining other Sudanese priests at Trinity School for Ministry. Nhial completed a master’s degree in May.

More here-

http://www.livingchurch.org/news/news-updates/2010/7/21/from-lost-boy-to-bishop

Food pantry receives $22,000 grant for walk-in freezer

From Buffalo

The Bread of Life Food Pantry is getting more space – freezer space, that is.

A recently-received grant for more than $22,000 from the Episcopal Diocese provided the food pantry with the necessary funding to purchase a walk-in freezer.

The new freezer will replace the 11 “household type, chest freezers,” that the pantry has been using, said Pam McFadden, a food pantry board member.

“Many were old and they didn’t always work as well as a commercial one,” she said.

The household freezers also did not provide enough storage space for meat. In fact, for the past five years, McFadden said the pantry has had to turn away donated meat due to insufficient storage space.

“Plenty of meat was offered to us,” she said. “There was not enough capacity for it.”

Because they have not had the space to store meat, McFadden said the Food Pantry runs out each year around July.

Her husband, Johnnie Pond, chairman of the Bread of Life Food Pantry board, initiated the plan to get a new freezer.

“He said, ‘what we need to do is put a project together to get a new freezer,’” McFadden said of Pond. “I think primarily just because he was convinced it could be done, it went forward.”

More here-

http://www.buffalobulletin.com/articles/2010/07/21/elsewhere_in_the_bulletin/doc4c472d0049afa050021893.txt

Breakaway Groups Prevented Anglican Split, Nigerian Primate Suggests

From Christian Post-

It's been three years since the Anglican Church of Nigeria "crossed borders" into the United States to establish a new home for conservatives who were unhappy with the liberal direction of the U.S. Episcopal Church.

And if the Nigerians didn't step in, the global Anglican family would have lost a lot of people, said the new primate of the Church of Nigeria.

"We came because we love the Anglican church and we do not want the Anglican church to split," Archbishop Nicholas Okoh told The Christian Post in an interview Tuesday. "That would've been the case if we didn't come in."

Though the Nigerian church, which is the largest regional body in the Anglican Communion with more than 18 million members, came to the U.S. with compassion, it was recently disciplined for violating a moratorium on cross-border intervention.

According to Okoh, the Church of Nigeria received the same sanctions as The Episcopal Church this year, which include removal from the Anglican Communion's ecumenical dialogues and from a body that examines issues of doctrine and authority.

More here-

http://www.christianpost.com/article/20100721/breakaway-groups-prevented-anglican-split-nigerian-primate-suggests/

ARIZONA: Trinity Cathedral to host July 29 prayer vigil as part of immigration law protest

From ELO-

Local and national activists are planning an ecumenical prayer service at Phoenix's Trinity Episcopal Cathedral as part of a "Day of Non Compliance" on July 29, when Arizona's controversial immigration law is to go into effect.

The Rev. Canon Carmen B. Guerrero, canon for peace and justice ministries in the Episcopal Diocese of Arizona, a vocal opponent of the SB1070 legislation which aims to detain and deport undocumented persons, confirmed that the cathedral will host a 6 a.m. prayer vigil on July 29.

A coalition of community activists called for boycotts, civil disobedience and nationwide protests against the law at a July 21 press conference on the steps of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement building in downtown Phoenix.

They intend to demonstrate, even if a federal judge, who is scheduled to hear legal arguments July 22 against the law, grants an injunction preventing SB1070 from going into effect, according to a statement to the media.

"On July 29, we will not comply with unjust laws," said former Arizona state senator Alfredo Gutierrez of Somos America, who called for civil disobedience at the office of Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio.

Somos America is an advocacy group for equal rights for immigrant communities in Arizona.

Carlos Garcia of the Puente Movement said, "In Maricopa County, we've been living under SB1070 conditions with the law in effect," according to a statement released to the media.

"The judge's decision will not stop the rampant racial profiling, extreme terror, inhumane detention, and persecution lived under Sheriff Arpaio and others like him who abuse their power under the guise of 'immigration and enforcement.' Our community's response will continue to grow until real justice comes to Arizona."

More here-

http://www.episcopalchurch.org/81803_123594_ENG_HTM.htm

San Diego to Allow Same-sex Blessings

From The Living Church

The Diocese of San Diego has joined several other dioceses — including Massachusetts, Southeast Florida and Southern Ohio — that have decided since General Convention 2009 to allow some form of public blessings for same-sex couples.

The decision by the Rt. Rev. James Robert Mathes, Bishop of San Diego, reflects the recommendations of the diocese’s Holiness in Relationships Task Force Report [PDF].

“My approach on this matter, and several other things, is to be in conversation with the community,” Bishop Mathes told The Living Church.

The bishop has discussed his thinking with several clergy gatherings. The bishop said he sees the decision above all as making provision for pastoral care by priests.

Parishes aren’t authorized to bless anything,” he said. “Priests are.”

The Rev. Canon Allisyn Thomas, subdean and canon for spiritual formation at St. Paul’s Cathedral, San Diego, referred to the new policy in a sermon she preached July 18.

“Approximately two weeks ago, Bishop Mathes sent a letter to all clergy in the Diocese saying he will permit the blessing of same-gender relationships in churches in this Diocese, under certain conditions,” Thomas said in her sermon.

More here-

http://www.livingchurch.org/news/news-updates/2010/7/20/san-diego-to-allow-same-sex-blessings

As thousands flee murder, rape and destruction of their homes, DRC Anglican pleads for more prayer

From ACNS-

Thousands of people have been displaced and are pouring into towns in the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo as an upsurge in violence in the Lubero and Beni territories takes its toll, writes Baliesima Kadukima Albert, Coordinator of Health and HIV/AIDS programmes for the Anglican Church of the Province of Congo.

The political situation and security in the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo is exponentially deteriorating as we approach the elections due in 2011. In Lubero and Beni territories, rebels from Uganda (NALU - National Army for the liberation of Uganda) and those from Rwanda (FDLR - Front pour la liberation du Rwanda ) have increased their atrocities on the civilians. More Congolese rebel groups are coming up and causing problems to the population as well as the NALU and FDLR rebels.

In May 2010, Mai-Mai militia attacked a military training position in Beni killing civilians and burning hundreds of houses. Early in July, NALU rebels attacked the position of the Congolese national army in Mutwanga (around 30 km from Beni towards the border with Uganda) and killed eight civilians and injured many more others. Since 11 July fighting has been reported in Isale, Eringeti, between NALU and the national Army, which has led to the killing of more than 30 people, the rape of girls and women, and the displacement of more than 25,000 people lacking food and any other assistance. These internally displaced persons (IDPs) are lacking food and any other items for basic needs. They sleep in schools and churches, and so far churches have been providing little food but not enough to handle such number of IDPs.

More here-

http://www.anglicancommunion.org/acns/digest/index.cfm/2010/7/20/As-thousands-flee-murder-rape-and-destruction-of-their-homes-DRC-Anglican-pleads-for-more-prayer

Churches ask for rehearing in property case

From Virginia-

Nine Anglican congregations in Loudoun and Fairfax counties asked the Virginia Supreme Court July 10 to reconsider part of a ruling from a month before that remanded a church property case back to a lower court.

The dispute centers around whether the nine congregations may keep the properties upon which their churches were built after breaking away from the Episcopal Diocese of Virginia to join the Anglican District of Virginia in 2006. The Loudoun church involved is Church of Our Saviour at Oatlands.

In 2008, the Fairfax County Circuit Court ruled in favor of the breakaway churches.

The diocese appealed that decision and, on June 10, the Supreme Court overturned the Fairfax County Circuit Court’s decision and turned the case back over to that court to reconsider its ruling.

Now the congregations claim that the Supreme Court did not take certain information about the Division Statute into consideration when making its decision.

The Supreme Court is not obligated to rehear the case, and there is no word yet on whether it will.

More here-

http://www.loudountimes.com/index.php/news/article/churches_ask_for_rehearing_in_property_case578/

$400K donated for Episcopal gay liturgies

From NCR

A Michigan-based gay rights foundation has given more than $400,000 to a California seminary to help craft formal liturgies for the Episcopal Church to bless gay and lesbian relationships.

The Episcopal Church still officially considers marriage between a man and a woman, reflected in the marriage rite of its Book of Common Prayer. Many dioceses, however, unofficially allow priests to bless same-sex relationships and even marriages.

Because the church puts a high value on scripted liturgies, many same-sex couples want their own marriage/blessing rite since many bishops are reluctant to use the traditional husband-wife marriage liturgy for same-sex unions.

The church's 2009 General Convention gave the green light to collecting “theological and liturgical resources” that would form the basis of an official same-sex rite that could be added to the list of approved ceremonies.

Many observers expect the church, when it gathers again in 2012, to approve rites for same-sex unions, or at least give official approval to start the process, which can take several years.
The $404,000 grant from the Arcus Foundation to the Church Divinity School of the Pacific will help facilitate the process; the church's official Standing Commission on Liturgy and Music has only $25,000 designated for the project.

More here-

http://ncronline.org/news/foundation-donates-400k-episcopal-gay-liturgies

Editors Note

Still no internet at the church. Hopefully back up this afternoon.

Christian churchgoers in Uganda issued identity cards

From "The Underground"

Christian churchgoers in Uganda will be issued identity cards even as overnight prayer meetings are being suspended in the wake of recent terrorist attacks in a restaurant and a rugby club where people had gathered to watch the World Cup finals.

For the safety of churchgoers, identification cards will be issued for all church members, and every church will have its own checkpoint.

The Uganda National Fellowship of Born-again Churches has also put on hold all overnight prayer meetings and crusades nationwide, The Monitor said.

In a security meeting set by the Kampala City Council, UNFBAC vice chairman David Kiganda said, “No stranger will be allowed to attend any prayer sessions,” The Monitor said.
Kiganda said approved churches must also install soundproof facilities and can only operate until midnight. Mayor Nasser Sebaggala said the changes are intended to protect churches from possible terrorist attacks, The Monitor said.

Anglican Archbishop Henry Luke Orombi denounced the July 11 terrorist bombings, but also urged the people to resist vengeance and suspicion.

He noted that Christians (84 percent) and Muslims (12 percent) had always lived peacefully together in Uganda adding, “Peaceful society is the right of every one regardless of their age, race, gender or religious inclination,” Ekklesia said.

More here-

http://theundergroundsite.com/index.php/2010/07/christian-churchgoers-in-uganda-issued-identity-cards-13033

War museum buys medals of WWI chaplain

From Canada-

The Canadian War Museum has bought the medals of Canon Frederick G. Scott, a First World War chaplain and poet, for $28,000.

Jeffrey Hoare Auctions Inc., an auction house that specializes in military memorabilia, sold a set of 10 medals belonging to the war hero last Friday in St. Catharines, Ont.

Among the medals are the Most Distinguished Order of St. Michael and St. George and the Distinguished Service Order.

Lt.-Col. Scott was senior chaplain with the 1st Canadian Infantry Division, but he could not be kept safely in the rear while men were in the trenches. Instead he insisted on being in the thick of the action at Ypres, the Somme, Vimy Ridge and the Battle of Arras.

The Anglican priest was mentioned four times in dispatches, according to the Ottawa-based war museum. He was wounded in 1918 and sent to England to recover. He died in 1944 at age 83.


Read more:

http://www.cbc.ca/arts/books/story/2010/07/19/canon-scott-poet.html#ixzz0uDzIZKoF

Pope preparing speeches on Cardinal Newman for UK trip

From Catholic News-

While the Holy Father spends July in the serenity of the Apostolic Palace at Castel Gandolfo, he is dedicating time to penning a number of important documents. Among the pieces on his to-do list are the speeches to be given in the U.K. this September.

While a variety of news reports have speculated on the activity of the Pope during his summer retreat to the hilltop palace at Castel Gandolfo, a piece by the Vatican specialist Paolo Rodari in Sunday's edition of the Italian paper Il Foglio gives an overview of the Holy Father's writing aspirations during his "time off."

Rodari described the three major works at the Pope's fingertips as: not an entire book as had previously been reported in the Italian press, but an "appendix" to his Jesus of Nazareth books, the basic framework of his fourth encyclical and his addresses for the late-summer trip to Scotland and England.

According to Rodari, the brief addition to the Jesus of Nazareth series will cover the infancy of Jesus as recounted in the Gospels of Matthew and Luke, and the encyclical will present his perspective on "faith," a logical choice after the first three, which focused on social issues, charity and hope.

More here-

http://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/pope-preparing-speeches-on-cardinal-newman-for-uk-trip/

Archbishop to get Freedom of Swansea

From News Wales-

The Archbishop of Canterbury is to receive the highest honour his home city of Swansea can bestow, the Freedom of the City.

Dr Rowan Williams will be following in the footsteps of people such as former US President Jimmy Carter, footballer John Charles and military organisations including HMS Scott and The Royal Welsh Regiment (Royal Welch Fusiliers) when he receives the award at a special ceremony later this month.

Swansea Council agreed earlier this year to bestow the Freedom of the City to Dr Williams, who has been leader of the Anglican Communion since 2003.

The Council said Dr Williams has a long association with Swansea and remains a great supporter of the area.

He is due to accept the honour at a ceremonial Full Council in the city's Guildhall on July 31, which will be followed by a celebratory Service at St Mary's Church in the city afterwards.

The Lord Mayor of Swansea, Cllr Richard Lewis, said the Freedom Ceremony was Swansea's way of recognising one of its most famous sons.

He said: "Dr Williams is a true son of Swansea and he's always maintained his links with the city over the years. He was educated at Dynefor School in the city before going on to Cambridge.

"Dr Williams is the first Welshman to hold the post of Archbishop of Canterbury and he is now one of the best-known clergymen in the world."


More here-

http://www.newswales.co.uk/?section=Community&F=1&id=19527

2011: Anglican Bishop justifies why Jonathan should contest

From Nigeria-

The Bishop of the Diocese of Kubwa (Anglican Communion), t he Right Reverend Duke Akamisoko, has explained why President Goodluck Jonathan should contest the 2011 poll, even as he advocated zoning policy in the Nigerian political equation.

However, the cleric's notion of zoning is different from the present North/South rotational arrangement of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), noting that the Presidency should be rotated among the six geo-political zones in the country.

Akamisoko, who spoke at a press briefing on the second session of the first synod of the Diocese of Kubwa in Abuja, advised President Jonathan to take the slot offered by this arrangement without delay.

He said: “Zoning is the best political option for Nigeria, but not on the erroneous principle of North/South divide. I see zoning from a different light. Against the current clamour for zoning to be based on the current North/South, Christian/Muslim arrangement, zoning should be practised on the line of the present six geo-political zones.”

More here-

http://www.tribune.com.ng/index.php/news/8483-2011-anglican-bishop-justifies-why-jonathan-should-contest

KANSAS: Newest congregation moves into new Spring Hill home; membership triples

From ELO-

The newest congregation in the Episcopal Diocese of Kansas has moved into a new home in the town of Spring Hill, and that move already has helped membership more than triple, from nine to 29 active congregants.
St. Clare's Episcopal Church welcomed the public for worship on Pentecost, May 23, to its new location in the town's historic downtown area. It is leasing space on Sundays in a recently renovated building.

Before the move, worshippers had met in the living room of the congregation's vicar, the Rev. Philip Hubbard, and his family in Overland Park, several miles north. Hubbard was hired by the diocese in 2008 to start a new congregation in Johnson County, part of the greater Kansas City area and the largest population center in the diocese. The county is home to five other Episcopal churches.

The decision to give St. Clare's a permanent home in Spring Hill, a town of 6,500 that straddles the Johnson and Miami county line, came earlier this year, based on its potential for growth in the area. The city has grown 40 percent in the past decade, and it's close to a cluster of larger-sized cities, all without an Episcopal church.

Hubbard said about half of the 39 people at the Pentecost service were attending St. Clare's for the first time.

Patti Stites and her husband, Art Canright, had met Hubbard at the local Farmer's Market and, struck by his enthusiasm, decided to visit that day. They'd never been to an Episcopal church for worship before, but Canright called it "fun" and Stites said Hubbard's conversation-style sermon was "very enjoyable."

Susan and Don Traub met Hubbard at the Farmer's Market just the day before and as longtime Episcopalians were delighted to learn they could attend an Episcopal church without leaving Spring Hill. Former members of St. John's in Abilene, on the western edge of the diocese, the couple had been driving to Grace and Holy Trinity Cathedral in downtown Kansas City, Missouri, for church.

More here-

http://www.episcopalchurch.org/81803_123560_ENG_HTM.htm

Cardinal Newman was much more than a 'reluctant saint'

From The London Telegraph-

Announcing the details of the Pope's forthcoming visit to Britain a couple of weeks ago, the BBC said that Benedict XVI would be beatifying "a 19th-century cardinal". The description was accurate, but misleading, rather like referring to Alfred Tennyson as "a 19th-century peer". The man in question was never a bishop and only became a Cardinal in his late seventies. His interest lies elsewhere.

But one can see the BBC's difficulty. How could one quickly describe John Henry Newman? The most important Catholic convert in the history of the English-speaking world? The best Romantic writer of the Victorian age? The most influential spiritual leader in England since John Wesley? All these, perhaps, and more. In the subtitle of this book, John Cornwell calls Newman "the reluctant saint", which is not a terribly useful epithet, since no one who was not reluctant could possibly qualify for sainthood.

There is a bit of an "agenda" behind this book, I suspect. Cornwell is clearly on the reforming wing of the Catholic Church, and he wishes to enlist Newman as a prophet of that cause. Newman's belief in the primacy of conscience, says Cornwell, can be used to uphold attacks on Vatican teaching on contraception. His liberal idea of a university is taken to imply that he might have favoured student protest against the Vietnam war.

More here-

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/religion/7897805/Cardinal-Newman-was-much-more-than-a-reluctant-saint.html

Anglican Primate Wants State of Emergency in South-East

From All Africa-

The Primate of All Nigeria in Anglican Community, Archbishop Nicholas Okoh has called on the Federal Government to recognise that the insecurity in South East is beyond the capacity of the state government by declaring state of emergency.

Rev. Okoh gave the indication yesterday while addressing newsmen on the state of the nation at the Episcopal house, Abuja. He enjoined church leaders and communities to put up proposals for the resolution of insecurity in South East adding that the self inflicted wound will take Nigerians ten solid years to recover from the shock.

The clergy frowned at the apparent breakdown of law and order in Aba as criminals virtually shut down social and economic activities in the area through violence, brigandage and kidnapping in quest for money. He emphasized that after forty years of civil war, Nigerians are yet to tow the path of good leadership while corruption and constant crisis have ruined the country.

"We are baffled that forty years after the horrors of the civil war, which we are yet to recover from, we have set out another war against ourselves. "If the wave of wanton destruction in Aba is not eradicated, the communities will be completely ruined. There are no good roads, markets are in the decline and banks are forced to suspend operations due to incessant robberies.

Rev. Okoh gave the indication yesterday while addressing newsmen on the state of the nation at the Episcopal house, Abuja. He enjoined church leaders and communities to put up proposals for the resolution of insecurity in South East adding that the self inflicted wound will take Nigerians ten solid years to recover from the shock.

The clergy frowned at the apparent breakdown of law and order in Aba as criminals virtually shut down social and economic activities in the area through violence, brigandage and kidnapping in quest for money. He emphasized that after forty years of civil war, Nigerians are yet to tow the path of good leadership while corruption and constant crisis have ruined the country.

"We are baffled that forty years after the horrors of the civil war, which we are yet to recover from, we have set out another war against ourselves. "If the wave of wanton destruction in Aba is not eradicated, the communities will be completely ruined. There are no good roads, markets are in the decline and banks are forced to suspend operations due to incessant robberies.

More here-

http://allafrica.com/stories/201007190454.html

Will Gender and Sexuality Rend The Anglican Communion?

From Religious Dispatches

RD’s Joanna Brooks poses a question regarding the Church of England’s decision to consecrate women bishops: Will diverging perspectives on gender and sexuality determine the shape of the 21st-century Christian world?

The Revealer offers these additional questions on the debate:

It’s a question that only begs more: Does sweeping change cause schism or does incremental change cause it as well? Why would the divide last the next 90 years? How would a shift of Anglican-Catholics to Vatican loyalty change the Catholic Church? The Anglican Church? What will all this church resistance to cultural change mean for equality in the future?

As I have reported on RD previously, the media tends to greatly exaggerate the death of the Anglican Communion. In this instance, they made the mistake of assuming that UK Anglicans function like their US counterparts. A quick romp through church history will reveal that US Episcopal pioneers have a long history of rebelling against authority, a trait not shared by their UK bretheren.

More here-

http://www.religiondispatches.org/dispatches/danielschultz/2992/will_gender_and_sexuality_rend_the_anglican_communion/

Editor's Note

Editor's note- Thunderstorms knocked out the internet at the church and it is not scheduled to be back until late this afternoon.

Trinity congregation ‘where we never expected to be’ with leader’s sudden suspension

From Upper South Carolina-

There were prayers for the Very Rev. Philip C. Linder and his family Sunday and a call for members of Trinity Episcopal Cathedral “to seek out God in prayer” as the congregation gathered for the first time since the extraordinary suspension last week of its longtime leader.
“The events of this past week have brought us to a place where we never expected to be,” the Rev. Charles M. Davis Jr., who was named interim dean, told the packed congregation gathered in Averyt Hall for the 10 a.m. service.

Linder, 50, was suspended Wednesday as dean of the downtown cathedral by Bishop W. Andrew Waldo, the newly consecrated leader of the Episcopal Diocese of Upper South Carolina, following a move by the vestry, the church’s governing body, to sever its 11-year relationship with Linder.

Waldo, who was asked by the vestry to mediate the conflict, took the unusual step of suspending the dean after Linder apparently violated a pastoral directive not to speak to staffers or members about the leadership schism.

“I ache for Philip, and I ache for you,” Davis told the hushed congregation. “I know that this time is not easy, but I call on you to seek out God in prayer.” He prayed for the bishop and for the Linder family and told the congregation, “I am here for you.”

In place of the usual sermon, Davis read the bishop’s letter that was posted Friday on the church’s website. In that letter, Waldo, who was consecrated bishop of the diocese May 22, acknowledged the shock and concern generated by his action. But he laid the responsibility for the suspension on Linder, who Waldo said continued to contact Trinity members either himself, or through his wife, Ellen, as the conflict simmered.

Read more:

http://www.thestate.com/2010/07/19/1382311/trinity-congregation-where-we.html#ixzz0u7yYv4Eu

Churches keeping the faith a year into their divide

From Modesto-

It's been a year since more than 90 percent of St. Paul's congregation walked away from its $2.3 million property in northeast Modesto to begin Wellspring Anglican Church downtown. The move forestalled a lawsuit by Episcopal Bishop Jerry Lamb to claim the property in the ongoing national dispute between the theologically liberal Episcopal Church and the conservative Anglicans.

Members and leaders of each congregation said they are happy -- Wellspring with its stable congregation and ministries, despite not owning a physical structure, and the small but slowly growing congregation at St. Paul's.

Recent visits to both churches found the congregations using the identical liturgy, from prayers to reponses, and even the same order of worship.

The differences are in the numbers -- about 30 adults attended the main service at St. Paul's Episcopal Church, while nearly five times that number gathered at Wellsping -- and in the Scriptural passages and sermons.

The Episcopal Church has added more biblical passages about women to its readings, and on June 13 at St. Paul's, that included an excerpt from

I Kings 21 that detailed the ruthlessness of Jezebel and her God-forsaking husband, Israel's King Ahab, as well as a passage from Luke 7 about a woman who annointed Jesus' feet with her tears and expensive ointment. A third passage was from Galatians.

Read more:

http://www.modbee.com/2010/07/18/1256943/churches-keeping-the-faith-a-year.html#ixzz0u7qjZhuU

National debate prompts breakup at flagship Episcopal church

From San Antonio-

In its storied 99-year history, Christ Episcopal Church has fashioned itself into a pillar of orthodox beliefs, Anglican heritage and charismatic fervor for spreading Christian salvation worldwide.
But in recent years, a gut-wrenching question has tested the bonds of this spiritual family.

Should it leave its parent organization, the Episcopal Church, for making unwelcome liberal changes by accepting openly gay and lesbian clergy and modernizing time-honored theology?

One group had enough.

They walked away from the 2,400-member parish in Monte Vista last month to forge a new one — free of potential intrusion from national leadership but one that will meet, at least for a while, in less ideal facilities.

A larger group remains in the parish, and while equally disturbed about the direction of the national church, it is resolved to carry on the parish legacy despite the shifting winds.

The unraveling began in earnest in May when the parish rector, the Rev. Chuck Collins, announced plans to retire for a future outside the Episcopal priesthood. Most of the lay governing body resigned the next month to organize the new church, including architect Rick Archer, a 22-year member and former junior warden.

More here-

http://www.mysanantonio.com/news/local_news/national_debate_prompts_breakup_at_flagship_episcopal_church_98722674.html

From One Benefactor, Diverse Seeds in Theology

From The New York Times-

At the end of “Hannah’s Child,” the gossipy yet very moving new memoir by the theologian Stanley Hauerwas, the author thanks one Alonzo McDonald for financing the sabbatical that made the book possible.

Mr. Hauerwas, the Duke professor whom Time magazine in 2001 called “America’s best theologian,” is a pacifist and an anti-capitalist, and he has what might be called the comprehensive pro-life position, against abortion, war and the death penalty. He also believes that patriotism is a form of idolatry. Yet he calls his angel “a former Marine,” “President Carter’s chief of staff,” and “a capitalist” — all meant as terms of suspicion.

For Mr. Hauerwas’s adoring fans — and his equally numerous critics — this pairing of donor and recipient will at first seem quite odd. But it becomes more understandable when one learns a bit more about the rich, generous, religious and determined Mr. McDonald.

Mr. McDonald is by no means an ecumenical seeker. He helped found the Trinity Forum, an evangelical leadership institute, and he has given money to the Fellowship, also known as the Family, the secretive Christian association. His efforts to prescribe how his money got spent at Harvard led one dean to insist that the terms of the gift be rewritten. But his donations to Harvard, Yale, the University of Chicago, Duke, Emory, Oxford and Cambridge support a small group of scholars with widely diverging views, men and women united only in their brilliance as students of Christianity.

More here-

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/17/us/17beliefs.html?src=me

Columbia Church Services Go On Without Reverend

From Columbia SC-

Church services went on today as scheduled at Trinity Episcopal Cathedral in Columbia without their leader the Very Reverend Dr. Phillip Linder.

The historic cathedral is across from the State House and several South Carolina Governors are buried there.

Our calls to the Bishop were not returned but he did post this message on the church's website.

Dear People of Trinity Cathedral,

I know that today you find yourselves in a state of shock over the suspension from ministry this week of your Dean, Philip Linder. I, too, am deeply saddened and acutely aware of the pain many of you feel in response to this news.

Those of you who are puzzled or angered by my decision to suspend the Dean are asking many questions, some of which can only be answered with replies we are unable to give you for privacy reasons. What must firmly be said, however, is that your wardens and chancellor came to me with a call for a special vestry meeting, signed by themselves and 16 vestry members, to consider the dissolution of the pastoral relationship between the Cathedral and Philip Linder. That the level of support was so high indicated to me that there was an acutely strained relationship between the Dean and his lay leadership.

More here-

http://www.wltx.com/news/local/story.aspx?storyid=90639&catid=2

Land disputes still raging on

From Modesto--

What's happened since the San Joaquin Diocese, under the leadership of Bishop John-David Schofield, became the first diocese in the country to leave the Episcopal Church in December 2007?

Four dioceses and more than 600 individual congregations in the United States have left the church over the interpretation of Scripture, including whether Jesus is the only way to salvation and the ordination of gay clergy.

The Episcopal Church has filed lawsuits against all parishes that left, claiming that the properties were set up as Episcopal and therefore belong to that denomination. The departing parishes and dioceses say they are still part of the international church -- the worldwide Anglican Communion, of which the Episcopal Church is a part -- and, as such, should be able to retain their property.

The conflict has escalated internationally.

In May, the Episcopal Church consecrated its second openly homosexual bishop, leading Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams in England to say that the Episcopalians are out of step with most of the Anglican Communion and would lose their voting rights on ecumenical committees and in doctrinal discussions.


Read more:

http://www.modbee.com/2010/07/18/1256945/land-disputes-still-raging-on.html#ixzz0u3G8EEUe

Kids of inmates focus of special camp

From Georgia-

Episcopal churches raise funds to give kids free chance at summer camp experience.

In most ways, Kamp PHUN is like any other summer camp for kids, complete with first day jitters, arts and crafts, swimming games, nighttime ghost stories, nature hikes and new best friends.

But if these campers dig a little deeper, they'll discover something that makes them special.

They're all the children of people currently or formerly incarcerated.

"We don't tell them why they're invited to this camp, but they figure it out," said the Rev. Cheryl Parris, pastor of St. Matthew's Episcopal Church and camp director. "The basic idea is just to provide the kids with a week of fun."

Kamp PHUN, which stands for Peace, Hope, Unity, Now, is the 3-year-old project of the Episcopal Diocese of Georgia. The church offers up its Honey Creek retreat center in rural Camden County for one week each summer to 20 to 40 children of incarcerated parents from across the state.

More here-

http://savannahnow.com/accent/2010-07-17/kids-inmates-focus-special-camp

Episcopal minister knows his 'Simpsons'

From Iowa-

Ay caramba, memorizing the number of spikes in Bart's head might seem inconsequential, but don't tell that to the 10 contestants in the South Sioux City Public Library's first "The Simpsons" trivia contest Friday who take pride in knowing their d'oh!

The contest, which was open to the public, tested knowledge of the long-running Fox animated show in a series of 100 questions categorized as "simple," "multiple choice" and "impossible to answer," according to library director (and quizmaster) David Mixdorf.
By the way, there are nine spikes in Bart's head.

"Since 'The Simpsons' has made more than 460 episodes and probably has a cast of nearly 1,000 characters, delving into the minutiae of the show was a lot of fun," Mixdorf, a "Simpsons" fan since the family sprung up in cartoon shorts in the late '80s "Tracey Ullman Show, said.
One person not even born when "The Simpsons" first premiered in 1989 was 18-year-old Jeanette Garcia, who entered the contest with her 24-year-old sister Diana Garcia.
"We love 'The Simpsons,'" Jeanette said after taking the quiz, "and we thought we knew 'The Simpsons.'"

"That is, until we took this quiz," Diana said, with Jeanette laughing and nodding in agreement.

More here-

http://www.siouxcityjournal.com/news/local/article_b6fed3d5-9d68-5cee-95b0-0b2a570f01d1.html

Appeal In Episcopal Split Case

From Orlando but about Savannah-

Members of Georgia's oldest Episcopal church are making one more appeal in their long-running fight to hang on to a church they believe is theirs.

Savannah's 277 year-old Christ Church broke off from its diocese over a raft of issues dividing Anglicans world-wide, including the ordination of gay priests.

Recently, a state appeals court ruled, church members had to give their historic building back to the diocese

Pastor Marc Robertson says, although church leaders are appealing to the state Supreme Court, they're also prepared to leave their sanctuary, which is worth millions of dollars and occupies a very prominent location downtown.

"The church is not brick and mortar. The church is people," Robertson says. "We may have an opportunity to live that out in a way that very few American congregations have a chance to experience."

Robertson says, church leaders are meeting with church members in small groups this month to prepare for what might come next.

"The Independent Presbyterian Church in Savannah, another old, historic downtown church has most graciously offered their facilities for us," Robertson says.

More here-

http://www.gpb.org/news/2010/07/16/appeal-in-episcopal-split-case

Vatican Revises Clerical Sex Abuse Rules

From NPR

The Vatican has issued a new set of rules in response to the child abuse scandal that has rocked the Catholic Church. The changes in church law include doubling the statute of limitations for disciplinary action against priests to 20 years, and widening the use of fast-track procedures used to defrock those found guilty of molesting minors and the mentally disabled.

You can listen to the story here-

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=128556707

Vatican official: Anglican women bishops an ‘enormous obstacle’ to Christian unity

From Catholic Culture-

In an interview published July 15, Bishop Brian Farrell, secretary of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity, called the prospect of the appointment of women bishops in the Church of England an “enormous obstacle” to Christian unity.

“All the Churches of the first millennium, Catholic, Eastern and Orthodox, state that only men can be ordained,” he said. “These Churches see the ordination of women as an illegitimate abandonment of authentic Tradition.”

“It saddens us that on this point the Anglican Communion has left what we consider the essential Tradition of the Church since its beginning,” he continued. “But the process began a long time ago.”

“We will continue the ecumenical dialogue with a realism that accepts things as they are and is aware that the road ahead is long and arduous. Knowing, however, that dialogue is a task imposed by Christ himself and sustained by the grace of the Holy Spirit, soul of the Church of Christ.”

Bishop Farrell emphasized even apart from the provisions of Anglicanorum Coetibus-- the 2009 document that paved the way for Anglican communities to be received into the Catholic Church-- individual Anglicans may be received into the Church in local parishes at any time they wish.

http://www.catholicculture.org/news/headlines/index.cfm?storyid=6943