Priest: The Real Miracle Would Be A Cubs Win

From The Daily Beast-

Being a Christian and a Cubs fan have lots in common—starting with faith against all odds.

The opposite of faith is not doubt. The opposite of faith is certainty.

That is a bit of proverbial wisdom that I have often shared with others on my faith journey that led to being ordained as an Episcopal priest this past January. I share it because it rings true to my experience, not merely as a Christian, but as a Cubs fan.

There has been no greater certainty in American sports over the last century than that the Cubs will lose. Seasons change. The players change. Management changes. And still the Cubs lose.

More here-

http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2015/10/17/priest-the-real-miracle-would-be-a-cubs-win.html

Pope Calls for Church That Is Far More Decentralized

From ABC-

Pope Francis called Saturday for a Catholic Church that is far more decentralized, where they laity play a greater role, bishops conferences take care of certain problems and even the papacy is rethought.

Francis issued the call during a ceremony Saturday to mark the 50th anniversary of the institution of the Synod of Bishops, a consultative body formed during the Second Vatican Council that was intended precisely to encourage more collegiality in the running of the church by inviting bishops to offer their advice to Rome.

Over the past five decades, the synod has been little more than a talk-fest. But Francis has sought to re-energize it, and the contentious meeting under way at the Vatican, in which conservative and progressive bishops are squaring off over ministering to families, has been the result.

More here-

http://abcnews.go.com/Health/wireStory/pope-calls-church-decentralized-34540931

Bishop leads cycling tour through Valley to raise awareness of human trafficking

From San Joaquin-

David Rice, Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of San Joaquin, and his cycling team are on a mission: to raise awareness and funds for local groups working to end human trafficking.

The Tour Against Trafficking, an 18-day, 750 mile ride throughout Central California, made its way into Turlock on Friday, stopping at St. Francis Episcopal Church for rest and refreshment before the group of bicyclists set off on day 13 of their trip towards Sonora.

As a veteran team cyclist, Rice thought a bicycle tour was a great way to get people involved in the cause and start conversations throughout the region about the growing crime of human trafficking.


More here-


http://www.turlockjournal.com/section/12/article/30447/

5 questions for New Testament scholar John Dominic Crossan

From North Carolina-

John Dominic Crossan won headlines, esteem and condemnation as co-founder of the controversial Jesus Seminar – a group of New Testament scholars in the 1980s and ’90s that claimed Jesus didn’t say a lot of what was attributed to him in the Bible. Crossan, the author of more than 20 books, cast Jesus as a peasant nonviolent revolutionary who was executed by Rome.

This weekend, in a series of talks at Myers Park Baptist Church in Charlotte, Crossan will shift his focus to Jesus’ disciple Paul. This 1st-century evangelist converted Gentiles into believers in Jesus. And Paul’s New Testament letters, or epistles, are still widely quoted today – at weddings (“Love is patient, love is kind...”) and in culture war battles over same-sex marriage and the role of women at home and in church.

More here-

http://www.charlotteobserver.com/living/religion/article39344229.html

Stephen Colbert and Oprah Get Biblical on ‘The Late Show

From The Daily Beast-

Unlike some of his late-night contemporaries—Bill Maher, John Oliver, etc.—Stephen Colbert is a devout Christian.

The limber host of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert grew up the youngest of 11 children in a very Roman Catholic family, and was raised in Charleston, South Carolina. He attended an Episcopal school there, and is currently an ordained minister who teaches Sunday school. In the lead-up to the Late Show premiere, Colbert even sat down for a rare, remarkably candid interview about his faith with Father Thomas Rosica, media attaché to the Holy See Press Office, for his show Witness.

So when Colbert welcomed the one-and-only Oprah Winfrey on his show to promote her new OWN series Belief, a 7-night television event exploring the origins of various faiths, the two outsized personalities got downright Biblical.

More here-

http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2015/10/16/stephen-colbert-and-oprah-get-biblical-on-the-late-show.html

CofE churches may soon only open at Easter and Christmas: One in four parishes has fewer than ten worshippers

From The Daily Mail-

Dwindling congregations mean thousands of historic churches may only open at Christmas and Easter under radical plans proposed by the Church of England.

Centuries-old churches across the country may shut their doors for most of the year after attendances in some places fell into single figures.

In a drastic overhaul, thousands may become ‘festival churches’ which only open during major religious holidays.

More here-

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3273355/CofE-churches-soon-open-Easter-Christmas-One-four-parishes-fewer-ten-worshippers.html

Alexandria's Immanuel Church: More Than a Building

From Virginia-

“To the glory of God, this chapel burned.”

To many attending the consecration of the new Immanuel Chapel following the destruction of the earlier incarnation of the building in a fire, the comment by Justin Welby, the Archbishop of Canterbury, may have come as a bit of a shock. The original Immanuel Chapel at the Virginia Theological Seminary, built in 1881, was destroyed in a fire in 2010. Over $14.3 million was raised in donations to build a new chapel, which was completed earlier in 2015. The Rev. Ian Markham, Ph.D., and dean and president of the Virginia Theological Seminary, thanked Robert A.M. Stern architects and all of the donors who made the building’s reconstruction possible.

“Is it possible?” continued Welby, “Can such an event ever be seen to the glory of God? Yes. Through the death and resurrection, we are brought back into the presence of the living God through his resurrection of Christ.”

More here-

http://www.connectionnewspapers.com/news/2015/oct/14/alexandrias-immanuel-church-more-building/

First black Episcopal Church leader will continue his father’s teachings

From The Washington Post-

Bishop Michael Curry vividly remembers growing up in segregated Buffalo in the 1950s and ’60s, where on one bright morning in 1963, he crossed Main Street from East Buffalo to West Buffalo to attend an integrated school.

As an Episcopal priest and civil rights activist, his late father, Kenneth Curry, helped lead the boycott of the city’s segregated public schools. And yet, like the larger culture at the time, worship in the Episcopal Church he so loved was largely segregated. As leader of a black congregation in Buffalo, he never would have been called to the pulpit of a white Episcopal church.

More here-

https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/social-issues/first-black-episcopal-church-leader-will-continue-his-fathers-teachings/2015/10/14/bede82e2-72b2-11e5-8d93-0af317ed58c9_story.html

Education that Crosses Divides

From The Living Church-

The future of theological education in the Episcopal Church should be marked by robust evangelism, serious engagement with orthodoxy, and a courageous tenderness, according to panelists at a gathering of seminary leaders convened by the Archbishop of Canterbury.

The Very Rev. Ian Markham, Virginia Theological Seminary’s dean and president, hosted the forum Oct. 12 as part of the celebration of Immanuel Chapel’s consecration. Deans, faculty, and students from eight of the Episcopal Church’s ten seminaries attended the meeting, as well as representatives from two seminaries affiliated with the Anglican Church in North America.

More here-

http://livingchurch.org/education-crosses-divides

Anglicans could receive Roman Catholic communion, Archbishop suggests

From The Telegraph-

The Archbishop of Birmingham, the Most Rev Bernard Longley, signalled that restrictions, which can be traced back to the Reformation, might be “reconsidered” as a result of “deeper sharing” between the two churches.

Although he insisted that he was expressing a “personal view”, the Archbishop’s comments will be closely watched as he is the senior Catholic cleric responsible for dialogue with the Anglican churches.

His remarks were warmly welcomed by leading figures in the Church of England who said it was time for closer ties.

For centuries, the issue of communion was a source of some of the deepest and most bitter division between protestants and Catholics.

More here-

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/religion/10373268/Anglicans-could-receive-Roman-Catholic-communion-Archbishop-suggests.html?

Don’t entertain homosexuality- Religious Leaders warned

From Ghana-

Religious leaders have been warned not to entertain the practice of homosexuality among church members.

The Archdeacon of the Accra North Parish Priest of All Saints Anglican Church at Adabraka, Venerable Edmund Mensah Tetteh, gave the warning on Saturday during an ordination ceremony at the St Mary’s Virgin Anglican Church at James Town.

He said “homosexuality is filthy and satanic” and that Christians, especially the clergy, should not associate it with Christian religion.

“The clergy should stand firm and say no to the practice of homosexuality because those pushing the agenda into the Christian religion are ready to do everything possible to influence us,” he said.

More here-

http://www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/NewsArchive/Don-t-entertain-homosexuality-Religious-Leaders-warned-387441

Gay English priest elected to Anglican General Synod

From Christian Examiner-

A British priest who is married to his homosexual partner is now a member of the Church of England's General Synod – the church's governing body and the group that supposedly sets theology for the churches of the worldwide Anglican Communion.

According to The Guardian, Vicar Andrew Foreshew-Cain, whose "husband" is also an atheist, has said he will use his new position to "advocate for a church that faces up to the issues of sexuality in a honest and compassionate way."

He joins as many as three other openly homosexual priests serving on the General Synod, but he is reportedly the only one married to his partner openly. Others are apparently married, but have not disclosed their same-sex marriages to the church.

More here-

http://www.christianexaminer.com/article/gay.english.priest.elected.to.anglican.general.synod/49647.htm

Episcopal Church in Decline? Denomination Loses Nearly 50K Members, Closes 69 Parishes

From Christian Post-

The Episcopal Church continues to experience losses in both church attendance and membership, according to recently released numbers from the denomination's Office of the General Convention.

From 2013 to 2014, active baptized members in domestic dioceses went from 1.866 million to 1.817 million, representing a loss of nearly 50,000 members.

The statistics reveal that in 2014 that average Sunday attendance was a little over 600,000 in domestic dioceses, down from approximately 623,000 in 2013.

More here-

http://www.christianpost.com/news/episcopal-church-loses-50k-members-closes-69-parishes-147583/

Dutch Reformed Church’s radical gay ruling

From South Africa-

Christian denominations have lashed out at the “conservative” Dutch Reformed Church (DRC) after it announced that it had approved of same-sex unions and that would now allow homosexual ministers to be ordained without the need for them to be celibate.

The decision was, however, applauded by the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender community who said this was a surprising, yet warmly welcomed decision that would drive many same-sex couples and individuals back to the church.

Last week a 64% majority of the church’s synod voted in favour of acknowledging same-sex marriages and having openly gay church members serve in the church, which had previously been forbidden.

More here-

http://beta.iol.co.za/news/south-africa/kwazulu-natal/dutch-reformed-churchs-radical-gay-ruling-1928889

Archbishop Longley rejects synod proposal on Communion for Anglican spouses

From Catholic Herald UK-

A synod proposal to allow Anglican spouses of Catholics to receive Holy Communion has been rejected by the Archbishop of Birmingham.

The proposal, contained in the working document is due to be discussed at the synod next week.

If approved it would mean Anglicans being allowed to present themselves at Communion during Mass if they were married to a Catholic but unable to attend a service in their own denomination.
More here-

http://www.catholicherald.co.uk/news/2015/10/13/archbishop-longley-rejects-synod-proposal-on-communion-for-anglican-spouses/

New Zealand Anglicans and Methodists eye closer ties

From New Zealand-

The Anglican and Methodist churches are in talks which could bring them closer than ever.

The two were working on equal recognition of each other's ordained clergy and a hui, held in Auckland in September, had kicked off the latest round of discussions which could see them more united in the future.

Of all the Christian denominations, the Anglican Church of Aotearoa and the Methodist Church of New Zealand had the most similarities.

John Wesley founded Methodism, with parishioners from the Anglican church, in the 18th century.

Reverend Bob Sidal minister of the Woodlands Rd parish, had already worked at St John's Anglican church in Wai-iti Rd by leading a funeral there.

With an earthquake-prone church building out of use, the congregation had used the church hall to worship, but there was not enough room for mourners.

More here-

http://www.stuff.co.nz/timaru-herald/news/72884564/New-Zealand-Anglicans-and-Methodists-eye-closer-ties

A Greener Prayer Book

From The Living Church-

The Rev. Ruth Meyers predicted this week that a revised Book of Common Prayer will most likely reflect changes in creation, baptism, and trinitarian theology.

Meyers, Hodges-Haynes Professor of Liturgics at Church Divinity School of the Pacific since 2009, led an “Imagining a New Prayer Book” forum Oct. 8 during the school’s alumni convocation.

Meyers led the Standing Committee on Liturgy and Music from 2009 to 2015. Her presentation addressed General Convention’s charge that the SCLM plan for a comprehensive revision of the prayer book.
More here-

http://www.livingchurch.org/greener-prayer-book

Sydney Anglican Archbishop Glenn Davies' call to arms over same-sex marriage

From Australia-

The Anglican Archbishop of Sydney has issued a call to arms for true believers to oppose same-sex marriage even if they are confronted with hatred and ridicule over their views.

Dr Glenn Davies has used his opening address to the Sydney diocese 2015 synod to urge Anglicans to join the national debate around same-sex marriage ahead of a plebiscite on the issue.

"The antagonism of the world to the word of God is perhaps seen nowhere more acutely than in the virulent challenge to the definition of marriage which pervades conversations in the media, the workplace and even in our places of leisure," he has told the annual meeting of church leaders in Sydney.

"The bombardment, both subtle and not so subtle, is relentless."


More here-

http://www.smh.com.au/nsw/sydney-anglican-archbishop-glenn-davies-call-to-arms-over-samesex-marriage-20151012-gk70ba.html

Churches striving to answer city’s call

From Hawaii-

Mayor Kirk Caldwell grew visibly frustrated as he recalled standing in front of a room filled with Oahu religious leaders and asking them to house a homeless family, but not a single one stepped up.

The Rev. David Gierlach of St. Elizabeth’s Episcopal Church on North King Street was not invited to the July meeting, and said he believes Caldwell was “talking to the wrong group of churches.”

St. Elizabeth’s is surrounded by homeless people and lets them use the church’s showers and bathrooms at any time . In June, the church even took up valuable space in its parking lot to temporarily accommodate a converted 8-foot-by-20-foot shipping container that has since housed a homeless family of five and is now being used by a homeless woman named Marie Kane, who is pregnant with twins and is expected to deliver just after Christmas.
More here-

http://www.staradvertiser.com/homeless/20151011_churches_striving_to_answer_citys_call.html?id=331914811

The Archbishop of Canterbury: Dissolving the Anglican Church to Save It

From The Atlantic-

Justin Welby was named archbishop of Canterbury with high hopes that he was the man who could save the Anglican Communion. Now it appears he may oversee its breakup—a calculated destruction intended, paradoxically, to save it.

Welby heads the Church of England, making him also the titular head of the affiliated Anglican churches around the world, including the Episcopal Church in the U.S. The umbrella group, the worldwide Anglican Communion, has been shaken by conflicts over the ordination and consecration of gays and women and over same-sex marriage in the U.S. and U.K. According to reports in British media, Welby will propose reorganizing the Communion as a looser affiliation at a January gathering.

More here-

http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2015/09/the-end-of-the-worldwide-anglican-communion/405736/

Anglican-Oriental Orthodox International Commission publishes historic statement on Christology

From ICN-

Historic agreements have been signed between Anglican and Oriental Orthodox Churches helping to heal one of the oldest continuing division within Christianity. An Agreed Statement on Christology, published in North Wales this week by the Anglican-Oriental Orthodox International Commission, heals the centuries-old split between the Anglican Churches within the family of Chalcedonian Churches and the non-Chalcedonian Churches over the incarnation of Christ.

In addition, the Commission has made substantial progress on issues concerning the Holy Spirit, which have continued to keep the Churches apart over the centuries.

Leading clergy and theologians from both Christian traditions from around the world have been meeting at Gladstone's Library in Hawarden to engage in theological dialogue, while at the same time forging deeper bonds of faith and mutual support.

His Eminence Metropolitan Bishoy from the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria in Egypt and Co-Chair of the Commission said: "With this agreement we are able to heal the cause of the division between the two families of the churches worldwide which started at Chalcedon.

More here-

http://www.indcatholicnews.com/news.php?viewStory=28513

Bike tour brings human trafficking to light

From San Joaquin-

Six exhausted bike riders rolled into Porterville Wednesday with a message to end human trafficking.
The Episcopal Diocese of San Joaquin, led by Bishop David Rice, is holding The Tour Against Trafficking. The group of bike riders, which varies by day from two dozen riders to a half dozen, launched the tour on Oct. 2. It ends Oct. 23 in Modesto.

“My quick response is God,” said Rice, when asked why they are trying to raise awareness of human trafficking. “We need to be aware of the needs of people in that context,” he added.
Plus, he said, “We strongly believe this is an issue the church needs to address.”

More here-

http://www.recorderonline.com/news/bike-tour-brings-human-trafficking-to-light/article_9b8c86b4-6eab-11e5-a925-53da9c48d79b.html

Civil Rights Activist Honors Man Who Died Taking Bullet Meant For Her

From Huffington-

In 1965, Ruby Sales was just 17 years old when Jonathan Daniels, a 26-year-old Episcopal seminary student, stepped in front of the bullet that would have likely killed her. Both of them -- Sales, a young black activist from Alabama, and Daniels, a white man from New Hampshire -- were devoted Civil Rights activists fighting against segregation in Alabama, but only one of them would live to see the end of that year.

Fifty years after that act of selflessness, Sales will speak about Daniels' legacy on on Sunday, October 11 at the Washington National Cathedral, which just completed a limestone bust of Daniels in August.

“You have to understand the significance of Jonathan’s witness,” Sales told The Washington Post in July. “He walked away from the king’s table. He could have had any benefit he wanted, because he was young, white, brilliant and male. ”

More here-

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/ruby-sales-jonathan-daniels_5616c004e4b0082030a1a106

NC Episcopal bishop prepares for new national role

From North Carolina-

Rev. Michael Curry's congregation just got a lot larger, as the North Carolina bishop will take on the nine-year role as the presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church Nov. 1. 

Curry, the first African American to hold the national title, has led congregations statewide for 15 years as the bishop of North Carolina. Rev. Tambria Lee, the associate for campus ministry at The Chapel of the Cross — located on Franklin Street. — said Curry is a Moses-type leader of the church. 

“What you see is what you get,” she said. “He has no public persona or private persona, just a persona.”

Read more:

http://www.dailytarheel.com/article/2015/10/episcopal-church-bishop

Prison for Bishop Peter Ball, but victims still seek justice

From The Church Times-

THE sentencing of the former Bishop of Gloucester, the Rt Revd Peter Ball, to 32 months in prison for a series of offences against teenage boys and young men has caused “deep shame and regret”, the Bishop of Durham, the Rt Revd Paul Butler, has said.

Bishop Ball, aged 83, was jailed after a hearing at the Old Bailey by the Hon. Mr Justice Wilkie on Wednes­day after pleading guilty last month to two charges of indecent assault against two boys in their teens in the 1980s, and also a charge of mis­conduct in public office (News, 11 September).

The second charge relates to “manipulative behaviour, including several specific sexual offences, against 16 young men in their late teens or early twenties”, Sussex Police said at the time.

More here-

http://www.churchtimes.co.uk/articles/2015/9-october/news/uk/prison-for-bishop-peter-ball-but-victims-still-seek-justice

Episcopal Asiamerica Ministries Holds International Consultation At The Anglican Church In Korea With The Theme ‘Celebrating Our Partnerships; Uniting Our Mission’

From Korea-

In response to the invitation from Most Rev. Paul Kim, the Episcopal Asiamerica Ministries has chosen the Cathedral of St. Mary and St. Nicholas to be the venue of International Consultation that is scheduled from September 30 to October 5.

The consultation bears the theme, "Celebrating our Partnerships; Uniting Our Mission." EAM council president Rev. Bayani Rico says Most Rev. Kim invited them to join the celebration of the 125th foundation anniversary of Anglican Church in Korea, which is why the EAM has chosen to hold the consultation in Seoul.

"I am so excited about this consultation in Korea and it would not have been possible without the support from the Domestic and Foreign Missionary Society," says Rev. Rico, as noted by Episcopal Digital Network on Tuesday.

More here-

http://en.koreaportal.com/articles/1522/20151008/episcopal-asiamerica-ministries-international-consultation.htm

Q&A with Professor Mathew Sheep: Why didn’t Episcopal Church split after election of gay bishop?

From Illinois-

The 2003 election of Rev. Gene Robinson as the Episcopal Church’s first openly gay bishop set off an internal debate that led a number of members within several conservative dioceses and parishes to leave the church.

But in the end the church retained about 90 percent of its membership, including many conservatives who opposed Robinson’s consecration as bishop. How did Episcopalian leaders and members reconcile their church’s identity with such a momentous change?

For the past decade, Illinois State Business Professor Mathew Sheep has worked with four other researchers from across the United States to study how the church viewed itself during this period. Their study has been accepted for publication in the Academy of Management Journal.
More here-

https://stories.illinoisstate.edu/website-alumni/qa-with-professor-mathew-sheep-why-didnt-episcopal-church-split-after-election-of-gay-bishop/

South Africa: Archbishop Desmond Tutu marks 84th birthday by attending anti-corruption lecture

From USNews-

South Africa's Nobel Peace Prize winner Desmond Tutu marked his 84th birthday on Wednesday with one of his first public appearances since being hospitalized for a persistent infection.

Tutu, who won the Nobel in 1984 for his crusade to end apartheid, South Africa's now abolished system of white minority rule, attended the fifth annual Desmond Tutu Peace Lecture at the University of the Western Cape in Cape Town. Thuli Madonsela, South Africa's Public Protector, known for her work against corruption, gave the speech.

Walking with a cane and looking a bit frail, Tutu walked onto the stage with his daughter, Rev. Mpho Tutu. Tutu, a retired Anglican archbishop for Cape Town, has been hospitalized several times since July.

More here-

http://www.usnews.com/news/world/articles/2015/10/07/south-africa-archbishop-desmond-tutu-marks-84th-birthday

Former Anglican Bishop Sentenced for Sex Assaults on Teens

From ABC-

A former Anglican bishop was jailed Wednesday for sexually assaulting teenagers and young men, two decades after he was first accused. At the time, powerful figures in Britain spoke out in support of the bishop, Peter Ball, and he was not charged.

The former Bishop of Lewes, Ball pleaded guilty last month to misconduct in a public office and indecent assault. Prosecutors say he abused 18 victims between the 1970s and the 1990s, all religious young men or aspiring priests.

The first victim came forward in 1992, but Ball, now 83, denied the allegation. Prosecutors say lawmakers, a lord and an unidentified member of the royal family phoned police or wrote letters of support.

More here-

http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/anglican-bishop-sentenced-sex-assaults-teens-34314935

Regina Anglican priest wears hijab for a day

From Canada-

Concerned with what she calls the "increasing rhetoric about the wearing of the niqab by Muslim women," an Anglican priest in Regina decided to take matters into her own hands. She wore a hijab for a day to see what's like.

In a post on Facebook, Cheryl Toth said she's "uncomfortable with the way the debate focuses on what women wear (or decide not to wear). I am afraid that [the rhetoric] will increase hostility towards women who choose to wear a hijab, a niqab or a burka."

She said she sees her trial run with the hijab as a way "to contribute to the conversation."

She wore it around Regina including on campus at Luther College, walking around her neighbourhood, at a public lecture and while shopping at a mall.

More here-

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/saskatchewan/regina-anglican-priest-wears-hijab-for-a-day-1.3260241