Pastor out at famed Riverside Church after sex toy shopping spree

From New York (and the, "You Can't Make This Stuff Up" Department)-

The reason for her ouster is far more stimulating than any sermon this pastor could have delivered.

The Rev. Dr. Amy Butler, the first woman to lead Manhattan’s famed Riverside Church, lost her lofty post amid complaints that she brought ministers and a congregant on a sex toy shopping spree and then gave one of them an unwanted vibrator as a birthday gift, The Post has learned.

On May 15, Butler allegedly took two Riverside assistant ministers and a female congregant to a sex shop in Minneapolis called the Smitten Kitten, during a religious conference, according to sources familiar with the out-of-town shopping excursion.

At the store, the pastor bought a $200 bunny-shaped blue vibrator called a Beaded Rabbit for one minister — a single mom of two who was celebrating her 40th birthday — as well as more pleasure gadgets for the congregant and herself, sources said.

More here-

https://nypost.com/2019/07/11/pastor-out-at-famed-riverside-church-after-sex-toy-harassment-accusations/?fbclid=IwAR1JLrZjhoz_mtj1mzHNoNFDPWgE_YwW2Mf9gSlpPd8e841ANt3nCY8HReU

Story of the Wesley brothers illustrates faith, humanity

From South Carolina-

The man was a giant, standing 20 feet tall. Glazed in gold, he clutched a Bible in his right hand and extended his left, open palmed, an invitation to come closer.

This is the image of the Rev. John Wesley that greets those who enter the Arthur J. Moore Methodist Museum and Library at Epworth by the Sea on St. Simons Island. The founder of Methodism looms large on the very ground that he walked upon more than 280 years ago.

While the depiction is an impressive one, it’s not a true representation of the man. In actuality, Wesley was small framed, 5 foot, 3 inches tall, weighing in at 122 pounds. Like the statue compared to the reality of his stature, Wesley’s real life seems to oppose his untarnished legacy. In reality, Wesley was filled with a contradictions and shortcomings that plagued the pious yet all too human man.

More here-

https://thebrunswicknews.com/life/story-of-the-wesley-brothers-illustrates-faith-humanity/article_25b26437-51fc-52b1-ad12-b10ffdfa81f6.html

Marriage registry changes could lead to £1000 fines, says Church

From Premier (England)-

A new system for registering marriages could lead to criminal offences and £1,000 fines, the Archbishop of Canterbury's marriage licensing office fears.

Under changes which may be law before 2020, couples will no longer be given a marriage certificate at the end of a church wedding.

Instead of being asked to sign a register and certificate, they will instead sign a "marriage schedule", the Faculty Office said.

The couple then have to take this document to their local register office to record their marriage into a database and only then will they get a certificate, it added.

More here-

https://www.premier.org.uk/News/UK/Marriage-registry-changes-could-lead-to-1000-fines-says-Church

Bishop of St Albans: My role is to speak up for other faiths as well as Christianity

From England-

I am sometimes asked why I use my role in the House of Lords to speak up for other faiths as well as Christianity.

In response, I usually describe the nature of the Established Church and explain that bishops are not just concerned with the interests of Anglicans, but seek to serve and care for all people and especially those whose voices are suppressed or marginalised, whether in England or elsewhere.

The Bench of Bishops in the House of Lords is the only group which can claim something akin to a ‘constituency’. Each one of us serves in a diocese and as such we are out and about on a daily basis. We have a presence on the ground in virtually every community; many of our churches run food banks, lunch clubs, toddler groups, have bereavement visitors and even debt advice centres.

More here-

https://www.politicshome.com/news/uk/foreign-affairs/opinion/house-lords/105819/bishop-st-albans-my-role-speak-other-faiths-well

An entire Lutheran denomination has declared itself a ‘sanctuary church body,’ signaling support for immigrants

From The Washington Post-

More than 500 years ago, a monk named Martin Luther nailed 95 theses outlining his grievances with the Roman Catholic Church to the door of a church in Wittenberg, Germany.

On Wednesday afternoon, members of the mainline Protestant denomination bearing Luther’s name taped 9.5 theses — expressing their concern for immigrants and refugees — to the door of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement building in Milwaukee.

The action was part of a prayer vigil for migrant children and their families during the ELCA Churchwide Assembly this week at Milwaukee’s Wisconsin Center.

It took place on the same day the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America declared itself a “sanctuary church body,” signaling its support for immigrants.

More here-

https://www.washingtonpost.com/religion/2019/08/08/an-entire-lutheran-denomination-has-declared-itself-sanctuary-church-body-signaling-support-immigrants/?fbclid=IwAR3qN0IbqDjMDUNIVQCOowxPe49N-4UDdx6eR6hxoli1hITSJkd8H8mxsNA

The Shroud of Turin: Latest Study Deepens Mystery

From The National Catholic Register-

A new French-Italian study on the Shroud of Turin throws doubt on what many thought was the definitive dating of the cloth believed by millions to be the burial cloth of Jesus Christ.

This latest two-year study was headed and funded by French independent researcher Tristan Casabianca, with a team of Italian researchers and scientists: Emanuela Marinelli, who has written extensively about the shroud; Giuseppe Pernagallo, data analyst and senior tutor at the University of Catania, Italy; and Benedetto Torrisi, associate professor of economic statistics at the University of Catania.

In 1988 radiocarbon tests on the Shroud of Turin dated the cloth to between 1260 and 1390. The implication was clear: The shroud was a medieval forgery. After a 2017 Freedom of Information (FOI) request, a new team of researchers gained access to the original data used for the 1988 test. The findings of this new team are that the 1988 test results were unreliable.

More here-

http://www.ncregister.com/daily-news/the-shroud-of-turin-latest-study-deepens-mystery?fbclid=IwAR1s0y_Vk6rRhfero7wpWlk4FL0Kbh1JPA4HoYc7WIv8YlUfD-Ikt8muJSE

First Māori King's 160-year-old flag handed back to 'rightful owners' in Auckland ceremony

From New Zealand-

The first Māori King's flag has been returned to its "rightful owners", after being owned by the Anglican Church for around 160 years.

Bishop Ross Bay, from the Anglican Diocese, officially signed over ownership to the Kīngitanga in a ceremony hosted by Parnell's Holy Trinity Cathedral on Thursday. 

"There was no doubt that [the flag] belongs in Ngaruawahia from whence it came, 160 years ago. They are the rightful owners," Bay said. 

Pōtatau Te Wherowhero was the first Māori King and founder of the Te Wherowhero royal dynasty. He became king in 1858 and reigned until his death in June 1860. 

More here-

https://www.stuff.co.nz/auckland/114861069/first-mori-kings-160yearold-flag-handed-back-to-rightful-owners-in-auckland-ceremony

Stebbins bound for Montana as new bishop

From North Carolina-

In a few months' time, the Rev. Marty Stebbins will give up her Southern lifestyle leading the congregation at St. Timothy's Episcopal Church to oversee every Episcopal church in Montana.
Stebbins, who has led the downtown Wilson church since July 2010, received a call last fall about becoming the diocesan bishop 2,300 miles away. It took several months, but the Montana Diocesan Convention elected Stebbins and she has accepted the call.

"First I considered the location because it is beautiful, but it also has winter with a capital W," Stebbins said with a laugh. "What attracted me to it is they have a lot of small churches in small towns where those churches actually have a big impact and I have a heart for small churches even though I'm the rector of a large church now. 

More here-

http://www.wilsontimes.com/stories/stebbins-bound-for-montana-as-new-bishop,185806

Chesterton hiccup highlights trouble in getting lay saints, expert says

From Angelus-

Following this week’s announcement that the cause for sainthood for celebrated writer Gilbert Keith Chesterton would not go forward in his home diocese, Dale Ahlquist, an expert on the author, said this stall “points to the difficulty of getting a layperson canonized.”

Ahlquist noted one reason given for halting Chesterton’s cause was that the author, considered one of the greatest minds of the 20th century, lacked a discernible personal spirituality.

Speaking to Crux, he said that “now more than ever we need more lay saints, with clergy being under a cloud.” He said it often seems to be “easier” for priests or religious who found orders to be canonized, since the order typically promotes the person’s cause for sainthood.

More here-

https://angelusnews.com/news/elise-harris-19016261-4a35-4b3a-9216-8e9c98015f47/chesterton-hiccup-highlights-trouble-in-getting-lay-saints-expert-says

Bishop Calls Installing Miniature Golf Course in One of England's Oldest Cathedrals 'a Really Serious Mistake'

From Newsweek-

One of the oldest Anglican churches in England is being criticized for installing a miniature golf course to attract more visitors.

Rochester Cathedral in Kent, about 30 miles from London, dates back to 1066, when it replaced an earlier church on the same grounds from the 7th century. It was previously known as Cathedral Church of Christ and the Blessed Virgin Mary.

The nine-hole golf course is located in the cathedral's nave, the central space where parishioners are seated, and features a model of a historic bridge at each hole—including the original Roman bridge in Rochester and the Queen Elizabeth II Bridge in Dartford.

More here-

https://www.newsweek.com/miniature-golf-cathedral-england-1452780

Ministers at immigration talk: Christians must weigh obedience, laws

From Texas-

The call for Christians to balance obedience to God and complying with their nation’s laws is louder these days when it comes to immigration, a group of ministers concluded Tuesday during a monthly discussion of faith-based responses to practical problems.

“Some Christians call civil disobedience divine obedience,” the Rev. Bill Carroll told about 75 people attending Theology On Tap at the Oil Horse Brewing Co. in downtown Longview.
 

No specific disobedience to immigration laws was spoken about by the four ministers leading the discussion on “The Christian Response to Today’s Immigration Debate,” but there were numerous citations of lawbreaking by God’s people in both the Old and New Testament eras.

Carroll, the new minister at Trinity Episcopal Church in Longview, said Christians who sat in at lunch counters during the civil rights era are a good example of letting conscience trump civil law.

More here-

https://www.news-journal.com/news/county/gregg/ministers-at-immigration-talk-christians-must-weigh-obedience-laws/article_029454ba-b893-11e9-babd-cf0dc43e10db.html

Clergy protest outside Mitch McConnell’s office, demand action on gun violence

From ENS/RNS-

A group of clergy protested outside Sen. Mitch McConnell’s office on Tuesday (Aug 6), calling on the Republican Senate majority leader to take action to address gun violence in the wake of two mass shootings over the weekend.

The band of around two-dozen faith leaders, who called themselves the Coalition of Concerned Clergy, prayed and challenged what they said was the Senate’s inaction on the issue of gun violence.
Helping lead the event was the Rev. Rob Schenck, who serves as president of the Dietrich Bonhoeffer Institute, a nonprofit organization that addresses social issues from a Christian perspective. He listed a number of possible policies lawmakers could pass to address gun violence, such as universal background checks or “extreme vetting” for citizens wishing to purchase an assault rifle, but stressed the issue is a moral one.

“As a Christian … we are required to rescue those who are perishing, to come to their aid, and the Bible says if you fail to do it God will hold you to account,” Schenck, who is also a founding signer of an evangelical Christian pledge to take action on gun violence, told Religion News Service. “That’s our message to the senator today. Maybe he fears the NRA more than God. He shouldn’t.”

More here-

https://www.episcopalnewsservice.org/2019/08/06/clergy-protest-outside-mitch-mcconnells-office-demand-action-on-gun-violence/

Anglican vicar banned for life after affair with married woman seeking pastoral support

From Christian Post-

An Anglican vicar has been banned for life for having an intimate affair with a married parishioner who came to him for pastoral support. 

The Rev. Simon Sayers, who was a vicar for over 30 years, received a permanent ban from a Church of England through a disciplinary tribunal in the Diocese of Portsmouth last week.

Sayers, who pastored at a parish in Warblington with Emsworth, was already serving a six-year suspension in 2016 for two "sexual incidents" with a 16-year-old girl in 1995, which drew a police investigation at the time but no criminal charges were filed. 

According to the tribunal's decision, media reports surrounding Sayers suspension in 2016 led to further accusations being made against him. 

According to the document, Sayers was also accused of having a "sexual relationship" with the unnamed married woman in the fall of 2010, where he allegedly sent the woman "sexually explicit texts" and failed to maintain professional boundaries. 

More here-

https://www.christianpost.com/news/anglican-vicar-banned-for-life-after-affair-with-married-woman-seeking-pastoral-support.html

Christian ‘Purity’ Guru’s Loss of Faith May Signal a Coming Reckoning For Conservative Christianity

From Rewire-

Joshua Harris, who literally wrote the book on Christian purity in the 1990s, announced in July on Instagram that he and his wife, Shannon, were separating after more than 20 years of marriage. Less than two weeks later, the author of I Kissed Dating Goodbye (IKDG) dropped a second bombshell—he no longer identifies as a Christian.

“I have undergone a massive shift in regard to my faith in Jesus,” Harris wrote beside a picture of him looking out over lake in the mountains. “The popular phrase for this is ‘deconstruction,’ the biblical phrase is ‘falling away.’ By all the measurements that I have for defining a Christian, I am not a Christian.”

Though he has not revealed the forces that led to the simultaneous unraveling of his marriage and his religious identity, it seems like it was questioning his previous stance on sexuality and gender issues that played a part in the latter. Harris paired his second announcement with an apology for contributing to a “culture of exclusion” with his previous views on women in the church and his opposition to marriage equality. The “deconstruction” of Harris’s faith not only seems intertwined with his change of heart on matters of gender equality and sexuality, but it could be an indication that evangelical churches in the United States will soon have to wrestle more fully with these issues as well.

More here-

https://rewire.news/religion-dispatches/2019/08/05/christian-purity-gurus-loss-of-faith-may-signal-a-coming-reckoning-for-conservative-christianity/

Watch National Cathedral Worshipers Deliver a Standing Ovation for a Statement That Criticized Trump

From D.C. (with video)-

Worshipers at the National Cathedral stood and applauded Sunday when a leader at the institution, which is closely associated with the presidency, spoke about a statement the cathedral published last week that strongly criticized President Trump.

In a video from the service, which you can see above, Episcopal Diocese of Washington Bishop Mariann Edgar Budde offers some words of welcome, followed by the Rev. Canon Kelly Brown Douglas, who expresses gratitude for the cathedral community’s response to the statement. Douglas then has to pause to accommodate nearly half a minute of applause from the congregants, many of them standing.

More here-

https://www.washingtonian.com/2019/08/05/watch-national-cathedral-worshipers-deliver-a-standing-ovation-for-a-statement-that-criticized-trump/

Churches divided over bill to decriminalise abortion

From Australia-

A split has emerged within the churches over a bill to decriminalise abortion in NSW, with the Uniting Church the first mainstream denomination to support the proposed new laws.

Independent MP Alex Greenwich introduced the Reproductive Health Care Bill 2019 on Thursday to remove abortion from NSW's 119-year-old criminal code and create a standalone healthcare act.

In a move that will set it apart from the other churches, the Uniting Church has written to state MPs telling them abortion is a "health and social issue and should not be a criminal issue".

Its position is vastly different to the Catholic and Anglican churches, with the Anglican Archbishop of Sydney, Glenn Davies, warning the bill will "open the floodgates" to abortion on demand.

More here-

https://www.smh.com.au/politics/nsw/churches-divided-over-bill-to-decriminalise-abortion-20190803-p52djw.html

Vancouver sewing group stitches clothing for homeless children

From Canada-

After 20-some years of sewing clothes for homeless children, the Helping Hands Sewing Group has noticed some changes.

Fabrics have gotten thinner and contain more polyester than they used to. What little ones like to wear has changed. Volunteer seamstresses have come and gone. The group’s formidable founder, former social worker, gerontologist and activist Betty Plank, died in 2012.

“Some of us move. Some of us get old. Some of us couldn’t make it down the stairs,” said Sandy Hubbard.

The group comprises eight primarily retired, senior women who have the free time to sew Thursdays in the basement at St. Luke’s/San Lucas Episcopal Church in Vancouver.

The large church hosts all sorts of groups from narcotics anonymous to single seniors to clutterers anonymous.

“This is really a niche ministry,” said St. Luke’s rector, the Rev. Jaime Case.

More here-

https://www.nbcrightnow.com/news/state/vancouver-sewing-group-stitches-clothing-for-homeless-children/article_846d1c8b-4210-5d27-a6c1-29d3e91defc8.html

Greatest hymn of all time announced

From chvn-

Hymns just became exciting, after a tournament was commenced to decide the greatest hymn of all time.

Who needs March Madness when you can do it for hymns?

Through a bracket indicative of the annual NCAA basketball tournament, the Hymn Society in the United States and Canada has definitively decided upon the greatest hymn of all time, according to Religious News Service.

The winner? "Holy, Holy, Holy!"

On the final day of the Hymn Society's annual Dallas conference in July 2019, the news was announced. An online post made by the organization told in more detail the complexities of the contest.

“Some matchups were real nail-biters, while in others one hymn blew its opposition out of the water!” reads the post made July 18 to the society’s Facebook page.

“We can safely say that the Greatest Hymn of All Time — as chosen by you — is: Holy, Holy Holy!!!”

More here-

https://chvnradio.com/christian-news/greatest-hymn-of-all-time-announced

The Archbishop of Canterbury wades into Westminster Holocaust memorial debate

From The Telegraph-

The Archbishop of Canterbury has waded into the Westminster Holocaust memorial debate saying that it is right for the structure to be “right next to the home of our democracy”.

Plans for the project were announced in 2016 by former prime minister David Cameron, with the works being led by the UK Holocaust Memorial Foundation.

The memorial has been proposed to be built on Victoria Tower Gardens on Millbank and would feature 23 large bronze fin structures and an underground learning centre dedicated to the six million Jews murdered by the Nazis as well as millions of other victims.

However they have sparked mounting criticism. The Royal Parks charity, which manage the Grade-II listed park, saying that the plans - which have received cross-party support - would have a “significant harmful impact” on the area.

More here-

 https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2019/08/02/archbishop-canterbury-wades-westminster-holocaust-memorial-debate/

Glen Innes Reverend Andrew Newman on mission from God to Uganda

From Australia-

Glen Innes' former Anglican Minister will teach at a bible college in a remote part of Uganda for the next decade.

He laughs that he's on a mission from God - literally.

Reverend Andrew Newman, the Glen Innes Anglican minister from 1998 to 2006, soon plans to leave behind the New England for Rukungiri in south west Uganda, close to the Rwandan border. 

Andrew and wife Margie will help train a new generation of religious educators at a new bible college in the area.

Andrew says the local Ugandan Bishop Benon says "Christianity in Africa and Uganda is a mile wide - millions of Christians - but only an inch deep.

"No-one really knows their bible."

Uganda is stuck in a classic educational bottlekneck - they don't have enough trained-up teachers to train new ones to keep up with a massive population increase.

More here-

https://www.gleninnesexaminer.com.au/story/6301842/glen-innes-reverend-on-mission-from-god-to-uganda/

Founder of community of women survivors of prostitution, trafficking to address retreat

From Central PA-

An Episcopal priest who founded a community of women survivors of prostitution, trafficking and addiction is the guest speaker at a social justice weekend retreat next month at the Saints Cyril and Methodius Retreat Center.

The Rev. Becca Stevens, founder and president of Thistle Farms, in Nashville, Tennessee, will speak on Aug. 9 from 12:45 to 1:45 p.m. and on Aug. 10 from 12:45 to 1 p.m. She also will conduct a Bible study class and a workshop session on social justice.

Stevens has been featured in The New York Times, on ABC World News and NPR, and was named a 2016 CNN Hero and a White House “Champion of Change.” She was featured in the PBS documentary A Path Appears, named Humanitarian of the Year by the Small Business Council of America, and inducted into the Tennessee Women’s Hall of Fame. 

The Very Rev. Robyn Szoke-Coolidge, dean of the Stevenson School for Ministry of the Harrisburg-based Episcopal Diocese of Central Pennsylvania, said the online school is collaborating with the diocese on the retreat, which the diocese is sponsoring.

More here-

https://www.dailyitem.com/the_danville_news/news/founder-of-community-of-women-survivors-of-prostitution-trafficking-to/article_d7fd41e9-6507-5c4b-ad5e-87514d1cbd86.html

National Cathedral leaders: Trump's racial comments 'give cover to white supremacists

From CNN-

Leaders of the Washington National Cathedral slammed President Donald Trump's recent attacks on minority lawmakers and the city of Baltimore as a "dangerous" rallying cry to white supremacist violence.

The statement from the Right Rev. Mariann Edgar Budde, bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Washington; the Very Rev. Randolph Marshall Hollerith, dean of Washington National Cathedral; and the Rev. Canon Kelly Brown Douglas, canon theologian of Washington National Cathedral, condemned Trump's tweets.

"When such violent dehumanizing words come from the President of the United States, they are a clarion call, and give cover, to white supremacists who consider people of color a sub-human 'infestation' in America," the statement read.

"They serve as a call to action from those people to keep America great by ridding it of such infestation," they added. "Violent words lead to violent actions."

More here-

https://www.wral.com/national-cathedral-leaders-trumps-racial-comments-give-cover-to-white-supremacists/18540941/

Rochester Cathedral crazy golf course is open

From U.K.-

Today a free crazy golf course has opened in an unlikely place.

Rochester Cathedral is home to the most holy, nine hole course in Kent. 

The Adventure Golf challenge has been set up in the place of worship's medieval nave.

The theme is bridges and each hole will be accompanied by a different model including a mini Rochester bridge and Dartford Crossing.

It is being paid for by Rochester Bridge Trust, the charity which runs the town's river crossings.

More here-

https://www.kentonline.co.uk/medway/news/cathedral-crazy-golf-course-opens-209380/ 

and here-

https://www.kentonline.co.uk/medway/news/cathedral-crazy-golf-course-opens-209380/

While Archbishop Okpala accused the President Muhammadu Buhari-led Federal Government of not being sincere in tackling the security problem; Bishop Amah expressed disappointment over the decay the country is going through due to lack of security, adding that the Federal Government is fruitlessly focusing attention on the security of the country, while other sectors are going through decay. He lamented that almost all the roads in the South-East are dilapidated, “the road leading to my place here in Akaboezem Nnewi is impassable. Please, my guest, when you go back, do not make reference to this road, I’m ashamed that I brought you to go through this road.”

Read more at: https://www.vanguardngr.com/2019/07/anglican-communion-reps-blame-insecurity-on-buharis-leadership/

Archbishop, Province of the Niger and Bishop, Diocese of Nnewi, Rt Rev. Godwin Okpala; Bishop of Ogbaru Diocese, Rt. Rev. Prosper Amah; members representing Ogbaru federal constituency, Chukwuka Onyema and his Nnewi North, Nnewi South and Ekwusigo federal constituency counterpart, Chris Azubogu, have lamented the security situation in the country, calling on the Federal Government ( Buhari) to change its style in security policies.

Read more at: https://www.vanguardngr.com/2019/07/anglican-communion-reps-blame-insecurity-on-buharis-leadership/

Archbishop, Province of the Niger and Bishop, Diocese of Nnewi, Rt Rev. Godwin Okpala; Bishop of Ogbaru Diocese, Rt. Rev. Prosper Amah; members representing Ogbaru federal constituency, Chukwuka Onyema and his Nnewi North, Nnewi South and Ekwusigo federal constituency counterpart, Chris Azubogu, have lamented the security situation in the country, calling on the Federal Government ( Buhari) to change its style in security policies.

Read more at: https://www.vanguardngr.com/2019/07/anglican-communion-reps-blame-insecurity-on-buharis-leadership/

Vancouver-area Anglican bishop approves same-sex marriages, despite national vote

From Canada-

The Anglican bishop for the Metro Vancouver region has approved same-sex marriages in her diocese, beginning Thursday.

Bishop Melissa Skelton made the decision despite delegates of the national Anglican Church narrowly defeating the proposal during a July 12 vote at their general synod in Vancouver.

In the latest move in a worldwide Anglican conflict that has gone on for decades, Skelton seized on a compromise that the national church’s bishops offered a few days after the defeated vote, which would allow individual dioceses to adopt a “local option” on same-sex marriage rites.

Many of the country’s Anglicans had been bitterly disappointed when the motion to allow same-sex marriages lost by the slimmest of margins earlier this month.

More here-

https://www.thewesternstar.com/news/canada/vancouver-area-anglican-bishop-approves-same-sex-marriages-despite-national-vote-338337/

Nuns who own shares of Smith & Wesson parent company call for corporate human rights policy

From Mass-

The Interfaith Center, which includes the Northwest Coalition for Responsible Investments the Sisters of the Holy Names of Jesus and Mary U.S.-Ontario and the Adrian Dominican Sisters, bought stock in American Outdoor Brands in order to have a voice as a shareholder in the company.

It’s a new technique activists are using to get their point across in corporate America. Episcopal Church groups, both the local Springfield-based diocese and the national organization, bought American Outdoor Brands stock for the same reason. The Episcopal Church must wait at least a year in order to put its own referendum on a shareholder ballot.

The Interfaith Center has also targeted Smith & Wesson competitor Sturm, Ruger & Co., opposing Board Chairman Michael Jacobi and director Sandra Froman after Ruger rejected any corporate responsibility for improving gun safety, refusing to even acknowledge the risks to long-term shareholder value.

Ruger has its headquarters in Southport, Connecticut.

More here-

https://www.masslive.com/news/2019/07/nuns-who-own-shares-of-smith-wesson-parent-company-call-for-corporate-human-rights-policy.html

Occasion to celebrate 100 years of Christianity turns into mourning

From Uganda-

Last month marked 42 years since Church of Uganda commemorated the muted centennial celebrations of Christianity in Uganda.

The first missionaries to come to Uganda were from the Church Missionary Society (CMS) in London. They founded the present-day Anglican Church in Uganda having arrived here in June 1877.
To celebrate the 100th anniversary of their arrival, Church of Uganda prepared an event on June 30, 1977, under the theme ‘A live church in Uganda’. Preparations were done both at provincial and diocesan levels across the country.

All sorts of souvenirs, ranging from lapel badges, ties, bags to clothes, were on sale ahead of the main event.

Death of Luwum
 
But three months to the D-Day, the country woke up to the news of the death of the main celebrant of the centenary celebrations, then Archbishop of the Church of Uganda Janani Luwum.

The official government statement was that it was an escape attempt gone wrong. But the government’s version did not stand the test of time.

The centennial preparations had put the church and government at odds because of the prevailing economic situation in Uganda at the time.

More here-

https://www.monitor.co.ug/Magazines/PeoplePower/Occasion-celebrate-100-years-Christianity-turns-into-mourning/689844-5212556-vlx9ek/index.html

Raped vicar reveals tragic tale of sex abuse in the church

From England-

The Dewsbury born vicar at the centre of the Anglican Church's sexual abuse scandal has told how the alleged abuse of schoolchildren in his Rotherham parish sparked his battle to get justice for himself and others.

Staincliffe's Matthew Ineson has hit the headlines in recent weeks after he lashed out at Church of England (CofE) leaders during an independent inquiry into sexual abuse.

He has waived his right to anonymity in order to share his story.

Mr Ineson was raped by a Bradford priest in 1984 - and told the inquiry senior Church of England clerics ignored his claims. He has strongly criticised the church's lack of action at his multiple disclosures.

He said senior bishops and the archbishops of York and Canterbury all sat on their hands in a bid to cover up the historical abuse report.

More here-

 https://www.examinerlive.co.uk/news/west-yorkshire-news/raped-vicar-reveals-tragic-tale-16614921

Cuban bishop to deliver sermon at Christ Church in Greenwich

From Connecticut-

Christ Church in Greenwich will host a special visitor this Sunday.

The Right Rev. Griselda Delgado del Carpio, the Episcopal bishop of Cuba, will be the guest preacher at the 10 a.m. service in town. After the service, the bishop will meet with parishioners and interested people at coffee hour.

Delgado del Carpio is the first woman consecrated as a diocesan bishop in all of Latin America.

Pat Cage, who has been working with the bishop to build up the Episcopal faith in Cuba, said she is an inspiring presence.

“She is so lovely and peaceful and gentle, and she draws people to her,” said Cage, a Darien resident who traveled recently with the church leader in Cuba. “She is also very determined and has a wonderful vision, and she has a huge commitment to her flock.”

Cage’s husband, Jeremy, will translate Delgado del Carpio’s sermon into English from Spanish, as she is more comfortable speaking in her native language.

More here-

 https://www.greenwichtime.com/local/article/Cuban-Bishop-to-deliver-sermon-at-Christ-Church-14188451.php

Former Anglican Dean of Newcastle Graeme Lawrence convicted over sex assault of 15yo boy

From Australia-

Former Dean of Newcastle Graeme Lawrence has been convicted over the aggravated sexual assault of a 15-year-old boy at his private home in 1991.

Key points:

• Lawrence was found guilty of aggravated sexual assault and aggravated indecent assault
• The judge found the assault took place in Lawrence's private home
• He dismissed Lawrence's claim that he had never met the complainant

In handing down his verdict today, District Court Judge Tim Gartelmann said he was satisfied beyond a reasonable doubt that Lawrence took the teen into a room, forced him to the ground and had sexual intercourse without the boy's consent.

The assault took place after a youth band performance at Newcastle's Christchurch Cathedral.
Judge Gartelmann found Lawrence guilty of a total of two charges — one of the aggravated sexual assault and another of aggravated indecent assault.

More here-

 https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-07-26/graeme-lawrence-anglican-court-sex-offences/11349086

and here-

https://www.smh.com.au/politics/nsw/former-newcastle-anglican-dean-found-guilty-of-sexual-assault-20190726-p52b5o.html

Anglican Church of Canada to remove prayer for Jewish conversion

From Canada-

The Anglican Church of Canada’s move to expunge a prayer for the conversion of the Jews from its liturgy is being hailed as a milestone.

Meeting in Vancouver, the church’s General Synod – its governing body – approved a measure on July 16 to delete an invocation calling for the conversion of Jews from the Book of Common Prayer, and replace it with a prayer entitled “For Reconciliation with the Jews.”

Successful resolutions before a synod must pass in all three of the church’s “houses.” This one was approved with near unanimous support: Among the laity, it passed by a 99 per cent plurality, and by 100 per cent among both clergy and bishops.

The amendment will require ratification at the next General Synod in 2022. But Edward Simonton, the church’s Vicar General of Quebec, told The CJN the resolution’s passage at the next synod will be “just a formality,” given its overwhelming support this time.

More here-

https://www.cjnews.com/news/canada/anglican-church-of-canada-to-remove-prayer-for-jewish-conversion