Anglican News Archives

“I recently met with Christians in Bethlehem, people by no means extreme, and they told of the daily burdens driving in and out of the city that were created by the wall”

Socioeconomic hardships caused by the West Bank security barrier are contributing to the decline in the Christian population in the Holy Land, the Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr. via Jerusalem Post

“The victim in this case deserves nothing less than a thorough and just process that arrives at a proper decision and that is what will happen.”

THE Anglican church will lose all credibility if a convicted pedophile is allowed to remain a priest after he is released from prison next week, a child protection group says. via News.com.au

LONDON : The Archbishop of Canterbury was expected to meet Israel's chief rabbis Wednesday in Jerusalem, the second in what the religious leaders hope will be annual discussions. via International Herald Tribune

“We are certainly conscious of the trauma caused to the victim, but this is just part of the process of the church”

CONVICTED pedophile Robert Sharwood may be allowed to remain an Anglican priest after he is released from prison next week. via The Australian

“By simply living the authentic Christian way, the Christian community becomes a leaven in Chinese society and as a result churches spontaneously grow”

Thirty scholars and theologians from Asia and the United States gathered from 23-25 October 2007 at Church Divinity School of the Pacific , for a historic Asia-America Theological Exchange Forum - writes ... via Ekklesia Daily News

“Are we being too confrontational? Shouldn't we be compromising?”

A group representing orthodox Anglicans in Ottawa is proposing the formation of a new branch of the church in Canada that is more "biblically faithful" than the current incarnation of the church. via Ottawa Citizen

“The defeat of the motion did not enact the opposite”

Anyone who has followed the Anglican Church's wrangling over the blessing of same-sex unions would have a right to be confused over the events of the past few months. via National Post

A retired Episcopal priest from New Mexico will lecture Monday in Fort Worth on 'The Undermining of the Episcopal Church' to a group concerned about recent decisions by the Episcopal Diocese of Fort Worth.

The Rev. Tom Woodward, who writes for the Episcopal Majority blog, (episcopalmajority.blogspot.com) will 'sort out distortions and refute the misrepresentations' of the diocese, said Lynne Minor, public relations chairman of Fort Worth Via Media. A question-and-answer session will follow. Read more

“I felt such a level of shame and disgust at how things had come full circle that even now, more than two decades later, the emotional memory is still painful.”

B RIAN McKinley's plea is simple but heartfelt. "I'd like people to appreciate how hard it is, almost every day of one's life, to have crisis and division in a church I love because of something that is an ... via The Age

“Continue the struggle for peace and justice until the dawn of a new day, as the struggle cannot end until the whole world can enjoy peace and justice”

From "Matthew Davies" Date Mon, 22 Oct 2007 23:06:31 -0400 Episcopal Life Online is available at http://www.episcopalchurch.org/elife . Today's ELO Newslink includes: * TOP STORY - Puerto Rico diocese welcomes ... via Worldwide Faith News

“I find this to be a highly unethical set of actions that compromises my ability to continue to trust you with administrative responsibility.”

Nobel peace laureate Desmond Tutu says he will not accept an invitation to speak at the University of St. via Star Tribune

“I can't imagine how close they are to disaster. Please pray for their safety and that of their loved ones and neighbors. Pray that the wind ceases and the fire be extinguished soon. Pray for all who have suffered such great losses.”

From "Matthew Davies" Date Wed, 24 Oct 2007 18:25:11 -0400 Episcopal Life Online is available at http://www.episcopalchurch.org/elife . Today's ELO Newslink includes: * TOP STORY - ERD to help those displaced ... via Worldwide Faith News

“The 21st century will be a desperate struggle, especially for water”

A BITTER rift over climate change has developed between a senior member of the Anglican Church and Sydney Catholic Archbishop George Pell. via The Age

“Today there are few priests living in a same-sex relationship. My suspicion is that there are many fewer gay people in the church - they seem to have given up on institutional religion and certainly the Christian church.”

AUSTRALIAN Anglicans had become fearful and mean-spirited about homosexuals in the church, a gay priest told the church's national synod last night, while a top Anglican suggested homosexuality would be the ... via The Age

“When any corporate Christian body casts aside God's Word and 'blesses' as good and holy that which Scripture clearly defines as sin, it ceases to be truly Christian and becomes a New Age imposter with a quasi-Christian veneer”

The Episcopal Diocese of California on Saturday approved use of religious blessings of homosexual couples, opening the way for same-sex couples to receive the same recognition the church gives to heterosexual ... via Crosswalk

“I think the resolution properly augments my pastoral goal of caring alike for all of the people of the Diocese, not reinforcing damaging distinctions”

SAN FRANCISCO : Delegates representing Episcopal churches in the San Francisco Bay area approved three sets of prayers that clergy can use to bless same-sex couples, in opposition to their faith's leaders ... via International Herald Tribune

“This attitude, it seems to Muslims, misses the very point of dialogue”

Muslim scholars pressing Christian churches for a high-level dialogue to improve inter-faith relations have urged Pope Benedict to publicly back their appeal already supported by several non-Catholic leaders. via The Star Online

“I have a vision that churches in Australia, instead of being known for how they have failed children, might be known for how they are caring for them.”

CLERGY and church workers who cheat on their spouses will be included with sex abusers on a new Anglican register of suspected offenders. via The Age

“Often people that come in touch with clergy are vulnerable because they're in a pastoral situation and the minister is, in a sense, in a position of power”

Anglican ministers accused of cheating on their spouses may be included on a proposed church database of child abusers and sex offenders, a church official said Tuesday.

The proposed register would give top Anglican officials access to any complaints made against ministers or lay workers accused of child abuse. But it would also include complaints of sexual misconduct against adults, such as adultery, even if the claims are unproven.

Philip Gerber, the professional standards director of the Sydney diocese, said potential ministers and church workers should be held to a higher moral code than other members of the community. Read more

“Will it tear the church apart? It already is. We're fooling ourselves if we think otherwise.”

Elected representatives of the Episcopal Diocese of California meeting in San Francisco approved use of rites for the blessing of same gender couples by an overwhelming margin. via 365Gay.com

“That means having a different mind-set: you just don't grab the first person because they are keen or competent.”

ANGLICAN clergy and lay workers accused of child abuse would be named on a proposed national register, thought to be a religious first in Australia. via News.com.au

“The matter has been dismissed for lack of merit”

Province has to bring the case as an ordinary court application Fidelis Munyoro Harare - Bishop Nolbert Kunonga of the Harare Diocese has won the first round in the High Court case brought against him by the ... via ZWNews.com

“Something has happened to our assumptions about the life of the unborn child.”

" Abortion is becoming commonplace and people are insufficiently troubled about terminating pregnancies, the Archbishop of Canterbury said on Sunday. via The Toronto Star

“We're able to call a special synod if we need to. The consensus was we need to be kind of open to the Holy Spirit here and open the door and leave it open, so that if it becomes clear we need to take further action, we'll do that.”

The Episcopal Diocese of Quincy "opened the door" to possible realignment with a different province of the Anglican Communion at its annual synod Friday and Saturday. via Journal Star

“Only a popular front against crime will assist. We must isolate criminals in every corner of our country and work towards a crime-free South Africa. This is do-able and achievable”

By Niyanta Singh One was shot and killed at the gates to a church. An other, returning home after dropping off a friend, crossed the path of those fleeing the first murder and was shot. via Daily News

“If they do, the church is in error against God himself.”

Controversy within church? 'Hey, why not?' bishop says AMY LUFT, The Gazette Members of the Anglican Church of Montreal voted 103-57 in favour of a motion that would allow its parishes to bless same-sex ... via Montreal Gazette

" the Bishop grant permission for clergy, whose conscience permits, to bless duly solemnized and registered civil marriages, including marriages between same-sex couples, where at least one party is baptized; ... via Bene Diction Blogs On

“What's at stake in the final analysis is the degree to which the church can live out in its own life the unity (that) it says God intends for the world.”

SARAH Macneil could be Australia's first female bishop as the next vacancy is looming in her home diocese of Canberra-Goulburn where Bishop George Browning is planning to retire early next year. via The Austrailian

“The conference aims to further develop the mutual understanding necessary for successful peacemaking efforts and the church's role in them”

Peace initiatives and reconciliation on the Korean Peninsula will be the foci of a worldwide Anglican peace conference on 14-20 November 2007, when more than 150 Anglican leaders, ecumenical guests and other ... via Ekklesia Daily News

“What I am hearing here I have never heard in the courts in my country or anywhere. I am withdrawing myself as judge in this case”

Harare - A judge presiding over the trial of a controversial Anglican bishop in Zimbabwe has excused himself from the case, press reports said on Friday. via The Star

Anglican delegates in Ottawa, Canada, voted last Saturday to approve the blessing of same-sex marriages, making it the first Canadian diocese to formally support such blessings since the national church ... via Advocate

“I will not let you go unless you bless me.”

From "Matthew Davies" Date Wed, 17 Oct 2007 18:42:21 -0400 Episcopal Life Online is available at http://www.episcopalchurch.org/elife . Today's ELO Newslink includes: * TOP STORY - South Korea to host ... via Worldwide Faith News

By Peta Thornycroft Harare - One of Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe's favourite bishops has been accused of a range of crimes, including incitement to murder. via The Star

“When preparing that guest list, he is acting as the Anglican Pope. He has the list, he has that pencil”

By Paul Majendie

LONDON (Reuters) - Faced with a bid from Canadian clerics to bless gay weddings, the worldwide Anglican Communion now faces a real risk of breaking apart over differences between its liberal and conservative wings.

"The train and the buffers are getting closer," said religious journalist and commentator Clifford Longley.

"The Anglican Church is unraveling," Longley concluded as Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams struggled to keep his global flock of 77 million Anglicans together in a bitter war of words over homosexuality. Read more

“Unfortunately, the synod has chosen to reject the pleas of the global Anglican Communion and 'walk apart' from the vast majority of Anglicans worldwide”

The Ottawa branch of the Anglican Church of Canada has thrown a challenge to the worldwide Anglican movement by asking the Ottawa bishop to authorize the blessing of homosexual marriages. via Canada.com

Khanya on African Anglicans and Homosexuality Through a pingback to my WordPress blog, which attracts a lot more readers interested in religion than my older mirror site on Blogspot thanks to WordPress's tag ... via Far Outliers

“This is a time of unprecedented hospitality, friendship, and collaboration between our local churches”

The wife of an Irish Anglican bishop has entered the Roman Catholic Church, with her husband's public support. via Global Catholic Network EWTN

“It's not helpful to walk alone”

Ottawa Anglicans approved the blessing of same-sex marriages by a vote of 177-97 on Saturday, the first diocese in Canada to support the blessings since the national church nixed them this summer. via National Post

“It should have been registered before but the delay had nothing to do with the bishop”

THE Anglican Church is investigating fresh allegations of sexual misconduct against a senior South Australian clergyman. via The Australian

A Canadian diocese has voted in its diocesan synod in favour of authorising same-sex blessings. via Thinking Anglicans

CONFUSION reigned as reports about the Episcopal House of Bishops began to appear. via Daily News

“There are specific areas of mismatch between what Richard Dawkins may write about and what religious people think they are doing”

Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams, the Anglican spiritual leader, criticized popular atheist writers such as Richard Dawkins on Saturday, saying they misunderstand religious beliefs and unfairly portray ... via Fox News

“There is some pressure. Montreal is voting on the same issue next week so they are watching closely.”

Anglicans across Canada are watching closely today as Ottawa becomes the first diocese in the country to grapple with the divisive issue of same-sex unions after the national body ruled against it last summer. via Ottawa Citizen

“Following Kunonga's withdrawal from the Church of the Province of Central Africa, he has no right to remain in possession of the Church's assets including the bank's funds, investments, movable and immovable assets”

HARARE, Zimbabwe, Oct. 12 The Anglican Province of Central Africa wants to seize church property in a Zimbabwean diocese from its controversial bishop. via Earth Times

“What about the Palestinian people?”

Fourteen demonstrators held a vigil at the University of St. Thomas this afternoon to criticize the Catholic school's president, the Rev. via Star Tribune

“It will be a topic for at least informal conversation and by then everyone will have a copy of the text and an opportunity to read it.”

What the meetings are about In a continuation of meetings ongoing since 2004, about two dozen Muslim and Catholic leaders will meet at the Islamic Center of America, 19500 Ford Road, from Oct. via Detroit News Online

“Zionist media are waging a negative propaganda campaign”

A leading liberal U.S. Episcopal bishop, John Bryson Chane, is in Iran today against the advice of the State Department, where he is meeting with leading officials of the Islamic Republic, NewsMax has learned ... via News Max

“When you're opposing it because it's wrong and sinful and people who engage in those practices are bad, it's homophobic”

An Elgin St. church might stop marrying straight couples if blessing same-sex unions isn't endorsed at the Anglican Diocese of Ottawa's annual synod in Cornwall later this week. via CANOE

“Anglican Communion Covenant is the one way for us to uphold our common heritage of faith while at the same time holding each one of us accountable to those teachings that have defined our life together and also guide us into the future.”

Only an Anglican Covenant can save the Anglican Communion from disintegration according to the primates from the Council of Anglican Provinces in Africa , who met and elected new leadership Oct. via Living Church

“Let me make it abundantly clear that I decry, in the strongest possible terms, the recent events in Burma and wholeheartedly support Archbishop emeritus Desmond Tutu in his efforts to bring peace and transition to that country”

Nelson Mandela has withdrawn an invitation to Gary Player, the former Open champion golfer, to host a charity fundraising tournament in the name of the ex-South African president because of his business ties to ... via Guardian Unlimited

An Italian priest who publicly declared his love for a woman has lost his job, the diocese said Tuesday.

The Rev. Sante Sguotti can no longer work as pastor in his Monterosso parish and cannot hear confessions from the faithful, the diocese of Padua said in a statement. Sguotti remains a priest and can celebrate Mass, however.

Sguotti made headlines in August when he went on national television to say he was in love with a woman and wanted to be her boyfriend publicly while remaining chaste. Read more

“I am grateful for the willingness of all these bishops to reach out to their brother bishops in time of distress”

Presiding Bishop Adds Four 'Episcopal Visitors' 10/08/2007 Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori has accepted the nomination of four additional bishops to the "episcopal visitor" plan announced at the ... via Living Church

“In fact it may be an expression of loyalty to him to say that the Lambeth Conference has integrity.”

LONDON : A senior Church of England bishop says he would have difficulty joining U.S. Episcopal bishops at a gathering of global Anglican leaders next year because they have not repented for consecrating a gay ... via International Herald Tribune

The Archbishop of Sydney, Peter Jensen, has written The Next Twenty Years for Anglican Christians . via Thinking Anglicans

“They've got to be aware that when they're on their own, they're at high risk”

Catholic and Anglican vicars should remove their clerical collars while off-duty to avoid being singled out for attack, a church safety group said here yesterday. via Independent Online

“In honouring him, we celebrate not simply the iconic and enduring power of the African presence in nurturing the cultural diversity”

Amitabh Sharma, Features Coordinator Archbishop of York John Sentamu apologises for the Anglican Church's involvement in the transatlantic slave trade. via Jamaica Gleaner

“All this is from God, Who reconciled us to Himself through Christ and has given us the ministry of reconciliation.”

Is the church growing? We have 18 congregations, including six on the Gulf Coast destroyed by Katrina, that have completed or are in the midst of capital campaigns for expansion. via The Clarion-Ledger

“It's not only sort of looking at our stewardship of property, but it's also looking at the theological principle”

Anglican parishes look to become carbon neutral Posted October 1, 2007 13:12:00 Dozens of Anglican parishes across central and northern Victoria want to become carbon neutral within five years. via Australian Broadcasting Corporation

Video and audio from the BBC News archive WWII and 1950-2005. This site is archived and no longer updated. via BBC

“We believe that the time is right for a determined effort to bring interventions to an end”

Reuters Some United States Episocopal clerics have been disenchanted with their church's failure to distance itself from endorsing same-sex unions and the blessing of active homosexuals to the bishopric. via Jamaica Gleaner

Leaders of one of Georgia's oldest churches have voted to leave the Episcopal Church over its liberal-leaning interpretation of Scripture and acceptance of homosexuality. via PR-inside.com

The Episcopal Church is the American branch of the 77-million-member Anglican Tags: ANGLICAN DIRECTIVE View Story via Netscape

“When you have people with strong convictions, you often have people who divide from each other, but the clue to it is to, what I say, speak the truth to each in love, and that's what we try to do.”

Division remains after way cleared for female bishops By Paula Kruger Posted September 30, 2007 12:10:00 There is a mix of celebration and apprehension among Australian Anglicans after a ruling by the Church's ... via Australian Broadcasting Corporation

“We have never courted popularity.”

Lesbian and gay Christians in the UK have criticised primarily white conservative Christians for pressurising African Anglican leaders to back them, and have said that the US Episcopal Church's compromise in ... via Ekklesia Daily News

A committee of the Episcopal Diocese of Fort Worth recommended Monday that the diocese leave the U.S. Episcopal Church and affiliate with another province of the worldwide Anglican Communion.

Because the proposal involves a constitutional change, it would first have to be approved at the diocese's annual convention Nov. 16-17 and again in 2008, Bishop Jack Iker said.

'This is just a first step,' Iker said.

In a statement, the Rev. Ryan Reed, president of the diocese's Standing Committee, said: 'The Episcopal Diocese of Fort Worth has always been a traditional, conservative diocese, adhering to the beliefs and practices of the historic catholic faith. This means it has often found itself in conflict with decisions of the General Convention, which has continued a series of innovations in liturgy, theology, and the sacraments. Read more

“All people _ including gay and lesbian Christians and non-Christians _ are deserving of the fullest regard of the church”

The Episcopal Church's top bishop reaffirmed her support for same-sex unions on the day Anglican leaders had set as the deadline for the U.S. church to assert it would not authorize prayer services for gay ... via North County Times

Religious Intelligence has reported that there is a New crisis for Anglican college as council member resigns by Ed Beavan . via Thinking Anglicans

“You do not understand that it is better to have one man die than to have the whole nation destroyed.”

Image Source: Jupiter Images Most readers are probably already aware that America's Episcopal Church leaders bowed to pressure from the Anglican hierarchy and agreed that they would no longer bless same-sex ... via About.com

Joint Standing Committee submits Report on House of Bishops' meeting [ACNS] The Joint Standing Committee of the Anglican Consultative Council and the Primates of the Anglican Communion have now submitted their ... via Worldwide Faith News

The recent announcement by the Rt. Rev. Jeffrey N. Steenson, Episcopal bishop of the diocese of the Rio Grande, that he will become a Roman Catholic makes him the third Episcopal bishop this year to leave ... via About.com

DENVER -- An Episcopal church court has affirmed its preliminary ruling that the leader of a breakaway church in Colorado Springs is guilty of financial misconduct. via KMGH-TV Denver

The Anglican Church's entanglement with Grenville Christian College and its initial reluctance to address abuse allegations at the institution are reminiscent of its mishandling of the aboriginal residential ... via Globe and Mail

“It is easy to be religious, but very difficult to be the people of God. What went wrong was a problem of the soul. The Lord is calling us to be a blessing.”

Episcopal News Service, NY Sept 29 2007 Anglican Peace and Justice Network meets in Rwanda, Burundi Conflict transformation focus of nine-day gathering September 29, 2007 [Episcopal News Service] Hosted by the ... via Groong Armenian News Network

“He was cheerful, spontaneous, always ready to make a joke. He knew he had not much time on Earth”

By Buhle Khumalo Catholic Bishop Reginald Orsmond, founder of Boys Town and father to generations of troubled boys there, has been laid to rest. via The Mercury

“That's a reality everybody knows about.”

By SAM HODGES / The Dallas Morning News samhodges@dallasnews.com Leaders of the Episcopal Diocese of Forth Worth have recommended that it leave the more liberal Episcopal Church, the Anglican body of the United ... via Denton Record-Chronicle