"... we are, experiencing yet another instance of the principle of 'unintended consequences', for the legalization of homosexual acts has been followed by the normalization of homosexuality, which has now been followed by the criminalization of opposition to homosexuality." --- John P. Richardson from the Ugley Vicar Blog

Politics and the State. Models of church and state. Relations between church and state have been notoriously controversial throughout the Christian centuries. To oversimplify, four main models have been tried -- Erastianism (the state controls the church), theocracy (the church controls the state), Constantinianism (the compromise in which the state favours the church and the church accommodates to the state in order to retain its favour), and partnership (church and state recognize and encourage each other's distinct God-given responsibilities in a spirit of constructive collaboration). The fourth seems to accord best with Paul's teaching in Romans 13. --- From "The Message of Romans" John R.W. Stott

Dear Brothers and Sisters
www.virtueonline.org
12/18/2009

It was a week of stepped up litigation, more departures from the Episcopal Church and new Anglican Church plants in North America.

In La Crescenta, California, St. Luke's Anglican Church filed a petition for writ of certiorari with the Supreme Court of the United States asking the Court to decide whether California courts violated the United States Constitution by conferring on The Episcopal Church and its Diocese in Los Angeles a special power - not available to nonreligious persons or nondenominational churches - to seize its property and take over its corporation based on its religious affiliation.

Even though St. Luke's owned its property "free of any trust" for decades, and is a California nonprofit religious corporation governed by a board of directors and its members, the decision of the California courts has forced the St. Luke's congregation off their property as a result of exercising their religious freedom and conscience to affiliate with another branch of the Anglican church. The petition asks the Supreme Court to decide whether, under the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, certain religious denominations can disregard the normal rules of property ownership and corporate law that apply to everyone else.

In Mt. Pleasant, South Carolina, the 1,300-member of St. Andrew's voted overwhelmingly to leave The Episcopal Church and join with the emerging Anglican Church of North America. A vote by the church saw 838 voting to leave the diocese with only a small number of votes to stay. Membership in the church is nearly 1,300. The church has been in a 40-day discernment period.

In Danvers, Massachusetts, a new Anglican parish was born with several hundred former Episcopalians making their way to Christ the Redeemer Anglican Church, promising to breathe new life into a former Roman Catholic Church while galvanizing its own faith community. Its founders left Christ Church in South Hamilton over the "moral drift" of the Episcopal Church in general. On Sunday they will celebrate their first services.

In The DIOCESE OF PENNSYLVANIA, the priest and vestry of the Church of the Good Shepherd, Rosemont, went back to court to try and hold onto its property. In a hearing (VOL was there), the diocese argued that since Fr. David L. Moyer had left The Episcopal Church and joined another Anglican jurisdiction, he could no longer be the priest of the church. His lawyers argued differently saying the parish never left the diocese even though Moyer did. Judge Stanley Ott will rule on whether the case goes to trial.

*****

The Joint Standing Committee of the Primates Meeting and the Anglican Consultative Council, which has been renamed the Joint Standing Committee of the Anglican Communion (which suggests that it may be about to attempt to exercise more power than it has), produced the final text of the Covenant with a revised fourth section. "We aim to affirm the Anglican Covenant as the basis in intensifying the ecclesial life between churches in the Communion, and explore ways churches should stand firm side by side in one spirit and with one mind for the faith of the Gospel of Lord Jesus Christ. The Steering Committee emphasized that provincial and invited participants should be unequivocally committed to uphold the spirit and intent of the 1998 Lambeth Resolution 1.10 and the proposed Anglican Covenant (full Ridley Draft)." Now we will see how it all plays out.

*****

The recent election of an openly female homosexual, Mary D. Glasspool to be the next suffragan bishop of LOS ANGELES did not get full background media attention. An interested third party who was present at the election sent this note to VOL. "I have received reports all week of Bishop Jon Bruno's "pep talk" to delegates during the lunch break last Saturday at the electing convention. Prior to lunch, a straight man from Guatemala - who could be quite useful in a diocese with a minimum of 25% Hispanic parishes - was tied with Glasspool. Bruno encouraged the delegates to do the "bold thing." That coupled with gay activists fanning out and addressing the tables, led to a change in the vote on the next ballot and Glasspool's subsequent election. I have attended 20+ episcopal elections and have never seen a bishop get up and coach the delegates to vote for a particular candidate. Sorry, folks but Bruno was out of line. Now we all get to wait and see if his chicanery will result in her confirmation."

*****

And then there was this from Presiding Bishop Jefferts Schori last week on National Public Radio:

NPR: So the bottom line is it fair to say that at least the door has been opened for gay and lesbian bishops in addition to Bishop Robinson?

KJS: The door has been open for many years.

NPR: So if an openly gay or lesbian person were to make it through to the stage where he or she could be consecrated bishop, you would go ahead with that?

KJS: It is my duty, my canonical duty as Presiding Bishop, to take order for the consecration of a bishop whose election has been affirmed by the consent process.

NPR: The Archbishop of Canterbury said that we need to have a real thorough exploration of all of this and we need to have a wider consent within the communion in order to go ahead with either the consecration of gay bishops or blessings of gay unions. He said that does not exist in the communion right now. How do you feel about that?

KJS: The conversations been going on in The Episcopal Church for 45 years. The reality is that same-sex unions are blessed in many churches of the Anglican Communion. Not just in the United States or Canada, but in the Church of England. Not officially but that is reality.

NPR: Do you think there is scriptural basis for what the convention did and what is it?

KJS: The scriptural basis for what the convention affirmed about our discernment process is that each human being is made in the image of God.

Short answer. She will do what former PB Frank Griswold did, using the same arguments, in 2003 when he consecrated Gene Robinson. And you think a Covenant will change any of this or a two-track solution will solve everything? Don't hold your breath.

*****

The Rev. W. Andrew Waldo, 56, was elected Dec. 12 to be the eighth bishop of the Episcopal DIOCESE OF UPPER SOUTH CAROLINA. He is the most liberal of the seven candidates running for bishop.. No surprise really. The diocese has been well trained by outgoing bachelor and pro-gay Bishop Dorsey Henderson, so finding anyone orthodox from the Diocese of Minnesota is a bit like looking for a diamond mine in Maine. The Diocese of Minnesota has an outgoing Bishop, John Jelinek, who refuses to cut loose a convicted sexual predator priest who gives "spiritual" retreats on how to calm your nerves when life sweeps over you. Waldo will only serve to reinforce the theory that a church gets what it votes for...in this case a clown. He will certainly obtain consents. Waldo says New Hampshire Bishop Gene Robinson is his "mentor," and "friend" and he will push for same sex blessings as soon as the next General Convention approves a rite. One blogger said that Waldo will mean the continued loss of membership and money, and some informed conservatives will now leave the diocese based on this election. The diocese, like most dioceses is in numerical and financial decline and this will clearly continue under Waldo the Clown. You can read the full story in today's digest.

*****

In Dallas this week, what should have been a debate between PB Jefferts Schori and retired orthodox Bishop William Frey turned into a love fest with Frey failing to call the Episcopal leader on her heresies. The "debate" centered round, "Who is Christ for Me?" and "Who is Christ for the World?" You can read VOL's take on this as well as that of columnist Bill Murchison in today's digest. This is another example of Episcopal niceness triumphing truth and sound doctrine. The winner was Jefferts Schori who came off reasonable and charming. The loser was Jesus and a clear enunciation of the gospel.

*****

In UGANDA a proposed Ugandan anti-homosexual bill that could lead proponents of homosexual behavior to face the death penalty, with jail for those who violate the new law, has brought a barrage of outrage from Western pan-Anglican homosexuals.

The draconian laws prompted the Anglican Province of Uganda to say they oppose the death penalty, but they have issued no official statement regarding the legislation itself at this time. What is significant is that outraged western homosexuals make no mention of a certain Uganda who roasted a number of Anglican and Roman Catholic men who refused to bend over to his demand for sodomy. The Archbishop of Canterbury has taken a hit for not speaking up soon enough even though he said he was consulting his counterpart in Uganda. He later issued a statement decrying the Uganda legislation. Church of England commentator John P. Richardson has some wise words about this in today's digest.

*****

CONTINUING CHURCH NEWS. Bishop Paul Hewitt of the Diocese of the Holy Cross and the head of the "Federation of Anglican Church in Americas" has announced that members of FACA have gone into a "partnership" with the ACNA (although, not full communion). This is interesting considering the fact that there are members of the Continuum within FACA.

*****

Three candidates have been short-listed for the office of Bishop of Glasgow & Galloway which became vacant in July following the retirement of the Rt. Rev. Dr. Idris Jones, who served the diocese as Bishop for 11 years. One of them is a woman, The Rev Canon Dr Alison Peden, Rector of Holy Trinity Church, Stirling; Chaplain of Forth Valley College, Stirling and Canon of St Ninian's Cathedral, Perth. This will certainly add more misery to Dr. Rowan Williams if she wins. The Scots are back-dooring a woman to be a bishop while the Church of England is taking some 10 years to figure it all out. She could be the UK's first Anglican bishop.

*****

Desperate to increase its footprint and influence in Africa The Episcopal DIOCESE OF LIBERIA is scheduled to play host next month to the most important visitor it has welcomed to the country in many years. The Most Reverend Katherine Jefferts Schori, 26th Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church of the United States, will arrive in Liberia on Saturday, January 2, 2010 on a weeklong visit. She will be the special guest of Bishop Jonathan B.B. Hart and his wife, Mrs. Frances A. Hart.

*****

The saga of St. Dunstan's in the DIOCESE OF SOUTHWEST FLORIDA continues. A source told VOL that Bishop Dabney Smith met with both the junior and senior vestry of the parish on November 10th wherein he said he was blind-sided on who the priest was at St Dunstan's. He demanded a new website in two weeks and he sent in a priest for the vestry and any Episcopalians left in the parish. Except for the few left on the vestry and their wives/husbands plus one, a total of 15 people showed up. Everyone was polite. "The bishop thinks we blind-sided him. My perspective is, as we left was 'Bite me.'" said a source.

*****

Episcopal Diocese of Washington Bishop John Chane celebrated the Washington D.C. City Council's passage of a same-gender marriage bill Dec. 15. No surprise, really. He was already on record supporting the idea. Like some other Episcopal Church bishops, Chane permits the clergy in his diocese to bless same-sex relationships. He had previously said that the diocese had begun studying the church's canons to determine whether diocesan priests will be allowed to solemnize same-gender marriages and sign marriage licenses if same-gender marriage became legal in the district. In the Dec. 15 statement, Chane said an announcement would be forthcoming.

He said in the statement that was e-mailed to ENS and posted here that he "support[s] and celebrate[s]" the council's decision "because it ends discrimination against gay and lesbian couples."

*****

An Anglican priest in the DIOCESE OF EASTERN NEWFOUNDLAND AND LABRADOR was arrested and is facing charges of possession and distribution of child pornography. The Royal Newfoundland Constabulary said Rev. Robin Barrett, 50, of Conception Bay South, was arrested following an investigation by the Toronto Police Service.

The diocesan bishop of Eastern Newfoundland and Labrador, Cyrus Pitman, was quoted by the Canadian Press as saying that "Given the gravity of these charges, we are co-operating fully with the authorities." Bishop Pitman also said, "We as a faith community, are deeply concerned with the continued issue of sexual exploitation of children and we will do all we can to address this issue."

He also announced that Barrett has been relieved of his duties as rector of St. Paul's Church in Goulds, near St. John's. He previously served as rector of the Church of the Good Shepherd in Mount Pearl.

*****

In England, school nativity plays that relegate baby Jesus to a supporting role, instead focusing on angels or even sheep, have been criticized by the church. A growing number of schools have scrapped the traditional Mary and Joseph performances in favor of secular alternatives such as Snow White or Scrooge.

Others have removed explicitly religious messages from their re-enactments of the birth of Christ for fear of upsetting pupils of other faiths. Now vicars have spoken out against this watering down of the nativity, complaining that children are not being taught the spiritual message of Christmas.

"I have seen performances where the central character has not been Jesus. Instead he is replaced by an angel or a sheep, and I think that's a shame," said Rev Roger Widdecombe, vicar of St Paul's in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire. "I'm a big fan of keeping the nativity as a nativity, although I realise the performance has to engage youngsters and there aren't that many well-written nativities out there."

*****

From a dear friend comes this:

Dear All---

The LGBT education advocacy group, GLSEN, has embedded itself in over 4,000 middle and high schools across America. According to its website, it receives huge financial aid from Pepsi, IBM and the National Education Association, in order to 'assure that each member of every school community is valued and respected regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity/expression'.

Though such sentiment sounds commendable, the facts on the ground indicate otherwise. I believe that being forewarned is to be forearmed, and people have the right to know what is actually happening now. GLSEN is a social engineering project of an almost no-holds-barred sexual revolution which will make the 1960s look positively tame by comparison. It is not a pretty sight. And what is perhaps most tragic is that GLSEN attracts the loners, the misfits, the unwanted --- those who may not have parents who know or care enough to warn them of the dangers. These poor souls will not realize until it is too late that they are in bed with the devil.

GLSEN's recommended book list for kids (in grades 7-12) include gay porn which is harder and nastier than any I have stumbled across in this country (for kids). Below is a taster. See http://gatewaypundit.firstthings.com/2009/12/breaking-obamas-safe-schools-czar-is-promoting-porn-in-the-classroom-kevin-jennings-and-the-glsen-reading-list/ for more. Or, you could have a peek at http://gatewaypundit.firstthings.com/2009/12/fistgate-iii-obamas-safe-schools-czars-black-book-for-kids-included-tips-on-fisting-piing-on-your-partner/ Gateway Pundit has far more material on his informative site, if you have yet to be convinced.

The sexual practices which the GLSEN reading list describes in glowing detail are very common in gay world, even to orgasmic activity of children, intergenerational sex, group sex, using 'perverse' forms of sexual stimulation like urine, fisting (fists inserted into the rectum), rimming (using one's tongue to stimulate the anus) etc. There is far more too, but perhaps that is enough detail for now. Most 'straights' are unaware of such goings-on, nor do they know that such practices are being normalized and embedded into the heterosexual sex world of their children and adolescents now as well.

But please do not take my word for it --- do your own research. Much needs to be done, and on all sorts of levels, but here is at least one specific focus for action. I believe that GLSEN is toxic to all, and that its founder, Kevin Jennings, Obama's nominee as 'Safe School Czar' (based on his pioneering work with GLSEN), needs to find other employment.

(An illustration about the change from "boy to man," showing two Boy Scouts pointing at and looking at two adult men engaging in anal sex.) http://gatewaypundit.firstthings.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/rev_voices_103s.jpg http://gatewaypundit.firstthings.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/boy.jpg

There is an online petition to Fire 'Unsafe School Czar' Kevin Jennings at www.grassrootsnation.com/events/jennings.aspx.

Footnote: Charles E. Bennison the Bishop of Pennsylvania openly advocated GLSEN in Episcopal academies in Philadelphia.

*****

The War on Christmas. Attention, culture warriors: 'Tis the season to be vigilant. An atheist group has plastered Santa-themed anti-religion ads on Los Angeles buses. Retailers insist on greeting shoppers with a neutral "Happy holidays," despite threats of boycotts. And the annual ABC broadcast of "A Charlie Brown Christmas" was pre-empted by President Obama's address on Afghanistan. The war on Christmas is back.

For decades, American conservatives have been warning of threats posed to the institution by a broad spectrum of foes. Henry Ford blamed Jews for the efforts to remove religious displays from public schools; in the McCarthy era, the John Birch Society saw the holiday as the target of a vast communist conspiracy. Since the 1990s, a right-wing website has held an annual competition for the most egregious example of secularization. (Villains include the Department of Housing and Urban Development, which christened its year-end party "A Celebration of Holiday Traditions.") But it was really during this decade that the Yule Wars caught fire. Fox News host John Gibson's book "The War on Christmas" hit best-seller lists in 2005, the same year his colleague Bill O'Reilly called moves to tone down the holidays the first steps on a slippery slope toward "legalization of narcotics, euthanasia, abortion at will, gay marriage." In a 2006 Chicago Tribune poll, 68% of respondents agreed that the holiday was under assault, TIME reports.

*****

And from Fr. Tim Fountain of the Northern Plains Anglicans blog comes this: The Episcopal Church had a big ol' ad in USA Today. It makes many claims. The second-to-last claim made is: We celebrate our unity in Christ while honoring our differences, always putting the work of love before uniformity of opinion.

That's the claim. The national FACTS are:

* Membership profile is disproportionately affluent, older, white and homosexual, and with a high number of clergy relative to the small number of active members. This is even more exaggerated in denominational leadership.
* Disproportionately low presence of men, young adults, teens, children and working class people.
* Decline by attrition and lack of evangelism, indicating current members' inability and/or unwillingness to interact with people who are not already part of their social circle.
* More use of disciplinary sanctions against dissenting clergy than at any time in Episcopal Church history.
* Millions of dollars in litigation over church property, even when dissenting congregations offer to pay for title. Not to mention the elimination of national staff and programs while increasing the lawsuit budget and hiring a personal litigator for the Presiding Bishop.
* De facto exclusion of traditional Christians from governing bodies and ordination as clergy.

*****

Traditionalist Anglicans in Scotland are setting up a new community in Edinburgh. This is being made possible because of a generous offer from the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of St Andrews and Edinburgh to provide a place of worship for their first service this Christmas Eve.

Canon Len Black, Regional Dean of Forward in Faith Scotland, the organisation which represents orthodox Anglicans world-wide, said, "This move has come about because of the rapid drift of the Scottish Episcopal Church away from the traditional faith, morals and practices of the universal Church. We are most grateful to Cardinal Keith O'Brien for the generosity he has shown us in making a place of worship available, not just for Christmas but in the months ahead, as we seek to serve those Episcopalians who look to us for spiritual and sacramental support.

"When the Scottish Episcopal Church first decided to ordain women as priests some 15 years ago we were assured of a 'valued and honoured place' within the church 'for all time to come'. That promise has not been honoured and today some of our people even find that they are being told they are no longer welcome in the churches in where they were baptised as infants. Now we find that the provision we were hoping for from our own Church is being offered to all disaffected Anglicans by the Catholic Church.

"Episcopalians in Scotland have a long and rich history and liturgical tradition and the offer from the Catholic Church to enable us to take this tradition with us is something we and all traditionalists must consider carefully."

Cardinal O'Brien commented, "I am delighted to help provide a place of worship for these Traditionalist Anglicans, taking the lead from Pope Benedict XVI and his predecessor Pope John Paul II." www.forwardinfaith.info/scotland.

*****

The list of finalists to be Wyoming's new Episcopal bishop has shrunk to four after one of the nominees withdrew his name last weekend. The Episcopal DIOCESE OF WYOMING didn't give a reason why the Very Rev. Robert "Bob" Neske, dean of St. Mark's Episcopal Pro-Cathedral in Hastings, Neb., took his name off the shortlist to succeed Bishop Bruce Caldwell, who is retiring next year.

Diocesan spokeswoman Pamela Kandt said it's not uncommon for Episcopal bishop search process finalists to withdraw. Since Neske and the other finalists applied for the job in August, Kandt said, things may have changed in his life that caused him to rethink about applying for the position. The four remaining finalists to become Wyoming's new Episcopal bishop are the Rev. Rebecca "Becky" Brown of Foxborough, Mass.; the Very Rev. Canon F. Michael Perko of Albuquerque, N.M.; the Rev. Canon Dr. Clark Michael Sherman of Bozeman, Mont.; and the Rev. John Sheridan Smylie, rector of St. Mark's Episcopal Church in Casper.

*****

Religion repressed in third of all nations. A new report has found that nearly a third of countries have stiff restrictions on religious practice, either because of government policies and laws or hostile acts by individuals or groups.

The study by the Pew Research Center, "Global Restrictions on Religion," also found that of the world's 25 most populous countries, citizens in Iran, Egypt, Indonesia, Pakistan and India live with the most restrictions when both measures are taken into account.

According to the study, the United States, Brazil, Japan, Italy, South Africa and the United Kingdom have the greatest freedom of religion when measured by both government infringement and religion-based violence or harassment. Source: Associated Press.

*****

The new Anglican Church of North American (ACNA) made World Magazine News of the Year http://www.worldmag.com/articles/16210

*****

And from London's Evening Standard newspaper comes this: "The Government has ruled that there cannot be a nativity scene in the Palace of Westminster this Christmas. This isn't for any religious reason. They simply have not been able to find Three Wise Men in Parliament. A search for a virgin continues. There was no problem finding asses."

*****

Worldwide situation for Christians 'is dramatic'. "Even today, all over the world, human rights are being trampled upon. It is often the minorities who suffer most. Particularly dramatic is the situation for millions of Christians. Never before have so many people been discriminated against, harassed, or even killed because of their Christian faith," emphasizes the National Director of Pontifical Mission Societies in Austria, Fr. Leo Maasburg, in a reflection on the occasion of Human Rights Day, December 10, which commemorates the signing of the Declaration of Human Rights (10 December 1948). For the occasion, the Pontifical Mission Societies in Austria - Missio Austria - recalls the critical situation of human rights around the world. "Even in Europe phobias against Christians and attacks against the right to freedom of religion is growing." emphasizes Fr. Leo Maasburg, in reference to the court decision on the crucifixes and the debate on the construction of minarets: "The right to religious freedom guarantees the practice of religion in public. Mission means actively witnessing to one's faith and in public, and this is part of religious freedom. This should not be undermined by a misinterpreted secularism. On the contrary: the elimination of the preaching of the faith threatens everyone's freedom, along with peace." Source: FIDES

*****

Mr. Christian Campbell has started a new blog, "The Anglo-Catholic" which is devoted to educating and preparing people about the pope's new constitution for Anglicans who desire to enter into full communion with the Catholic Church. He is further gauging the desire for "an information portal, a communications hub, or a 'clearinghouse' for regional information on emerging groups hoping to avail themselves of the provisions of the Apostolic Constitution." Full information is here: http://www.theanglocatholic.com/2009/12/groups-of-anglicans/

*****

If you haven't signed up for the Anglican Mission in the Americas conference in Greensboro, NC in January, you can do so by going here: http://www.theamia.org/new/winter-conference/

Another must attend conference is the annual Mere Anglican conference in Charleston, SC, which is the brain child of Bishop C. FitzSimons Allison (SC ret.) www.mereanglicanism.com This year's conference focuses on sexuality issues and promises to be a winner. VOL will be at both conferences.

*****

VOL wishes all its readers a very Merry Christmas. We will post one more digest next week to round out the year.

If you haven't made a year-end tax deductible donation to Virtueonline it is not too late. We are adding staff in 2010 and we will be covering the Anglican Communion from more areas of the world as the communion realigns itself.

VOL's website is available in 34 languages, our Global Anglican Theological Institute in 40 languages. We boldly go where others will not go. So please, as the year closes consider a tax deductible donation to VOL.

You can send a snail mail donation to:

VIRTUEONLINE
1236 Waterford Rd.,
West Chester, PA 19380

If you would like to make a PAYPAL donation you may go to VOL's website: www.virtueonline.org and click on the PAYPAL button. Thank you for your support.

In Christ,

David