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Dear Brothers and Sisters,
www.virtueonline.org
May 31, 2017
VOL is on the cusp of change and growth. For several decades, we have been focusing mostly on The Episcopal Church, documenting the crazy antics that pass for authentic Christianity. Every year that passed, we thought that perhaps the craziness would end and wiser heads would prevail. Of course that did not happen.
From Spong to Robinson, to the approval of fornication and homosexual marriage, TEC has gone from one lunacy to the next, denying basic Christian doctrines, embracing pansexuality, suing churches for their properties, spending millions of dollars on lawsuits while claiming to be doing God's will by ludicrously and fatuously announcing His mission to save the world. It has been difficult out satirizing the nonsense that passes for 'the faith once for all delivered to the saints', even as churches close, parishes run out of parishioners, funerals outnumber baptisms and new communicants, diocesan headquarters get sold off, cathedrals close, bullying bishops destroy parishes, priests and lives, lawsuits continue, all the while dwindling orthodox laity and clergy are thrown under the bus and their parishes sold off to Islamic groups and evangelical startups.
The carnage will continue of course and won't abate till the last orthodox priest has been strangled by the guts of the last revisionist bishop. We are watching that play out in the Diocese of Caledonia where an orthodox priest has been denied a bishopric by a group of revisionist Canadian Anglican bishops because he is orthodox in faith and morals. Go figure.
VOL is refocusing. In the coming weeks and months, we will center on the good things happening to Anglicanism in North America and around the world. The transition will not be instant and many of you will feel unhappy that you won't see constant stories of the Episcopal Church's endless sexual infidelities playing out for all the world to see. No one really cares what the Episcopal Church does or votes for; TEC is simply following the culture, reinforcing its Gadarene slide towards the precipice. Exceptions might be a besotted TEC bishop killing yet another cyclist or found in bed with a transsexual, or caught buggering boys. Adultery still rates a mention largely because TEC is totally hypocritical about sex.
Of course, we will not completely ignore TEC, but I will no longer attend general conventions; there is nothing left to report on except the inevitable whine for the church to recognize transgender relationships, propose a resolution for trannie toilets and the hope that one day the church will embrace a transsexual bishop in the name of inclusion and diversity and God's love for absolutely everybody, without the need for repentance and change. The Jesus Movement will be given lots of play by the presiding bishop but nobody believes that will really change anything. Lots of high-sounding words, pulpit rants, a check on racism, (but no one knows who they are) and more guilt about white privilege.
I will, occasionally, draw together in one or two articles the latest screaming TEC failures like the Jesus Movement, but TEC is on the ropes and only a fool would say otherwise. Over the next decade, thousands of priests will retire, more and more churches will have part time and non-stipendiary priests (already nearly 50%) serving fewer and fewer churches as For Sale signs go up across the country. It will be a slow but accelerating death, but death it will be.
Over the next few weeks, VOL will begin PODCASTS. We will interview the next generation of movers and shakers - lay, clergy, bishops and archbishops who are making a difference in the church and the world. There are green shoots everywhere. God IS doing a new thing and VOL will re-focus its energies bringing you the stories that make a difference.
VOL's weekly digests will also undergo change. They will be shorter and briefer, with links to stories already written.
We live in an age of tweets (made famous by our president), and with people's attention spans growing shorter, (144 characters now dominating the scene) we will be even more precise in what we report.
We will continue to need your support to make these changes possible. Most think the news writes itself and is therefore free. It doesn't and it isn't. Our team of reporters and commentators take considerable time and effort to bring you the news, and that will not abate any time soon.
So please support us.
You can become a supporter by making a tax-deductible contribution. You can send your donation to VOL via PAYPAL at the link here: http://www.virtueonline.org/support-vol/
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Warmly in Our Lord,
David
