The mystery of election. Many mysteries surround the doctrine of election, and theologians are unwise to systematize it in such a way that no puzzles, enigmas or loose ends are left. At the same time, in addition to the arguments developed in the exposition of Romans 8:28-30, we need to remember two truths. First, election is not just a Pauline or apostolic doctrine; it was also taught by Jesus himself. "I know those I have chosen,' he said. (Jn. 13:18). Secondly, election is an indispensable foundation of Christian worship, in time and eternity. It is the essence of worship to say: 'Not to us, O Lord, not to us, but to your name be the glory' (Ps. 115:1). If we were responsible for our own salvation, either in whole or even in part, we would be justified in singing our own praises and blowing our own trumpet in heaven. But such a thing is inconceivable. God's redeemed people will spend eternity worshipping him, humbling themselves before him in grateful adoration, ascribing their salvation to him and to the Lamb, and acknowledging that he alone is worthy to receive all praise, honour and glory. Why? Because our salvation is due entirely to his grace, will, initiative, wisdom and power. --- From "The Message of Romans" (The Bible Speaks Today) by John R.W. Stott

Dear Brother and Sisters
www.virtueonline.org
June 24, 2011

If you have any doubts that a de facto, if not a de jure schism, has overtaken the Anglican Communion, look no further than the announcement this week that the Archbishop of Nigeria, Nicholas Okoh, the head of the Anglican Communion's largest and fastest growing Anglican province, is flying to Canada to visit his CANA parishes, but will not be paying a primatial call on his Canadian counterpart, Archbishop Fred Hiltz.

In what is being billed as an "historic moment", Archbishop Okoh will make his first visit to Canada, but he will snub the Canadian primate because the Anglican Church of Canada (a clone of TEC) has departed from the historic formularies and traditions of the global Anglican Communion. Orthodox Anglicans, licensed by CANA, will welcome the Primate of all Nigeria to Canada. His congregations are not recognized by the Anglican Church of Canada.

This is to be expected when you think how close the ACoC and TEC are ecclesiologically and theologically and how far removed theologically Nigeria is from Western pan Anglicanism. You will also recall that Okoh and the majority of Global South archbishops boycotted the Dublin primates meeting, earlier this year, sealing the deal that Dr. Rowan Williams is incapable of finding an Hegelian synthesis to bring everyone to the table...and keep them there. You can read the full story in today's digest.

*****

In Long Beach, California, where leaders of the Anglican Church in North America (ACNA) are meeting, the announcement was made that the ACNA has added two dioceses with two more in formation. They also welcomed the Diocese of the Mid-Atlantic and the Diocese of Cascadia. The Provincial Council of the Anglican Church in North America unanimously voted to grant admission and full diocesan status to the two new dioceses today. In addition, the Council also unanimously voted to admit two groups of congregations in the Carolinas and the Southwest (West Texas and New Mexico) to begin to form dioceses in their respective geographic locations.

The newly-admitted Diocese of Cascadia has grown from seven congregations in the northwest region of the U.S. to 21 congregations in a little over one year. The Anglican District of Virginia will become the Diocese of the Mid-Atlantic and consists of 31 congregations and 9 mission fellowships.

In discussing dioceses and the role of the Anglican Church in the life of congregations, Archbishop Duncan told Council attendees, "If we are to 'reach North America with the transforming love of Jesus Christ' the principal way we will do this is through the local congregation. We understand that congregations are where disciples are formed and that it is through congregations that surrounding environments are changed. Bishops, archbishops, dioceses, structures, programs all exist in order to make the local congregation strong."

The admission of all four groups into the Anglican Church is emblematic of the growth that has characterized the province since its inception. The growth of the Anglican Church has been furthered through church planting efforts connected with Anglican 1000 and the Greenhouse Forum, two church planting movements within the Anglican Church. Overall, the Anglican Church has grown from 706 congregations to nearly 1,000. You can read Archbishop Bob Duncan's speech here: http://tinyurl.com/66dkubb

The Rev. Robert Bowman was in attendance at the ACNA Provincial Council meeting in Long Beach this week and reported the following. "In his address Archbishop Bob Duncan's brought out the following: Since its inception two years ago, there has been 34% growth in the ACNA. There are now 952 parishes and missions in the ACNA. There have been almost 1000 adult baptisms, about 500 baptisms of youth, and about 1600 infant/child baptisms."

*****

Almost every week, an Anglican province here and a diocese there announce that they are having problems with the Covenant, an instrument of unity, sort of, designed to bring us altogether. Usually the problem is Section IV, the disciplinary section that everyone wants removed because they don't want anyone, especially the ABC, telling us what to do or how to live or even what our theology should be... and especially where we should be permitted to put our sexual organs. God forbid the church should be divided over something as simple as saying no to fornication, adultery and homosexual behavior. If you rail against the latter, you are deemed homophobic, narrow-minded, lacking in inclusion and diversity. If you get too noisy, the Presiding Bishop and her coterie of revisionist bishops will find a way to toss you out of the church for not obeying the latest revision of the canons.

The whole issue of whether men can change or move their same-sex attractions to heterosexuality was the subject recently of an interview I had with America's leading reparative therapist, Dr. Joseph Nicolosi. In case you did not see it, you can view it here. Please feel free to post this story to friends far and wide. http://tinyurl.com/3taajz8

*****

Property disputes continue to be center stage, this time in Canada where the Diocese of New Westminster under revisionist Bishop of New Westminster Michael Ingham won a Supreme Court decision to let him keep the properties of four Vancouver-area parishes in the ACoC, including the largest, most vibrant parish in Canada, St. John's Shaughnessy. In a "Dear Michael," letter, Archbishop Fred Hiltz noted that he was pleased to hear of the decision of the Supreme Court of Canada to deny Leave to Appeal to those who have launched law suits against the Diocese of New Westminster over its decision concerning the blessing of same sex unions. In his letter to Bishop Ingham,, Archbishop Hiltz gloated over the win and eulogized Ingham, the first man to fracture the entire Anglican Communion by allowing the blessing of same sex unions, drawing the wrath and ire of Global South Anglicans by saying, "With integrity and insight, you represented the Anglican Church of Canada, its constitution, Canons and recognized decision making processes within the synods of our church - diocesan, provincial, and General. Our entire church owes you a great debt of gratitude. That expression of thanks is extended to your chancellor, solicitor, communications officer and others who supported you in your endeavors to represent our church with such resolve, grace and dignity."

Right. So now Ingham has four empty parishes he will have to maintain as the congregations move on faithful to Christ and the gospel. His victory is entirely pyrrhic. You can read the full story in today's digest.

*****

The Episcopal Diocese of Ecuador Central is in "complete meltdown," a Latin Bishop told VOL this week, following a news announcement from Control Central (815 2nd Ave, NY) that a seven-year conflict (bordering on violence) has resulted in the presiding bishop sending a team to that nation to investigate. The conflict has resulted in the breakdown of relationships between the Standing Committee and Bishop Luis Fernando Ruiz, who has served as diocesan bishop since August 2009.

In May, the Standing Committee declared itself as the ecclesiastical authority in the diocese during a special convention after it could no longer accept the bishop's authority. In her letter, the presiding bishop called that action "irregular" adding that Ruiz will continue as the ecclesiastical authority "until a canonical process decides otherwise."

The bishop told VOL that there have been seven or more years of disastrous activities and choices. "Ramos-Orench was probably OK, but there are no internal positives to preach the Gospel. Ruiz, another disastrous choice, came in with a heavy hand but after a bad general convention in which he was appointed, he split the diocese again, that is, what was left of it. There is no unity, no desire to work together. The diocese is in melt down."

It is ironic that PB Jefferts Schori touts her overseas (offshore) dioceses as healthy places and growing when in fact the reverse is the case. The last archbishop and a fellow bishop of Mexico ran off with over $1 million dollars never to be heard from again. All of the money came from TEC. TEC made no effort to recover the funds so the men were never prosecuted. As the bishop told VOL, the leadership does not trust the followers nor do the followers trust their leaders. "We have had 500 years of familial authoritarian rule. Democracy overnight does not fix it in Latin America or the Middle East," he said. You can read the full story in today's digest.

*****

Corruption by a diocesan bishop lies at the heart of an arrest warrant issued for Tanzania Archbishop Valentino Mokiwa. We reported this story last week, but then got word that the reason he was arrested is connected with the actions of the corrupt Bishop of Mount Kilimanjaro, Simon Makundi. Makundi tried to block the new bishop of his diocese because he planned to audit the books that would have revealed how corrupt Makundi has been over the years. A former missionary to Tanzania told VOL that Makundi has siphoned off hundreds of thousands of dollars for himself over the years. You can read more today.

*****

Shades of Orwell and 1984. The Bishop of the Diocese of Arizona, Kirk Smith announced the death of an Episcopal congregation, Holy Spirit in North Phoenix, this week. He then wrote a piece about the closing, calling it a "resurrection." You have to wonder what planet he and many of his kind are living on. The good news is that an evangelical university bought the church, which, if the parish and diocese had ever had a gospel to proclaim, would not now be closing its doors. The diocese poured over $300,000 into the parish over many years to keep it afloat, but gave up the ghost.

You have to wonder why four dioceses and the national church are spending millions of dollars to keep parishes that will ultimately be empty when and if they win in the courts. If they win, they will have to be sold off. In the current economic climate, that is easier said than done. Who wants a used parish in the middle of Podunk, Iowa, or in the wilderness areas of Minnesota or Iowa or in the small towns of New England? Those parishes with significant graveyards cannot be sold off to developers. St James the Less in Philadelphia, a pro-cathedral like structure, lies fallow years after Bishop Charles Bennison tossed Fr. David Ousley and his Anglo-Catholic congregation out of the parish. Four bishops lie in their graves there so the diocese has to maintain upkeep on it all. Inner city parishes are suffering across the board.

*****

The Episcopal News Service reported that the sub-committee of Executive Council charged with formulating that body's response to the proposed Anglican Covenant has received a report from the Standing Commission on Constitution and Canons, advising the subcommittee on whether adoption of the covenant would require changes in the church's constitution and canons.

The subcommittee has declined to make this report public. If adoption of the covenant requires constitutional changes, the Episcopal Church would be unable to sign the document until 2015 because it would require the approval of two successive General Conventions. This assumes that said changes could be formulated, debated and passed at the convention in 2012.

*****

The Rt. Rev. Michael J. Hanley, bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Oregon marched last Sunday in Portland's annual Gay Pride parade. He was accompanied by Episcopalians who support gay and transgender rights. "I've simply come to believe that being gay or straight is a gift from God," he related in a telephone interview Thursday. "I believe we need to live the identity we're given by God."

A delegation from St. Matthew's Episcopal Church in Northeast Portland, which split in 2010 over issues including gay rights, joined the parade. Hanley said individual congregations and members are free to decide whether to take part. "I'm simply walking as an individual," he explained. "One of the things we as Christian people can witness to - when we're at our best - is when we acknowledge differences we have and we continue to live together in harmony and community. . . . I believe it's important to witness to the love of God for all people."

In the Diocese of Massachusetts, Bishop Tom Shaw joined Episcopalians marching in Boston's Pride Parade on June 11. "I do this every year that I can," he told a reporter. "Episcopalians who are gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender contribute so much to the life of our diocese, and it's important for me to be here to celebrate with them."

*****

The Diocese of the Windward Islands in the West Indies has ordained its first woman deacon. On June 11, Eleanor Glasgow, Director of Lay Ministries of the Anglican Church in Grenada, was ordained to the diaconate at the St George Cathedral Church in St. Vincent and the Grenadines.

A 1997 Eames Monitoring Group report on the status of women clergy in the Anglican Communion reported that while the Church of the Province of the West Indies had authorized women deacons and priests, two dioceses: Guyana and the Windward Island rejected the innovation.

In 2000, the Windward Island diocesan synod gave its assent to the ordination of women, but no female clergy were ordained until this past weekend. The traditionally Anglo-Catholic Diocese of the Windward Islands is comprised of the islands of St. Lucia, Grenada and St Vincent and the Grenadines. Guyana remains the sole West Indian diocese that does not permit women clergy.

Speaking to the Nation newspaper of Barbados, Deacon Glasgow stated, "That by my answering the call and being accepted as a woman, that the door is now open for other women who believe they are so called to come forward.

"Why should a woman be denied if she has been called?" the new deacon asked.

*****

The Washington Times reports that U.S. Department of Agriculture activists want to impose their intense brand of homosexual sensitivity training government wide, including a discussion that compares "heterosexism" - believing marriage can be between only one man and one woman - to racism.

If accepted by the Obama administration, that move could mean more sessions for military service members already undergoing gay-sensitivity indoctrination. Critics fear additional gay-oriented training would add an unnecessary burden for combat troops and encourage some to leave.

USDA officials have asked the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), which oversees all federal employee policies, to impose its gay-awareness programs on all federal departments, according to an internal newsletter. The training includes a discussion of "heterosexism" and compares it to racism. It says people who view marriage as being between only one man and one woman are guilty of "heterosexism."

The push for the training is coming from Agriculture Secretary Thomas J. Vilsack, former governor of Iowa. The Democrat has launched a department wide "cultural transformation" that includes a Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender (LGBT) Special Emphasis Program.

*****

There is nothing new about the "new" NIV: They goofed again. Last year, leaders of the organization, formerly known as the International Bible Society and Send the Light, now operating under the name Biblica, admitted that the dreadful 2002 revision of the New International Version (NIV) of the Bible was a mistake. However, the extent of their repentance, reflected in a forthcoming further revision, is not sufficient according to the Southern Baptist Convention.

Southern Baptists recently announced their rejection of the new NIV Bible at their annual convention in Phoenix, AZ, saying they could not commend the translation and its use of gender-neutral language.

"Southern Baptists repeatedly have affirmed our commitment to the full inspiration and authority of Scripture," the resolution states. "This translation alters the meaning of hundreds of verses, most significantly by erasing gender-specific details which appear in the original language."

*****

Two Wycliffe Bible translators have made the Bible available in Gwich'in, a native Alaskan language, for the first time. Pierre and Meggie Demers, a husband and wife team, worked on the translation for about 30 years, along with Mary Rose Gamboa, who is a member of the Gwich'in tribe. One of the aims of the project is to help native Gwich'in speakers evangelize and teach more effectively.

*****

The Church of England has become concerned over academies and Religious Education (RE). The government is keen to expand the number of academies in England. A leading bishop has warned that the Church of England must "act now" to secure its role in education amid swift policy change.

The Rt. Rev. John Pritchard, who chairs the Church's education board, said "very short notice" changes were "not the best way to build for the future". He expressed concern about support for Church-run academies and the exclusion of RE from the English baccalaureate. The government said RE is important and must remain compulsory.

"The changes brought in by the present Coalition government present significant challenges to the Church' s continued involvement in the public education system," Rt Rev Pritchard wrote in a report to General Synod. "The changed rationale and growth of academies requires action now to ensure the survival of our provision."

*****

MILWAUKEE: Methodist pastors who have defied a church ban on marrying gays were dealt a setback Wednesday when clergy members hearing a church trial found a colleague guilty of marrying a lesbian couple in 2009.

The 13-person jury of clergy members unanimously convicted the Rev. Amy DeLong of Osceola. They found the 44-year-old not guilty of a second charge of being a "self-avowed practicing homosexual." That vote was 12-1.

After the verdicts were announced, church officials heard a second round of testimony to help jurors recommend a penalty that could range from suspension to defrocking. Their decision was expected to be announced Thursday morning.

The Rev. Tom Lambrecht, the Greenville pastor who conducted the prosecution, called the conviction "a just verdict."

*****

The Rt. Rev. Garry Weatherill, who is currently the Bishop of Willochra in South Australia, has been appointed the 10th Anglican Bishop of Ballarat. Bishop Weatherill, who was elected by an Election Board, will be enthroned in Christ Church Cathedral Ballarat on Saturday, 5 November 5 at 11 AM.

Bishop Weatherill is an experienced and much loved country Bishop with important roles in the National Anglican Church and the International Anglican Communion. He has been the Bishop of Willochra since 2001 and was formerly the Ministry Development Officer of that diocese from 1997 until his consecration. Before these appointments, he had been a very successful parish priest in South Australia.

In other "down under" news, the former bishop of the Murray, who resigned from the Anglican Church under a cloud, has become a Catholic. Ross Davies resigned as bishop last September, just before a church tribunal found he had failed to deal appropriately with sexual misconduct allegations against an archdeacon.

The tribunal also found he displayed a lack of commitment to the Anglican Church and had used threatening and aggressive language towards parishioners.

He faced nine charges brought by Adelaide Archbishop Jeffrey Driver and Bishop of Willochra Garry Weatherill relating to behaviour dating back to 2003. One of the matters raised at the tribunal was that he had expressed a desire to become a Catholic.

Three days after he resigned last September, Davies, 56, who had denied the allegations against him, was confirmed into the Catholic Church by Adelaide Archbishop Philip Wilson, president of the Australian Episcopal Conference, at St Patrick's church.

*****

From the Sudan comes this appeal. The bishop of Kadugli has called for a day of prayer and fasting to end the violence in his country. The Episcopal News Service reports that Bishop Andudu Elnail is calling on Sudanese Christians and churches throughout the world to observe Sunday, June 26, as a day of prayer and fasting for an end to the violence that has plagued the border region of Southern Kordofan for the past two weeks, resulting in a humanitarian crisis as thousands of people flee their homes and find themselves cut off from aid.

*****

Want to hear what three orthodox Episcopal bishops have to say about the gospel and The Episcopal Church then watch and listen here: http://www.anglican.tv/content/3-bishops-reality-gospel-bishop-wantland In this DVD series, you will hear interviews from the three long-time veterans of the struggle to maintain an Orthodox Theology in the Episcopal Church: Bishop C. Fitzimons Alison, Bishop Bill Wantland, and Bishop Alex Dickson.

*****

VOL urgently needs funds to keep these digests, research, reporting and our world class website going. It is summer and funding dries up. Please consider making a tax deductible donation. No amount is considered too small. Nearly 4,000 of you come to the website daily. If you can't give then spread the word that VOL is open for business. ADD a friend to receive the free weekly digest of stories. All it takes is an e-mail address. Send it to david@virtueonline.org Our website address is www.virtueonline.org

You can send your donation to:

VIRTUEONLINE
1236 Waterford Rd.,
West Chester, PA 19380

Or you can make a donation at VOL's PAYPAL link here: www.virtueonline.org

For more stories and to access one of the most comprehensive archives of the Anglican Communion go here: www.virtueonline.org

Thank you for your support,

All blessings,

David W. Virtue DD