The biblical doctrine of Scripture. We take our stand on the divine origin of the Bible, because we believe the Bible itself requires us to do so. Indeed, it is a strange fact that theologians who are prepared to accept the biblical doctrine of God, of Christ, of the Holy Spirit, of man and of the church, are often not willing to accept the biblical doctrine of Scripture. But if the Bible is authoritative and accurate when speaking about other matters, there is no reason why it should not be equally so when speaking about itself. --- From "Fundamentalism and Evangelism" John R.W. Stott

Abba Zeno said, "If a man wants God to hear his prayer quickly, then before he prays for anything else, even his own soul, when he stands and stretches out his hands towards God, he must pray with all his heart for his enemies. Through this action God will hear everything that he asks."

Forgiven souls LOVE CHRIST. This is that one thing they can say, if they dare say nothing else-they do love Christ. His person, His offices, His work, His name, His cross, His blood, His words, His example, His ordinances-all, all are precious to forgiven souls. The ministry which exalts Him most, is that which they enjoy most. The books which are most full of Him, are most pleasant to their minds. The people on earth they feel most drawn to, are those in whom they see something of Christ. He is their Redeemer, their Shepherd, their Physician, their King, their strong Deliverer, their gracious Guide, their hope, their joy, their All. Were it not for Him they would be of all people most miserable. --- J.C. Ryle

"A Church that seeks above all to be attractive is already on the wrong path." In other words, a Church that takes the edge off the truth it bears will be unattractive evangelically and useless publicly." --- Pope Benedict XVI

Dear Brothers and Sisters
www.virtueonline.org
December 10, 2010

The Presiding Bishop of The Episcopal Church recently told a gathering of ecumenical leaders that they must "preach and teach frequently about the many and interconnected parts of the body of Christ."

Then she added, "There is an even deeper and more pervasive understanding of our interconnectedness, the whole of God's creation, which Sally McFague has famously called the 'Body of God'."

Quoting author McFague makes sense for Jefferts Schori, since McFague is a Yale-educated feminist theologian who shares a strong interest in ecology with the Presiding Bishop is an oceanographer. In her book, "Models of God: Theology for an Ecological, Nuclear Age", McFague asserts that "theology is mostly fiction", but that new metaphors can help conceive God appropriately "for our time." This emphasis on relativism and personal experience is strikingly similar to Jefferts Schori's own past theological statements.

The Episcopal leader went on to claim that a second century of ecumenical cooperation must have "an expanded view " concerned "with all of creation, all of humanity, and all people of faith.

"This 'Body of God' has many, many parts," Jefferts Schori noted. "The voices of people of faith must be a prophetic source for lasting change that moves toward healing the body of God. If we can begin to affirm our place in that body of God, in concert with other people of faith, both Christian and not, we will discover that the Holy One has been here before us."

She suggested that God is "luring us into an unexpected and radically open future."

So Mrs. Jeffers Schori has slipped irreversibly into Pantheism to explain the worldview that has taken her from the bottom of the ocean to the heights of a shrinking Episcopal Church. Furthermore, we are to see all religions on a level playing field, which denies the uniqueness of Jesus Christ and his plan of salvation. It also mocks the Atonement. What will she think of next? Jeff Walton's fine article on this can be read in today's digest.

*****

The Diocese of Western New York elected the Rev. R. William Franklin as its new bishop this past week, but VOL has learned that he has not been exactly forthcoming about his past work. He did not reveal that he was forced to resign in December of 2001 after a Yale-initiated audit showed he had allegedly misappropriated Berkeley funds. Memory loss, perhaps? If so, shades of PA Bishop Charles E. Bennison who also had a memory loss about his brother's sexual abuse of a minor when he canvassed for Bishop of Pennsylvania.

In 2001, The "Hartford Courant" outlined the alleged misappropriation by Franklin, citing a confidential audit that showed Franklin mismanaged tens of thousands of dollars, using some of the funds to pay for his daughter's Harvard Medical School education and personal expenses including a trip to Colorado as well as dry cleaning. Franklin was forced to repay the money for his daughter's Harvard medical school tuition.

This begs the question if Franklin didn't do anything wrong, why did he have to repay it? How is this different from the Rev. Donald Armstrong using funds to pay for his kid's college tuition and Bishop Robert O'Neill suing him at a cost of two million dollars to the diocese? Does it depend on where you stand with TEC? It'll be interesting to see how this plays out and if Franklin gets consents or not.

*****

The leader of the Australian Anglican Communion, Archbishop Phillip Aspinall condemned attacks on Christians and Muslims in Pakistan in the December issue of FOCUS, the newspaper of the Anglican Diocese of Brisbane. At the same time he came under attack from a leading Anglican layman calling his muted remarks about Islamic persecution of Christians "very misleading and mischievous."

"This Advent season, our prayers are with the Christians of Iraq, the Muslims of Pakistan and all those subjected to violence. May the light and peace of the Christ Child shine afresh in the darkness of our world and our hearts," wrote Aspinall.

Following publication of the editorial, Brendan Theodore wrote a letter to Aspinall blasting the archbishop by saying that while Muslims in Pakistan have been attacked is true - it is a sect war by fellow Muslims, "cleverly choosing not to mention this, implies that perhaps it may have been another religion responsible.

"Christians all over the world face persecution for following their faith like Aasia Bibi - the Christian in Pakistan who faces the death penalty for allegedly blaspheming Allah, families of western journalists who have been executed by extremist Muslim groups, clergy who 'fall' for the belief that Sharia law can be tolerated by Christians in any way, shape or form. Also our armed forces overseas who are facing a very difficult time as well as their families." (See BBC story at end).

You can read the full story here or in today's digest: http://tinyurl.com/2adxqyn

*****

Who owns the church? Conflict over property is as old as the Bible itself. Recent court decisions in the United States have generated significant publicity and concern, prompting many congregations to seek a review of the status of their local church property. A Guide to Church Property Law: Second Edition by Lloyd J. Lunceford, Ed. is now available and can be purchased here. http://www.amazon.com/dp/B004C05D1U

It comes none too soon as mainline denominations become more secular in their stand with the culture while orthodox believers resist the siren call of post-modernity and the homosexualization of the church and their attempts to resist the culture. As a result of these theological divisions, many churches believe they can no longer stay in their respective denominations.

Finding an equitable solution has been virtually impossible in The Episcopal Church and other mainline denominations. The Episcopal Church, however, has been the hardest hit. Millions of dollars have been spent fighting over church properties with whole dioceses at war with the national church. No resolution seems in sight. To date, this question and the related issue of "trust clauses" have given control over local church property to national denominations.

*****

The announcement came this week that Fr. Alberto Cutie, a former Roman Catholic priest turned Episcopal priest and Ruhama Buni Cutié, became parents to Camila Victoria Cutie - a girl. "The Huffington Post" reports that Fr. Cutié and his cutie were married by a Coral Gable civil judge on June 16, 2009. Wikipedia reports that they then had a religious ceremony 10 days later on June 26, 2009, officiated by Episcopal Bishop Leo Frade. Almost a year and a half later came the little bambina. We are grateful that it was outside the nine-month gestation period otherwise Bishop Frade might (or might not) have had a word to say about pre-marital sex to Fr. Cutie.

*****

London Bishop Richard Chartres is none too happy about some of his flock leaving for Rome. Clearly no great fan of Roman Catholicism, he told Ordinariate worshippers that he didn't want them using his churches. He will NOT let them take any buildings with them, and he'd rather they didn't share Anglican churches with C of E congregations. While Chartres is a high churchman, he has shown a lot of political common sense and for obvious reasons. His most vibrant and growing churches in London are ALPHA driven. Holy Trinity, Brompton (HTB) is the "shrine" of London evangelicalism. He even consented to the ordination of a bishop, Sandy Miller (former Vicar of HTB) to minister to these churches. Clearly the bishop knows on which side his bread is buttered. Rome out, evangelicals in.

*****

Following the announced retirement of Bishop John-David Schofield, nominations for the 5th Bishop of San Joaquin are now open through January 16, 2011. Nomination forms may be downloaded from the Diocesan Website: www.dioceseofsanjoaquin.net

*****

AIDS in Africa Almost three quarters of deaths from AIDS occur in a relatively small geographical area of the world: sub-Saharan Africa. There must be a compelling reason for this, which, if understood, might enable the problem to be addressed more effectively. A recent scholarly paper argues that certain patterns of sexual relationships, which are relatively common at a population level in sub-Saharan Africa, but not elsewhere in the world, provide an epidemiological framework, which can account for much of the phenomenon.

Researchers are increasingly identifying such parallel partnerships, known as "multiple concurrent partnerships" as a key driver of the HIV epidemic in sub-Saharan Africa.

It is not difficult to accept the principle that multiple concurrent partnerships in a community lead to situations where many people are linked together in a network of sexual interconnectedness. The degree of interconnectedness, however, may come as a surprise. A study in Malawi has found that in a society embracing several villages, in which the average person has just slightly more than two sexual partners, no fewer than two thirds of the people were sexually connected to each other - that is to say, if any one of them contracted HIV, two thirds of the population were at risk of contracting the disease.

*****

Survey: Typical US atheist is white son of religious parents. The typical member of a fast-growing U.S. atheist association is a highly educated, married white male who grew up with religious parents.

The Freedom from Religion Foundation, which grew from 5500 in 2004 to about 16 000 members this year, announced results of a survey of its members on 1 December, Religion News Service reports.

The Wisconsin-based organization received nearly 4000 responses to its survey, which was mailed to all its members in May. Respondents replied to the non-scientific survey by mail or online.

Asked about their primary reason for being "de-converted from religion to free-thought," about a third of respondents said "religion doesn't make sense." Seventeen percent said religious hypocrisy or bigotry was the cause; 9 percent said reading skeptical authors; 5 percent cited reading the Bible.

Most respondents said the religious denomination they left behind was Protestant (42 percent), but 30 percent said they were raised Catholic while 27 percent were raised Jewish.

The overwhelming majority of atheist respondents - 95 percent - were white, but foundation officials hope that statistic will change.

*****

The Church of Ireland will address the Covenant at its May General Synod, The Church of England Newspaper reports. That church's Commission for Christian Unity and Dialogue has concluded that the proposed Anglican Covenant does not conflict with the formularies of the Church of Ireland,. The decision opens the way for the Church of Ireland to adopt the Covenant at its General Synod in May.

At a meeting of the Standing Committee of the Irish General Synod on Nov 16, the Bishop of Cashel & Ossory, the Rt. Rev. Michael Burrows reported the commission was "satisfied" that the Anglican Covenant would not change the doctrines, formularies, and rituals of the Church of Ireland. The standing committee also urged a church wide discussion of the covenant during the run up to the May general synod, to allow delegates an opportunity to review the document.

*****

OSCE Summit places Human Dignity and Religious Freedom at the Heart of Global Security. NGOs call for mindfulness with regard to intolerance and discrimination against Christians in Europe. The final declaration of the first Summit in 11 years of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), the "Astana Commemorative Declaration, Towards a Common Security", released on Sunday, December 5th, places the dignity of the individual and religious freedom and belief at the heart of the solution to global security. Coming at the end of a comprehensive review process, including three preparatory conferences in Vienna, Warsaw and Astana, the OSCE Summit in Astana saw Heads of Government or their representatives from the 56 Participating States gathered to highlight the need to guard the human rights and fundamental freedoms of all people.

"Free expression and free media provide the cornerstone for liberty, democracy and security among our nations", said OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media Dunja Mijatović at the OSCE Review Conference on Nov 28th leading up to the Summit. "Our goal is MORE freedom, not LESS freedom of expression and media."

In his remarks at the Summit, Cardinal Bertone, the representative of the Holy See, highlighted the growing problem of religiously motivated intolerance and discrimination against Christians. "It is well documented that Christians are the most discriminated and persecuted religious group. Over 200 million of them, belonging to different denominations, live in difficult conditions because of legal and cultural structures".

Jan Ledochowski, delegate of the St. John Community of the Sovereign Order of Malta in Vienna, highlighted anti-Christian bias in the media limiting comprehensive freedom of expression,"It is the responsibility of the state and the media to create an environment where everybody can openly manifest his belief without fear of ridicule or discrimination."

Álvaro Zulueta, representative of the Spanish organization HazteOir.org, emphasized the inconsistency of Participating States that do not protect human life. "Today, religious freedom is in danger in many countries. In some countries, believers risk their lives or their health. In other countries, they are subject to insults and mockery. Believers and their right to express themselves also in the public arena must be protected."

Barbara Vittucci, representing the Austrian Round Table for Reconciliation and the Observatory on Intolerance and Discrimination Against Christians in Europe, commented, "To be consistent with a commitment to freedom of expression, Christians must be free to speak and teach on the Christian understanding of the dignity and nature of man, as well as matters of faith, ethics and morals. These freedoms are being obstructed by harassment and violence, and making it impossible to speak. Repression of freedom of expression also occurs on a political level by so-called hate speech legislation."

Mario Bergner of Redeemed Lives highlighted the growing danger of restricting religious freedom in the area of sexuality saying that the "over-broad application of hate-speech laws have begun to curtail the fundamental freedoms of Christian clerics, academicians, therapists and university students to apply the morality of their faith to the subject of homosexuality."

Following the summit, the OSCE has set the task of drafting an Action Plan under the Lithuanian chairmanship next year. The content of this Plan of Action and Participating States' commitment to it will determine how successful the OSCE will be during the next 10 years.

Observatory on Intolerance and Discrimination against Christians www.IntoleranceAgainstChristians.eu

*****

A TAC/ACA teleconference took place on Tuesday, which was, by all accounts, good. It signals a desire for peaceful separation between those bishops who seek to go to an Ordinariate and those who wish to remain with the ACA, a source told VOL.

Elections for a new president of the ACA HOB will be held in April. The new president will likely be drawn from among the continuing ACA bishops with jurisdiction.

*****

For sheer absurdity, read this tidbit, sent by a VOL reader in Canada: All Saints Church in Windsor, Ontario holds a clothing cupboard for the needy on Tuesdays. Now the church is going to allow private access to the TRANSGENDERED to try on clothes, as they may be uncomfortable associating with the regular shoppers and customers. If you are transgendered, call Archdeacon Kim Van Allen, www.windsorpride.com at 519-253-8001 and tell him your pants and bra size, he will accommodate you. The church will provide two mirrors just in case you had any doubts about what sex you might be and needed corroboration.

*****

In Birmingham, England a street preacher, Anthony Rollins, who was wrongfully arrested, handcuffed and detained by West Midlands Police for speaking out against homosexuality and many other sins, won a wrongful arrest case and got $6,700.00 in damages following a court case against the West Midlands Police.

In a case backed by The Christian Institute, Birmingham County Court ruled on Wednesday that PC Adrian Bill committed assault and battery against Anthony Rollins when he handcuffed him unnecessarily. The court also ruled that Rollins was wrongfully arrested, unlawfully detained and his human rights to free speech and religious liberty were infringed. The court ordered the police to pay Rollins' legal costs.

At last, a moment of sanity in the British courts over sodomy. Will this be a clarion call that preachers can call sodomy a sin without being arrested? Have the courts finally woken up to the fact that political correctness is slowly strangling England and that speaking out about a behavior that has the potential to kill you can finally be addressed by the churches without fear of arrest? One UK VOL reader likened it to Tiananmen Square all over again. Will it also mean that Christian owners of B & B's can say NO to homosexuals who want to stay in their establishments and obey their own consciences without fear of lawsuits? One hopes the corner has finally been turned in England. Don't be surprised if you hear weeping and wailing and gnashing of teeth from Colin Coward of Changing Attitude.

*****

VOL has opened a new link for Continuers. It is simply called CONTINUUM and can be found on the left side of the website www.virtueonline.org. For the latest on Continuing Church news, we will post stories here.

*****

Please take a moment to write out a tax-deductible check to keep this ministry and digest going and to bring you all the news that's fit to cyber print. Virtueonline remains the leader in world Anglican news from an orthodox perspective so please be generous.

You can send your tax-deductible donation to:

VIRTUEONLINE
1236 Waterford Rd.,
West Chester, PA 19380

Or you can also make a donation at VOL's website www.virtueonline.org through PAYPAL. Thank you for your support.

Advent Blessings,

David W. Virtue, DD