York Archbishop Fails Safeguarding Test * Calvin Robinson Tossed out of Continuing Anglican Church * US Episcopal Priest Elected Bp of Nth. Africa
"In the real world of pain, how could one worship a God who was immune to it?" – John Stott
"Praying and sinning will never live together in the same heart. Prayer will consume sin, or sin will choke prayer." – J.C. Ryle
There is a deadly and irreconcilable opposition between Western civilisation and Christianity, and one of them must destroy the other. If that’s true, then wielding the Christian faith as a weapon to defend this thing called ‘Western civilisation’ is a lost battle from the start. Our culture may have been nominally Christian five hundred years ago, but for a long time now it has been the culture of the Enlightenment, of modernity, of the Machine, of Mammon. It valorises not God but the world -- John L. McKenzie
Christ is not established anywhere; He becomes a stranger, a beggar, and a ‘vagabond,’ to teach us that no ‘institution’ of the present is eternal, that His kingdom is neither of this world nor imposed on this world with worldly weapons. -- John Chrysostom
God’s power is not human power. Our petty little attempts to impose our will by dominance, force and violence mean nothing to the Father, who scorns them. Power is wielded through love; power is wielded through sacrifice. There is something vast and oceanic about it. It is what greatness actually looks like. – Paul Kingsnorth
Dear Brothers and Sisters
February 7, 2025
In her riff against President Donald Trump in the Washington National Cathedral about his ungodly treatment of immigrants last week, Episcopal Bishop Marianne Budde failed to mention that Episcopal Migrant Ministries received $53 million taxpayer dollars in 2023 to aid its migrant resettlement program. The Trump administration has temporarily paused these programs for evaluation.
Budde lit into the president and went peak Episcopalian. She painted a picture of a dystopian America where people live in dread of the coming administration. ‘In the name of our God, I ask you to have mercy upon the people in our country who are scared now.’ These people included ‘gay, lesbian and transgender children in Democratic, Republican, and independent families’ all across the country ‘who fear for their lives’. Illegal immigrants were not left out: ‘I ask you to have mercy, Mr. President, on those in our communities whose children fear that their parents will be taken away.’
Trump fired back calling Budde a ‘Radical Left hardline Trump-hater’ who is ‘not very good at her job’. He said she ‘brought her church into the World of politics in a very ungracious way’ and demanded an apology. The description is accurate: she clearly loathes Donald Trump and was certainly very ungracious.
If you think the task of the preacher is to bring God’s Word to bear on the people, not to express personal thoughts and preferences, she failed.
As one blogger noted; “The pronouncements of liberal Christians like Bishop Budde make that task more difficult. She makes it easier for unbelievers to dismiss Christian intervention in social affairs as ill-thought-out regurgitation of progressive talking points garnished with a few Christian terms. If Christians are to speak out, we must do the serious and hard work of examining our world from a biblical perspective. Only then will we deserve to be heard.
Nonetheless the bishop felt compelled to lecture the president in what was euphemistically called a sermon, but was in fact a lecture about his desire to throw millions out of the country who are here illegally and without papers.
Budde did get some support for her views. Shane Clairborne of Red Letter fame and David Mills of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette wrote puff pieces praising Budde for speaking truth to power.
David Robertson, a Presbyterian minister said this; “On immigration. The situation is not as simplistic as you [Budde] put it. Although it has to be admitted that simple political (progressive) fundamentalism does allow you to engage in fine sentimental rhetoric, immigration is a much more complex issue than your 1-minute soundbite portrayed. Donald Trump and JD Vance both married immigrants – it is clear that they are not opposed to all immigration. The question is what should be done about illegal immigration? If you have any ideas, then engage constructively – don't virtue signal from a pulpit 12 feet above contradiction.”
Here are two stories that you can read on the subject here: https://www.virtueonline.org/post/speaking-the-truth-to-power-a-letter-to-bishop-budde
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IS THE CHURCH OF ENGLAND IN CRISIS? Yes. With the resignation of Archbishop Welby and the Archbishop of York being under a cloud due to a failure in safeguarding, the Church of England appears to have lost moral authority. It is also riven with doctrinal differences, chiefly over the desire of many bishops to bless same-sex unions.
The Rev. Canon Dr Chris Sugden explains how 2025 might pan out and notes developments that could encourage evangelicals. He says that Archbishop Welby’s legacy is a mixture.
“He introduced a centralised management process into the Church of England (C of E), with the House of Bishops taking a dominant role in shaping policies and proposals. Parishes have been amalgamated, and more diocesan officials appointed. In response, a ‘Save the Parish’ movement has started to preserve a parish church and vicar in each community.”
“Preserving unity has not worked out so well. Welby sought to preserve what he called ‘unity’ by making concessions to a small but powerful elite lobby, including some bishops, senior clergy and lay church officials. This lobby has been loudly pressing for over 20 years for concessions to a liberal lifestyle.”
“They wanted same sex relationships to be blessed and recognised in church services, and for clergy to enter same-sex marriage. However, their wishes do not match those of their parishioners; most parish congregations are by and large orthodox in belief and practice.”
“Welby’s reputation on the global stage has plummeted. He forfeited the allegiance of many Anglican Primates (the senior Archbishops in their countries), who represent the majority of Anglicans around the world. These international Archbishops have refused to acknowledge the Archbishop of Canterbury as the senior bishop in the Anglican Communion.”
“As a result, an international Anglican body has formally recommended that Welby’s successor as leader of the world’s Anglican Archbishops should not be the Archbishop of Canterbury but be chosen from the Primates.”
“Meanwhile in England, orthodox clergy and lay leaders came together to form The Alliance, a network that represents the majority of Anglican churchgoers. It comprises the Holy Trinity Brompton (Alpha Course) network, the Church of England Evangelical Council (CEEC), Church Society, ReNew, New Wine, Forward in Faith (an Anglo-Catholic High Church network) and Living Out (people with same sex attraction who live celibate lives).”
The objective of The Alliance is to achieve a parallel province in which orthodox congregations and clergy can be ‘overseen’ by orthodox bishops who stand for the traditional Anglican and biblical teaching on sex and marriage. Whether this succeeds is still to be determined. There are road blocks with the state and much more.
You can read more here: IS THE CHURCH OF ENGLAND IN CRISIS?
Outside the Church of England there are churches people can join and still remain Anglican even if not in the Church of England. They belong to the Anglican Network in Europe (ANIE), formed in 2013, which is part of the Global Anglican Future Conference (GAFCON). ANIE has its own bishops, who are recognized by many Anglican Primates around the world including the ACNA.
At the time of writing, the House of Bishops has been working on a series of proposals to allow for same-sex blessings to take place in a separate church service, for same-sex marriages to take place in church and for clergy to be allowed to enter same-sex marriages. The bishops’ plan has been to get the General Synod to vote to accept all their proposals by a simple majority.
The orthodox objection to the House of Bishops’ current proposals is that such changes represent a change in the Church of England’s doctrine of marriage. A change of doctrine requires a two-thirds majority in all three ‘houses’ of the Synod: bishops, clergy and lay people. The bishops know they will not be able to secure this because more than a third of laity and probably of the clergy members of Synod are against such a change. As of now there is a delay in the process.
Meanwhile speculation has developed about who will be the next Archbishop of Canterbury. The elite gay lobby is understood to be pushing the candidature of Bishop Guli Francis-Deqani, the Iranian-born British Bishop of Chelmsford since 2021, who would be the first woman Archbishop. She is known to be in favor of same-sex marriages.
What matters now is that the members of the Alliance, the orthodox bishops and clergy should remain firm in their stand for biblical teaching and practice.
Some evangelical clergy have been hesitant to take a stand as they want to be ‘nice’ to everyone and remain united. However, as Canon John Dunnett, the Executive Officer of the CEEC has written: “The question still remains as to ‘unity in or around what’. The unity that Jesus prayed for was not institutional…[or] based on the status quo.
***
The Rt. Rev. Sean Rowe, TEC’s new Presiding Bishop knocked three times on the door of Washington National Cathedral and was ceremonially seated as the church’s 28th Presiding Bishop.
He seemed desperately concerned about the marginalized in our society which, coming from the wealthiest church in America, is a bit rich.
In his sermon he uttered a lot of high-sounding words like “what our lives would be like if we realized that Christ is among us.” Well, if Christ is not among us then the question is moot, and where is He?
There is some question about whether Christ has had much to do with the Episcopal Church since Gene Robinson made his debut as an out-of-the-closet homosexual causing the biggest single departure of Episcopalians in its history. The Anglican Church in North America is now firmly planted and growing.
Did TEC’s bishops “see Christ” in all the orthodox priests and bishops they tossed out of the church because they refused to embrace homosexual marriage, because they believed God did not approve of it, and that He had not changed his mind about marriage being solely between a man and a woman?
The truth is faithful orthodox priests were “marginalized”, people who actually saw the face of Christ in Scripture and who suffered for their faith losing their churches and pensions rather than go to Hell believing the latest piece of heresy they were forced to embrace.
And what of the unborn, Mr. Presiding Bishop? There is an inherent contradiction in your statement about seeing the face of Christ if the unborn never get to be born and see the face of Christ for themselves. The dignity of every human being suddenly disappears. You will forgive me saying this but there is an inherent contradiction when you believe in abortion on demand up to birth. That is an astonishingly evil and anti-Christ position to take. What about mercy for the most vulnerable human beings – those still in their mothers' wombs?
The Episcopal Church is on a downward trajectory; it has lost the majority of its members. Over 55% of Episcopal parishes are now in a state of long-term decline, with churches losing more with each passing week with the average age of an Episcopalian approaching 70 they will soon be closing. Dioceses are merging faster than big-box stores in your local mall.
You can read more here: https://www.virtueonline.org/post/sean-rowe-seated-as-tec-s-28th-presiding-bishop-but-his-sermon-failed-the-smell-test
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The Archbishop of York, Stephen Cottrell is in hot water over his own safeguarding failures. He has temporarily replaced Welby who, he believes, took one for the team thus allowing him to step in as de facto leader of the CofE..
When you look at this record it is far worse than the not-so-dearly-departed Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby. He has been accused of looking the other way over several priests who were caught with underage boys and girls and has steadfastly refused to resign though several bishops say he should.
He has faced questions over his role leading up to the appointment in 2022 and resignation last week of the Rt. Rev. John Perumbalath, Bishop of Liverpool. Perumbalath announced his early retirement over allegations of sexual assault and harassment that were made in 2023. Cottrell once called another priest, a pedophile, David Tudor a “Rolls Royce priest”.
Cottrell also demonstrated his ignorance over the war in Gaza. In a statement Cottrell made veiled accusations that the blame for the war lay at Israel’s feet. There was no mention of the terrorist organization called Hamas, no mention of who started this war, no mention of “from the river to the sea” a not-so-veiled reference to the obliteration of Israel. No mention of Hamas as a proxy of Iran to continue the war once the ceasefire deal is signed off on. No mention that the “destruction, deprivation and displacement” was caused by Hamas who could have surrendered the hostages and themselves to prevent all the blood shed that followed.
You can read more here: https://www.virtueonline.org/post/archbishop-of-york-i-won-t-quit-over-abuse-crisis-i-ll-bring-change
Gavin Drake, a “muckraker” who blogs at Church Street Bureau, has called out Cottrell for his inability to see the damage he is doing by staying on. You can read his pieces here:
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“I am not a Nazi!” cried the Rev. Calvin Robinson after being unceremoniously tossed out of the Anglican Catholic Church (ACC) where he functioned as a priest for just a few short months, over jokingly mimicking a Nazi salute to a crowd at a pro-life event. He should not have done that. Robinson has gotten himself into a whole heap of trouble in the U.S. when he conflated politics with religion.
Like St. Peter before him, Robinson has a case of Hoof & Mouth disease, writes Mary Ann Mueller, special correspondent for VOL. “Both Simon Peter and Calvin Robinson have the tendency to open mouth, insert foot and twist. And then act impetuously which has gotten them both in a lot of trouble.”
Long story short Fr. Calvin Robinson crossed the Rubicon of priestly etiquette and his Archbishop Mark Haverland stepped in and removed his faculties – license (permission) – to exercise his priesthood within the Anglican Catholic Church.
Robinson is a church-hopper. He has belonged to four different denominations in a space of three years. Not all of the churches are Anglican. He was initially a member of the Church of England (CofE) until he left for the Free Church of England (FCE) in early summer 2022. He then united with the Old Catholic – nonAnglican – Nordic Catholic Church (NCC) in late 2023. Less than a year later he gravitated to the Anglican Catholic Church (ACC).
It is not totally clear if he is still a priest in the AAC – albeit an inhibited priest – or is he a priest without a denomination. He has burned most of his bridges. You can read the full story here: https://www.virtueonline.org/post/fr-calvin-robinson-has-hoof-mouth-disease
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The Episcopal/Anglican Diocese of North Africa has a new bishop. The Rev. Canon Dr Ashley Null has been elected by the Electoral Synod meeting in N'Djamena, Chad, in the context of a Diocesan Synod.
Dr. Null will become the second, and first elected, bishop of the Diocese of North Africa, covering five countries (Algeria, Chad, Libya, Mauritania and Tunisia) and including the territory of the see of St Augustine of Hippo.
He is a world authority on Thomas Cranmer, editing his private theological notebooks. He holds research degrees from Yale and the University of Cambridge. As a pastor and theologian, he is Chair of the Board of The Alexandria School of Theology he is already familiar with the Diocese. He will now have the chance to broaden and enhance the work he has done for many years to promote and encourage Christian witness in this cradle of Christianity. I count him as a close personal friend and spiritual advisor to me.
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The Anglican Communion has two new archbishops. The Most Rev. Enrique Lago Zugadi is the new Primate of Chile, and the Most Rev. Vicente Msosa is the new Primate of Mozambique and Angola. Both are cradled in the bosom of GAFCON.
The Lord is raising up leaders who long to see the Bible at the heart of the Anglican Communion, and who seek to lead their provinces in faithful obedience to God’s word, said The Rt Rev. Paul Donison, GAFCON General Secretary. Archbishops Enrique and Vicente are both graduates of GAFCON Bishop’s Training Institute.
Their appointment will undoubtedly cause pain and anguish to Bishop Anthony Poggo, Secretary General of the Anglican Communion Office, the liberal branch of the Anglican Communion. With Welby gone he has lost the title of adviser on Anglican Communion affairs to the ABC.
WHAT IS SEX FOR? A Pastoral Theology of Our Sexed Bodies, By Ian Paul, an orthodox English theologian is an excellent booklet for clergy and laity alike. Here is a sample paragraph: “The debates about sex in church and culture are often framed in doctrinal or ideological terms. But in this booklet I want to address the pastoral issues. This demands not mere care or therapy (important as these are) but clear pastoral teaching. When Jesus saw the crowds and had compassion on them, his first response was to teach (Mark 6.34), since good teaching creates the context for effective pastoral care.”
Ian Paul is Associate Minister, St Nic’s, Nottingham, Managing Editor, Grove Books and writer and host at psephizo.com
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Warmly in Christ,
David