With these words, Bishop John H. Rodgers nails the heart of the issue and the core of the problem for Mrs. Katharine Jefferts Schori, Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church (TEC). Her heart is with the church's revisionist bishops, like Gene Robinson, and formally backed homosexual groups, like Integrity and GLBT, as well as Via Media and a host of smaller heterodox groups arguing for inclusivity and more.

She is also aware that failure to adopt a Covenant, and live up to it, will bring the wrath of the Global South Primates down on her head. The result will be that she and the vast bulk of the Episcopal Church will, at the very minimum, be relegated to second class status within the Anglican Communion. This will not sit well with those who control the purse strings.

IN A HEAVILY nuanced sermon at St. Michael and All Angels Episcopal Church in Portland, Oregon, where she attended Executive Council, Mrs. Schori evoked the image of Jesus longing to gather Jerusalem under his wings saying, "Jesus laments over a community's unwillingness or inability to serve the needs of all God's people, an unwillingness to see all human beings as worthy of healing and welcome," clearly a veiled reference to the Global South's unwillingness to buy into TEC's sodomite agenda.

Mrs. Schori said that Jesus "puts his hearers on notice that if they cannot or will not gather under the hen's wings, they are going to find the henhouse empty."

One wonders which "henhouse" she has in mind. If it is the Episcopal Church henhouse, perhaps she has cause to worry. The numbers of orthodox Episcopalians leaving TEC grows weekly with yet more parishes leaving in Virginia and Indiana. By contrast, the Anglican Province of Nigeria consecrated 20 new bishops this past week with a mission to make every Anglican an evangelist and to double its size! Archbishop Peter Akinola said he was sending nineteen of them to missionary areas - places considered largely 'unchurched'. The Evangelical Anglican province aims to double its present constituency from 18 million to 36 million in three years. You can read that story here or in today's digest http://tinyurl.com/2apxw3 By contrast The Episcopal Church has an average Sunday attendance of 780,000 which is steadily falling.

In fact, you will learn in today's digest that Nepal now has more active Christians than the Episcopal Church - some 800,000 up from nothing in the 1950s. The country is positively exploding with new Christian growth. The Rev. Dr. Robert Sanders, VOL's resident theologian, recently visited that country and has written up the testimonies of pastors who have been persecuted for their newfound faith. A story like this gives one hope. An Episcopal missionary, the Rev. Norman, says that what is happening in Nepal is right out of the Book of Acts! I urge you to read this story here or in today's digest: http://tinyurl.com/26u9gp

THE EXECUTIVE COUNCIL OF TEC, meeting in Oregon this past week, got an earful about the church's declining income. There was much weeping and wailing and gnashing of teeth about that and the Primate's communique.

In the wake of massive departures from The Episcopal Church, closing parishes, legal expenses over property litigation and Title IV disciplinary cases, the national church's Executive Council addressed a projected deficit of $3.8 million and tapped into investment income reserves, beginning a trend that sees no turnabout in the foreseeable future. You can read the full story in today's digest. http://tinyurl.com/ynnubw

The DIOCESE OF SOUTH CAROLINA has received the necessary consents from a majority of diocesan bishops approving the Rev. Mark Lawrence as the next bishop, however, he does not have consent from all the Standing Committees and time is running out. To date, 46 consents are in hand but 56 are needed to pass. The deadline is March twelfth. "This is very big--for the first time in at least 50 years a bishop is in real danger of not getting consent," writes Kendall Harmon, a spokesman for the diocese. Consent is required from a simple majority of both bishops and standing committees within 90 days after formal notification of the election, according to the Canons and Constitution of the General Convention.

The deeper question is: why does it matter whether Lawrence gets consent or not? The diocese is one of eight looking for commissary status and it would definitely apply for a primatial vicar if one is appointed. Mrs. Schori will never be invited into the diocese. Furthermore, why isn't the diocese bleating about "justice" and "inclusivity" like the liberals who do it all the time. Did the Episcopal Church give consent for Women's Ordination 25 years ago? Of course not. They just did it in the name of women's liberation and justice. The Diocese of South Carolina should do the same.

IN THE U.S., the Anglican Communion Network has set up a Good News Initiative to train clusters of churches in evangelism. This is being headed up by Oxford evangelist and author Canon Michael Green. This is one of the most encouraging initiatives in church planting within The Episcopal Church. The first one will be in May. It is encouraging that the Network is beginning to act positively, writes Green. The Network already has initiatives on Church planting and Youth. This will add to their outreach efforts. Perhaps the National Church could take some pointers from Bishop Robert Duncan about how to start and grow churches.

In the DIOCESE OF VIRGINIA, St. Peter's in the Woods, a mission of the diocese, (its rector is officially the Rt. Rev. David C. Jones,) its vicar is Fr. Bob Koth voted with a number of the parishioners to leave. The vote on whether or not to remain as an orthodox witness within TEC came at the conclusion of two years of study, culminated by an intensive 40-day discernment process. Of the 90 parishioners who voted, there were 67 votes, or 74.4%, in favor of the resolution to stay, 23 parishioners voted no to leave. Those staying will do so as an orthodox witness within the Episcopal Church. The diocese owns the land. This vote was not about whether to stand firm for Christ, but about where and how, said a departing parishioner to VOL. "The church remains firm in its commitment to provide an orthodox witness within a national church, which badly needs that witness. Some of those who cannot in conscience remain within TEC are now leaving St. Peter's in the Woods, journeying together to visit other churches, and discern where Christ is calling them. They are departing in peace, with great sadness, but without bitterness on either side. It is their prayer that orthodox Christians, who wish to remain within TEC, will be drawn to St. Peter's."

At the conclusion of the evening, Fr. Bob Koth, vicar of St. Peter's in the Woods, spoke of the family of St. Peter's now working in two vineyards, and said, "even though we are not able to remain together, and this is painful, those departing and those remaining at St. Peter's parted in respect and love and with prayer. Ron Davis, Senior Warden said, "Our differences have not made us enemies."

NOTE: This story was modified 3/7/2007 owing to wrong information given VOL. The majority are staying the minority are leaving. We apologize for the confusion.

In the DIOCESE OF ALBANY, it was announced this week that retired Suffragan Bishop David Bena had been received by Archbishop Peter Akinola into the Province of Nigeria and will be a missionary bishop of CANA - the Convocation of Anglicans in North America. It is an Anglican missionary effort in the US sponsored by the Church of Nigeria He will be working with the Rt. Rev. Martyn Minns, as a Missionary Bishop of CANA.

The recently installed Bishop of Albany, William H. Love, said, "We are grateful to Bishop Bena for his many years of faithful service to our Lord and His Church, as Bishop Suffragan of the Diocese of Albany. We were richly blessed by him. We now wish Bishop Bena all God's blessing as he answers this new call."

In the DIOCESE OF CENTRAL NEW YORK, three orthodox parishes are rebelling against their liberal bishop, Gladstone "Skip" Adams, over Gene Robinson and the direction of the church. Adams countered the recent Primates communique saying: "I will not ask gay and lesbian people to go to the back of the bus for a time," he wrote. "The gifts of God's GLBT people will continue to be welcome in this Diocese in all areas of ministry." In Central New York, St. Andrew's Church designated the bishop of Rwanda its leader because of its opposition to the local diocese's support for Robinson and other policies involving gay men and lesbians. Two other parishes - St. Andrew's, in Vestal, and the Church of the Good Shepherd, in Binghamton - are in the midst of discussions about whether to withdraw from the diocese. You can read the full story here: http://tinyurl.com/2hcbmo

In the DIOCESE OF PENNSYLVANIA this past week, representatives of the Standing Committee visited the national church offices in New York to complain about Bishop Charles Bennison's running of the diocese and to plead with them for his removal from office. The Standing Committee met with the church's attorney, David Booth Beers and his assistant (from his law firm), for a full, frank discussion regarding their complaint, a source told VOL. "We feel confident that our commitment will be conveyed to the Presiding Bishop when she returns from her travels."

The Standing Committee ripped the national church saying "We hold accountable those in the Episcopal Church's executive offices who withheld information of Bishop Bennison's leadership about the matters concerning his brother's sexual misconduct while in his employ. This information was withheld from the Search Committee and Standing Committee at the time of Bishop Bennison's election." You can read the full story in today's digest.

THOSE leaving the Episcopal Church, with their properties, are being accused of poaching on liberal blogs and Listservs like the HOB/D. It is not true. of course. They are only wanting to take what they built and paid for. The diocese and national church has paid for virtually none of the building of the churches. They were nearly all built by parishioners who believed passionately in the Episcopal Church (when it was orthodox) and its system of worship, and now that they want to go, they are being accused of "poaching."

The DIOCESE OF NEW JERSEY held its convention this past week and 'expressed regret' for the passage of Resolution B033 at GC2006. After a lengthy debate, which drew over a dozen speakers, plus the introduction and subsequent defeat of two amendments, the diocese approved a resolution that "expresses its deepest regret for the pain and anguish suffered by our gay and lesbian brothers and sisters, their families, and friends, due to the adoption of [General Convention] Resolution B033." The resolution also called to "offer forgiveness to each other and to others in the world-wide Anglican Communion as we seek to enter into deeper levels of communion with one another." In his address to the 223rd Convention, Bishop George Councell reaffirmed his support for gays and lesbians, and discussed his policy on a new New Jersey same-gender civil union law. He told the Convention that his support of the New Jersey law "is consistent with the Episcopal Church's long-standing commitment to support equal protection under the law for homosexual persons."

Bishop Councell encouraged clergy and congregations to offer their pastoral support to homosexual couples, which may include prayers of celebration and thanksgiving for the grace and holiness of their unions.

A PARISHIONER, attempting to answer an attendance survey by The Episcopal Church, got a rebuff while completingthe questions. When she answered the question 'how often do you attend church,' she checked the "almost never" option, whereupon she was tossed out the side window, swept under the rug, dismissed with this message: "Thank you for responding to our survey invitation. Unfortunately, you did not qualify for the rest of the survey. Thanks anyways for your time!" The lady in question wrote VOL: "Anyways, that put a stop to my participation in the survey. Sigh. Tricked -- just when I thought they were going to be "inclusive" and actually ask my opinion -- that of a lifelong Episcopalian -- at long last."

The CHURCH OF ENGLAND Synod closed out with a timely analysis, by Jonathan Petre of the Telegraph, writing that now that the dust is settling, is it possible to make any sense of what happened at the Church of England's General Synod? You can read his brilliant reflection here or in today's digest. http://tinyurl.com/2v3a2o

ANGLICAN-ROMAN CATHOLIC dialogue will continue with an ARC-USA consultation March 8-11 at St. Paul's College in Washington, D.C., to discuss recent developments in the Anglican Communion. It won't be all sweetness and roses, however. They will consider a draft response to the 2004 "Seattle Document" of the Anglican-Roman Catholic International Commission (ARCIC), "Mary: Grace and Hope in Christ," and work to prepare a pastoral guide for Spanish-speaking Christians. Sooner or later the issue of "disordered" sexual behavior will become an issue between the two churches and then dialogue will collapse or go into hiatus for years. Rome is looking more East to the Orthodox churches for unity than it is towards Canterbury. No surprise there.

THERE ARE some fine commentary pieces in today's digest. I would urge you to read Dr. Stephen Noll's reflection on Lambeth Resolution 1:10 and "How God is Reshaping the Anglican Communion" by John Rodgers and "The Way We Live Now" by Geoffrey Kirk.

CORRECTION: In my last digest, I wrote that the Diocese of Connecticut had chosen the Rev. Barbara Cheney as its next Suffragan Bishop. That was incorrect. The vote has not been taken. There are currently seven nominees with Barbara Cheney being one of them. A conservative in the diocese wrote to say that they are doing their best to get the Rev. Tom Furrer, a conservative priest, elected. "We have chosen to present him as the "diverse" candidate, since the rest of the Diocese and its Bishops (Smith and Curry) are so liberal. They can't argue with that." The election takes place March 10.

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