SPREAD IT All Around

Well folks, here is the GAFCON latest idea on what constitutes an Anglican Communion.  Let's start with their statement, written by Charles Raven.

Events between the 1998 and 2008 Lambeth Conferences demonstrate decisively that the Communion's present "instruments of unity", including the See of Canterbury itself, are no longer fit for purpose when confronted with deep theological confusion in which evil is held out as good and good as evil. A merely institutional unity not firmly rooted in the revealed truths of God's Word written is not only counterfeit but also toxic, exposing the whole Communion to the false teaching and immorality absorbed by the Western Churches. SPREAD seeks to guard against this danger and to encourage the emergence of new Anglican structures able to support a coherent and confident proclamation of the gospel around the globe.

Two key elements are attacked here by those revisionists that would fashion an Anglican Communion in the image of peter Akinola, or perhaps more to the point, Michael Nazir-Ali.  Notice that the "see of Canterbury is no longer fit for purpose"   Conveniently, GAFCON now takes on the titular head of the Anglican Communion, the Archbishop of Canterbury.  These folks have lost all moral compass, at least in so far as the Anglican Communion is concerned.  My feeble brain with my minimalist logic says: The Church of England, founded by the English, also known as Angles (hence Anglican) was the originator of the the Anglican Church.  I think my history calls me to account for Henry the VIII, Elizabeth the I, Cranmer, Richard Hooker, etc.  When the British, also known as Angles, created their empire away back when, they brought to all the new lands, the English Church, that is, the Church of England.  This happened in as unusual a place as the 13 colonies, India, Nigeria, Australia and so on.  As these countries became independent such as Canada, they formed their own variation of the Church of England, in this case called the Anglican Church of Canada.  The archbishop of Canterbury, appointed by the crown in England, has been the titular head of this loose confederation of provinces including the Episcopal Church of the United States.  How can the head of the Church of England, the tree from which all the branches have grown, suddenly not be "fit for purpose".  Nothing has changed in a thousand years.


Then, Mr. Raven goes to the what ought to be the first argument but turns out to be his second argument.  A merely institutional unity not firmly rooted in the revealed truths of God's Word written is not only counterfeit but also toxic,  Just what the heck is going on?  It appears Mr. Raven and the fellow Conelonialists want to move this loose confederation of provinces gathered under the titular head, the Archbishop of Canterbury, into a clear, top don, organizational structure with like rules and regulations and a magisterium and everything roman.  After all, how can any province be punished if we can all think for ourselves?  How can there be any sense of unity unless we can snap a string and straighten out the entire communion.  Why do we need to talk and  discuss when all we really need to do is have Mr. Akinlola, Mr. Nazir-Ali, Mr. Jensen, Mr. Duncan, Mr. Orombi et al make these decisions for us.  Boy, how much pressure can we take off all the provinces.

What a crock!  First, one cannot change facts and one cannot change history.  The Anglican Communion is a confederation of provinces that celebrate diversity and welcome discussion and discernment.  If we do not ask questions, if we do not posit interpretations, how does the living word of God stay alive? 

What SPREAD/GAFCON/FCA/CANA/AMiE/AMiA and all the other groups want is a new church built on new "standards", pillars if you will.  Well, no one is stopping you all, go ahead.  Create a "new communion" that has all the trappings you like but, please do not call it Anglican and please do not include me.

Moving Toward A New Anglican Comunion

In a recent post by Tobias Haller our good friend says,

But it is the idea of being a fellowship, a communion — not a "church" or a "federation" — of self-governing churches whose individual decisions do not bind the others, even as they cooperate in mission and ministry, that forms our only peculiar offering to the tapestry of world Christendom. It is a model of service and fellowship, of work with rather than power over, commended by Christ himself as a model of churchly governance. If that is not worth preserving, then we have little else to offer.

The highlights are mine.  The words, the very capable words, are Tobias'.

Then, in a recent post here at Off-Topic Allowed, Mad priest and I had a heartfelt exchange that cut to the quick of this communion issue.    Here is where it drew to a point:  This is MadPriest writing:

It is my contention that the New World is no longer geographically located in the same way that the Kingdom of God is not geographically located. But, in respect of New Anglicanism the main locus is in the Americas and is strongest in the USA. In fact, I do not think it is strong enough anywhere else to survive, let alone thrive. Outside of the Americas the "New World" is dependent on its success in the USA and this is why we absolutely need TEC to include the rest of us within its God-given destiny. Of course, this will be painful for the Church in the US, and like Christ in the Garden of Gethsemane you can choose to accept or reject this role. But the goal, if eventually achieved, will bring TEC far more joy than breaking away and going it alone ever would.

In other postings at other times  many have put an emphasis on "saving the Anglican Communion".  I have contended from the beginning that the Episcopal Church just move forward and if any other province wants to tag along, then fine otherwise -- oh well.

Tobias Haller and MadPriest along with Mark Harris The Pluralist and a few others have made an impression to the point I have reconsidered my approach.  The basic facts remain the same, the implementation of those facts is what becomes a little different.


So, what do we do?  Well, we call a "special plenary session" of bishops and lay leadership to meet in a neutral site, say, New Orleans, Louisiana (you are welcome Mimi) to consider a New Anglican Covenant.  This special session will be hosted by the Episcopal Church of the United States and chaired by a group from The Episcopal Church of the United States, The Anglican Church of Canada, The Church of England, and the Anglican Church of New Zealand.  Everyone is invited from all corners of the world.   The sole purpose of this special session is to create:  a model of service and fellowship, of work with rather than power over, commended by Christ himself as a model of churchly governance.


No one leaves the conference until a new Communion is born that allows for inclusion of all God's children and an approach to modeling Christ like behavior that involves resolving issues within one's own province prior to telling other provinces what needs to  be done in their province.  The honors each other's decisions as appropriate for them though not necessarily appropriate for all.  That embarks upon the worldwide work of eliminating hunger, disease, child abuse and torture and terror.  That we live those goals at home as we seek to eradicate them abroad.  That those who can fund and finance do so and those who can staff and work do so in a spirit of love and forgiveness.  This is not just our God-given destiny but all those who claim Christianity as their own.

The Cornerstone has been laid -- And it Ain't Jesus

Our favorite miscommunicator which shall remain virtueless, has opened up his pulpit to one Charles Raven. Mr. Raven takes the opportunity to espouse more of the stuff that the Anglican Mission in England is all about.  And, what it is all about is supplanting the existing Church of England, and therefore by extension the Anglican Communion, with their own branded Anglican Communion.

Read this my friends and tell me if I am wrong.

There are no direct answers in the AMiE press release which has of necessity to be brief and there is no doubt much detail to be worked out, but I think we can join some of the dots. The logic seems to be the same as that of the Jerusalem Statement and Declaration which affirmed that the GAFCON movement was very firmly staying within the Anglican Communion, but would not allow biblical conscience or mission to be held captive by the discredited Lambeth governance structures. It is worth quoting a section of the Jerusalem Statement at length:

'Our fellowship is not breaking away from the Anglican Communion. We, together with many other faithful Anglicans throughout the world, believe the doctrinal foundation of Anglicanism, which defines our core identity as Anglicans, is expressed in these words: The doctrine of the Church is grounded in the Holy Scriptures and in such teachings of the ancient Fathers and Councils of the Church as are agreeable to the said Scriptures. In particular, such doctrine is to be found in the Thirty-nine Articles of Religion, the Book of Common Prayer and the Ordinal. We intend to remain faithful to this standard, and we call on others in the Communion to reaffirm and return to it. While acknowledging the nature of Canterbury as an historic see, we do not accept that Anglican identity is determined necessarily through recognition by the Archbishop of Canterbury.'

There is no doubt that virtually everyone can and should be able to read the handwriting on the wall -- The Church of England and the Anglican Communion as we know it and have known it for centuries is about t o disappear.  Our friend stationed in Canterbury has lost his battle.  It is now time to turn to a new partnership -- that of the Church of England and The Episcopal Church in the United States and the Anglican Church of Canada to lead us into a more complete and inclusive communion.

Much more later.

A Manifesto and A Course of Action

The multi-pronged assault on both the Episcopal church in the United States and the latest incursion into jolly old England is part of an unfolding plan by the Global South and the Conelonialists to literally reshape the face of the Anglican Communion.  The British, from the Archbishop of Canterbury down to the nice little publications on the web seem to want to alternating discount what Robert Duncan and Peter Jensen and Peter Akinola et al are doing and help them.  The help is not unlike climbing on the boxcars back in 1939 Since the AMiE is now in their backyard.  The help them also is sitting on the fence and not resoundingly denying any and all priestly/episcopal actions of those that have been deposed a way back when.  Help them is sending "observers" to a convention of a province that does not exist the view something that has no real bearing on the Anglican Communion and will not play nice even if the silly British think that is the civilized thing to do. 

This would be laughable except many of the Episcopal writers, blog and otherwise, have a longstanding history of wanting to appease -- can't we all just get along.  Those of us in places like San Joaquin and Pittsburgh and Fort Worth and Qunicy have seen first hand the utter devastation of people places and things that these folks have brought down all the while they lust after more and more power.  The comments like we need to move slowly, they mean us no harm, the Covenant needs to be thoroughly reviewed are all delaying tactics designed by the Conelonialists to confuse, distract and diffuse any opposition while their plan is put in place.  Well Jim and Mark and Lionel and Tobias the time is now upon us and we as well as the Anglican Communion as we know it is about to cease to exist.  Please do not "pat me on the head and send me on my way" once again -- the writing is on the walls. 

We need to come to grips with the facts of Anglican life.  We need a course of action that will steer us through these waters with or without the Archbishop, Rowan Williams.  We need to stop playing with the godforsaken Anglican Covenant and unbury ourselves long enough to face facts.  We are being attacked from all sides and must do something soon else we shall cease to exist -- at least as we know us now. 

First, and foremost, we need to grab ++Williams by the lapels and tell him life is not "a bowl of cherries" and you are not Neville Chamberlain so stop acting the part.  If everyone is so desperate to keep the Anglican Communion, and it seems the majority of the Episcopalians here seem inclined to do so,  then lets officially be rid of those in ACNA and tell GAFCON/FCA/CANA/AMiE/AMiA and all the other alphabet soup folks to get with the program or get off the damn bus, now!

(I have no idea why we are so struck with the Anglican Communion.  We went from 1786 to about 1868 or so without them and I think we can probably do it all over again.  When they come to their senses about women and LGBT participating fully in the life of the church then we can talk but not till then).

We, the Episcopal Church, needs a reformation of our own and it needs to start now.  Everyone needs to know what we stand for, why we stand for it and we need to get about our Father's business, like right now.  Leave these other poor fools to play with each other.  Let's get on with a new course of action!

The Chickens Come Home To Roost

Just a short period  of time ago, Father Mark Harris asked this question/made this statement,

I have heard nothing of the CofE sending anyone from Faith and Order to ask The Episcopal Church what it thinks of ACNA in its midst. One day, when the CofE finds its own Anglican Church in England, Scotland and Wales (ACESW) claiming to be the Province of record in the Islands off the coast of Europe, they will understand.

Well, Father Mark, it did not take long --


AMIE has been established as a society within the Church of England dedicated to the conversion of England and biblical church planting. There is a steering committee and a panel of bishops. The bishops aim to provide effective oversight in collaboration with senior clergy.
The AMIE has been encouraged in this development by the Primates’ Council of the Fellowship of Confessing Anglicans (GAFCON) who said in a communiqué
The AMIE is determined to remain within the Church of England. The desire of those who identify with the society is to have an effective structure which enables them to remain in the Church of England and work as closely as possible with its institutions. Churches or individuals may join or affiliate themselves with the AMIE for a variety of reasons. Some may be churches in impaired communion with their diocesan bishop who require oversight. Others may be in good relations with their bishop but wish to identify with and support others.

Sure, sure, sure, they "said" they will do this all "within the Church of England" but I am from the Episcopal Diocese of San Joaquin and I say, if you believe that I have some swamp land in Florida just for you!

It's Time To Put New Lipstick On The Pig

Early on, like late 1998 or 1999 John David Schofield began his machinations to eventually move "his" diocese from the Episcopal Church to, ultimately, The Southern Cone.  Mark Lawrence is in the process of tearing a page right out of John David Schofield's book and write his own chapter.

Here is how this has started:

Early in 2009, Bishop Lawrence called for the creation of the Anglican Communion Development Committee to replace the World Mission Committee (WMC). The intention was to create a committee that would serve to reflect the changing environment of the Episcopal Church and the Anglican Communion in this global age and to reflect the vision that Bishop Lawrence believes we as the Diocese of South Carolina are called to fulfill - “To help shape the future of Anglicanism in the 21st Century through mutually enriching missional relationships with dioceses and provinces of the Anglican Communion (Romans 1:11-12; 2 Corinthians 9:1-15), and through modeling a responsible autonomy and inter-provincial accountability (Philippians 2:1-5; Ephesians 4:1-6) for the sake of Jesus Christ, his Kingdom and his Church.” 

Bishop Lawrence has decided to create a world vision that reflects the Anglican Communion?!  Oh, really, and who died and left him Archbishop of Canterbury?  Really, where do these folks get this stuff from?  Do they stay awake nights trying to think up the next thing to outfox our Presiding Bishop, the Archbishop of Canterbury and grab as much worldly power as their two hands can possibly hold?

So, now we get to the real takeoff:

A recent visit to the diocese by The Most Rev. Dr. Mouneer Anis, Bishop of Egypt, and Archbishop of the Anglican Province of Jerusalem and the Middle East resulted in a partnership and new companion relationship between South Carolina and this province of the Anglican Communion. Additionally, because Archbishop Anis’ province is already in partnership with the Province of South East Asia, by extension, the door has opened wide for further exploration and relationship -building there as well. While the ACD Committee will support and facilitate both existing missional relationships, and many of these exciting new initiatives, it will remain parish-based missions and relationships that yield the fruit of building up God’s Kingdom.

So, figure this one.  A local bishop, Mr. Lawrence,  makes a deal with a primate from another  province in order "explore and build relationships".  For those of you not accustomed to "Conelonialist speak" this is the kind of happy nonsense John David Schofield used to spread on the ground, ultimately leaving the Episcopal Church for the Global South.  (And make no mistake, the Communion Partners, including our favorite new bishop, Dan Martins, are knee deep in this. But that is for a later posting).  The language and the approach is classic Chapman Memo crap that has been used over and over by those who would try to crush the Episcopal Church in the United States.  But I digress.  Mark Lawrence is the bishop of South Carolina and to be sure he is NOT a primate.  He has entered into a relationship with a Primate, the equivalent of our Presiding Bishop.  Who is lusting for power?  Well, I will leave that up to you.  The inexorable march continues!

Anybody want to kiss the pig now?

Happy Father's Day

I know this will turn out to be just a tad early, but I thought I would be in a hurry to salute Father's Day. 

So, allow me to begin with a picture of my father. 

As one might surmise, this is a picture of my dad shortly after he was promoted to Battalion Chief.  He died about two years after that, I was seventeen at the time.  What I remember most vividly is when he would go out as a mutual aid department to the fires in the Santa Monica mountains.  He would be gone for a week or more sometimes.  (This was before people actually lived in this area.)  He was usually gone for a day or so but that was to be expected on shift work.  Our house had what we referred to as the "doghouse" which was nothing more than a partitioned section of the garage where our washer and dryer were.  At any rate, When he would get back after 10 or more days my mom would insist his clothes be removed in the "doghouse".  However, you cannot imagine what a warming smell burnt weeds and grass can create until your dad is gone for days.  That is how we knew he was home.  And I have always had that memory whenever I smell burnt grass. 

Happy Father's Day!