Update On St. Mark's Port Royal, South Carolina

Word has come in via an rather unusual process that St. Mark's Chapel, Port Royal, South Carolina may be in trouble. This is a group we have reported on from time to time as Bishop Mark Lawrence "permits" them to exist. They have been growing and apparently working with a group inside the diocese of South Carolina known as the Episcopal Forum. This group is roughly equivalent to the Remain Episcopal group in the diocese of San Joaquin (and I am told in the diocese of Forth Worth, Texas).

Turns out that the Episcopal Forum has asked the Executive Council/House of Bishops to investigate the current ongoing "goofing off" of the current bishop of South Carolina, +Mark Lawrence. Bishop Lawrence responded in a very condescending manner(see Real Anglicans) and has in turned threatened this small and growing community of loyal Episcopalians. What do I mean? Well, here is the excerpt from Bishop Lawrence's letter pertaining directly to St. Mark's Chapel:

e) Missions are being planted within the Diocese; however, the [bishop] will not recognize or approve the establishment of St. Mark’s Chapel, Port Royal, a congregation of loyal Episcopalians that has doubled its membership over the past year.

I have met several times with the leaders of St. Mark’s Chapel, Port Royal—a fellowship of mostly disgruntled members of St. Helena’s Beaufort. St. Helena’s is one of the strongest and fastest growing parishes in the diocese—if not the country. The leaders of St. Mark’s Fellowship are well aware of my concerns. I have allowed them access to retired priests, which as the bishop I licensed to officiate at services. I have even allowed vacationing clergy from other dioceses to preach and celebrate among this fellowship. There are many complex issues to this matter which date back to the time of Bishop Salmon’s episcopacy that I shall not go into here. Frankly, this charge is a disappointing way for this group to repay my kindness to some of their requests.

Read the words carefully for just a moment: "I have EVEN allowed"; met with the disgruntled members; There are many complex issues; well aware of my concerns.

Clearly you can read and hear the deep pastoral concern for this loyal group of Episcopalians. Bishop Lawrence is gracious, kind, long-suffering, and of course deeply moved by their loyalty to the Episcopal Church in the United States of America.

Recognizing that the reach of this blog is pretty limited we do ask each reader to go to the St. Mark's Chapel website and leave them a message of continuing support and then go to the diocese of South Carolina website and then leave Bishop Lawrence a message that you support fully St. Mark's and you are aware of his attempts to kill this mission. Then go the Preludium and leave a message with Fr. Mark for the executive council that you support St. Mark's and you expect the EC to do so as well!

Harvest Moon

Nothing quite like this in 20 plus years. It calls for a celebration! Actually it calls for Neil Young!

Has He Gone Off The Deep End?

Well, melancholy seems apropos for tonight, so I offer you one of the finest Leonard Cohen songs ever recorded. That is correct, I said Leonard Cohen. If you do not know him, listen to the word of this song. He is a good musically but his words really are pure poetry. It is a bit off the beaten path for me but his work is so haunting it cannot be ignored.





Decide to help you out. Here are the lyrics.

"Hallelujah"

Now I've heard there was a secret chord
That David played, and it pleased the Lord
But you don't really care for music, do you?
It goes like this
The fourth, the fifth
The minor fall, the major lift
The baffled king composing Hallelujah
Hallelujah
Hallelujah
Hallelujah
Hallelujah

Your faith was strong but you needed proof
You saw her bathing on the roof
Her beauty and the moonlight overthrew you
She tied you
To a kitchen chair
She broke your throne, and she cut your hair
And from your lips she drew the Hallelujah

Baby I have been here before
I know this room, I've walked this floor
I used to live alone before I knew you.
I've seen your flag on the marble arch
Love is not a victory march
It's a cold and it's a broken Hallelujah

Hallelujah, Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah

There was a time you let me know
What's really going on below
But now you never show it to me, do you?
And remember when I moved in you
The holy dove was moving too
And every breath we drew was Hallelujah

Hallelujah, Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah

You say I took the name in vain
I don't even know the name
But if I did, well really, what's it to you?
There's a blaze of light
In every word
It doesn't matter which you heard
The holy or the broken Hallelujah

Hallelujah, Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah

I did my best, it wasn't much
I couldn't feel, so I tried to touch
I've told the truth, I didn't come to fool you
And even though
It all went wrong
I'll stand before the Lord of Song
With nothing on my tongue but Hallelujah

Hallelujah, Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah
Hallelujah

by Leonard Cohen

Is it Tide? No, it's Blue Cheer!

Well, continuing our theme from the last posting. I saw these folks at the Shrine. Lots of bands from San Francisco rolled into the Shrine. It was a great time. Since summertime is about over, give it up for a pretty good band.

Do You Remember?

When I was younger, actually along time ago, I used to go to concerts for about 2 bucks at the Shrine Auditorium. Friday nights were a blast. Got to see folks back then that were Nobody" or at least up and coming. Here was a warm up band. favorites.

Your Anglican Dollars Hard At Work

I looked up the "tariffs" for the Imperial Hotel where this conference was held. The rates are between $300.00 and $1700.00 per night. Bishop Duncan, Williams, Minns,Guernsey and other American bishops made an appearance at this all African Bishops Conference. So let's see if I have this correct?#! They beg money for their lawsuits to continue the fight yet can fly to Entebbe, Uganda and spend at least $300.00 per day of your Anglican dollars to go to an All African Bishops Conference? Seems reasonable me, i am going to send a big fat check RIGHT NOW to Bob Duncan. Crap, maybe it should be to John David Schofield, I sure hope he got to go -- but those Central Valley Anglicans are far too smart to let this light at the end of the tunnel smack them.

By the way, they also call themselves the Anglican presence in the United States. Isn't lying fall somewhere on the stone tablets? The ONLY REAL ANGLICANS in the United States are Episcopalians.

My Mom Was Right!

Years ago my mother and I would engage in some "hellacious" arguments. I was 14 or 15 and wanted to do something that all my friends were doing. Usually that "something" was dangerous or worse. I would go to my mom and ask her for permission to go with Jim and Tran and whoever and do this "thing". I had to ask because in the town I grew up in people knew my family (read that my mom) that I never knew, knew my mom. That relationship got me into big time trouble on more than one occasion. Before I got home my mom would receive a telephone call (we did have phones back then) and I would catch "it" (we all know what IT is) as I walked through the door. Suffice it to say I always asked for permission and rarely for forgiveness. Anyway, I would ask to do this deed or go on this trip and my mom would say, "Just because everyone else is doing it does not make it right! Mom, but everyone is doing it, why can't I? I would whine. Mom would say, "If the whole world was jumping off a cliff 3,000 feet high (not real sure why 3,000 feet but that seemed like a silly question and certainly non-productive at the time) would you jump off that cliff as well?" Well, I am not stupid so I would say, "of course not!" and promptly lose the argument, the request and the trip, case closed.

The argument the Prop 8 backers used in the court case settled yesterday seems to be a lot like that argument, "But judge, everyone wants this and you cannot deny us that opportunity to jump off that 3,000 foot cliff!" Except the judge did -- but unfortunately the case is not closed. We will see this thing fought all the way to mom the Supreme Court. But for the moment, enjoy the victory, you/we have all earned it. We are most happy for several people we know including IT and BP as they are about to celebrate their second anniversary and we here at Off Topic wish them a most happy anniversary! Yes, the struggle is still ahead but take a moment and savor what freedom feels and tastes like you have earned it!