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Handle with prayer!
News – ANiC and AEN
Clergy retreat only days away!
The full agenda for ANiC’s March 20-22 clergy
retreat in lovely Cedar Springs is now available. You can also see
find on our website more information about the keynote speaker, Dr Lyle Schrag,
director of the Fellowship Centre for Leadership Development at the Northwest Baptist
Seminary. This will be a wonderful
time of refreshment and renewal for our clergy, providing ample time for rest,
as well as warm fellowship, healing prayer ministry and helpful teaching. Make
sure your clergy are able to go. Your church will benefit from their
revitalized ministry!
Celebrating
God’s gracious goodness
On April 14, Good Shepherd
(Vancouver) will hold a special service to celebrate God’s goodness
in allowing them to pay off their mortgage thanks to the bequest of a former
parishioner as well as the sacrificial giving of current parishioners. Bishop Stephen
Leung, Good Shepherd’s rector, says, “This will be a time to give thanks, to
witness to our journey of faith… [and also] to consecrate the church building.” Parishioners will give testimonies; Bishop Don Harvey and other bishops will
participate.
Sure Foundations
in St John’s NL
Canon Phil
Ashey, writing in the American Anglican Council email newsletter, reports:
I am writing this morning from snowy and
windswept St John's, Newfoundland, where the temperature is hovering around 30
degrees, but the warmth of the unity and fellowship of the Anglicans here is so
very high. I am here this weekend to work with them on growing their [ANiC] churches
through our Sure Foundation Project… Here in Newfoundland… The two
congregations I am… with are a mustard seed of faith within the province of Newfoundland.
They are stepping out in faith, joining hands and hearts and prayers to seek God's
direction this weekend – not to preach themselves, but to preach Jesus Christ
and themselves as his servants to the least, the last and the lost.
“Will
you join me in praying God's blessing upon them? Please pray that through this Sure
Foundation weekend they will find a renewal of vision, a rediscovery of the
core values that shaped their commitment to leave buildings behind and to follow
Jesus, and a clarification of their mission and next steps - and all so that
they may do the works that God has given them to do here in St. John's –
to pierce the veil of unbelief and hardness of heart so that hearts and minds
will be turned to Jesus Christ and his kingdom.”
Training
in Biblical expository preaching
The Rev
Ray David Glenn (St George’s, Burlington, ON) will be a speaker at a Simeon Trust workshop on Biblical
exposition in Toronto. Other similar workshops conducted by the Simeon Trust
will be held around North America in coming months – some within driving distance for ANiC clergy,
including a workshop in Calgary.
| • |
Calgary:
April 25-27, Southview Alliance Church, Calgary, AB (with well-know Church of England
rector Vaughan Roberts) |
| • |
Spokane,
Washington: May 1-3, Christ the Redeemer, Spokane (also with Vaughn Roberts) |
| • |
Toronto:
May 2-4, Trinity Church Streetsville, Mississauga, ON |
“The Charles
Simeon Trust aims to help recover the centrality of expository teaching of the Word
of God, for the health and benefit of the church in our own and future
generations.”
Vancouver
Passover Seder on Maundy Thursday, April 5
St Matthias and St Luke Church,
Vancouver, will host a Passover Seder Supper in association with Bethlehem Lutheran Church on Maundy Thursday, April 5, at 6pm, in the Parish Hall – 320 East 15 Avenue,
Vancouver. They are welcoming fellow Christians to join the congregations in experiencing
the Passover Seder. The event will help participants understand the Lord’s Supper
in the context of the Passover Seder. If interested, please register before March
29, 2012 by emailing info@smslchurch.ca.
Seating is limited. Participation is by donation. Please note that the full Seder
Supper will last at least a couple of hours.
Just in
time for St Patrick’s Day, March 17…
ANiC
member Michael Mates has written a poem, based on his doctoral thesis, about St
Patrick. The poem, which can be sung to the tune of The Wearin' o' the Green,
follows Patrick’s capture by pirates as a young boy and subsequent enslavement
in Ireland, his escape, and his voluntary return to the land of his captivity
to preach the Gospel. It is posted on the
ANiC website. Enjoy!
ANiC
member in the news
St Matthew’s
(Abbotsford, BC) parishioner Phillip Wiebe is featured in a recent Vancouver
Sun story about the Shroud of Turin. Dr Wiebe is a philosophy
professor at Trinity Western University (Langley, BC) and has a passion for “researching
parapsychological miracles and visions, especially the shroud”. He has written extensively and presented frequently on the subject.
Tithing:
An ANiC priest weighs in
ANiC
priest, the Rev Barbara Richardson (St Chad’s, Toronto) has given her views on
tithing in a recent Anglican
Planet article, “Should Anglicans teach tithing?” Her view is that “…tithing
is not mandated in the New Testament for Christians”… Christian giving is much
more than tithing… What the New Testament teaches is far more revolutionary
that ten-percent giving. In a nutshell, Jesus asks for all of us, because he
has redeemed us. If he is our Lord, he is master of everything that we are and
everything that we possess… The development of such a teaching on stewardship
is what will build up our churches… The generous giving taught in the New Testament
frees us up to put all our trust in the Lord, and to submit ourselves to him so
that he can guide us.”
Curate
wanted
St Peters
and St Paul’s Ottawa is seeking a full-time curate for July 1. Applications are
being accepted until March 23. For more information see the ANiC
website.
Parish
news
St George’s
Burlington has purchased
land in order to build a new church home in north east Burlington. They hope to
begin construction this fall. Currently the congregation meets in Crossroads Centre
facilities. St George’s booklet Our New Home:
Why, What, and How: says:
“On February 5th, 2012 we unanimously ratified the
negotiated settlement with our former Diocese, thus freeing us to move forward
unencumbered. We also voted 97% in favour of purchasing land at 4691 Palladium Way
in Burlington and building a new church building. Consider the LORD’s providence.
After 4 years of prayer and work to resolve the legal dispute, and the same 4
years of prayer and work to find a new church home, both happened at the same
time. We signed the negotiated settlement and the purchase agreement for the
new land within 3 days!
Please pray: that the city will rezone the land and
that the needed pledges will be received in order to begin construction.
Church
of the Messiah, Ottawa, ON – Although the ANiC congregation formerly
known as St Alban’s the Martyr walked away from their former building and all
that it held, they now are in possession on one special piece of their former
furnishings. Having heard that an old altar table was to be disposed of by
those currently using the building, some parishioners of Church of the Messiah
asked for and were given the table plus all its linens and frontals. This
historically significant table was in the original church building in 1867 and
one of the parishioners involved in securing the table, Missie Lang, is a
descendent of the table’s donor. Since Church of the Messiah is currently in
rental facilities and the wooden table inlaid with marble weighs around 500
pounds, it resides in the church’s offices – for now.
Holy
Trinity (Marlborough, MA) is now providing services and ministries from a
second location in their community where they have found a real spiritual
hunger. In addition to ongoing services and activities at their long-time
location – 52 Church St – Holy Trinity has now opened a chapel and
office in the community of French Hill. The chapel is an extension of Holy
Trinity’s established ministries in that community – which include,
English as a Second Language (ESL) classes, a food ministry for the hungry,
weekly prayer walks, and a visitation ministry to build friendships and
distribute gift bags. Holy Trinity now offers a daily mass in the new chapel
together with the weekly Bible Study and ESL program. The gift bag includes a
Bible and number of small symbolic gifts, such as a loaf of bread, a candle and
a coffee mug. Photos are on the Holy Trinity
website.
Good
Shepherd (Vancouver) – Bishop Stephen and Nona Leung ask us to join them
in prayer for one of their ministry partners: International Christian Concern lost
its office and everything inside in a fire on February 22.
Christ’s
Church Oceanside (Nanoose Bay, BC) has a splendid new website. Check it out!
Please email parish news and communication ideas to Marilyn or call
1-866-351-2642 ext 4020.
ANiC
and ACNA events calendar
March 20-22 – ANiC clergy
retreat, Cedar Springs, WA
March
24 – Toronto area ANiC men’s
breakfast, Newmarket, ON
April
14 – Good Shepherd, Vancouver, BC celebration and consecration service
April
23-27 – GAFCon Leadership Conference, London, England
June 7-9 – ACNA Provincial Assembly,
Ridgecrest, NC
June
11-12 – Asian & Multicultural Ministries in Canada (AMMiC) conference,
Vancouver
November
14-16 – ANiC synod, clergy day and lay conference in Ottawa
News
– Anglican Church in North America (ACNA)
Anglican1000 just concluded;
Church planters challenged to make disciples
You can get a sense of the conference via a live blog written by ACNA priest Matt
Kennedy. VirtueOnline reports that nearly 400 attended from 35
US states and four Canadian provinces.
One speaker, the Rev Mike
Breen, in a
thought-provoking session, suggested that we tend to
get the process of church planting backward. Jesus’ model was to make disciples
who then form the church. We generally try to plant a church and then make
disciples. Mike Breen+ then goes on to note that the word “disciple” disappears
from the New Testament after Acts 21 because the church has, by then, moved
beyond the Jewish culture into cultures that didn’t understand the concept of a
rabbi and disciples. The new metaphor Paul uses is father/parent and child; the
child learning from the (spiritual) parent by imitation even more than
teaching.
Mike Breen+ says, “There is a desperate
desire in the child to imitate the parent. There are people all around who want
to imitate you. Do you give that access, that opportunity? Do you structure
your life so that you can actually make disciples so that people can have time
to imitate you? …There is only one thing Jesus is counting. He’s not counting
average attendance or programs or even the good things you do. He is counting
disciples… If you make disciples, you will get the church. If you build the church
there is no guarantee you will get disciples.”
Liturgy task force update
Anglican Ink reports that “The Anglican Church in
North America will probably not have a completed Prayer Book for several more
years, but the Rt Rev Bill Thompson, Bishop of the Diocese of Western Anglicans
and chairman of the Prayer Book and Common Liturgy Taskforce, is pleased with
the progress that is being made on the project. Among the tasks nearing
completion is the Eucharistic rite which will be used at the upcoming ACNA
Assembly in June. “It may not be the final form,” Bishop Thompson said, “but it
will give the people there an opportunity to see what we are doing.””
Earlier, the task force completed an ordinal “that will ensure future
deacons, priests, and bishops take appropriate vows” and has begun “rites f or
baptism and confirmation, as well as the offices for Morning and Evening
Prayer. Marriage and burial rites will be considered in the near future.”
Virginia court decision – Anglican Ink reports that “A Virginia court has
rejected the plea of the state’s Attorney General to revisit his decision
granting ownership of the property and assets of seven breakaway congregations.
On 1 March 2012, Fairfax County Circuit Court Judge Randy Bellows said the
ACNA-affiliated congregations must turn over their properties to the Diocese of
Virginia by 30 April 2012.” The ACNA parishes involved in the decision are
considering their legal options. Canon Lawyer A S Haley characterizes the decision as, “In Virginia, it's
"heads we win; tails you lose".
Other
news in brief
Anglican Church of Canada –
The Toronto Star reports that former Archbishop of
Toronto Terrence Finlay will participate in a public service of reconciliation
with the priest he disrobed in 1992 for refusing to end his same-sex
relationship. That priest, the Rev James Ferry, was reinstated in 2011 by
current Archbishop Colin Johnson and serves as an assistant priest at Holy
Trinity (Toronto).
The Episcopal Church has released draft resources for
blessing same-sex relationships.
Southern
Cone – The Anglican Communion
News Service reports that “The Anglican Church of the Southern Cone
of America’s Synod has proposed that its Province becomes two… [T]he two
Provinces would be one comprising Peru, Bolivia and two dioceses in Chile (one
to be formed) and another comprising Argentina, Northern Argentina, Paraguay
and Uruguay. The proposal comes after the Synod rejected both a request for
permission for the Diocese of Uruguay to ordain woman as presbyters and also
for the Diocese to seek other Provincial oversight.” Anglican Ink says the two province proposal “came in response to a request made by Uruguay
to allow it to seek the oversight of another jurisdiction”.
Iran – Barnabas Fund
reports that since Christmas, “Iranian authorities are rounding up
Christians across the country in a wave of arrests” targeting church members
and leaders.
United
Arab Eremites – The first Anglican church in Dubai was
consecrated on March 9.
Indian
Ocean – According to the Sydney
Anglicans website, Cyclone Giovanna has devastated parts of
Madagascar, leaving 250,000 people homeless with a rising death toll. The
report says, “Archbishop Ian Ernest confirms that parts of the Dioceses of
Toamasina and the capital Antananarivo have been destroyed.” The Archbishop
asks for prayer and says there is an urgent need for medicines, mosquito nets,
food, tents and financial aid.
Nigeria – World Net
Daily reports that “Members of the Muslim jihadist group Boko Haram
are vowing to “eradicate Christianity” in Nigeria. Reports coming out of
Nigeria over the past several days show that the group whose name means
“Western education is evil” is launching a new terror campaign aimed at killing
Christians and Jews in northern Nigeria. The Nigerian news site Bikya Masr reports that the jihadi group has declared war on all Christians living in
northern Nigeria.”
Recife –
Many more tributes to Bishop Robinson Cavalcanti and his wife Miriam, recently
murdered in their home, have been posted.
| • |
Bishop John
Ellison says, “His courageous ministry was an example to us all. We
thank God for Robinson and Miriam Cavalcanti who ran with endurance the race
that was set before them.” |
| • |
Archbishop Bob Duncan says “Bishop Robinson Cavalcanti was among the great friends and steadfast heroes of
the Anglican Church in North America…. Bishop Robinson was a champion of the
faith once for all delivered to the saints. He led his diocese to stand against
the theological revisionism that plagued his Province…” |
| • |
In a
recent Anglican
Unscripted news video, commentators George Conger and Kevin Kallsen offer
their tribute, saying he was “a fascinating fellow… a strong voice for the
Gospel, a very firm evangelist, and someone who would do the right thing no
matter what the personal consequences…” Please continue to pray for the
Cavalcanti family and the Diocese of Recife. |
Europe – The Church of
England Newspaper reports that a recent European Court of Human
Rights ruling means “Freedom of speech must be subordinated to the rights of
homosexuals to be free from criticism…”
England – Anglican
Unscripted weekly newsmagazine video discusses how evangelical
clergy in the Church of England met with their “liberal” bishop with the result
that the Bishop of Salisbury backtracked on his earlier declaration calling for
same-sex marriage to be treated equally with traditional marriage.
Ireland – The Anglican
Communion News Service reports that the Church of Ireland synod
concluded a conference on human sexuality characterized by “…interactive
engagement by participants from a wide range of different perspectives… [and] respectful
dialogue… The intention of the conference was one of enabling open discussion,
rather than one of articulating policy or making decisions.”
New
Zealand – The decision has
been made to demolish Christchurch’s Cathedral due to the extent of
the earthquake damage and the expense of restoring the building.
Anglican
Consultative Council – Only months ago, the Archbishop of Canterbury
announced that some members of certain Communion bodies would be removed as
active members due to the actions of their Provinces in breaking moratoria
prescribed by the Communion. Now, the Anglican
Communion News Service reports that two of these deposed members have
been reinstated to full, active membership on the Inter-Anglican Standing
Commission on Unity, Faith and Order.
Covenant – A new pro-Anglican Covenant website have been launched: www.yestothecovenant.org.
However, according to a Telegraph article, many dioceses – and even some bishops – in the Church of England
are rejecting the Covenant. A defeat of the Covenant is said to be
“devastating” to the Archbishop of Canterbury who has “staked so much of his
authority on the Covenant”.
Traditional
Anglican Communion (TAC) – The TAC College of Bishops has removed Archbishop John Hepworth as its head. Archbishop Hepworth had been the most
prominent Anglican leader to push for the creation of the Anglican Ordinariate
by the Roman Catholic Church. Since the creation of the Ordinariate, however,
it has become apparent that few in the TAC wished to follow him into the Roman
Catholic Church.
Soul
food
Culture matters
Culture
of death advances – Dr Albert Mohler discusses the
arguments of medical ethicists in a recent academic article
advocating “after birth abortion”. He says, “This article in the Journal of Medical Ethics is a clear signal of just how much
ground has been lost to the Culture of Death. A culture that grows accustomed
to death in the womb will soon contemplate killing in the nursery… Abortion
implies infanticide. If the unborn child lacks sufficient moral status by the
fact that it is unborn, then the baby in the nursery, it is now argued, has
also not yet developed human personhood… The
murderous appetite of the Culture of Death will never be satisfied.”
The Right Rev Michael Nazir Ali, former Bishop of Rochester, in a Telegraph interview, says that retaining a traditional understanding of marriage as between a man
and a women is for the “wider good of society”, rather than simply for the
benefit of those in the church.
Just for fun
As I left a meeting at the church, I desperately
gave myself a pat down searching for my car keys. They were not in my pockets.
A quick search in the meeting room revealed nothing.
Suddenly I realized I must have left them in the
car. Frantically, I headed for the parking lot. My wife had scolded me many
times for leaving the keys in the ignition. My theory is the ignition is the
best place not to lose them. Her theory is that the car will be stolen. As I
burst through the doors of the church, I came to a terrifying conclusion. Her
theory was right. The parking lot was empty.
I immediately called the police and gave them my
location, confessing that I had left my keys in the car, and that it had been
stolen. Then I made the most difficult call of all, "Honey," I
stammered – I always call her "honey" in times like these
– "I left my keys in the car and it has been stolen."
There was a long silence and then I heard her
exclaim, "I dropped you off!"
Now it was my time to be silent. Embarrassed, I
said, "Well, could you please come and get me?"
She retorted, "I will… as soon as I can
convince this policeman that I did not steal your car!!!"
www.mikeysFunnies.com
Thought
Keep the faith... but not from others!
And now
a word from our sponsor
Therefore,
since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord
Jesus Christ. Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace
in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God. Not only that,
but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance,
and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does
not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through
the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.
For
while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For
one will scarcely die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good
person one would dare even to die—but God shows his love for us in that
while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Since, therefore, we have now
been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath
of God. For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of
his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life. More
than that, we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom
we have now received reconciliation.
Romans
5:1-11
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