English Anglo-Catholics – F.i.F. and Anglican Catholic Future

Two Anglo-Catholic Moments

• Friday, May 10, 2013 - By Zachary Guiliano

Two celebrations in mid-April marked contemporary Anglo-Catholic life in the Church of England: a “Solemn Pontifical Mass with the Commissioning of Dr. Colin Podmore as Director of Forward in Faith,” held at St. Alban’s, Holborn, April 15, and a “Votive Mass of the Holy Spirit” at Church of the Annunciation, Marble Arch, April 18, for the launch of the group Anglican Catholic Future. To an outside observer unschooled in the subtleties and shades of Anglo-Catholic expression, the two meetings might have seemed much the same.

They both met in historic bastions of London Anglo-Catholicism. Both used nomenclature rarely seen elsewhere (e.g. Pontifical, Votive). The celebrating bishops, in both cases, described the Mass as a “foretaste” of the eschatological gathering of God’s people. Many a genuflection and sign of the cross were made in the course of both. The Regina Cæli was sung with an exuberance normally reserved in the U.K. for the football field rather than the sanctuary. And, of course, a tasteful wine reception with conversation followed each Mass, where the term Catholic was bandied about like it was going out of fashion. But the devil, as well as the divine, is often in the details, and a number of differences were evident.

Forward in Faith
If those planning the Solemn Pontifical Mass hoped for an awe-inspiring show of unity, they were surely successful. The crowd of more than 400 filled St. Alban’s to capacity. Rarely have I attended a Mass with such joyous and overwhelming singing. Although some worshippers noted that the service observed an admirable restraint (as one told me, “it could have been more Roman”), the presence of nearly 70 con-celebrants in matching chasubles assured that Pontifical carried more than one resonance: Vatican City is normally the theatre for such sights. More significantly, of this number, 11 were bishops. Still, the symbolism was not lost, given the purpose of the meeting: a commissioning.

Rather than coming across as a cowed theological minority, as some might imagine Forward in Faith (FiF) to be, those present seemed quite ready to meet the future with confidence. Although there was no preoccupation with the issue of women’s ordination, no apologetic tone was struck either. In the words of the Rt. Rev. Jonathan Baker, Bishop of Fulham and chairman of Forward in Faith: “It is a tragedy, and an astonishing one at that” that those opposing women’s ordination should be considered “disloyal, a fifth column perhaps,” when FiF understands itself as “deeply committed to the widest, most inclusive vision of unity and catholicity.”

Bishop Baker and Dr. Podmore, in their respective sermon and comments, emphasized a generosity of spirit and a commitment to the Church of England which is, whether fairly or unfairly, rarely associated with FiF by those outside its membership rolls. As the bishop said, FiF members cannot “give anyone the excuse to suggest … we are simply another churchy pressure group.” There was a statement of commitment to “the most positive programme of our life” which was not defined simply by certain issues but expressed instead in the questions put to Podmore in his commissioning. These questions focused on his commitment to upholding and proclaiming the catholic faith, praying and working for the unity of the Church, supporting, advising, and defending the members of FiF in their ministry, working with other Catholic groups, and promoting “unity, peace and love in the Church and in the world.”

Anglican Catholic Future
The launch event of Anglican Catholic Future (ACF) could only seem a modest affair or even a fairly “low” liturgical celebration in comparison to FiF’s more elaborate proceedings. True, the space and attendance were smaller, perhaps around 300, and enthusiasm was a little less evident, but it was by no means absent. The Rt. Rev. Stephen Conway, Bishop of Ely, was the lone celebrant. But the event was accompanied by a letter of support signed by 20 other bishops and a similar letter from the Archbishop of Canterbury, which garnered impromptu comments and applause at its reading. The congregation was a good mix of clergy and lay people. All in all, it was a remarkable beginning for a group that still seems to be defining its role and purpose.

It would perhaps be unfair to judge the group’s launch and goals against Forward in Faith’s. But the group invites such comparisons, if only by the presence of ordained women at the altar, as well as its oft-stated intent to articulate the Catholic identity of the Church of England rather than focus on divisive issues. Anglican Catholic Future is both strident on certain issues and strategically silent on others. The group’s website (www.anglicancatholicfuture.org) says that “the Catholic tradition in Anglicanism has become fragmented and nerveless,” a state which has made “many” feel the need to “rediscover our Catholic roots and values.” A clear claim is thus made about recent Catholic efforts and history, regardless of protestations otherwise. When I showed the statement to a member of the Catholic Group in General Synod who was not previously aware of ACF, he cringed. The positioning is apparent to readers, however implicit it may be.

But ACF has laudable goals, beyond the simple formation of a Catholic group that supports women in the episcopate. It seeks the renewal of Catholic expression, with a focus on theology, spirituality, vocation, and social justice, among other things. The group also hopes to have various events of pilgrimage or reflection on vocation for Catholic-minded Anglicans. It explicitly looks back to the Oxford Movement as a model and is thus preparing teaching pamphlets, “tracts” even, which focus on aspects of Catholic teaching and practice or on basic questions of Christian confession. Although these tracts remain in draft form, they are fairly impressive in terms of general, succinct teaching as well as design.

All of this stands in line with the sermon by the Rev. Peter Groves, vicar of St. Mary Magdalen’s, Oxford, a sermon which positioned the launch and Catholic identity of the group rather specifically and neatly, while avoiding certain topics and jargon. There was a clear valuation of the Church’s theological tradition, and of the Anglo-Catholic past, although the emphasis was upon Catholic identity as a sign of humility. The individual requires the Church for prayer, worship, and reflection due to human weakness, and the Catholic, according to Groves, acknowledges that Christians do not have all the answers, whether individually or as a group, but only as the Spirit guides us into all truth.

While Father Groves would almost certainly loathe the term, and disavowed “theological liberalism” in his sermon (to some small chuckles in the audience), it is hard not to recognize liberal Catholicism here in its classic form. How such liberalism is expressed will perhaps be the key. Is it open to the future, to discovery and questioning? Or will it turn into a lack of discernment and public expression of teaching? The danger for ACF is its resemblance to similar attempts from the past. Everyone I spoke to said, more or less in joy or dismay, that they saw the movement as “Affirming Catholicism under another name.” The mere presence and continued emphasis on teaching and theology might belie such an association, while the avoidance of certain controversial issues would strengthen it. Only time will tell.

What to make of both events and movements? Oddly, they both took place in London the same week, and seemed to draw on distinct groups of clergy. Little overlap was in evidence.

Such facts might be taken as signs of division. I remember vividly a series of articles by Damian Thompson of The Telegraph in the last several years, trumpeting the dissolution of the Catholic Movement in the Church of England, which he believed to be sapped of strength by the establishment of the Ordinariate and to be falling into fissiparous, weak-willed contention, with neither liberal nor traditionalist Anglo-Catholics able to win over the other. Such differences remain, but we can frame the point with more Christian hope.

FiF has a stance which still seems fundamentally defensive: preserving Catholic faith and practice in a surprisingly hostile environment. ACF, on the other hand, is positioned more openly: the discovery of Catholic faith and practice, the arrival at a place we have not yet found. Yet the differences are liable to overstatement, and there were many similarities in evidence. Both outline a number of goals entirely congruous with each other, aimed at renewal and restatement of a universal faith, open to the witness of the Christian past, and centred on the expression of the Catholic faith in and as the Church of England has received it. There is a sense, I believe, among Anglo-Catholics in the Church of England that they are reaching a real turning point or settlement, with a need to renew or refocus efforts toward the broader life of the Church of England and its identity in Christ’s “one, holy, catholic, and apostolic Church.”

We will do best to hold such groups to their more positive statements and commitments. ACF must move beyond non-competition to cooperation. The presence of FiF’s new director at ACF’s event may be a sign of such realization. We shall see. FiF needs to hold to its commitment of “speaking the truth in love” and engaging generously with the Church, rather than turning to a more insular mission. Again, FiF gave more than one sign of that in the commissioning of Podmore, which was incredibly heartening to this Anglican. For both groups, of course, it would be all too easy for good intentions to dissolve into backbiting and ill will between each other and other organizing groups in the Church of England. It would be all too easy to disown the other, as well as those less persuaded towards Catholic expressions of Christian faith.

But I am hopeful. As Father Groves preached: “Hope is the Christian attitude towards the future.” Hope and not despair; hope, which is not optimism. Moments like these can seem small and insignificant when compared to the great events of our time. But they can also be signs of a renewal right around the corner, with a significance that may yet surpass the great tragedies and triumphs that surround and putatively overshadow them. For now, we can only hope, pray, and await such renewal. We can work quietly toward its realization in small ways. In returning and rest shall we be saved; in quietness and confidence shall be our strength (Isa. 30:15).

Zachary Guiliano is a doctoral candidate in medieval history at the University of Cambridge. He is co-editor with Charles Stang of The Open Body: Essays in Anglican Ecclesiology (Peter Lang, 2012) and a parishioner at Little St. Mary’s, Cambridge.

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In recent years, with the advent of Women Priests and the imminent prospect of Women Bishops in the Church of England, there has been a division between those among  the Anglo-Catholics who applaud the  inclusion of Women in Ministry and those who do not.

While it could have been thought that perhaps that most dissident A.C.s  were more typically ‘catholic’ than those who approved Women in the Sacred Ministry – some of the dissidents have already moved into the Roman Catholic provision of the ‘Ordinariates’, retaining some ‘Anglican’ worship distinctives under the provenance of Rome – there is still a majority of Anglo-Catholics; bishops, clergy and laity, who believe that authentic  catholic theology can cope with, and indeed embrace, the prospect of Women as both Priests and Bishops.

The ‘hard-liners’ remaining in the C.of E. but who agree with the departing Ordinariate membership that women have no  place in the ordained ministry of the Church of England; in the early day of Women being ordained priests, decided to do what they could to prevent the prospect of women bishops, and have refused to accept the ministry of women in their closed congregations. This latter process was aided and abetted by the provision of ‘Provisional Episcopal Visitors’  -  Anglo-Catholic Bishops who would have no part in the ordination of women. These, and their followers, are those who call themselves by the odd nomenclature ‘Forward in Faith’ (F.i.F.) – but have been called by their Anglo-Catholic opposition: ‘Backward in Despair’.

It is interesting that a newly-formed Anglo-Catholic body has been raised up in the Church of England – broadly along the lines of ‘Affirming Catholicism’ which affirms Women in Ministry – called ‘Anglican Catholic Future’ (ACF) - that had its first large celebratory gathering recently at the Church of ‘The Annunciation’, Marble Arch; where the Bishop of Ely was the sole Celebrant at the Mass. In keeping with the more ‘Anglican’ ethos of catholic worship, this service, although taking place in a traditional Anglo-Catholic citadel in the heart of London, was less of a ‘Roman-style’ worship event than that occurring at the Church of ’Saint Alban The Martyr’, Holborn, hosted by F.i.F., and featuring a ‘Pontifical High Mass’ con-celebration, described as follows: 

“The presence of nearly 70 con-celebrants in matching chasubles assured that (the description) ‘Pontifical’ carried more than one resonance: Vatican City is normally the theatre for such sights. More significantly, of this number, 11 were bishops”.

This wrestling for the soul of Anglo-Catholicism in the Church of England might be viewed with some concern by those of us in other Provinces of the Anglican Communion, where we have managed to accommodate, within our traditional Catholic ethos, the growing theological  understanding of women as co-heirs with men in Christ; and therefore equal is eligibility and  status as ministers of the Sacraments of the Body of Christ in the Church. Let’s all hope that the C.of E. does not abdicate from its native responsibility to keep up with the theological insights of the modern understanding of the place of women in the Church and in society.

The so obvious dichotomy which has, sadly, occurred within the Anglo-Catholic community of the Church of England would seem to be between the root and branch Anglo.Catholics – (descendants of the ‘Oxford Movement’ that sought to restore the pre-Reformation English Catholic Identity of the Church) – and the more esoteric, ultra-montane, Roman-style Catholicism attributable to the Roman Magisterium.

As an Anglo-Catholic, formed in the English tradition, myself – though now resident and practising my faith in New Zealand – I can only hope that the newer movement in the U.K. might succeed in maintaining the distinctive marks of the Catholic Faith within the Church of England – while yet being open to the progress on matters of gender and sexuality that have marked the theological trajectory in the Anglican Communion in recent times.

Father Ron Smith, Christchurch, New Zealand

Resistance to Llandaff Woman Dean provokes Resignation

First female Dean of Llandaff Cathedral quits after two months - 9 May 2013

Archbishop of Wales accepts resignation “with enormous sadness”

Janet Henderson, pictured shortly after becoming Dean of Llandaff Cathedral

The first woman Dean of Llandaff Cathedral has resigned just two months after she was installed in the post.

The Archbishop of Wales, Dr Barry Morgan, said he had accepted Janet Henderson’s resignation “with enormous sadness”.

Church in Wales sources have told WalesOnline that Dean Henderson had had “a “difficult time” since her appointment, with some clergy resenting the appointment of a woman.

And last month we revealed how some members of the Cathedral choir had been angered by what they saw as low fees being offered to perform on BBC One’s Songs of Praise programme.

On Sunday Dean Henderson, who was also the Llandaff parish vicar, was not at the Cathedral for any of the seven services.

A source told us: “The Dean has been affected by the opposition she has had from some clergy who object to the fact that a woman was appointed.

“The fees row relating to Songs of Praise may have been the last straw.”

Dr Morgan has championed the role of women clergy in the Church, and it is a personal setback for him that Dean Henderson has gone so quickly after arriving at Llandaff.

But sources have told us he remains passionate about securing the rights of women to become Bishops in the Church in Wales, and a further attempt will be made to persuade all sections of its Governing Council to approve such a proposal in September.

All three sections of the body – bishops, clergy and laity – must back such a move. A previous attempt failed when despite gaining the support of the bishops and laity, clergy narrowly rejected it.

We have seen a blog posting by a clergyman in Wales taking issue with Dean Henderson’s appointment at the time it was announced.

Two weeks ago we reported how two members of Llandaff Cathedral Choir thought a fee of £110 was too small to appear on Songs of Praise, the BBC’s long-running hymn show.

Altogether around 10 “lay clerks” – professional adult choristers – could appear on three forthcoming editions of Songs of Praise to be recorded in the Cathedral next week.

The programme is screened on BBC One, but the Llandaff Cathedral shows are being produced by Cardiff-based independent TV production company Avanti.

Responding to the allegation that the lay clerks were being underpaid, Dean Henderson said the Cathedral was not interested in making money out of appearing on Songs of Praise, which she described as a “low budget” programme.

But Adam Poole, who has been a lay clerk at the Cathedral for more than 10 years, said: “We have now found out from the BBC’s commissioning website that Avanti is being paid £60,000 to make each of the three programmes – a total of £180,000.

“In these circumstances, a fee of just £110 to each lay clerk is even more unacceptable.”

A spokeswoman for the BBC said:  “The independent production company which is producing this recording for Songs of Praise are still in discussion with the Cathedral about the choir’s involvement and the fees involved that will be in line with agreed industry rates.”

Originally from Neath, Dean Henderson is a former nurse who was ordained more than 20 years ago.

Immediately before taking up her appointment she was Archdeacon of Richmond in North Yorkshire.

Dean Henderson, 55, grew up in Llandrindod Wells and Aberystwyth and is a former pupil of Howell’s School, Llandaff. She learned Welsh at secondary school and is a keen amateur musician.

With a first class degree in Theology from Durham University, she was ordained in 1988.

When he announced the Dean’s appointment, the Archbishop of Wales said: “She has a wide experience of city and Cathedral ministry and I am sure she will make a huge contribution to the life and society of  Llandaff – a place with which she is already very familiar.”

Dean Henderson said at the time of her appointment: “I am thrilled and humbled to have been appointed as the next Dean of Llandaff Cathedral and Vicar of the parish. This is a very interesting time to be moving back to Wales. I’m looking forward to meeting everyone and working with the Cathedral to continue to develop worship and address the pressing fabric and financial challenges that face every cathedral community today.”

A statement issued by the Church in Wales on Thursday night said: “The Archbishop of Wales has, with enormous sadness, accepted the resignation with immediate effect of the Very Rev’d Janet Henderson as Dean of Llandaff.

“He has, in the meantime, asked the Archdeacon of Llandaff, the Venerable Peggy Jackson, as the senior member of the Chapter, to have necessary oversight of the Cathedral on his behalf, until a new Dean is appointed.”

The Dean herself was not available for comment.

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This sentence in the above report on the resignation of Llandaff Cathedral’s recently- appointed Dean, The  Very Reverend Janet Henderson, speaks volumes:

“ A source told us: “The Dean has been affected by the opposition she has had from some clergy who object to the fact that a woman was appointed.’

In an Anglican Provincial Church (The Church in Wales) that has already made advances in the understanding of the need to involve women in the ordained ministry of the local Church, this evidence of recalcitrance by some of the clergy in the Church of Wales would seem to be the final fling of the conservative clergy who still are opposed to the appointment of women to positions of responsibility. Archbishop Barry Morgan is a known supporter of  Women in Ministry, and is obviously disappointed that the Dean of Llandaff should feel so undermined in her ministry by those in the diocese (perhaps even including some disgruntled members of the Cathedral Choir) who have withheld their support.

A good move , though, by the Bishop, to have appointed another woman, the Venerable Peggy Jackson, Archdeacon of Llandaff, to be acting Dean until a replacement is found.

Father Ron Smith, Christchurch, New Zealand

Another TEC Property Restored to the National Episcopal Church

California church faces setback in legal battle for property

Published 07 May 2013  |  ASSIST News Service

St James Anglican Church in Newport Beach, California, has received a serious setback in its legal case and fight to retain its property from being confiscated by the US Episcopal Church.

St James withdrew from the Episcopal Church and joined the Anglican Province of Uganda and the Diocese of Luwero in August of 2004.

Steps to disassociate from the Episcopal Church were initiated by the leadership of St James as a result of widening differences of biblical interpretation and the confirmation of the first openly gay Episcopal bishop, Gene Robinson.

In August 2004, this decision, along with other theological differences, led the Rector, wardens, vestry, and a nearly unanimous congregation, to vote overwhelmingly to disaffiliate from the Episcopal Church and to affiliate with the conservative Anglican Church of Uganda.

St James Church was soon joined by All Saints Church in Long Beach and St David’s Church in North Hollywood. All three churches were then sued for their property by the Episcopal Diocese of Los Angeles and the national Episcopal Church.

Since 2004, the church has received national attention over its legal case against the Episcopal Church, but now, in a story by George Conger of Anglican Ink, the church’s case to retain the property has been rejected by an Orange County Superior Court Judge.

Conger wrote that the Judge had ruled that a Bishop of Los Angeles had “no authority to give the parish of St James in Newport Beach a written waiver exempting the congregation’s property from the reach of the Episcopal Church’s Dennis Canon“.

He went on to say, “In a ruling for summary judgment handed down on May 1, 2013, Judge Kim Dunning ordered the parish to hand its multi-million dollar properties over to the Diocese of Los Angeles.”

“The decision was unexpected,” Daniel Lula – an attorney for the parish, told Anglican Ink, as the matter had been set down for trial later this month.

In an email to his congregation, the Rector, the Rev Richard Crocker said: “We have received notice this morning from our attorneys that the court has handed down a significantly negative ruling in our court case. This of course changes the landscape of next week’s trial,” he noted, inviting the parish to a meeting with Mr Lula “to offer explanation of what we know about the ruling at this point.”

Conger stated, “In her decision, Judge Dunning said the Episcopal Church’s rules governing parish property on the diocesan and national level took precedence over civil property and trust laws. She dismissed as non-binding a 1991 letter signed by the then Canon to the Ordinary D. Bruce MacPherson, later to become the Bishop of Western Louisiana, on behalf of Bishop Frederick Borsch that released the diocese’s claim to the property.”

Bishop MacPherson said in a deposition, “The purpose of the conversations between the Diocese and St. James was for St James to hold title to its property in its own name free of any trust . . . [as] part of an agreement in order for St. James to secure substantial donations for its building program.”

Conger then wrote, “However, this waiver did not amend the parish bylaws and diocesan canons she held. Even if it did, according to the present leadership of the Episcopal Church’s interpretation of the canons ‘the Bishop of the Diocese did not, and does not, have authority to amend any of these instruments.’”

Judge Dunning cited the declaration by the Episcopal Church’s expert witness Robert Bruce Mullin in support of her deference to canon law over the evidence of the deeds and waiver noting the “Mullin declaration concerns ‘religious entity governance and administration,’ and this court is bound by it.

“The court further stated that it believed a parish was a subordinate unit to a diocese and had no existence outside the diocese. While the Episcopal Church could exist without St James, St James could not exist without the Episcopal Church – and as it had no existence independent of the diocese, the loss of its property to the diocese could not harm it.”

Conger continued by saying that in 2011 the California Supreme Court rejected an argument of the Episcopal Church that the 1991 letter had been declared invalid by its first review of the case in 2009. The Court said, “We express no opinion regarding the legal significance, if any, of the 1991 letter. We merely hold that a court must decide the question,” overturning an appellate court ruling that did not allow the parish to put forward a defense.

In 2005 the Orange County Superior Court ruled the Episcopal Church’s allegations were legally defective, but an appellate ruling reversed the trial decision and adjusted the approach to church property law in California. The Parish appealed to the California Supreme Court, who reversed the Appeal Court and returned the case to the Superior Court where St. James answered the complaint, raised affirmative defenses, and began discovery proceedings. This court denied a motion from the diocese, which took a writ to the Appeal Court for summary judgment in the case. This was granted before a trial had occurred and judgment given, and the Parish again appealed to the California Supreme Court. In early 2011, the California Supreme Court ruled for the Parish and sent the case back to the Orange County Superior Court.

“If the parish does not appeal the decision it will have to vacate the property in the near future,” said Conger.

In his invitation to the parish meeting Mr Crocker said: “I ask that all members of St. James come together in unity at this time to hear from our attorney and to pray together. The Lord is not surprised by this decision and He is in our midst. But His strength is particularly manifested when we come together in unity and prayer.”

Rick Warren, pastor of Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, California, has offered the campus of his Lake Forest, California mega church to St James to use if they are forced to vacate their Newport Beach property.

Reverend Crocker responded to Warren’s offer with the following, “We are overwhelmed by his generosity. It is an encouraging sign of support from Christians in the community.”

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Whatever the circumstances of the schismatic breaks from The Episcopal Church in the United States, by now there can be little doubt that the departing dissidents will have great difficulty in trying to subtantiate their claims to the property – in their sustained litigious efforts to alienate local church buildings and other assets from ownership by the national Episcopal Church – TEC.

Yet another ruling, here, has been given by the courts, citing the ‘Dennis Canon’ (which was initiated by the national Church in order to prevent such dissident groups from taking the property and buildings with them when they depart) has proved effective against the claims of departing congregations in the U.S.A.

It should by now have become obvious that schism from the national Church is a painful and costly process – involving more than just saying goodbye to one’s relationship to the parent body. Local church buildings and assets have been raised up, most often, by generations of faithful Episcopalians, whose generous provenance should not be subject to alienation by dissident parishioners or clergy who decide they can no longer support the developing rules and regulations of the national Church.

Schism is rarely an equal opportunity for negotiation on property rights. It often involves outright repudiation of the ethos and polity of the parent body. If dissidents find themselves no longer able to live with this, then the best way is to make a clean break and start again – electing not to try to take the ‘family silver’ with them.

This latest rejection – of attempts to secure property rights by departing Episcopalians – must serve to warn their GAFCON-oriented sponsors (in this case, the Anglican  Church of Uganda) that their piratical incursions into the local territory American Anglicanism are not likely to be followed by the possibility of property alienation from The Episcopal Church. 

The local U.S. federation of dissident Anglicans – under the banner of ACNA and other schismatic entities in the U.S.A and Canada – will no doubt be pondering on their future viability, in an environment of hardship that has been brought about, not by the national official Anglican Churches, but by their own insistence on structural independence.

Father Ron Smith, Christchurch, New Zealand

Evangelical Merry-go-round: Sydney Primacy up for grabs

And They’re Off… The Race Begins for Archbishop of Sydney

Posted on May 4, 2013 by David Ould in Anglican Communion, Featured 2 Comments

Home» Blog » hot topics » Anglican Communion » And They’re Off… The Race Begins for Archbishop of Sydney

For the last 6 months members of the Diocese of Sydney have been having conversations amongst themselves about who should replace Peter Jensen as Archbishop when he retires in a few months. Several names have been canvassed and considered. Options have been aired and then rejected and a few names have kept cropping up.

This weekend what many have known became official. The first candidate has thrown their hat into the ring. Glenn Davies, current bishop of the Northern Region of Sydney has allowed himself to be nominated for the position of Archbishop. The announcement was made in the form of a brochure sent to many synod reps (being not yet officially appointed I haven’t received my copy but I saw one at another minister’s house this morning). The brochure sets out the argument for Davies and points readers on to a website, glenndavies.info.

 

Glenn and Di Davies – glenndavies.info

Commending Dr Glenn Davies
For the Office of Archbishop of Sydney

Dear friends,

In August, we will meet to elect the twelfth Bishop of Sydney. Our prayer is that God will raise up a godly and gifted shepherd to pastor and lead us, to engage publicly with our wider society, and to defend, preserve, and strengthen our evangelical Anglican heritage both within and beyond the Diocese.

For this reason, we are writing to commend to you the Rt Rev Dr Glenn Davies, Bishop of North Sydney, for your prayerful consideration as the next Archbishop. We believe that Glenn is the man whom God has raised up and equipped for this difficult task, for the following reasons.

Glenn exemplifies all the qualities of a Bishop, as set out in the Pastoral Epistles. His ministry as Bishop of North Sydney over the past 12 years has demonstrated this, confirming the judgment (sic) of our present Archbishop in appointing him.

Glenn has the proven ability to lead and manage an organisation as large and complex as our Diocese. With his experience as a Bishop overseeing 64 parishes, and his long involvement in many key Diocesan entities, there is no one better placed to be able to take on this demanding role. He is a team player who leads collaboratively and effectively.

Glenn has the theological acumen required of the chief pastor-teacher of our Diocese. Glenn is respected, nationally and internationally, as a teacher, preacher and theologian.

Glenn has a pastor’s heart. He engages others with a pastoral sensitivity that is compassionate and engenders trust.

Glenn is an accomplished media spokesperson, with considerable public exposure and media experience that has won respect in the wider community.

Glenn has demonstrated the grace and courage to commend and defend the gospel in Australia, and globally through GAFCON and other international bodies.

We warmly commend Glenn to you.

Rick Smith

There’s no doubt at all that Glenn is a strong candidate and the website seeks to set out exactly why that is the case. It’s no secret that here in Sydney he’s long been considered the default heir of Jensen’s seat, but that’s not the same as saying his election in the upcoming election synod is a foregone conclusion. Precisely because there are many who have their doubts about Davies there’s been talk of other candidates and again it is no secret to tell you that Rick Smith (the current rector of Naremburn/Cammeray) is very likely to be officially nominated in the coming weeks. There will probably be a couple of other names added too but at the moment Davies and Smith are widely acknowledged to be the main candidates.

Which to pick? It’s a dilemma that would be wonderful for pretty much any diocese in the world, but Sydney is particular about it’s Archbishops. We won’t settle for a good choice, we want to make sure we get the best choice. And yes, I’ll be having more to say about that choice in the weeks to come.

Given the importance of Sydney Diocese, particularly within the FCA/GAFON movement, I join with many here in Sydney, no matter who they’re backing, in asking for your prayers for this enormous decision.

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Australian Evangelical Anglican David Ould sets the pace for the next round of fisticuffs in the Diocese of Sydney for its contender to headship as premier Evangelical Leader  and diocesan Archbishop. Though not a ‘Primate’ of an Anglican Province. The titular Archbishop of Sydney wields some considerable power as the leading voice in Australian Evangelical circles, through whom church organisations like the GAFCON finds an Australasian voice. He is also the chief advocate of the theology of Moore College

The combative style of Evangelical politics in Australia resonates within the context of David Ould’s original posting here; which sets the race for Evangelical Leadership within the parameters of the local love of horse-racing, and its attendant betting culture. The first open contender for the leadership, as quoted by David Ould, is seen to be The Rt. Revd. Dr. Glen Davies, Bishop of North Sydney (seen here, in collar and tie, beside his wife, ‘Di’). Bishop Davies’ qualifications for the post of Archbishop are clearly set out by his local diocesan office – emphasising his suitability to follow in the footsteps of the current Archbishop Peter Jensen, whose leadership role in the GAFCON conservative movement in the Anglican Communion is reflected in this statement, re the new prospect:

“Glenn has demonstrated the grace and courage to commend and defend the gospel in Australia, and globally through GAFCON and other international bodies.”

It could be that this GAFCON provenance could help him in the race to the Evangelical Sydney equivalence of the Roman Papacy. However, there are other contenders in the race for this political leadership of conservatism in the Australian Anglican Province – a role that could well see some sort of sectarian divide in the Australian Anglican Church, after the next meeting of the GAFCON Primates later this year.

Father Ron Smith, Christchurch, New Zealand

 

The Trumpets Shall Sound – For GAFCON 2013

GAFCON 2013

May 4, 2013

The Second Global Anglican Future Conference will be held in Nairobi, Kenya, 21st-26th October 2013. The focus will be on our shared Anglican future, as we engage with the missionary theme, ‘Making Disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ.’

The first conference, GAFCON 2008, was held in Jerusalem. GAFCON gave birth to a movement, the Global Fellowship of Confessing Anglicans. The aims of the GFCA are to proclaim and defend the apostolic gospel within and beyond the Anglican Communion and to recognise and share fellowship with orthodox Anglicans globally, especially those who have been disaffiliated by false teaching and behaviour.

We continue to face the triple challenge of sceptical secularism, militant religion and compromised Christianity. GAFCON 2013 has been summoned so that GFCA can help both plan for and experience the future of the Communion of which we, with many others, are part.

The invited delegates, laity, clergy and bishops, are united by their commitment to the Jerusalem Declaration and Statement as well as the aims of the Fellowship of Confessing Anglicans. They will assemble to listen to God, to pray, to deliberate, and to plan about the Anglican future, seeing it as a great spiritual and missionary fellowship, energised by the defence and proclamation of the gospel.

The General Secretary of the GFCA, Archbishop Peter Jensen said, ‘God is establishing new churches creating new believers and transforming lives. Our hope for the future is in him. Our aim is to move forward confidently, to plan and experience in fellowship a future for Anglicans in which his Word is honoured and our witness is clear. We are looking forward with great expectation to seeing God at work as we meet in Nairobi.’

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So now we have it – the Second Great Missionary Conference of the (mainly African) GAFCON Primates, calling on the Anglican World to take note of their selective ‘orthodoxy’, their  litmus test of Anglicanism as they would like it to become.  I notice that ‘militant religion’ is one of those features they claim to be fighting against in their proclamation of ‘orthodox’ religion. One wonders whether GAFCON considers its own sectarian views might yet be viewed by most mainline Anglicans around the world as being just that: ‘Militant Religion’.

What is being profoundly misunderstood here, is the fact that their own protestation of sole ‘orthodoxy’ is a blatant claim to exclusivity in the propagation of the Gospel – which is supposed to be Good News to the modern world; but has been proved, so far in its juvenile life-time, to be nothing more than a mean-spirited, conservative attempt to claim the moral high-ground on matters of gender, sexuality, and interpretation of the Bible on these and other issues.

There are those amongst us – even in my own Church of Aotearoa/New Zealand – who express their sympathy with the GAFCON Primates, while yet seemingly ‘yearning for unity’ within our world-wide Communion. This, despite the fact that it is the GAFCON Primates who have knowingly and ruthlessly cut themselves off from Provinces of the Church that are trying to engage with a modern world understanding of the Scriptures, and their relevance to the Mission of God – in the light of social and scientific knowledge of the human condition that was unavailable to the writers of the Scriptures.

If there is to be a larger schism in the Anglican Communion Churches, it cannot be laid at the feet of those who still remain within the structures of ACC, whose last meeting in New Zealand has been described by some GAFCON enthusiasts as irrelevant and useless. The fault must lie fairly and squarely with GAFCON, and those elements in the Anglican Communion that have deliberately set themselves apart from the established koinonia of the Anglican Consultative Council and the traditional Lambeth Conference Bishops.

It should not be surprising to learn that dissident, ex-Anglicans in North America have been  encouraged by some of the Primates of GAFCON to ‘walk apart’ from their parent Anglican Churches – in TEC and The Anglican Church of Canada. Their excuse for this piratical activity in provinces different from their own, has been their desire to ‘rescue’ those former Anglicans who have rebelled against their own provincial Churches’ lawful determination, through their general Synods, to ordain Gay Bishops and to authorise the Blessing of Same-Sex Relationships. This has been the basis on which the GAFCON Primates have carried out their calculated series of border-crossing interventions, setting up their own quasi-Anglican churches in opposition to the parent churches.

The announcement of this upcoming conference will draw the attention of the Anglican world to the distinct possibility of a two-way split in the Communion – between the self-styled ‘orthodox’ GAFCON provinces (and their satellite churches in other provinces) and those Provinces of the Communion that are undertaking to follow the way of Inclusion, rather than sectarian Exclusion, in their pursuit of the Gospel outreach to ALL people.

Father Ron Smith, Christchurch, New Zealand

 

The Church of England’s Need of Modern Relevance

It’s time for the Church of England to drop the culture wars

49 commentsAlan Wilson 30 April 2013 15:14

‘Some Issues in Human Sexuality‘ was a compromise: so the church shouldn’t go for another such fudge, argues Alan Wilson. Picture: PA

Almost three thousand years ago the Prophet Amos asked ‘can two walk together except they be agreed?’ How can the Church of England, pragmatic and volunteer-led but with complex legal and cultural structures, stay meshed with its culturally incompatible overseas churches? What is its future?

Theo Hobson argues in this week’s Spectator that the C of E needs to find a third way in order to survive, affirming gay partnerships whilst simultaneously rejecting equal marriage.

Can this be done? If the deadlock Hobson describes arose from a frail incoherent compromise, Some Issues in Human Sexuality, how can more hand-wringing duplicity solve it?

The world has moved radically on since 1991. Education, smartphones and social media are driving rapid ubiquitous change. All over the world younger generations are challenging their parents’ cultural assumptions. In Britain a social tsunami has swept through national life. In education, healthcare, media, politics, police, law, armed services, homosexuality is now largely seen as phenomenon of nature, not an offence against it. Almost everywhere conventional discrimination is seen as a moral problem not a virtue.

Officially, the Church plays King Canute. But even within the Church, life has changed. Hobson describes ‘the Evangelicals’ as a homogenous bloc, but increasingly they are not. Some do exhibit traditional tribalism, but many if not most do not. Leaders like Steve Chalke and Rob Bell are re-thinking conventional shibboleths in the light of contemporary realities. Increasingly, homosexuality is openly discussed by Evangelicals who want to be good news to real people, not just tolerantly patronising.

Similarly, terms like ‘Conservatism’ and ‘Liberalism’ are changing. Traditional cardboard cut-out positions are wearing thin. There are surprising permutations out there, like economic liberals who are social conservatives and theological conservatives who are social radicals.

Where will this process end?

The strength of Christianity, historically, has been its ability to cross frontiers, transcend different cultures and adapt. Truthfulness among Anglicans, however painful, and the will to understand others, may produce a partnership of equals. A Commonwealth style communion could thrive, recalling Edwin Markham’s poem:

‘He drew a circle that shut me out-

Heretic , rebel, a thing to flout.

But love and I had the wit to win:

We drew a circle and took him In.’

Are there limits to inclusivity? Any body needs some coherence and boundaries. You can be a bit drunk but not a bit pregnant. Families can live with a teenager who spends all day in their bedroom, but not one who burns the house down. You cannot stand for race equality and retain a little enclave that bans ‘unnatural miscegenation’. The Church cannot simultaneously embody justice and injustice. It cannot expect people to believe its welcoming noises if they really mean no more than a resounding ‘yes, but…’

In its glory days, the Church of England captured and led the moral spirit of the age. Now it is, morally, at the trailing edge on equalities. If it wishes to play a significant part in the society it purports to serve, it needs to shed its institutional sexism and homophobia. Jesus mandates Christians to treat others as they would be treated. But it cannot simultaneously do this and not do this.

What about the traditional Anglican virtue of compromise? The Israeli ethicist Avishag Zahavi distinguishes between compromises and rotten compromises. The latter, like Munich 1938, mortgage the humanity of someone else. The dignity of gay people and women are not the C of E’s to give away. They cannot be compromised.

The best future for Anglicans is to shed the culture wars so artfully visited on them by cliques of zealots, not transpose them into a new key and drag things out. They need to major on the Sermon on the Mount, not 1950’s Janet-and-John biology or moralism. Doing that will yield honest unity, and a future.

Dr Alan Wilson is the Bishop of Buckingham.

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“The Church cannot simultaneously embody justice and injustice. It cannot expect people to believe its welcoming noises if they really mean no more than a resounding ‘yes, but…’..”

Bishop Alan Wilson’s timely reminder that the Church is here to serve God’s ongoing purpose in the world for which Christ died offers the opportunity to reflect on how and why the Church should revise its strategies, in order to remain relevant in today’s society. 

As the Roman Catholic Church needs to be encouraged into a new understanding of relevance in the world of today – and it may well be led in that direction by the new Pope Francis – so the Church of England needs to ‘get its act together’ on issues of gender and sexuality. As with the prospect of women clergy and bishops, the Church of England is in danger of behind left behind by its companion Churches in the non-GAFCON sector of the world-wide Anglican Communion. The Gospel must be Good News for ALL.

Father Ron Smith, Christchurch, New Zealand

A Roman Catholic Reformation under Pope Francis?

Thinking the unthinkable – ‘Tablet’ editorial - 4 May 2013

Under its new Pope, the Catholic Church begins to feel like an animal that has emerged from winter hibernation, blinking in the sunlight and looking for pastures new. From around the world the signs of this reawakening are becoming visible.

For instance, some German bishops are interested in the possibility of women being admitted to a special diaconate, as a step towards diluting the heavily masculine profile of Catholic ministry. The idea needs pushing further, not even ruling out the prospect, floated not long ago by Cardinal Timothy Dolan of New York, that women could be appointed as cardinals, given that red hats do not necessarily have to be proffered to clergy. As the Epistles of St Paul make clear, leadership positions in the Church can in principle be as open to women as to men.

It seemed far-fetched to say such a thing in the closing days of Pope Benedict’s papacy. But a pope who washes women’s feet on Maundy Thursday, and is in many ways so different from his two immediate predecessors, seems capable of doing what was once almost unthinkable. Nor is it just what he does himself that will change the Church, but how people respond to him and to the opportunities that define this new Franciscan era. In that respect, the German bishops’ fresh thinking on women’s ministry is a straw in the wind. Nor is it now unimaginable that Pope Francis’ strictures against clericalism when he was Archbishop of Buenos Aires – against clergy who strut around declaring “I’m the boss,” as he puts it – might influence the way the Church functions elsewhere.

Anglican church leaders, who had come sadly to terms with the fact that no further progress towards visible unity with the Catholic Church was likely, have already noted that a change in style in Rome could put organic union back on the agenda. The international Anglican-Catholic theological dialogue is about to resume, and the question of how the two Churches reach decisions on disputed matters is a key one. In Anglicanism the lay voice has a real right to be heard; in the Catholic system this right is purely theoretical. For its own good as well as for the sake of the ecumenical process, the Catholic Church needs to grow structures of dialogue with its own laity – for genuine listening, with a genuine prospect of responding. The Catholic Church in England and Wales has been negligent in this respect, despite the positive encouragement given to participative structures in the Second Vatican Council.

So far, the positive response to the election of Pope Francis by the bishops of England and Wales has consisted of some fine words, an expensive trip to Rome to pay him homage, and little else. History does not relate whether Francis was impressed by their visit, though it is not irrelevant that he discouraged Argentine Catholics from flocking to Rome for his installation, saying they would do better to spend the money on the poor.

The Catholic laity do not want bishops who go around proclaiming, “I’m the boss.” They want partnership with bishops who are ready to be held to account for their actions. And as in Buenos Aires under the man now called Francis, they want to be challenged by the Gospel, and in the name of Christ and the new Pope’s namesake, to become the Church of the poor.

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This ‘Tablet’ editorial, from the U.K., looks forward to some changes at the Vatican under the gentle rule of Pope Francis. The new Pope’s obvious bias toward the poor, and his desire to reform the Vatican structures, will no doubt cause some heartburn among the authority figures in the Curia.

One can imagine Saint Francis of Assisi would have been horrified at the immense wealth at the ecclesiastical seat of power in Rome. With the new Pontiff named after him; Saint Francis, The Poverello,  may just be exercising some advice, post-mortem, on what can be done to bring about the necessary devolution of power to the bishops of the Church, so that the mission can continue uncluttered and unhindered by worldly wealth and spiritual pride.

The fact that many in the Church are no longer in thrall to the supremacy of Vatican rule may stem from the incidence of unjust structures that inhibit, rather than promote, the eirenic ministry of the Body of Christ as intended at its formation in the apostolic age. Traditions that have grown up around the papacy, which have made the Pope a virtual prisoner in the hands  of the Vatican Curia, may be seen by Pope Francis as inimical to the ethos of the Servant Church, brought into being as as means of salvation for all people, rather than a bastion of privilege for its own adherents.

One can only look forward to what Pope Francis will be able to achieve in the way of change at the Head Office of his Church – that will bring about the liberation that should come with the propagation of the Gospel of Jesus Christ  - untrammelled by worldly power and glory. There are already signs that Pope Francis will be exercising his role in the service of the poor, the under-privileged, and the voiceless of the world. His holy and illustrious name-sake would have been most pleased.

Father Ron Smith, Christchurch, New Zealand