He was the senior Newcastle cleric with a prominent role on the Anglican Church’s sexual abuse working group in 2003 that developed national professional standards.

But the 13th Anglican Dean of Newcastle, Graeme Lawrence, was also in a “gang of three” protecting a notorious Hunter paedophile priest, and led a Griffith group of offenders to the Hunter who were later defrocked after child sex allegations, the royal commission has heard.

Over the next two weeks the commission will hear evidence Mr Lawrence’s power and influence protected child sex offenders for several decades, but did not end with his defrocking in 2012.

“It is anticipated there will be evidence that Lawrence had, and continues to have, considerable influence in the diocese,” counsel assisting Naomi Sharp told the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse sitting in Newcastle on Tuesday.

Read it all from the Newcastle Herald.

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A devastating story of mass child rape perpetrated by an Anglican paedophile ring is unfolding in the latest hearing of Australia’s Royal Commission into child sexual abuse.

The first day of the two-week sessions heard of the crimes perpetrated by Rev Peter Rushton, an Anglican priest who was Archdeacon of Maitland and who died in 2007.

His catalogue of child rape and abuse was finally exposed by an ABC investigation. He led a paedophile ring involving other clergy and lay people from the Newcastle diocese over as many as four decades.

Rushton’s godson, Paul Gray, told how he was taken to St Alban’s School for Boys in Hunter Valley. This was the 1960s, and boys would be anally and orally raped by groups of men in a locked room called the “f***ing room”, according to Daily Mail Australia.

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Another gay Anglican vicar has married his long-term male partner, defying the Church of England’s ban on clergy entering same-sex marriages.

Rev Paul Collier has kept his position as priest of St Hugh’s in the Diocese of Southwark after he converted his civil partnership to a marriage in early June with a celebratory service in London.

Collier admitted his marriage put him at odds with the House of Bishops, the body which issued guidance banning clergy from entering gay marriages. He told Christian Today that he had heard from his bishop, and said he had been dealt with “in accordance with the House of Bishops’ pastoral statement on same-sex marriage”.

He declined to elaborate but said: “My personal reading of the situation is I am unlikely to obtain any other positions within the Church of England.” But he said he would continue to serve as a priest at his current church.

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The Archbishop of Canterbury has chosen to base the reconciliation ministry in Coventry Cathedral after previously spending his time at the Cathedral between 2002 and 2007 as a Canon for Reconciliation.

The new adviser and her team will be based here ”“ and Sarah will be licensed as an Honorary Canon of the Cathedral.

Sarah will work alongside the Cathedral’s own reconciliation team, led by Canon Dr Sarah Hills, and will bring her substantial experience to the ministry of reconciliation while supporting Archbishop Justin in his priority of reconciliation.

Sarah joins amid a busy time for the Cathedral which has hosted events in the past months including an Iftar for the local Muslim community, listening circles for those on either side of the post referendum debate and spaces for prayer or reflection following the tragic events in Orlando, and in Nice.

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(Photo by Jacob Borrett)

The Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse (IICSA) has begun a “rapid evidence assessment” as part of its investigation into the Anglican Churches in England and Wales, the Inquiry’s Counsel, Ben Emmerson QC, said this week.

Mr Emmerson made his com­ments on Wednesday at the Royal Courts of Justice in the Strand, Lon­don, where Justice Lowell Goddard was holding a series of preliminary hearings into the Inquiry’s different strands.

He revealed that the Inquiry’s research team was sifting through information and evidence from 114 different sources. Among them was the Archbishops’ Council of the Church of England, which had sup­plied over 7000 items of evidence relating to the diocese of Chichester and the case of Bishop Peter Ball, which are being used as case studies by the Inquiry.

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St Anne’s Cathedral has appointed a Roman Catholic priest as one of its canons for the first time.

Father Edward O’Donnell, parish priest of St Brigid’s in south Belfast, is now one of three “ecumenical canons” at the Church of Ireland cathedral.

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“We welcome todays update on the investigation into the Anglican Church in England and Wales and the acknowledgment from the Inquiry that the material already submitted is relevant and useful. We note that the Inquiry has received a substantial amount of material from us and other core participants and the analysis of this is now underway as is the process of identifying possible witnesses….

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The Archbishop of Rouen, Dominique Lebrun, is returning to Normandy from Krakow, where he was attending events linked to the Roman Catholic Church’s World Youth Day. “I cry out to God with all men of good will,” he said. “I would invite non-believers to join in the cry!

“The Catholic Church cannot take weapons other than those of prayer and brotherhood among men. I leave [in Krakow] hundreds of young people who are the future of humanity, the true ones. I ask them not to give into violence and become apostles of the civilisation of love.”

The Bishop-in-Charge of the Convocation of Episcopal Churches in Europe, Pierre Whalon, responded to the Archbishop’s statement on Twitter, saying: “Amen. This could have been one of ours. . . In fact, it was.”

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ST.-ÉTIENNE-DU-ROUVRAY, France ”” Attendance was sparse at the 9 a.m. Mass on Tuesday at the Église St.-Étienne, a 17th-century church in a working-class town in Normandy. Many regular parishioners were on vacation; so was the parish priest.

Mass was ending around 9:30 a.m. when two young men with knives burst in. They forced the auxiliary priest, the Rev. Jacques Hamel, 85, to kneel. When he resisted, they slit his throat. They held several worshipers and at least one nun hostage, while another nun escaped. Officers from a specialized police unit descended on the church. A short while later, officers shot the young men dead when they emerged from the church.

The brutality in St.-Étienne-du-Rouvray, a suburb of Rouen in northern France, was the latest in a series of assaults that have left Europe stunned, fearful and angry. President François Hollande raced to the town and blamed the Islamic State for the attack; soon after, the terrorist group claimed responsibility, calling the attackers its “soldiers.”

It was the fourth attack linked to the Islamic State in Western Europe in less than two weeks

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A notice on a church website, which was removed after The Sunday Times began making inquiries, read: “A ceremony of commitment and blessing . . . Clive will be resigning his post in the church from the day before.”

The notice requested that guests “make a bit of an effort” by bringing “your favourite savoury or sweet dish to share” and suggested bringing “enough [drink] for yourself and maybe a bit extra just in case”.

The service included a blessing from a liturgy originally intended for civil partnerships, beginning: “God the giver of life, God the bearer of pain, God the maker of love, bless, preserve and keep you.”

Larsen said he did not want to embarrass either the Church of England or David Walker, the Bishop of Manchester, by discussing the details of his departure…

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The affirmation culture of pop psychology has made its way into the theological academy, at least at mainline Protestant seminaries. We are told that we can be the leaders who will fix the church and that all of our snazzy ideas are totally going to work, indeed, that they are “prophetic” (please stop using that word to describe anyone you know).

Of course, the problem with this system is that then our seminaries send these “prophetic” newly ordained people into actual churches with actual lay people. And the ability of lay people to spot bad ideas is very strong. This combination usually makes for a painful, short marriage. One need only glance at the numbers of clergy who last less than five years in parish ministry to know that perhaps that professor was right. Maybe we are all idiots for wanting to do ministry in churches; the smart ones got out ahead of time.
Or maybe our seminaries could do better by the people they are training. Why are we not telling people in seminary that if they do not want serve in churches then they should not be pursuing ordination? I understand the practical reasons (mostly money), but I am astonished that we do not see the negative endgame for the church, not to mention the damage it does to the individual paying for an education: Paying student loans for a ministerial education that proved worthless is a sure and certain path to embitterment.

When I was in seminary, I remember having an endless number of conversations with people in their 20s who wanted to be ordained but classified themselves as “just not sure” about the church. Most of them were interested in academics. I wonder how many professors of systematic theology or biblical studies we will need in the future. According to the flood of people in our seminaries, I am guessing 4 million.

I would suggest that our seminaries are inadvertently devastating our churches. Most people who are ordained do end up in some kind of ordained ministry at some point in their career. However, if they have been encouraged and you are so special-ed through seminary, then it seems perfectly logical to them that they can make their living being an urban garden planter who occasionally talks about Jesus.’

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The church’s executive pastors met with Noble “over the course of several months” to discuss their concerns about his dependence on alcohol, which eventually resulted in his removal.
“In my opinion, the bible (sic) does not prohibit the use of alcohol, but it does prohibit drunkenness and intoxication,” Noble wrote to his congregation of 18 years. “I never had a problem drinking alcohol socially, but in the past year or so I have allowed myself to slide into, in my opinion, the overuse of alcohol.
“This was a spiritual and moral mistake on my part,” Noble wrote, “as I began to depend on alcohol for my refuge instead of Jesus and others.”
Noble’s addiction””and his church’s concern””are not new. Nearly one in five pastors report that they have struggled with addiction to alcohol or prescription drugs, according to a 2013 survey by Barna Group.

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About 2,000 members made the warm walk across the NewSpring Church parking lot in Anderson for each worship service Sunday morning.

Few were fully braced for the news that awaited: Perry Noble, the only senior pastor the church has known, has been removed from his duties for personal issues related to alcohol by the church’s leadership team.

Williamston Town Councilman Rockey Burgess said the news “did come as a shock” in the 9:15 a.m. service, even though recent rumors had prepared him to a degree.

“But the church isn’t made up of the preacher, and the church doesn’t worship the preacher,” he said. “The church is the people who go there, and we all love one another.”

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The Promenade in Nice, where at least 84 people were mown down by a lorry on Thursday evening, resembles a war zone, the Anglican chaplain in the town has said.

The Chaplain of Holy Trinity, the Revd Peter Jackson, said on Friday that the town was in shock after the attack, which has also left dozens fighting for their lives in hospital.

He had taken part in the Bastille Day festivities in Nice just a few hours before the carnage began. “I know exactly where this happened: it is so familiar. I can’t believe something like this happened there,” he said.

“It’s horrible: it becomes a sort of war zone. But people are determined to just carry on.

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The new Prime Minister Theresa May has said that her Government will give back control to the poor, the stigmatised, and the vulnerable in the UK, and will be driven by the interests of the people, as she succeeded David Cameron as the leader of the Conservative Party and became the second woman to lead the UK.

Speaking outside 10 Downing Street for the first time as Prime Minister on Wednesday evening, she praised Mr Cameron’s “one nation Government” and said that she would work towards the union, “not just of the nations of the United Kingdom, but of citizens, wherever we are or whatever we’re from”.

The Government will not just be led by the “privileged few” but for every one of us, she said: “Together we will build a better Britain.”

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The Sexual Offences (Amendment) Act 1992 protects those alleging non-statutory offences as well as statutory offences and also protects against “jigsaw identification” where members of the public can piece together clues about a complainant’s identity.

[Paul] Butler says: “As you will understand, extreme caution is required, particularly in view of the information already in the public domain. It worth stressing that although Carol has shared some details publicly, she has not waived confidentiality in those she has not shared.”

Butler says he is “mystified” how the group can believe the Church can disclose documents provided by Carol’s solicitor. “On a wider point, it is singularly unattractive to suggest that because there might be no legal consequences to breaching Carol’s confidence, the Church should simply provide sensitive material to a group of individuals with a keen interest in but no connection with the case.”

Carol has already expressed herself hurt by the campaign to “clear his name” as it implies that she has not been believed, Butler says.

Read it all from Christian Today.

It is time my friends. It is past time.

When the vote was announced I was extremely disappointed. However it is also true that a very significant majority (70%) of General Synod delegates have voted in favour of authorizing same sex marriages. This is good news. Unfortunately, a change to Marriage Canon XXI will not happen at this time. While a strong majority voted in favour in each of the orders of Bishops, Clergy and Laity, the two-thirds threshold required in the Order of Clergy for changing a Canon fell short by one vote.

It is now up to and within the authority of a diocesan bishop to respond in a manner that they deem appropriate.

It is my intention, in consultation with and in partnership with a number of other diocesan bishops to proceed with same sex marriages immediately within the Diocese of Ottawa. While no clergy will be required to officiate at a same sex marriage, those willing may do so with my permission.

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I have no easy answer to the crisis in which we find ourselves as Americans. But this much is clear: Dallas Christians, black and white, of all denominations, are called to stand together. As one we pray for those harmed. We who do so are already one body in Jesus Christ, in spite of all the fault lines in our society. May the Holy Spirit guide us all in discerning the shape of our common witness. May we all be praying for the welfare of our city and all its inhabitants. May He protect all exposed to danger in their work.

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The crowd who gathered for the memorial service for the Rt. Rev. Edward L. Salmon, Jr. , 13th Bishop of South Carolina, held at the Cathedral of St. Luke and St. Paul, Charleston, July 6, 2016, heard about “The faith of Christ that formed him, the man of Christ he became and the challenge of Christ Ed Salmon would offer.”

The Rev. Canon Dr. Kendall S. Harmon, the Diocese’s Canon Theologian who served under Bishop Salmon, gave the sermon. The two were friends and co-workers for more than 25 years in various settings.

The Rt. Rev. Mark J. Lawrence, 14th Bishop of South Carolina, served as the celebrant at the service.

“He was a shepherd,” said Harmon. “He saw the church as precious and served the church out of love, devotion, respect and admiration, doing it for the one who brought the church into being in the first place.”

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Two Victoria leaders in the Anglican church will argue in favour of allowing same-sex marriage at a national council meeting in Ontario this week ”” which is coincidentally Pride week.

“We’ve been talking about this since the ’60s. ”¦ I look at it as a justice issue,” said Logan McMenamie, bishop of Vancouver Island, the Gulf Islands and Kingcome Inlet.

The Anglican Church of Canada will discuss and vote on changing the canon definition of marriage from being between a man and a woman to between two persons. Currently, the Anglican church performs blessings for same-sex civil unions.

The vote takes place at the General Synod, a national gathering, held every three years, of the houses that make up the Anglican church: The laity, clergy and bishops. In March, the house of bishops said it was not likely to pass the vote.

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I would like to ask your prayers for the memorial service for Bishop Edward Salmon today at 4pm at the Cathedral of St Luke+St Paul in Charleston. I have the huge privilege and responsibility of preaching–KSH.

Found there:

Salmon, The Right Reverend Edward Lloyd, Junior– The Right Reverend Edward Lloyd Salmon, Junior, a longtime bishop in the Episcopal Church, died on June 29, 2016 after a lengthy battle with cancer, at the age of 82. Bishop Salmon, a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of the University of the South, in Sewanee, TN (C’56), and Virginia Theological Seminary (T’60), had his first job taking care of three small missions in Northwest Arkansas. He built the church in Rogers into a parish, and then moved to Fayetteville to be the assistant at St. Paul’s; when the then-rector retired, he became rector. After 11 years in Fayetteville, he accepted a call to be the rector of the Church of St. Michael and St. George, in St. Louis, Missouri. Ten years later, he was elected on the first ballot to be the 13th bishop of the Diocese of South Carolina, a position from which he retired after 18 years, in 2008.
He came out of retirement several months later to serve as the interim Dean of Nashotah House Theological Seminary, in Nashotah, Wisconsin, then moved to Chevy Chase, Maryland, to become the interim rector of All Saints’ Church. From there, he returned to Nashotah House and became the 19th Dean and President; he retired from that position in January 2015. During his 55 years in ordained ministry, he served on many boards, including: Kanuga Camp and Conference Center, which he chaired for a term; Sewanee: The University of the South, where he also served a term as regent; Nashotah House Theological Seminary, where he was chairman for thirteen of his 22 years on the board; and The Anglican Digest, where he was chairman for 41 of his 44 years on the board. He is survived by Louise, his wife of 43 years, daughter Catherine, son Edward III (Theresa), and three grandchildren: Fiona, Celia, and Edward IV. He is also survived by family members from Natchez, Mississippi: sister Sarah, sister-in-law Virginia, niece Amelia (Ben), nephew Burl (Bob), and great nephew Gibson. Services: The funeral will be held at the Church of St. Michael and St. George, 6345 Wydown Boulevard at Ellenwood, Clayton, on Thursday, July 7 at 7:00 p.m.; a reception will follow in the Great Hall. There will not be a visitation; however, for those who wish to pay their respects or say a prayer, there will be a vigil kept at the Church of St. Michael and St. George, beginning at 5:00 p.m. on Wednesday, July 6 and ending at 5:00 p.m. on Thursday, July 7. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be sent to The Anglican Digest, 805 County Road 102, Eureka Springs, Arkansas 72632-9705. Any clergy wishing to vest and process at the funeral should be vested in cassock, surplice, and white stole.

“Edward Salmon loved Christ and His Church, and gave himself completely to service. He lived hospitality, welcoming all as Christ. He was a man of deep prayer and spiritual insight, and it showed in the way he lived,” said The Very Reverend Steven A. Peay, Dean and President of Nashotah House. “My fondest memory of him is his love of the intellectual life. He delighted in conversations with the faculty. He was quick to say that he was not a scholar, but that never kept him from thinking, reading and asking questions.”

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“He was a champion of the faith; a tireless churchman””whose principled wisdom, sagacious humor and razor wit were legendary and widely loved by the casual acquaintance as well as by his family and longtime friends,” said the Rt. Rev. Mark Lawrence, 14th Bishop of South Carolina. “His warm and steadfast counsel, which was sought by thousands around the larger Anglican world, will be deeply missed even as his aphorisms will be long remembered.”

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