At 12.51 we were witnesses to the loss of lives: infants and pensioners; kiwis and internationals; residents and visitors; language students and teachers; parents, sisters, brothers, friends and colleagues.

We, the survivors, witnessed the life-changing moments of all those who were injured badly.

We who were ordered to walk home knew emergency crews were fighting to save lives and free the trapped.

We heard the sirens and we saw the smoke. And we know there are those who are still missing. Our hearts go out to those who wait.

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The Lichfield Diocesan Synod has become the first in the Church of England to approve the Anglican Communion Covenant with overwhelming votes in favour in all three houses (bishops, clergy and laity).

The vote at today’s meeting in Longton Hall near Stoke on Trent is in response to the General Synod’s decision to refer the matter to the dioceses. All 44 dioceses in the Church of England are being asked to “approve the draft Act of Synod adopting the Anglican Communion Covenant.” Last week the diocese of Wakefield voted to reject the motion; and the diocese of Hereford voted to refer the matter to deanery synods for wider discussion.

An attempt to adjourn the debate in Lichfield diocese so it could be referred to deanery synods was rejected with 47 voting in favour of an adjournment and 60 voting against.

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Take a guess at the seven first and then read it all.

The government said Saturday that it had found higher than normal levels of radioactive materials in spinach and milk at farms up to 90 miles away from the ravaged nuclear power plants, the first confirmation by officials that the unfolding nuclear crisis has affected the nation’s food supply.

While officials played down the immediate risks to consumers, the findings further unsettled a nation worried about the long-term effects of the damaged nuclear power plants.

The Tokyo Electric Power Company, with help from the Japan Self-Defense Force, police officers and firefighters, continued efforts to cool the damaged reactors on Saturday to try to stave off a further fuel meltdown and stem the radiation leak. The latest plan involved running a mile-long electrical transmission line to Reactor No. 2 at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station to try to restore power to its cooling system.

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The goal came with two minutes left. Wow.

Allied warplanes are stopping Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi’s forces attacking the rebel-held city of Benghazi, French President Nicolas Sarkozy said on Saturday.

Gaddafi’s troops on Saturday morning pushed into the outskirts of Benghazi, the second city of some 670,000 people, in an apparent attempt to pre-empt Western air strikes that came after a meeting of Western and Arab leaders in Paris.

But as the meeting ended, Sarkozy announced that allied air forces had already gone into action.

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During his visits to various synods and meetings, the Rev. Daniel H. Martins has encountered lots of “gray hair and bald scalps.”

His first tonsorial experience in the capital city? When he introduced himself as the bishop-elect for the Springfield Episcopal Diocese, the person cutting Martins’ hair “asked if Episcopal was Christian.”

“Years ago, there were assumptions you had about baseline knowledge of Christianity,” Martins says. “People don’t know that anymore, particularly younger people.”

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In a historic meeting, nearly 200 Episcopal Church General Convention deputies gathered here March 18 to begin a churchwide consultation on same-gender blessings.

The Standing Commission on Liturgy and Music invited one lay and one clergy deputy from each of the church’s 109 dioceses and three regional areas to hear about and reflect on its work to date on the mandate given to it in General Convention 2009 Resolution C056.

The resolution, passed in 2009, directed the SCLM to work with the House of Bishops to collect and develop theological resources and liturgies for blessing same-gender relationships. The commission is to report to the 77th General Convention in 2012 in Indianapolis.

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Nuclear power is scary stuff for most people….it’s hard not to think that way when you see headlines such as “Nuclear Catastrophe” or “Meltdown crisis”.

As a journalist, I know this is a big story.

The last time the world experienced a nuclear accident of this scale was 25 years ago, when a reactor at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant exploded. Since then, there have been a number of ‘incidents’ at nuclear facilities around the world, including Australia’s Lucas Heights facility.

But as someone with a background in science – in particular physics – I groan at the hyperbole of some of the speculation and misinformation being spread by the mainstream and social media.

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The link for this was typed incorrectly yesterday, alas–KSH.

This is my Lenten talk from this past Wednesday at the Church of the Holy Comforter in Sumter, South Carolina, as part of their series on the cross. It is an mp3 file,it lasts a little more than 30 minutes and you may find the link here.

You may also be interested in the brochure for the whole series there (pdf).

Pro-Gaddafi tanks are inside Libya’s rebel stronghold of Benghazi, a BBC journalist has witnessed, as the city came under attack.

A jet appears to have been shot down over the city in spite of a declared ceasefire and a UN no-fly resolution.

World leaders are due to meet in Paris to discuss military action.

The rebel leader has appealed to the international community to stop the pro-Gaddafi bombardment, but the government denies claims of attacks.

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O God, who from the family of thy servant David didst raise up Joseph to be the guardian of thy incarnate Son and the spouse of his virgin mother: Give us grace to imitate his uprightness of life and his obedience to thy commands; through the same thy Son Jesus Christ our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.

O God, who by thy Son dost marvellously work out the salvation of mankind: Grant, we beseech thee, that, following the example of our blessed Lord, and observing such a fast as thou dost choose, we may both be subjected to thee with all our hearts, and united to each other in holy charity; through the same Jesus Christ our Lord.

–Gelasian Sacramentary

So also Christ did not exalt himself to be made a high priest, but was appointed by him who said to him, “Thou art my Son, today I have begotten thee”; as he says also in another place, “Thou art a priest for ever, after the order of Melchiz’edek.” In the days of his flesh, Jesus offered up prayers and supplications, with loud cries and tears, to him who was able to save him from death, and he was heard for his godly fear. Although he was a Son, he learned obedience through what he suffered; and being made perfect he became the source of eternal salvation to all who obey him, being designated by God a high priest after the order of Melchiz’edek.

–Hebrews 5:5-10

Global reaction to the book makes it clear that Benedict XVI has contributed a work on Jesus that is as important and historically significant as it is well-written and thorough.

“It’s a remarkable achievement,” said Protestant scholar Dr. Craig A. Evans of Acadia Divinity College, Acadia University, in Wolfville, N.S., Canada. “It’s the best book I’ve read on Jesus in years. This is a book that I think all Christians should read, be they Protestant or Catholic.”

“(The Pope) asked for the union of theology and critical history, a response to the failure of critical historical scholarship during the last century,” said Dr. Jacob Neusner, Rabbi and Distinguished Research Professor of Religion and Theology at Bard College in Annandale-on-Hudson, N.Y. “And he’s accomplished something that no one else has achieved in the modern study of Scripture.”

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You can find the link here if you are interested.

The Anglican Church in North America will be holding informational meetings April 1, 6 and 9 regarding plans to open a new church under the leadership of the Rev. Brian Chase of Hartville.

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One of Liverpool’s oldest churches has received a £400,000 English Heritage grant to help fund its restoration.

St James Church on Upper Parliament Street received the money for a new roof as part of a restoration project due to start in the summer.

The Anglican church, built in 1775, closed in the 1970s and lay derelict for 36 years before reopening in 2009.

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Trying to outmaneuver Western military intervention, Moammar Gadhafi’s government declared a cease-fire on Friday against the rebel uprising faltering against his artillery, tanks and warplanes. The opposition said shells rained down well after the announcement and accused the Libyan leader of lying.

Wary of the cease-fire, Britain and France took the lead in plans to enforce a no-fly zone, sending British warplanes to the Mediterranean and announcing a crisis summit in Paris with the U.N. and Arab allies. In Washington, President Barack Obama ruled out the use of American ground troops but warned that the U.S., which has an array of naval and air forces in the region, would join in military action.

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The RSA Security division of the EMC Corporation said Thursday that it had suffered a sophisticated data breach, potentially compromising computer security products widely used by corporations and governments.

The company, which pioneered an advanced cryptographic system during the 1980s, sells products that offer stronger computer security than simple password protection. Known as multifactor authentication, the technology is typically based on an electronic token carried by a user that repeatedly generates a time-based number that must be appended to a password when a user logs in to a computer system.

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