The Anglican Church of Melanesia has a new bishop for the Diocese of Banks and Torres.

The Diocese of Banks and Torres Electoral Board of the Anglican Church of Melanesia has today elected the Revd Patteson Alfred Worek as the third Bishop for the Diocese of Banks and Torres. The meeting which was preceded by a retreat yesterday was held at Tete Ni Kolivutu, East of Honiara.

The Revd Patteson Worek is currently undertaking a Master of Theology Studies at the Pacific Theological College in Suva, Fiji. He graduated with a Bachelor in Theology from the University of Auckland, New Zealand in 1998.

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“It’s much like a divorce,” said the Rev. J.T. Jeffords, minister at St. Paul’s Church in Conway, which was formerly St. Paul’s Episcopal Church. “Everyone is affected.”

“In these situations, even if you win, you lose,” said Dan Ennis, dean of the Edwards College of Humanities and Fine Arts and one of the leaders of the group of Episcopalians who left St. Paul’s last year and has now formed the community of St. Anne’s.

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Of all her academic heresies, however, none was more upsetting to [Jean Bethke] Elshtain’s colleagues than her support for aggressive military action against terrorist organizations and, a decade ago, her defense of the war in Iraq. Having written about the politics and morality of war since the beginning of her career in the 1970s, Elshtain insisted that America’s conflict with al Qaeda was not a matter of international law enforcement, as some insisted. It was a war.

Terrorists, and states that support them, are not merely engaged in criminal activities; they are our enemies””in the same way that Nazi Germany and imperial Japan were our enemies in World War II. As she wrote in her 2003 book, “Just War Against Terror: The Burden of American Power in a Violent World”: “With our great power comes an even greater responsibility. One of our ongoing responsibilities is to respond to the cries of the aggrieved. Victims of genocide, for example, have a reasonable expectation that powerful nations devoted to human rights will attempt to stay the hand of the murderers.”

That did not mean that force is always justified or that no rules apply. Elshtain was a believer in, and a leading interpreter of, the tradition known as “just war theory.” This tradition does not propose pacifism””the view that the use of force is inherently unjustifiable. On the contrary, just-war theory says that in the face of unjust aggression, nations sometimes have a duty to use military force. They are also obligated to fight with all legitimate means to win””to defeat the enemy and halt its aggression.

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Before I ever met you personally, I saw these witnessing videos that went viral. Are you the evangelism linebacker? How did that happen?

That’s me. When they were developing the idea, someone had heard me speak at the University of Montana State and said I would be perfect for the role. In 2004, they flew me to Bozeman, Montana and told me the idea for the character. We started to film and I just made up every line as we went.

It started as a bundle with other videos for Campus Crusade, but the Evangelism Linebacker ended up on YouTube. It had a million views way before a lot of other videos did, since this was still the infancy of YouTube. If that had happened today, it would be crazy viral. It ended up with this cult following. In one way it was a positive, but in another way people assume that all I can do is give a motivational talk. So when I started to talk ecclesiology and soteriology, people didn’t know what to do.

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Jenny Herrera, Director of Acts 435, said:

“It is important that people realise that their contribution, no matter how small, can make a real practical difference in the lives of others. The #LittleActs campaign is a great way for people to engage and encourage others to help transform the lives of others.

“Every week during the campaign, I will be blogging on the Acts website about the progress that little acts can make in the fight against poverty. It is wonderful that Acts 435 has already helped hundreds of people across the country, and we want to inspire others to do the same….

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Cardinal Theodore McCarrick, retired Archbishop of Washington, has said he opposes US military intervention in Syria, saying that he is “not in favour of going to war to make peace”.

“We made the mistake in Iraq. I hope we don’t make the mistake again in Syria,” he told Catholic News Service on Thursday after visiting some of the nearly half-million refugees who had fled to Jordan, Syria’s southern neighbour.

When asked what was worse, either allow Syria to use chemical weapons and do nothing or go in with limited military strikes, he quickly responded: “Neither is the proper answer.”

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For the first time, archaeologists have been able to date the final phase of the Christianisation of Anglo-Saxon England.

Although the rulers of most ofthe Anglo-Saxon kingdoms officially converted from paganism to Christianity at various times between AD597 and 655, some evidence now suggests that up to 20 per cent of the population still continued to maintain pagan-originating traditions, especially in terms of burial rites.

But new archaeological research, from a project funded by English Heritage, shows that the practice of the pagan burial tradition, namely the use of grave goods, came to an abrupt end in the 670s.

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For those left behind by the long, slow economic recovery, time is running out.

More than four years after the recession officially ended, 11.5 million Americans are unemployed, many of them for years. Millions more have abandoned their job searches, hiding from the economic storm in school or turning to government programs for support. A growing body of economic research suggests that the longer they remain on the sidelines, the less likely they will be to work again; for many, it may already be too late.

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The sharpest modern twist in world religion this past (Jewish calendar) year, however, occurred in Christianity. The election of Pope Francis has sent shockwaves through that world ”“ so many of his public actions and comments, and certainly his very apparent humility, suggest the Church is on the path to becoming more open and, crucially, willing to atone for, and fix, its past sins. You can’t ask for a better advocate for that monumental endeavour than the man at the very top, and Francis has given every indication he is up to the task. In particular, his recent “who am I to judge?” line about gay people was absolutely brilliant ”“ the lesson not to pass judgment transcends all religious boundaries, and that’s why it made such perfect sense. One hopes he’s just getting started on the job of modernizing and cleaning up the Church.

Alas, the ongoing killing of Muslims by Muslims in Syria, the death toll now above 110,000 (at least 1,400 by a gas attack) with 1.5 million refugees and seven million displaced, suggests Islam still has a long way to go before it achieves modernity. And the situation in Egypt, where the military is back in power, having ousted a democratically elected (though not exactly democratic) government, is also discouraging, to say the least. Even in Turkey, among the most modern Muslim lands, there are fears the country is moving away from democracy under Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

And yet there is a definite bright side: At the heart of the Arab Spring, especially in Egypt, is a deep yearning for freedom from oppression, political and religious.

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As the war in Syria continues unabated, the majority of Syrians surveyed in June and July see bleak prospects for the conflict ending soon. Fifty-one percent of Syrians see the conflict consuming their lives for at least one or two more years, while 30% see it ending in less than a year.

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A powerful bomb blasted through a convoy of cars carrying the interior minister along a residential street on Thursday, raising fears of a widely predicted turn toward terrorist violence by opponents of the military ouster of President Mohamed Morsi.

The minister escaped and so did his would-be assassins. But the explosion killed at least one police officer, injured 10 others and wounded at least 11 civilians, according to an official statement from the Interior Ministry. Speaking independently, Gen. Osama al-Soghayar, security chief for Cairo, put the number of civilians injured far higher, at more than 60. Read it all.

O Lord God, who by thy holy apostle hast taught us always to rejoice in thee, and to be anxious for nothing: Grant, we beseech thee, that, making our requests known to thee, we may be partakers of the peace that passeth all understanding, which thou hast promised us in thy Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.

But I trust in thee, O LORD, I say, “Thou art my God.” My times are in thy hand; deliver me from the hand of my enemies and persecutors! Let thy face shine on thy servant; save me in thy steadfast love!

–Psalm 31:15-16

If the House voted today on a resolution to attack Syria, President Barack Obama would lose ”” and lose big.

That’s the private assessment of House Republican and Democratic lawmakers and aides who are closely involved in the process.

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After one set, Andy Murray slammed his racket into the court and mangled it once he reached his chair on the sideline. After the second, he gestured over to coach Ivan Lendl and let out a frustrated scream.

Stanislas Wawrinka had the US Open defending champion in knots all day, and when the surprisingly short, less-than-competitive match was finished Thursday, Murray was a 6-4, 6-3, 6-2 upset loser in the quarterfinals at Flushing Meadows.

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An English priest, the Revd Dr Helen-Ann Hartley, has been elected as the new Bishop of Waikato Diocese in the Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand & Polynesia.

Dr Hartley, 40, has been living and working in the country since 2011 as the Dean of Tikanga Pakeha students at St John’s College in Auckland. She will be the 7th Bishop of Waikato and the first woman to hold the office.

In a statement released today Bishop-elect Hartley said she was looking forward to travelling around the diocese and learning more about its people and places.

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When Hurricane Katrina destroyed Nikki Moon’s Bay Town Inn bed and breakfast resort in Bay St. Louis, she knew she’d return to Old Town some day.

Eight years later, the resort is back with more amenities and a unique space.

“I knew in my heart that I wanted to do it again,” Moon said. “I just had to wait for the timing to be right.”

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Amid increasing calls for legalization of abortion in Africa, botched cases among young women are on the rise, according to recent reports.

Governments are responding by distributing contraceptives, but the Roman Catholic Church, some Muslim groups and anti-abortion groups are waging their own campaigns against contraception, warning it will further escalate the problem.

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The American bar mitzvah, facing derision for Las Vegas style excess, is about to get a full makeover, but for an entirely different reason.

Families have been treating this rite of passage not as an entry to Jewish life, but as a graduation ceremony: turn 13, read from the Torah, have a party and it’s over. Many leave synagogue until they have children of their own, and many never return at all ”” a cycle that Jewish leaders say has been undermining organized Judaism for generations.

As Jews celebrate the new year Wednesday night, leaders in the largest branch of Judaism, the Reform movement, are starting an initiative to stop the attrition by reinventing the entire bar and bat mitzvah process.

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Syria’s bioweapons program, which U.S. officials believe has been largely dormant since the 1980s, is likely to possess the key ingredients for a weapon….This latent capability has begun to worry some of Syria’s neighbors, especially after allegations that the regime of President Bashar al-Assad used internationally banned chemical weapons against civilians in an Aug. 21 attack.

Top intelligence officials in two Middle East countries said they have examined the potential for bioweapons use by Syria, perhaps as retaliation for Western military strikes on Damascus. Although dwarfed by the country’s larger and better-known chemical weapons program, Syria’s bioweapons capability could offer the Assad regime a way to retaliate because the weapons are designed to spread easily and leave few clues about their origins, the officials said.

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The US Federal Trade Commission has sanctioned a home video monitoring company for privacy violations, indicating the US regulator plans to closely evaluate the security promises of the growing number of internet-connected consumer devices now flooding the market.

This is the FTC’s first action taken against a product from the so-called “internet of things”, which includes a range of new, popular gadgets, from Samsung’s wearable “smartwatch” to Google Glass to baby monitors linked to mobile devices.

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Although none suspected that the faithful had desisted from sin, for years priests have reported a decline in the number of Catholics seeking out the sacrament of confession.

The trend now appears to have been reversed, with a surge in confessions, particularly among the young.

The rise is being credited to the visit to Britain of Benedict XVI in 2010 and the election this year of Pope Francis.

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Soon after becoming a Christian, Staten Island native George Zaloom’s international real-estate business fell apart. The only thing he had left was his automotive business, Zaloom’s Auto Repair. After an innocent question posed by the father of a friend, Zaloom embraced the mundane work of oil changes and tire rotations with one phrase: “Yes, I’m the mechanic.”

In this short film from City film director Nathan Clarke, Zaloom describes the joy of work””a joy that matches that found at home and at church: “If you can’t find joy eight hours a day, there’s something wrong.”

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Below is Eternity’s interview with Matt Prater, Pastor at New Hope Baptist Church and Vision radio presenter in Queensland. Matt challenged Kevin Rudd about same sex marriage on ABC’s Q&A [this past]…Monday September 2. John Sandeman interviewed Matt for Eternity….

Matt, what was your main concern in going on Q&A?

I felt a bit like Daniel in the lion’s den. It was a pretty hostile crowd. But I was able to share my view and I just think it is good to have a healthy robust discussion about this topic….

As for my question””I have just noticed so many Christian people disillusioned with Kevin because he has changed his view on what the Bible says about marriage and his quoting the Bible out of context. I said to him “Really, we have to get back to Jesus.”

Christianity is all about Jesus. And what did Jesus say about marriage? If this is what Jesus says about marriage, its good enough for me.

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Story Index:

Communion Bishops go to Canterbury 00:00
Texas & South Carolina Victories 07:23
Teaching Americans how to speak English 18:11
It is Just a War 31:50
Trimming the dead branches 39:38
Closing and Bloooopers 44:21

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In July 2013 parliament passed historic legislation to open up marriage to same-sex couples. It followed a bitter row both inside and outside the Palace of Westminster which laid bare some of the deepest divisions in our modern society.

The Meaning of Matrimony: Debating Same-Sex Marriage captures that argument in a series of passionately-written essays exploring the subject from all sides. With contributions ranging from Lord Carey to Peter Tatchell, the book seeks to provide a definitive guide to a debate which has encompassed much more than simply allowing same-sex couples to wed.

Now available to buy as a book, it explores whether marriage should embody ‘tradition’ or social change, the function of marriage in society and whether breaking the measure is liberal or illiberal. Along the way, questions are also asked about the nature of the debate itself, whether there has been adequate discussion, and where the balance should lie between legislation and social attitudes?

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….not all relationships are the same. Those who are currently proposing to extend the understanding of marriage to include same sex partnership are doing so in the name of equality. Even if they acknowledge that they are doing something quite unprecedented, they believe they have the moral right to do so and the assent of the people.

In my view this is mistaken. This change assumes that marriage is simply a civil rite of passage which the State in its wisdom can change if it so wishes. Of course, if we take this point of view, it is entirely rational to do so on the basis that, if homosexual relationships are the same as marital partnerships, then nothing fundamental is being changed at all.

Marriage, however, cannot be defined as simply as the government supposes.

What then is marriage? I have already used the word ”˜unprecedented’ of the Government’s desire to extend marriage to Civil Partnerships. And it is because marriage has ALWAYS been understood as a heterosexual relationship binding a man and a woman is an exclusive and life-long commitment….

To find the rest go here and follow down until you see “Civitas Article” on which you may click to access it.

Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu is one of fourteen signatories to an article in Living Church magazine entitled Defending Bishop Tengatenga.

The article highlighted what the fourteen said was a “gross injustice” to Bishop of Southern Malawi James Tengatenga whose job offer was withdrawn by New Hampshire’s Dartmouth College following complaints made by some students and staff….

“The President’s decision brought applause from some in the Dartmouth community,” it said. “Others were appalled, as are we. The action represents a gross injustice to an individual who would have made an ideal person to provide moral and ethical leadership at the College.

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