In concluding, I wish to make two points:
a) The absolute necessity for economic empowerment in the Global South and
b) The treachery of another Gospel which is afraid of and denies the deity of Christ.
The first point: We in the Global South must realise that God has not cheated us in the area of natural and human resources. It is God’s will that we grow economically, to provide for our needs for the work of God and give to those in need. It is not God’s will that we remain perpetually dependent on the handouts from the sacrifice and self-denial offerings of other people. More so, when sometimes these handouts are given with strong strings attached to buy loyalty or compromise on critical issues of faith. We should dig deep wherever we are, and educate our members of the grave danger of living on other people’s resources. We must work together on equal partnership in the fellowship of the gospel with those who are sincere, and who live according to the truth of the Gospel. Grants, donations, gifts and any form of assistance given rather patronizingly should be rejected. We must relate and negotiate from the point of strength rather than a beggarly position.
In Being Faithful13, this idea is captured this way:
“…but there are ways of providing support and showing concern that are ultimately irresponsible, even if well-intended. We think, for instance, of the way that support to the poverty-stricken, both within individual nations and between nations, has sometimes helped create a demeaning culture of dependency and perpetuated problems of vulnerability and indignity rather than solving them”.
The LORD also gave us some talents (Mt. 25:14 ”“ 30). We must not condemn ourselves by sheer lack of enterprise. Secondly, the deity of Christ is increasingly becoming offensive in some quarters in our communion. For others the uniqueness of Christ cannot be taught in our pluralistic society. But pluralism was there, in the first …[century]. The Jewish religion was there, so were the Greek Philosophies and religions, hence it was said that the cross was foolishness to the Greeks, and a stumbling block to the Jews. The creeds, the 39 articles (see 2, 3, 4) and the Holy Scriptures, all uphold the deity and uniqueness of Jesus, the Christ. To deny these fundamentals is to abandon the way; it is apostasy; it is “another gospel”, which is condemned in scripture.
After reading this intellectually pithy address, TEC’s claim to be a “thinking man’s church” seems rather vacuous.
Prayers for GSE4 may be found at [url=http://anglicanprayer.wordpress.com/2010/04/14/roundup-of-south-to-south-resources/]Lent & Beyond[/url].
I have been praying for such teaching and awareness in Africa for many years. I rejoice with growth in Jesus Christ that will result. It is of great and mighty blessing to give a cup of water in Jesus name; We must apply ourselves in every way to do so.
I rejoice with a Church that through great trials is learning to be a “giver” and learning through great blessings to be a producer!
WOW!
Don
From reading the various addresses, the conference is clearly off to a good start. Abp. Okoh’s sermon (I know, it is a plenary address, but I know a sermon when I see one) is a call to all Anglicans both north and south, to make a stand for the Gospel of Jesus Christ. His words deserve careful study from all of us. Based on the published addresses from his installation as Primate of Nigeria and today’s, he seems a worthy successor to the esteemed Abp. Akinola.
A minor correction, Jill. To avoid a charge of outright heresy on the HoBD listserve, you should amend your post to “TEC’s claim to be the thinking [i]person’s[/i] church.”
Meanwhile, back in England, the delegation being sent to keep an eye on things and promote the Cantaur-Cameron-KJS-JSC-SCAC draft of the Covenant are currently grounded by an “act of God” that has “darkened the skies” and caused “mud to rain down from the heavens.” Of course, enlightened Anglicans of the West are using such phrases only as a literary device. While most in England are attributing this to Mother Nature, the distinction between CoE and TEC is that in TEC, they are preparing services for Mother Nature to propitiate her recent anger.