A new Pastoral Forum is to be set up to bring rebel provinces into line in the Anglican Communion. The bishops at Lambeth are presently discussing the third ‘observations’ document of the Windsor Continuation Group that sets out why the forum is needed. It says this is necessary because repeated requests for moratoria on gay consecrations, same-sex blessings and cross-border interventions have not been heeded. I’ve been given an advance copy of the document. It says: ‘The failure to respond presents us with a situation where if the three moratoria are not observed, the Communion is likely to fracture.’
The document proposes the forum as a “key mechanism to achieve reconciliation”.
We’ve waited so long, and it seems to me just another delay. I especially find frustrating that they always lump border-crossing interventions with the actions of TEC… First, don’t they realize that TEC is NEVER going to back down and secondly, there would be no border-crossing had the TEC not entertained heresy!
I guess they’ll accept any form of delay that keeps the final schism from happening, and TEC keeps marching along…
It is probably far too late. The entire “homo-sexual” thing is merely one very blatant symptom of a profound secularist rot within ECUSA.
The rot was evident in Spong and the complete lack of censure, to say nothing of discipline. The rot was evident in cosying up to Buddhist whilst claiming there was no possible common ground with Baptists. The rot was evident as ECUSA enthusiastically adopted every single animal in the petting zoo of American secular leftist politics.
And the rot, however, was most evident when 88 Episcopal bishops rejected the authority of scripture, the Articles of Religion, and the long body of Anglican faith. (B001 in 2003)
I was raised in ECUSA, yet I will never, ever return to that church. If our Anglican parish is somehow forced back into ECUSA, or even into a loose association with ECUSA … I shall leave.
We are warned not to be yoked together with unbelievers, and B001 — far more than the Robinson incident — made it abundantly clear on an official, institutional level, that ECUSA is owned and operated by blatant unbelievers. “With such people, do not even eat.”
Pam and Bart, I agree 100% with both of you! When our diocese left TEC, I swore I would NEVER return, and I meant it. I should’ve had the sense to do it years ago, but I stuck it out for as long as I could. VGR’s illegal “consecration,” or should I say “desecration of Holy Orders” changed all of that.
What really decided it for me, though, was the election and consecration of Katharine Jefferts Schori; first as Bishop of Nevada, then to her current post. A woman whose theological education and experience were highly suspect even then, and who since then has proven herself a theological flyweight, compared to other primates.
The Episcopal Church is now on the road to becoming The Episcopal Communion, and it is time for us to tell them to depart in peace, and leave the rest of us alone.
Interesting headline. I wonder if Ruth is reading the website devoted to Praying for Lambeth, http://www.praylambeth.org.
The reason I say that is because of what I read yesterday at the site, in preparation for our own parish intercessory gathering for the Provinces and the bishops at Lambeth. At the end of [url=http://www.praylambeth.org/content/view/28/2] Post 10[/url]
you will find the following, complete with graphic of the big tent:
[b]GLOBAL INPUT: Storm clouds loom over Canterbury[/b]
A group of SOMA UK / Crosswinds intercessors for Lambeth had the following picture come to them:
They saw storm clouds gathered over the Tent of Meeting (or alias Big Top – a venue that came about because the University of Kent did not have an auditorium large enough).
The prayer group had an apprehension that the clouds were close to being riven by lightning. However, they also felt the storm may ‘pass over’ – and presage blessing rather than disaster.
Please pray for discernment as to the meaning of this picture. Send us feedback as to what you sense the Spirit may be saying to the churches.
In this context, we have remembered the story of how Elijah sent his servant to the Carmel mountain top to pray for rain. He saw a cloud the size of a man’s hand, and knew the promised rain was coming. The fierce drought was coming to an end. (1 Kings 18:41-45.)
Soon the storm clouds brought an abundance of rain – the fierce drought was coming to an end.
[img src=http://www.praylambeth.org/images/stories/lambeth storm clouds col_350.jpg]
Whoops — that was weird. Posted to the wrong Ruth Gledhill diary article. Elves – if you have your eyes on this, just delete comments 4 and 5 please.
Nice negotiating tactic, but it won’t work. Trying to link moratoria on gay consecrations, same-sex blessings and cross-border interventions as though they were equivalent is rediculous. Cross border interventions only exist in response to the first two issues. To link them together provides an opening for liberals to get concessions from the orthodox at no cost to themselves. TEC & ACC have no intention of halting these activities.