The Diocese has taken steps under Canon 15 towards removing clergy who have left the Anglican Church of Canada rather than accepting the decisions of the Diocesan Synod and General Synod.
The Diocese has invoked the provision that returns control of the parishes to the Diocese, an action that was approved by Diocesan Council.
The parishes are St. Matthew’s Abbotsford and St. Matthias and St. Luke, Vancouver. Former diocesan clergy who have continued working in the parishes are Trevor Walters, Michael Stewart, and Don Gardner at St. Matthew’s, and Simon Chin at St. Matthias and St. Luke.
Are we to take it that this is ACoC’s response to Dr Williams’ and the WCG’s call for a Pastoral Forum?
Doesn’t sound as if Canada will be going forward with the Covenant and will be content with second tier status.
Perhaps the revisionists might consider the refusal of Pharoah to ‘let my people go..’ Yes the Diocese may have the money and power but if God is not with them it will not end well.
The C of E might also consider what it plans to do if it goes down the path of giving nothing to those who cannot in conscience accept the sacramental validity of women priests.
And another round of everyone’s favorite Anglican game show “Tit for Tat.” This is a truly sad commentary on everyone involved.
For what its worth, St. Matthew’s, Abbotsford’s newly appointed “warden†Monte Worthington has never been a member of St. Matthew’s and is the spouse of a priest at a parish a half-hour away (see here and note the rector (I used to live in the area so I know Monte is Pam’s husband). It gets really bad when Michael Ingham can’t even find a willing stooge who is a malcontent and has to stoop to recruiting clergy spouses from nearby parishes.
Make no mistake – if Ingham successfully takes over St. Matthew’s buildings, there will be no Anglican Church of Canada parish there. The REAL St. Matthew’s congregation will worship elsewhere with the vast support of the local community (Abbotsford is known as a local bible belt and sympathy for the St. Matthew’s parish is very high).