Almighty God, we remember before thee this day the blessed martyrs of New Guinea, who, following the example of their Savior, laid down their lives for their friends; and we pray thee that we, who honor their memory, may imitate their loyalty and faith; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.

Today we remember Lucian Tapiedi, who was among 333 Christians who lost their lives in New Guinea during the occupation of the island by Japanese forces in 1942.

Tapiedi is one of ten 20th-century martyrs whose statues above the Abbey's Great West Door. pic.twitter.com/HJqGGJNxBn

— Westminster Abbey (@wabbey) September 2, 2025

O Lord and heavenly Father, who through thy Son our Saviour hast taught us that we cannot serve both God and mammon: Deliver us, we pray thee, from the love of money; and grant us grace to use wisely and faithfully all such possessions as thou hast entrusted to us, for the furtherance of thy kingdom, the relief of those in need, and the supply of our own necessities; through the same Jesus Christ our Lord.

Sunrise above Beinn Tianavaig – Isle of Skye #Scotland 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 @bbcweather @StormHour @ThePhotoHour @VisitScotland pic.twitter.com/aRoMWyCIUZ

— James MacInnes (@Macinnesplant) August 27, 2025

Almighty God, whose loving hand hath given us all that we possess: Grant us grace that we may honour thee with our substance, and, remembering the account which we must one day give, may be faithful stewards of thy bounty; through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Good morning 🌅 pic.twitter.com/XmDd9LHlZm

— Sharon Welby📷 (@sharonwelby1) August 26, 2025

Pour out thy grace upon thy church, O God, that like thy servant Edith Stein we may always seek what is true, defend what is right, reprove what is evil, and forgive those who sin against us, even as thy Son hath commanded. All this we ask through the same Jesus Christ our Lord, to whom with thee and the Holy Ghost be all honor and glory, now and forever. Amen.

9 August 1942 | Edith Stein, St. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross, Discalced Carmelite nun #OCD, patron of #Europe, was murdered in a gas chamber of the German Nazi #Auschwitz II-Birkenau camp. Read about her story below. #EdithStein #carmelites pic.twitter.com/F5JTJ7hKvR

— Auschwitz Memorial (@AuschwitzMuseum) August 9, 2025

To:  The Clergy of the Diocese

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

In recent days, the people of our Diocese and Province have witnessed unsettling developments related to the ecclesiastical trial of Bishop Stewart Ruch.

Given that two of our own diocesan leaders, Bishop David Bryan and Mr. Alan Runyan, have played major roles in this trial and have issued public and seemingly conflicting statements, this turmoil is being experienced particularly acutely within our Diocese. The discomfort we’re feeling is real and personal.

Before we address that discomfort, we offer this brief sketch of the key events that have led us to this place:

•    In 2021, accusations were raised against Bishop Steward Ruch regarding his handling of credible reports of sexual abuse that took place in 2019 by a Lay Catechist of a church within his Diocese, the Diocese of the Upper Midwest. The abuser was convicted in 2022 of multiple counts of child sexual abuse, and he also pled guilty to raping another victim in 2018 and 2020.

•    Two presentments were filed against Bp. Ruch, the first by three fellow bishops in December 2022 and the second by lay and clergy in June 2023. A presentment is a list of charges that are formally brought against a member of the clergy. Bp. Ruch was charged with habitual neglect of duties, causing scandal or offense, violating his ordination vows, and contravention of the canons of the church.

•    A Board of Inquiry convened in accordance with ACNA canons reviewed the presentments in 2023, and in both cases found probable cause to go to trial.

•    After a prolonged delay, the trial began on July 14th of this year with members of our Diocese in key positions: Mr. Alan Runyan serving as the Provincial Prosecutor and Bishop David Bryan serving as the President of the Court for the Trial of a Bishop. 

•    On July 18th, an incident occurred during the trial that led Mr. Runyan to conclude that the trial process had been irreparably tainted and that he must resign from his position as Prosecutor.

•    The Court has ordered the trial to resume on August 11th after the appointment of a new Prosecutor, and on July 23rd it issued a Limited Response to the Public Release of the Former Provincial Prosecutor’s Resignation Letter which was signed on behalf of all seven members of the court by Bp. Bryan as the trial court’s President. This response directly contradicts statements made in Mr. Runyan’s resignation letter, as well as corroborating statements made later by Mr. Runyan’s Assistant Prosecutor.

•    On July 25th, the Assistant Prosecutor released a statement bringing further context to Mr. Runyan’s mid-trial resignation and making further claims of inappropriate conduct by Archbishop Steve Wood and members of his staff in the ACNA’s Provincial Office. Her letter also indicates that Bp. Bryan is not the member of the court whose actions led to Mr. Runyan’s resignation.

•    On July 29th, after reviewing some of the facts on the previous day, a Joint Statement from the College of Bishops and Executive Committee was released exonerating the Archbishop and Provincial Office staff. On that same day, Bishop Chip Edgar offered a response to the joint statement, clarifying that neither he nor any of the other bishops serving on the Trial Court or the Tribunal were party to it, and therefore it did not speak unanimously for the College of Bishops. The Joint Statement was later revised to include this fact.

•    A new Prosecutor has been appointed after the initial replacement for Mr. Runyan stepped down due to a conflict of interest. The trial is currently set to resume on August 11th.

•    Further details can be found on the ACNA website. Related material is also posted on Anglican Ink.

The Standing Committee of our Diocese has received numerous letters of concern, as well as requests for explanation and clarification of these events. We are grateful for all those who have reached out to us because it shows genuine care for others and a deep concern for the integrity of our Province. We thank you for sharing your questions, concerns, and feedback.

We recognize several distinct issues that have been raised by these events, including issues of justice, due process, and multiple allegations of misconduct. We note that some of these issues are of particular concern to the churches of our Diocese because of the individuals involved. As we consider these issues, we must also recognize that Bp. Edgar is currently limited in his ability to engage with these matters because he is a member of the Provincial Tribunal which serves as a court of final review for the proceedings against Bp. Ruch.

The issues raised by these events have caused serious alarm and forces each of us to prayerfully consider a proper response. Silence may signal complicity; haste may lead to harm. In this unprecedented moment, we risk either mistake with every decision we make. In our patient, prayerful discernment, we desire to bring clarity to misinformation and to direct what further action may be required by Bp. Edgar or us, if any.

As a council of advice to Bp. Edgar, it is our recommendation that we cautiously seek to navigate a path between these two devastating errors, and with earnest prayer we ask the Lord to guide us, correct us, limit any harm, and magnify any good that may result from our decisions. Lord, have mercy.

To that end, then, we submit to you the following:  

In consultation with the Standing Committee, Bp. Edgar has agreed to temporarily suspend episcopal visits by Bp. David Bryan. We think this temporary action is necessary given the significant contradictions between the statement of the court under Bp. Bryan’s signature and the statements of Mr. Runyan and his Assistant Prosecutor. We hope for the day when he can resume visits to our parishes, but we must patiently wait for the trial to conclude and for the facts of the proceedings to be released. 

With regards to the accusations made against Archbishop Steve Wood and members of his staff, we recognize that we are not the investigative or disciplinary arm of the ACNA. We are, though, the concerned representative body of the Anglican Diocese of South Carolina, and as such, we request an independent, third party investigation into the Provincial Office’s actions during the course of the trial, to begin no later than 60 days after the conclusion of the trial process. We invite other Dioceses of the ACNA to join us in this petition.

We refrain from making any comment on the trial while the proceedings are underway. We continue to pray God’s will be done, and trust his sovereignty in these and all matters.

To the victims of abuse in ACNA churches, especially those in the Diocese of the Upper Midwest who have endured a long and arduous ecclesial court process, we are pained by our Province’s failure in the swift administration of justice and the broken trust that has resulted. We grieve what you have endured, and pray that the love of Jesus made real to you will overcome the bitter failures of his church.

We remain fully committed to the future of the ACNA, yet we cannot ignore the obvious inadequacies in some of our processes or the questions of integrity regarding some of the people responsible for fairly administering them. We feel the outstretched arm of the Lord against our Province, and at the same time we see the mercy his pierced hands offer us in the repeated refrain of the prophet Isaiah: “For all this his anger has not turned away, and his hand is stretched out still.” (Isaiah 10:4)

In all of this, we call on the people of the Anglican Diocese of South Carolina to lead in acts of mercy and charity, to persist in service to the least and the lost, to be humble in confession of our faults and unsparing in forgiveness for those who seek repentance, in all things striving to build up the body of Christ, the church. Let this be our witness, and may it lead to restoration.

In Christ’s service,
The Standing Committee of the Anglican Diocese of South Carolina

The Rev. Jeremy Shelton
The Rev. Mary Ellen Doran
The Rev. Jamie Sosnowski
The Rev. Corey Prescott
The Rev. Bill Clarkson
Mrs. Lindsay Dew
Mrs. Shirley Wiggins
Mr. Robert Kunes
Mr. Ben Dixon
Mr. Terry Jenkins
Mr. Bobby Kilgo

Read it all there if you need the link.

Almighty God, whose servant Dominic grew in knowledge of thy truth and formed an order of preachers to proclaim the good news of Christ: Give to all thy people a hunger for your Word and an urgent longing to share the Gospel, that the whole world may come to know thee as thou art revealed in thy Son Jesus Christ; who liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

Today's the feast of St Dominic, 13th Century Spanish founder of the Dominican Order. He's in Suffolk on the Thornham Parva Retable, c1330. It was originally at the Blackfriars church in Thetford, Norfolk, part of a Dominican priory. 1/3

Thornham Parva: https://t.co/ipeMy06ucP pic.twitter.com/se18fm7EpZ

— Simon Knott (@SimoninSuffolk) August 8, 2025

International observers are reporting that ISIS-aligned soldiers are beheading Christians and burning churches and homes in central and southern Africa – with some of the most brutal attacks happening in the nation of Mozambique.

The Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI) – a counter-terrorism research nonprofit based in Washington, D.C. – is sounding that alarm about what it describes as a “silent genocide” taking place against Christians.  

The Islamic State Mozambique Province (ISMP) recently released 20 photos boasting of four attacks on “Christian villages” in the Chiure district, in Mozambique’s northern Cabo Delgado province, according to MEMRI. 

Read it all.

ISIS soldiers behead Christians in Mozambique, burning church and homes: 'Silent genocide' https://t.co/baKLyYMI65

— Fox News (@FoxNews) August 7, 2025

“All right, now let’s look at this particular struggle. It’s an incredible story, this. It goes in four parts, and what’s so powerful about it is it goes in a circle.

So it’s a bit, in a sense, misleading if you read the psalm too quickly, because the beginning verse, look at your text, verse one. Truly God is good to Israel. That’s actually the end of the story.

And it doesn’t feel all that powerful because he’s beginning at the end. So what you need to realize is, if you go to the end of the psalm, verse 28, but for me, it is good to be near God. See, this is a song about the goodness of God.

He’s telling you at the beginning, that’s where he ends up. But what you need to realize is, the journey through which he gets there is absolutely crucial. And it’s a very, very hard one, and it’s a very, very important one for us to understand.

So I’m going to go through it under four headings just to give you a way to follow. So I want to talk about the ledge that he ends up on. 

I want to talk about the lift that God gives him while he’s on the ledge so he doesn’t end up staying on the ledge.

I want to talk about the lesson that he learns. And then I want to talk about the liberation that God gives him as a result of this experience. So if you’re with me, ledge, lift, lesson, liberation.

All right, you all with me? Here we go. Verse two, it all starts.

This is very serious stuff, brothers and sisters. This is not some minor struggle. This is a member of the people of God.

He’s been at it for a while, and he’s going through a tough time. How do I know that? Well, look at your text.”

You may listen directly here:

Or you may download it there.

“My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever” (Psalm 73:26 ESV) pic.twitter.com/Y6zKL1d5Y2

— Joel (@GuitarmanJoel) July 23, 2025

For the past three years, Church of the Holy Spirit’s Theology on Tap has been a staple in Daniel Island’s social and spiritual life. Hosted at New Realm Brewery, the monthly gathering blends panel discussions with community connection over drinks and shared curiosity. 

The intention is to create a relaxed, welcoming space for people to engage in conversations about faith, life, and the questions we all wrestle with, no matter their background. 

Open to all inquisitive minds, Theology on Tap brings together people of all ages and walks of life – a melting pot of diverse perspectives that cultivates genuine conversation and a strengthened sense of community.

Each month’s discussion is centered around a given topic, be it economics or the environment.

The laid-back panel structure is more like an open forum where attendees are able to submit their questions anonymously or share their own responses to the panel’s answers. This is no pulpit preaching or a sterilized sermon; it is a chance to come together and navigate different aspects of life as a community.

Read it all.

The Anglican Church in North America’s ecclesiastical trial of the Rt. Rev. Stewart Ruch III is on hold until August 11, but a series of public resignations and allegations of procedural misconduct have demanded the attention of its members and governing bodies alike in the interim.

On August 1, the denomination announced the appointment of its newest provincial prosecutor to pursue the case against Bishop Ruch, who is accused of mishandling reports of abusive ministers in his Diocese of the Upper Midwest. Thomas Crapps, of the ACNA’s Gulf Atlantic Diocese, will step into the role—the third to fill it in as many weeks.

His immediate predecessor, the Ven. Job Serebrov, was appointed as prosecutor by Archbishop Steve Wood on July 22. Serebrov resigned nine days later, citing a desire to avoid the appearance of impropriety after anti-abuse advocates in the denomination raised concerns about his connection to an educational institution closely linked with Bishop Ruch’s diocese.

C. Alan Runyan preceded Serebrov as prosecutor, serving through the pretrial and five days of trial proceedings until his surprise resignation on July 19. Runyan alleged that on the final day of the prosecution’s argument, a member of the Court for the Trial of a Bishop questioned one of his witnesses for over an hour using information the court had previously ruled inadmissible, leaving the trial “irreparably tainted.”

Read it all.

The Ven. Job Serebrov, the replacement prosecutor in the trial of ACNA Bp. Stewart Ruch, has resigned. Taking his place will be Mr. Thomas Crapps of Tallahassee, Florida, says the Province. He will be the third person in the role since the trial began. pic.twitter.com/yunbIMtUG1

— Arlie Coles (@ArlieColes) August 1, 2025

Amid debate among bishops about the pros and cons of the “strings” attached to financial grants from the Archbishops’ Council, national funding of £6.2 million has been awarded to Liverpool diocese, the poorest in the Church of England.

The award is part of a larger sum agreed in principle — about £30 million over the next seven years — with a goal of ensuring that every parish is “missionally and financially sustainable”, the diocese says.

The grant will enable it to maintain a reduced level of parish share, avoid a reduction in clergy numbers for financial reasons, and invest in a youth and children’s hub in most deaneries. Other aims include the creation of deanery resource hubs, with employed administrative posts, “lightening the load for parish offices and volunteers”.

Last year’s national Diocesan Finances Review warned of dioceses’ “increased dependency on the NCIs”. In the General Synod last month, some bishops criticised this balance of power, referring to the “exhausting” demands of the grant system (News, 18 July). Last year, only Archbishops’ Council fundings prevented the exhaustion of Liverpool’s usable reserves.

Read it all.

I had a look at the £6.2m granted to Liverpool, the poorest diocese, by Archbishops’ Council (£30m over 7 years in principle). The diocese will now be able to maintain a lower level of parish share & invest in the frontline. https://t.co/jveEjll9DU

— Madeleine Davies (@MadsDavies) August 1, 2025

The

Sunday before last, church felt pointless. I woke up and checked for news from the Synod: first, a motion concerning justice for Palestinians wasn’t even selected for debate. Then the General Synod voted against redistributing one per cent of the Church Commissioners’ wealth to diocesan stipend funds, instead amending the motion to debate funding later (News, 18 July).

It is hard not to see this as the sensible adults, who also happen to control all the money, telling poorer churches to die quietly. Justice delayed is justice denied, and poorer parishes have long worked miracles with just a few loaves and fishes. Yet, denial of justice did seem to be a theme. The Revd Dr Ian Paul, of the Archbishops’ Council, insisted that “finance reflects spiritual reality” — a plainly offensive echo of the so-called “indolent poor”. But it was another who really took the biscuit.

The Bishop of Blackburn, the Rt Revd Philip North, is known for his resolute defence of the working class (News, 27 February 2024). Yet, if he and I ever discussed such matters, we might initially talk at cross-purposes, until realising that we needed to define our terms.

Read it all.

"The disparity between richer and poorer churches is stark," writes Adam Spiershttps://t.co/F0xGJam9wp

— Church Times (@ChurchTimes) July 25, 2025

It was in 1787 that he first decided to put down a motion in the House of Commons about the slave trade. This nefarious traffic had been going on for three centuries, and the West Indian slave-owners were determined to oppose abolition to the end. Besides, Wilberforce was not a very prepossessing man. He was little and somewhat ugly, with poor eyesight and an upturned nose. When Boswell heard him speak, he pronounced him ‘a perfect shrimp’, but then had to concede that ‘presently the shrimp swelled into a whale.’ In 1789 Wilberforce said of the slave trade: “So enormous so dreadful, so irremediable did its wickedness appear that my own mind was completely made up for the abolition…. let the consequences be what they would, I from this time determined that I would never rest till I had effected its abolition.

So abolition bills (which related to the trade) and Foreign Trade Bills (which would prohibit the involvement of British ships in it) were debated in the commons in 1789, 1791, 1792,194, 1796 (by which time Abolition had become ‘the grand object of my parliamentary existence’), 1798 and 1799. Yet they all failed. The Foreign Slave Bill was not passed until 1806 and the Abolition of the Slave Trade Bill until 1807. This part of the campaign had taken eighteen years.

Next, soon after the conclusion of the Napoleonic wars, Wilberforce began to direct his energies to the abolition of slavery itself and the emancipation of the slaves. In 1823 the Anti-Slavery Society was formed. Twice that year and twice the following year, Wilberforce pleaded the slaves’ cause in the House of Commons. But in 1825 ill-health compelled him to resign as a member of parliament and to continue his campaign from outside. In 1831 he sent a message to the Anti-Slavery Society, in which he said, “Our motto must continue to be PERSEVERANCE. And ultimately I trust the Almighty will crown our efforts with success.” He did. In July 1833 the Abolition of Slavery Bill was passed in both Houses of Parliament, even though it included the undertaking to pay 20 million pounds in compensation to the slave-owners. ‘Thank God,’ wrote Wilberforce, that I have lived to witness a day in which England is willing to give 20 million pounds for the abolition of slavery.’ Three days later he died. He was buried in Westminster Abbey, in national recognition of his FORTY-FIVE YEARS of persevering struggle on behalf of African slaves.

— John R W Stott, Issues facing Christians Today (Basingstoke: Marshall, Morgan and Scott, 1984), p. 334

29 July 1833, William Wilberforce, died. Born Hull, evangelical Christian, Clapham Sect member, served as MP for 45 years, a founder of @cmsmission & @biblesociety, leading abolitionist (persuading in 1807 House of Commons to abolish slave trade), moral reformer & philanthropist. pic.twitter.com/DzJchsizTX

— Revd Nicholas Pye (@RevdPye) July 29, 2025

Let thy continual mercy, O Lord, enkindle in thy Church the never-failing gift of love, that, following the example of thy servant William Wilberforce, we may have grace to defend the poor, and maintain the cause of those who have no helper; for the sake of him who gave his life for us, thy Son our Savior Jesus Christ, who liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Ghost, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

Today in the Anglican tradition we thank God for William Wilberforce, an evangelical Anglican, slave abolitionist, founder of the CMS and RSPCA. Wilberforce understood Christianity as inseparable from justice! In a world of growing hate, let us remember and mirror his good works pic.twitter.com/i5RhLQwRva

— Victor-Joseph ❤️‍🔥🕊️ (@Anglicanvictor) July 30, 2025

Read it all.

Carr concludes Superbloom by proposing we look for ways to turn aside and form alternative communities on the edges of these digital networks. “Maybe salvation, if that’s not too strong a word, lies in personal, willful acts of excommunication,” he writes, in “the taking up of positions, first as individuals and then, perhaps, together, not outside of society but at society’s margin, not beyond the reach of the informational flow but beyond the reach of its liquefying force.” 

He’s right, but it’s the togetherness aspect of this response that is particularly vital, for communication technologies by their very nature pose challenges that demand cooperative responses. What Carr does not say is that communities and even institutions already exist, all over our country, that are uniquely equipped to rise to this challenge: Christian families, schools, and churches.

We should be taking the lead in embodying alternative ways of communicating and feeling together. We need to practice developing a different kind of consensus, the consensus of members of the church conforming to the mind of Christ (Rom. 12:2; 1 Cor. 2:16), not members of an increasingly secularized society oriented around New York and Silicon Valley. This type of consensus is the stability we need to avoid fresh waves of vertigo as dramatic technological development, particularly around artificial intelligence, continues apace.

Read it all.

“It’s our commitment to living as members of Christ’s body that will enable us to serve a techno-addled society and call it to a better way of life,” writes @jeff_bilbro.https://t.co/04inICPPOo

— Christianity Today (@CTmagazine) July 25, 2025

….Joseph was not Jesus’s only loss. His cousin, John the Baptist, was executed by a corrupt despot. Another blow. And then came Lazarus. When Jesus arrived and found him four days gone, he didn’t preach. He didn’t explain. He wept.

Jesus gets it. He gets me. His suffering wasn’t detached or sanitised — it was real, raw, and rooted in love. That truth became an anchor for me. Because, when I lost my dad, I didn’t need a theory. I needed a Saviour who understood.

And, even in his suffering, Jesus looked outward. The Gospels say that he had compassion on the crowds. The Latin root — compati — means “to suffer with”. That’s exactly what Jesus does. He co-suffers. He stays. He weeps with us.

IN THE early months of my grief, I found myself held — not just by God, but by the people he sent to walk beside me. Friends who prayed, cried, and remembered. Family who stood when I couldn’t stand alone.

Their presence reminded me of Ruth walking beside Naomi: “Where you go, I will go.” That’s what grace looks like — people who stay and pray.

Read it all.

A year after his father’s death, Craig Philbrick celebrates an unexpected gracehttps://t.co/ahyrhkXXG8

— Church Times (@ChurchTimes) July 27, 2025

An attorney should not have to throw a tantrum for a court to follow its own orders. I’ve waited patiently for a week to observe how the Archbishop, his staff, and the Court would respond. Unfortunately, I am left alarmingly disappointed.

Even if you disagree with his choice to resign, Mr. Runyan acted with integrity. He immediately communicated with the Archbishop who was the source of his appointment. The Archbishop told Mr. Runyan he would speak with him before saying anything publicly. He did not do so. Instead, the Archbishop sent out a surprise communication to the Province on Sunday evening leaving Mr. Runyan no choice but to properly and promptly notify witnesses, who had given so much of their time, effort, and courage to this process, of his resignation. Simultaneously, the Prosecutor was locked out of his Provincial email account. This precluded him from the ability to send the Court his resignation letter causing him to ask the Archbishop to make that communication for him. Based on what the Court stated, apparently that was not done.

Just as the Archbishop’s letter hit your inboxes Sunday night, I received a notification in my inbox from the COO and ACNA Chancellor that they wanted to meet with me first thing Monday morning.

Given that I know this case, its history, its facts, and its evidence more comprehensively than anyone in the ACNA, I expected the call would be to hear my perspective of what happened and to discuss my willingness to continue to help. Instead, I was invited to consider my termination that day.

It struck me that the two of the people whose actions directly undermined the court process were now the same two wanting to discuss my termination. Oh, the irony! In the real world, the judge would be disciplined for judicial misconduct and those who gave him improper access to a party’s files would be fired and disciplined.

According to the Archbishop’s recent letter to the whole ACNA, rather than being reprimanded or removed, this same chancellor was then tasked with the important job of selecting the new prosecutor.Despite that, the fact of the matter is that there is no way a new prosecutor will understand in
a timely fashion the nuances, details, and context that make up this case. Thus, if this process moves forward according to the Court’s timeline, the Province will not be competently represented.

Proceeding with the same tainted court and simply appointing a new prosecutor flies in the face of Mr. Runyan’s prescient warning that “this is not simply something that can be casually overlooked for expediency’s sake.”

Read it all.

ACNA members, I don’t post church news often, but this is serious. If our disciplinary processes are undermined everyone is vulnerable.

I have known Runyan and Thebeau for over 8 yrs. If they are concerned we should be too and do what we can to help.https://t.co/ENOLIjUG9H

— Andrew Gross (@frandrewgross) July 26, 2025

Although it is not our normal practice to speak publicly while proceedings are ongoing,
because the communication from the former Prosecutor was made public, the Court finds it
requires a limited response. This is particularly true when it calls into question the integrity of
the Court and the fairness of the trial in In the Matter of the Rt. Rev. Stewart Ruch, III.
The full seated Court has reviewed the recent publication of the letter by the former
Provincial Prosecutor concerning testimony and internal proceedings of this Court. The letter
includes commentary on confidential deliberations, public criticism of a sitting member of the
Court, and a call for the release of trial records—despite a standing order that the proceedings be
conducted in camera. These actions have contributed to public confusion, diminished trust in the
process, and placed pressure on a tribunal still actively engaged in the work before it.

The full Court has met to review, in detail, the exchange referenced in Mr. Runyan’s
letter. We affirm without hesitation that the questions posed by every member of this Court to the
witness in question were appropriate and fell squarely within our responsibilities. The line of
questioning, in fact, was based upon questions concerning the Province’s own exhibit directed to
his own witness. The former Prosecutor, who was present, invited to redirect the witness, and
given multiple opportunities to speak, raised no objections at any time during the line of
questioning he now complains of to the Archbishop. In fact, the objections he did raise in
response to defense questions were heard and, on multiple occasions, sustained.

Read it all.

Ruch tribunal president rejects resigned prosecutor’s allegations of misconduct https://t.co/hVAUCpXwnz via @Anglican Ink © 2025

— George Conger (@GeorgeConger8) July 23, 2025

The reason I do not hesitate to call my experience representative of a multitude of people is that how Packer reached me was the printed word. This is the story of Packer’s life and ministry. Packer never held a prestigious professorship at a famous university, nor did he fill a high-visibility pulpit permanently. Furthermore, he lived before the age of social media and the instant dissemination they confer. When I interviewed Packer for my biography of him, he affirmed his steadfast refusal throughout his life to cultivate a following.

Additionally, Packer was a soft-spoken and unassuming man. No assignment was too small or humble for him. During one of the summers that the ESV translation committee met in Cambridge, England, Packer accepted an invitation to speak to a group of local young people in a church member’s living room. One of the translators and his wife smuggled their way into the meeting. They later reported that the living room was so crowded that some of the young people sat under a table.

In view of this absence of ordinary channels for becoming widely known, how is it possible that surveys of influential evangelicals conducted early in the present century found Packer near the tops of the lists? The answer is that J. I. Packer achieved his prominence through the printed word and its uncanny ability to reach ordinary people in the ordinary circumstances of life. Some of Packer’s books, such as his first book (Fundamentalism and the Word of God), began as a series of addresses to students and lay people. His signature book Knowing God, which sold a million and a half copies, began as a series of articles on basic Christian beliefs for a religious magazine. J. I. Packer is a classic case of someone who was faithful in little and thereby found himself set over much. I cannot think of a better validation of the effectiveness of Christian publishing than the career of J. I. Packer.

Read it all.

#OTD July 17, 2020:
Death of J.I. Packer evangelical theologian, cleric and writer in the low-church Anglican and Calvinist traditions. He was considered one of the most influential evangelicals in North America. Known for his best-selling book, Knowing God, written in 1973,… pic.twitter.com/AXFXN4x828

— ☧ Today in Christian History (@HistoricalRook) July 17, 2025

The extent of the General Synod’s ability to shape the spending of the Church Commissioners’ funds was explored during this week’s meeting in York.

During a debate on the spending plans for 2026 to 2028, drawn up by the Triennium Funding Working Group (TFWG), members were warned by the bishops that voting in favour of amendments would produce an “unravelling” with “unintended consequences”.

On Saturday, members gave final approval to the National Church Governance Measure, under which the General Synod will no longer have the power to approve the budget of the body set to replace the Archbishops’ Council: Church of England National Services (CENS). The budget was “properly a matter” for the CENS trustees, Synod was told, bringing the Church of England into line with best practice in charity governance.

The two debates, both of which included failed attempts to bring amendments, followed a review of the Church’s governance that warned of a widespread lack of clarity about “the extent to which [Synod] has (or should have) oversight of the NCIs’ work” (News, 7 July 2023).

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“Gen Synod will no longer have the power to approve the budget of the C of E National Services (replacing Abp’s Council). The budget was “properly a matter” for CENS trustees…bringing the C of E into line with best practice in charity governance.”https://t.co/dhH1anicpY

— Fr Angela Rayner SMMS (@OSacrumCorIesu) July 14, 2025

After that he started preaching through the New Testament one book at a time, beginning with the Gospel of John and then moving to Peter’s first and second epistles. MacArthur spent 30 hours a week preparing sermons and delegated almost all other pastoral responsibilities to the church’s elders and lay leaders. 

The church grew rapidly. Grace built a new building that could seat 1,000 in 1971 and expanded again in 1977, tripling in size. It became the largest Protestant church in Los Angeles by the end of the decade.

The demand for recordings of MacArthur’s sermons also exploded. Church members sent out 5,000 tapes every week, then 15,000, then 30,000. By the end of the ’70s, more than 100,000 Christians around the country were receiving MacArthur’s recorded sermons every week. The church also launched a separate ministry, Grace to You, to broadcast MacArthur’s messages on Christian radio.

“John’s ministry proves how timeless preaching can be when it is merely sound, clear biblical exposition,” Phil Johnson, executive director of Grace to You, said in 2011. “If the aim of preaching is the awakening of spiritually dead souls and the cleansing and transformation of lives spoiled by sin, then all that really counts is that the preacher be faithful in proclaiming the Word of God with clarity, accuracy, and candor.”

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Expository preacher John MacArthur died Monday at the age of 86.

He said the most important mark of his ministry was that he explained the Bible with the Bible.https://t.co/qUiMDTIxLW

— Christianity Today (@CTmagazine) July 15, 2025

The Church Commissioners risk attracting “widespread public contempt” if they proceed with Project Spire, a group of historians and General Synod members has warned (News,13 January 2023). The project is a £100-million fund set up to benefit communities affected by the historic transatlantic slave trade.

In a paper published on the History Reclaimed website on 26 June, the group urges the Church to “pause” the project, and to “seek the advice of other scholars, and reflect. To pay reparations on the basis that ‘everyone in the eighteenth century was guilty’ will not stand historical and public scrutiny.”

Its members include two General Synod members, Jonathan Baird (Salisbury) and the Revd Dr Ian Paul (a member of the Archbishops’ Council), and several historians who have publicly criticised the research behind Project Spire. The paper contains a detailed response to the points made in a document published by the Commissioners in May, Independent Responses to Claims Criticising the Historical Basis of the Church Commissioners’ Research (News, 6 June).

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Historians call for Church Commissioners to scrap £100-million slavery justice fund https://t.co/6Fr9T1eSLz

— Church Times (@ChurchTimes) July 11, 2025

“Successive governments have failed to reduce inequalities in health,” …[the Bishop of London] said.

“These inequalities mean that some people will have up to 20 fewer good years in health than others and certain groups face persistently worse health outcomes than others.

“These inequalities are also pronounced at the end of life, with only one in four people who need end-of-life care being able to access it, and there continues to widespread misunderstanding and distrust of palliative care.

“It is into this context that the Terminally Ill Adults Bill is being proposed. So with only a third of all hospice care being funded by the NHS, the proposals are accompanied by a government commitment to fund in full an assisted suicide service should the bill be passed.

“Rather than funding assisted dying, the Government should be funding palliative care and palliative care research to enable people to live their lives to the full until they die.”

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A very thoughtful, moving and well-informed debate led by the Bishop of London at General Synod – and a very important contribution to the wider discussion on assisted dying: https://t.co/7ObjRtLsgS

— Bishop Jonathan Gibbs (@JonathanRGibbs) July 15, 2025

An Update from Jeff and Kristin Jacobs

The Rev. Jeff Jacobs, his wife Kristin and their children are adjusting to a significant transition. On July 7 their family moved from Egypt to Tunisia where Jeff will serve as the chaplain to the newly elected Bishop of North Africa, the Rt. Rev. Dr. Ashley Null. In a note to supporters, Jeff asked for prayer, stating, “This is our first time moving somewhere without someone to ‘catch’ us. We’ll be finding our own house, car, schools, and more while learning another language.” Jeff will serve as chaplain to Bishop Ashley, helping build diocesan structures from the ground up: creating a framework for ministry; coordinating churches in four countries, and establishing training, catechesis, and pastoral practices.

If you’d like to support the Jacobs in this transition, please click here.

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The Latest Edition of the #Anglican Diocese of #SouthCarolina Enewsletter https://t.co/QpzssJYyvh #egypt #Missions #anglican #parishministry #lowcountrylife [Jeff and Kristin Jacobs and family] pic.twitter.com/2WXCp76uQK

— Kendall Harmon (@KendallHarmon6) July 15, 2025

Today is St Swithun’s Day, when the weather-gods obey the saint of Winchester – ‘St Swithun’s day if thou dost rain / For forty days it will remain’, and all that. So let’s look at a few extracts from an Old English homily for St Swithun’s Day, written by Ælfric in the last decade of the tenth century.

Ælfric had a personal connection to Swithun’s story, and in this homily he adds in one or two comments to remind us of it. Swithun was an obscure ninth-century Bishop of Winchester whose fame is almost entirely the work of Æthelwold, his successor at Winchester more than a century later. Winchester was the royal city of Wessex but it was surprisingly short on saints, so Æthelwold did his best to elevate some of his predecessors to that status, including Swithun and St Birinus (a better-attested saint, though his popularity never caught on as Swithun’s did). On 15 July 971, Æthelwold had Swithun’s remains translated to a new shrine inside the Old Minster, Winchester. Ælfric, who was educated at Winchester under Æthelwold and had a great respect for his bishop, would have witnessed much of this, and by the time he wrote about it, around 25 years later, he had come to see Æthelwold’s time – his own youth – as a kind of golden age for the English church, when the king and holy bishops worked together and religion and peace flourished in the land. By the 990s, with the Vikings suddenly once more a pressing threat, this seemed to him like a bright but vanished world.

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It’s the feast of St Swithun, 9th-century Anglo-Saxon bishop of Winchester. Since the Middle Ages, his day has been linked to weather-lore: it’s said that in mid-July weather patterns shift, and if it rains on St Swithun’s Day it will rain for 40 days.https://t.co/FfgcvohJU2 pic.twitter.com/aF8SYiDAsw

— Eleanor Parker (@ClerkofOxford) July 15, 2025