Exodus International Rejects Reparative Therapy

from Stand Firm by Matt Kennedy 

The Christian Post is reporting that Exodus International has decided to reject Reparative Therapy

Exodus International President Alan Chambers addressed the crowd at the 37th annual Freedom Conference on Wednesday in order to share why the organization will no longer use reparative therapy to help those who struggle with same-sex attraction (SSA), and will use a model that focuses more on discipleship instead.

Chambers told The Christian Post on Thursday that reparative therapy, which seeks to “cure” SSA through activities like counseling and prayer, sets the person seeking therapy up for failure by giving him or her unrealistic expectations…more

I do have a few questions about this move. Apparently, Exodus still considers homosexual behavior sinful - a good thing - but they have rejected the assertion that homosexual temptation can be completely eradicated.

1. Do reparative therapies really claim the power to completely eradicate all homosexual temptation? That seems an almost inhuman claim to make. I thought reparative therapy sought to redirect the desires toward the opposite sex but I never understood that to mean that temptation could be wholly wiped away? Heterosexual men, for example, can come to a place where they no longer actively lust after women other than their wives and for most men that means healing and redirecting the will. But the “temptation” toward lust, I think, recurs at various times throughout a man’s life. I would imagine the same is true for women. It’s a disordered temptation (as all temptations are) but it’s mere existence is not sin unless and until the temptation is indulged and becomes action. So, if reparative therapy truly seeks to eradicate all temptation then I would agree with Exodus’ decision. Even Jesus lived through and fought off temptation - though without sin. How can we be expected to eradicate something that even Jesus, the perfect man, experienced?

2. Does this decision suggest that those who have successfully gone through reparative therapy are liars? If Exodus’ position is that reparative therapy does not work, then what does that mean for those who claim to be completely healed - many of whom with the full support of Exodus?

3. Is this in any way a denial of the power of God to break the chains of sin? I get really uncomfortable when people make pronouncements about what God can or cannot do without any biblical basis. Romans 6, to just name one example, does seem to indicate that God can indeed deliver from particular sins completely (not thetemptation to sin but the actual indulgence in it via thought, word and deed). It is true that we’ll never be fully sanctified this side of eternity but the New Testament does lead one to believe that while we will always struggle with sin, God will give his people victory over particular enslaving sins. I have experienced this to be true in my own life. On what biblical basis does Exodus claim to “know” that God cannot completely heal the homosexual person in this life?

The article doesn’t address those questions but I’d love to hear Exodus do so in a coherent way.

God-given femininity: Value it, Kassian says

from anglicansunited.com by cherie

[Ed. Note:  The document "I Will Bless You and You Will Be a Blessing" produced to support an affirmative vote on the same-gender commitment ceremony will be presented to the General Convention next week.  I believe that document devalues the differences intended and created by God, between the two sexes.   The feminist action in society since the early '70's has moderated the way women feel about themselves, both as individuals and as partners in marriage.  This article talks about the wonderful aspects of being a woman.  I have personally fought the same battles described as I worked with my husband as a clergy wife.  I found resonance in the excerpt of the article below.(deleted meeting notes and news)  Cheryl M. Wetzel]

http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=38154

The Baptist Press, June 28, 2012

A sold-out crowd of 1,800 ministers’ wives heard Mary Kassian speak on “The Hidden Person of the Heart,” drawing from 1 Peter 3, at their luncheon during the Southern Baptist Convention’s annual meeting in New Orleans.

Kassian, a women’s studies professor at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary and a national speaker for “True Women” conferences, admitted that 1 Peter 3, where wives are instructed to quietly submit to their husbands, was not her favorite part of Scripture when she was in her 20s. Reading it, she said, was like “sticking my face in a bucket of worms.”

As she has grown in the Lord, Kassian said her views have changed to where she sees “great gems” in the passage for those who are co-laboring with their husbands in the ministry.
Kassian, whose husband is a chaplain for the Canadian Football League, shared three ways wives can use their femininity to help, rather than hinder, their husbands in ministry.

First, be winsome, Kassian said.

“The most effective way to help your husband be on the right track is for you to work hard for you to be on the right track.”

The enemy of winsomeness is the tongue, Kassian said, cautioning, “A woman’s word can be the undoing of the man.”

Second, be womanly.

“Embracing your femininity is not about fitting a cookie-cutter mold,” Kassian said. “It’s about being the woman God created you to be — a beautiful, God-glorifying woman.”

Noting that issues of gender, sexuality and marriage are threatening what it means to be male and female, Kassian urged the women to be counter-intuitive and embrace the power of being a woman.

“Your husband needs you to be a woman — his wife — not his mother or one of the guys. When you are the woman God has called you to be, he can be the man God called him to be.”

Finally, be unwavering.

“These womanly traits are very precious in God’s eyes,” Kassian said. Through them, “we shine a light on the Gospel and on Jesus Christ.”

The Lord’s way may seem counter-intuitive, but “it is the way that will bring most fulfillment,” she said.
Kassian is the author of “The Feminist Mistake,” “Girls Gone Wise” and most recently an eight-week study on biblical womanhood, “True Woman 101: Divine Design,” coauthored with Nancy Leigh DeMoss.

–30–

Shannon Baker is the national correspondent for BaptistLIFE

The Continuing Devolution of the Episcopal Church

from anglicansunited.com by cherie

by Cheryl M. Wetzel, reporting from Dallas

If you a regular reader of this blog, a donation via our pay pal button or through the mail would be greatly appreciated.  Mail:  PO Box 7643217, Dallas, TX  75376.  Thanks in advance.

June 29, 2012

This editorial is my opinion on how the Episcopal Church came to be in the position it is in today.  My “rant” at the top of yesterday’s post on Obamacare, liberals and how TEC reflects this liberal drive to remake the country/church, is my opinion.  I have been in this job since September of 1996.  I attended the 1994 General Convention in Indianapolis as a guest and was on the floor of the House of Deputies when Presiding Bishop Ed Browning publicly castigated my husband, the Rev. Todd H. Wetzel, and Episcopalians United.  EU distributed Browning’s Christian Ed program that proclaimed the gay life style as equal and Christian.  The program was defeated by the deputies, who invited Browning to speak.  He made a similar statement in the House of Bishop’s, stating that Episcopalians United was destroying the Church.  Why?  Because EU told the blunt truth of what the liberal agenda was and how earnestly the leadership of the Church was involved in the implementation.  In 1994, both the Deputies, Bishops and about 80 of the 100 dioceses were, for all intents and purposes, orthodox/ traditional.

By the end of the decade and century, we saw a rapid change in both Houses.  But, to my way of thinking, the unusual happened.  After the 1994 Convention, bishops started to pull away from Episcopalians United, stating that they couldn’t support an organization that was so strident.  The analysis of EU’s work and many publications was deemed too strong.  Not wrong; not incorrect.  But, worded in a frank way that could not be publicly supported.  They still belonged to the Bishop’s Council that advised EU and maintained private memberships, but publicly walked away.

This did not affect membership in most places.  The decline began after the 1997 General Convention, when Frank Griswold was elected Presiding Bishop.  Many people responded that his election by the House of Bishops meant that the Church could not be returned to its former traditional ways in short order.

The 1997 Convention also saw the height of the gay demonstrations. Gay activists came in large numbers and there were demonstrations and incidents of harassment daily. They lined the halls and stood outside the doors, handing out pamphlets and rainbow buttons.  They knew our names and called to us as we walked the halls and rode the escalators.  Liberal priests and bishops joined the cat calls and physical bumping and  slapping.  The final straw came as we walked back from lunch the end of the first week.  There were priests in clergy shirts and gays fighting – yes fist fighting – a  group of anti-gay protestors. Police were called and came with riot gear.  It was so pronounced, so ugly and so aggressive, that I left the Convention that night, in order to take our son home and away from this sudden change in the previously gracious atmosphere at the General Convention.

Many of the bishops we knew that were part of the Council resigned/retired between 1996 and 1999.  They were all replaced by  less traditional, “progressive” bishops.  During this time frame, orthodox authors found that the publishing houses, previously excited to review their work and publish their books, refused their manuscripts. Episcopal Life, the national monthly newsletter, refused their letters and editorials.  Transfer to another diocese began to slow for clergy labelled either charismatic or orthodox.  The most frequent response was that the interview with the bishop was denied, or at worst, the names were not approved when the parish submitted their potential interview list to the bishop.

The 2000 General Convention in Denver was the sea change.  Pro-gay activists were still in place and active, but this time, their actions towards the known orthodox was much less hostile.  They didn’t need to be either hostile or aggressive.  They were at even numbers in the House of Deputies and slightly higher numbers in the House of Bishops.  Discussions in both houses became more pointed in terms of differences in opinion.  Votes took longer in Deputies, discussion was often rancorous.  And, for the first time, CNN sent a reporter for the final 3 days.  The Episcopal Church’s General Convention made the cable news, especially any item that dealt with sexuality and transgendered rights.

In 2003, the battle was over.  At the first roll call in the House of Deputies, deputations announced that they were all gay and had come to enact the final changes within our Church.  The canons for ordination standards included non-celibate homosexuals.  Men in drag read the lessons at the daily worship services.  Gene Robinson became the celebrated bishop-elect.  He was confirmed after minimal discussion in both houses.  The bishops who spoke on behalf of what this would mean for the Communion, and how it would permanently change our church, were met with stoney silence.  The Anglican Communion responded with an emergency Archbishop’s meeting in London and the production of the Windsor Report.  The Communion split over whether TEC should be excluded.  Our deputation to the 2004 AAC meeting was relegated to seat, but no voice and no vote.  They still attended, and the press commented on their largess in grants and aid money, in spite of their demotion in status.  TEC’s international effort to convince the rest of the world that they were correct and not in violation of any Communion policy gained new ground.  The Communion, they stated frequently is a federation, without any rules.  Each Province can do as they please.  This philosophy continues today and the Communion has never recovered their sense of unity.

After Katharine Jefferts Schori’s election in Columbus, OH in 2006, the issue of the 2008 Lambeth Conference – and the House of Bishop’s pending invitations to same – became a focal point.  Jefferts Schori addressed the House of Deputies, who was poised to refuse to approve a resolution stating TEC would not consecrate another gay bishop “for a period of time, in deference to the Communion.”  Her persuasive speech convinced the Deputies and they voted in support of the resolution.  Invitations were issued to Lambeth and the Provinces that broke communion with TEC after the Robinson consecration refused to attend.

Parishes and people  started leaving  TEC after the Robinson consecration in 2004 in larger numbers.  The quantity of people and parishes walking away increased dramatically after the 2006 Convention.  Between 2006 and 2008, five dioceses walked away, claiming membership in the Communion but not TEC.  One after another, the bishops and priests were deposed.  In the fall of 2008, after Lambeth,  Bob Duncan was deposed and the seed of the alternate jurisdiction in the US that was traditional and orthodox flowered.

Now back in Indianapolis, the 2012 Convention will be asked to approve trial use of a commitment ceremony for same-gender couples, ordered by the 2009 General Convention.  Ordination standards are proposed to include transvestites, as a distinct class of people not explicitly included in the canon.  Open Communion will come up for a vote, meaning priests can give communion to those who are not baptized.  Items that have traditionally been done at the discretion of the local clergy are being set in stone as changes to canon law.  A special ceremony for the death of a pet is under review for inclusion and a resolution supporting Obamacare is up for review.

There is no doubt about who holds the vote count for this democratic event.  Yet, the last vestiges of the Bishop’s Council started in 1990 will still be here.  New members, but equally committed to the authority of Scriptures and the divinity of Jesus Christ.  We will be there and we will celebrate what we share together.
Pray for us.  Only the Lord’s presence and joy can move us through the next 12 days in tact.  Indianapolis is not the final vote on this Church.  God may lose the occasional battle, but He never loses the war!

Cheryl M. Wetzel  June 29, 2012

WHOOPS

from Midwest Conservative Journal by The Editor

I’ve got a hundy that says ENS stops allowing comments on its stories soon.  Here’s a selection of reaction to the news of TEO’s upcoming mass-flaggelation crying jag Repentapalooza thing at GenCon:


Where do we Angles go to lament the destruction of our culture by the Normans? What about some equality in the Protestant Episcopal Church in the United States of America?
So, does that mean that we should all give everything back to the Natives (in my case, the Shawnee) and go back to England/Scotland/Germany/Norway where we came from? Otherwise the “Lament” is nothing more than a shallow, hollow, feel good, self-congratulating, “I am not like other beings” farce. (Oh, and there are some really interesting stories about the Shawnee and their “Doctrine of Discovery” against other groups, such as the Miami.)


I was wondering if the Lament and the Doctrine of Discovery will be accompanied by Restitution.  The Episcopal Church received the land on which many of its churches stand from the Colonial Powers, such as Great Britain, and its successors in title., land that TEC accepts as having been stolen from the indigenous people.  Genuine repentance comes with Restitution.  Please advise me when TEC intends to return their land to the indigenous people from whom it was taken.


I’m with you! We immigrants, English, Welsh, Irish, Scot, French, Dutch, German, et cetera, ad absurdium, have forgotten much, I grant, but in Lakota Country, TEC was the major villain in subjugating the indigenous peoples … so GC, give me a break…pay back, give back, get out and shut up!

Homosexual Haters Against the Salvation Army

from VirtueOnline

Homosexual Haters Against the Salvation Army

By BILL MUEHLENBERG
CULTURE WATCH
http://www.billmuehlenberg.com/2012/06/18/homosexual-haters-against-the-salvation-army/
6/18/12

There is nothing and no one the homosexual hate lobby will not take on in their effort to cram their radical agenda down the throats of every man, woman and child on the planet. They have declared war on any organisation or individual which dares to oppose its hate-filled agenda.

No matter how wonderful and charitable and philanthropic and helpful a group or person may be, if they do not fully grovel before the homosexual militants, they will be targeted and treated with utter contempt and disgust by the bullies at the "tolerance" brigade.

These thugs excel in intimidation, harassment, bullying and hate. And even such enormously dedicated charity groups like the Salvation Army will be treated like dirt if they do not bow the knee to the new homosexual tyranny. Consider two recent shocking cases of this.

Read the full story at www.VirtueOnline.org

TEC – A Reflection on 41 Years of Ordained Ministry

from anglicansunited.com by cherie

[Ed. Note:  In preparation for the General Convention, which convenes next week in Indianapolis, IN, I want to encourage you to read Dean Kevin Martin's latest blog post. The Dean was a deputy at General Convention from the Diocese of Texas and the Diocese of Dallas. He has participated on the national level since the 1980's.   Kevin and Sharon Martin have been friends and colleagues for 30+ years and we celebrate his retirement from the parish ministry; but weep for the Church that we have all loved and served.  Cheryl M. Wetzel]

http://www.deankevin.blogspot.com/

Friday, June 22, 2012

by Dean Kevin Martin, recently retired Dean of St. Matthew’s Cathedral, Dallas

             On my last official Sunday at the Cathedral, the Acting Dean, Neal Michell, did an interview with me during the adult education hour.  Most of the questions were fun, but one question deserved a more serious answer.  Here is the question and my response.

Q.  You’ve seen many changes in 41 years of ministry – Bishop Hines and the Special Convention Program, a New Prayer Book, Women in leadership including ordination, a change in the church’s teachings on divorce and human sexuality, can you share with us your perspective on all this change? 


 First, I want to talk about how our leadership and culture have changed.

I became a member of the Church in 1958 which was the year of the greatest number of new members joining the Church.  By 1965, we had 3.8 million members and then began to decline.  When I joined the Episcopal Church, I would say that the majority of members were what I would call traditionalists.  By this I mean that most Episcopalians were people who valued high English Culture, including and especially, the English language, the arts and music.  While the Episcopal Church was never a State Church as in England, still we had an embracing attitude toward education and the arts.  I like to say that we were the State Church of the educated including scientists and artists.

The leaders of the Church in those days were remarkable people who survived the Great Depression and the Second World War, often bringing out of their experience a strong determination to give back to society.  They were in every way the greatest generation.  Take Bishop Hines who you mentioned for example.  While Bishop of Texas, he started several high quality Episcopal Schools, he launched a seminary, he oversaw the planting of over 40 new congregations, and he gave good and progressive leadership to the wider community.  Like many of his fellow leaders, he believed in an active Christian engagement with society.  As presiding Bishop in 1968 when many of the inner cities of America were literally on fire, he determined that the Church could not sit back in its cultural place of privilege, but rather must engage the issues confronting our society.

I believe his impulse was both necessary and courageous.  He was a dynamic preacher and outspoken leader especially regarding racial equality.  Unfortunately, he made several mistakes. For example, in dealing with urban issues and civil rights, he largely bypassed the already existing African-American clergy leadership in the Church.  He even ended up funding radical groups and organizations in dioceses directly against the wishes of local bishops.  When he realized that he had lost the confidence of his fellow Bishops, he resigned.
He was followed by Bishop John Allen, another remarkable leader.  Within five years, Bishop Allen had won back the 44 dioceses of TEC that had stopped funding the national budget.  While conservative on the issues of a new prayer book and women’s ordination, he oversaw the Church’s affirmative actions and implementations in both these controversial areas.  He urged the Church to hold together and it largely did.

In the early 1970s, I could point to a number of outstanding leaders in TEC, not just leaders of the Church, but leaders of society.  These included Bishops Hines, Allen, Bayne, Professor Massey Shepherd, and Dean Urban Homes just to name a few.  I want to underscore the ability of these leaders to value intellectual conversation and engagement with culture.

Things have changed and I think not for the better.  For example, as a seminarian I attended the General Convention held in Houston.  I remember the hearing held on the proposed new Baptismal Rite.  It started with a 20 minute presentation by a leading theologian and seminary professor on the need for changes.  This was followed by a 10 minute “response” by another theologian from a different perspective.  This theologian began by affirming a number of points made in the initial address, and only then did he respectfully present a differing opinion.  This was followed by a panel discussion among a group of outstanding leaders and thinkers.  Only then was the discussion open to deputies in the audience who could ask questions.

Compare all this to a discussion at the General Convention in 2000 over the issue of ordination of gay and lesbian persons in same-sex relationships.  The initial resolution that would be taken to the floor of convention was read by the Chair of the Committee and then members of the audience were invited to give testimony limited to two minutes.  Participants went to a set of microphones labeled either pro or con.  I saw a seminary dean given only two minutes to speak to the Church’s theology of marriage.  This was followed by a two minute personal sharing by a woman who was married to a transvestite on how accepting their local parish had been.  I sat watching as a once thoughtful and intelligent community that valued substantive engagement with issues reduced itself to a community of passionate partisanship who reduced discussion to a superficial series of slogans and clichés.


Second, I want to discuss our present political climate.

In the 1970s, Forward Movement produced a short booklet on the different groups, movements and worldviews that were represented in TEC.  I remember that they identified at least seven of these.  The main point of the booklet was not the differences, but rather the community that could embrace such a number of differing perspectives.  I would say that we were an “Embracing Community” that recognized that Christianity allowed for numerous and different worldviews and all of these contained some truth that needed to be embraced in the fullness of the Church.  While I had begun as a part of the Anglo-Catholic wing of the Church, been active in the social action wing, and had become an active part of the Charismatic Renewal Movement, I still felt fully included in the Church’s life and listened to with respect.

As the Progressive Wing of the Church began to grow with its concern for the full inclusion of all people including race and gender, things began to change.  Those who had other views and concerns began to be discounter.  Since then, I have spent many years as an Episcopal clergy person being marginalized by so-called “Inclusive” people.  By the mid-1990s, the Church was being divided between conservative/orthodox and progressive/liberal people.  This fight was largely won by the progressive/liberal folks when Bishop Gene Robinson received consent as Bishop of New Hampshire while living in a same-sex partnered relationship.  By the 2006 General Convention, progressive/liberal clergy and laity made up 70% of the House of Deputies.  Since then the losers in this struggle have either left TEC or have been completely marginalized by the denomination.

In many ways, this move from an Embracing to Inclusive Community has been a bitter pill to swallow even for a social moderate like myself.  In the last 10 years, we have lost 1/3 of our membership and we are now living with a number of crises created by this decline including a major financial shortfall that is leading to a major restructuring of the Church’s budget with decreasing commitment to Christian education, seminarian training, evangelism, and stewardship while increasing the salaries and support to the Presiding Bishop and the President of the House of Deputies so that they can continue their “advocacy” ministry.

Of course from what I have already said, I want us to return to the kind of thoughtful and engaging community that was embracing of true diversity and stop being an agency for essentially a limited agenda of advocacy.  Having said all this, you may be surprised to know that I remain hopeful.  I see new leaders emerging in the House of Bishops that can provide this kind of leadership.  I also think that the decline in membership and decrease in financial support have created a kairos moment that could bring about a new sense of mission and direction for TEC.  My prayer is that the present crises will turn us in a more positive direction and move us toward an intentionally more embracive community.

The Institutional Scorpion - Michael Russell

from VirtueOnline

The Institutional Scorpion

By Michael Russell
http://eudaimonia.blogs.com/anglican_minimalist/2012/06/the-institutional-scorpion.html
June 28, 2012

The scorpion wants to cross the river, but cannot swim. Seeing a turtle floating in the shallows he asks to be ferried across the river. Looking astounded the turtle replies, "But you're a scorpion, you would kill me."

"No, no," the scorpion replies, "were I to kill you I would drown too." Persuaded by this eminent logic the turtle offers him the ride.

As he swims throught he deepest part of the river the scorpion's tail flashes forward stinging the turtle in the neck. As he begins to freeze up and sink the turtle looks at the scorpion with pained surprise and cries, "But you promised. Now we'll both die."

Read the full story at www.VirtueOnline.org

When Mature Believers Disagree on Secondary Doctrines

from VirtueOnline

When Mature Believers Disagree on Secondary Doctrines

By Dan Delzell
Special to The Christian Post
http://www.christianpost.com/news/
June 27, 2012

While all born again people agree on the Gospel....and the doctrine of the Trinity....and the doctrine of Christ's two natures....we are not in full agreement on many secondary doctrines. This isn't necessarily a problem in and of itself. Unfortunately, we sometimes take it a step further and attempt to push our "pet doctrines" upon one another.

I suppose we have all done it at one time or another. We mean well....but sometimes we go too far. We allow our minds to be driven by a secondary doctrine, even though there is much disagreement among mature believers on the doctrinal issue in question.

Read the full story at www.VirtueOnline.org

A rebellion we do not need - Andrew Carey

from VirtueOnline

A rebellion we do not need

By Andrew Carey
Church of England Newspaper
June 28th, 2012

What are we to make of the latest Episcopal acts of rebellion in recent weeks? First, we have the Diocesan Bishop of Salisbury, Nick Holtam and the suffragan Bishops of Buckingham, Alan Wilson, and Grantham, Tim Ellis, publicly disagreeing with the Church's opposition against same-sex marriage. Second we have the widespread defeat of the Covenant by a number of bishops in their diocesan synods. And finally, the motions at Worcester and Salisbury Synods publicly disputing the House of Bishops' amendments to the women bishops' legislation.

Read the full story at www.VirtueOnline.org

I'd Like the Truth, Please

from VirtueOnline

I'd Like the Truth, Please

By MICHAEL RUSSELL
The Anglican Minimalist
http://eudaimonia.blogs.com/anglican_minimalist/2012/06/id-like-the-truth-please.html
June 24, 2012

We now have wildly different versions of events from the Presiding Bishop, the Chief Operating Officer, Katie Sherrod and other members of Executive Council.

I expect all politicians to lie, but I do not expect leaders of my church to "spin" events to their own purposes. What we have here is the perfect post-modern meltdown, I suppose, in which multiple perspectives are somehow masked as truth. It is one of the reasons that postmodernism is so unsatisfying, it allows saints and sinners to all cloak themselves in notions of personal truths.

As a deputy I have am deeply aggrieved that there are multiple versions of the truth of the genesis of the various budgets. I am sickened to think it possible that one part of our church sabotaged another, presumably with the best interests of The Episcopal Church at heart.

Read the full story at www.VirtueOnline.org

Episcopal and Presbyterian Churches to Grapple With Same-Sex Marriage

from TitusOneNine by Kendall Harmon

The Episcopal Church, which has also seen dozens of congregations leaving over the years for its increasingly liberal theology, has already been blessing gay and lesbian couples for decades, but those wishing to change the legal definition of marriage want to make the commitment vow free of gender and official liturgy.

"The Witnessing and Blessing of a Lifelong Covenant," as the Episcopalian proposal is called, would first be used on a three-year trial basis if it passes, and then another decision would have to be made on whether to fully change Episcopalian doctrine to include same-sex couples in the definition of marriage.

"I don't think there is any member of the clergy that stayed [in The Episcopal Church] that didn't know this was going to happen. This is the drift of the culture and, when you have a mass exodus of your conservatives, this is just inevitable," expressed the Rev. James Simons, rector of St. Michael of the Valley in Ligonier.

Read it all.

Can you read the following and really believe that pecusa is still a church?

Message from Bishop David Anderson  Bishop Anderson Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ, The American Episcopal Church (TEC) is in trouble again, but this time it's not about sex - not that those issues have gone away, they have just been normalized - this time it's about money, and either money or sex will normally get an article on page one, maybe even above the fold. TEC has a General Convention every three years, made up of two houses, the House of Deputies comprising laity, priests and deacons, and the House of Bishops comprised of, well, bishops. This summer it is time again for General Convention, which will meet in Indianapolis, Indiana, and part of the business will be to deal with serious questions such as "Why is TEC's church attendance so low?," and "Why are contributions to TEC so low?"," and "What is most important for the church to be doing with its limited resources?" (I would suggest they consider stopping suing people and churches!). In between General Conventions, there is an Executive Council which is authorized to make interim decisions and carry out any mandates from General Convention. Additionally, there is a President of the House of Deputies who has some administrative duties, and the Presiding Bishop who has other administrative and episcopal duties, and there is a constantly shrinking staff, all based at TEC's headquarters at 815 2nd Avenue, New York, at the lower end of Manhattan. This group is often referred to collectively as "815," and is the denomination's bureaucracy, for good or ill. The Executive Council is supposed to submit a proposed triennial budget to a committee called Program, Budget and Finance (PB&F) in time for proper consideration, possible amendment, and then presentation at the General Convention. The budget is intended to embody both the expected income and the expenditures based on mission commitment. Inherent in any sensible budget are careful and cautious projections of future income and expenses. When expenses are manipulated up or down to further an end, or when projections of income are unrealistically altered to produce a desired outcome, it ceases to be a budget and becomes propaganda.

Something apparently went wrong and the current draft budget didn't get to the right people in sufficient time, and then there were numerous proposed budgets being offered from different entities, including one the Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori put together herself. Now the question is whose missional priorities will be given the green light, which budget will be presented to General Convention, and will there be any debate allowed on the open floor over the budget(s)? Apparently the postmodernism of TEC, which didn't bother them on such subjects as human sexuality, the authority of Holy Scripture or the person and work of Jesus Christ, where you have your truth and I have mine, all of a sudden is not acceptable with it comes to money. Down here in Georgia, we would say, "Well, bless their hearts!" One TEC writer, posting on his blog, objected to the nonsense that there could be one truth in one budget and another truth in another budget. Fr. Michael Russell, a clergy deputy to General Convention from the Diocese of San Diego, is apparently frustrated with the games about truth being played in what is left of the Episcopal Church. In his recent posting he said, "I'd like the truth, please." That seems like a reasonable request, and I'm sure that most Episcopalians would join him in such a plea. He goes on to note, "We now have wildly different versions of events from the Presiding Bishop, the Chief Operating Officer, Katie Sherrod and other members of Executive Council. I expect all politicians to lie, but I do not expect leaders of my church to "spin" events to their own purposes.  What we have here is the perfect post-modern meltdown, I suppose, in which multiple perspectives are somehow masked as truth.  It is one of the reasons that postmodernism is so unsatisfying, it allows saints and sinners to all cloak themselves in notions of personal truths." I'd love to tape record that comment and turn back the clock to General Convention 2003 in Minneapolis and subsequent General Conventions, when issues on the person and work of Jesus Christ, the authority of Holy Scripture, and human sexuality were raised, and the mantra of "your truth/my truth" was pushed at those of us who were more conservative and wanting to hold onto the historic truths of the church. Fr. Russell suggests firing everyone: "If I had my way I'd fire everyone and start over.  I do not want to waste the time it would take to adjudicate the competing claims." If Fr. Russell can figure out how to do that, it is more than the orthodox Episcopalians could figure out, so most of us just left and started over. An additional comment of his in a different venue was "Someone among the leadership of the church is not telling or owning the truth about his debacle." Many of us have felt that way for some time, though on different issues. Do read Fr. Michael's article, as it reflects considerable frustration in the Episcopal Church, at least among those who know what is, or isn't, going on. A "progressive" TEC writer, Fr. Mark Harris, an Episcopal priest from the Diocese of Delaware, on his blog addresses the same issue from a slightly different angle, looking at the tensions within the TEC leadership over power and who is trying to take it away from whom. He writes "The skunk is on the table and fear and loathing is in the offing. The Budget of The Episcopal Church... a thing required by Canon... is coming soon to General Convention, ready or not. How it will get there is increasingly a matter for fear and loathing, mostly related to the sense that budget matters are more and more part of the larger re-visioning schemes being proposed and the way the budget is produced and how it is shaped is shifting the way various groups in the church exercise leadership." Fr. Harris continues, "Katie Sherrod, has written a powerful post on her blog in which she has put the skunk on the table. In "Balancing act" she makes it clear that the issues are not simply about the budget and its preparation, but about the extent to which budget development is carried out without any transparency and with motives that look very much like power plays. She writes, "Is this restructuring by budget? The presiding bishop is not elected by General Convention, but by one house as their presider. Do we want our budgets coming from the PB's office or from a more widely representative body?" Ms. Sherrod, who serves on the Executive Council, goes on to further highlight some of the unseemly battles going on within top TEC leadership, "Several recent events, including the recent Commentary on the budget by the Rt. Rev. Stacy Sauls, chief operating officer [COO] of The Episcopal Church, and the budget recently proposed by the Most Rev. Katharine Jefferts Schori, presiding bishop [PB] and primate of The Episcopal Church, have raised quite public questions about the Council's competency. As a member of that body, I confess to being shocked by these developments - not because of the criticism (that comes with the territory), but because of concerns these developments raise about the direction of The Episcopal Church." There have been serious suggestions that the church headquarters move out of pricey Manhattan to a less expensive and more centrally located city such as Chicago. Having the office in lower Manhattan means that everything costs more, including the salaries of the employees who have to be paid enough to live in such an inflated economy.  All of the so-called mainline church denominations have been downgraded from their previous prideful place of prominence in American culture and society, and that is hard to re-adjust to. Where TEC once went first class, they now need to think economy or even tourist class. Fewer people in the pews means fewer dollars in the offering plate and fewer Episcopalians in prominent offices in all three branches of government. I hope that Deputy Michael Russell's request for truth is honored by his church in this summer's triennial gathering. I think the bottom line is it is hard to change the corporate DNA after it is set. I pray fervently that the new Anglican Church in North America can set its DNA in a godly manner so that we can stay true to the one who said that He is...THE TRUTH, Jesus Christ himself. Blessings and peace in Christ Jesus, +David The Rt. Rev. David C. Anderson, Sr. President and CEO, American Anglican Council

I’M SORRY, SO SORRY

from Midwest Conservative Journal by The Editor

GenCon 2012 starts next week.  And what would any Episcopal get-together be without Episcopalians corporately thanking Vague, Ambiguous, Infinitely-Malleable, Inclusive, Affirming, Open-Minded And Tolerant Deity Concept that they are not as other men are?


Individuals and communities of Episcopalians are invited to add their voices to the “Lament Over the Doctrine of Discovery” by praying at the same time as the special event occurring at General Convention 2012 on Tuesday, July 10 at 7:00 p.m. Eastern (6:00 p.m. Central, 5:00 p.m. Mountain, 4:00 p.m. Pacific, 3:00 p.m. Alaska, 1:00 p.m. Hawaii).

And yes, that is actually what they are calling this complete waste of time event.


“Dioceses, congregations and individuals — both Native and other people — throughout the Americas are invited to participate with simultaneous local laments held in cathedrals, churches, backyards, offices, apartments,” noted Sarah Eagle Heart, Episcopal Church indigenous missioner.

“Simultaneous local laments.”  Three words that have never before appeared next to each other in the English language.  But really?  Seriously?  Simultaneous local laments.  Planned laments.  On this specific day at this specific time, pretend to feel really bad about something that happened centures before you were born; yeah, that sounds completely sincere.  Just don’t forget your trumpet.


Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori and Bonnie Anderson, president of the House of Deputies, will offer prayers during the Lament at General Convention, to be held at the JW Marriott. The Lament will include the Red Leaf Singers, traditional Lakota singing and drum group from the Rosebud Sioux Reservation, South Dakota. White Earth Tribal Chair Erma Vizenor will reflect upon the boarding school impact to Native American peoples with other church leaders sharing their perspectives on the Doctrine of Discovery.

“White People Suck” key chains and coffee mugs as well as “I Repented For Somebody Else’s Sins And All I Got Was This Lousy T-Shirt” T-shirts will be available for sale in the lobby following the event.  These and many other items can also be ordered online at www.whitepeoplesuck.com.  Shipping is included in the price.


For both those present for the Lament in Indianapolis, as well as those elsewhere, stay in touch and contribute responses to and reflections on the lament through…

Looks like we officially have a new Episcopal buzzword.  No word yet on whether any of this will be part of the festivities but it wouldn’t surprise me.

Next Stop: The 77th General Convention of the Episcopal Church

from VirtueOnline

Next Stop: The 77th General Convention of the Episcopal Church
For the second time in history the Church meets in Indianapolis 

By Mary Ann Mueller
Special Correspondent
www.virtueonline.org
June 27, 2012

General Convention 2009 has faded into memory and the other 75 Episcopal General Conventions have become a part of history or at least woven into the folklore of The Episcopal Church. Now all eyes are turned to Indiana and focused on Indianapolis. Necessary arrangements have been made. Travel tickets are in hand and lodging has been secured.

The last time The Episcopal Church met it was in the shadow of Disneyland. And the carnival-like atmosphere of Walt Disney's first theme park permeated the Convention. Life-sized golden Mickey Mouse figures greeted conventioneers at their hotels. The sights, sounds, colors, noise and commotion of Mickeymouseland even spilled over into the liturgical settings of Convention. Some bishops were so disgusted by the glitz and clamor of the "spiritual events" they were seen walking out.

This time there will be no high level visitors from Lambeth Place keeping an eye on how The Episcopal Church is doing things or even trying to persuade the American Episcopal Church from committing further spiritual suicide and further poisoning the Anglican DNA. Both Rowan Williams and John Sentamu have been special Anglican visitors in recent General Conventions. Not this time.

Read the full story at www.VirtueOnline.org

(Living Church) Douglas LeBlanc—A Blue Book Sampler for General Convention 2012

from TitusOneNine by Kendall Harmon

At 759 pages and 155 resolutions, the Blue Book for the 77th General Convention addresses a broad range of topics, from blessing rites for same-sex couples to an embattled budget, from a kinder approach on clergy removal to additional Bible translations for lectionary readings.

This year’s Blue Book, like those of 2006 and 2009, is not blue. Instead, it is salmon (Pantone 169 M, to be precise)....Here is a sampling of the copious resolutions and reports from the church’s standing commissions and other bodies.

Read it all.

Crisis Deepens at the Washington National Cathedral: Dean Francis Wade Exits

from VirtueOnline

Crisis Deepens at the Washington National Cathedral: Interim Dean Francis Wade Announces Quick Departure

By Sarah Frances Ives
Special to Virtueonline
www.virtueonline.org
June 27, 2012

The Washington National Cathedral's interim Dean, Rev. Dr. Francis H. Wade has announced he will leave his position in July 2012. Wade had assumed the role of dean on January 6, 2012, as well as the vice-chair of the Protestant Episcopal Cathedral Foundation. It had been expected that Wade would stay in place until the arrival of the new dean. No names of prospective interim or permanent deans have been announced following the announcement of Wade's surprise departure.

Meanwhile, the Washington National Cathedral continues its frantic search for money in its recent public appeals. On June 21, 2012 a Cathedral email referred to the month of June as a "critical time." The public communique pleaded, "A gap in annual funds remains and must be closed by the end of the Cathedral's fiscal year, June 30, 2012."

Read the full story at www.VirtueOnline.org

George Conger—The Episcopal Church’s Dennis Canon – updated

from TitusOneNine by Kendall Harmon

In 2007 I wrote an article for the Living Church magazine reporting on the controversies surrounding the passage of the Dennis Canon at the 1979 General Convention. In that article I reported that it could not be shown that the Dennis Canon had passed the convention, but the balance of probabilities made it more than likely that it did.

In the five years since I wrote that article I have done further research on this question, and in light of these researches I have revised my conclusions.

Read it all.

You can leave me out of "Us"

from VirtueOnline

You can leave me out of "Us"

By NewbieAnglican
http://wannabeanglican.blogspot.com/2012/06/you-can-leave-me-out-of-us.html
June 26, 2012

Remember the United Society for the Propagation of the Gospel? Well they are changing their name to reflect their current apostasy to just United Society or "Us". None of that must old "propagation of the Gospel" here.

'No doubt this name worked well in its day, but words like "propagation" are simply out-dated in the twenty-first century. So it was time for a change.

'Our new name, Us, is directly derived from USPG, so it speaks to our heritage, but it also speaks about inclusivity. There is no "them"; we are all "us". Our work - in partnership with the churches of the Anglican Communion - is for the benefit of the whole community, regardless of ethnicity, culture, gender, sexuality, age or faith. No-one is excluded.'

Ah, yes. The true modern Gospel is inclusion. Tell you what - someone is excluded from that. Me. For I exclude myself from such apostate tripe.

Read the full story at www.VirtueOnline.org

How Do the “ECUSA Sweet 16” Categories Fare under the Proposed Budgets?

from Stand Firm by A. S. Haley 

Back on April 24, our own Greg Griffith published a chart of 16 categories in ECUSA’s anticipated budget, with his predictions for which ones would win out as the budget moves forward toward final adoption. Here is the bracket:

With the Presiding Bishop’s recently proposed budget now online, we may take a look at how well Greg’s predictions are doing thus far: very, very well, actually.
Below are Greg’s categories, linked to the line(s) in the PB’s budget, and the proposed amounts:
FIRST ROUND (Eight Match-ups)

1. Evangelism:  $ 1.5 million (line 45)
2. Church Pension Fund:  $ 8 million (assumed to be 15% of Total Staff Costs in line 381

The Winner: Church Pension Fund, as Greg predicted.

3. Episcopal Church Women: There is no single line item for such an expense; it has to be ferreted out from everything such as “Networking” (lines 66, 122, 168, etc.)  to “United Thank Offering” (line 266). Estimated at $ 3 million.
4. Church Growth:  $ 2 million (line 27).

The Winner: Episcopal Church Women, as Greg predicted.

5. Youth Programs:  $ 2.1 million (lines 67-68, 79, 81)
6. Muslim Outreach:  $ 30,000 (a guess from line 225)

The Winner: Youth Programs - Greg missed this one.

7. Gay Stuff:  Very difficult to estimate, since it obviously permeates the budget, rather than being a line item. But one can attribute to it most of the litigation costs against departing parishes and dioceses, as well as a good chunk of General Convention expense, and a good deal of Anglican Communion efforts, to say the least. Estimated at $10 million
8. Clean Water:  included in $ 1 million for the environment (line 122)

The Winner: Gay Stuff, as Greg predicted.

9. Communications Office:  $ 8.2 million (lines 49-51, 55)
10. Hunger Relief:  $ 2.3 million (in lieu of a specific line item, we may allocate the whole of Haitian relief - line 83)

The Winner: Communications Office, as Greg predicted.

11. Ending Child Slavery: $ 0 (maybe you can find it; I can’t)
12. Lawyers’ Fees:  $ 4 million (lines 276-77, 346)

This was a no-brainer.
The Winner: Lawyers’ Fees, as Greg predicted.

13. Worship Resources:  $ 104,000 (line 130)
14. General Convention:  $ 7.2 million (lines 288-89, 304)

Another no-brainer.
The Winner: General Convention, as Greg predicted.
And the final first-round match (yet another easy pick):

15. 815 Salaries:  $ 52 million (line 381, though not all staff is at 815—but it makes no difference)
16. Ending Poverty:  $ 1 million (line 108)

The Winner: 815 Salaries, as Greg predicted.
*******
SECOND ROUND (Four Match-ups; winner shown in bold, Greg’s predictions in italics; thus correct predictions are shown in bold italics)
First match:

2. Church Pension Fund: $ 8 million (est.)
3. Episcopal Church Women: $ 4 million (est.)

Second match:

5. Youth Programs: $ 2.1 million
7. Gay Stuff: $ 10 million (est.)

Third match (Greg missed this one):

9. Communications Office:  $ 8.2 million
12. Lawyers’ Fees: $ 4 million

Fourth match:

14. General Convention: $ 7.2 million
15. 815 Salaries: $ 52 million

Out of twelve matches thus far, Greg has ten right. Now to the third round.
*****
THIRD ROUND: (Two Match-ups)
First match:

2. Church Pension Fund: $ 8 million (est.)
7. Gay Stuff: $ 10 million (est.)

Second match:

9. Communications Office:  $ 8.2 million
15. 815 Salaries: $ 52 million

Two more wins for Greg - twelve out of fourteen.
And he predicted the winner of the fourth and final round, too.
*****
FOURTH ROUND (Final Match)

7. Gay Stuff: $ 10 million (est.)
15. 815 Salaries: $ 52 million

Greg’s picks: Thirteen out of fifteen - not shabby at all, Greg, not shabby at all.

SANTA BARBARA, CA:Bishops Bruno & Glasspool should butt out of selection process

from VirtueOnline

SANTA BARBARA, CA: Bishops Bruno and Glasspool should butt out of process to select new rector

June 25, 2012

Betsey Gooch Stewart
John H. Stewart
Ms. Sheri Benninghoven, Senior Warden All-Saints-by-the-Sea Church

Greetings from the Stewarts in Ventura,

Betsey and I love All Saints by the Sea. I was an acolyte here between 1954-57 and we are very appreciative that we were allowed to return a decade ago; I was deeply honored to be asked to help with ushering. My brother Cary remembers vividly the pivotal role which Phil Wilcox played in mentoring him as a boy.

Read the full story at www.VirtueOnline.org

Elizabeth Drescher—The Truth in Transgender: Will the Episcopal Church Amend Its Rules?

from TitusOneNine by Kendall Harmon

(Please note that we posted on the video mentioned in this article on the blog earlier which you may find there--KSH).

As the Episcopal Church prepares for its 77th triennial General Convention in Indianapolis next month, transgender Episcopalians and their allies are preparing to challenge the denomination’s commitment to the full inclusion of all God’s people—without consideration of “race, color, ethnic origin, national origin, sex, marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, disabilities or age”—in discernment for lay or ordained ministry in the Church. The italicized language is a proposed addition to the current canons of the Episcopal Church, which were previously amended to include sexual orientation as a characteristic that could not be considered as an impediment to ministry. The new language was proposed at the 2009 General Convention, but failed to garner the support of the Legislative Committee charged with recommending resolutions to the full voting body of bishops, clergy, and lay delegates.

“I think there was a tremendous amount of confusion the first time around,” says Louise Emerson Brooks, a media consultant and communications director for the Episcopal LGBT advocacy group, Integrity USA, of the failure of the 2009 resolution. “There was a clear need for education among the bishops and the delegates in general on what it means to be transgender and why it matters that they are not prevented from serving the church in any ministry, lay or ordained.”

“I have to confess,” continues Brooks,

“that I was one of those people who used to say, ‘Why do we have to put the T with the LGB?’ I thought it was a different issue. I thought it was confusing. I thought it was polarizing. I thought we should just separate the issues, take on one battle at a time.”

A seminar by the advocacy group Trans Episcopal changed Brooks’ understanding of the issues, and Brooks channeled her own learning experience into Voices of Witness: Out of the Box, a documentary that tells the story of trans women and men now serving in ordained ministry in the Episcopal Church.

Read it all.

No-Cost Identification

from Stand Firm by David Fischler http://reformedpastor.wordpress.com

The Rev. Aaron Graham is senior pastor of The District Church, a non-denominational, evangelical congregation in Washington. He’s a former “Justice Revival Director” (whatever that is) for Sojourners. He wrote a piece for the “On Faith” column of the Washington Post about National HIV Testing Day (what? you mean you missed it?) entitled “Why I got tested”:

As I walked into the Whitman-Walker Clinic I thought, What will everyone in the waiting room think when I tell the receptionist why I’m here? Will they think I’m gay? Will they think I cheated on my wife? I wonder if any of them know I’m a pastor?
As I went into the back room to get my finger pricked, I began to worry about whether I would test positive. What would my wife think? What would my church think? Would I lose my job?

Me, I’ve got to wonder why he didn’t tell his wife. As he makes clear later, he didn’t really think he would test positive, but did it to make a point. If I were going to do something like that, I’d certainly tell my wife first, rather than afterwards (or, heaven forbid, let her know through the Washington Post, which would be grounds for a frying pan across the skull, if not divorce).

While I know I would be loved by some, I also know I would probably feel judged by many. If one of my friends told me they were HIV positive I’m sad to admit that my first thought would be to wonder whether they were sleeping around.
I think it’s this fear of being judged that prevents so many of us from getting tested.

No, actually for most people I suspect it’s the realization that they haven’t 1) had male homosexual contact; 2) had heterosexual contact with someone who was infected; 3) had a blood transfusion; or 4) taken intravenous drugs. I know that’s why I haven’t been tested. What Graham seems unable to accept, like so many people who want to “destigmatize” HIV/AIDS, is that it is not an easy disease to get, and most people are simply not at risk. That may upset some disease activists or gay rights people, but that’s reality.

When Jesus interacted with the sick, he always treated people with dignity and focused on healing rather than judgment. When the disciples asked Jesus why a certain kid was born blind, he replied, “Neither this man nor his parents sinned…but this happened so that the works of God might be displayed in him.” (John 9:3; NIV)

Sorry, that passage can’t be extrapolated to all disease or disability, nor should it be. Crack babies are born addicted because of specific actions taken by their mothers. People who get HIV/AIDS do so because they engage in high-risk behaviors (or got an infusion of infected blood, but that rarely happens these days). The story of the man born blind is hardly meant to give a pass to all who engage in immoral or risky behavior and then wind up having to deal with consequences that were well known to be possibilities before that behavior occurred.

I got tested because I believe Jesus would get tested. I got tested because, if Jesus were walking the streets of D.C. today I’m convinced he would be hanging out with those who are positive. Sick people always seem to find friendship and healing by being with Jesus.

The latter two of those sentences are undoubtedly true, but say nothing about the first. Look, I’ve worked with HIV/AIDS patients before—held their hands, prayed with them, buried them. I have no problem with those who seek to minister to the sick, including the sick whose own behavior led to them contracting the disease. I have no problem dealing with them in a non-judgmental way. But what Graham is talking about here is the kind of cheap stunt with which Jesus would have had nothing to do. He identifies plenty with the sick, through His crucifixion and death. Getting tested when you know there’s essentially no way you could test positive is simply a no-cost way of making a statement that you care. Somehow, I’m sure that the actual sufferers to whom Graham ministers with his time, his spiritual gifts, his empathy, and his wisdom are helped far more by that than by any gimmick.

This is a preventable disease, but the first step to stopping the epidemic is for everyone to know their HIV status through testing. And the key to everyone getting tested is to remove the shame and stigma by modeling out a Jesus-like culture of grace.

Again, no. Most people already know their status, and have no need for testing, because they haven’t done anything that could result in them catching the disease. Ultimately, this is simply a way of covering for those who need to get tested because of their behaviors, and especially for those who test positive. There are steps that could be taken to stop the disease, but suggesting that every American get tested isn’t it.