VirtueOnline Digest, Vol 17, Issue 13

[virtueonli...@listserv.virtueonline.org]

=================================
VirtueOnline Weekly News Digest
http://www.VirtueOnline.org
=================================

Welcome to the VOL Weekly News Digest, an electronic communique of news about The Episcopal Church and the Anglican Communion is brought to you by VirtueOnline (VOL), a non-profit news and information ministry to the Anglican Communion. Subscriptions are offered free of charge.

For questions about the digest, to subscribe or modify your subscription:
a. Visit: http://www.virtueonline.org/listserv.html, or
b. Email your request to: in...@virtueonline.org

VOL depends on its readers for financial support. Please consider a tax deductible donation. You can do so via check or credit card. http://www.virtueonline.org/support.html

VIRTUEONLINE
570 Twin Lakes Rd
P.O. Box 111
Shohola, PA 18458

http://www.virtueonline.org
http://www.facebook.com/virtueonline
http://twitter.com/VirtueOnline

THANK YOU FOR READING AND SUPPORTING VOL

--

P.S. Direct replies to this digest do NOT go to VOL staff. If you wish to comment on today's digest, please address your email to in...@virtueonline.org

Today's Topics:

1. Table of Contents (David Virtue)
2. VIEWPOINTS: April 31, 2017 (David Virtue)
3. We're Christian, you're not, says General Theological
Seminary Dean (David Virtue)
4. Church disciplinary hearing due to begin for Los Angeles
Bishop J. Jon Bruno (David Virtue)
5. CANADA: Diocese of Niagara Parish Offers Islamic Prayers to
Allah (David Virtue)
6. Report says 1, 100 complaints of child abuse made against
Australia's Anglican church (David Virtue)
7. Church of South India Hides Corruption in Smoke Screen call
for Lenten Fast (David Virtue)
8. Looking outwards with the gospel (David Virtue)
9. Welby Sahib's post-colonial guilt patronises me because of my
skin colour (David Virtue)
10. Church of England to create bishop for minority ethnic
community (David Virtue)
11. Archbishops launch investigation into Philip North row after
'highly individualised' attacks (David Virtue)
12. Archbishop of Canterbury: 'Christ's love and self-sacrifice
will triumph over evil and despair' (David Virtue)
13. Anti-LGBT Doctor Stands Firm in Face of Mounting Criticism
(David Virtue)
14. The Alt-Right Is What Happens When Society Marginalizes Men
(David Virtue)
15. "Big Brother" Isn't Who You Thought He Was (David Virtue)
16. Athanasius, Irenaeus, and the Church of England Bus (David Virtue)
17. Hashtags and Teddy Bears will not quell radical Islam
(David Virtue)
18. JOS, Nigeria: Anglican Archbishop urges Government to defend
Christians against Fulani terror (David Virtue)
19. QUESTIONS JESUS ASKED: What Can Suffering Teach Me? - --
Hebrews 5:7, 8 (David Virtue)


----------------------------------------------------------------------

Message: 1
Date: Thu, 30 Mar 2017 16:43:01 -0400
From: David Virtue <da...@virtueonline.org>
To: "virtue...@listserv.virtueonline.org"
<virtue...@listserv.virtueonline.org>
Subject: Table of Contents
Message-ID:
<1490906581.4191569...@webmail.messagingengine.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8"

VirtueOnline Weekly News Digest - Desktop & Mobile Edition
www.virtueonline.org
March 31, 2017


*************************************
VIEWPOINTS
*************************************

1. Bishop Budde's ALPHA Transformation * Bishop Bruno Faces his Accusers
* Diocese of Niagra Parish Offers...
<http://www.virtueonline.org/bishop-buddes-alpha-transformation-bishop-bruno-faces-his-accusers-diocese-niagara-parish-offers


************************************************
EPISCOPAL NEWS
************************************************

2.We're Christian, you're not, says General Theological Seminary Dean
http://www.virtueonline.org/were-christian-youre-not-says-general-theological-seminary-dean

3.Church disciplinary hearing due to begin for Los Angeles Bishop J. Jon
Bruno
http://www.virtueonline.org/church-disciplinary-hearing-due-begin-los-angeles-bishop-j-jon-bruno


*********************************************
GLOBAL ANGLICAN NEWS
*********************************************

4.CANADA: Diocese of Niagara Parish Offers Islamic Prayers to Allah
http://www.virtueonline.org/canada-diocese-niagara-parish-offers-islamic-prayers-allah

5.Report says 1,100 complaints of child abuse made against Australia's
Anglican Church
http://www.virtueonline.org/report-says-1100-complaints-child-abuse-made-against-australias-anglican-church

6.Church of South India Hides Corruption in Smoke Screen call for Lenten
fast
http://www.virtueonline.org/church-south-india-hides-corruption-smoke-screen-call-lenten-fast


**************************************************
ANGLICAN CHURCH NEWS IN NORTH AMERICA
**************************************************

7.Looking outwards with the gospel
http://www.virtueonline.org/looking-outwards-gospel


*********************************************
CHURCH OF ENGLAND NEWS
*********************************************

8. Welby Sahib's post-colonial guilt patronises me because of my skin
colour
http://www.virtueonline.org/welby-sahibs-post-colonial-guilt-patronises-me-because-my-skin-colour

9.Church of England to create bishop for minority ethnic community
http://www.virtueonline.org/church-england-create-bishop-minority-ethnic-community

10.Archbishops launch investigation into Philip North row after 'highly
individualised attacks'
http://www.virtueonline.org/archbishops-launch-investigation-philip-north-row-after-highly-individualised-attacks

11.Archbishop of Canterbury: 'Christ's love and self-sacrifice will
triumph over evil and despair'
http://www.virtueonline.org/archbishop-canterbury-christs-love-and-self-sacrifice-will-triumph-over-evil-and-despair


********************************
CULTURE WARS
********************************

12.Anti-LGBT Doctor Stands Firm in Face of Mounting Criticism
http://www.virtueonline.org/anti-lgbt-doctor-stands-firm-face-mounting-criticism

13.The Alt-Right Is What Happens When Society Marginalizes Men
http://www.virtueonline.org/alt-right-what-happens-when-society-marginalizes-men

14."Big Brother" Isn't Who You Thought He Was
http://www.virtueonline.org/big-brother-isnt-who-you-thought-he-was


********************************
AS EYE SEE IT
********************************

15.Athanasius, Irenaeus, and the Church of England Bus
http://www.virtueonline.org/athanasius-irenaeus-and-church-england-bus

16.Hashtags and Teddy Bears will not quell radical Islam
http://www.virtueonline.org/hashtags-and-teddy-bears-will-not-quell-radical-islam


**********************************
ISLAMIC PERSECUTION
**********************************

17.JOS, Nigeria: Anglican Archbishop urges Government to defend
Christians against Fulani terror
http://www.virtueonline.org/jos-nigeria-anglican-archbishop-urges-government-defend-christians-against-fulani-terror


**********************************
DEVOTIONAL
**********************************

18.QUESTIONS JESUS ASKED: What Can Suffering Teach Me? - -- Hebrews
5:7,8
http://www.virtueonline.org/questions-jesus-asked-what-can-suffering-teach-me-hebrews-578



END



------------------------------

Message: 2
Date: Thu, 30 Mar 2017 16:44:34 -0400
From: David Virtue <da...@virtueonline.org>
To: "virtue...@listserv.virtueonline.org"
<virtue...@listserv.virtueonline.org>
Subject: VIEWPOINTS: April 31, 2017
Message-ID:
<1490906674.4191747...@webmail.messagingengine.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8"

If we are true Christians, we must not expect everything smooth in our
journey to heaven. We must count it no strange thing, if we have to
endure sicknesses, losses, bereavements, and disappointments, just like
other people. Free pardon and full forgiveness, grace by the way and
glory to the end -- all this our Savior has promised to give. But He has
never promised that we shall have no afflictions. He loves us too well
to promise that. --- J. C. Ryle

"Christ has no body but yours; no hands, no feet on earth but yours.
Yours are the eyes through which His Compassion looks out upon the
world. Yours are the feet with which He walks to do Good. Yours are the
hands with which he Blesses all the world." --- St. Teresa of Avila

"Although its celebrants often don't realize it, the universe of liberal
Protestantism is very small and getting smaller." --- Mark Tooley, IRD
President

Full hearts and empty heads. Christianity lays great emphasis on the
importance of knowledge, rebukes anti-intellectualism for the negative,
paralyzing thing it is, and traces many of our problems to our
ignorance. Whenever the heart is full and the head is empty, dangerous
fanaticisms arise. --- John R.W. Stott

"Failed and dying liberal Protestantism self-defeatingly is prioritized
over vibrant and socially effective orthodoxy." - - Mark Tooley, IRD
President

Enough with the politics, Your Eminence, turn to Christ for the good of
your own soul and your sheep. Your clock is running out. You've already
been here eight years, and there is no turnaround in sight nor have you
laid the groundwork for it. You can rail against me and other concerned
Catholics all you want -- you should be concerned not about us but Jesus
Christ. All the backslapping and buffoonery and loud laughing will avail
you nothing at your judgment. The souls that were in your care is what
you will be judged on. -- Michael Voris

The church is effectively doing power politics rather than discernment.
All the anger and the rejection that the progressive part of the church
found themselves expressing was not spiritual discernment, it was
political rage. I'm not sure you can educate political rage. I don't
think that Philip North, however well-meaning he is, is going to produce
levels of education that will to remove people out of the grip of this
ideology which is gender equality, which actually has nothing to do with
the Gospels or Christianity. -- Rev. Dr. Gavin Ashenden

David W. Virtue, DD
www.virtueonline.org
March 31, 2017

Pick me off the floor. This is right up there with Ripley's Believe it
or Not. You will recall that last week I wrote about Washington Bishop
Marianne Budde's sermon to the House of Bishops in Kanuga. In that
sermon, she said her diocese was slowly slipping away and the Jesus
Movement wasn't making much headway there. Only a dozen or so parishes
out of 88 would be viable in a few years. She then mentioned the need
for more 'born again' members.

I took little notice of this at the time as she could have made it to
mean anything she wanted it to mean, but then came word from a reliable
source that she is leading an ALPHA course at the National Cathedral
with Jamie Haith, curate at Holy Trinity, Brompton in London, the
spiritual home of ALHPA and Nicky Gumbel, its founder!

Apparently Budde described a conversion experience she had when she was
a teen. Budde's New Age heresies have been plenteously documented by
this writer and I doubt I would support Haith because of her New Age
heresies, but maybe something is touching her!

What is truly scarier, is if she discovers she has been wrong all these
years and repents, it could start a chain reaction, maybe a riot or
revival in TEC's HOB! Now that would be something to report on.

*****

The Rt. Rev. J. Jon Bruno, the revisionist Bishop of Los Angeles, faced
his accusers this week, standing accused of "conduct unbecoming a member
of the clergy" and of "conduct involving dishonesty, deceit, or
misrepresentation." If found guilty, he could be deposed. Testimony
began this week.

The legal fight concerns a church property in Newport Beach, California,
valued at over $15 million dollars.

The Rev. Canon Cindy Evans Voorhees and several others testified about
how she tried to foster a new congregation, St. James the Great, in the
existing building, which was built in the 1940's and extensively
renovated in 2002.

This parish was once the home of 1,500 mostly evangelical Episcopalians;
it has now been mired in litigation and legal proceedings for more than
a decade. Then this parish and three others withdrew from the Episcopal
Church and joined the Anglican Church in North America.

The fleeing parishes and the diocese both claimed ownership of the
church properties, but the parishes had the keys to the buildings. In
2013, after nine years of litigation, a court ruling found that the
diocese owned the buildings.

The St. James the Great complainants allege that Bruno violated church
canons because he:

? failed to get the consent of the diocesan standing committee
before entering into a contract to sell the property;
? misrepresented his intention for the property to the members,
the clergy and the local community at large;
? misrepresented that St. James the Great was not a sustainable
congregation;
? misrepresented that the Rev. Canon Cindy Evans Voorhees, St.
James' vicar, had resigned;
? misrepresented to some St. James members that he would lease the
property back to them for a number of months and that the diocese would
financially aid the church; and
? engaged in conduct unbecoming a member of the clergy by
"misleading and deceiving" the clergy and people of St. James, as well
as the local community, about his plans for the property and for taking
possession of the property and locking out the congregation.

Bruno says in his response brief to the hearing panel that five of the
allegations must be decided in his favor because "undisputed evidence
establishes no canonical violation." He says the sixth allegation
concerning alleged misrepresentations to Voorhees presents conflicting
evidence for the panel to weigh. However, he calls it a "she said (he
told me he wouldn't sell the property), he said (I never said I wouldn't
sell the property) dichotomy."

At one point she testified that Bishop Bruno offered her a position
working on an international mission, at a salary of $111,000, which was
far more than she was making at the church. She accepted the position
initially, but then handed her first paycheck back to the bishop and
said she would stay with St. James the Great.

The Hearing Panel is hearing testimony in a meeting room of the
Courtyard by Marriott Hotel in Pasadena, located about 90 minutes
northeast of Newport Beach. Save St. James the Great has organized buses
to travel to and from the hearing each day.

*****

Episcopal Presiding Bishop Michael Curry gave a Q & A to the Salt Lake
Tribune and gave some answers that you might to think about.

QUESTION: On Jan. 14, 2016, the Anglican Communion suspended the
Episcopal Church's voting and decision-making roles within the global
body for three years, primarily due to the [U.S. church's] clergy
officiating at same-sex marriages. Where are you in your relationship
today?

CURRY: We are in good and full relationship and communion. ... That
never changed. [The Anglican Communion's action] asked that the
Episcopal Church not represent the Anglican Communion on ecumenical
bodies. ... We were asked not to make decisions on matters of policy, or
on how the church is governed for a period of three years. There are
differences [between the two bodies], but the Anglican Communion is
working together on moving forward . . . in the ministry of Jesus Christ
to help and heal a hurting world. The mission we've been given is bigger
than any divisions there may be among us.

QUESTION: If the Anglican Communion continues to insist on marriage
solely being between a man and a woman, can the Episcopal Church remain
affiliated with the body? Indeed, has the church effectively evolved
into something different, something more than Anglican?

CURRY: No. The Episcopal Church is a constituent member of the Anglican
Communion. We have been and will continue to be [because] that's who we
are, and we're committed to that. There's been no discussion otherwise.

QUESTION: Has the same rift shown itself within the U.S. church since
the 2003 consecration of Gene Robinson as the Episcopal Church's first
openly gay bishop?

CURRY: [At the time of Robinson's consecration] I was bishop of the
Diocese of North Carolina, one of the seven or eight largest dioceses
[in the church] and probably fairly representative [of the church as a
whole]. I gathered our clergy after consecration of Bishop Robinson. ...
We knew that some people had left and I asked them to give me an
estimate [of how many]. I'm here to tell you that in the Diocese of
North Carolina [it was] 800 out of 49,000 [members], and one
congregation out of 120. I think that pattern was fairly typical [for
the church].

*****

A Diocese of Niagara parish offered up Islamic Prayers to Allah this
week. In the wake of the Quebec mosque shooting, St. Simon's in
Oakville, Ontario, decided to support Muslims, by praying to Allah
during its monthly labyrinth walk.

We have seen the Episcopal Church's National Cathedral open its doors to
Islamic worship. We have seen passages of the Koran publicly read in a
cathedral in Scotland, with only minimal pushback. In Germany, Islamic
prayers were offered in a Lutheran Church by an Imam, with fierce
pushback by a Christian Lutheran woman; who called the act blasphemous.
We have seen the Archbishop of Canterbury shake hands publicly with
dodgy Islamic leaders who would sooner kill him than love him if
circumstances were different.

But what we have never seen before is this.

This was the prayer:

O Allah, unite our hearts and set aright our mutual affairs, guide us in
the path of peace.
Liberate us from darkness by Your light, save us from enormities whether
open or hidden.
Bless us in our ears, eyes, hearts, spouses, and children.
Turn to us; truly you are Oft-Returning, Most Merciful.
Make us grateful for Your bounty and full of praise for it, so that we
may continue to receive it and complete Your blessings upon us.

I'm not sure what "enormities" the congregation of St. Simon's need to
be liberated from, but perhaps one is the enormous folly of reciting an
Islamic prayer in a Christian church. You can read more about this in
today's digest.

*****

Four Continuing Anglican jurisdictions, including the ACC, APA, DHC and
ACA plan to meet in joint synods in Atlanta, Georgia, the week of
October 2-6, marking a watershed in the history of the 40-years old
movement.

Climax of the weeklong gathering will be a plenary session on Oct. 6, at
which leaders of the Churches intend to sign an agreement establishing
full communion (communion in sacris) among the four bodies, as well as
"a pledge to pursue in a determined and deliberate fashion increasingly
full unity." Church leaders will also discuss common plans for mission
and evangelism.

*****

Five members of the Church in Wales' secretive electoral college that
debates and votes for candidates, have spoken of 'deeply inappropriate'
references to Dr. Jeffrey John's homosexuality when considering his
nomination, Christian Today can reveal. The church will investigate
official complaints into homophobia against John.

In a letter to the Church's most senior executive, Simon Lloyd, the
electors said the remarks against Dr. John 'prejudiced' the process,
making it 'invalid'.

A formal investigation has now been launched into the process and a
legal panel chaired by a judge will decide whether to scrap the decision
not to take Dr. John's nomination forward.

The electoral body met in Llandaff Cathedral for three days, but failed
to elect a candidate, despite Jeffrey John winning more than half the
vote and unanimous support from local representatives.

The complaint, signed by five of the 47-strong body, read: 'We object to
the raising at electoral college of the matter of sexuality or civil
partnership status, in direct contravention of the Church in Wales's own
policy that sexuality or civil partnership status is not a bar to
appointment as a Bishop.

'We consider that this action was deeply inappropriate, and prejudiced
the electoral college proceedings so as to render them invalid.'

*****

CANADA NEWS. A merger of five Peterborough-area Anglican and Lutheran
congregations into two might begin as early as this September, says a
diocesan official overseeing the process.

The amalgamation of St. Barnabas Anglican Church, St. Luke's Anglican
Church, St. John the Evangelist Anglican Church, All Saints' Anglican
Church and Christ Evangelical Lutheran Church was recommended by a
commission of lay people from all five churches in a report released
last November. The report recommends that the current five parishes be
reduced to two, but does not specify which two existing churches will
remain open and which will close.

Since the report was released, all five churches have voted to proceed
with amalgamation, according to Bishop Patrick White (ret., Bermuda),
who was appointed assisting bishop for Trent-Durham after the departure
of Bishop Linda Nicholls last year and before the installation of
current Bishop Riscylla Walsh Shaw this January, and was asked to
continue guiding the process.

The next step, White says, is for another commission, this one
consisting of appointees from the Anglican diocese of Toronto and the
Eastern Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada (ELCIC), to
determine which two of the five churches will remain open. That
commission's report is expected to be released in late May, he says. If
its recommendations are approved, the diocese would begin implementing
the amalgamation in September. It could take a year or more after that
to complete the process, especially if the two sites chosen need
renovation work, he says.

Giving had increased somewhat over that same period, the report said,
but had not kept up with cost increases, and some of the parishes were
either already financially unsustainable or soon to become so.

*****

NEW ZEALAND NEWS. ChristChurch Cathedral has been sitting derelict for
over six years and many local landowners believe it is holding up
regeneration of the city center.

Bishop Victoria Matthews has penned a letter to the Government, saying
she is "seriously considering" its offer to help fund restoration of
ChristChurch Cathedral, but sources say no decision will be made for at
least a week.

Greater Christchurch Regeneration Minister, Gerry Brownlee, said he
wrote to Anglican Bishop Victoria Matthews on March 8 to reiterate an
offer to contribute a $10 million grant and a $15 million loan towards
the restoration costs of the cathedral. Brownlee said Matthews wrote
back on March 21, stating they were "seriously considering" the offer.

Brownlee said Cabinet approved the $25 million funding offer in
December.

*****

NIGERIAN NEWS.Nigerian Archbishop, Nicholas Okoh, says no one can hold
the Church to ransom in a diocesan dispute over allegations of financial
irregularities. The Primate of the Church of Nigeria said the crisis at
the Sapele diocese can only be resolved by true repentance and
recognizing that the church is governed by certain rules that must be
obeyed for the good conduct of its affairs. The Church of Nigeria
"recognizes the worth of its members who have been redeemed by the blood
of Jesus, true members of the Anglican Church, baptized and confirmed,
necessarily submit to the structure of the church, first to its clergy,
bishops, archbishops, and ultimately to the Primate who administers the
church through proper legal instrument. Hence, every clergy who accept
to be ordained (must) swear to the oath of canonical obedience and
loyalty to their bishop."

He said the protesters had failed to present their case against the
bishop and had refused to work within the system of ecclesiastical
discipline, leaving him no choice but to conclude the charges brought
against Bishop Erifeta were unfounded.

"Anyone who fails and feels unable to bring himself under the governing
authority of this church automatically repudiates his membership and has
a right to leave or walk away. But no one has a right to hold the church
to ransom."

His views are contained in a statement released on the church's website
and signed by the General Secretary of the Church of Nigeria, The Ven.
Dr. Stephen Ayodeji Fagbemi.

The Primate lamented the embarrassment the crisis had caused the church
and noted that the complainants had "crossed the red line."

*****

Christian parents should pull their children out of public schools, now,
to protect them from spiritual damage, extreme indoctrination, and other
serious problems. Pastors and churches should work to encourage that
"exodus," helping and encouraging families to put their kids in
homeschools or private Christian schools as quickly as possible. The
alternative will be the continued decline of the church in America and
an acceleration of the nation's decline. That was the explosive message
of an evangelical ministry leader, speaking as a guest this week on one
of America's top Christian radio programs.

Dr. James Dobson, one of the nation's most influential Christian leaders
and a former public-school teacher, hosted the discussion on his
national radio program, focusing on the spiritual danger of allowing
children to sit in secular or even anti-God public schools for over a
dozen formative years. Dobson's guest on his nationally syndicated show,
Family Talk, heard on hundreds of stations across America, was Lt. Col.
E. Ray Moore, a retired military chaplain, a homeschooling pioneer, and
the nation's leading advocate of a mass exodus of Christian children
from the government schools. The explosive interview could have
far-reaching ramifications, forcing millions of Christian parents and
thousands of pastors across America to re-consider their choices.

Moore said churches and Christian families must launch a fresh effort to
"really grow Christian schooling and homeschooling in the evangelical
and conservative church community." First of all, he said, there is a
"scriptural pattern" that underpins his argument. "The Bible is clear:
Scripture assigns the education of children to the family with
assistance from the church -- and not government," said Moore, who leads
Frontline Ministries and is the director of the Exodus Mandate Project
to get children out of government schools. "So we actually do not
believe in state-sponsored education in any fashion."

Citing various Bible verses, Moore said parents are commanded to raise
their children up in the "culture" of the Lord. Homeschooling and
Christian schools help fulfill that, he explained, adding that public
schools today are overtly hostile to Christianity and the Bible.
Especially in the early years of child development, homeschooling is an
excellent choice, with Christian schools available later for those who
feel they can't do it themselves. For one, it creates a strong
solidarity in the family, Moore said, adding that many homeschooling
families are able to avoid the "teenage rebellion" stage altogether.
"These kids that are homeschooled, and their peers in Christian schools,
are a different breed, it's a different culture," he continued.

Dr. Dobson agreed, saying the sentiment was "absolutely true," and that
young children are especially vulnerable to lifelong effects from being
bullied or teased in their early years. "Today, public schools don't
offer much in the way of values education, and if they do, it's often
wrong," said Dobson, who was described as "the nation's most influential
evangelical leader" by The New York Times. "Particularly today, so much
of what goes on in public schools is really harmful." When Moore and
Dobson were children, public schools still began the day with prayer and
the Bible. "It was very, very different than it is today," Dobson added.

*****

We are fast approaching Spring and we could use a few donations to keep
the lights on. You can send a tax-deductible donation to VOL via PAYPAL
at the link here: http://www.virtueonline.org/support-vol/

Or you can send a snail mail check to:

VIRTUEONLINE
570 Twin Lakes Rd
P.O. Box 111
Shohola, PA 18458

We really could really use some financial support. Thank you.

David



------------------------------

Message: 3
Date: Thu, 30 Mar 2017 16:44:57 -0400
From: David Virtue <da...@virtueonline.org>
To: "virtue...@listserv.virtueonline.org"
<virtue...@listserv.virtueonline.org>
Subject: We're Christian, you're not, says General Theological
Seminary Dean
Message-ID:
<1490906697.4191787...@webmail.messagingengine.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8"

We're Christian, you're not, says General Theological Seminary Dean

By David W. Virtue, DD
www.virtueonline.org
March 28, 2017

Several weeks ago, when the Episcopal Divinity School in Cambridge,
Mass., announced it was closing and merging with the ultra-liberal Union
Theological Seminary in New York City, http://tinyurl.com/k9mbuwj
bypassing one of its own seminaries -- General Theological Seminary -
just 100 blocks away, VOL asked the question why?

We now have our answer. In a letter to his constituency, obtained by
VOL, Kurt H. Dunkel, GTS Seminary Dean and President, wrote that EDS's
embrace of Union was about "identity and direction." He went on to
describe Union "as a multi-religious seminary embracing religious and
humanist values (their words). Both EDS and Union have been clear about
their identity and direction."

In other words, you're not really Christian at all and we are.

"General Seminary is ... clear about identity and direction. This is a
Christian place open to all people. Our language is Jesus and our accent
is Episcopalian. We have also made a clear statement of our commitment
to formation through 100% faculty and student participation in
twice-daily varied Christian worship in the Chapel, continued academic
excellence and depth of faith formation, and embrace of complete
pastoral integration through The Wisdom Year.

"General's brand, so to speak, continues to strengthen and grow. For
bishops, dioceses and calling congregations, General is preparing
graduates to grow churches and the Body of Christ. In fact, at our
recent Board of Trustees meeting, that body formed a task force to
collaborate with faculty in strengthening our focus on growth-in-numbers
within the church."

Apparently, Mr. Dunkel doesn't think that EDS's merger with Union will
be remotely Christian in identity and ethos, let alone Episcopalian!

The Dean went on to boast of his seminary's success after a disastrous
fallout in Sept. of 2014, when eight faculty were fired after going on
strike. The seminary earlier announced that it faced a financial crisis
but had now largely resolved the crisis. "General has not been
financially strong for decades. Four years ago, despite paying off all
accumulated mortgage debts, we still had a structured (that is, on
purpose) operating deficit of almost $2.5 million per year. Since then,
we have been working hard to make expenses approximate revenue. Last
year, we closed the fiscal year with a 90% improvement: a $242,000
operating deficit."

Dunkel said the seminary had recently been re-accredited by the
Association of Theological Schools (ATS). "Together we have transformed
a question mark over Chelsea Square into a clear exclamation point for
the future!" He also announced a new degree program that will allow for
a wide range of students who plan not to enter the ordination track. For
the record, nearly 50% of TEC's parishes have part time or retired and
non-stipendiary priests because they cannot afford a full-time priest as
parishes age and die.

END



------------------------------

Message: 4
Date: Thu, 30 Mar 2017 16:45:25 -0400
From: David Virtue <da...@virtueonline.org>
To: "virtue...@listserv.virtueonline.org"
<virtue...@listserv.virtueonline.org>
Subject: Church disciplinary hearing due to begin for Los Angeles
Bishop J. Jon Bruno
Message-ID:
<1490906725.4191848...@webmail.messagingengine.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8"

Church disciplinary hearing due to begin for Los Angeles Bishop J. Jon
Bruno
Panel plans three days of testimony in dispute over bishop's effort to
sell Newport Beach church

By Mary Frances Schjonberg
Episcopal News service
March 28, 2017

Diocese of Los Angeles Bishop J. Jon Bruno faces a rare disciplinary
hearing here March 28-30 on accusations that he violated church canons,
including engaging in conduct unbecoming a member of the clergy.

The allegations, initially brought by the members of St. James the Great
Episcopal Church, stem from Bruno's 2015 attempt to sell the church in
Newport Beach to a condominium developer for $15 million.
Bruno is accused of violating Title IV Canon IV.4.1(g) failing to
exercise his ministry in accordance with applicable church canons
(specifically Title II Canon II.6.3 requiring prior standing committee
consent to any plan for a church or chapel to be "removed, taken down,
or otherwise disposed of for worldly or common use"), Title IV Canon
IV.4.1(h)(6) ("conduct involving dishonesty, deceit or
misrepresentation") and Title IV Canon IV.4.1(h)(8) ("conduct unbecoming
a member of the clergy"). The applicable subsections of Title IV Canon
IV.4.1 begin on page 135 here.

Diocese of Southern Virginia Bishop Herman Hollerith IV is president of
the Hearing Panel that will consider the case against Bruno. The panel,
appointed by the Disciplinary Board for Bishops from among its members,
includes Rhode Island Bishop Nicholas Knisely, North Dakota Bishop
Michael Smith, the Rev. Erik Larsen of Rhode Island and Deborah Stokes
of Southern Ohio.

The St. James the Great complainants allege that Bruno violated church
canons because he
? failed to get the consent of the diocesan standing committee
before entering into a contract to sell the property;
? misrepresented his intention for the property to the members,
the clergy and the local community at large;
? misrepresented that St. James the Great was not a sustainable
congregation;
? misrepresented that the Rev. Canon Cindy Evans Voorhees, St.
James' vicar, had resigned;
? misrepresented to some St. James members that he would lease the
property back to them for a number of months and that the diocese would
financially aid the church; and
? engaged in conduct unbecoming a member of the clergy by
"misleading and deceiving" the clergy and people of St. James, as well
as the local community, about his plans for the property and for taking
possession of the property and locking out the congregation.

Bruno says in his defense brief to the hearing panel that he will
establish during the hearing that the issue of the standing committee's
approval does not apply because the property never sold. He admits that
he did not have the standing committee's approval when he entered into a
contract to sell the property but he obtained it two months later before
the then-still expected closing.

He says that the alleged misrepresentations were either not made or that
he based his statements on what he believed were "true facts." Bruno
also says that Voorhees determined the date of St. James' last service
and that "prudent business practices" required him to "secure the
property" after that date.

Bruno says that five of the allegations must be decided in his favor
because "undisputed evidence establishes no canonical violation." He
says the sixth allegation concerning alleged misrepresentations to
Voorhees presents conflicting evidence for the panel to weigh. However,
he calls it a "she said (he told me he wouldn't sell the property), he
said (I never said I wouldn't sell the property) dichotomy."

Church Attorney Jerry Coughlan, appointed to represent the Episcopal
Church, says in the complainant's brief that Bruno was "seduced" by a
$15 million business opportunity and then "tried to cover up the real
reasons for the sale."

"In doing so, he gave no real heed to the feelings of the many people
who had relied on his positive statements" about St. James' future,
Coughlan, a former federal prosecutor, claimed.

Bruno, he said, has ignored Title IV's goal of resolving conflicts by
"promoting healing, repentance, forgiveness, restitution, justice,
amendment of life and reconciliation among all involved or affected." In
fact, the attorney said. Bruno has acted "in exactly the opposite
fashion, by his continued attacks on everyone involved in this case."

Bruno is at least the tenth bishop in Episcopal Church history to have a
disciplinary accusation against him reach the level of a formal hearing
under the Church's process for handling complaints applicable at the
time. Those processes have changed many times during the life of the
Church.

A decision will follow at some point after the end of the hearing. The
Hearing Panel has a range of actions it can take, ranging from dismissal
of the allegations to removing Bruno from his ordained ministry. Bruno
or Coughlan would have 40 days to appeal the Hearing Panel's decision to
the Court of Review for Bishops.

Bruno turns 72, the Church's mandatory retirement age, in late 2018. His
successor, Bishop Coadjutor-Elect John Taylor, is due to be ordained and
consecrated on July 8 of this year.

A timeline of the events leading up to the hearing

The Griffith Co. donated the land on what is known as the Balboa
Peninsula on which St. James sits to the Episcopal Church in 1945 with a
deed restriction requiring that the land be used "for church purposes
exclusively." The small congregation that existed at the time of the
donation grew to the point where, with help from the diocese, it built a
small church on the land in the late 1940s. The congregation outgrew
that building and, 50 years later, started building a large complex,
which Bruno consecrated in 2001.

Three years later a majority of the congregation's members voted to
disaffiliate with the Episcopal Church but vowed to keep the church
property. They affiliated with what later became known as the Anglican
Church in North America. Bruno sued in California civil court and, after
costly litigation, recovered the property in 2013. He re-consecrated the
building as St. James the Great in October of that year. He asked the
Rev. Canon Cindy Evans Voorhees, whom he appointed as vicar, and the
remaining Episcopalians to form a new congregation.

Those congregants say that by the following spring, as many as 100
people attended Sunday worship and the church's mission activities
attracted and served many others. The 2015 budget envisioned $500,000 in
income, according to documents St. James says it filed with the hearing
panel.

Five days after Easter 2015, Bruno signed an agreement with Legacy
Residential Partners to sell the property. St. James congregants say he
told them of the plan on May 17, 2015.

Griffith Co., the donor of the land, reminded Bruno in a letter in early
June of that year about the deed restriction and, that same month,
members of the Newport Beach City Council voiced skepticism about the
deal.

St. James members formed Save St. James the Great and sued Bruno in
local civil court in his capacity as the California "corporation sole"
for the diocese on June 23, 2015, based on the deed restriction. The
court ruled that the members could not sue because neither they nor
their group is listed on the deed. Save St. James is appealing. (The
purpose of the "corp sole" is to hold real property and other assets for
the use and benefit of the diocese and the church.)

Bruno as "corporation sole" sued the Griffith Co. in Orange County,
California Superior Court on June 26, 2015, arguing that a 1984
quitclaim deed eliminated the restriction. Bruno sought not only to end
any challenges or claims to the title; he also said the company had
slandered the title and sought punitive damages from it. The court ruled
in favor of the bishop and the diocese. Griffith Co. appealed, and Third
District of the California Court of Appeal agreed on Feb. 24 with the
company.

The bishop changed the locks on St. James' buildings on June 29, 2015,
according to the members who have not been able to worship in the church
since.

The sale fell through in the midst of these disputes and St. James
members claim that Bruno has no prospect of selling the property, in
part because of Newport Beach community opposition to such a
development.

Those members filed a canonical complaint, signed by 117 people, against
Bruno on July 6, 2015, initiating a Title IV process that has led to the
March 28-30 hearing. The prior steps outlined in Title IV to reconcile
the parties failed, and a July 1, 2016, notice announced that Bruno
would face a Hearing Panel on the accusations. Last October, the panel
refused Bruno's request to dismiss the case and said it would not order
him to let St. James members back into the building until it had
considered the complaint during the scheduled hearing.

Save St. James has published a timeline of the dispute here that
includes many documents.

The Title IV disciplinary process

Bruno's trial is the first of a bishop since the Episcopal Church's
extensively revised Title IV disciplinary canons went into effect July
1, 2011. The revision was intended to move clergy disciplinary actions
from a legalistic process to a professional-conduct model, such as those
used in the medical, legal and social work profession, balanced with a
sense of pastoral care and theology, according to those who worked on
the revision.

Title IV's introduction (page 131 here) says that "the Church and each
Diocese shall support their members in their life in Christ and seek to
resolve conflicts by promoting healing, repentance, forgiveness,
restitution, justice, amendment of life and reconciliation among all
involved or affected."

In general, concerns about clergy behavior are reported to an intake
officer who creates a written report. Following that, the matter could
be resolved by pastoral care, conciliation, an agreement with the bishop
(or presiding bishop in this case), an investigation, or any combination
of these.

If the complaint moves to an investigation, some of the allegations
could go to a more formal mediation and, finally if necessary, a hearing
panel. The complaint against Bruno has reached the latter stage.
The hearing is taking place at the Courtyard by Marriott in Pasadena.

The Rev. Mary Frances Schjonberg is senior editor and reporter for the
Episcopal News Service.

*****

Church hearing to decide case of Newport Beach congregation vs.
Episcopal bishop

By DEEPA BHARATH
ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
www.ocregister.com/articles/congregation-747834-church-bishop.html
MARCH 28, 2017

Church proceedings began in Pasadena, Tuesday, March 28, with regard to
misconduct charges leveled by a Newport Beach congregation against J.
Jon Bruno, the Episcopal Bishop of Los Angeles.

The disciplinary hearing, similar to a court trial, is being conducted
by a panel of five officials of the Episcopal Church, in a meeting room
at the Courtyard by Marriott-Old Pasadena.

At issue is the bishop's move to lock the congregation out of the
71-year-old church in July 2015 after he received an offer from a
developer who proposed to build 22 luxury townhomes where the
40,000-square-foot church building stands on prime real estate on Via
Lido.

That deal fell through, but the congregation remains locked out of the
property that also houses the cremated remains of 12 former
parishioners. The congregation now gathers at the Newport Beach Civic
Center in a community meeting room.

The hearing takes place even as the property remains mired in
litigation.

It began Tuesday with opening statements from both sides. Jerry
Coughlan, an attorney representing the congregation, told the panel that
church members were under the impression that this was a ministry they
could grow and worship in together.

He said the church's budgets will show that it was a sustainable
congregation at the time and that the bishop had no justification to
shut it down other than selling it for financial gain.

Julie Larsen, an attorney for the diocese, said the bishop made
decisions based on the information that was available to him and because
what was once a 1,500-strong congregation had shrunk to about 150.

"The bishop made every effort to work with the congregation to help plan
their future ... and even talked about $1 million that could be used
from the sale's proceeds to help them relocate within the same area,"
she said.

But the congregation on June 22, 2015, chose to file a temporary
restraining order to stop the sale, Larsen said.

"Bishop Bruno made a decision prayerfully, he did not misrepresent his
intentions with regard to the property to anyone," she said. "These
charges should be dismissed."

Several witnesses testified on behalf of the church through the day.
Evangeline Andersen, who managed the church's accounting, said they had
a little more than $106,000 in the bank around the time the bishop made
the decision to shut them down.

She added that the congregation had even made a proposal to reduce the
monthly grant they were getting from the diocese from $5,000 to $4,000.

"We went from $0 to $250,000 in pledges, which is awesome," Andersen
said.

Warren Wiemer, a member of the Lido Isle Community Association,
testified that he conducted a survey in which 89 percent of residents on
Lido Isle said they were in favor of the property remaining a church.

The church's pastor, the Rev. Canon Cindy Voorhees, also began to
testify Tuesday afternoon. The hearing will continue Wednesday and
Thursday.

U-Tube links to trial:

Wednesday Morning, March 29th: https://youtu.be/WoQFkzdV378

Wednesday Afternoon, March 29th: https://youtu.be/AFFHZuAf0RE

Thursday Morning, March 30th: https://youtu.be/zp8fU9eXaPM

Thursday Afternoon, March 30th: https://youtu.be/XgG_yra9Uc0

*****

Episcopal bishop could be suspended, defrocked over plan to sell Newport
Beach church site
Bishop J. Jon Bruno did commit to selling St. James the Great Episcopal
Church in Newport Beach.

http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-episcopal-property-20170330-story.html
March 30, 2017

Bishop J. Jon Bruno did commit to selling St. James the Great Episcopal
Church in Newport Beach.

But it simply never happened.

That is one of Bruno's key defenses as a panel of fellow Episcopal
Church officials conducts a disciplinary hearing to determine whether he
was deceptive and whether his actions were unbecoming of a clergyman
when he tried to sell the church site to a developer, locked congregants
out and kept the gates closed even after the sale fell through.

Bruno took the stand Wednesday on the second day of his hearing at a
Pasadena hotel. The five-member panel potentially could determine
whether he is suspended or defrocked.

If you own a home, you should read this. Thousands of homeowners did
this yesterday, and banks are furious! Do this now before it's...

As bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Los Angeles, Bruno leads a
sprawling jurisdiction of about 135 churches, 44 schools and 18 other
organizations in California that stretch from San Clemente in the south
to Santa Maria in the north.

Though the diocese is property-rich, Bruno testified Wednesday, it is
cash-poor.

Still, the diocese did not actively market the Newport Beach church
after it transitioned back to an Episcopal parish in 2013 following a
social-theological schism at the national level that led more
conservative Anglicans to break away from the Episcopalians.

Bruno said he rejected a couple of propositions before a broker told him
about a $15-million cash offer from Legacy Partners, a developer that
sought to build multimillion-dollar town homes on the site.

"I said, 'I have to pray about it and I have to speak with my
advisors,'" he said.

He accepted the offer a few days later, and in April 2015, signed a
purchase agreement.

He said it was the best use of money for the ministry and that he had
acted on information he had at the time, which he said showed that St.
James was struggling financially.

When Bruno announced the sale to the church congregation in May 2015, he
said $6.3 million would go toward the poor and needy, $1 million would
go to the displaced St. James the Great members to make a community
"without walls," and the rest would go toward diocese-wide missions.

During cross-examination, congregation lawyer Jerry Coughlan displayed a
handwritten note from one of Bruno's advisors titled "NPB -- use of
funds." Out of the expected $15 million, the aide wrote "6.3 Anaheim."

In other words, $6.3 million would go toward a real estate purchase the
diocese wanted to complete in Anaheim. The commercial property, long
partially owned by the diocese as a bequest, could belong to it
completely.

Bruno said he was not familiar with the note, though he readily
acknowledged that the diocese had long wanted to complete its interest
in the Anaheim property. Proceeds from the St. James the Great sale
constituted just one possible funding option, he said.

The diocese took out a loan instead.

Dedicating funds to the poor and needy also was a plan if the church
property sold, Bruno said.

But Legacy's investment partner in the deal, AIG Global Real Estate,
decided not to proceed, and Legacy dropped out.

"The fact of life is, the sale never took place, the money was never
received from Legacy, the loan from First Republic Bank was obtained and
we are servicing that loan today and we own 100% of the Anaheim
property," Bruno said.

Newport Beach City Councilwoman Diane Dixon testified to her early
support of keeping the St. James property as a church.

When developers showed her their town house concept, as a council member
she was neutral, she said. But she described being taken aback,
especially since a nearby Christian Science church had just been
demolished for a separate town home development.

Then-Councilman Keith Curry testified that he had been concerned about
availability of land for new churches and wanted to preserve what they
had. On a personal note, he said the way Bruno dealt with the St. James
congregation was "deplorable."

The hearing concluded Thursday.



------------------------------

Message: 5
Date: Thu, 30 Mar 2017 16:45:52 -0400
From: David Virtue <da...@virtueonline.org>
To: "virtue...@listserv.virtueonline.org"
<virtue...@listserv.virtueonline.org>
Subject: CANADA: Diocese of Niagara Parish Offers Islamic Prayers to
Allah
Message-ID:
<1490906752.4191855...@webmail.messagingengine.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8"

CANADA: Diocese of Niagara Parish Offers Islamic Prayers to Allah

By David W. Virtue, DD
www.virtueonline.org
March 27, 2017

Western Christianity's flirtation with Islam has apparently reached, or
should I say evolved, to a new level.

We have seen the Episcopal Church's National Cathedral open its doors to
Islamic worship. We have seen passages of the Koran publicly read in a
cathedral in Scotland, with only minimal pushback. In Germany, Islamic
prayers were offered in a Lutheran Church by an Imam, with fierce
pushback by a Christian Lutheran woman; who called the act blasphemous.
We have seen the Archbishop of Canterbury shake hands publicly with
dodgy Islamic leaders who would sooner kill him than love him if
circumstances were different.

But what we have never seen before is this.

In the wake of the Quebec mosque shooting, St. Simon's in Oakville,
Ontario, in the Diocese of Niagara, decided to support Muslims, by
praying to Allah during its monthly labyrinth walk.

bishop Bird Now you should know that the bishop of this diocese, one
Michael Bird, is a revisionist, dare one say loathsome little man, who
hates opposition of any kind and even sued a blogger because he found
himself satirized for his crazy positions. He has pushed the revisionist
button at every opportunity especially and including the public
promotion of homosexual marriage and much more. As you can imagine, he
is not loved by orthodox Anglicans, many of whom dumped the liberal
diocese, leaving friends and church buildings behind in order to stay
faithful to the gospel.

The labyrinth walk is normally reserved for trendy events like Gaia
inspired eco-worship, so this is a new exploration of the boundaries of
voguish virtue-signaling, a further lurch into fatuity, writes David of
samizdat, who must remain anonymous for fear of retribution. (Free
speech on sodomy is on its last legs in Canada).

David writes that it was only a couple of decades ago when St. Simon's
was an orthodox and faithful evangelical parish.

And then came the news of the shooting at the Quebec Islamic Cultural
Centre in Quebec City, during evening prayers in late January.

According to one liberal Anglican priest, faith communities across
Canada were shocked.

So, the question that must be asked is this, have these same Anglicans
shown ANY shock at the destruction of an entire Anglican diocese in
northern Nigeria by Boko Haram and the slaughter of thousands of mostly
Anglican Christians? Nope, not a word. They don't count, largely, we
suspect, because they are evangelical in faith and morals and the
Diocese of Niagara dumped all that a long time ago.

Have there been calls for a Day of Prayer by Canadian Archbishop Fred
Hiltz for some 90,000 Christians (one every six minutes) who were
imprisoned, tortured and killed by Islamic extremists last year?

The story continues. At St. Simon's, Oakville, Rector Darcey Lazerte
tried to comfort his parish community with a sermon focusing on
understanding and taking action to support the Muslim congregations. "It
only seems fit to dedicate our monthly labyrinth walk to peace in
support of the Muslim community," he lamented in a sermon.

"An invitation to Al Falah Islamic Centre was quickly offered, and
through Dr. Majid Kazi's effort, eight members of the mosque joined our
walk. Together with five members of the parish, two people from Greening
Sacred Spaces Halton and several regular walkers, our February labyrinth
walk became a spiritual support group.

"As part of the meditations, we used a Muslim prayer for peace by
Muhammad al-Jazri. It was completed during the siege of Damascus,
December, 1389. The debriefing at the end of the walk was a testament to
the strength of the Muslim brothers and sisters in their pursuit of
peace and greater understanding of the foundation of their faith.

"We are hopeful that this new fellowship will lead to other shared
opportunities."

This was the prayer:

O Allah, unite our hearts and set aright our mutual affairs, guide us in
the path of peace.
Liberate us from darkness by Your light, save us from enormities whether
open or hidden.
Bless us in our ears, eyes, hearts, spouses, and children.
Turn to us; truly you are Oft-Returning, Most Merciful.
Make us grateful for Your bounty and full of praise for it, so that we
may continue to receive it and complete Your blessings upon us.

I'm not sure what "enormities" the congregation of St. Simon's need to
be liberated from, but perhaps one is the enormous folly of reciting an
Islamic prayer in a Christian church.

And you thought the only truly insane Anglicans in North America were in
TEC! Move over TEC, you have just been replaced.

END



------------------------------

Message: 6
Date: Thu, 30 Mar 2017 16:46:11 -0400
From: David Virtue <da...@virtueonline.org>
To: "virtue...@listserv.virtueonline.org"
<virtue...@listserv.virtueonline.org>
Subject: Report says 1, 100 complaints of child abuse made against
Australia's Anglican church
Message-ID:
<1490906771.4191872...@webmail.messagingengine.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8"

Report says 1,100 complaints of child abuse made against Australia's
Anglican church

PHOTO: Officials from the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses
to Child Sexual Abuse participate on the opening day of their public
hearing into the Anglican Church of Australia in Sydney,
Australia.(REUTERS)

http://www.hindustantimes.com/
March 17, 2017

The head of Australia's Anglican Church expressed sorrow and shame after
a government report published on Friday said close to 1,100 people had
filed child sexual assault claims against the church over a 35-year
period.

The interim report, which said most children were aged around 11 when
they were abused, came a month after a high-level inquiry into child
abuse was told the Australian Catholic church had paid A$276 million
($212 million) in compensation to thousands of victims since 1980.

The report, which was published by the same inquiry, the Royal
Commission Into Child Abuse, said the complaints identified 569 Anglican
clergy, teachers and volunteers as alleged abusers. There were another
133 alleged abusers whose roles at the church were not known.

Melbourne Archbishop Philip Freier said he felt a "personal sense of
shame and sorrow" at the way the church had apparently silenced victims.

"Anglicans have been truly shocked and dismayed (by) the scope of our
failure to tackle child sexual abuse within the Church," Freier, the
church's primate, said in a statement on its website.

A royal commission is Australia's most powerful kind of
government-appointed inquiry and can compel witnesses to give evidence
and recommend prosecutions.

The current royal commission had previously heard that seven percent of
Catholic priests working in Australia between 1950 and 2010 were accused
of child sex crimes, but few were pursued.

The commission's latest report said 1,082 people had lodged complaints
between 1980 and 2015 about 1,115 alleged incidents while they were
under the care of the Anglican church. Some of the incidents dated back
to 1950.

The Anglican church had paid A$31 million to 459 of those complainants,
the report said. Another report published by the inquiry last month said
the Catholic church had paid compensation to about three-quarters of
complainants.

"It tells us that any processes we had in place did not prevent abusers
working in our church, as clergy and lay leaders and, in the roles most
trusted to care for our children, as teachers and youth workers," church
general secretary Anne Hywood told the inquiry.

"We are deeply ashamed of the many ways in which we have let down
survivors, both in the way we have acted and the way we have failed to
act," she said.

The royal commission is due to report back to the government in
December.

END



------------------------------

Message: 7
Date: Thu, 30 Mar 2017 16:46:32 -0400
From: David Virtue <da...@virtueonline.org>
To: "virtue...@listserv.virtueonline.org"
<virtue...@listserv.virtueonline.org>
Subject: Church of South India Hides Corruption in Smoke Screen call
for Lenten Fast
Message-ID:
<1490906792.4191933...@webmail.messagingengine.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8"

Church of South India Hides Corruption in Smoke Screen call for Lenten
Fast

By the Rev. Dr. Joseph Muthuraj
www.virtueonline.org
March 23, 2017

A call to solve the "climate crisis", the Church of South India Trust
Association (CSITA) is proposing a fast during Lent 2017 as a smoke
screen to hide the massive corruption in the Church of South India.

The proposal by the Church of South India (CSI) Moderator the Most Rev.
TK Oommen to observe a carbon fast during Lent's 40 days tries to give a
saintly look to his ministry as the Moderator in his first year since
assuming the office but side-steps the issues and misleads the people
rather than being accountable and responsible for the internal problems
of the Synod administration which is full of criminal cases.

Some Christians might say "Hallelujah!" for his call to fasting and
prayer but a closer examination shows the Moderator to be little more
than a manipulator who talks a good line but is doing nothing to correct
the massive corruption in the CSI.

Investigative Reports filed by Police, threats of ex-communications,
abuse of power in a high-handed manner and various fraudulent activities
have all been documented. The Moderator wants us to "change the world in
40 days" which he thinks is possible and challenges us fervently "to
look at our daily actions". He extends hope to all congregations by
instructing them through the bishops that they be "equipped to involve
in saving creation, whose life and livelihood are under threat."

The same quality of hope, however, is wanting when it comes to solving
the crisis the CSITA is facing. Bishop Oommen has proven himself to be
an issue-dodger and subject-changer to protect his and his colleagues'
personal agendas. George Simon, a leading expert on manipulators and
other disturbed characters writes, "Evading a matter of central concern
is a great way not only to dodge responsibility, but also to keep the
light of illumination from shining on the behavior needing attention."

At the same time, the mention of a Lenten fast will only help give a
good impression on the people by Bishop Oommen that he is a spiritual
leader unlike the other Moderators. In fact the Report of the Registrar
of Companies in Chennai (formerly Madras) presented to the Secretary of
the Government of India on 12 January 2016 resulted in an inspection of
the activities of the CSITA during the year 2012.

An opportunity was given to the CSITA to be heard on all the complaints
that came from 34 members of the CSI. An offer made to the
office-bearers of the CSITA to clarify matters in person, was completely
ignored and none of the office-bearers respected the offer. According to
the Report on Compliance (RoC) there were 27 types of violations
committed by the CSITA against the Company Act and there were 43
prosecutions amounting to criminal cases filed against the Company by
the Registrar of Companies at the Economic Offence Court for violations
of very serious nature.

The Report said, "In spite of these criminal cases the same group is
still occupying the Company management". The Report further noted,
"Hence there is no control of the CSITA about the sale of property and
other irregularities committed by Power of Attorney."

In this regard, books and records of the Company need to be examined
through the Serious Fraud Investigation Office (SFIO) in order to
unearth the malpractices alleged against the Company and its dioceses'.
The Report concluded, "It appears that the business of the Company is
carried on for a fraudulent/unlawful purpose."

The Report recommended the verification of accounts, records, and papers
of the Company to be conducted by the Serious Fraud Investigation
Office, an organ of the Home Ministry of India. The order was passed on
8 July 2016. The Moderator moved the Church off-track in a very subtle
manner so that the bishops and administrators kept themselves free to
promote and protect their self-serving agendas.

The Moderator might consider it a political disadvantage for himself and
for his team to stake out a clear position on the matter of the
investigation by the SFIO. Carbon emission is far from the subject of
the mismanagement of the finances and properties by the
officers/directors of the CSITA. The hierarchy manipulates us into
thinking that there is nothing wrong with them and all the troubles for
the Church are due to some anti-church people thus shifting the blame on
a section of the CSI members who are more faithful to their church than
the bishops.

A manipulator will assert that his or her behavior is not as harmful or
irresponsible as someone else is making it out to be! The SFIO
investigation is opposed by the CSI hierarchy and they have obtained a
'stay' on the proceedings of the Investigation. Counter legal measures
have been taken to lift the 'stay' and we are optimistic that it will
happen and that the investigation will continue not only to throw light
on the fraudulent activities but to pave the way for punishing those who
committed them without fear for God and the laws of the land. (The court
order in Kottayam issued at the dawn of the Synod meetings in January
2017 said that the Synod should not conduct elections for the posts in
the CSITA). It has been reliably learnt that the judge posted the 'stay'
case for final disposal after not agreeing to extend the stay. It is
felt that the stay is likely to be completely lifted and after that it
is expected that the SFIO will be in a position to continue their
investigation in full swing.

The Moderator hopes that his highly academic and scientific vocabulary
will carry the congregations' thought and deflect further away from the
corruption and fraud that has defaced the episcopacy and damaged the
image of the church.

The phrases 'renewable energy', 'energy efficiency' and 'additional
Carbon sequestration' only aims at confusing the people to deflect
attention away from the problems that continue to haunt the CSI/CSITA.

Terms such as repentance, confessing one's own sin are not meant by the
Moderator in the way the biblical authors meant them. The circular
down-plays the truth and evades the issues that are affecting the good,
decent and orderly life of the CSI/CSITA. The Moderator finds in the
verse of Micah 6: 8 "He has told you, O mortal, what is good; and what
does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness,
and to walk humbly with your God?" (Micah 6:8) a message 'to build an
economy (eco-justice) that will support, not undermine, future
generations.' But the prophet Micah is asking in preceding verses 6 & 7
"Fat calves and rivers of oil in sacrifices to God will not appease him"
but living according to justice, love and truth (v. 8). Micah's
challenge comes in the verse immediately following in the form of a
question, "Is there to be no end of acquiring treasures by wickedness?"
Let us first build an economy of the CSITA on solid foundations that
Micah has recorded in the two verses that follow. The voice of the Lord
is saying, "Can I tolerate wicked scales and a bag of dishonest
weights?"

The message of Micah to the CSITA officers is "First set your wicked
scales and clear the bag of dishonest weights and that will be the
sincere service required to build God's economy." The Moderator also
quotes Ezekiel 34:4, to assert that God condemns the kings for 'ruling'
(subduing) with force and harshness, failing to strengthen the weak, to
heal the sick, to bind the injured, to bring back the strayed, to seek
the lost." However, the Moderator applies this verse to "care and
stewardship' of creation". "Creation" means to him the trees, birds and
animals but not humans. This completely evades the thrust of this
message from Ezekiel by misleading the readers to see a strange message
imposed on it other than what was intended by Ezekiel. The message to
the shepherds of Israel is found in the preceding verse which is
conveniently overlooked by Bishop Oommen. Thus says the Lord God, "Ah,
you shepherds of Israel who have been feeding yourselves! Should not
shepherds feed the sheep? You eat the fat...but you do not feed the
sheep." (Ez. 34: 3). Isn't quite fitting to describes the shepherds of
the CSI are doing today? Why do you black out this message, O,
Moderator? The Moderator is calling us "to engage in self-examination
and penitence". But what he means is totally different from what the
Scripture is calling us for.

This is the climax of his diverting tactics. The Moderator appeals, "In
this context of ecological injustice (SIN) by the human hands, let us
pledge to hold 40 days of 'Carbon Fast' - a call not only to repent our
ecological sins, but also to restore eco-justice." Who committed
ecological sins? The developed nations have exploited the resources of
nature and creation for a long period of time with a far more percentage
than the developing nations. On Carbon emission it is USA and China are
the worst offenders. China has a record of 29.5% emission of
Carbon-di-oxide and USA has 15%. India has 6. 5% and the figure arose to
this level only in 2015. This does not mean that Indians ought not to be
concerned about our actions against the 'Green' lives. Let us not blow
up something for which we Indians are scarcely responsible. What about
our sins committed in large measure over money spending, bribery and
abuse of Church properties?

Also included are the sins fabricating minutes, concealing official
documents from the view of the CSITA stake-holders, unconstitutional
actions, perverting episcopacy, undermining the lay and defacing the
priesthood. The Moderator is quite concerned about the year 2070 and not
about sins committed and listed by the Report from the Registrar of
Companies in 2016. The Moderator is telling the CSI Christians to do
things (reduce, re-use refuse and recycle waste) which is what the
multi-national Companies ought to be doing!

We, the CSI Christians, should continue to press the issue of
maladministration and corruption within the ranks of the CSITA which is
our prime responsibility at this season. We are convinced that purging
the Church is in line with the will of God and for which we undertake a
fast during the Lent to end corruption in the CSI/CSITA and to restore
the episcopacy to its true foundations. We call on the Moderator & Co to
keep the focus on the reformation of the CSI before calling for the
undoing of the emission of carbon dioxide through regulating the use of
energy for light, power and transport. Let us not forget the carbon
waste emitted by the bishops' luxury cars and by unnecessary travels
made other than for spiritual and pastoral activities?

Dr. Joseph G Muthuraj is former Professor of New Testament at United
Theological College in Bangalore, India



------------------------------

Message: 8
Date: Thu, 30 Mar 2017 16:46:56 -0400
From: David Virtue <da...@virtueonline.org>
To: "virtue...@listserv.virtueonline.org"
<virtue...@listserv.virtueonline.org>
Subject: Looking outwards with the gospel
Message-ID:
<1490906816.4191965...@webmail.messagingengine.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8"

Looking outwards with the gospel

By Chris Sugden
Evangelicals Now,
Mar 25, 2017

In February, the Secretary General of the Anglican Communion, a Nigerian
Archbishop, Josiah Idowu-Fearon, addressed the General Synod of the
Church of England, "Growth and Decline in the Anglican Communion -- 1980
to the Present', edited by David Goodhew of Cranmer Hall, Durham was
launched at a conference.

Archbishop Fearon clarified that the term "Anglican Communion" referred
to churches which find their common roots through the Church of England
and its tradition to the witness and mission of the apostolic church.
"The very word 'anglicana' implies a living tradition of faith in the
gospel as this church has received it... from Augustine of
Canterbury......to renewal in the English Reformation and beyond." "They
feel they owe so much of their faith, in human terms, to the faithful
giving of Christians in the Church of England over the centuries."

Some in General Synod have held that the Church of England would do
better if it severed its ties with the churches of the Anglican
Communion. They regard the position of many of those churches on
marriage and sexuality as primitive and embarrassing the witness of the
Church of England to a secular society on the side of history. Following
the vote in Synod on the Bishops' Report, one BBC interviewee said that
the Church of England was for the people of England and should therefore
be in line with the prevailing culture of its people. This liberal
nativism forgets that biblical Christian theology has no national
particularity with one theology for the English and another for the
Nigerian.

Archbishop Fearon tackled this head on. "Our internal life as the Body
of Christ continues to be animated by the Spirit of God, as we expend
ourselves outward on behalf of the lives of others." In the Church of
England, "vigour was kindled and then took form in looking outward. The
theological and social debates in the CofE in the 19th and early 20th
centuries were given their creative life through the engagement of
missionary bishops and leaders in their midst...the route to the Church
of England's internal health is, as with any church, through her
self-expenditure for the sake of the world." He encouraged Synod to
"take your gifts and make them the centre of your local energies:
evangelism, pastoral care, ecumenical passion and acuity, resources and
diocesan labour. Share them with your entire sister churches of the
Anglican Communion, not as a favour, but as the very source of your own
life, which it is."

Archbishop Fearon identified the criminalisation of homosexuality as the
most pressing issue around human sexuality in Africa, which the Anglican
Primates again stood firmly against in January 2016, along with
homophobic prejudice and violence. He identified their stand and that of
the English House of Bishops as "simply the position of Lambeth 1.10" of
1998.

Was he subtly encouraging those who might be seen to focus particularly
on their own sense of hurt rather to look outwards with all the servants
of Christ to serve others around the world? If such people claim to be
baptised Christians and to be fully welcome in the Church, would they
not evidence their claim by their outward looking service around the
world to those facing economic displacement, political uncertainty,
grinding poverty, persecution and violence which he name checked as the
challenges facing the Communion?

Growth and Decline in the Anglican Communion gives brief histories of a
number of Anglican churches with statistics of church membership,
attendance and affiliation. In his review on Anglican Mainstream, Andrew
Symes welcomes that Goodhew counters the theory that the Church will
inevitably decline where secular culture is strong, citing Singapore,
Sydney and London as examples of Anglican growth. Neither does
demographic growth explain church growth, since while Nigeria and South
Africa have seen similar growth in population, Anglicanism has exploded
in Nigeria but remained static in South Africa. "Social action on its
own does not tend to feed into numerical growth...churches which focus
on social action and make minimal efforts in evangelism struggle to
grow." (p.25).

In the studies of churches in Nigeria, Ghana, North and South America,
South Africa, England and Australia, Symes sees a link between
theological liberalism and church decline, and between theological
conviction, spiritual vibrancy, evangelistic zeal and church growth. But
these links are not explored in depth. The volume's most serious
omission in his view is any mention of the significant renewal and
reform movements of GAFCON and the Global South, which challenge those
parts of the Anglican Communion aligned with Western secularism and call
for mission and church growth based on confidence in the biblical
gospel.

https://www.e-n.org.uk/2017/04/world-news/looking-outwards-with-the-gospel/
http://anglicanmainstream.org/looking-outwards-with-the-gospel/

Canon Dr Chris Sugden, a retired Anglican clergyman, is married with
three married children and seven grandchildren. He is chairman of the
Trustees of Anglican Mainstream and secretary of the Oxford Centre for
Religion and Public Life. He holds canonries in Jos, Nigeria and
Sunyani, Ghana. Following ministry in India he was part of the
international leadership team which established the Oxford Centre for
Mission Studies.



------------------------------

Message: 9
Date: Thu, 30 Mar 2017 16:47:18 -0400
From: David Virtue <da...@virtueonline.org>
To: "virtue...@listserv.virtueonline.org"
<virtue...@listserv.virtueonline.org>
Subject: Welby Sahib's post-colonial guilt patronises me because of my
skin colour
Message-ID:
<1490906838.4192384...@webmail.messagingengine.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8"

Welby Sahib's post-colonial guilt patronises me because of my skin
colour

By Rev Jules Gomes
http://www.conservativewoman.co.uk/
March 29, 2017

I'm furious! I'm furious! Just because my skin has a higher percentage
of melanin than my fellow-British Christian brothers and sisters, the
Church of England has decided that I need a special bishop who will
'reach out' to me.

The Diocese of Leicester has petitioned the Queen for permission to
create a new suffragan bishop of Loughborough who will promote diversity
and drive cultural change. Yuk! The idea of this new episcopal white
elephant is one of the most insulting, patronising and condescending
"initiatives" from the C of E hierarchy as Captain Welby and his crew
play musical chairs on board the sinking Titanic.

Why? First, this asinine idea panders to the virtue of victimhood. It
assumes that people from so-called black and ethnic minorities are so
miserably Godless, Christless, friendless, helpless and hopeless that we
need an episcopal Saviour clad in purple and sporting a funny hat to
deliver us from the damnation of our skin colour. Remember the days of
white missionaries handing shining trinkets to the natives?

No, thank you very much, Welby Sahib! I don't need another postcolonial
foreign aid handout from you. Your white guilt doesn't make me feel
good. I am not a victim and don't you dare call me one. I refuse to be
labelled an ethnic minority--like a bird species about to fall extinct.
I am a full member of British society and don't you deny me that
privilege.

I played God Save the Queen on my violin at the age of six, I grew up
reading Enid Blyton and P G Wodehouse, I speak the Queen's English, for
my degree in English literature I read from Chaucer to Eliot, and I have
a doctorate from the University of Cambridge--which was awarded to me
based on merit and not on my skin colour. I find it bloody cheeky that
you would try and push me into a racial ghetto where you want to define
me based on what you and your fellow bishops assume is my ossified
cultural identity as an immigrant from India.

Second, this dim-witted strategy only serves to entrench further the
idea that Christianity is a Western religion. No, Archbishop Welby, it
is not! Jesus was not an English Etonian who 'reached out' to benighted
Asians and Africans. Forensic anthropology has confirmed that Jesus was
a 'dark and swarthy Middle Eastern man' who 'looked a great deal more
like a darker-skinned Semite than westerners are used to seeing him
pictured.' Dear Welby Sahib, when we have a dark-skinned Jesus, what
need have we for a bland, establishment-type manager who represents a
decaying church steeped in corporatism and identity politics?

Third, Christians of Asian and African origin have planted their
churches in Leicester and London for reasons that the head-in-the-sand
hierarchy of the C of E simply does not recognise. It's not simply
because the C of E refused to give us 'a warm welcome' in the fifties
and sixties, as Martyn Snow, Bishop of Leicester, points out. It is
because most Asian and African Christians are conservative!

As a cleric, I meet scores of such Christians who feel alienated from
the C of E not because it is 'quintessentially English'--something which
Bishop Martyn seems to be ashamed of--but because it is rabidly liberal
and reeking of cultural Marxism. Ironically, one reason people of other
cultures are drawn to the C of E is that it is 'quintessentially
English.' Where in the world can one find such sublime transcendence
than at Evensong with a boys' choir singing Tallis or Byrd? Or the
soaring prose of the Book of Common Prayer with its theology so
eloquently phrased and so firmly anchored in the truths of biblical
Christianity?

Fourth, there is virtually nothing people from diverse ethnic minorities
share in common--except darker skin pigmentation--and that too in wildly
varying degrees! My wife and I are mascots for this lack of commonality.
She originates from Maharashtra, while my ancestry is Goan.
Geographically, we are neighbours; culturally, we hate each other.
Maharashtrians think the Goans are Indo-Portuguese bastards; our women
are loose because they wear mini-skirts and our men are drunken
layabouts. Goans despise Maharashtrians because we think they are
arrogant, lazy, and uncultured.

Guess what unites us in marriage? A common bond in the gospel of Christ
and a common love for English literature! She did her MPhil on William
Faulkner (yes, yes, I know he's American!). So how is Welby Sahib's
episcopal albatross of a Tamil (Tamils can't stand each other because of
caste differences) or Rwandan bishop in Leicester going to 'reach out'
to us?

Oooh! And what about the Polish, Lithuanian and Romanian ethnic
minorities? Don't they qualify for this charity shop bishopric? Or are
they not ethnic enough because they have less melanin in their
epidermis? Are the C of E bishops doing theology or dermatology?

So what's Welby's hidden agenda? The bishops are desperate to have fresh
bums on rotting pews. They've done everything possible to lure in the
white bums--dumbed-down Messy Church, circus-like Family Services,
'wimmin' vicars with pudding basin haircuts--they have tried every brand
of tomfoolery. The fish are not biting. Just down the road, the black
church is full. The Mar Thoma Syrian Church of Malabar, which is
technically in full communion with the C of E, quietly ignores the
organ-grinding Anglican monkeys and goes ahead full-steam planting new
and thriving churches full of bright doctors, nurses and computer
programmers from Kerala. They don't need the C of E! The C of E needs
them!

Bishop Martyn sheepishly admits to this catastrophic failure. 'The
majority of people going to Anglican churches are white British, while
there are more than 100 BAME churches, mostly neo-Pentecostalist,' he
says. But while he denies that the bishopric is being created with a
view to poaching black and brown bums, he is forced to admit that 'we're
not actively doing that, but if people approach us they will get a very
warm welcome'--Anglican-speak for we're desperate for new members!

This was precisely one of the reasons given for ordaining women. If only
we ordain hordes of priestesses, multitudes of women will flock to our
churches. This is exactly one of the reasons behind the pansexual
agenda. If only we have gay bishops, lesbian bishopettes, and
transgender archdeacons, masses of LGBTIQ people will flood the church
and halt the decline and death of the pale, stale and female C of E. So
how about creating a bishop for white people? After all, the Diocese of
Chichester has just appointed the Rural Dean of Brighton (where else?)
as the first Bishop's Liaison Officer for the LGBTI community.

But the dark and dirty secret is that the C of E does not want to
appoint more black and brown bishops to already existing bishoprics.
Why? Because most Christians of Asian and African origin stubbornly
refuse to genuflect at the altar of the new pansexual agenda, which is
now the true religion of the C of E. They just won't feature in the
secret X-files of the archbishops' secretary Caroline Boddington, who
according to a senior Anglican clergyman, is well known to be a
'corporate type' intent on feminising and liberalising the C of E in her
image and likeness.

The new bishopric will not draw a single BAME church into the C of E. It
stinks of racism! Martin Luther King Jr defined racism as a 'doctrine of
the congenital inferiority and worthlessness of a people.' When you
treat some Christians as victims, who, based on skin pigmentation, need
to be ghettoised and patronised as needing a form of Christian
leadership that is already available to everyone, the C of E is
furthering the racism it claims to be eliminating.

The new bishopric will be not only racist but also profoundly divisive.
St Paul would be excoriating in his condemnation of the Diocese of
Leicester's new policy. Surely he was not wasting his time reprimanding
the churches in Galatia and Colossae not to divide the church on the
basis of identity politics? Because, as he wrote, there is 'neither Jew
or Greek, slave or free, circumcised or uncircumcised, male or female,
for you are all one in Christ Jesus!'

The Rev'd Dr Jules Gomes is pastor of St Augustine's Church, Douglas, on
the Isle of Man.



------------------------------

Message: 10
Date: Thu, 30 Mar 2017 16:47:37 -0400
From: David Virtue <da...@virtueonline.org>
To: "virtue...@listserv.virtueonline.org"
<virtue...@listserv.virtueonline.org>
Subject: Church of England to create bishop for minority ethnic
community
Message-ID:
<1490906857.4192408...@webmail.messagingengine.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8"

Church of England to create bishop for minority ethnic community
Anglicans tackle divisive legacy of 1950s and win Queen's permission to
set up new post in one of UK's first majority blacks
People in Leicester, where a new bishop of Loughborough will reach out
to the area's large black, Asian and minority ethnic community

By Harriet Sherwood
https://www.theguardian.com/
March 27, 2017

The Church of England is creating a new bishop specifically to reach out
to black, Asian and minority ethnic people and to drive cultural change
in one of the UK's most diverse cities.

The Diocese of Leicester has petitioned the Queen for permission to
create a new see, and expects the new suffragan Bishop of Loughborough
to be in post by the end of the year.

Despite his or her title, the new bishop will be based mainly in
Leicester, one of the first majority black, Asian and minority ethnic
(BAME) cities in the UK. In the 2011 census, only 45% of the city's
population identified as white British.

"The diversity of the city is not reflected in our churches," Martyn
Snow, the bishop of Leicester, told the Guardian. "The majority of
people going to Anglican churches are white British, while there are
more than 100 BAME churches, mostly neo-Pentecostalist."

The new bishop will focus on encouraging BAME representation across the
diocese "from people in the pews to clergy and senior leadership", and
working with other churches and faith groups.

Snow is conscious of sensitivities. "This is not about proselytising.
We're not actively doing that, but if people approach us they will get a
very warm welcome."

He acknowledged this has not always been the case. "In the 1950s and
60s, when immigrants came from the Caribbean and elsewhere, they did not
get a warm welcome in the C of E. We have to hold our hands up to that.
They went off to set up other churches and we're now facing the legacy."

He added: "We're going to have to make some cultural adjustment. The C
of E is seen as quintessentially English, but we have a lot to learn
from other cultures."

Only 3.4% of C of E clergy were non-white in 2015, and there are a
handful of BAME people in senior ranks -- archdeacon or above. This
month, the first black bishop to be appointed by the church in 20 years,
Nigerian-born Woyin Karowei Dorgu, was consecrated as bishop of
Woolwich.

"The figures [for BAME clergy] are small compared to the wider
population. It is increasing a little, but not to the extent we'd want
it to be," said Rosemarie Davidson-Gotobed, the C of E's first national
minority ethnic vocations officer, who has been in post for five months.
"We're looking at what are the speed bumps, blockages, stalling points.
They are many and varied."

Her role is to assist BAME members of the church who are considering
ordination and to tackle unconscious bias. "We can all slip into
unconscious bias," she said. "We have to recognise it in ourselves and
how it might hinder someone's journey to ordination."

Davidson-Gotobed acknowledged frustration among "those of us who've been
on this journey for a long time. Often the discourse is 'we don't have a
problem', and we have to deconstruct that." But there was "discernible
movement. I know 20 years passed between appointing black bishops, but I
hope the next one will be sooner."

According to the bishop of Leicester, eradicating unconscious bias, both
in the C of E and in wider society, might take a generation. The church
was rolling out training programmes and research projects and creating
new posts, such as the bishop of Loughborough, he added.

"I don't want to put too much weight on one position," said Snow. "My
hope is this will be one of a number of appointments, part of a growing
cohort of senior leadership tackling this issue."



------------------------------

Message: 11
Date: Thu, 30 Mar 2017 16:48:19 -0400
From: David Virtue <da...@virtueonline.org>
To: "virtue...@listserv.virtueonline.org"
<virtue...@listserv.virtueonline.org>
Subject: Archbishops launch investigation into Philip North row after
'highly individualised' attacks
Message-ID:
<1490906899.4192491...@webmail.messagingengine.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8"

Archbishops launch investigation into Philip North row after 'highly
individualised' attacks

By Harry Farley
www.christiantoday.com
March 24, 2017

The Archbishops of Canterbury and York have launched a probe into a
Church scandal that forced a bishop to decline a promotion amid
accusations of 'sexism' and 'highly individualised' attacks.

Justin Welby and John Sentamu have asked Sir Philip Mawer, the Church of
England's official investigator, to examine all the steps that led to
Philip North, currently Bishop of Burnley, to withdraw from his
promotion to Bishop of Sheffield.

'The recent events surrounding the nomination of Bishop Philip North as
Bishop of Sheffield, including his withdrawal from the process, have
understandably raised great concern amongst many in the Church of
England,' they said on Friday.

'Some of those concerns relate to whether the nomination itself, and the
procedure leading up to it,' they say in a letter to Sir Philip.

But 'others are about what happened once the nomination had been
announced'.

Bishop North is from the Church's Anglo-Catholic wing and deeply opposed
to women's ordination.

His promotion prompted a senior Anglican theologian Martyn Percy, Dean
of Christ Church, Oxford, to urge him to withdraw, accusing a Church
grouping North to which North belongs of 'fogeyish, sacralised, sexism'.

After a sustained campaign against him North announced he would step
down, citing the 'highly individualised nature of the attacks' against
him which had been 'extremely hard to bear'.

He said: 'It is with regret and sadness that I have decided that I am
unable to take up the nomination as Bishop of Sheffield.'

He added: 'The pressures of recent weeks have left me reflecting on how
He [God] is calling me to serve him.'

Responding to the events the Archbishop of York, John Sentamu, rebuked
North's critics and told them to learn to 'disagree Christianly,
remembering at all times that our identity is in Christ alone'.

He said: 'What has happened to Bishop Philip clearly does not reflect
the settlement under which, two and a half years ago, the Church of
England joyfully and decisively opened up all orders of ministry to men
and women. It also made a commitment to mutual flourishing.'

The Church of England voted to allow women bishops in 2014, after years
of division and hostility over the issue.

But the compromise deal insisted those with theological objections to
women priests must still be given an equal place within the Church.
Dubbed 'mutual flourishing', the agreement was supposed to reconcile the
two deeply entrenched factions.

An official reviewer was appointed as part of the declaration to oversee
any investigations and address grievances.

The Archbishops insist the deal remains intact but North's withdrawal
raised questions about its longevity. North said at the time: 'There is
clearly much to be done on what it means to disagree well and to live
with theological difference in the Church of England.

'If, as Christians, we cannot relate to each other within the bounds of
love, how can we possibly presume to transform a nation in the name of
Christ? I hope though that this conversation can continue in the future
without it being hung upon the shoulders of one individual.'

In pointed remarks announcing the review, the Archbishops say: 'We call
on all those in the Church to pray openly for the flourishing of those
with whom they disagree, to demonstrate the mutual love which we are
called to share and to proclaim confidently in word and deed that in
Christ we find our true identities, and the overcoming of those things
which in ourselves we find so divisive.'

Sir Philip Mawer will examine the events and publish a report within two
months.

*****

Bishop of Sheffield: Joint statement by Archbishops of Canterbury and
York
Justin Welby and John Sentamu made this joint statement on the recent
events surrounding the nomination of Bishop Philip North as Bishop of
Sheffield

Lambeth Palace
March 24, 2017

"The recent events surrounding the nomination of Bishop Philip North as
Bishop of Sheffield, including his withdrawal from the process, have
understandably raised great concern amongst many in the Church of
England. The status of the House of Bishops Declaration of June 2014 has
been questioned by some and its meaning has also been challenged.

"We have therefore written to Sir Philip Mawer, the Independent Reviewer
under the Declaration on the Ministry of Bishops and Priests,
(Resolution of Disputes Procedure Regulations) 2014, to address the
concerns that have arisen in the Church following these recent events.
We attach our letter to Sir Philip, in which we reaffirm clearly our
commitment, and the commitment of the House of Bishops, to its
Declaration, to the principles contained in it, and to the overriding
principle of mutual flourishing.

"Finally, in this period of Lent, as part of our preparation for the
glorious celebration of the extraordinary grace of God in the events of
Holy Week and Easter, we call on all those in the Church to pray openly
for the flourishing of those with whom they disagree, to demonstrate the
mutual love which we are called to share and to proclaim confidently in
word and deed that in Christ we find our true identities, and the
overcoming of those things which in ourselves we find so divisive."

+ Justin Cantuar

+Sentamu Eboracensis



------------------------------

Message: 12
Date: Thu, 30 Mar 2017 16:48:44 -0400
From: David Virtue <da...@virtueonline.org>
To: "virtue...@listserv.virtueonline.org"
<virtue...@listserv.virtueonline.org>
Subject: Archbishop of Canterbury: 'Christ's love and self-sacrifice
will triumph over evil and despair'
Message-ID:
<1490906924.4192520...@webmail.messagingengine.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8"

Archbishop of Canterbury: 'Christ's love and self-sacrifice will triumph
over evil and despair'

By Ruth Gledhill
http://www.christiantoday.com/
March 24, 2017

The Archbishop of Canterbury spoke powerfully today of how Christ's
victory on the Cross overcame evil.

He called for a memorial for those killed in the London terror attack,
in particular to PC Keith Palmer.

Archbishop Justin Welby said the best memorial would be a country that
could live together in peace and harmony.

But there also needed to be a physical memorial to those murdered.

'There needs to be a memorial because remembering helps us not repeat.
But the best memorial we can build is a country at peace with each other
and at peace with itself,' he said at a prayer vigil at Westminster
Abbey with leaders representing Christianity, Judaism and Islam.

Archbishop Welby was in Lambeth Palace when he heard the news.

'My first thoughts were prayer and pain for those who were suffering.
I'm a Christian. I believe in Christ who died on the Cross and rose from
the dead, and in that resurrection demonstrated the triumph of love and
self sacrifice over evil and despair and desperation,' he told Christian
Today.

Archbishop Welby led the faith leaders in a minute's silence, just yards
from where Khalid Masood mowed down pedestrians with his car and
murdered PC Keith Palmer on Wednesday.

He said: 'Two days after the attacks across the road behind us, we are
still all of us deeply shocked by what has happened, and beginning the
process of thinking about the consequences and the future, quite
rightly.

'As we come together today a number of people are particularly in our
minds. Those who were killed, especially PC Keith Palmer, their
families, the police whose consistent courage and observance of duty is
an extraordindary example to all of us. Those who are waiting at
hospitals and bedsides and praying or hoping or seeking to comfort one
another. Also the wider community wondering what this event means as a
sign for our future.'

He described it is a moment of sad reflection 'but also a moment of
determination for our naton together'. In standing there together, the
three Abrahamic faith communities were showing their deep commitment to
a peaceful future.

He said Islam, Judaism and Christianity hold together the Psalms.

He quoted Psalm 42: 'Why are you so heavy my soul, why are you cast
down? Put your trust in God.'

In the stories that Christians believe of the death and resurrection of
Jesus, there is to be found God who conquers the despair and destruction
that these events speak of, he said.

With him were Chief Rabbi Ephriam Mirvis, Sheikh Ezzat Khalifa, Head
Imam of the London Central Mosque, the Shia leader Sheikh Mohammad al
Hilli and Cardinal Vincent Nichols, Archbishop of Westminster.

'As Christians what we do is take anger and worry and bring it to Christ
in prayer. What we don't do is turn against other people who we know are
innocent of anything to do with this event.'

WATCH: The faith leaders talk and pray about the London terror
attack.https://www.periscope.tv/RuthieGledhill/1YpKkdVnXWAGj?t=11s

WATCH: The Archbishop of Canterbury talk about what he was doing when
the attack happened, and how Christians can still have
faith.https://www.periscope.tv/RuthieGledhill/1RDGlRqZOpoxL?t=12s



------------------------------

Message: 13
Date: Thu, 30 Mar 2017 16:49:38 -0400
From: David Virtue <da...@virtueonline.org>
To: "virtue...@listserv.virtueonline.org"
<virtue...@listserv.virtueonline.org>
Subject: Anti-LGBT Doctor Stands Firm in Face of Mounting Criticism
Message-ID:
<1490906978.4192593...@webmail.messagingengine.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8"

Anti-LGBT Doctor Stands Firm in Face of Mounting Criticism
Dr. Paul McHugh is facing backlash for rejecting transgender ideology

By Max Douglas
http://www.churchmilitant.com/
March 27, 2017

BALTIMORE, MARYLAND --- A distinguished professor at Johns Hopkins
University School of Medicine who conducted ground-breaking research on
gender theory is standing up against a recent barrage of hate from those
attacking his integrity.

Dr. Paul R. McHugh, who has been called "arguably the most important
American psychiatrist of the last half-century," co-published a report
in the Fall 2016 edition of The New Atlantis titled "Sexuality and
Gender," in which he and a colleague reviewed 11 in-depth research
publications on the LGBT community.

Reviewing the most up-to-date independent research, both McHugh and his
colleage concluded that there are many myths about homosexual behavior.
Most notably, McHugh found the "born that way" theory is not supported
by any of the studies.

In response to McHugh's research, LGBT advocates have set their sights
on him as a "bigot." One blogger commented that McHugh's research is
simply a straw man for his "bigoted beliefs" and claimed he is a
"scientist who appears far too invested in his own antiquated, disproven
theories and his anti-LGBT political position."

On Thursday, the attempt to discredit McHugh reached its high point. Dr.
Lauren Beach, director of LGBT Research at Vanderbilt, released a letter
with signatures of more than 600 "experts on LGBT health" to attack the
doctor. In the letter, Beach questioned the integrity of the New
Atlantis as being a "non-peer reviewed bioethics magazine." Beach
further seemed to accuse McHugh of causing harm and pain to those
suffering from gender dysphoria.

The letter added, "A substantial body of research points to stigma and
its consequences as contributing to the mental and physical health
disparities among LGBTQ people."

In reponse, McHugh told reporters, "I'm 85 years old. I'm a university
professor. I'm a member of the Institute of Medicine. I'm a person who
has been through a lot of crazes before. I'm not going to my grave not
having spoken my mind, OK?"

As chief pyschiatrist at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, McHugh was
responsible for putting an end to sex change surgery there, noting that
he'd "witnessed a great deal of damage from sex reassignment." The
school last year reversed the decision, andn plans on resuming sex
reassignment surgery after a hiatus of 40 years.

In the letter, Beach concluded, "In summary, as researchers and
clinicians with expertise in gender and sexuality, we affirm that the
'Sexuality and Gender' report does not represent prevailing expert
consensus opinion about sexual orientation or gender identity related
research or clinical care."

To this, McHugh said, "I see they don't like me. They've got an army of
people that want to say so."

McHugh further rebuffed the attack on his study in The New Atlantis.
"It's true it's not in a peer-reviewed journal, but it's not intended to
do that," he explained. "It's intended to be published in a journal of
opinion in which the public can view what we think about the
contemporary scientific literature just like articles in The New Yorker
or The Atlantic."

In January 2017, McHugh along with Michelle A. Cretella, president of
the American College of Pediatricians, and Quentin Van Meter, vice
president of the American College of Pediatricians, published an article
stating, "A person's belief that he or she is something they are not is,
at best, a sign of confused thinking."

The article continued, "Conditioning children into believing a lifetime
of chemical and surgical impersonation of the opposite sex is normal and
healthful is child abuse."

At the time McHugh published "Sexuality and Gender," Johns Hopkins
distanced itself from McHugh's research after threats from LGBT
activists.

The aggressively gay Human Rights Campaign warned the Baltimore-based
university, "If Hopkins' leadership ignores their community's call to
correct the record -- clarifying that McHugh and Mayer's opinions do not
represent it, and that its healthcare services provided reflect the
scientific consensus on LGBTQ health and well-being -- its Healthcare
Equality Index score will be reduced substantially."

The dean of the Medical Faculty, Dr. Paul Rothman, issued a letter in
response to the Human Rights Campaign stating, "When individuals
associated with Johns Hopkins exercise the right of expression, they do
not speak on behalf of the institution."

Among other findings in "Sexuality and Gender," McHugh frustrated the
narrative that non-heterosexual activity is purely biological. The
report states that based on the 11 independent studies, "biological
factors cannot provide a complete explanation" of homosexual behavior.

"Sexuality and Gender" also reveals that "lesbian, gay and bisexual
individuals had a 2.47 times higher lifetime risk than heterosexuals for
suicide attempts." The report called for further research about the
psychological origins of LGBT behavior.

McHugh is also notable for having sat on the U.S. Conference of
Catholics Bishop's National Review Board for the Protection of Children
and Young People in 2004, concluding from the investigation into
clerical sex abuse that it was essentially "homosexual predation on
American Catholic youth."



------------------------------

Message: 14
Date: Thu, 30 Mar 2017 16:50:06 -0400
From: David Virtue <da...@virtueonline.org>
To: "virtue...@listserv.virtueonline.org"
<virtue...@listserv.virtueonline.org>
Subject: The Alt-Right Is What Happens When Society Marginalizes Men
Message-ID:
<1490907006.4192647...@webmail.messagingengine.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8"

The Alt-Right Is What Happens When Society Marginalizes Men
The alt-right may often prove inchoate and even inarticulate, but behind
the memes and coded language, there seems to be a massed sentiment. It
is this: men feel left behind.

By Owen Strachan
http://thefederalist.com/2017/03/21/alt-right-happens-society-marginalizes-men/#disqus_thread
March 21, 2017

Various journalists have helped form a narrative of sorts about the
identity of this shadowy, boisterous alt-right movement. The alt-right
is childish and vicious, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing
other than the message-board histrionics of aggrieved young men in their
parents' basement.

>From what I can see, this narrative does apply to a degree. Where
various alt-right voices have articulated ethnocentrism, outright
racism, misogyny, decadence, and a kind of juvenile hatred, among other
vile stances, we should offer condemnation in no uncertain terms.

I do wonder, however, if the media has missed at least one true thing
regarding the "alt-right." The movement (if we can call it that) may
often prove inchoate and even inarticulate, but behind the memes and
coded language, there seems to be a massed sentiment. It is this: men
feel left behind.

America is divided today on this matter and its import. Many folks,
particularly those of a more progressive bent, see men as whining over
lost cultural capital. Once, men had it good; now they're forced to
compete in an even playing field, and they're falling on their faces.
Sorry for the stacked deck, guys--how does it feel, losers?

Others see men struggling, observe them falling precipitously behind in
earning college degrees and other achievements such as earnings for
unmarrieds, watch them leaving their wives and children then violently
lashing out, and begin to wonder if men need something besides elaborate
gender theory or a dismissive long-form hot-take. Maybe men,
particularly young men, need help.

Men Are Moving Into the Shadows

This second group does not wish to cut men a blank check for their ill
behavior. Actually, this group--a diverse and motley crew of religious
groups, libertarians, and people who care about the future of
civilization--wishes to hold men to a high standard. In other words,
this is the group that most wants to hold men to account, that most
takes their failings seriously. It is the group that dismisses men's
concerns with gentle remonstrance, that accommodates men by dumbing
things down for them, that unwittingly ends up doing them terrific harm.

Because it is not friendly to them, many men do not like postmodern
society. They have been taught they have no innate call to leadership of
home and church, and accordingly have lost the script for their lives.
They have been encouraged to step back from being a breadwinner, and do
not know what they are supposed to do with their lives.

They have been told that they talk too loudly and spread their legs too
wide, and thus do not fit in with a feminized society. They may be the
product of a divorced home, and may have grown up without an engaged
father, so possess both pent-up rage and a disappearing instinct. They
did nothing to choose their biological manliness, but are instructed to
attend sensitivity training by virtue of it. They
recognize--rightly--that politically correct culture constrains free
thought and free speech, and so they opt out from it.

But here is where the common narrative of the alt-right and related
groups makes a major mistake. Men are disappearing, but they are not
vanishing. They are moving out of the mainstream, and into the shadows.

Many men do not want this. Many men do not want to fall back. Many men
want a challenge. They want to work. It is not in their nature to sit
back; men on average have 1,000 percent more testosterone than women.
Men know they are not superheroes, but they watch superhero movies
because they wish in the quietness of their own lives to be a hero to
someone, even just one wife and a few children. Men have a "glory
hunger" that is unique and in many cases undeniable. For the right
cause, men are not only willing to sacrifice, and even die, for the
right cause they are glad to die.

Now It's Men We Tell to Sit Down and Shut Up

But such discussion is not the lingua franca of our day. Young men have
these desires coursing through their blood, but very few outlets in
normal American life help them to understand such hard-wired drives.
Those voices who do offer such a view face tremendous pushback and
retributive hostility.

As a result, many younger men today do not know how to voice their
instincts. This is at least partly why so many have adopted ironic
signifiers for their frustrated ambitions and impolitic views--frogs,
memes, and catchwords like "fail." What young men cannot say in plain
speech they say through an ironic graphic.

It is easy, and right, to identify where aspects of the alt-right are
plainly misogynistic. But tying an entire people group to its worst
excesses allows for the full-scale dismissal of a diverse array of
concerns and experiences. This has happened with Donald Trump's voters,
for example; according to many journalists, they're all either racist or
angry about the loss of the halcyon days. The media executes the same
lazy move with the angry young men of the alt-right: they're idiotic
little boys. We have nothing to hear from them, nothing to learn,
nothing to consider.

This is a foolish instinct. But it is not only that: it is a dangerous
one. It leaves you susceptible to groundswells that sweep over a culture
seemingly without warning--the Tea Party, Brexit, Trump. Many folks on
the progressive side assume that because they have won the college
campus and now dominate the urban centers of power that the cultural
game is over.

But what looks like a fortress-grade progressive order is really an
unstable element, as we have seen several times over. The ideological
insurgency will never have Ivy League degrees to award, coveted Beltway
bylines to dole out, or global-power conference invites to issue. But
the insurgency is finding its audience, and the audience is
destabilizing and even remaking the public-square, and all without
central coordination or control of leading cultural institutions.

You thought Bane was a movie character; turns out he's a political
avatar.

This Is a Troubling Development

I do not write this analysis as one who supports these developments
generally or the alt-right specifically. As with every shadow venture of
young and aimless men, they trouble me deeply. Where young men lurk in
corners and whisper in the dark, we should always be concerned, whether
it's in your leafy suburban neighborhood or on a deep-web message-board.

We can debate the extent to which the perceptions of angry young men are
reality. What we cannot debate--if we care about them, that is--is that
many men are angry, flailing, and dangerously volatile today.

We will not find an easy solution to this troubled situation. The public
square is roiled and shows no signs of calming down soon. True,
restoring the family will greatly aid in the nurture and care of young
men. Sure, strengthening the economy and putting men to work will help.
Yes, tabling the speech codes and thought codes of the secular academy
will bring some men back to the table.

But men need a deeper solution than this. They need something more than
a message-board movement to join. They need a call to maturity, to
repentance, to greatness, to leadership, to courage, to self-sacrifice
on behalf of women and children. They need a hero: not a political
performance-artist, but a true hero, a savior who, unlike a fallen
culture, leaves no repentant man--or woman--behind.

Owen Strachan is the author of The Colson Way: Loving Your Neighbor and
Living with Faith in a Hostile World (Thomas Nelson). He is a professor
at Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary.



------------------------------

Message: 15
Date: Thu, 30 Mar 2017 16:51:09 -0400
From: David Virtue <da...@virtueonline.org>
To: "virtue...@listserv.virtueonline.org"
<virtue...@listserv.virtueonline.org>
Subject: "Big Brother" Isn't Who You Thought He Was
Message-ID:
<1490907069.4193958...@webmail.messagingengine.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8"

"Big Brother" Isn't Who You Thought He Was

By Dr. David Kyle Foster
www.MasteringLife.org
March 30, 2017

Since the earliest centuries, A.D. Christians have been speculating
about the coming one-world government of the anti-Christ. But what if
the precursor to that government isn't a government at all? What if it
is agenda-driven, multi-national corporations whose size, wealth and
domination of a market gives them the same power to coerce as a
governmental power?

These days, it's hard to know who is taking their cues from whom -- the
NSA or Amazon, the CIA or Facebook, the Defense Intelligence Agency or
Vimeo?

The stripping of 1st Amendment freedoms of speech, religion and privacy
have all been broached in our generation by both corporate and
government entities in the name of national security and/or under the
guise of protecting people from "hate speech". As an example, Target
Department Stores flung open its bathroom doors to pedophiles, sex
criminals, would-be transgenders and others in an arrogant and callous
disregard for the safety of women and children. Our former president
spent a great deal of time, effort and taxpayer dollars trying to force
nuns at the "Little Sisters of the Poor" to pay for abortions (via
insurance premiums), and to strip florists and bakers of their religious
freedoms (with egregious fines) so as to drive them out of business for
not complying with "big brother's" wishes. He also set out to rob school
districts everywhere of federal income if they refused to allow men into
women's bath and shower rooms. Never mind that his order would allow any
man to enter such private areas. "Big Brother" had declared it to be so,
or else!

In 1949, George Orwell wrote the classic novel, 1984, where a
totalitarian government takes control of its population and programs the
minds of its people to accept their enslavement.

Here are some chilling quotes from this prophetic book:
"Freedom is slavery."
"The Party seeks power entirely for its own sake. We are not interested
in the good of others; we are interested solely in power, pure power."
"Reality exists ...... only in the mind of the Party, which is
collective and immortal."
"One does not establish a dictatorship in order to safeguard a
revolution; one makes the revolution in order to establish the
dictatorship."
"I hate purity, I hate goodness! I don't want virtue to exist anywhere.
I want everyone to be corrupt to the bones."
"And if all others accepted the lie which the Party imposed--if all
records told the same tale--then the lie passed into history and became
truth. 'Who controls the past' ran the Party slogan, 'controls the
future: who controls the present controls the past."
"The choice for mankind lies between freedom and happiness and for the
great bulk of mankind, happiness is better."
"Power is in tearing human minds to pieces and putting them together
again in new shapes of your own choosing."
"Power is not a means; it is an end.......The object of power is power"
"No one ever seizes power with the intention of relinquishing it."
"Don't you see that the whole aim of Newspeak is to narrow the range of
thought? In the end we shall make thoughtcrime literally impossible,
because there will be no words in which to express it."
"What you say or do doesn't matter; only feelings matter."

"Big Brother is Watching You."

Then there was the 1931 dystopian novel, Brave New World by Aldous
Huxley.....

"One believes things because one has been conditioned to believe them."

"On no account brood over your wrongdoing."

"Great is truth, but still greater, from a practical point of view, is
silence about truth."

"...most men and women will grow up to love their servitude and will
never dream of revolution."

"...reality, however utopian, is something from which people feel the
need of taking pretty frequent holidays...."

"A really efficient totalitarian state would be one in which the
all-powerful executive of political bosses and their army of managers
control a population of slaves who do not have to be coerced, because
they love their servitude."

"Science is dangerous, we have to keep it most carefully chained and
muzzled."

The most recent example of corporate "big brother" is Vimeo.com, which
is the single largest platform for high-end videos on the Internet. They
essentially have no competition for that market and have become a
monopoly. If you want your video to be seen worldwide by the market that
expects high-end, quality videos, they are the only place to go.

In the past few years, they began dictating new "political correctness"
rules for the many nonprofits, churches, ministries and corporate
entities, some of whom had spent tens of thousands of dollars
establishing their presence during almost a decade on the site. Vimeo's
new rules imposed restrictions on what they could post on their own
well-established pages.

You'd expect such rules to revolve around eliminating pro-pedophile
videos or rape videos or pornographic videos, or videos about terrorism,
jihad or other violent acts. No - those were okay.
Just put "jihad" in Vimeo's search bar and you get 2,233 selections. Put
"lust" + Vimeo in a Google search and one option is a porn filmmaker
site, among 288 other sites containing 2,872 videos. Search on Google
for "rape" + Vimeo and you get 2,817 videos. Google "teen rape" + Vimeo
and you get at least one rape video.

Vimeo offers "sugar daddy" dating sites for the enrichment of children
and teens everywhere who are looking for some extra cash, plus all kinds
of gay porn videos. You can even watch some of Allen Ginsberg's speech
glorifying NAMBLA (a society that promotes the molestation of children)
on Vimeo.

I was expecting some concern for the millions of children who can easily
access such predator sites, (some of whom will no doubt end up being sex
trafficked as a result), but found just the opposite.
Some months ago, Vimeo removed all of the videos from the Christian
network of ministries to homosexuals, Restored Hope Network -- an
outstanding ministry that helps those who come to them for healing from
wounds that have led to sexual brokenness. Homosexuals have proven and
significant levels of brokenness, such as histories of childhood sexual
abuse, depression, suicidal ideation, substance abuse, domestic
violence, etc. Research abounds at CDC and APA websites. Entire books
have been written on the brokenness, not only by ministries like ours,
but by secular and gay authors as well.
But the "thought police" at Vimeo don't want it known that homosexuals
have sexual brokenness. They have declared that such an idea is
"demeaning". They also consider the idea that Jesus Christ can bring
healing to sexual brokenness both offensive and demeaning.

CENSORED

Recently, Vimeo removed all 850 of our award-winning videos -- videos
that feature many of the world's top experts in helping sexually broken
people, as well as testimonies of individuals whose lives have been
rescued from destruction as a direct result of the help found in the
videos.

Though little more than half deal with healing sexual brokenness among
homosexuals, Vimeo wanted them all gone. Censored! No more help for
victims of sex trafficking or other forms of childhood sexual abuse. No
help for the massive population of sex addicts, some of whom get their
porn fix from Vimeo. Many have testified to us that our videos kept them
from committing suicide, spurred them to give their lives to Jesus
Christ, saved their marriage and much more. But Vimeo wanted them all
gone -- displaying the very kind of selfish, self-centeredness that
(ironically enough) typifies sexually broken people.
Vimeo claims that our videos "harass, incite hatred or depict excessive
violence" -- a claim that is patently false and without a shred of
merit. Our approach to ministry has always been based on the scriptural
teaching that it is love that compels us (Romans 2:4; 2 Corinthians
5:14) and that it is grace that teaches us to say "No" to ungodliness
(Titus 2:11-14). We have always been respectful, kind and grace-filled
in showing people that Jesus Christ can heal their brokenness, no matter
whether they are heterosexual or homosexual.

Vimeo claims that our videos display a "demeaning attitude" toward
homosexuals -- again, patently false. When I asked them why our help for
sexually broken heterosexuals wasn't also considered demeaning, they
refused to answer.

By their own words, it is clear that Vimeo's opposition to our ministry
is grounded in unadulterated religious bigotry. Here are some of the
statements on our website that offended them:
? "God can transform the life of anyone caught in homosexual confusion"
? "Overcoming homosexuality is achievable through the power provided by
the blood of Jesus Christ"
? and to the idea that the Word of God can be a "tool that empowers the
overcoming of homosexuality".

The homosexuals who have been featured in our videos have all testified
to multiple levels of sexual brokenness, (including childhood sexual
abuse, porn/sex addiction, etc.), as have many that have been featured
in articles and appearances on pro-gay venues such as the Huffington
Post, The Advocate, The Dr. Phil Show, and Oprah.

I personally was a victim of bullying in childhood, so am all too
familiar with this kind of intimidation. Bullies always go after the
small, the weak and the poor. They know that we are small and do not
have the funds to defend ourselves in court. But I know that if you do
not fight back with what you do have, they will continue to intimidate
and bully to their heart's content.
In one final attempt to reason with them, I wrote.......

"You are misrepresenting our ministry and outreach to sexually broken
people. We are kind, respectful and helpful to everyone who comes to us
for help. We are not demeaning to anyone in any way, nor is the gospel
of Jesus Christ demeaning to homosexuals.

As a former homosexual and in ministry to them for 30 years, I am well
versed in the profound brokenness of those who come to us for help. They
are often suicidal, dangerously addicted to drugs and/or alcohol, bound
in the trap of domestic violence, riddled with STDs, victims of
childhood sexual abuse and/or sex trafficking, abandoned by parents,
kicked out of their churches, sex/porn addicted and more.

Multiple gay studies, the CDC, the APAs and every other secular
organization that gathers statistics on the gay lifestyle repeatedly
publish proof that there is an abnormally high incidence of brokenness
among the gay community. If it is so "demeaning" to address such
brokenness, why aren't you threatening to remove the videos of such
organizations?

The "T" in LGBT are also in crisis health-wise, with astronomical rates
of major depression and suicide. Why do you consider it a crime to try
to help those who are seeking help? And why would you remove help for
those affected by the very conditions that drive them to suicide at such
abnormally high levels?
The numbers of people who have indeed been healed by Jesus Christ from
these underlying conditions belies your claim that it is impossible.

These are the people who come to us for help and who are indeed "set
free" from these life-threatening situations in many cases. A better way
to word it is they find healing in relationship with Christ for the
wounds that have led to their dysfunctional activities.

Not only (are your actions in removing our videos) an abridgment of free
speech and religious freedom, I find it unconscionable that you would
remove anyone from your site who is trying to rescue broken people who
are seeking help for their brokenness, no matter what their sexual
orientation.
We have never focused on sexual orientation change, but have always and
only addressed the brokenness that underlies those coming to us for
help. And indeed, they are often gloriously helped, even to the degree
of deciding not to take their lives, to get off alcohol, drugs, etc.

Therefore, there is no reason for us to remove any of our videos. With
the thousands of testimonies of lives rescued in one way or another, it
would an unforgivable act for us to do so.

Your admission of ignorance of the findings of the APAs, the CDC and
dozens of gay studies is to make my point. Your policy is misinformed.
For your righteous cause, you think you are helping homosexuals by
shutting down any information about there being any brokenness among
them (under the guise of it being "demeaning" to suggest such a thing)
and in the process leaving the broken ones strewn on the battlefield
with no one left to help.

This is akin to how HIV was handled in the early years. Up 'till then,
everyone with an STD was supposed to report those they had had sexual
contact with, so that they could receive testing and treatment in order
to halt the progression of the disease and save lives. But activists,
afraid of what people might think, forced a removal of that policy. The
result was greater and greater proliferation of the deadly disease. In
other words, for the sake of some righteous cause and the fear of what
people might think, people were left to get infected and die in far
greater numbers than was necessary. So the concern was not for the
individual homosexual, but a selfish and ill-informed reaction born out
of fear.

Censorship and the withholding of help for those who seek it is never
the answer to brokenness.
It's very much like the situation found in many families of alcoholics.
For fear of what people might think, the entire family system is forced
to deny that there is anything wrong. They think that they are
protecting the reputation of the family, but in the process, the
alcoholic dies from his/her brokenness and the wife and children grow up
with an unhealthy fear of disclosing their own areas of brokenness. It's
a dysfunctional model that selfishly ignores the wounded among them.

For the life of me, I can't see how it is demeaning to address
brokenness among homosexuals and NOT demeaning to address it among
heterosexuals. Our ministry has always addressed both populations and
without prejudice.

And for the sake of your political cause, you seem ready to censor
anyone who wants to help the broken among you. That's crazy! Even gay
activists like Camille Paglia regularly point out in their columns the
insanity of such an approach.

Our approach to ministry has always been to let people speak the truth
about the healing they've received for their brokenness, whether
heterosexual or homosexual. The problem does not lie in the
heterosexuality or homosexuality, but in those traumas and experiences
in their lives that have wounded them and left them wounded and out of
control. To censor such help is, again, unconscionable.

I see that you post videos praising pedophilia, jihad and that depict
"demeaning" pornography that is destroying people's lives. Did you know
that a significant part of the population of porn actors are victims of
sex trafficking and/or childhood sexual abuse? Did you know that they
are regularly sexually abused on the set and beaten if they do not do
what is demanded of them? Many are forced into prostitution and drug
addiction. Did you know that an abnormally high percentage of them
commit suicide because of their abuse? Did you know that your video of
Allen Ginsberg glorifies the molestation of children by adult men?

In other words, I'm failing to see any moral standard represented by the
videos found on Vimeo that provides a leg for you to stand on to justify
censoring people who are trying to help the broken people who are the
casualties of many of the videos that you host.

After hosting our videos for almost 9 years, (most of them under no such
policy as you now claim), after our spending tens of thousands of
dollars creating Vimeo-quality versions, uploading them, linking them to
websites, smart devices and channels, advertising and promoting their
presence - all resulting in the rescue, healing and even saving of
hundreds of lives, and without any complaint from Vimeo until now, you
suddenly want to trash all of our hard work and throw away our entire
investment in time and money on a policy that doesn't even help
homosexuals, but rather robs them of help. And in order to justify your
actions, you have decided to slander us by inventing a fiction that we
are acting in ways that are demeaning to homosexuals.

People can see through all of that. They hate the spin doctors who would
rather destroy people for their pet cause than help them. They hate
"thought police" and other Orwellian actions that censor free speech and
freedom of religion, even when they disagree with them. You're headed
toward a legacy of promoting things that hurt people and censoring those
that are trying to help them in ways that evoke memories of the
cruelties of the Soviet Union during the reigns of Lenin, Stalin and
others in the Cold War.

As I've said before, we will not remove videos that are saving lives. It
would be a sin against God and against those who desperately want hope
and the kind of help that will bring healing to whatever brokenness they
may have. We have the track record to prove that for 30 years, what we
have been doing has been healing and NOT demeaning or hateful or
whatever other spin you want to put on it."
Vimeo's response.........

"Your account has been removed by the Vimeo staff for violating our
guidelines. Vimeo does not allow videos that harass, incite hatred, or
include discriminatory or defamatory speech."

You see, Vimeo knows that if you say something often enough, people will
assume it's true. They are the big bully, er brother, on the block and
are exacting their revenge, it seems, against anyone who gets in their
way, the Constitution notwithstanding. It is the same spirit of
antichrist that will eventually culminate in the Great Tribulation.

It's the spirit of 1984 come to life in corporate America. As George
Orwell warned........
"The Party seeks power entirely for its own sake. We are not interested
in the good of others; we are interested solely in power, pure power."

"Reality exists ...... only in the mind of the Party, which is
collective and immortal."
"One does not establish a dictatorship in order to safeguard a
revolution; one makes the revolution in order to establish the
dictatorship."

"Big Brother is Watching You!"

If you'd like to express your opinion about Vimeo's decision to censor
the message of healing for sexually broken people through Jesus Christ,
visit the following American Family Association page to sign their
petition: https://www.afa.net/activism/action...

The good news is that there are still a number of sites that have not
yet caved to the bullying of corporate America where you can still watch
some or most of our ministry videos, including.......
? www.youtube.com/user/davidkylefoster
? www.xpmedia.com/channel/purepassion
? www.GodTube.com/purepassiontv
? www.cross.tv/tvshows/227
? www.MasteringLife.org
? Cross.tv also feeds videos to our main websites.......
www.PurePassion.us
........as well as to our "Pure Passion" iPhone & Android apps and our
"Pure Passion" streaming channels on Amazon TV, AppleTV, Google TV, Roku
(U.S.), Roku (U.K.) & iTunes.
Find more at our ministry FB page:
https://www.facebook.com/purepassio...
And sign up for our monthly e-newsletter. The April edition just went
out but can be read at: http://hosted-p0.vresp.com/813927/9...

Dr. David Kyle Foster is the producer of Pure Passion TV and the
documentaries, "Such Were Some of You" (www.SuchWereSomeOfYou.org), "How
Do You Like Me Now? When a Child, Parent, Spouse or Sibling Says They're
Gay" (www.HowDoYouLikeMeNow.org) and the upcoming "TranZformed: Finding
Peace with Your God-Given Gender" (www.TranZformed.org) (coming June
2017). He is also the author of Love Hunger (Chosen), Sexual Healing
(Regal) and Transformed Into His Image: Hidden Steps on the Journey to
Christlikeness (Laurus Books).



------------------------------

Message: 16
Date: Thu, 30 Mar 2017 16:51:34 -0400
From: David Virtue <da...@virtueonline.org>
To: "virtue...@listserv.virtueonline.org"
<virtue...@listserv.virtueonline.org>
Subject: Athanasius, Irenaeus, and the Church of England Bus
Message-ID:
<1490907094.377.9...@webmail.messagingengine.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8"

Athanasius, Irenaeus, and the Church of England Bus

By Gavin Ashenden
www.virtueonline.org
March 29, 2017

I was recently reading an argument about whether or not Irenaeus of Lyon
really wrote "The glory of God is a human being fully alive".

The Latin is Gloria Dei est vivens homo! There was complaint that to add
'fully alive' is to buy into the Jungian- New Age paradigm of the
idolatry of the developing self.

So sidestepping the threat of heresy for a moment, Irenaeus of Lyon
writes that just to be alive, capable of joining the angels in praise,
responding to the gift of new life Jesus won for us on the cross is
stuff for the glorification of God who fathered us and breathed His life
into us.

But to be alive also means staying alert to what is changing around us.
Staying alive can also mean evading the grip of spiritual death, as in a
fit of jealously our spiritual enemy sets out to rob us of what God has
given us at such cost. The faithful church has always taken heresy
seriously since it threatens to deprive us of what Christ won for us.

As I have watched the changes in the Church of England, it has seemed to
me that we are facing a new semi-Arianism; a new version of an old
heresy.

Arians demoted Jesus to a 'creature', something less than St John's
eternal Word, through whom all things came into being, and in whom all
things subsist.

Gender and Purpose

Jesus is very clear in the Gospels that men and women come together to
share in the agency of creation, co-creating children together. This is
God's intention for us.

The new Progressive theologies replace this by treating gender as a
spectrum, diluting the polarities of male and female and prioritising
erotic and romantic attraction- no matter which direction it is aimed
at. It doesn't seem to matter that this contradicts the teaching of
Jesus. He is treated as a voice that can be sidelined.

In the Gospels, Jesus is very clear that he has come to introduce us to
the Father. He and the Father are one. To see him is to see the Father.

But the movement to ordain women to the priesthood and the episcopate
has released a stream of spirituality that is uncomfortable with the
father. It has been politicised and become adverse to patriarchy. And so
God begins to be called mother instead instead of father. In some
liturgies the trinitarian formula of Father, Son and Holy Spirit has
been removed and replaced with the gender-free "creator, redeemer and
sustainer".

The authority of Jesus has been treated as culturally relative, demoted
and sidelined.

The struggle the Church faces over revelation and gender is not just
about gender and the fashion of identity politics; it is also about the
status of Jesus and the authority of the written Word as well as the
Living Word.

When Athenasius was faced with the heresy of Arianism, he was convinced
that if the Church demoted Jesus, it would lose the understanding of
salvation and the medicine of immortality that the Church offered the
lost. This was not a matter for compromise and conciliation.

I have come to agree with Athanasius. Seeing the Archbishops and bishops
of the Church of England gradually but inexorably adopt a secular
narrative of gender and preference romantic eroticism over all other
Christian values, I recently relinquished the legal part of my Church of
England orders, remaining an Anglican, but no longer a Church of England
priest.

This is rather quaintly done by lodging a deed in the High Court in
London and invoking the Victorian Clerical Disabilities Act of 1870. It
is being said that I have left the Church of England, but the fact is
that the Church of England I was baptised and ordained into has left me.

It has chosen to repudiate its historic orders, modifying them to
reflect secular cultural and political preference, diluting its
allegiance to the Bible, and the recognition of Jesus as the Living Word
who brings us to the Father.

If you are on a bus that has changed direction and is set to drive over
the edge of a cliff, there comes a moment when you decide to jump off.
For me, this was it. It's about staying alive. I think both Athanasius
and Irenaeus would approve.



------------------------------

Message: 17
Date: Thu, 30 Mar 2017 16:53:10 -0400
From: David Virtue <da...@virtueonline.org>
To: "virtue...@listserv.virtueonline.org"
<virtue...@listserv.virtueonline.org>
Subject: Hashtags and Teddy Bears will not quell radical Islam
Message-ID:
<1490907190.624.9...@webmail.messagingengine.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8"

Hashtags and Teddy Bears will not quell radical Islam

By Rev Jules Gomes
http://www.conservativewoman.co.uk/
March 26, 2017

The therapeutic rituals of communal grief cannot triumph over terrorism.
The post-Princess Diana cult of conspicuous compassion will not defeat
radical Islam. Rather, it will only serve to anaesthetise further a
culture steeped in snowflake sentimentality.

Just hours after Khalid Masood turned his Hyundai into a Panzer, mowing
down pedestrians on Westminster Bridge, and then brandishing his
bayonet, knifing PC Keith Palmer to death outside Parliament, the
avalanche of collective grief is picking up momentum.

Over the next few days, it will swell into a full-blown liturgy of
pseudo-lament. The rubrics for the ritual have received a canonical
imprimatur from the Synod of Virtual Signallers. Breitbart editor Raheem
Kassam catalogues the sacred accoutrements: 'Teddy bears, tears,
candles, cartoons, murals, mosaics, flowers, flags, projections,
hashtags, balloons, wreaths, lights, vigils, scarves, and more.'

A papal indulgence in the form of a blessed organic tissue wipe is
granted to the inconsolable devotee who sheds a tear, lights a candle,
signs a card, attends a vigil, tweets 140 characters affirming "our"
unity, or shares a Facebook post reeking with the goo and gunk of
postmodern 'sanctimonious pap.'

Historic landmarks become cathedrals of communal catharsis. The Eiffel
Tower plunges into its dark night of the soul tweeting its Parisian
tears, 'I will turn my lights off tonight, at midnight, to pay tribute
to the victims of the London attack.' Brandenburg Gate lights up with
the colours of the Union Flag. City Hall in Tel Aviv twins the Israeli
flag with the Union Jack in splendid illumination.

The power of this liturgy to defeat Islamic terror is reflected in a
tweet sent by a Gareth@thehandofbeadle who has 5,626 followers--all
infected with the virus of wishful thinking and all prepared to wage a
social media duel unto death with jihadists. 'ISIS will think twice when
they see Dean from Wigan has stuck a union jack over a Facebook photo of
him necking jagerbombs in Magaluf.'

Oooh! Isn't that so brave? Can you imagine the terrorists shi**ing in
their pants as Virtue Signalling Combatants open deadly Twitter fire
from smartphones with hashtags #LondonisOpen, #WeStandTogether,
#WeAreNotAfraid and #UnitedTogether? Can you visualise the Holy Warriors
queuing up to convert to the European religion of universal brotherhood
as Facebook posts carpet bomb the virtual world with a BBC-beatified
icon of people of different faiths standing together against a backdrop
of London?

The mysterium tremendum et fascinans moment in the liturgy that
solemnises the 'triumph of the therapeutic' is the sermon. High
Priestess Theresa May evolves overnight from politician to
grief-therapist, moralist, Islamic theologian and Pontifex of
Politically Correct Preaching. 'It is wrong to describe this as Islamic
terrorism. It is Islamist terrorism. It is a perversion of a great
faith,' declares the newly appointed Defender of the Religion of Peace.

Now why am I so contemptuous of such a sacred ceremony? Am I suffering
from Compassion Deficiency Syndrome? Do I, as a pastor, not value the
venerable rites of passage--the noble traditions of bereavement and
grief? Do I not honour the bravery of those who paid the ultimate price
in services on Remembrance Sunday? Have I never read, prayed and
preached from Israel's Psalms of national lament and the biblical book
of Lamentations?

In fact, I had the privilege of delivering a lecture on the
heartbreaking book of Lamentations at Auschwitz. Over the last few
years, I have been pleading with congregations to restore the genre of
lament to liturgy--for lament has often been jettisoned in favour of a
feel-good, foot-tapping, happy-clappy worship.

While our postmodern rituals of public grief are designed to
anaesthetise, the ancient traditions of communal lament--common to many
ancient Near Eastern cultures--are devised to move grieving communities
from catharsis to analysis and from analysis to action by using elements
of introspection and imprecation.

First, the genre of biblical lament is potent with self-examination. The
question that punctuates its poetry is one of introspection. 'Why has
this disaster come upon us? We are to blame!' Apart from a few
courageous voices like Nigel Farage who was speaking to Tucker Carlson
on Fox News, the postmodern liturgy of lament sanitises self-examination
completely. It blames poverty or education or radicalisation--rather
than our stupid policies of uncontrolled immigration and uninhibited
multiculturalism--in tandem with our wholesale repudiation of our
Judeo-Christian heritage and our cult of unbridled hedonism.

Second, the genre of biblical lament is punctuated with incisive
imprecation. Enemies are named and shamed--imprecation is a form of
ritual cursing. The curse against the foe is directed at God. This
prevents the nation taking revenge but at the same time empowers the
nation to action against the enemy. The poetry of lament gives free rein
to voices that wish to name its enemies. There is no politically correct
code of restricted speech imposed on the speakers.

Only a few politicians like Paul Nuttall and Islamic scholars like
Robert Spencer dare to identify "unreformed" Islam with its clarion call
to 'slay the idolaters wherever ye find them, and take them (captive),
and besiege them, and prepare for them each ambush' (Sura 9:5). They are
categorised as untouchables by the touch-feely mob of
crocodile-tear-shedders, who ritually camouflage the enemy by turning
Islam into Islamism--a sleight of hand pious Muslims themselves reject
as the imposition of a newly concocted category found nowhere in the
Koran or Hadith.

Ancient communal lament is dangerous poetry, not domesticated prose. And
'poetry,' as American poet Robert Frost puts it, 'is a way of taking
life by the throat.' But the infantilised rituals of mawkish
sentimentality are constructed to achieve the Orwellian goal of a numbed
populace that denies rather than defies the reality of Islamic
terrorism. Our empty rituals of feigned empathy will not triumph over
terror because they will not empower us to change the world but merely
to 'be nice.'

In 2004, Patrick West ridiculed the rituals of 'conspicuous compassion'
as 'displays' of 'sheer opportunism.' Judging by the 'outpourings of
grief over Diana in August 1997, one would have thought her memory would
have remained firmly imprinted on the public's consciousness. Yet, on
the fifth anniversary of her death in August 2002, there were no crowds,
tears or teddies. Diana had served her purpose. The public had moved on.
These recreational grievers were now emoting about Jill Dando, Linda
McCartney or the Soham girls.'

Mr West's 'recreational grievers' might as well stock up on teddy bears
and scented candles. Tragically, there will be many more services of
ceremonial weeping, mourning and gnashing of teeth for them to attend,
if introspection and imprecation do not become vital elements in our
liturgies of communal lament.

The Rev'd Dr Jules Gomes is pastor of St Augustine's Church, Douglas, on
the Isle of Man.



------------------------------

Message: 18
Date: Thu, 30 Mar 2017 16:53:31 -0400
From: David Virtue <da...@virtueonline.org>
To: "virtue...@listserv.virtueonline.org"
<virtue...@listserv.virtueonline.org>
Subject: JOS, Nigeria: Anglican Archbishop urges Government to defend
Christians against Fulani terror
Message-ID:
<1490907211.674.9...@webmail.messagingengine.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8"

JOS, Nigeria: Anglican Archbishop urges Government to defend Christians
against Fulani terror

by Hassan John
Global Christian News
http://www.globalchristiannews.org/
28th March 2017

Many churches in Jagindi, Southern Kaduna, were too fearful to celebrate
Mothering Sunday (26 March 2017) because of Fulani attacks following a
spate of killings throughout the region.

In the village of Aso eye witness reports claimed that Islamist Fulani
herdsmen killed a farmer who noticed the raiding of farms in the
community. Witnesses said the farmer confronted some herdsmen at his
farm and they killed him. Youths in Aso clashed with the Fulanis and
three people were killed, including a security official.

In February and March, Fulani Islamic Herdsmen attacked at least three
communities in Benue State.

While the Boko Haram insurrgency still dominates the northeast, Fulani
cattle herdsmen are still devastating Christian communities in Southern
Kaduna and parts of Plateau State, in central regions of Nigeria, taking
over farmlands and displacing thousands of people from communities.

"The Nigerian government is yet to effectively address the menace of the
Fulani terror group," the Venerable Dauda Yakubu, a resident in Gidan
Waya, said.

According to Global Terrorism Index, the Fulani Herdsmen are the world's
fourth deadliest militant group, yet they have not been designated a
terrorist group even after killing thousands of people and sacking
dozens of communities in central Nigeria.

The Anglican Archbishop of Jos Province, Benjamin Kwashi, whose province
covers the entire region affected by the Fulani killings said that the
failure of governments to pay serious attention to crisis is because
"both the Nigerian government and the world did not admit in the early
stages that it was an act of terror they continue to call it 'herdsmen
framer clashes. Inter-tribal clashes, ethnic crises."

The Bishop added that, "when you look at the tilt of justice, you cannot
call it a clash. And one of the things that pains those of us who are
the recipients of this evil, is that the western media still calls it
clash... people were sleeping and 500 hundred people were slaughtered,
where is the clash? Because in not naming it correctly it is helping the
crime to continue."

The Provincial Missions Coordinator in the Northeast, Venerable Mark
Mukan still wonders "what criteria is used in designating groups
terrorists and the Islamic Fulani herdsmen could not be curbed by the
Nigerian army, as they have engaged Boko Haram and even declared victory
over insurgency, after these colossal destructions of lives and
property." There is a specialized interest by the Nigerian government on
the cattle Herdsman "simply because they are running the agenda of
powerful Islamic segments of the Nigerian government," according to a
public analyst who told Global Christian News that he did not want to be
named.

Archbishop Kwashi added, "because of government's refusal or inability
or unwillingness to deal with foreign fighters, as the case has proved,
it would therefore seem that there is some interest in land grabbing.
But even worst is the fact that these terrorists, these herdsmen
terrorists call the name of Allah and a governor in Nigeria will go to
pay them and knows them and refuses to deal with those issues and bring
settlement and justice to people of host communities," he said.

The Archbishop said the protection of the Fulani attackers demonstrates
a clear religious connection. He argued: "If you look at the trend of
the killings, right down to Enugu, (in the south-eastern part of
Nigeria) churches would be destroyed, homes of Christians would be
destroyed, but no mosque is touched, no Fulani settlement is touched, no
Muslims are touched."

Criticizing the government's failure to recognize the scale of the
crisis, Archbishop Kwashi said: "You notice that the herdsmen killers
have not been arrested. The ones who killed in Plateau state have not
been arrested."

In contrast, he pointed out that local people who have defended
themselves against Fulani attacks have been arrested.

The Archbishop said this raises a fresh issue when it comes to religion.
"Are the Christians who are largely in these areas under persecution?
The answer is simply yes."

He explained, "From what I know about terrorism it has found its way
into peaceful communities targeting only Christians and churches." He
said that attempts by authorities to deny the truth was a dereliction of
duty by the government.

The Archbishop gave a warning to the Nigerian government: "If the
federal government of Nigeria does not act quickly, the local people,
the ordinary people will lose confidence in governance and no nation
survives when the people no longer have confidence in governance.
Because obviously what is happening in some parts of Nigeria then will
happen everywhere and that will not be a good thing for anybody."

He warned: "People will have to defend themselves, people will have to
raise their own security, people will just do things their own way."



------------------------------

Message: 19
Date: Thu, 30 Mar 2017 16:53:57 -0400
From: David Virtue <da...@virtueonline.org>
To: "virtue...@listserv.virtueonline.org"
<virtue...@listserv.virtueonline.org>
Subject: QUESTIONS JESUS ASKED: What Can Suffering Teach Me? - --
Hebrews 5:7, 8
Message-ID:
<1490907237.702.9...@webmail.messagingengine.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8"

QUESTIONS JESUS ASKED: What Can Suffering Teach Me? - -- Hebrews 5:7,8

By Ted Schroder
www.tedschroder.com
April 2, 2017

"During the days of Jesus' life on earth, he offered up prayers and
petitions with loud cries and tears to the one who could save him from
death, and he was heard because of his reverent submission. Although he
was a son, he learned obedience from what he suffered..."

We sometimes think of Jesus as a kind of Superman who was impervious to
suffering. Yet the portrait of him in the Gospels is that of a truly
real human being who experienced every aspect of humanity from birth to
death. As a baby he would have cried, when hurt as a child and an adult
he would have suffered. The Apostles' Creed states that "he suffered
under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died and was buried."

Jesus knew that he was mortal and would one day suffer and die like all
men and women. In fact he prophesied about his own dying. Three times
Jesus told his disciples that he must be rejected by the authorities,
suffer many things at their hands, be killed by them, and then rise from
the dead (Matthew 16:21;17:22,23; 20:17-19; Mark 8:31;9:31;10:32-34; and
Luke 9:22;18:32,33). Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him.
"Never, Lord! This shall never happen to you!" Peter was in denial about
the reality of mortality and the hostility of the world to Jesus. We can
be like Peter in being in denial about our own mortality and how we
shall we shall handle it. Suffering is part of being human in this life.

Jesus was not in denial about being human and having to suffer and to
die. But that did not mean that he was immune to what it entailed. To
the contrary he "offered up prayers and petitions with loud cries and
tears" as he suffered the anxiety of contemplating his own gruesome
dying. In that respect he was dealing with what we all must deal with in
our humanity. "We do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize
with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way,
just as we are -- yet without sin. Let us then approach the throne of
grace with confidence so that we may receive mercy and find grace to
help us in our time of need"(Hebrews 4:15,16).

Jesus was tempted in every way, just as we are. Like all of us, he had
to go through the school of human experience in order to learn
obedience. Obedience was not necessary for him in the Godhead. It was
only to be learned through the human experience of suffering. Satan knew
this in respect to Job. He said to the Lord, "A man will give all he has
for his own life. But stretch out your hand and strike his flesh and
bones, and he will surely curse you to your face" (Job 2:4,5). We may be
able to handle financial and other losses in life but when we have to
face physical suffering it is of a different order. We find faith easy
when we are well. We pray for health and strength and when we have them
we can be obedient without too much trouble. Can we truly say, "Give me
weakness and ill-health and I will still be your servant"? As we decline
in health and face our dying days we can become depressed by them, try
to escape from them, or we can choose to be made perfect in suffering.
Our faith may never be fully learned until they go through the fires of
suffering. Suffering goes to the very foundation of our faith. It tests
our loyalty and commitment. Some people are fine Christians until they
have to suffer. Peter said to Jesus, "Though I should die with you, yet
I will not deny you." Yet, what happened when he found himself in the
courtyard of the high priest and was called to declare himself a
follower of Jesus. He was in fear of his life and cursed and swore he
did not know the man. He changed from bragging about his loyalty to
weeping at his shame. Suffering reveals who we really are. We can never
know whether we are perfectly obedient to follow Christ until we have
passed through suffering. That is the only way it is learned.

Jesus was truly human. Jesus was flesh and blood. He was skin and bone.
He was blood and sweat. He was muscle and fat. He was brain and sinew.
He was nerve and tissue. He was sensitive to pain. He had to endure
flogging and crucifixion. As he contemplated his suffering Jesus
"offered up prayers and petitions with loud cries and tears to the one
who could save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverent
submission."

The Savior prayed to be saved. He prayed that he might be saved from the
power of death, that he might not be lost eternally, but come through
death to resurrection. "He too shared in their humanity so that by his
death he might destroy him who holds the power of death -- that is, the
devil -- and free all those who by their lives were held in slavery by
their fear of death" (Hebrews 2:14,15).

Is it not true that Jesus, as being truly human, had a fear, a natural
fear of death and the dissolution it can cause? God implants in all
human beings a natural fear of death in order to protect life and to
prevent us from death wishes, and being fatalistic. We are all given a
love of life, and we do not hasten our own demise. Jesus felt this as a
healthy young man. Jesus did not welcome death as did Socrates in
drinking the hemlock as a condemned man. The Bible does not teach, as
the Greek philosophers taught, that the body was a prison house of the
soul from which death liberated us. Socrates did not fear death since he
believed it set him free from this life. Death for Jesus, as a man, was
something to be avoided. He did not want to be alone in facing it. He
was distressed at its prospect. Death is the last enemy to be fought
against until the battle is over and our work is done (1 Cor.15:26).

Jesus prayed with loud cries and tears that he might have the courage
and fortitude to continue his work through his suffering on the Cross,
his descent into place of the dead, and his resurrection. He prayed that
he might not falter nor fail in his mission. He prayed that he might be
able to minister to those around him while he was in agony on the Cross:
to the soldiers, to the thieves, to the crowd, to his mother and to his
disciples. He prayed before his suffering so as to prepare for his
suffering. He prayed, as a human being, that he might be ready for what
was to come so that he might fulfill his responsibility to those he had
come to save. What an example Jesus is to us! Can we pray as he did?

What can we learn from Jesus as we face our own suffering and dying? We
can learn from the humanity of God. Christianity is the only religion
where God has come down amongst us to enter into our sufferings. Jesus
is God in the flesh. God loves us so much that he gave his only Son to
be one of us and to die for us. Jesus knew he was going to have to
suffer and die unjustly at an early age. By living every aspect of human
life, Jesus redeemed all suffering and dying whatever our age at death.

As Jesus was able to face the suffering of his Passion for all humanity
with the help of God, so we can draw on the same resources. Like Jesus,
we too, can offer up prayers and petitions and be heard. Like Jesus, we
too, can learn obedience through our sufferings. Like Jesus in the
garden of Gethsemane, when we are overwhelmed with sorrow to the point
of death, we can be sustained and strengthened by angels from heaven
(Luke 22:43). Like Jesus, we too can minister to our friends, our family
and caregivers despite our suffering. Jesus suffered death "so that by
the grace of God he might taste death for everyone...for in doing this
he was bringing us all to glory in heaven; for his suffering made Jesus
the author of our salvation" (Hebrews 2:9,10). That makes all suffering
worthwhile in fulfilling God's purpose and plan.

END



------------------------------

Subject: Digest Footer

VirtueOnline Weekly News Digest
http://www.virtueonline.org/listserv.html


------------------------------

End of VirtueOnline Digest, Vol 17, Issue 13
********************************************