Author Archives: David

Diocese of Niagara has first sinless parish

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St. George’s church in Lowville is progressive. They don’t believe anything in particular, other than the sanctity of diversity: you can make the Bible say anything you want, so long as you don’t think it is actually true:

Unity in diversity
To write “What we believe” does not mean that every member of the parish must have the same beliefs.  That would be inconsistent with our position that Christians must interpret Scripture for themselves.

St. Paul was clear about this.  A Christian community, which he called the Body of Christ, is the sum of its members’ gifts and abilities. We may each interpret our faith in our own way.

Even better, you don’t have to be a Christian, since Jesus is merely a doorway to something more important: the sacred in our lives, an elevated state that can also be reached through other religions:

Our theology is broadly compatible with that of the organization Progressive Christianity.  We accept the life and teachings of Jesus Christ as a doorway to greater awareness of the sacred in our lives.  However, we accept that other faith traditions can offer insights into sacred wisdom.

I’ve saved the best until last: we aren’t sinners! There is no judgment. We don’t need saving. We don’t need a Saviour.

We don’t need a church. Oops.

Coming to church on Sundays should be a joy, not a duty. The modern Anglican perspective is that we are worthy to be in God’s presence, not ‘miserable sinners’.  That is why we make our Sunday worship joyful, not gloomy.

Like the followers of St. Francis of Assisi, we stress the goodness and joy of the natural world.  We celebrate our physicality as part of our sacredness, which mirrors the coming into the world of Jesus Christ as Son of God.

Like us, Franciscans follow whats (sic) called an alternative orthodoxy, and reject the doctrine of Original Sin.  That is the belief that we were all born sinful, awaiting and expecting punishment from a vengeful and judgemental God. The idea comes from a particular reading of the book of Genesis Chapter 3, which describes the disobedience of the mythical first people. Instead we believe that God’s Spirit of goodness and love is present within us from the moment of our creation.

The anti-Israel bias of the Anglican Church of Canada

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On October the 17th, the Anglican Church of Canada issued the following statement condemning the murder of Jews by Hamas:

On Saturday the world watched in horror as Hamas launched a rapid, devastating barrage of violence against Israel. Rockets, drone attacks, the killing of civilians and the taking of hostages have ignited long simmering tensions between Israel and Palestine. Israel has responded with ongoing rocket attacks and the death toll on all sides rises daily.

On October the 18th, the ACoC wrote a letter to Justin Trudeau demanding respect for international law in Gaza. This was provoked by the bombing of the Al Ahli Arab hospital which is run by the Episcopal Diocese of Jerusalem. Unlike the devastating barrage of violence in the prior statement, the bombing fell into the much worse category of a crime against humanity. Because it was not aimed at Jews.

The Anglican Church of Canada and the Episcopal Diocese of Jerusalem, in one deft move, have not only demonstrated their anti-Jewish bias, but collectively shot themselves in the foot: the rocket that destroyed the hospital was fired by Hamas.

From here:

In the strongest terms, the Episcopal Diocese of Jerusalem condemns this atrocious attack that has transpired in the heart of Gaza. Initial reports suggest the loss of countless lives, a manifestation of what can only be described as a crime against humanity. Hospitals, by the tenets of international humanitarian law, are sanctuaries, yet this assault has transgressed those sacred boundaries. We heed the call of Archbishop Justin Welby (Archbishop of Canterbury), who implored for the safeguarding of medical facilities and the rescission of evacuation orders. Regrettably, Gaza remains bereft of safe havens……… An urgent appeal resonates for the international community to fulfill its duty in protecting civilians and ensuring that such inhumane horrific acts are not replicated.

Justin Welby bombs his own twitter (X) feed

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Yesterday Justin Welby quoted the BBC saying: Hundreds feared dead or injured in Israeli air strike on hospital in Gaza:

He is correct, of course, it is an appalling loss of innocent lives. The problem with his tweet, though, is that the hospital was bombed by Hamas, not Israel.

Welby later, in a face-saving backpedal, said “We must exercise restraint in apportioning blame until the facts are clear.” He should have said “I”:

What he failed to note was that the rocket was intentionally aimed at civilians, it just hit the wrong ones.

Contrasting prayers during wartime

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The first is a combined effort from the Anglican Church of Canada and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada:

God of peace and justice,
Our hearts weep as the rockets fall in Israel and Gaza,
As families are bereaved
As men, women and children are taken hostage,
As anger and hatred are fuelled again.

In the land you chose for your people and your Son we pray
for those bereaved by the violence,
For the wounded and injured,
For the hostages
That your love will surround and comfort them.

We pray for strength and compassion
for all offering medical care, especially our partners, the Al-Ahli Arab Hospital
and Augusta Victoria Hospital.

We pray for Bishop Sani Azar and Archbishop Hosam Naoum and all Christians in the Holy Land for their safety and their leadership in this time of crisis.

We pray for all leaders in Israel and Palestine that a just and lasting peace will be found.

In the midst of our grief and sorrow we trust in your unfailing love for all people, and
for your Land, and ask that your wisdom would prevail, for we ask in the name of

Jesus Christ, who brings the world eternal peace.

In contrast, here is Archbishop William Temple’s prayer during World War 2:

‘Lord bless our country and all who serve it. Uphold our courage through all that comes. Make us worthy of victory, and establish peace and good will: through Jesus Christ our Lord.’

The most obvious difference, other than the lengths, is that the latter prayer includes the idea of victory, country, service and courage. The archbishop doesn’t seem particularly interested in a lasting peace with the Nazi’s; I don’t think I am reading too much into this by concluding he is praying for them to be defeated.

All of this is absent from the first prayer because the ACoC is unwilling to take a side – unless the issue is climate change, of course. Perish the thought that we might pray for Hamas to be defeated.

There is more in a similar vein from William Temple here:

 

Bishop Anna Greenwood-Lee tweets sympathy for Gaza inhabitants

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The bishop of the Diocese of British Columbia has expressed her concern for the humanitarian crisis developing in Gaza, as well she should.

The only problem is, on October 7th, the day Hamas started raping grandmothers, beheading babies and shooting every Jewish civilian they encountered, she made no mention of the fact. Although to be fair, Hamas was inclusive: they also shot some Muslim civilians.

Instead, she lamented that the life of whales is disrupted by ships’ propellers.

I wonder if it has occurred to her that the misery in Gaza is more the fault of Hamas than Israel?

Anglican Church of Canada publishes more essays on euthanasia

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The Anglican Church of Canada has not made any definitive statements on state sponsored euthanasia or MAID, Medical Assistance in Dying, to use the preferred euphemism. Instead, it has published essays.

Now it has published yet more essays which you can find here. All 234 pages of them.

I haven’t waded through the essays, although I did skim them in the vain hope of finding a statement like:

“The Anglican Church of Canada asserts that life is a God-given gift which only He has the authority to end” or:

“The Anglican Church of Canada believes that a person has the God-given right to end his life for a reason of his own choosing or because he has simply had enough.”

I didn’t see anything like that.

Come to think of it, I don’t particularly care what the ACoC thinks about euthanasia. I suspect no one else does either. And I would like to know how many in the ever-dwindling ACoC flock read all 234 pages.

There is a Journal article here:

The Anglican Church of Canada has published the first round of a collection of essays reckoning with the questions of life, death, faith and dignity surrounding medical assistance in dying (MAID). Faith Seeking Understanding: Medical Assistance in Dying collects thoughts from clergy, caregivers and academics within and adjacent to the Anglican community in a volume available now as a PDF or an ebook through the church’s website. Submissions remain open until Nov. 17 for proposals of further essays or reflections either adding to or responding to the content released in this initial version, reads a note in the collection’s early pages.

This collection represents the church’s first written document on MAID since In Sure and Certain Hope, a document released in 2016, the same year the practise became legal in Canada.

It contains a range of perspectives and questions on MAID from the definitions of freedom, human dignity and self-determination underlying the thinking behind the treatment to whether it is compatible with Anglican beliefs as expressed through liturgy. In their submissions, some authors argue for the church to compassionately embrace the practise while others argue Christians should speak out against it.

Bishop affirms sanctity of life for 2SLGBTQI+, conveniently forgets about the unborn

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In advance of Ottawa’s Pride March on August 27th, Shane Parker, the bishop of Ottawa urged us all to read his letter “Global Interfaith Commission on LGBT+ Lives”. The heading for the letter is: “Declaring the Sanctity of Life and the Dignity of All”.

Not quite all as it turns out. The handwringing is reserved for 2SLGBTQI+ people because “all sexual orientations, gender identities and gender expressions are a precious part of creation and are part of the natural order.”

Around 100,000 abortions per year are performed in Canada. In 2021, 55,073 of them were surgical or aspiration abortions: the baby is sucked out of the uterus with a pump. Or, if you would like to use the euphemism employed by the abortion industry, it uses gentle suction to pull pregnancy tissue out of the uterus. My emphasis.

Some of the 55,073 aspiration abortions, would have been performed by dilation and evacuation (D&E). These are performed for late term abortion and, of course, it is another euphemism. Using normal English, it is a dismemberment abortion. The baby is torn apart in the womb in order to remove it. Oh, and the baby’s skull is crushed. Here is a detailed description:

To prepare for a D&E, the abortionist must first dilate (widen) the woman’s cervix. Generally, this is done by placing laminaria sticks, which are osmotic dilators made from sterilized seaweed, in the cervix 24 hours before the surgery and allowing them to expand. Synthetic osmotic dilators, used to slowly widen the cervix, and misoprostol can also be used for cervical dilation. After the woman’s cervix is dilated, a suction catheter is used to suck out the amniotic fluid. The abortionist then uses metal forceps (sopher clamp) with sharp metal “teeth” to grab and tear away parts of the baby until her whole body is extracted from the womb. Since the baby’s skull has usually hardened to bone at this point (calcified), it is often crushed so that it can be removed.

However, the important thing to remember when considering the sanctity of life of a human, the bearer of God’s image, is affirmation of 2SLGBTQI+ individuals. Let’s not forget that.

From here:

Declaring the Sanctity of Life and the Dignity of All

  • We come together as senior religious leaders, academics, and lay leaders from around the world to affirm the sanctity of life and dignity of all.

  • We affirm that all human beings of all sexual orientations, gender identities and gender expressions are a precious part of creation and are part of the natural order.

  • We affirm that we are all equal under God, whom many call the Divine, and so we are all equal to one another.

  • We, therefore, call for all to be treated equally under the law.

  • We recognize with sadness that certain religious teachings have often, throughout the ages, caused and continue to cause deep pain and offense to those who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and intersex.

  • We acknowledge, with profound regret, that some of our teachings have created, and continue to create, oppressive systems that fuel intolerance, perpetuate injustice and result in violence. This has led, and continues to lead, to the rejection and alienation of many by their families, their religious groups and cultural communities.

Contains tobacco depictions

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I gave up smoking in 1978 when I became a Christian. Or, rather, God gave it up on my behalf. Before that, I smoked cigarettes – Gauloises were my favourite – a pipe and cigars. All inhaled. On numerous occasions I tried to give them up, to no avail.

I started smoking in university in my existentialist phase: life is meaningless, I decided. Smoking was something to do and trying to give it up gave one a purpose, so why not start. I was right to some extent: trying to give it up did give me a purpose; nevertheless, it was an exercise in futility because I couldn’t manage it.

When I became a Christian, one of my first prayers was to give up smoking. The day after, I woke up a non-smoker: I didn’t want to smoke and still don’t.

That preamble is a longwinded way of saying that I think smoking as a pastime is a bad idea. Still, the following is especially silly:

It is the opening screen to the latest Indiana Jones film.

In most films today we are subjected, without notice, to smooching lesbians, actors and actresses frolicking unclothed in bed, blood, gore, random violence, and the imbibing of unspecified drugs though needles, fumes and inhalation. Almost no film is released without a token homosexual, lesbian, bisexual or sadomasochist. But we simply have to be warned about smoking – tobacco, of course, because marijuana smoking, now legal to buy, sell and use in Canada, is completely harmless.

I think I saw just one lit cigarette in the film.

Graffiti on Oakville church being investigated as a hate crime

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St. Aidan’s Anglican church in Oakville has been daubed with graffiti.

Pride month seems to have been the inspiration for the artwork and, since it includes homophobic slurs, it is being investigated as a hate crime.

Although I have little in common with the liberal version of Christianity promoted by St. Aidan’s, I doubt that this is a productive way of protesting it.

Still, if the graffiti had celebrated Pride Month and denounced the traditional view of marriage, while declaring St. Aidan’s a “False Church”, would it be investigated as a hate crime?

Here is the graffiti:


And here is the article:

Halton police are investigating a recent act of vandalism at an Oakville church as a hate crime.

Sometime between the afternoon of Saturday, Aug. 19 and the morning of Sunday, Aug. 20, two signs reading “We Stand In Unity With The Halton Community” were cut in half at St. Aidan’s Anglican Church, 318 Queen Mary Dr., police say.

The church had set up the signs during Pride Month and left them up afterwards.

The church and attached daycare were also vandalized with graffiti in five areas, according to police.

“They include homophobic slurs and are being investigated as a hate-motivated crime,” said Halton Police Media Officer Const. Ryan Anderson.

No arrests have been made and no suspect descriptions are available.

When reached for comment Reverend Fran Wallace said that as a community of faith St. Aidan’s wished to acknowledge the sadness of this act.

Bishop William Cliff’s inhibition lifted

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Cliff was inhibited after an allegation of misconduct surfaced shortly after he was elected.

An investigation into the allegation tells us that it was “thoroughly and professionally investigated by members of the Safe Church Resource Team (SCRT) of the Ecclesiastical Province of Ontario” “with a definitive finding that the allegation against Bishop Cliff is not supported by the evidence.” “The findings were clear and unambiguous.”

You can read the two letters from bishops Anne Germon and Michael Oulton here (my bold).

The allegations against Bishop Cliff have been thoroughly and professionally investigated by members of the Safe Church Resource Team (SCRT) of the Ecclesiastical Province of Ontario over the last three months. The members of the SCRT in Ontario were trained and resourced to conduct the investigation which was undertaken in a manner which is consistent with best practices and with the principles of Natural Justice. The investigation was overseen by the Chancellor of the Ecclesiastical Province of Ontario. There was no other involvement by leadership.
The investigators concluded that the evidence did not support the allegation.

In a Journal article Archbishop Anne Germond said, “The report of the investigators is confidential and will not be released”.

In summary, William Cliff has been exonerated but we don’t know what the allegation was, we don’t know who made it, we don’t know the details of the investigation and we are being asked to take on trust that the findings of Safe Church Resource Team (SCRT) of the Ecclesiastical Province of Ontario were independent and unbiased.

That sounds transparent.