The Diocese of the Arctic is unusual.
First, its bishop, David Parsons, is a member of a species all but extinct in the Anglican Church of Canada: he is a Christian bishop.
Second, the diocese is in communion with ANiC and is open to licensing its priests.
Third, the diocese does not support the recently adopted liturgies for Gender Transition and Affirmation or any of the other LGBT+ claptrap that obsesses other ACoC clergy.
Fourth, the diocese sees itself as the Anglican Church of Canada and the rest of the organisation as – something else. By implication, not a church.
Lastly, Parsons thinks, “that the great and terrible day of the Lord is coming, and many bishops are going to have a stark wake up as they stand before God and are asked why they have not stood against the doctrines of demons and devils. My fear is, that day will not be a day of repentance but just justice and judgment because the day of grace will be over.”
Read more in this interview at VOL:
The majority of our denomination is solid. The Diocese of the Arctic is part of the worldwide Anglican Communion. People fail to remember that the revisionists in Canada and the USA are the minority in the Anglican Communion. They just have a loud voice and often use that voice to monopolize, or bully. As an Anglican, I’ve grown up reciting psalm 95 to warn me about not having a hard heart. I’ve read the book of Judges, when the people often turned back to the world, and I’ve read the prophets, who warn us to not follow the gods of this age or past ages.
Two of the saddest parts that I have read in the New Testament are found in John 6:66 (“From this time many of his disciples turned back and no longer followed him”) and 2 Timothy 4:10. In John chapter 6 Jesus tells us He is the Bread of life and many of Jesus’ disciples turn back, and no longer follow him after hearing Jesus’ declaration. St. Paul speaks of Demas, who left him because of Demas’ love for the world.
It seems to me that the revisionists do not love the word of God, nor do they receive it as the bread of life, and so rather than living under the authority of Jesus Christ, and His word, they choose to be an authority unto themselves.
Not easy, time will tell.
Last name was Paisant was Anglisized to Payzant are French Huguenot family from Normandy, France>Paris>Jersey Island 1740 joined St Helier’s Church Of England>1753 St John’s Lunenburg, Nova Scotia. Born Vancouver, BC, 1960, St Paul’s Hospital, like my mom, was born in 1931, died last wk April age 91, would be 92 on May 12. Grew up in Kerrisdale when dad bought a house in 1962 on 2025 W 50th. Joined St John’s (Shaughnessy) in 1982 heard about it from Regent College Student planned to stay for life. 2002 ‘Walkout At Synod’ turned the Anglican Church into an almost unrecognizable state. Left in 2000 because -it was too much for me. Showed letters to family & everybody got upset sounded like they didn’t like it & probably didn’t like me being there anymore either. People come up say, “John, you -look terrible, what happened?”. This was 2002 but as years went on, other funny things happened too as well. It all adds up these things coming my way felt it was time for a change.
God is our Creator & we all are creations.
A creation must turn unto who Created us for answers.
The Creator has the answers for us to listen to.
Analogy:
You own a Ford has problems must go to Dealership is part of who created the car, same with us.
Turn to who the once who made.
What’s happened over the years?
History & Cultural Buttress that’s formed the present.
Humans can to who made us if we choose so to do.
We need peace & treat others likewise as well.
The way we treat others is the way we treat Jesus
So very sorry John to hear of your loss. Praying.
It was a very hard & long decision to switch from Dad’s French Huguenot Cultural Buttress Dynamics, Roots & Stream to my Mom’s Portuguese Catholic roots; however, I’ve always had an attraction that way anyways feel a -Balance & A Center Focus I don’t get & feel in the Anglican Church as they have no Pope but a very similar Government to the Roman Catholic Church that has 1 Papal Central Figure feel it inside when I’m there had done this 3 years ago.
Corr: ‘Left in 2020, 3 yrs ago’. Not easy, very disturbing, too much stress, others noticed it too. But since becoming Roman Catholic 3 years ago persons come up & say, “John, you -look so much better- what’ve you done?”. See, -it shows!
It is indeed good to see that there is a least one bishop that has taken his vows seriously and refuses to bow down o the “god of political expediency”. It is hoped that the Primate will also make the same decision.
I was a General Synod delegate from the Diocese of Fredericton. I had the pleasure to meet Bishop Parsons at the hospitality suite organized by the Anglican Communion Alliance.
That Bishop is a great man, I made friends with him when GS was here in Vancouver. Keep praying for him, his is a lonely position in the Canadian Church. He never chose this great conflict that we’re all involved in for himself.
God plus one person forms the majority. John 1:4-5 tells us that Jesus came to bring the light of God’s life into a spiritually dark and dying world. Darkness cannot overcome light. Light will overcome incorrect doctrines.
God bless and strengthen this brother in Christ and make him a great influence for God’s glory.
I’m sure the Anglican overlords have this Bishop in their sights-and he will be looking for a job, or a different denomination – just waiting for the right time to pull the trigger – I can see them now with their “pride” pins stewing and plotting…..how far they have drifted eh? Someone wake me up….
This is really fascinating interview, which I recommend should be read in full. What I found most poignant was Bishop Parsons struggle to keep the diocese going. Perhaps orthodoxy does not grant prosperity, but that is another matter…
Speaking as a sometimes uncomfortable member of a progressive and affirming Anglican church in Toronto, I am pained by what I sense as a common yearning for mission to people who are lost and do not know Christ. I lead a small group. The people there share Bishop Parsons desire to reach out to people with the Gospel. While they might not refer to Christ and cosmic battles as explicitly as the Bishop, their desire is deeply founded. Readers of this blog might say that their desire will founder because they are deeply committed to an inclusive and affirming church. Perhaps readers of this blog are right.
But I am struck by the issues we have in in common. Repentance and penitence over the legacy of residential schools, and the violence done in the name of Christian faith, hangs heavy over most of our hearts. We want to learn more about the wrongs of residential schools and how to participate in reconciliation. We are amazed at how many first nations people are Christian. And yes, there is a complex history here.
I see a common desire to affirm the Gospel. Could it be possible to seek common ground and points of cooperation or at least empathy across all Anglican communions and dioceses, or is this just progressive wishful thinking dissolved by St Paul’s injunction to come out from them and be separate (2 Corinthians 6:17)?
The parable of the tares (Matthew 13:24-30) shows how the devil sows tares in God’s field, meaning that he scatters non-Christians among believers. The Christian church is far from perfect; we have both believers and non-believers. Our mission is to save non-believers, not to kill them in our midst.