General Secretary, Michael Thompson has released a statement on what went wrong on the first count of the marriage canon vote.
You can read the whole thing from the link above, but let’s focus on this part:
It was at that point that Mr. Copeland, the person supporting the electronic voting, discovered that it was in fact my own vote as General Secretary that had been overlooked in the electronic count. Initially, we thought that it had been miscoded as a lay vote, rather than as a clergy vote. We have since been provided, by Mr. Copeland, the list from which the electronic voting was coded, a list prepared by my office. That list described the General Secretary as “clergy, non-voting”. Data-on-the-spot simply coded the information that my office gave them. This error took place in my office, and I take responsibility for it. We were more than well-served by Data-on-the-spot. In fact, without Mr. Copeland’s prompt attention, I am not sure that we would have discovered the nature of the error and had a chance to understand and correct it.
Thompson is telling us that his vote was “overlooked” because he was categorised as a non-voting member of synod.
The computerised voting system was supplied by Data on the Spot. For an idea of how the system works, take a look at the video here. You will note that “each clicker device has a unique and secure serial number”. That means that the data gathering program would have, as part of its input, a database of serial numbers correlating to each person’s name.
Thompson is claiming that he was designated (and, therefore, his clicker was designated) in the database as a non-voting member of synod. Any computer program worth anything would immediately flag this as an error as soon as the non-voting member used his secure clicker in an attempt to vote. The marriage canon vote was at the end of the synod. How many times had Thompson already used the clicker before this in other votes? Why was the error not flagged before the marriage canon vote?
Either the Data on the Spot programmers have some serious problems with missing error routines in their computer code or….. there is something very fishy going on.
There should be a thorough third party audit of the whole process.
The answer to “What went Wrong” is very simple. First, all bishops and so-called bishops should know that God’s Word cannot be subjected to any vote and the entire process was designed to get the apostates what they wanted. The result simply proves the ACoC is no longer a Christian Church but rather a church of political convenience. This vote simply means that the ACoC should give away their Bibles as they have no desire or intention of accepting or following the Word. As a result any celebration of the Eucharist is nothing less that fraudulent.
Orthodox bishops, clergy and laity should move to ANIC even if that results in loss of property or eviction. That will probably occur as the apostates simply hate the Gospel and their sole interest is in getting their way.
Thank you, your words are precise, accurate and timely. I whole heartedly agre with you.
I mentioned this in another comment but I say it again.
It turned out that the one vote which overturned the previous vote and caused the amendment to change the marriage cannon to pass after all, had come from the general secretary rev. Michael Thompson. He was in my church in the diocese of Toronto while being the Secretary to the Primate when I was just ordained and one day he angrily told me, “Fariborz, you know what your problem is?” To which I said , I guess I am going to learn soon. He said, and I quote his exact words. ” Your problem is that you take the biblical moral imperatives too seriously”. And I simply said thanks for the compliment. He went on to warn me, you need to smarten up and change, or leave, or be at odds with your Bishopn for the rest of your ministry.
Now with a man who doesn’t take the biblical moral imperatives too seriously, I’m not surprised to see him coming up with the changing vote after the votes were counted and the results were not in his favor.
The Lord have mercy on him and all of us.
By the way, I moved 5000 km to work with a godly Bishop The Rt. Rev. Fraser Lawton.
What a relief that I was never married to a man like that!
I believe that conservatives now need to zero in on the absolute illegality of allowing any same-sex ‘marriages’ until the vote has been won again three years hence.
Fariborz I am sorry to hear of your pain. The ACoC has been on this track for some time, do you think it can be changed?
I do not. They have adopted the spirit of the age thoroughly and are unable to see differently. The problem is deep rooted and ultimately comes back to viewing scripture as just another culturally conditioned document that needs correction in the light of current knowledge. I am not sure if this is changeable.
In the meantime both you and your dear Bishop will be forced to evaluate what the future looks like. When he retires will they allow a conservative bishop, or will it be another secretary Thompson?
I left 6 years ago because I saw that I was really the one who did not fit in and I doubt that there would be room made for an orthodox believer.
Just my 2 cents…
A review is pointless as a number of bishops obviously don’t think the rules apply to them anyway. The Anglican Church of Canada might just as well become a Congregationalist organization with each one doing what is right in its own eyes.
The sustained silence of the Primate following the vote reversal is very telling;
rather than disciplining the Episcopal schismatic rebels to observe the good order set down by the whole Church in its canons – because he already had intimated their present course of action without any consequences forthcoming – they are being given free rein to hold both it and the faithful in full contempt. This now includes the training College in his own Diocese whose Principal has enlisted the one-sided media, citing, “Because it is 2016!” as ethical warrant to aid and abet a state of ecclesiastical lawlessness as per the period of the OT Judges, and thus, by extension, as Principal, teaching by example Candidates for Ministry to follow suit. The Colleges are and have been the seed-bed of false doctrine
and its handmaiden lawless practice to instill it within the Churches, pulpit and pew.
It may be 2016, but it still is The Year of our LORD!
This electronic voting is for the birds. Paper ballots should be used, and it shouldnt be a “secret ballot”……these so-called leaders should publicly declare how they voted, on all the issues.
In any event, the Anglican Church is a lost cause….I dont understand why more people dont vote-with-their-feet, and leave that apostate institution.
The bishops and primates are nothing but a bunch of stupid monkeys.
This is the test-case for the global Communion;
TEC received a slap on the wrists at Lambeth in January, 2016;
if this apostate schismatic leadership receives not the third mark of the true Church,
(Articles XIX,XX,XXI,+ XXVI, Articles of Religion)
spiritual discipline, further rupture within the global Communion is inevitable.
Since the sanctions imposed by Canterbury on TEC meant nothing, then any sanctions imposed on the ACOC will carry the same weight. The global communion majority has already made its decision to go with Gafcon.
Paula, I suspect (and hope) you’re right.
There was an article on CBC’s site, very one-sided, quoting lots of ACoC officials who are putting a very hopeful spin on the future. They must know the bleed has already begun. There is a desire to see younger generations as more progressive, which is true generally, but in my experience it is less so among the devout young. Young people are passionate, and it’s hard to be passionate about platitudes.
I wish there were some public agency that had access to national parish attendance and donation stats so we could actually watch the numbers change. Not that I am holding my breath for any honest follow-up reporting…
Doug I suspect many do not leave because disunity in the form of a split is a serious thing in both scripture and tradition. And it should be avoided.
But the church fathers did not hesitate when it was an issue of heterodoxy (a $10 word for heresy). I think we have reached this point already with ACoC