Fred Hiltz makes much of the Five Marks of mission, both as it relates to Vision 2019 and elsewhere.

The first is to proclaim the Good News of the Kingdom. But what is the Good News, or Gospel according to Fred Hiltz and the Anglican Church of Canada?

It sounds like a simple question and one would think the answer would contain things like: every person has sinned and deserves to be judged by God; God loves us so much that he sent his Son Jesus to take our sin upon himself; on the cross Jesus bore our sin and was punished instead of us; he rose bodily from death and is now alive and with his Father; he offers to us the free gift of salvation so that, instead of judgement, we can experience eternal life with him. Whether you believe this or not, it is relatively straightforward and is the foundation of the Christian Gospel.

But is this what Fred Hiltz means when he talks about the Good News? Apparently not. On January 15^th Fred Hiltz spoke in the Diocese of Niagara; during the question time, someone asked him point blank, “what is the Gospel?” After asking the questioner to repeat the question – Hiltz appeared stunned – and embarrassed laughter from the congregation, he said that the Good News is:

1.       Parishes having an excellent liturgy

2.       Parishes having preaching that is Christ centred

3.       Telling stories.

Here is the question and Hiltz’s answer:

As the Anglican Journal reports:

Delegates from the Anglican Church of Canada recently met with their counterparts from other Anglican Communion provinces for the first Conference of the Anglican Churches in the Americas in Mutual Responsibility and Mission in San José, Costa Rica.

Archbishop Fred Hiltz, primate of the Anglican Church of Canada, said, “It was just a wonderful opportunity for all of the provinces in the Americas to come together and talk about mission.” Primates from the provinces of the Anglican Church of Brazil, the Anglican Church of the Central Region of America (IARCA), The Episcopal Church, and the Anglican Church of Mexico were all in attendance along with other clergy and lay representatives. The primates of the West Indies and the Southern Cone of America did not come to the conference but gave their permission for individual dioceses to attend

The ultra-liberal Hiltz is visiting the Province of the Central American Region to disseminate his version of the five marks of mission, the first of which is to proclaim the Good News, something the Anglican Church of Canada has been actively suppressing in its own province for the last 30 years.

When Greg Venables showed up in Canada to have a chat with orthodox Canadian Anglicans who have taken refuge from the draconian legal antics of Hiltz and his minions, he was told by Hiltz to shove off.

THE Primate of the Anglican Church of Canada, the Most Revd Fred Hiltz, has protested strongly against a visit to Canada by the Presiding Bishop of the Southern Cone, the Most Revd Greg Venables, this week.

“Stop interfering in the life of this province,” are his blunt words to Bishop Venables, who is attending the Anglican Network in Canada (ANiC) conference in Vancouver.

Hiltz was invited to attend this meeting, of course; but then, Greg Venables was invited to Canada.

An example of Hiltz style Gracious Restraint.

The Venerable Bruce Bryant-Scott from the Diocese of British Columbia displays, once again, his tenuous grip on reality and shallow understanding of human nature in the latest diocesan newsletter.

Venerable Bruce, ESL Candidate

Nevertheless, a radical group affiliated with the Anglican Network persuaded a majority of the parishioners that they needed to leave the Diocese and the Anglican Church of Canada. They also were determined to take the property, which were and are owned by the Diocese of British Columbia.

All of this was unnecessary. While a number of conservative groups have left the Anglican Church of Canada, with some of them engaging in property issues, the majority of evangelical parishes remain within the body of the national church. They know that the Anglican Church of Canada remains an integral part of the Anglican Communion, and that it is the only part of the Anglican Communion recognized by the Archbishop of Canterbury as operating in Canada.

They know that the Canadian Church has always been a place where there has always been a diversity of opinion held, and that change under the canons, as an autonomous church, was always expected and authorized from the beginning of the Anglican experience in this country.

I’ve always thought that bad English is a sign of chaotic and illogical thought and the venerable Bruce appears to be determined to illustrate this principle.

First, the venerable Bruce is suffering under the delusion that ANiC, by holding to 2000 years of tradition is “radical” and the diocese of B.C. by breaking with it isn’t.

Second, the venerable Bruce claims that the Anglican Church of Canada is “an integral part of the Anglican Communion”. GAFCON represents the only part of the Anglican Communion that is not attempting to accommodate the demented fantasies of a civilisation that is on the brink of self-annihilation. By 2061 there will only be one person left in the venerable Bruce’s version of the ACoC; he or she will feel very isolated in the global Anglican Communion.

Third, the venerable Bruce claims that evangelicals are welcome in the ACoC: it is strange, then, that J. I. Packer, the most renowned evangelical theologian of the 20^th century, is unwelcome in the ACoC. What he really means is that evangelicals who are willing to set loyalty to the ACoC over the truth are welcome. Others will be regarded as trespassers.

Fifth, the last paragraph is such meandering drivel, that the venerable Bruce should consider attending an ESL course as soon as possible.

Propaganda was a major component of fighting World War 2. The Nazis, for example, would drop leaflets on cities warning civilians that resistance was not only futile, but would make things worse. Here is an example that was used in the Netherlands:

It reads:

“Warning!

To the civilians of Holland!

Do not take part in sabotage against the German army!

You can’t stop the German Army!

Large parts of Holland are already occupied!

All resistance is of no use!

Do not take part in sabotage actions like destroying dikes, blowing up bridges, or making road blockades. These actions are of no use because the German Army has lots of technical means to avoid them.

Do not take part in a war that is not yours!

Do not destroy your own country, but stay calm!

Civilians, captured during sabotage actions will get DEATH PUNISHMENT!

Civilians of Holland, we warn you!”

The Anglican Church of Canada is waging a war against Christians who are no longer willing to go along with its agenda of making a god out of the Zeitgeist. The war is being waged largely through intimidation and in courts of law.

The Diocese of British Columbia has also begun launching propaganda salvos, similar in intent and tone to the example above: resistance is futile and is only making things worse. Here is an extract from a letter by the Venerable Bruce Bryant-Scott Commissary to the Bishop, Diocesan Executive Officer & Diocesan Archdeacon. The whole thing is here.

The Network has had a series of defeats in the courts in Canada. Recently our colleagues in the Diocese of Niagara received payment of $20,000 from the Network for the costs of the legal action there. The Diocese of Niagara will be in court again in March and are asking for costs of over $200,000, and I understand there is a reasonable probability that they will be awarded that amount. Donors to the legal fund of the Network should know that they are not only paying their lawyers’ fees, but those of the lawyers defending the dioceses of the Anglican Church of Canada.

First to set the facts straight, the Diocese of Niagara wanted $70,000 in costs but were awarded $20,000. They have now asked for over $200,000 in legal expenses: what they will be awarded remains to be seen. The contention that ANiC is further funding diocesan lawyers would only be true if ANiC finally loses the court cases.

Second, the clear purpose of this is to demoralise those fighting for what they believe to be right by insinuating that resistance is not only futile, but counter-productive. It is wartime propaganda.

We are undeterred by such nonsense because we believe what we are doing is right, even if pursuing it comes at a cost.