The Anglican Church of Canada is made up of the clergy, and the common cannon fodder, the poor bloody people. Lied to, cheated, and generally oppressed by revisionist ministers, the fate of the Anglican masses is now entirely in the hands of a merciful God, who will hold them less blameless than their corrupt ecclesiastical handlers on the Day of Judgment. --- Brian McGregor-Foxcroft

Unless some people are commissioned for the task, there will be no gospel preachers; unless the gospel is preached, sinners will not hear Christ's message and voice; unless they hear him, they will not believe the truths of his death and resurrection; unless they believe these truths, they will not call on him; and unless they call on his name, they will not be saved. --- John R.W. Stott, The Message of Romans

Dear Brothers and Sisters,
www.virtueonline.org
December 5, 2014

Before we end the year, it is important to tell the one single truth about the Episcopal Church that no one else will tell you: the pansexualists, who have driven the agenda over the past 40 years, have had just one goal -- the complete emancipation of the Episcopal Church from biblical morality and traditional sexual ethics. They don't care about what it costs, the damage they have caused, the consequences of their actions or the Church's ultimate demise.

Beginning with Louie Clay (nee Crew), the one goal has been to destroy Christian marriage as we know it and usher in an age of (pan)sexual inclusivity that "broadens" marriage to make it mean whatever you want it to mean and thereby declare victory that God has spoken in and through General Convention resolutions (but not necessarily the Holy Spirit) and thus turn the Church upside down on sexuality.

By any standard, it has been an enormous success. They don't care if, in the course of pushing their sexual agenda, The Episcopal Church dies; they really don't care. They will have gotten what they wanted and to hell with anything else. Those parishioners still sitting in the pews will have been so dumbed down they won't know what has happened to them, even when the last geriatric is carried out of the last parish in a pine box, the final prayers said and the church doors are forever shuttered.

For pansexualists their identity is> their sexuality. It is not to be found in Christ. He has nothing to do with it. Their identity is totally caught up in what they think they are. They have become blinded by sex as the all-embracive issue; the future existence of the church be damned.

Most modern historians agree that within a generation there will be little that is left of The Episcopal Church. The deeper truth is that the pansexualists don't care if the Church dies; it is not their problem. Those gay and lesbian bishops and priests who have bought into and pushed the sodomist agenda will have either retired on fabulous pensions or died; it will be too late to repent. Spong's theological revolution will also die with him, never more to be remembered except as a footnote to an historian's bibliography. Future archaeologists will marvel that a Church could set out to destroy itself.

*****

Full time Church Positions in The Episcopal Church have dropped by 20%. Part-time clergy has risen by 10%, the Church Pension Group reports.

The combination of the two trends is changing the landscape of work and retirement for clergy. First, the proportion of part-time and bi-vocational clergy has been steadily increasing. CPG data indicates that the number of part-time clergy has increased by 10% in the last five years, while the number of full-time positions has fallen by 20%.

Second, the increase in late ordinands is even more marked. In 1980, 63% of those ordained to the priesthood were under 35, and fewer than 5% were over 55. By 2013, only 23% of those ordained were under 35, and nearly 40% were 55 or older.

This means that, for many clergy, work in the Church will not be their sole employment experience, and the benefits provided by The Church Pension Fund Clergy Pension Plan (Clergy Pension Plan) will be just part of a mosaic of benefits they may have. Because they will have far fewer years of credited service, late ordinands will have a greater need to supplement their Clergy Pension Plan retirement benefit with personal savings.

Part-time and bi-vocational clergy are in the same situation, but for a slightly different reason: many are accumulating credited service at a lower compensation level. For all of these groups, the Clergy Pension Plan will not provide them with the level of pension benefits it provides for a long-term, full-time, career cleric -- 30 years ago there were many more available.

There is also an increasing proportion of clergy who are going directly from seminary into positions where they are running a parish. This is due both to a decreasing number of assistant and associate positions and a rise in the number of retirements (which has increased from approximately 350 per year in the mid-2000s to over 400 per year over the past five years).

*****

The Episcopal Diocese of Ft. Worth (TEC) has made its final pitch to keep their properties. Episcopal parties filed a motion for partial summary judgment under Neutral Principles.

As the motion states:

"Defendants are former Episcopalians who served as officers of The Episcopal Church's Episcopal Diocese of Fort Worth. They gained access to more than $100 million of property in that capacity. They committed to use that property only for the benefit of the Church and its Diocese, and without those commitments, they never would have had access to the property. Now, Defendants have broken those agreements and purported to take the Episcopal Diocese and its Congregations, and along with them, all the property, out of The Episcopal Church and into another denomination.

"This conduct is unacceptable under the most basic neutral principles of Texas law, including express contractual trust, constructive trust, associations law, and corporate control. Any one of these neutral principles is sufficient. So many apply because Texas does not countenance violations of plain commitments regarding property. In Texas and in America, people can leave their Church. But they cannot take property they held for that Church."

The Texas Supreme Court ordered the parties to litigate this case under neutral principles of Texas law. Plaintiffs' motion shows that the breakaway Defendants must return the property under any one of several neutral principles.

A spokesperson for Bishop Jack Iker sent a note saying, "This brief wrap-up (without any editorial bravado from the Episcopal Cafe) makes it clear that the Fort Worth case represents the last chance for TEC to turn things around and win big. But they don't have an argument that will hold water in court."

Perhaps the tide has finally turned. It would appear that way in Quincy and South Carolina. What a Christmas gift for all three dioceses and a blow to all the millions TEC has spent fighting for properties they will never again own.

In their spin on the situation, a liberal Episcopal blogger headlined, that those parishes who fled with Bishop Iker were "anti-gay" parishes. Not true of course. They were anti gay behavior which is quite another matter altogether. Furthermore other besetting issues include the ordination of women and the general abandonment of doctrine and the historic faith which has been eroding the Episcopal Church.

*****

Bishops in the Sudan will evaluate their partnerships with Anglican dioceses that deny traditional marriage. They met recently and cited the Bishop of Salisbury Nicholas Holtam, a leading supporter of "gay marriage"

In a stinging rebuke to Western pan Anglican acceptance of homosexual marriage, the bishops of the Episcopal church of South Sudan and Sudan (ECSSS) said in a communique they would issue a "proposed memorandum of understanding".

Bishop Nicholas Holtam (Salisbury) became the first Church of England bishop to publicly support same-sex marriage in 2012, and is a supporter of Inclusive Church. Ruth Gledhill reported in The Times that Holtam has changed his thinking, "I've changed my mind, and I now support gay marriage. I think same-sex couples that I know who have formed a partnership have in many respects a relationship which is similar to a marriage and which I now think of as marriage. And of course, now you can't really say that a marriage is defined by the possibility of having children."

You can read the full story in today's digest.

*****

The Archbishop of Canterbury made his final pit stop with the Anglican Communion's 37 provinces this past week in Scotland with the Primus of the Scottish Episcopal Church, the Most Rev. David Chillingworth. He is a TEC clone. It was a fitting end to a sojourn by the ABC that revealed that the Communion is bitterly divided and possibly won't see another Lambeth Conference or even another gathering of Primates, the Anglican Communion being de facto, if not de jure, split.

A source has told VOL when Archbishop Justin Welby met with Nigerian Archbishop Nicholas Okoh that, following a public appearance, the two men retired to talk but NOT once in their discussion was there any talk of the state of the Anglican Communion. Not a word. Now what does that tell you!

The other word is that Archbishop Okoh and other African primates will NEVER talk about sex again. EVER. That day is done.

*****

The Anglican Church of Canada has finally woken up to the reality that The Anglican Church in North America is overtaking them and they are fighting back. Archdeacon Bruce Myers, The Anglican Church of Canada's (ACNA) coordinator for ecumenical and interfaith relations, blasted the ACNA for failing to repent of its "scandalous contradictions" over divisions in the Communion, and called on its leaders to manifest reconciliation "in prayer, dialogue and action."

In a column in the December issue of the Anglican Journal, Myers berated the ACNA leadership saying that to be an ecumenical partner means recognizing that the other with whom you seek to reconcile demonstrates signs of the Holy Spirit at work, even if you are in disagreement about some significant issues.

"It's far from clear that ACNA yet manifests these qualities of an ecumenical partner. Its repentance is, according to its constitution, limited to 'things done and left undone that have contributed to or tolerated the rise of false teaching' in the Anglican churches from which it has chosen to walk apart.

"It's still in a legal fight over property with two dioceses in the United States. It seeks recognition as a new North American province of the Anglican Communion without desiring reconciliation with those already existing."

Really.

The truth is that Myers and the ACoC should repent of its apostasies; they may then possibly have a shot at survival. The ASA of the ACNA, which includes the ANiC, is bigger than the ACoC so they don't need to repent of anything. They have the gospel witness; the ACoC does not.

*****

Then there was the weird case this week of Bishop Leo Frade of Southeast Florida calling President Obama a sodomite! I kid you not. He apparently wasn't using the term "sodomite," for the usual reasons. The Bishop was not suggesting that our happily married with children Commander-in-Chief is anything other than heterosexual. He was using the term to denounce the deportation of undocumented immigrants.

Frade commented on the deportations, particularly the ones that separate families, "It is horrible to see the people being deported, being separated from their children, being separated from the people that they love because we have insisted on not doing what we need to do as a country.

"He has been the president that has deported more people than even Bush did! And I am asking President Obama to stop being a sodomite! I want him to stop being a sodomite! It's time for him to stop being a sodomite, and start being a man."

Frade used Biblical scripture to explain his use of the word "sodomite" to condemn the President's deportations. He says that Obama is like the people of Sodom, enjoying comfort, luxury, and abundance while the poorest people in our society suffer.

That is probably the worst etymological use of the word sodomite in contemporary history.

*****

The Pope, the Archbishop of Canterbury, and leaders of the main faiths joined forces in Rome this week to sign a declaration pledging to fight to end modern slavery.

More than 30 million people worldwide are believe to be trapped in some form of slavery, ranging from trafficking, forced labor and prostitution to the trade in human organs and other human rights abuses.

Archbishop Justin Welby, who has spent months finessing the details of the campaign with Pope Francis, who has become a close friend, has made it one of the key planks of his archiepiscopacy.

He noted in a speech at the signing in Rome, "The suffering is unimaginable. The challenge is acute and growing, facilitated by a globalized economy that is too easily without moral or conscience."

At a time when faiths are seen wrongly as a cause of conflict, it was a sign of "real hope" that global faith leaders have committed themselves publicly to battle to end it.

He said Christians are bound to regard every human as part of God's divine plan. "This means that no human body can, in any circumstance, be simply an object to be traded, trafficked or enslaved," he added. "God treated humanity with such loving respect by choosing to take human form among us -- so we must share that love and respect for all human beings."

However, the Archbishop warned that the "evil" behind modern slavery would not yield without a struggle. This is why national governments need to collaborate, along with the business sector, police forces, civil society, and faith communities.

*****

ACNA Archbishop Foley Beach's profile is changing and growing even as the Anglican Communion is devolving and fracturing...and becoming more relational.

The ACNA Primate received invitations from Anglican Churches in South East Asia and Australia. Recently, he completed an eighteen-day trip through Singapore, Malaysia, Myanmar, and Australia.

He was accompanied by his Provincial Canon, the Ven. Cn. Dr. Jack Lumanog. First, he met with the Missions Consultation Roundtable, hosted by Bishop Rennis Ponniah and Assistant Bishop Kim Kuan Seng in the Diocese of Singapore. Some 37-mission leaders from the ACNA were invited to participate in the roundtable that was held November 11-14, 2014 at St. Andrew's Cathedral in Singapore. In all, there were 171 participants representing 19 countries in attendance at the conference.

Following Singapore, Archbishop Beach, preached to capacity crowds at St. Thomas's Cathedral in the city of Kuching. From there, Archbishop Beach was taken to the Bengoh housing project where more than 3,000 Anglicans have been resettled due to a government dam-building project. The official visit concluded with a festive lunch hosted by the rural Archdeaconries of the Diocese of Kuching.

From Malaysia, the tour through South East Asia continued with a visit to the Church of the Province of Myanmar. The Most Rev. Stephen Than and his wife, Nan, welcomed Archbishop Beach and Canon Lumanog to the Diocese of Yangon. The visit to Myanmar concluded with a service of Evensong at Holy Cross Theological College where Archbishop Beach preached to over 50 young men and women preparing for vocational ministry.

His trip to South East Asia concluded in Sydney, Australia, where Archbishop Beach met with leadership of the Diocese of Sydney and retired Archbishop Peter Jensen who continues to serve as General Secretary of the Global Fellowship of Confessing Anglicans (GFCA). Archbishop Beach preached at St. Andrew's Cathedral at the invitation of Archbishop Glenn Davies of the Diocese of Sydney. The visit ended with a formal meeting between Archbishop Beach and all of the Anglican bishops of the Diocese of Sydney at Bishopscourt.

*****

The Standing Committee of the Anglican Communion has developed a toolkit for the Bible in Life.

A communique stated: Stephen Lyon began the day by sharing with the Standing Committee that the Bible in the Life of the Church's project stage will come to an end in 2016. He hoped the project would leave the Communion a legacy of "a toolkit to do the Bible better".

An anonymous source has informed VOL that the primary "do the Bible better" item in the toolkit will be a pair of TEC supplied and paid for rainbow tinted glasses.

*****

Prince Charles's coronation should include a reading from the Koran, a Church of England Bishop has opined. Lord Harries of Pentregarth, a retired Bishop of Oxford, believes that such a gesture at the traditionally Anglican service would be "creative" and make Muslims feel "embraced" by the nation

Speaking in the House of Lords, the retired bishop, who continues to serve as an assistant in the Anglican diocese of Southwark, said that the Church of England should be "exercising its historic position in a hospitable way."

Speaking of a civic service held at Bristol Cathedral last year, where authorities had agreed that a passage from the Koran should be read out before the Christian service started, he added "It was a brilliant creative act of accommodation that made the Muslim high sheriff feel, as she said, warmly embraced but did not alienate the core congregation."

Prince Charles has previously stated that when he becomes king, he wants to be seen as "Defender of Faith", rather than "Defender of the Faith" -- a title traditionally used by British monarchs, first bestowed on Henry VIII by Pope Leo X in 1521.

However, some Christian groups have criticized the idea. Simon Calvert of the Christian Institute told the Daily Mail: "Most people will be amazed at the idea that a Christian leader would consider the use of the Koran at a Christian service in a Christian abbey. People are just so disappointed when senior Church of England figures lose confidence in the claims of the Christian faith."

*****

The Pro-Life Movement is winning; abortions are at a record low since Roe vs. Wade, screamed a headline this week.

The government's latest report confirms the good news reported by Guttmacher earlier this year. Not only has the number of abortions in the U.S. dropped to lows not seen since the earliest days of legal abortion in America, so, too, have abortion rates and abortion ratios.

The 730,322 abortions reported to the federal Centers for Disease Control (CDC) in 2011 do not include any from California, Maryland, or New Hampshire, which did not make them available. Guttmacher reported 1,058,470 for the same year. (Guttmacher's numbers will always be higher because it directly surveys abortion "providers.")

It is significant that this is the lowest figure the CDC has reported since dropping California, New Hampshire, and at least one other state in 1998.

*****

"The Divorce Surge Is Over, but the Myth Lives On", according to a report in the New York Times. The cumulative share of marriages ending in divorce increased in the 1970s and 1980s; in the last 20 years they have dropped.

When Gwyneth Paltrow and Chris Martin "consciously uncoupled" this year, ABC News said it was the latest example of the out-of-control divorce rate, "50 percent and climbing."

When Fox News anchors were recently lamenting high poverty levels, one of them blamed the fact that "the divorce rate is going up."

When Bravo introduced its divorce reality show, "Untying the Knot," this summer, an executive at the network called it "a way to look at a situation that 50 percent of married couples unfortunately end up in."

But here is the thing: It is no longer true that the divorce rate is rising, or that half of all marriages end in divorce. It has not been for some time. Even though social scientists have tried to debunk those myths, somehow the conventional wisdom has held.

Despite hand-wringing about the institution of marriage, marriages in this country are stronger today than they have been in a long time. The divorce rate peaked in the 1970s and early 1980s and has been declining for the three decades since.

About 70 percent of marriages that began in the 1990s reached their 15th anniversary (excluding those in which a spouse died), up from about 65 percent of those that began in the 1970s and 1980s. Those who married in the 2000s are so far divorcing at even lower rates. If current trends continue, nearly two-thirds of marriages will never involve a divorce, according to data from Justin Wolfers, a University of Michigan economist.

*****

Advent is a wonderful time of year. It reminds us not just of the coming of Jesus as a babe in Bethlehem, but it also reminds us of the second coming of Jesus. We have seen Him come, live the life that neither you nor I could live, die the death that you and I deserve, and given us eternal life. What better reason for us to give of our resources that God has freely given to us that we might share them with others, says Archbishop Glenn Davies.

During the second week of Advent, readers are encouraged by our Global Anglican Family. Watch all the Advent videos and find out more here: http://anglicanaid.net/awaiting-christ-together-messages-global-anglican-family/

Please consider a tax deductible donation to the Anglican Relief and Development Fund as the year-end approaches. http://anglicanaid.net/donate/

*****

VOL will be making its annual end of year appeal for funds to take us into the New Year and we hope that you will open your hearts and wallets to keep VOL coming into your e-mail. The time has come to give this everything we have. We are struggling for funding as we end the year and go into the New Year. If struggle is what it takes, we are prepared. VOL is worth it, the thousands of you who come daily to VOL's website think so or you would not come back time and time again. Clearly the work we are doing has your attention.

I want to challenge ALL of VOLs readers, please make a tax deductible donation. If you come to VOL's website regularly YOU ARE committed...committed not only to the stands we take but to our Anglican faith and tradition. To keep our staff paid, stories written, research done and website maintained we need your help. We are a lean ministry with minimal overhead. We are stripped down for survival. We do not receive corporate money. Still we are falling short on our Fall fundraising drive. If you are not an active donor, and you believe in what we do, please get behind VOL with a tax deductible contribution.
You can send your deductible donation here:

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

Or you can make a contribution through VOL's PAYPAL link here: http://www.virtueonline.org/support-vol/

Thanks for your support,
In Christ,

David