SANDWICH, Mass: Episcopal priest suspended for plagiarism

By George Brennan
http://www.capecodonline.com/
May 17, 2013

SANDWICH - One of the Ten Commandments is "thou shall not steal," but an Episcopal priest has been suspended for allegedly lifting more than a dozen Sunday sermons verbatim from a book.

The Rev. John E. McGinn, 65, who has led the 300-plus families at St. John's Episcopal Church since 1993, was placed on administrative leave amid allegations that he plagiarized sermons dating back to 2006, said the Rev. Mally Lloyd, canon to the ordinary for the Episcopal Diocese of Massachusetts, a position equivalent to the bishop's chief of staff.

As many as 15 sermons have been identified as direct copies, Lloyd said.

BANJUL, Gambia: Anglican Church of West Africa celebrates 62 Years

By Archbishop S. Tilewa Johnson
Church of West Africa
May 17, 2013

Your Grace, MiLords, Clergy, Seminarians, Laity of the Church of West Africa (Anglican Communion), Friends, All.

Sixty Two years ago, at a Special Meeting held in Freetown Sierra Leone, six Dioceses came together to establish, after due process, the Church of the Province of West Africa - CPWA (Anglican Communion).

The Anglican Communion, as we know, is a section of the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church, which Church was inaugurated Fifty days after the glorious Resurrection of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Our Communion is a group of episcopally led catholic and reformed churches which are in full communion with the See of Canterbury. We have an estimated worldwide membership of about 85 million in nearly 170 countries. We are the third largest Christian Communion in the world after the Roman Catholic and the Eastern Orthodox Churches.

The motto of the Anglican Communion is: The Truth shall make you free. St John 8: 32.

British imams and Muslim leaders speak out against the Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Bill

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/comment/
May 18, 2013

Letter published in the Sunday Telegraph here

SIR - We have serious misgivings about the Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Bill, which seeks to legalise gay marriage.

As imams and Muslim leaders we have a responsibility to fulfil our sacred trust to God and present our view on these proposals on behalf of the Muslim communities we serve.

Marriage is a sacred contract between a man and a woman that cannot be redefined. We believe that marriage between a man and a woman is the cornerstone of family life and the only institution within which to raise children.

Marriage (Same-Sex Couples) Bill
Church of England cannot support the Bill

Church of England
http://www.politicshome.com/uk/
Press Release
May 18, 2013

The House of Commons will consider the Marriage (Same-Sex Couples) Bill at Report Stage and Third Reading on Monday 20th and Tuesday 21st May.

A Church of England briefing for MPs in advance of the Bill's Second Reading was published in February. That briefing summarised the principled reasons why the Church could not support the Bill and included a detailed Q&A on some of the more commonly asked questions (and misconceptions) about the impact of the legislation on the Church of England. It can be seen here.

Archbishop of Canterbury abandons his support for civil partnerships for heterosexual couples
U-turn will anger both Tory backbenchers and campaigners who argue heterosexual couples should be able to enter civil partnerships as an alternative to marriage

Andy McSmith and Sarah Morrison
THE INDEPENDENT
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/
May 18, 2013

The Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, has abandoned his support for allowing heterosexual couples to enter into civil partnerships under pressure from the church hierarchy.

His climbdown will be welcomed by the Government as it looks to finally ensure the smooth passage of the equal marriage bill through the House of Commons this week, against Conservative backbench and Labour Catholic opposition.

But the Archbishop's U-turn will anger both Tory backbenchers and campaigners who argue that in the name of equality, heterosexual couples should be able to enter civil partnerships as an alternative to marriage.

VA: Anglican Congregation Seeks Rehearing After Losing Property Suit to Episcopal Church

By Michael Gryboski,
Christian Post Reporter
http://www.christianpost.com/news/
May 16, 2013

An Anglican congregation in Virginia that recently lost a property suit against The Episcopal Church is asking for a rehearing before the state Supreme Court.

George Ward, senior warden of the vestry of The Falls Church Anglican, told The Christian Post that the congregation will submit a petition that may be heard by the Court.

Muffling the Clarion Call

By Harry M. Covert
Exclusive to Virtueonline
www.virtueonline.org
May 17, 2013

In plus threescore and 10 years, that's seven decades plus for any uninitiated, I have never ever heard or seen someone of either gender being forced to read a Bible.

I want to emphasize with all the honesty and veracity of a sober judge that not in any venue throughout the world has Bible reading been pushed on anyone.

Even in our country, where freedom of religion is foremost, such conduct has never been evident to me in America's schools, jails and or prisons.

Notable Protestants Defend Marriage

by Bart Gingerich
http://juicyecumenism.com/2013/05/17/notable-protestants-defend-marriage/
May 16, 2013

At the start of May, Union University was graced with the presence of notable evangelical theologians who commented on the issues of homosexuality, marriage, the church, and society. Southern Baptist leader Russell Moore joined the Presbyterian Church (USA)'s Robert Gagnon at Union's conference, "Salt and Light in the Public Square: Charles Colson's Legacy and Vision."

Russell Moore prominently serves as the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary's dean and will soon replace Richard Land as the future director of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission. Commenting on the marriage debate, Moore worried, "There are many people in America-including evangelicals-who fear they will be [notorious segregationist] George Wallace, Sr., listening to their children rebuking them for a history that's moving beyond them." He acknowledged three common approaches to address the issue.

Godless UK: A quarter of Britons have no religion with Christians increasingly likely to be retired people
One in four people in Britain no longer believes in any religion
Figure rises to more than a third of under 25s
2011 census shows number of Christians fell by 4.1million

By STEVE DOUGHTY
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news
May 17, 2013

One in four people no longer believes in any religion, official analysis of national census returns found yesterday.

It revealed Christianity is in decline and Christians are increasingly likely to be older or retired people.

Many young people, young men in particular, appear to be rejecting religious belief altogether. Nearly one in three under-25s - 32 per cent - say they do not have a religion.

The First Downtown Church of Sin

A Satirical essay

By David W. Virtue
www.virtueonline.org
May 17, 2013

Welcome, brothers and sisters, to the First Downtown Church of Sin. Are you tired of feeling rejected because you won't renounce your sinful lifestyle? Because of your sin, are you made to feel ashamed by all those nasty evangelical church preachers who want you to repent of your ways...abandon fornication and sodomy in favor of righteousness?

Are you looking for a church that will welcome you with open arms (and legs) and who want you, nay demand, that you continue in your carnality and concupiscence?

Fret no more. You no longer have to feel harassed because of your sin and lewdness. Here at the First Downtown Church of Sin we embrace you as you are and hope you will stay as you are because God loves you just the way you are and doesn't expect you to change at all. What nasty ol' God would do that to his struggling people?

SPIRITUAL BLESSING - POWER - Ephesians 1:19,20

By Ted Schroder,
Pentecost, May 19, 2013

On the day of Pentecost the apostles received power when the Holy Spirit came upon them, as Jesus prophesied (Acts 1:8). That power - a game-changer for followers of Jesus - was intended for all Christian believers. St. Paul prayed that "you may know God's incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is like the working of his mighty strength, which he exerted in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms." (Eph.1:19,20) We are meant to experience the same divine, mighty power that raised Jesus from the dead. What does that mean for us today?

CT: Norwalk's Grace Episcopal Church To Close After 123 Years
Grace Episcopal Church is to close its doors at the end of the month

by Alfred Branch
http://norwalk.dailyvoice.com/neighbors/norwalk-s-grace-episcopal-church-close-after-123-years
May 16, 2013

NORWALK, CONN - Financial woes have caught up to Norwalk's Grace Episcopal Church on Union Park, and is to close at the end of the month after 123 years.

The Rev. Lois Keen, who has been pastor at the church for the past seven years, made the announcement Thursday. The Norwalk church will hold its final service at 10 a.m. May 26, which will be presided by the Right Rev. James Curry, she said.

Keen did not disclose specific details about the church's financial situation that led to the closure. But in December, she said it cost about $1,000 per day to operate the 49-year-old building and parish. In addition to Keen's position, the church's expenses include maintenance, utilities, a part-time secretary and a part-time music director.

No Death. This accounts for Jesus' numerous indications that, for the godly, death is nothing. Have no fear of those who can only kill the body, he says (Matt. 10:28). We will not even experience death (John 8:51-52) and will, in fact, not die (John 11:26)...Such is the understanding of the New Testament as a whole. Those who live in reliance upon the word and person of Jesus, and know by experience the reality of his kingdom, are always better off "dead," from the personal point of view...we live in the knowledge that, as Paul elsewhere says, "Jesus the Anointed has abolished death and has, through the gospel, made life and immortality obvious." (2 Tim 1:10) --- Dallas Willard author of The Divine Conspiracy (pp. 393-394)

"Keep eternity before the children." –-- Dallas Willard's mother

A Christian teaching from the first century, (40-60 AD) says: "You shall not murder a child by abortion nor kill them when born." --- The Didache (2:2).

Abortion and Infanticide

By Mike McManus
May 16, 2013

The conviction of late-term abortionist Dr. Kermit Gosnell of first degree murder in three cases is welcome news. However, it raises a disturbing question. Why is the snipping of the neck of a newborn baby any more horrific than dismembering a child of similar age in the womb?

Princeton Professor Robert George argues, "It will no longer be possible to pretend that abortion and infanticide are radically different acts or practices." He said that if we believe "In the fundamental equality of human beings - how can a right to abortion (where 'abortion' means performing an act whose purpose is to cause fetal death) be defended at all?"

This is exactly what those who support abortion do not want to consider. Not surprisingly, such folks were quick to condemn Gosnell, but uphold the right to abortion.

The Worst Sermon Ever? The Presiding Bishop Explains Away Paul and the Female Slave

THE UNDERGROUND PEWSTER
http://lowly.blogspot.com/2013/05/the-worst-sermon-ever-presiding-bishop.html
May 15, 2013

While vacationing paying a pastoral visit to Curaçao this past weekend (on my dime?), our Presiding Bishop delivered what may be her worst sermon ever. I suspect she did not study my blog post from 3 years ago which I reposted this Sunday about the missing verses from the lectionary selections for Sunday: Revelation 22:12-14,16-17,20-21 (See RCL and the Abbrevelation of John) for amongst other misinterpretations she said, "The reading from Revelation pushes us in the same direction, outward and away from our own self-righteousness, inviting us to look harder for God's gift and presence all around us. Jesus says he's looking for everybody, anyone who's looking for good news, anybody who is thirsty. There are no obstacles or barriers - just come. God is at work everywhere, even if we can't or won't see it immediately."