Liturgies for "gender transition" approved in Canada's Anglican organization

I am certain that this will be done in the Episcopal organization tout de suite.

From Sue Careless (that must be a pen name) at The Living Church,

"The Anglican Church of Canada’s General Synod authorized 'Pastoral Liturgies for Journeys of Gender Transition and Affirmation' June 30, but added the provision 'where authorized by the ordinary.'

All liturgies must first be authorized by General Synod, but ordinaries (diocesan bishops) have authority over the liturgical practices in their dioceses.

So, while Resolution A122 passed easily with the amendment, those theologically conservative diocesan bishops who do not support such liturgies need not approve their use..."

 Remember the rule: "Where orthodoxy becomes optional, it will eventually be proscribed."

"The texts for the liturgies were available in the synod’s Convening Circular, a thorough guide to the scheduled discussions and advance resolutions. Many delegates already were familiar with the rites, as they had been used on a trial basis in a few parishes over the past year. They have also been online for some time."

Using something on a trial basis in a church always seems to lead to its adoption. 

"It was not clear from the debate whether these rites would be offered to minors, or whether they would require parental permission."

Yikes! 

Looking at the numbers, the Anglican Church of Canada is dying. This will surely kill it off.

 

 

"My Jesus wouldn't say that"

 In this Sunday's reading from the Revised Common Lectionary, Matthew 11:16-19,25-30, the editors must have decided that their Jesus would never say the things he does in verses 20-24. I have put them back (in red letters) to prove the editors wrong.

16 ‘But to what will I compare this generation? It is like children sitting in the market-places and calling to one another,

17 “We played the flute for you, and you did not dance;

   we wailed, and you did not mourn.”

18 For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, “He has a demon”; 19 the Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, “Look, a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax-collectors and sinners!” Yet wisdom is vindicated by her deeds.’

20 Then he began to reproach the cities in which most of his deeds of power had been done, because they did not repent. 21 ‘Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the deeds of power done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. 22 But I tell you, on the day of judgement it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon than for you. 23 And you, Capernaum, will you be exalted to heaven? No, you will be brought down to Hades.

For if the deeds of power done in you had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day. But I tell you that on the day of judgement it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom than for you.’

 At that time Jesus said, ‘I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and the intelligent and have revealed them to infants; yes, Father, for such was your gracious will. All things have been handed over to me by my Father; and no one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.

 ‘Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.’

Pewsitters who are fed an expurgated Gospel will be the ones who say, "My Jesus would never say that!" 

 

The "De-banking" of Christians in the U.S. and the U.K.

Did you ever think that banks would go radically woke and start turning depositors away because of those customers' orthodox religious beliefs? 

From Crisis Magazine, 

"...nineteen Republican Attorneys General and fourteen Republican state treasurers have sent letters to JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon, alleging that the banking giant “has persistently discriminated against certain customers due to their religious or political affiliation.”

"They cite the National Committee for Religious Freedom (NCRF) being de-banked last year. Cardinal Timothy Dolan, the highest-profile Catholic who sits on the board of NCRF, is not known for being an especially conservative cleric, but he has been fairly vocal on issues like the protection of the unborn. That JPMorgan would de-bank even a centrist, pluralist religious organization shows how far they are willing to go."

"This is not the first time JPMorgan has de-banked a Christian organization. In 2021, a credit card processor owned by JPMorgan terminated the account of the Family Council, a Christian pro-life organization, because it was deemed 'High Risk'. It will not surprise those of us who know how this works to hear that the Family Council met none of the processor’s written standards for that category. "

"This year, due to the controversial nature of actions like these, a resolution was placed before JPMorgan shareholders to require the bank to evaluate how it quantifies risks associated with religious views. JPMorgan advocated that its shareholders vote against the resolution, going so far as to file a motion with the Securities and Exchange Commission to prevent this resolution from appearing on the ballot. The SEC denied this motion in March."

I am glad that I don't own any shares in or bank with J. P. Morgan. 

In the U.K., the same process of de-banking is going on, but they are targeting individuals as well as organizations. This from Premier Christian News,

"An Anglican minister has had his bank account closed after raising concerns over Yorkshire Building Society's promotion of transgenderism.

Rev Richard Fothergill, who leads the Filling Station network, sent an online message to YBS in response to a request for feedback.

In it, the 62-year-old, who's had an account for 17 years, complained that the company shouldn't be promoting a transgender ideology.

Four days later, he received a letter stating his account would be closed. 

Responding to his claims, a spokesperson said: 

'We never close savings accounts based on different opinions regarding beliefs or feedback provided by our customers.'

'We only ever make the difficult decision to close a savings account if a customer is rude, abusive, violent or discriminates in any way, based on the specific facts, comments and behaviour in each case.'

"The story comes just days after Christian charity Core Issues Trust received a payout from Barclays over the closure of its bank account as part of a settlement to avoid a court case.

The Core Issues Trust offers support to men and women who have unwanted same-sex attraction."

I recently took over the duties of Treasurer of our small Anglican church, and I have made numerous trips to our local bank to complete paperwork and straighten out the details of the transition. Not once was I asked about my opinions on hot button issues. 

I just hope they don't go woke on us because we would surely be de-banked.. 

If they do that, we will have to start keeping what little money we have in a mattress.

 

For the wages of sin is...

 This Sunday's reading is from Romans 6:12-23. I hope Paul's words have special meaning to listeners who partook in the numerous "Pride" events of the past month. 

"Therefore, do not let sin exercise dominion in your mortal bodies, to make you obey their passions. No longer present your members to sin as instruments of wickedness, but present yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life, and present your members to God as instruments of righteousness. For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace.

 What then? Should we sin because we are not under law but under grace? By no means! Do you not know that if you present yourselves to anyone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin, which leads to death, or of obedience, which leads to righteousness? But thanks be to God that you, having once been slaves of sin, have become obedient from the heart to the form of teaching to which you were entrusted, and that you, having been set free from sin, have become slaves of righteousness. I am speaking in human terms because of your natural limitations. For just as you once presented your members as slaves to impurity and to greater and greater iniquity, so now present your members as slaves to righteousness for sanctification.

When you were slaves of sin, you were free in regard to righteousness. So what advantage did you then get from the things of which you now are ashamed? The end of those things is death. But now that you have been freed from sin and enslaved to God, the advantage you get is sanctification. The end is eternal life. For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord."

Oh dear. How will revisionist priests handle this one. I suspect most will let it go unmentioned in their sermons. Perhaps some will, as one priest I knew, attack it head on and say (I quote), "I am so sick and tired of the Southern obsession with sin." 

One has to deal with the problem of sin if one is to be a Christian because it is written all over the Bible. The way that revisionists have dealt with it is be re-imagining just what constitutes a sin. Homosexual acts become a blessing, Pride becomes a parade, adultery becomes polyamory, and stealing becomes okay if it is a church building.

That's how the Episcopal organization earned the wages of sin, as evidenced by its rapid decline in membership, average Sunday attendance, and baptisms.

All I have to say is Paul was and is still right, and thank God it's July.

 

Of Millstones and Pride Parades

Deep Pew let me know that our former Episcopal parish posted a picture recently of their free "pride cookie" giveaway planned for the local "Pride" parade. It was especially upsetting to see adults leading children astray. 

Such things do not surprise me, but they do cause a pang of guilt that when I left that place they lost the one last strong orthodox voice to stand up against false teaching.

I want to go into a discussion of the sin of pride and the trouble with millstones with these adults, but I know that it would fall on deaf ears. I can only pray that those ears will be unstopped, and that those children listen to Jesus as their teacher.

Perhaps we should not look back after washing the dust from our feet. 

Remember what happened to Lot's wife.

The Living Dead... to Sin

This Sunday's reading from Romans 6:1-11 contains Paul's logical approach to the problem of sin in the context of those who have been baptized.

What then are we to say? Should we continue in sin in order that grace may abound? By no means! How can we who died to sin go on living in it? Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? Therefore we have been buried with him by baptism into death, so that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life.

 For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we will certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his. We know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body of sin might be destroyed, and we might no longer be enslaved to sin. For whoever has died is freed from sin. But if we have died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him. We know that Christ, being raised from the dead, will never die again; death no longer has dominion over him. The death he died, he died to sin, once for all; but the life he lives, he lives to God. So you also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus.

The accusation of many non-church goers is that we who regularly attend are a bunch of hypocrites who live sinful lives during the week while pretending to be alive in Christ on Sundays. 

Putting sin to death was Jesus' job. For most of us it is an ongoing process of accepting what He has done and trying to be living examples of what it means to be alive in Christ. Those of us who are church goers in the Anglican tradition confess our sins before we present ourselves for communion. 

Even hypocrites are forgiven by the grace of God when they confess.  

Meanwhile in Wales: Don't Say What You Believe Christian

 From The Christian Institute 

A teacher has been dismissed from The Bishop of Llandaff Church in Wales School, in Cardiff, after sharing his beliefs on marriage at a staff training seminar.

During a question and answer session, Ben Dybowski asked if his beliefs – that marriage is between a man and a woman and that life begins at conception – were considered discriminatory.

Despite being told that it was a “safe space and encouraged to speak freely”, he was sacked the following day.

Mr Dybowski called his dismissal an attack on Christianity and “an affront to freedom of speech and freedom of thought”.

He said he never discussed his views with pupils and was always respectful of those with different opinions.

His case has been referred to the Education Workforce Council, which regulates teachers in Wales, but he fears that it may end his teaching career.

The event was organised by Diverse Cymru, which promotes “workforce diversity practice”, “unconscious bias” and “trans, gender identity and gender expression awareness” to teachers.

The seminar was run by its Policy Manager Ele Hicks, who describes herself as a ‘bisexual activist and change champion’.