By Jonathan Petre, Religion Correspondent
Dozens of conservative parishes will start ordaining their own clergy in an open revolt against their bishops if the Church of England continues its liberal drift, the Archbishop of Canterbury has been warned.
Dr Rowan Williams was told that evangelicals would increasingly defy Church rules and their own bishops by parachuting in outsiders to carry out irregular ordinations of “orthodox” candidates.
The warning came from Reform, a 1,700-strong evangelical network, which is setting up structures to allow it operate as a resistance movement within the Church.
The Rev Rod Thomas, Reform’s chairman, said that members must prepare for “courageous action” as the Church became driven by an increasingly pro-gay agenda.
Speaking to the network’s annual conference in London, he urged Dr Williams to withdraw the invitations he has issued to the liberal American bishops for next year’s showcase Lambeth Conference.
“Failure to do this will seal the division of the Communion, end all idea of a covenant, leave the Archbishop’s role in tatters and rapidly spread fractures through the Church of England,” he said.
He claimed the pro-gay lobby in this country was likely to become more overt and persistent, citing the same-sex blessing reportedly conducted by the Anglican provost of Glasgow cathedral last month.
“As the formal Church institutions and councils become paralysed or dysfunctional we must get more serious about devoting time and money to the reforms we seek,” Mr Thomas added.
“But the good news is that there has never been a better time to do this. Evangelicals are becoming clearer about the issues that have to be fought and more determined to do the fighting.”
Read here
19 October 2007 at 8:40 am
Surely ‘Irregular Ordinations’ will remain just that? They will be outside of the Anglican Churches’ jurisdiction, and therefore outside of the Church ‘per se’.
To go to such lengths to distance themselves from the traditional ministry structure of the Church of England, for whatever reason, would surely render rebel parishes as schismatics within the Church of England - in the very same way that the ‘Irregular Ordinations’ which have already taken place in Africa (for the express purpose of infiltrating the territory of TEC in America), renders the ‘beneficiaries’ of the ‘Orders’ conferred, illicit interlopers in another Province of the Anglican Church - i.e. the TEC.
This is in direct contravention of the expressed wishes of the Primates’ Meeting in Tanzania.
19 October 2007 at 9:57 pm
Hey, “Father Ron,” you still here “to counter the impression of its readers that the Church of God has not moved on since the first century AD”? Like it’s good to move on from the Triune God who is the same yesterday, today and tomorrow? Moving on sounds like a recipe for disaster to me. But what do I know. I’m not a real “Father” like you.
I know you have had to find another shtick since your gig as Father Guido Sarducci on Saturday Night Live folded years ago, but, man, this line is LAME. An eternal loser (if you get my drift ... eternal ... get it?).
We both know Father Guido would have been right with you on this, so why don’t you stay with the proven product? Let the true expression of you come forth. Free Father Guido!
20 October 2007 at 5:48 am
“All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing.” (Edmund Burke)
Thank God the ‘Good Men’ of the Anglican Churches are moving against Evil, and Perversions within the Churches.
Onward Christian soilders, and don’t let Socialist Governments stop your momentum.
Christians confusing meekness with weakness:
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=58207
I’M HOMO-NAUSEOUS:
http://www.newswithviews.com/Daubenmire/dave89.htm
20 October 2007 at 8:09 am
Go REFORM Go !!! Wonderful news from Britain. When is the ABofC going to start listening. He wants to keep lines of communication open….seems to me the line to communicate with is that of REFORM, GLOBAL SOUTH, ORTHODOX ANGLICANS IN CANADA AND THE USA, ETC.
Smith, go spread your desperation somewhere else. This website doesn’t need to be reading your garbage, n’or do Christians who want to remain loyal to Scripture. Scripture is Supreme Smith, not TEC, not integrity, not your way…Jesus came to save sinners, but He wants us to confess our sins, repent of our sins and turn away from those sins and not go back. 2nd Peter & Jude both tell us very clearly, we are not to go back to our sinful ways…
Guido Sarducci .....hmmmmm. another mask removed. What will you be next…surely smith is very common, why not try something from Antartica !!
20 October 2007 at 2:55 pm
“The WORD became flesh and dwelt (dwells) among us, and we beheld (behold) his glory - as of the Only-Begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth”
- Gospel of John, Chapter 1, verse 14.
When are you ‘literalists’ going to realise that the WORD of God became FLESH, showing that God was not afraid to associate God’s Self with the humanity God had created. It has been said the the glory of God has been revealed in the full humanity of his Only-Begotten Son, Jesus Christ.
Jesus never wrote a book but he did become human! He did, in his own persona, as Son of God, fulfil all the requirements of the Law and the Prophets! No one else could ever have done that.
We can never earn eternal life. It is the free gift of the God who LOVES, to all who love God.
The Gospel of Christ is GOOD NEWS to all people, not just the preserve of the pure and undefiled!
20 October 2007 at 10:39 pm
Yes, GOOD NEWS, to all that will listen and adhere(go and sin no more) to the Word, Laws, and Commandments of God.
Next, a non-Canterbury Anglican Communion-one that has not been appointed by Socialist Policial figures resulting in a puppet Canterbury.
After Canterbury, the Church of England!
20 October 2007 at 10:43 pm
Smith ~ everything you have said above is true. Jesus did become flesh, Jesus is the Word. He did however write books and letters. He did it through the Apostles that He chose to follow Him and to teach the Word. He chose Saul (Paul) himself after His Resurrection and appointed him to take the Word to the gentiles.
Paul teaches against Sin. He teaches against immoral and lewd behavior including men lieing with men.
You are the one who is being blind here Ron, Yes, God is Love, Jesus is Love and the Word is Truth.
Jesus said it all about all sinfulness when he told the Prostitute “Your sins are forgiven, GO AND SIN NO MORE” What part of DO NOT is it that you can not get into your brain.
11 November 2007 at 8:32 am
Gerry O’Brien (above) should note what Paul said about sin and sinners: “My righteouness is as filthy rags”. How come, then, that Mr O’Brien is constantly talking about other people’s tendency to sin, when he himself is not sinless? (See the ‘plank and eye’ parable of jesus)
Those of us - both clergy and laity - who are of the enlightened understanding that the Gospel is Good News for SINNERS (“I came to call, not the righteous, but sinners” says the Lord) will never fall into the trap of thinking that any human being in this world can measure up to the sort of righteouness that God deserves of his children.
This is precisely why Christ gave himself up to death for our sins. But Jesus did say that “When the Holy Spirit comes, He will teach you all things - about me, about sin…..” this surely means that the Holy Spirit - still working in the Church - is having to continue teaching the Church about what sin is - and what it is not!
Sopmeone has once said that every act of loving has something of God in it. We are talking here about LOVING not lust - which seems to be on the minds of those who seek to make others purer than themselves - but seemingly, only in the business of sexuality.
Like the Publican in the Temple, I have to kneel in repentance for my sins (and yours) asking for God’s forgiveness and going on my way justified - not because of my intention to become sinless, but simply because I acknowledge nmy sinful human nature and have asked God for grace to avoid occasions of sin in the future.
What is often forgotten,, in this parable of Jesus, is that the PHARISEE, who saw HIMSELF as sinless, did not go away justified. It is by grace that we are both justified and sanctified!
Take heed Gerry! Clearly, in this story Jesus is issuing a warning to those who think themselves more holy than others! Therein lies a problem.
13 November 2007 at 8:39 am
Dear Ron:
Please re-read #7 above… If you will go back through all of the posts on other parts of this blog site, you will find that I acknowledge being a sinner and repenting and turning and every day I try to continue doing the same. Today is no different. I sinned today…I now confess it and repent it and try my best to turn away from it in my humaness.
Ron please don’t try to create smoke screens around what you believe to stop others from understanding the truth about your positiion. You are entitled to your opinion, however, those who truly believe and understand the Gospels and the Old Testaments AND The Epistles will know that you are blowing smoke.
Go in peace.