Anglican mammon

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Some years ago I attended what was supposed to be an ecclesiastical pep talk by the then primate, Fred Hiltz. As I listened to him with drooping eyelids, it occurred to me that his delivery, reminiscent of Marvin the Robot, was not amenable to inspiring enthusiasm in others. Eventually, though, the archbishop’s eyes lit up, the voice became almost animated, the arms began gesticulating with excitement. “This is better”, I thought, we are about to hear that revival has broken out against all the odds. Perhaps someone had come back from the dead after prayer.

Alas, no. Someone had donated $160,000 to the church.

Nothing inspires activity and passion in the ACoC so much as the prospect of acquiring or losing money. Hence, with a looming $1.6 million deficit, Archbishop Linda Nicholls has appointed a committee to find radical solutions for accumulating more lovely cash.

From here:

A draft 2022 financial statement initially shared with CoGS, intended to be presented by the financial management committee, shows General Synod with a $1.6-million excess of expenses over revenues. Meanwhile, Nicholls said, statistics show the church’s membership is aging and declining. Cultural shifts in Canadian society and a newly redefined relationship with the Indigenous church, she said, also demand new ideas.

“Every organization needs to ask itself periodically whether the framework for the life of the institution is helping or possibly hindering its professed mission,” she said. The new committee would therefore be tasked with bringing recommendations to CoGS and to General Synod in 2025 to address these needs. Nicholls said it would be composed of theologians, bishops, clergy and laypeople “with a mandate to listen well and offer creative, lifegiving solutions—even radical solutions.”

Archbishop Linda Nicholls sees no major split in the Anglican Communion

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GAFCON, in its February 20th statement responding to the Church of England’s decision to bless same-sex marriages, has declared that the CofE can no longer be considered the “mother church”. It has broken communion with provinces that hold to Biblical views on human sexuality and Justin Welby is no longer the first among equals in the global communion.

In other words, the Anglican Communion is divided, split, rent asunder, fractured, broken.

Linda Nicholls thinks everything is just fine. The problem has been “overblown”. Like the deaf adder that stoppeth her ear, Nicholls cannot hear the waves of chaos crashing against the foundations of what is left of her church.

The truth is, the Anglican Communion has already split. What we are witnessing now is the external outworking of an inward fracture, an outward, visible sign of an inward, invisible rupture, an unholy sacrament.

Nicholls goes on to complain that according to the GAFCON statement, “the final test of orthodoxy is human sexuality”.

Not so. Orthodoxy requires not only a correct understand of the nature of God – or at least as correct as flawed humans can be – but a correct understanding of the nature of mankind. At the root of the church’s LGBT* mania is the lie that the purpose and nature of man is self-fulfilment, self-gratification and, especially in the “T” case, atheistic existential self-determination, a misreading of the human condition so mixed up, most self-respecting pagans wouldn’t hold to it.

From here:

The significance of a press statement from a grouping of theologically conservative Anglican primates which recommends the withdrawal of “orthodox provinces” from the rest of the Anglican Communion, and which has drawn international headlines, has been overblown, Archbishop Linda Nicholls, primate of the Anglican Church of Canada, tells the Anglican Journal.

[….]

The motion passed in the Church of England’s General Synod allows clergy to use their conscience in deciding whether to use the prayers of blessing, meaning that they can opt in or out of blessing same-sex unions on an individual basis. So no church or individual will be required to give blessings that they disagree with, Nicholls says. In fact, she adds, since the Church of England motion extends only to blessings, it does not actually make any changes to its policy on marriage itself. For comparison, some dioceses in the Anglican Church of Canada, after extensive discernment, have provided same-sex marriage as a pastoral response, Nicholls says.

In that context, she says, it makes little sense to break up the Communion over such a small change.

Anglican Church of Canada is looking for radical solutions

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The problem is the church is running out of money. The solution is a new committee.

During the years I’ve been attending an Anglican church, committees have come and gone leaving little behind them but a disagreeable whiff of empty posturing, very similar to IBM committee meetings that I attended during what passes for my career. The ecclesiastical version will, no doubt, be far more effective in inducing crippling ennui, since it will be populated by a gaggle of theologians, bishops and clergy whose tenuous grip on reality is summed up by this sentence in the article below: “The Communion has not split.”

Archbishop Linda Nicholls is suggesting “finding potentially radical solutions”. Before anyone rashly jumps to the conclusion that the Anglican Church of Canada is about to try Christianity to halt its dramatic decline, I refer you to another article, published at the same time, where Nicholls affirm[s] the dignity of LGBTQ+ people and their place in the church – which, in translation, means she affirms same-sex activity. And there is nothing less radical than that.

From here:

The church may soon have a new commission tasked with finding potentially “radical solutions” to the demographic and financial challenges that now face it, according to a proposal introduced by Archbishop Linda Nicholls, primate of the Anglican Church of Canada, in her opening statement to the Council of General Synod (CoGS) March 2.

Nicholls said a new strategy would be needed for the church to go forward into the post-pandemic world. It will need to respond to challenges including financial pressure “as parishes struggle to sustain full-time or part-time stipendiary ministry and dioceses struggle to meet multiple responsibilities at local, regional and national levels.” The national church, on the other hand, is facing the challenge of supporting ministry in regions where donations do not cover expenses, she said. Meanwhile, statistics show the church’s membership is aging and declining. Cultural shifts in Canadian society and a newly redefined relationship with the Indigenous church, she said, also demand new ideas.

[…….]

But in fact, Nicholls said, “the Communion remains committed to walking together—some at a great distance, others working more closely together.

“The Communion has not split.”

Queer Evensong at Holy Trinity Anglican Church Winnipeg

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The Queer Evensong is being organised by Pastor Theo Robinson, who is transgender and Rev Andrew Rampton, a homosexual.

During the COVID panic we were introduced to a new expression – which I rapidly came to loath – The New Normal. The New Normal for ACoC parishes is a Queer Evensong run by a transgender and a homosexual.

From here:

Creating a safe place to worship for LGBTTQ+ people is the goal of a service Sunday in downtown Winnipeg.

The service — possibly the first of its kind in the province — is being organized by Theo Robinson, a transgender male and regional pastor for the Interlake Shared Ministry, and Andrew Rampton, rector at Holy Trinity Anglican Church.

Queer Evensong starts at 5 p.m. at Holy Trinity (256 Smith St.).

Robinson serves churches in Selkirk, Teulon, Arborg, Lundar and Riverton through the ministry, which is operated jointly by the Anglican Diocese of Rupert’s Land and the Manitoba and Northwest Ontario Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada. He came up with the idea because queer people often “don’t feel safe” in a church context.

For those of you whose wokeness remains unsated by a Queer Evensong, Holy Trinity is also offering “From the Religion of Whiteness to Religion Otherwise”, a balm to sooth the nerves of all who wallow in guilty whiteness. In case you didn’t know, whiteness is a religion:

This Newcombe Lecture (presented by the department of Religion and Culture at the University of Winnipeg) engages cultural theorist W.E.B. Du Bois’ idea that Whiteness (another word for which is “settlerism”) is a religion–indeed, that it is apocalyptic cosmology. Du Bois’ creative writing will be considered for the understanding it advances of Blackness as postapocalyptic poetic living–an alternate, even fugitive way of being with the earth that hosts new relationalities, new socialities after Whiteness, or religion otherwise.

Why, I wonder, is the Anglican Church of Canada headed for extinction by 2040? It’s a mystery.

Our Nory in heaven

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The Church of England is thinking – yes, I know, an oxymoron, but bear with me – of using gender neutral words when referring to God. Thus “Nory” is a “name which is derived from the “no” and “ry” in “non-binary”. It may work for ze, but does it work for God?

Justin Welby thinks (there I go again, another oxymoron) it might:

The archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, the religious head of the church, previously said that “God is not male or female” or “definable.”

“All human language about God is inadequate and to some degree metaphorical,” he said in 2018.

More waffle from Archbishop Linda Nicholls on euthanasia

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In 2016 Canada gave the terminally ill the choice to be euthanised.

In 2021 the offer was extended to those who were not terminally ill but have a “grievous and irremediable medical condition” including “psychological suffering that is intolerable”. And, of course, you have to “be eligible for health care services in Canada”, because suicide, like abortion, has become health care.

Mental illness is not considered to be intolerable psychological suffering – yet. It is liable to fall into that category later this year, along with an opportunity for mature minors to take up the invitation if they find themselves overburdened by the stresses and strains of the human condition.

Since life and death is a large part of the business of the church, one might be forgiven for expecting it to have a clear and definitive position on all this. Alas not.

Anglican Primate Linda Nicholl’s manages to muster up some concern about Canada’s eagerness to peddle health-care-death, but that’s about as far as she goes. Perhaps less energy expended in lamenting the climate emergency – or whatever it’s called this week – and more in denouncing our abortion and euthanasia death cults would be more… oh, I don’t know – prophetic.

Read it all here:

I am concerned about these potential extensions of MAID eligibility and the questions they raise. How do we ensure that every individual and family has what is needed to make an informed and accessible choice? In the face of illnesses or challenging disabilities it may be easy to see MAID as a preferable option, especially as it is less costly than providing the community supports that improve quality of life in its last stages, making access to mental health supports readily available, increasing palliative care accessibility and ensuring a circle of support for those whose lives are challenging physically, emotionally or mentally.

My prayer is that we will be willing to work for all that makes life a gift and blessing so that choices are not limited by fear or lack of support. Honest discussion in parishes about MAID are needed to explore the implications of the current change in legislation and any future ones for individuals, families and communities. Pastoral support is essential in whatever path is chosen. And in all aspects, as we walk in the midst of the realities of suffering, we are called in humility to mercy and compassion in the light of God’s love.

In the Diocese of BC orthodox Christianity is Christo-Fascism

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In the Diocese of B.C., it seems that if you are a Christian who thinks that men having sex with other men is not a good idea or you think encouraging children to believe that they were assigned the wrong body is child abuse, you are a Christo-Fascist, a white supremacist and a member of a hate group.

You also refuse to wear a mask (unlike Antifa enthusiasts), are an anti-vaxxer, antisemitic and Islamophobic. There are probably a few more phobias you are guilty of, all of which are explained in more detail that sanity can bear in a diocesan missive here:

In front of the BC legislature on many Saturdays over the past year, you would see people holding up signs about freedom, many of them white Christian men and women. If you looked or listened closely, you would also hear messages about hate. 

Christo fascism is on the rise in Canada. By Christo fascism, I mean predominantly white Christian groups in Canada seeking to impose their religious views, including discrimination of marginalized groups of people, upon the wider public. This includes actively opposing polices of queer inclusion at public institutions such as schools, universities, health clinics and legislative bodies, especially through undemocratic means. Tactics include intimidation, harassment, threat of violence, and seeking to revoke or repeal charter freedoms of other Canadians. These groups that often wave the flag of individual and religious freedom are also among the first to want to revoke freedoms of groups of people they find undesirable, falling outside of the norms of an extremist Christian faith. 

White supremacists and hate groups have established a foothold in Canadian churches, including hate groups disguised as public interest groups. For example, so-called groups of concerned citizens who allege trans kids are victims of child abuse, simply for falling outside the gender norms these extremist Christian groups prescribe. A group will say they are concerned and then show up en masse protesting actual children who are exercising their freedoms simply to exist. Such protests have happened recently in Vancouver. 

Anglican Church of Canada projects deficits

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The deficits are expected to be: $495,000 in 2024, $1.45 million in 2025, $460,000 in 2026 and $524,000 in 2027.

Income from diocesan contributions is projected to fall from $7.25 million in 2021 to $6.93 million in 2024.

The Anglican Church of Canada likes to think of itself as identifying with the poor. This should help.

Read all about it here:

The Anglican Church of Canada’s national office is forecast to have a balanced budget this year—but substantial deficits and program cuts are likely in the years to follow, documents prepared for the November meeting of Council of Synod (CoGS) state.

The budget for 2023 is expected to have a modest surplus of $43,000, according to a budget document prepared for CoGS and dated Oct. 27. This includes the projected cost of $791,900 for the meeting of General Synod planned for the summer, as well as a gathering of Sacred Circle planned in the spring. To balance its budget, the church will use just over $1 million in funds that were set aside in previous years to cover these expenses, General Synod treasurer Amal Attia told CoGS. The national church was expected to have a similarly modest surplus in 2022, she said.

Prospects for coming years, however, as revenues are expected to fall, are not as rosy. The Oct. 27 document forecasts a deficit of $495,000 in 2024, $1.45 million in 2025, $460,000 in 2026 and $524,000 in 2027, and a budget narrative predicts cuts at Church House.

“Years 2023 to 2027 in the trend indicate that in the absence of increased revenue, program cuts will likely be necessary,” it states.

The budget projection shows expected revenues from diocesan contributions—by far the largest element of the national office’s revenues—falling from 2021’s $7.25 million to $6.93 million in 2024, and then staying at $6.93 million until 2027, the last year covered by the projection.