Sydney gives its backing to American traditionalists: CEN 11.13.09 p 6. November 24, 2009
Posted by geoconger in Anglican Church of Australia, Anglican Church of North America, Church of England Newspaper.1 comment so far
The Anglican Church of North America (ACNA) received a boost last month from the Diocese Sydney after its synod endorsed a resolution backing the formation of the third Anglican province in North America. However, a similar motion brought before the Diocese of Melbourne’s synod narrowly failed.
On Oct 28, the Diocese of Sydney’s Synod overwhelmingly adopted a resolution welcoming the “creation of the Province of the Anglican Church in North America (ACNA) under the leadership of Archbishop Bob Duncan.”
It noted the GAFCON Primates’ Council’s “recognition of the ACNA as genuinely Anglican” and their recommendation that “Anglican Provinces affirm full communion with the ACNA.” It also asked its diocesan standing committee “seek to have a motion brought to the General Synod affirming that the Anglican Church of Australia be in full communion with the ACNA.”
The Bishop of North Sydney Glenn Davies explained the resolution “does not expressly state that the Diocese of Sydney is in full communion, but merely ‘expresses its desire to be in full communion’,” with the ACNA.
“Why the fudge?” he wrote on the diocese’s website. “Well the Diocese of Sydney is part of the Anglican Church of Australia, whose Constitution defines those with whom we are in communion,” he said.
At its Oct 7-10 synod a resolution backing the ACNA was brought before the Diocese of Melbourne. The resolution noted “with great sadness the divisions” that had arisen in North America, and thanked the Archbishop of Canterbury Dr. Rowan Williams for his July 27, 2009 statement on the crises.
The resolution stated that it regarded “those who have formed themselves into the Anglican Church in North America (ACNA) as authentic Anglican Christians” and extended the “hand of Anglican Christian fellowship” from Melbourne to the ACNA and “longs for our fellowship with them to be renewed and formalised within the structure of the Anglican Communion; and (d) Respectfully asks the Archbishop [of Melbourne] to convey the substance of this motion to the Archbishop of Canterbury and the leaders of the ACNA.”
Following thirty minutes of debate the resolution was put to a voice vote. The chairman of the meeting was unable to determine the outcome, and a show of hands revealed the resolution failed 150 to 175.
After the Sydney vote, Archbishop Duncan said, “We welcome this recognition from the Diocese of Sydney and look forward to working with them and our other overseas Anglican partners in spreading the Gospel and building a Communion that is truly Christ centered and missional.”
Brisbane cathedral is consecrated: CEN 11.13.09 p 6. November 18, 2009
Posted by geoconger in Anglican Church of Australia, Church of England Newspaper.add a comment
| First printed in The Church of England Newspaper.
One hundred and three years after construction began, St John’s Cathedral was officially consecrated by the Archbishop of Brisbane, Dr Phillip Aspinall last week. Approximately 1,400 people, including Opposition Leader Malcolm Turnbull and ecumenical guests celebrated the consecration of the Gothic Cathedral on Oct 29. |
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“This was one of the last Gothic construction projects in the world to be completed and to see the vision become a reality in my time here is a real honour,” Dr Aspinall said. Designed by English architect John L Pearson in 1889, St John’s Cathedral is believed to be the last Gothic Cathedral to be completed. Construction began in 1906 and the first stage was completed in 1910.
Stage two began in 1968 and was completed in 1968. The third stage of the construction costing £20 million began in 1989 and was completed on Nov 11, 2008 when the last 13 metre-tall bell tower weighing 22 tonnes was lifted into place. Over 100,000 stones were used in the construction process, which followed the medieval pattern of building around a design of load-bearing masonry.
The archbishop said the completed Cathedral is a testament to the efforts of all those people and will stand as a monument to optimism, determination and faith for many generations to come. “I have said before that this magnificent building is more than blocks of stone and tiles. It reflects the hopes and dreams of people and it belongs to the people.
Pearson was asked what he thought was the “mark of a good church. He responded ‘the question to ask oneself on entering a church is not ‘is this admirable?’, ‘is this beautiful?’, but ‘Does it send you to your knees?’ I say that St John’s fits the description of a good Church and Pearson would be proud,” Dr Aspinall said.
Australian court ruling is blow to gay lobby groups: CEN 11.13.09 p 6. November 18, 2009
Posted by geoconger in Anglican Church of Australia, Church of England Newspaper.add a comment
| First published in The Church of England Newspaper.
Homosexuals should not be accorded protected status akin to race, religious belief or gender, an Australian appellate court has held. |
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The Nov 1 court ruling, which permits church-affiliated agencies the right to provide social services in a manner that does not violate their religious principles, has drawn praise from Anglican and Roman Catholic leaders, who argue the country’s anti-discrimination laws have been used to attack religion. An administrative appellate tribunal held the Wesley Mission’s foster care agency was not obligated to accept a gay couple as foster parents, overturning a lower court ruling that forbad the Wesley Mission from using religious or ethical criteria in selecting those whom it would engage as foster parents.
A same-sex couple brought suit against the Wesley Mission after the agency denied their application to foster a child because they were homosexuals. An Administrative Tribunal found in favor of the two men, awarding them £5500 in damages, and ordering the agency to amend its selection criteria so as not to discriminate against homosexuals.
On appeal, the ruling was reversed and sent back to the lower court for a re-hearing. Presiding Magistrate Nancy Hennessy instructed the lower court to take into account the religious sensibilities of Wesleyanism, and whether the agency would be obligated to reject the same-sex couple in order to be faithful to its beliefs.
Anglican and Catholic leaders applauded the decision. Sydney’s Cardinal George Pell told the Sydney Daily Telegraph that “it is important to protect people from unjust discrimination but it is ridiculous to claim discrimination every time we show a preference for some people over others.
“Anti-discrimination laws should not be used to change how church agencies organise themselves,” he said.
On Oct 21 Cardinal Pell led a delegation of 20 church leaders to Canberra to meet with Attorney General Robert McCelland to protest against plans to introduce a national charter of human rights. Writing in The Australian, Cardinal Pell said a charter would be used by anti-religious zealots to attack religious schools, hospitals and charities.
“If these protections are to be revised, it should be done by MPs answerable to the people, not by judges or human rights commissars,” Cardinal Pell said. Unable to attend the Canberra meeting due to a meeting of the Diocese of Sydney’s synod, Archbishop Peter Jensen told The Australian he backed Cardinal Pell.
“We strongly support human rights, but we don’t think a charter such as this is necessary or even effective in protecting the rights of the most vulnerable people in our community. It may in all likelihood make things worse, particularly in the area of religious freedom,” Dr Jensen said.
Backing starts to grow for the Anglican Covenant: CEN 11.06.09 p 5. November 12, 2009
Posted by geoconger in Anglican Church of Aotearoa New Zealand & Polynesia, Anglican Church of Australia, Central Florida, Church of England Newspaper, Church of Ireland, South Carolina, Western Louisiana.add a comment
The Church of Ireland, the American dioceses of Western Louisiana and South Carolina and the New Zealand dioceses of Christchurch and Nelson have endorsed the Ridley-Cambridge draft of the Anglican Covenant, joining Central Florida in backing the Archbishop of Canterbury’s plan for creating a structure to manage the divisions over doctrine and discipline dividing the Anglican Communion.
On Oct 24, a special convention of the Diocese of South Carolina approved a resolution by a margin of 88 to 12 per cent that “endorses” the Anglican Covenant “as it presently stands, in all four sections, as an expression of our full commitment to mutual submission and accountability in communion, grounded in a common faith.”
Delegates to the Oct 9-10 annual convention of the Diocese of Western Louisiana also affirmed their support for the Covenant and backed Bishop Bruce MacPherson’s endorsement of the Anaheim Statement, which reaffirmed his commitment to remain part of the Anglican Communion and the Anglican Covenant process.
By a show of hands the convention adopted a resolution which “fully affirms” Western Louisiana’s “commitment to the Windsor principles, including the formation of, and future adoption of an Anglican Covenant as a means of supporting the ongoing work of our bishop and the efforts of the broader Communion to preserve our unity.”
The convention further stated that it “supports the ongoing work on the Ridley Cambridge draft including section 4.”
In his presidential address to his diocesan synod on Sept 24, the Bishop of Nelson, the Rt. Rev. Richard Ellena said the Anglican Covenant was “the Archbishop of Canterbury’s only strategy for holding the communion together.”
In September, Christchurch and Nelson took note of the actions of ACC-14 in Jamaica and stated they supported “in principle” the Covenant process and commended the Ridley-Cambridge draft “as it currently stands as the practicable means available to make the Anglican Communion Covenant process become effective in the life of the Anglican Communion.”
On Sept 15, the standing committee of the Church of Ireland’s General Synod endorsed a report created by the church’s Anglican Covenant Working Group. “Having considered Section 4 of the [Ridley-Cambridge] Draft Anglican Covenant very carefully, and bearing in mind a full range of points of view, we believe that the text of Section 4 as it stands commends itself in the current circumstances,” the working group said.
Delegates to the annual synod of the Diocese of Sydney last week also voiced their approval of the Anglican Covenant, voting on Oct 28 to ask the Anglican Church of Australia’s General Synod Standing Committee to bring the Anglican Covenant to the September 2010 General Synod “in such a manner as to enable each diocesan synod to consider the document.”
Archbishop wants laws on advertising aimed at children tightened: CEN 10.30.09 p 6. November 6, 2009
Posted by geoconger in Anglican Church of Australia, Church of England Newspaper, Youth/Children.add a comment
| First published in The Church of England Newspaper.
The Anglican Archbishop of Adelaide has called upon the Australian government to institute a code of practice for advertising directed towards children, arguing that the reliance upon sex to sell products to children was a form of “corporate paedophilia.” Speaking to the opening session of the Diocese of Adelaide’s annual synod on Oct 23, Archbishop Jeffrey Driver denounced marketing that presented children in sexually provocative ways. |
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“Children have a right to their childhood, but it is being taken from them through the hyper-sexualised environment in which they now grow up,” he said, adding that “at an increasingly early age,” children were being “caught up” in a culture of sex, violence and drugs.
Girl’s clothing often was a “highly sexualised, mini versions of adult fashion,” while some child’s magazines advised five- and six-year-olds “how to look hot and catch a boy,” the archbishop said.
“There are strong suggestions that this premature sexualisation of children could play a role in grooming children for paedophiles, preparing children for sexual interaction with older teenagers or adults,” Archbishop Driver said. The archbishop’s concerns about the debasement of children have also been a matter of concern for the Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams. In 2007 Dr Williams endorsed the Children’s Society report entitled Commercialisation of Childhood that found that children were being “engulfed” by sexually suggestive images about how they should look and feel, and what items they should own.
Dr Williams said there was “an increasing political and social consensus that something needs to be done to safeguard children from the worst excesses of direct marketing and the pressures of commercialisation.”
Australian priest guilty of sexual abuse: CEN 10.09.09 p 7. October 13, 2009
Posted by geoconger in Abuse, Anglican Church of Australia, Church of England Newspaper, Traditional Anglican Communion.add a comment
| First published in The Church of England Newspaper.
A former priest of the Diocese of Adelaide has been found guilty of carnal knowledge with an altar boy. Wilfred Edwin Dennis was found guilty on Oct 1 of sexually abusing a 14-year-old boy between October 1975 and January 1977. He was acquitted, however, on three counts of indecent assault and one count of gross indecency for allegedly having molested a second 10-year-old altar boy between 1972 and 1974. |
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The crimes came to light in 2002 when one of the victims contacted Dennis demanding compensation. Dennis, who had by that time quit the Anglican Church of Australia over the issue of women priests to join the Traditional Anglican Communion (TAC), informed his superior, Archbishop John Hepworth, of the threatening letter.
Asked if the allegations were true, Dennis admitted they were, and added that he had molested 41 other boys. Archbishop Hepworth contacted the police to report the crimes and also helped Dennis engage a lawyer.
In his summing up, Judge Sydney Tilmouth said Dennis’ testimony had been “bizarre” and “unconvincing.” Sentencing will take place in November.
On Oct 24, 2008, Adelaide Archbishop Jeffrey Driver told his synod the diocese had paid out over £2 million to settle 80 sexual abuse claims. In 2004, the diocese was confronted with claims for damages from up to 100 young men allegedly sexually abused by clergy and diocesan youth workers. The scandal forced then-Archbishop Ian George to resign after a diocesan review found his management of the crisis unsatisfactory.
The synod agreed to sell portions of Bishopscourt, the diocese’s episcopal palace, to help pay the abuse claims.
Australian Prime Minister welcomes Poverty and Justice Bible: CEN 10.02.09 p 8. September 29, 2009
Posted by geoconger in Anglican Church of Australia, Church of England Newspaper, Popular Culture.add a comment
| First published in The Church of England Newspaper.
The Bible Society’s Poverty and Justice Bible received the endorsement of Prime Minister Kevin Rudd last week at the launch of the Australian edition of the anotated edition of the Holy Scriptures that highlights in orange over 2,000 passages addressing questions of “social justice.” Joined by Opposition Leader Malcolm Turnbull at Parliament House in Canberra, Mr Rudd said the new Bible h elped focus Christian efforts on promoting social justice. It was an “extraordinary’ work which draws attention to the “challenge facing us all,” he said on Sept 18. |
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The new Bible highlights over 2,000 passages that address social justice issues and comes with a 32-page study guide that looks at issues of fair trade, farming and equality in education.
Bible Society’s Chief Executive, James Catford stated: “When we dreamt up the idea we never imagined that it would get picked up around the world. Gordon Brown got to have a copy when I visited Downing Street earlier this year. Now the Australian Prime Minister has spoken at its launch. People who work for the aid charities are really interested in it.”
At the launch of the UK edition in 2008 the president of the Bible Society, Bishop NT Wright of Durham said whilst poverty and injustice were “two of the biggest issues of our day,” the new Poverty and Justice Bible, shows that in “speaking out” on these questions, “God got there first.”
“Before the Make Poverty History movement, before Sir Bob Geldof’s Live 8 and before politicians began debating these issues, the Bible spoke loudly and clearly on poverty and justice,” he said.
“The Poverty and Justice Bible opens our eyes to that. It highlights – literally – that the Bible has something to say about issues that resonate today. This Bible connects with the very fabric of today’s world, with all its problems and messiness – and has something powerful to say,” Bishop Wright said.
No reprieve for Bendigo Cathedral: CEN 9.11.9 p 8. September 20, 2009
Posted by geoconger in Anglican Church of Australia, Church of England Newspaper.add a comment
| First published in The Church of England Newspaper.
The Australian Federal government has declined to step in and save St Paul’s Anglican Cathedral, the Bishop of Bendigo reports. In January the Diocese of Bendigo’s cathedral was closed as a public safety hazard and a fence erected around its perimeter after a slab of concrete sheeting fell from the roof during a wind-storm. A survey of the 140-year-old building in February found it needed almost £2.6 million in repairs before it could be reopened. |
“The inside of the bell tower is unsafe and even if we were back in the building, we can’t ring the bells again,” Dean Peta Sherlock said after the building was closed, as “every piece of adornment on the roof needs to be removed, that includes all cement crosses, towers and pinnacles.”
The cathedral’s website reports that in addition to the roof repairs “all our stained glass windows will need restorative work and the pinnacles on the tower need to be removed because their mortar has almost entirely eroded.”
Pleas for support to the local and state governments have so far yielded no results. Municipal finances were set back by February’s bushfires, which killed 128 people in Victoria and destroyed over 750 homes, while the downturn has stretched diocesan and government finances.
Last week the Bishop of Bendigo, the Rt Rev Andrew Curnow told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation that pleas to the government for assistance had failed. “At the present time we’ve reached the end of the road, we’ve tried every possible avenue to receive assistance from the Federal Government,” he said, adding the diocese had written to Prime Minister Kevin Rudd, who responded by forwarding the letter to Peter Garrett, Minister for the Environment, Heritage and the Arts.
“So at this point in time we’ve reached a dead end,” the bishop said.
Police investigate death of Australian priest accused of child abuse: CEN 7.24.09 p 6. July 28, 2009
Posted by geoconger in Abuse, Anglican Church of Australia, Church of England Newspaper.1 comment so far
The Church of England priest at the center of a child abuse scandal in Australia that led to the resignation of the former Archbishop of Adelaide has died under mysterious circumstances in Libya.
The Foreign Office has confirmed that the body of the Rev. John Mountford was discovered over the weekend in his apartment in Tripoli. Police are treating his death as a homicide.
Mountford, who served as chaplain at the Blue Coat School in Edgbaston, Birmingham, from 1987 to 1990, went out to Australia in 1991 to serve as chaplain of Adelaide’s St Peter’s College. In 1992 Mountford fled to Thailand after he was confronted with allegations that he molested a 14 year old student at the prestigious boys’ school.
Arrested by Thai police in 2004, Mountford was extradited to Australia a year later to stand trial. However, in 2007 the case collapsed after the victim declined to testify and Mountford left Australia for Libya where he founded an English-language school.
On June 11, 2004 the Archbishop of Adelaide, Dr. Ian George resigned eleven days after an independent report examining the diocese’s handling of Mountford and other clergy sexual abuse claims was made public.
The archbishop denied accusations that he protected Mountford, but correspondence obtained by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation showed that in 1993, Dr. George had written to Mountford saying he was “glad that you were not subjected to the pain, the humiliation and the public spectacle which the media would have relished in your case.”
Had Mountford remained in Adelaide, it was possible he would be “charged with an offence,” Dr. George told him, adding “You will see that I have done everything I can both to support you, and preserve your reputation.”
The current Archbishop of Adelaide, Dr. Jeffrey Driver told the AAP “this has been a sad and difficult experience.”
“A violent death is always a tragedy and causes shock and sadness for family and friends; I recognise that,” he said. “But I also recognise that reports of Mr Mountford’s death may stir difficult emotions for some and my thoughts and prayers are with them.”
Episcopal commission to probe bishop: CEN 7.10.09 p 6. July 11, 2009
Posted by geoconger in Anglican Church of Australia, Christianity Today, Church of England Newspaper.add a comment
| An Episcopal Standards Commission has been convened to investigate complaints of misconduct lodged by the clergy of the Diocese of Ballarat against their Bishop, Michael Hough.
On July 2, Michael Shand QC, chancellor of the Dioceses of Ballarat and Melbourne told the Ballarat synod that 13 priests, along with a number of lay leaders and retired clergy had requested an investigation of the bishop by Episcopal Standards Commission. Read it all in The Church of England Newspaper. |
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More Australia dioceses see falls in investments: CEN 6.26.09 p 7. June 29, 2009
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Brisbane and Melbourne have joined the Diocese of Sydney in reporting significant declines in the value of their investment portfolio due to the downturn of the global capital markets.
The value of investments held by the Diocese of Melbourne has fallen by over half, from £1.2 million at year’s end in 2007 to £446,000 today, the diocese reported. Over the same period the Diocese of Sydney’s portfolio value fell from £100 million to £50 million.
On June 20, the Archbishop of Brisbane Dr Phillip Aspinall told his diocesan synod “all is not rosy on the financial front,” and that the diocese continues to face significant financial challenges.
“We have been hit particularly in 2009 and will be in 2010 by the global financial situation and the significant reduction in interest and investment income,” he said, noting “interest rates have fallen to a third of what they were and my understanding is there has been a similar fall on other investments so that puts pressure on our diocesan budget.”
The Brisbane synod also adopted a motion asking Dr. Aspinall to voluntarily waive the legal defence of the statute of limitations in cases arising from clergy sexual abuse of children. The motion asked the “archbishop in council to continue its ethical lead by undertaking negotiations with the diocesan insurers to establish a protocol for dealing with claims by victims of child sexual abuse when the diocese considers it appropriate not to invoke the time limitations defence, but without losing indemnity from the insurers”.
Claims arising from clergy abuse of children have led to multi-million dollar payouts to victims from the Diocese Adelaide. The original motion presented to synod asked the diocese to waive unilaterally the statute of limitations defence, however it was noted the diocesan insurers managed the church’s litigation in this area, and a case by case basis was the best way forward in the circumstances.
Bishop dismisses claims of church investigation: CEN 6.26.09 p 5. June 26, 2009
Posted by geoconger in Abuse, Anglican Church of Australia, Church of England Newspaper.add a comment
The Bishop of The Murray has dismissed claims that an Episcopal Standards Commission has been convened by the Anglican Church of Australia to investigate charges leveled against him of conduct unbecoming a member of the clergy.
The Rt. Rev. Ross Davies stated there is “no formal inquiry and there are no formal allegations against me. I have asked for particulars; none have been provided.”
An April 2, The Church of England Newspaper reported a investigation had been initiated by the Archbishop of Adelaide, Dr. Jeffrey Driver, after he stated he could “confirm” that “an investigation is underway” of Bishop Davies.
Dr. Driver stated that he had been asked by The Murray’s diocesan council “to consider ways to assist in resolving issues raised in that Diocese related to the Bishop. A preliminary investigation will take place in the first instance to enable me and those advising me to understand the issues and determine how best to proceed.”
However on May 28, Bishop Davies released a statement castigating Dr. Driver, writing the archbishop had “no authority to intermeddle in the affairs” of the diocese “without my permission.”
“He hasn’t asked for it and I haven’t given it,” Bishop Davies said. “I am gravely concerned about the Constitution propriety of what is happening and what I see as a lack of due process and natural justice.”
On Sept 22, Bishop Davies returned to work after a year’s sick leave taken in the wake of charges that he failed to appropriately respond to allegations that his archdeacon had engaged in sexual misconduct.
An internal church report in 2005 found that the allegations against Archdeacon Peter Coote were “credible”, however, Bishop Davies is alleged to have taken no action other than refer him to a therapist. A initial inquiry found insufficient evidence to bring the bishop before the church’s Episcopal Standards Commission for conduct unbecoming a member of the clergy.
“I have not committed any breaches of the Laws of the Anglican Church,” Bishop Davies said last week, adding that he was disappointed with Dr. Driver. “In essence, the Archbishop has appointed someone to go fishing in The Murray to see if a case can be mounted against me,” the bishop said.
Boys ‘most likely to be victims of abuse’: CEN 6.19.09 p 5. June 19, 2009
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Boys aged between 10 and 15 years of age are the most frequently targeted victims of clergy sexual abuse, a report presented on June 13 to the Standing Committee of the Anglican Church of Australia’s General Synod has found
Prepared by Professor Patrick Parkinson and Professor Kim Oates of the University of Sydney the “Study of Reported Child Sexual Abuse in the Anglican Church” examined 191 cases of abuse reported to diocesan officials between 1990 and 2008 from 17 of the church’s 23 dioceses—three rural dioceses declined to participate in the study while three others reported no incidents of abuse.
The study was commissioned by the 2004 General Synod and sought to identify the “characteristics of accused persons” and their victims and the circumstances of the offence, as well as “ascertain patterns of abuse in relation to similarities or differences in gender and age of the child complainants,” in order to “inform the Church on what steps could be taken towards better prevention of sexual abuse within church communities.”
Archbishop Philip Aspinall of Brisbane stated, that “while this report is aimed at strengthening our child protection protocols as we look to the future, it also reminds us of the tragic events of the past and of the pain which still exists. We reiterate our apology, our sorrow and our deep regret for abuse which has occurred.”
“The Australian Church has been developing processes which include screening of those working with children and young people, a code of conduct and safe ministry training. The General Synod commissioned this report to ensure the Church continues to be proactive in the important matter of child protection.”
The study found that unlike patterns of abuse in the general population but closely akin to patterns of abuse documented in studies of Roman Catholic clergy in the United States who had committed child abuse, three quarters of the victims were boys aged 10 to 15 at the time of the abuse. Boys were also less likely to speak out promptly about the abuse than girls, with the average delay between the abuse and the complaint being 23 years, the study found.
The study also found that most of the accused were either clergy or were involved in some form of voluntary or paid youth work. Of those accused of abuse, 27 men accounted for 43 percent of all cases—a total of 135 clergy and church workers were accused of abuse: 133 men and 2 women.
Over half of those accused were adjudged guilty of the crime, while a third were acquitted due to insufficient evidence. The remainder either died before the investigations were carried out, while only 2 percent of the accusations were deemed false.
In explaining the disproportionately high rate of abused boys to girls, the study speculated that child abuse was often a crime of opportunity, and that boys were more likely to be in situations where they were alone with their abusers as compared to girls.
“The report contains a series of recommendations, ranging from a review of the education measures in place in dioceses through to a more coordinated national and uniform approach for the selection and accreditation of leaders of youth groups,” Dr. Aspinall said.
“While the Anglican Church has made very real progress over recent years in the area of child protection, the recommendations in this report will provide an important focus and impetus to our continued efforts in this area. It may well be that they are of assistance to other churches as well,” he said.
Sydney’s investments plummet in recession: CEN 6.12.09 p 5. June 13, 2009
Posted by geoconger in Anglican Church of Australia, Church of England Newspaper, Development/Economics/Govt Finances.add a comment
The value of the Diocese of Sydney’s investments have fallen by more than half this past year due to the collapse of the global financial markets, Archbishop Peter Jensen reports in a parochial letter distributed to the diocese on June 7.
The global financial crisis has taken a heavy toll across the communion, with many dioceses in the United States, Canada, and Australia reporting significant declines in investment and parochial income.
“We have suffered very significant losses to our diocesan capital,” Dr. Jensen reported due to the leveraged investment strategy used by the diocese. “For several years now we have borrowed money to increase the amount invested,” he said, noting this had realized high returns in past years, and had permitted a “special” £10 million “distribution to help purchase land and build new churches” in 2007.
However, when the market moved against the diocese, by year’s end the leveraged strategy had “accentuated our losses. As a result, our investments have fallen by more than half and the distribution of money from our investments has been cut by 50%. Ministries which depend on this funding will be severely impacted.”
Diocesan finances were now “stable,” with no debt and much of the diocese investment funds now held as cash. “But the losses remain,” he said, and would result in a restructuring of operations.
Last week the Episcopal Diocese of Washington also reported that it would be cutting its £2.4 million budget by £250,000 due to a projected shortfall of contributions from its 93 congregations. A spokesman stated the diocese would begin staff cuts to cover the shortfall as well as reduce its contribution to the national church’s coffers by £80,000.
Declining revenues and an aging church membership have strained most of the Episcopal Church’s dioceses. A March report released by the State of the Church committee for July’s General Convention estimated that 68 percent of the church’s dioceses were experiencing financial difficulties.
Bishop opposes Greens on Euthanasia: CEN 5.27.09 p 6. June 2, 2009
Posted by geoconger in Abortion/Euthanasia/Biotechnology, Anglican Church of Australia, Church of England Newspaper.add a comment
The Bishop of Tasmania has called upon the state parliament to reject a voluntary euthanasia bill tabled by the Green Party, saying only God, not man or the state had the right to take life.
On May 27 the leader of the Tasmanian Green Party Nick McKim tabled the Dying With Dignity Bill before the state parliament permitting assisted suicide.
Mr. McKim claimed that a privately commissioned poll found that 78 percent of Tasmanians endorsed assisted suicide or euthanasia, and that his bill contained safeguards to prevent the abuse of the law including a psychiatric evaluation of the person seeking to die, a second medical opinion verifying a life limiting condition, and residency in Tasmania for at least 12 months.
However, Bishop John Harrower urged legislators to reject the bill. “Going down the pathway of euthanasia is literally a way to death, not to life for our society – and it will bring great harm to Tasmania,” he told the local media.
Political leaders have given their members a free vote on the issue, which is expected to come up for debate in August. In 1995, the Northern Territory of Australia legalized euthanasia, passing the Rights of the Terminally Ill Act 1995. Four people took their lives under the provisions of the Act, but in 1997 Australia’s Federal Parliament overturned the legislation. Euthanasia remains a criminal offence in Australia.
Antipodean Churches take unity steps: CEN 6.01.09 June 1, 2009
Posted by geoconger in Anglican Church of Aotearoa New Zealand & Polynesia, Anglican Church of Australia, Church of England Newspaper, Methodism, Roman Catholic Church.add a comment
| Covenants of fellowship pledging renewed bonds of Christian fraternity have been endorsed by the Church of New Zealand and the Methodist Church and the Diocese of Brisbane and the Roman Catholic Church.
On May 29, the Primate of the Anglican Church of Australia, Archbishop Phillip Aspinall of Brisbane and Roman Catholic Archbishop John Bathersby of Brisbane and Bishop William Morris of Toowomba will endorse a covenant of friendship and cooperation at an evensong service at St Stephen’s Cathedral. The covenant document, entitled “A Celebration of Our Common Sesqui-Centenary and a Signing of the Anglican and Roman Catholic Covenant” marks the 25th anniversary of Brisbane’s first common declaration of cooperation between Anglicans and Roman Catholics. Read it all in The Church of England Newspaper. |
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Sir Marcus Loane, Australian hero, dies: CEN 4.17.09 p 8 April 22, 2009
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Australia’s first native born archbishop, the Most Rev. Marcus Loane, KBE died on April 14, following a brief illness. He was 97.
Archbishop Loane was a “formative leader in our church,” the Archbishop of Sydney, Dr. Peter Jensen said. “In national life, he offered leadership which transcended politics. In particular he spoke up for the poor and helped spark the Henderson enquiry of the early 1970s. He offered distinguished service with our troops in New Guinea during World War II.”
“He was a prolific author with an international influence and ministry,” Dr. Jensen said, but noted his predecessor would “be remembered most as one of the key architects of post-war Anglicanism” in Sydney.
Born in Tasmania in 1911, Archbishop Loane was educated at the University of Sydney and Moore Theological College and was ordained in 1935. From 1939 to 1953, he served as vice principal of Moore Theological College-serving also with the Australian Army’s Chaplain Corps in New Guinea from 1942 to 1944. Appointed principal of Moore College in 1954, he was named a suffragan bishop of Sydney in 1958, Archbishop of Sydney in 1966, and Primate of Australia in 1978, retiring in 1982.
In the 1976 New Year’s Day Honours List Archbishop Loane was appointed a Knight of the Order of the British Empire (KBE). He is survived by his wife of 71 years, Lady Loane, and their two sons and two daughters and their families.
Australian bishop investigated for sexual allegation failure: CEN 4.03.09 p 7. April 6, 2009
Posted by geoconger in Abuse, Anglican Church of Australia, Church of England Newspaper.add a comment
Complaints of conduct unbecoming a member of the clergy have lead to the convening of an Episcopal Standards Commission in Australia to investigate the Bishop of The Murray, the Rt. Rev. Ross Davies.
On March 17, the Archbishop of Adelaide, Dr. Jeffrey Drive released a statement on his diocesan website saying that he could “confirm” that “an investigation is underway”
“I have been asked by the Diocesan Council of the Diocese of The Murray to consider ways to assist in resolving issues raised in that Diocese related to the Bishop. A preliminary investigation will take place in the first instance to enable me and those advising me to understand the issues and determine how best to proceed.”
“It is important that this be a thorough, timely and appropriate process and at some arms length both to me and the Diocese of The Murray,” Dr. Driver said, noting the church’s disciplinary canons forbad discussion of the charges or the progress of the investigation.
On Sept 22, Bishop Davies returned to work after a year’s sick leave taken in the wake of charges that he failed to appropriately respond to allegations that his archdeacon had engaged in sexual misconduct.
An internal church report in 2005 found that the allegations against Archdeacon Peter Coote were “credible”, however, Bishop Davies is alleged to have taken no action other than refer him to a therapist.
A review found insufficient evidence to bring the bishop before a tribunal, however, on Nov 30, the Adelaide Sunday Mail reported that Bishop Davies was asking for approximately £500,000 from the diocese in return for his early retirement.
The Special Tribunal Canon passed at the 2007 General Synod enumerates crimes for which a bishop may be investigated. Breaches of faith, ritual or ceremony, drunkenness, failure to honour lawful debts, unchastity, violation of the constitution, canons and ordinances of the Anglican Church of Australia and violation of a bishop’s consecrations vows are grounds for review.
A letter writing campaign mounted by a lay group opposed to the bishop has urged supports to address complaints to the Episcopal Standards Commission—the body charged with investigating allegations of misconduct—-raising the additional catch-all category of conduct unbecoming a member of the clergy: “conduct, whenever occurring, which would be disgraceful if committed by a member of the clergy, and which at the present time is productive, or if known publicly would be productive, of scandal or evil report.”
Should the Episcopal Standards Commission find the allegations credible, Bishop Davies would be brought before the Special Tribunal for bishops to answer the charges, and if found guilty could be dismissed from office.
Melbourne Archbishop’s Khatami invite enrages Jews: CEN 3.27.09 March 27, 2009
Posted by geoconger in Anglican Church of Australia, Church of England Newspaper, Iran, Islam, Judaism.2 comments
| A reception for the former president of Iran Mohammad Khatami hosted by the Archbishop of Melbourne has sparked protests from Jewish leaders.
In a March 13 letter declining an invitation to tea at the home of Archbishop Philip Freier to meet President Khatami, the leader of the Jewish Community Council of Victoria, John Searle urged the archbishop to cancel the reception, saying it was “inconceivable that the Anglican diocese would choose to host such a man or even to meet with him.” However, Dr. Freier urged Jewish leaders to attend the reception, saying it would be an opportunity for dialogue between Jews and Muslims. Read it all in The Church of England Newspaper. |
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Sex victims urged to come forward: CEN 3.20.09 p 9. March 23, 2009
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The Diocese of Adelaide has released a statement urging victims of sexual abuse at the hands of clergy and church workers to come forward and accept the church’s assistance of aid.
On March 12 the diocese said the sentencing of former Church of England Boys Society youth leader Andrew Dawson-Ryan on indecent assault and gross indecency charges of young boys “may help the survivors and their families move towards healing.”
Dawson-Ryan, 60, was sentenced to 18 years in prison after having been found guilty of 17 counts of abuse. District Justice Gordon Barrett told Dawson-Ryan that he had shown no remorse for his crimes and had abused his position of trust. The former youth leader-the fifth Church of England Boys Society youth leader jailed for pedophilia in Australia must spend 10 years in prison before he will be eligible for parole.
The judge noted that even then, “I do not know to what extent the community can be confident you will not succumb again to the temptations that led you to this offending,” The Australian reported.
On Oct 24, Adelaide Archbishop Jeffrey Driver told his synod the diocese had paid out over £2 million to settle 80 sexual abuse claims. In 2004, the diocese was confronted with claims for damages from up to 100 young men allegedly sexually abused by clergy and diocesan youth workers. The scandal forced Archbishop Ian George to resign after a diocesan review found his management of the crisis unsatisfactory.
The synod agreed to sell portions of Bishopscourt, the diocese’s episcopal palace to help pay the abuse claims.
In a statement released after the sentence was handed down, the diocese said it had been in “touch with and providing assistance to seven survivors of Dawson-Ryan’s abuse and hopes that the conviction and sentencing may encourage others to come forward and seek help.”
“Any sex abuse survivors who have not yet been assisted by the Anglican Church are urged to get in touch to arrange pastoral and financial support,” it said.
Vatican blocks Whitsun inter-faith service: CEN 3.06.09 p 7. March 8, 2009
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The boundaries of Anglican-Roman Catholic common worship were marked this week in Australia after the Vatican nixed plans for a joint Whitsunday service of confirmation and Eucharist in Newcastle, while the archbishops of Brisbane issued a common Lenten pastoral letter, announcing plans for a common service of “repentance” for the church’s sectarian squabbles.
The Vatican’s Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments last week asked Roman Catholic Bishop Michael Malone of Maitland-Newcastle to cancel a joint confirmation service scheduled for May 31 at the Anglican Christ Church Cathedral. Bishop Malone and the Anglican Bishop of Newcastle, the Rt. Rev. Brian Farran explained Rome had “expressed concern about a simultaneous celebration and the possibility of confusing messages being given to the people.”
The two bishops said they were disappointed with the decision. In April 2008 the two dioceses, along with the Roman Catholic Diocese of Broken Bay endorsed a “Tri-Diocesan Covenant” to promote the sharing of church resources.
Speaking at the launch of the Covenant last year, Bishop David Walker of Broken Bay said, “This Covenant is a pledge to continue the things that we are doing together, and a commitment to be open to further involvement in the future. It is also a challenge to our respective communities to enter, formally or informally, into closer relationships with other Christians.”
The Newcastle Herald noted that organizers of the event were surprised by the Vatican’s letter as the Roman Catholic dioceses had not informed Rome of their plans.
On March 2, Brisbane’s two archbishop’s, Roman Catholic Archbishop John Bathersby and Anglican Archbishop Phillip Aspinall issued a joint Lenten pastoral letter on the dioceses’ 150th anniversaries.
The two archbishops enumerated the joint programmes shared by the two churches and noted “the personal friendship between past archbishops and bishops of our respective churches has been constant, and provided a springboard for a happy flowering of ecumenical co-operation, especially since the early 1960s.”
However, past relations “between the churches” had been marred by “sectarianism, suspicion, and hardness of heart.”
To atone for these past sins, on March 27 a joint service at the Anglican St John’s Cathedral will be held to make a “common act of repentance for our ecumenical and other failings of Christ over the last 150 years, and to re-dedicate ourselves to the work of Christ in co-operation and goodwill to one another in the years ahead.”
The archbishops also announced plans to renew their 1984 Common Declaration and endorse a new Covenant of Understanding that would see the two churches “pray for one another,” celebrate an “annual Ecumenical Liturgy of Reconciliation,” permit bishops to preach in each other’s churches and hold a joint clergy day each year, while exploring “co-operative use of church plant and resources,” and theological education.
Australian Church calls for blasphemy abolition: CEN 2.20.09 February 22, 2009
Posted by geoconger in Anglican Church of Australia, Church of England Newspaper, Free Speech.2 comments
Blasphemy should be abolished as a crime under Australia’s federal and state penal codes, the Standing Committee of the General Synod of the Anglican Church of Australia has argued in a submission to the Australian Human Rights Commission (AHRC)
“We look for a society where religious discourse is conducted in safety and security, and people are free to disagree without danger or social exclusion or harm to person or property,” the church said in its submission in response to the AHRC’s paper, “Freedom of Religion and Belief in the 21st Century project.”
“These conditions will entail the freedom to engage in robust debate and disagreement about religious beliefs and practices,” it said.
Launched in September, the “Freedom of Religion” project seeks to set the terms of debate for church state relations in the coming decades. Conducted in partnership with Monash University, RMIT University and the Australian Multicultural Foundation, the project seeks to determine whether there is adequate protection against discrimination based on religion or belief, and how federal, state and territory governments are managing incitement to religious hatred.
The paper also looks at the extent of the influence of organized religion on government as well as the “commitment to interfaith understanding and inclusion in Australia at present.”
It also addresses the contentious issue of human sexuality, asking how diverse sexuality is perceived within the various faith communities, how faith communities can become inclusive of people of diverse sexualities, and whether religious organizations should be permitted to bar people from employment due to sexual orientation.
In its response, the church said it endorsed the proposed Religious Freedom Act making it unlawful to discriminate on the grounds of religion in the area of employment, “provided there are appropriate exemptions.”
Religious tests should be permitted when it is a qualification for employment, the church said, urging the adoption of a legal exemption that allows a “distinction, exclusion or preference in connection with employment” for religious organizations, including schools, social service agencies, hospitals and other charitable institutions, when the religious qualification is “derived from the doctrines, tenets, beliefs or teachings of a particular religion.”
The church also supported the “abolition of the common law offence of blasphemy and the repeal of any laws creating the offence of blasphemy.” Under Australia’s Federal Constitution blasphemy is not an offense at common law. However Section 118 of the Broadcasting & Television Act 1942 prohibits the broadcast of “matter which is blasphemous, indecent or obscene.”
Blasphemous libel is a criminal offense in several Australian states, though there have been no prosecutions in recent decades. While Queensland and Western Australia have no blasphemy laws, Australia’s other states and territories carry the offence on the statute books. In Victoria the last attempt to prosecute blasphemy as a common law offence occurred in 1919, but the Transport (Passenger Vehicles) Regulations 1994 forbids passengers on public transport from using “any blasphemous, indecent, insulting, offensive, profane, violent or threatening language or gesture to the annoyance or hindrance of any other person.”
A balance between civil liberties and religious rights need be found, the church said. “We value and want to keep the freedoms and rights Australians enjoy, which are delivered by Australian law, and have in turn been shaped and informed by Judeo-Christian thought,” the church saidl
“We recognise and affirm the cultural diversity that exists within Australia, and the need to respond thoughtfully to increasing religious diversity. But any policy initiatives arising from debate about freedom of religion and belief should not compromise these freedoms and rights,” the standing committee argued.
The closing date for submissions for the “Freedom of Religion” project is Feb 28.
Scenes from Alexandria: The Closing Press Conference February 20, 2009
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The Archbishop of Canterbury and the Primates Media spokesman, Archbishop Philip Aspinall at the closing press conference of the 2009 Primates Meeting on Feb 5. First published in the Church of England Newspaper.
Scenes from Alexandria: Wales & Australia February 20, 2009
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The Primate of Wales, Archbishop Barry Morgan, and the Primate of Australia, Archbishop Philip Aspinall entering St Mark's Cathedral in Alexandria, Egypt on Feb 1, 2009
Archbishop launches appeal after bush fires: CEN 2.13.09 p 8. February 13, 2009
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The Archbishop of Melbourne, Dr. Philip Freier has launched an appeal to aid in the wake of brush fires that have left almost 200 dead and destroyed over 750 houses.
On Feb 9 Victoria Premier John Brumby reported during a tour of the hard hit Mudgegonga region in Eastern Victoria that 173 people were confirmed dead following the weekend brush fires, with an additional 50 people missing and presumed dead. The fires have left hundreds of people homeless and burned over 3000 square kilometers, destroying whole towns.
The Diocese of Melbourne reported that the church in Kinglake was destroyed on Feb 7, while other local parishes were offering shelter and support to those displaced by the fires.
Bishop Stephen Hale of the Eastern Region has reported what information is available on how the weekend’s bush fires have impacted upon the Anglican parishes in the affected communities.
Following a tour of the Kinglake area, Archbishop Freier told Anglican Media Melbourne he was profoundly saddened by the scale of the devastation and loss of life, and also greatly moved by the love and care people on display.
Those outside the devastated areas could help by contributing to the appeal, he said. It would enable the church to “these devastated and grieving communities to rebuild and start again,” he said.
A quick and coordinated response to the tragedy was essential, he noted. “We learned important lessons after the 1983 bush fires about working with the community to rebuild a sense of hope and purpose,” Dr. Freier said. “Our recovery co-ordinating committee is ready to respond now and in the months ahead.”
“These fires have been a cruel blow to the communities already affected by drought,” Dr. Freier said on Feb 8, “and it will call upon all of our faith and resilience to see each other through these times.”
Governor General Quentin Bryce said the Victorian fires were a grave national emergency, and she has urged all Australians to do what they can to help the victims.
In a televised address she asked all Australians to come to the aid of their countrymen. “I know our capacity for giving and doing, for I see it wherever I travel throughout our nation and beyond, I urge all Australians to find the best and bravest of it, and put it to work,” she said.
Australian Primate attacks time-limit on sex claims: CEN 1.23.09 p 6. January 24, 2009
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| Laws that block victims of childhood sexual abuse from bringing their claims to court after they turn 21 are “harsh and inequitable” the Primate of Australia, Archbishop Phillip Aspinall of Brisbane has charged.
Copies of correspondence between Dr Aspinall and the Queensland government obtained by the Weekend Australian, show the Anglican leader has sought for several years to overturn the law of laches, or “time defence” in sexual abuse cases. Under Australian law a claim of abuse incurred as a child must be made before the victim turns 21, otherwise it can be barred by the doctrine of laches — the failure to assert a claim in a timely manner. The Australian Church’s insurance companies have relied upon the “time defence” rule in fighting claims of compensation for abuse suffered by children at the hands of pedophiles employed by the church. Churches were bound by contract with their insurance companies to use the time defence rule in contesting abuse claims, Dr Aspinall noted. However, a change in the law would now guarantee abuse victims their right to a day in court, he said. Read it all in The Church of England Newspaper’s Religious Intelligence section. |
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Anglican clergy in bid to remove bishop: CEN 1.09.09 p 8. January 12, 2009
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Clergy and lay leaders of the Diocese of Ballarat are in open revolt against their bishop, the Rt. Michael Hough, and have filed charges against him with the Anglican Church of Australia seeking his ouster for conduct unbecoming a member of the clergy.
On Jan 3, The Age newspaper of Melbourne reported that half of the diocese’s clergy had filed complaints against Bishop Hough with the church’s Primate, Archbishop Phillip Aspinall who has forwarded them to the newly formed Episcopal Standards Commission for review.
The push to oust Bishop Hough follows an unsuccessful drive by members of the neighboring diocese of The Murray to oust their bishop, the Rt. Rev. Ross Davies. On Sept 22, Bishop Davies returned to work after a year’s sick leave following charges leveled that he failed to appropriately respond to allegations that his archdeacon had engaged in sexual misconduct.
An internal church report in 2005 found that the allegations against Archdeacon Coote were “credible”, however, Bishop Davies is alleged to have taken no action other than refer him to a therapist. An investigation into the allegations is on-going.
A review of the charges against Bishop Davies last year found insufficient evidence to bring him before a tribunal. However, on Nov 30, the Adelaide Sunday Mail reported that Bishop Davies was asking for almost £500,000 from the diocese in return for his early retirement.
The complaints lodged with Dr. Aspinall against the Bishop of Ballarat centre upon the breakdown of the pastoral relationship between the bishop and his clergy. A member of the Ballarat Cathedral chapter, Euan Thompson told The Age that Bishop Hough was “a difficult, obnoxious, prickly person who has poor people skills and an abrasive manner. He upsets people.”
An unnamed clergyman stated that when Bishop Hough “gets upset with a priest, he sends a long, denigrating and abusive email marked ’strictly personal and confidential’. It was when we got together we found a whole series of people had been treated that way.”
Bishop Hough responded that he had no intention of stepping down from office and that those unhappy with him were a small group of disaffected clergy unable to adapt to changing circumstances. There was no case for him to answer he argued, “I’d have to do a lot worse than what they are accusing me of. Traditionally, it’s the big ones – adultery, theft, heresy” that would lead to removal from office.
The Special Tribunal Canon passed at the 2007 General Synod enumerates crimes for which a bishop may be investigated. Breaches of faith, ritual or ceremony, drunkenness, failure to honour lawful debts, unchastity, violation of the constitution, canons and ordinances of the Anglican Church of Australia and violation of a bishop’s consecrations vows are grounds for review.
Bishop Hough has been charged under an additional catch-all category of conduct unbecoming a member of the clergy: “conduct, whenever occurring, which would be disgraceful if committed by a member of the clergy, and which at the present time is productive, or if known publicly would be productive, of scandal or evil report.”
Should the Episcopal Standards Commission find the allegations credible, the bishop would be brought before a tribunal to answer the charges, and if found guilty could be dismissed from office.
Former Australian primate dies, aged 89: CEN 1.09.09 p 8 January 12, 2009
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The former Primate of the Anglican Church of Australia, Archbishop John Grindrod KBE died on Jan 3 following a long illness. He was 89.
“Sir John led the Anglican community during an important period in which some difficult issues were addressed the Archbishop of Brisbane Dr. Phillip Aspinall said on Jan 5.
Educated at Repton and Queen’s College, Oxford, Archbishop Grindrod served his curacy at St. Michael’s Hulme in the Diocese of Manchester, before emigrating to Australia. He served as the incumbent of parishes in Manchester and in Queensland and Victoria before being appointed Archdeacon of Rockhampton.
Elected Bishop of Riverina in 1966, he was translated to the Diocese of Rockhampton in 1971, and elected Archbishop of Brisbane in 1980. In 1982 he was elected Primate of the Anglican Church of Australia, and was made a Knight Commander of the British Empire in the 1983 New Year’s honours list.
During his seven years as Primate of the newly renamed Anglican Church of Australia—until 1981 it was known as the Church of England in Australia—Archbishop Grindrod fostered closer relations with the Roman Catholic Church and championed the cause of Australia’s aborigines. Within the Anglican Church he oversaw the passage of canons permitting the remarriage of divorced persons in the church, the admission of children to Holy Communion, and the ordination of women to the diaconate.
As Bishop of Rockhampton, Archbishop Grindrod was chairman of the Australian church’s Liturgical Commission which in 1978 published An Australian Prayer Book—the first new prayer book authorized for use in Australia after the 1662 Book of Common Prayer.
The late archbishop was a “much loved and admired member of the Anglican Community. He was a great man of the people and he displayed empathy, care and compassion to all. He will be sadly missed,” Dr. Aspinall said.
Brisbane Cathedral completed: CEN 11.13.08 November 13, 2008
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| One hundred and two years after work began on Brisbane’s St John’s Cathedral construction has finally been completed. On Nov 11 the Primate of Australia, Archbishop Phillip Aspinall blessed a 42 foot tall copper-clad spire that was hoisted on top of the cathedral’s central tower.
“This represents practical completion of the project more than 102 years after it began and 119 years after it was first designed by English Victorian gothic architect John Pearson,” Dr Aspinall said Read it all in The Church of England Newspaper. |
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Primate wants law to ban smacking: CEN 11.07.08 p 6. November 10, 2008
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The Primate of Australia has given his backing to the campaign to reform Australia’s laws governing corporal punishment, saying the current rules that allowed parents “reasonable” force to discipline their children, had “unintended negative consequences.”
Writing in the November issue of his diocesan newspaper, Anglican Focus, Archbishop Phillip Aspinall said child abuse should not be countenanced by resort to law. “My concern,” he said, was to address the “pressing problem of serious violence and injury done to children under the guise of discipline.”
Under Section 280 of Queensland’s Criminal Code it is lawful for a parent, or someone acting in loco parentis such a as teacher, to use discipline management or control towards a child or pupil, if such force is reasonable under the circumstances.
Children’s advocates in Australia have called for the repeal of Section 280 and similar legislation in other Australian states in the wake of several high profile court cases that sanctioned corporal punishment. In February a Queensland teacher charged with the assault of a student was acquitted under Section 280, while in a controversial 1992 court decision, the parents of four children in Tasmania accused of chaining them to a shed, beating them with shearing belts and stinging them with cattle prods were acquitted under the Tasmanian equivalent of Section 280.
Beating children exposed them “to increased levels of domestic violence because violent parents go unpunished,” Dr. Aspinall said. It also sends the message that “the use of force against children is acceptable, even in situations where similar force used against an adult would be criminal,” he argued.
Dr. Aspinall urged voters to contact their MP’s to seek reform of the legislation. While he personally opposed the use of corporal punishment, he was not seeking an outright ban. The protections of Section 280 should not be applied to cases of grievous bodily injury or serious assault, he said.
“These comments should not be taken to suggest that I support smacking as a means of disciplining children. I do not,” he said.
“I would much prefer that ways other than smacking be found,” the Australian archbishop said.
The Archbishop of Adelaide November 10, 2008
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The Most Rev. Jeffrey Driver at the 2008 Lambeth Conference
£2m cost of abuse claims: CEN 11.07.08 p 6. November 10, 2008
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The Diocese of Adelaide has paid out over £2 million to settle 80 sexual abuse claims, the diocesan synod learned on Oct 24. However, a number of claims remain outstanding Archbishop Jeffrey Driver told the synod in his presidential address due to the “necessities of police investigations or other legal proceedings.”
In 2004, the diocese was confronted with claims for damages from up to 100 young men allegedly sexually abused by clergy and diocesan youth workers. The scandal forced Archbishop Ian George to resign after a diocesan review found his management of the crisis unsatisfactory.
Since taking office in 2005, Dr. Driver has focused on flushing out the vestiges of the abuse scandal from the diocese, and restoring it to financial integrity. At last month’s synod, the diocese voted to sell a portion of Bishopscourt, the official residence of the bishop since 1856 to help satisfy the claims.
Synod agreed to subdivide the property, selling 1000 square meters of land at Bishopscourt that had been used as a tennis court. The proceeds of the sale, expected to net £600,000, would be applied to the support of the episcopate, freeing up funds from the budget to pay off a loan taken out by the diocese to settle the first round of abuse claims.
Dr. Driver told the synod that the “strategy put in place to deal with the financial impact of claims has evolved and has been effective” allowing the current budget to begin “repaying the capital of borrowings.”
“We are still in a place that requires careful financial management, but I am hopeful that we will be able to restore the financial position of the diocese well within the 10 years initially expected,” he said.”
No woman diocesan for Australia yet: CEN 11.07.08 p 6. November 10, 2008
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The Archdeacon of Canberra’s bid to become the first woman diocesan bishop in Australia came up short this week, as the diocese elected Sydney vicar the Rev. Stuart Robinson to become the tenth Bishop of the Diocese of Canberra and Goulburn.
On Nov 2, the electoral synod meeting at St. Saviour’s Cathedral elected Mr. Robinson, rector of Chatswood in the Diocese of Sydney and the National Mission Facilitator for the Anglican Church of Australia, bishop of the diocese that comprises the Australian Capital Territory and surrounding areas.
Mr. Robinson was elected by the 110 clergy and 240 lay delegates from a slate of four candidates, which included the Archdeacon of Canberra, the Ven. Sarah Macneil.
Last September the Australian Church’s appellate tribunal held that women clergy could be consecrated as diocesan bishops. In May Barbara Darling and Kay Goldsworthy were consecrated as suffragan bishops of Melbourne and Perth. The Nov 2 election in Canberra was the first time a woman priest stood for election as a diocesan bishop in Australia.
Sydney allows deacons to administer Communion, on a point of grammar: CEN 10.31.08 p 5. October 30, 2008
Posted by geoconger in Anglican Church of Australia, Church of England Newspaper, Ecclesiology, Hymnody/Liturgy.3 comments
The Diocese of Sydney’s Synod has reaffirmed its longstanding support for diaconal administration of Holy Communion.
However, the adoption of Resolution 7.2 “Lay and diaconal administration” leaves the diocesan canons intact and creates no new laws: the licensing of Eucharistic ministers remains in the hands of Sydney’s Archbishop, Dr. Peter Jensen. The Synod vote affirmed the legal principal enacted last year by the Anglican Church of Australia’s highest court, which held that the language of a canon, not the legislative intent in its creation, provides its meaning.
The plain meaning of the current canons of the Australian Church already provide for diaconal celebration, Synod concluded—however, the ban on lay celebration remains in effect.
The Oct 21 vote is the latest step in a 25 year push for lay and diaconal presidency in Sydney. Adopted by an overwhelming majority, Resolution 7.2 accepted a report on the current state of canon law on diaconal and lay presidency prepared by a committee led by North Sydney Bishop Glenn Davies; affirmed Synod’s “conviction that lay and diaconal administration of the Lord’s Supper is consistent with the teaching of Scripture” and affirmed that the “Lord’s Supper in this diocese may be administered by persons other than presbyters.”
In presenting the resolution for consideration Bishop Davies said it would not “make law or change law” but would “merely express” Synod’s view on this issue.
Legal authority already existed for deacons to celebrate the Eucharist, Bishop Davies’ committee report argued. In 1997, the church’s highest court, the Appellate Tribunal, ruled that deacons or lay people could administer Holy Communion so long as General Synod authorized the practice.
The Davies committee concluded that the Ordination Service for Deacons Canon passed by General Synod in 1985 and subsequently adopted by all of Australia’s dioceses gave this permission.
In the reformed 1985 Ordinal, bishops charge deacons to be “be faithful in prayer, and take your place with bishop, priest and people in public worship and at the administration of the sacraments.”
In his question to the diaconal candidates for ordination, the bishop asks “Will you take your part in reading the Holy Scriptures in the church, in teaching the doctrine of Christ, and in administering the sacraments?”
And in his authorization of the new deacon the bishop states, “receive this sign of your authority to proclaim God’s word and to assist in the administration of his holy sacraments.”
These three portions of the 1985 ordination service “expressly authorizes the deacon to assist the priest in the administration of the sacraments,” the committee said. The immediate effect of the 1985 ordinal change had been to permit deacons to baptize and preach without recourse to prior permission from their bishop. The word “assistance equally applies to Holy Communion as it applies to baptism; and there is no dispute that a deacon can administer baptism in its entirety,” the Davies paper said.
“It is therefore competent for the Archbishop of Sydney to license a deacon to assist the priest in the administration of Holy Communion as well as baptism, if the deacon has been ordained in accordance with the schedule of the 1985 Canon,” the Davies committee concluded.
Given this interpretation of the canons Bishop Davies told Synod, there is “nothing the Archbishop can do to prevent a deacon administering the Lord’s Supper”.
However, “it would require a bishop’s license” for a lay person to administer Communion, he said. And Dr. Jensen “will not license a lay person at this time.”
The question of lay and diaconal presidency at the Eucharist has been a topic of debate for over a generation, with the first committee chartered to examine the issue in 1983.
A report prepared by a committee led by Bishop Paul Barnett in 1993 concluded there “are no sound doctrinal objections to, and there are significant doctrinal reasons for, lay presidency at the Lord’s Supper. There are also sound reasons based on our received Anglican order for allowing lay presidency.”
The Barnett committee concluded that “prohibition of lay presidency at the Lord’s Supper does not seem justifiable theologically.”
On Oct 19, 1999 Sydney adopted an Ordinance permitting diaconal and lay presidency at the Eucharist, by a vote of 122 to 66 amongst the clergy, and 224 to 128 amongst the laity.
However, the following day the Primate of the Anglican Church of Australia, Archbishop Keith Rayner, urged Sydney Archbishop Harry Goodhew to withhold his assent writing the vote represented a “fundamental break with catholic order” which would place the diocese at odds with the “constitution and canons of our church.”
On Nov 10, 1999 Archbishop Goodhew declined to give his assent as approving lay presidency would have ramifications for Sydney and the wider Anglican Communion. Archbishop Goodhew wrote that following the 1998 Lambeth Conference, he had joined other church leaders working to block “unilateral action over crucial moral issues and attendant theological norms. To act unilaterally myself and without wide consultation would undermine my credibility in those ongoing debates,” he said.
Mindful that “Synod has delivered a clear verdict” in favor of lay presidency, Archbishop Goodhew said he was inclined not to support the Ordinance in light of the tribunal’s ruling. He had to consider his “constitutional responsibilities” to the wider church, he said, adding that “as a bishop I have both the right and the duty to accept the opinion of the body established by this Church for giving an opinion on such an issue. This opinion cannot be taken lightly.”
Following his election as Archbishop in 2001, in his Presidential Address to Synod Dr. Jensen said, “Lay administration, should it be legal, would be a contribution to the common task of bringing the gospel to Australia,” adding that “it is strange not to allow for this ministry in an ordered way.”
In 2003 the Sydney Synod began the legal steps to clear the path for diaconal administration, rescinding Section 10 of the 1662 Act of Uniformity as it applied to the diocese. A vestige of the diocese’s Church of England roots, Section 10 stated that “only episcopally ordained priests may consecrate the Holy Communion.”
In light of the Appellate Tribunal’s 2007 decision finding a right to the ordination of women to the episcopate within the existing canons of the Anglican Church of Australia even though this right was not envisioned when the language of the canons was drafted, the Davies committee stated a precedent had been set that set aside the notion of legislative intent in the interpretation of church canons.
The Appellate Tribunal had “expressed the view that legislation is to be interpreted by the meaning of the words used and not on the basis of any supposed intention of the promoters of legislation,” the Davies committee observed. If doctrine could be developed by resort to grammar in the case of women bishops, such a tool could not logistically be denied to diaconal presidency at the Eucharist, it noted.
Melbourne Diocese hit by global credit crunch: CEN 10.24.08 October 25, 2008
Posted by geoconger in Anglican Church of Australia, Church of England Newspaper.1 comment so far
| The global credit crunch will have a major impact on the Diocese of Melbourne, delegates to its annual synod learned last week, and may force the church to shutter churches and ministries in order to balance its budget.
On Oct 13 the registrar of Melbourne, Kevin Spackman, told a meeting of synod at St Paul’s Cathedral the diocese was facing a £400,000 projected deficit for the first six months of 2009. “The global financial crisis is obviously starting to have an impact on a lot of not-for-profit organisations and agencies, and the Anglican Church in Melbourne and Geelong, we’ve been caught up in that,” he said. Read it all in The Church of England Newspaper. |
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Australian primate calls for action on poker machines: CEN 10.17.08 p 8. October 19, 2008
Posted by geoconger in Anglican Church of Australia, Church of England Newspaper, Gambling.1 comment so far
The Primate of the Anglican Church of Australia has joined the call for a government crackdown on video poker machines.
On Oct 7 Archbishop Phillip Aspinall told a community forum in Brisbane the impact of “pokies” on Australian families had been “devastating.” He urged government action to regulate electronic gambling machines, saying that up to 120,000 Queenslanders had become addicted to gambling.
The archbishop’s remarks mirror concerns presented by leaders of the Diocese of Melbourne in testimony before a government committee last month. Speaking to the Victoria senate on Sept 11 representatives of Anglicare Victoria and Melbourne’s Social Responsibilities Committee (SRC) told a government panel investigating problem gambling, that video poker machines “pokies” had had a corrosive effect on society, and urged the government to impose strict regulations on the use and distribution of the machines.
In his remarks to a Brisbane community forum called to discuss problem gambling and pokies, Archbishop Aspinall suggested the first step should be a “staged significant reduction in the number of poker machines in licensed venues.”
However he rejected calls from anti-gambling campaigners for a ban on pokies, saying there should be a debate on limiting the machines to casinos, and getting “them out of pubs and clubs.”
“It may be a staged reduction that needs to take place, so government can adjust its budget to cope with the reduced revenue and so that people who are in business in pubs and clubs can also adjust their business to the shift,” he said according to local newspaper accounts.
Over the past decade Australia has seen a sharp rise in problem gambling, a trend critics charge is coupled with the widespread use of pokies in pubs, clubs and other public venues. The Australian Bureau of Statistics reports the total takings from gambling during 2004-05 was A$15.5 billion, with pokies providing A$8.7 billion or 56.3% of total net takings from gambling.
Archbishop of Brisbane re-elected as Primate: CEN 10.18.08 October 18, 2008
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| Archbishop Phillip Aspinall of Brisbane has been re-elected to a six year term as Primate of the Anglican Church of Australia.
Elected to a three year term in 2005, at a meeting held on Oct 17 in Sydney, the Primate Board of Electors returned the Brisbane archbishop to office for a second full term. “To hold this position is an honour and while it comes with a great deal of responsibility it is a challenge I am pleased to accept for the next six years,” Dr. Aspinall said. Read it all in The Church of England Newspaper. |
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Mixed response as ABC cancels religious broadcast: CEN 10.18.08 October 18, 2008
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| The Australian Broadcasting Corporation’s (ABC) decision to cancel its weekly Religion Report has drawn mixed reactions from that country’s Anglican leaders.
The Primate of the Anglican Church of Australian, Archbishop Phillip Aspinall of Brisbane said he was disappointed the national broadcaster had cancelled the flagship Wednesday morning programme, however Sydney diocesan spokesman Bishop Robert Forsyth said he was encouraged Radio National was taking religion reporting out of a specialty ghetto and moving it into the “mainstream” of its news reporting. Read it all in The Church of England Newspaper. |
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Australian church leaders in call for action on slot machines: CEN 9.20.08 September 20, 2008
Posted by geoconger in Anglican Church of Australia, Church of England Newspaper, Gambling, Politics, Popular Culture.add a comment
| Church leaders in Melbourne, Australia, have urged the government to adopt a hard line towards computer gambling, saying the proliferation of electronic poker machines in low-income communities has fostered “harm and dysfunction” amongst the poor.
In testimony before the Victoria senate on Sept 11 representatives of Anglicare Victoria and the Diocese of Melbourne’s Social Responsibilities Committee (SRC) told a government panel investigation the social effects of video poker machines that the proliferation of the devices had had a corrosive effect on society. They urged the government to impose strict regulations on the use and distribution of the machines. Read it all in The Church of England Newspaper. |
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Canberra could choose Australia’s first female diocesan: CEN 9.12.08 p 6. September 15, 2008
Posted by geoconger in Anglican Church of Australia, Church of England Newspaper, Women Priests.2 comments
Canberra may be the first Australian diocese to elect a woman as diocesan bishop. The Archdeacon of Canberra, the Ven. Sarah Macneil is one of five nominees to succeed the Rt. Rev. George Browning, and if elected, would become the first female Australian diocesan bishop.
Last September the Australian Church’s appellate tribunal, ruling on a point of grammar, held that women clergy could be consecrated as diocesan bishops. In May Barbara Darling and Kay Goldsworthy were consecrated as suffragan bishops of Melbourne and Perth, however the Oct 31 election for a diocesan bishop of Canberra will be the first time a woman priest has stood for election in Australia.
Archdeacon Macneil has served as rector of All Saints Ainslie in the diocese since 2004. She first moved to Canberra from Tasmania in 1976 to join Australia’s Department of Foreign Affairs, and served in the country’s diplomatic corps before entering the ministry.
The election of a women bishop for Canberra is not a foregone conclusion, however, as the diocese’s two assistant bishops, Allan Ewing and Trevor Edwards are among the nominees, as is Brisbane assistant bishop John Parkes, and Canberra rector Stuart Robinson of St Paul Chatswood.
The election of Archdeacon Macneil would also break another custom, as for the last fifty years, Canberra has elected its diocesan bishops from among its suffragan bishops.
Priority on abuse scandals ‘misplaced’, says former Archbishop: CEN 8.15.08 p 7. August 18, 2008
Posted by geoconger in Abuse, Anglican Church of Australia, Church of England Newspaper.add a comment
| The Adelaide archbishop who resigned in 2004 amidst charges he mishandled the diocese’s sexual abuse scandal has told a Canberra newspaper that the priority given to preventing child abuse by the church is misplaced.
In an interview published on July 28, Archbishop Ian George told the Canberra Times the child abuse scandals of recent years had taken up so much of the church’s time and energies that other pressing concerns such as the plight of refugees, women and the poor had not received sufficient attention. Read it all in The Church of England Newspaper. |
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The Archbishop of Perth August 17, 2008
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The Most Rev Roger Hert, Archbishop of Perth addressing the media at the 2008 Lambeth Conference on July 28.
Church Anger at Papuan Persecution: CEN 8.01.08 August 1, 2008
Posted by geoconger in Anglican Church of Australia, Anglican Church of Papua New Guinea, Church of England Newspaper, Lambeth 2008, Persecution, Politics.add a comment
| CHURCH LEADERS from Australia and Papua New Guinea have denounced the jailing of over a dozen men by the Indonesian government for raising the Papuan “Morning Star” flag last week.
“To arrest and jail protesters for raising a separatist flag appears to me to be a disproportionate reaction,” the Primate of Australia, Archbishop Phillip Aspinall of Brisbane told The Church of England Newspaper, adding that if “reports of humiliation and beatings” of the detainees at the hands of the Indonesian police “are true those actions are to be denounced in the strongest possible terms.” Read it all in The Church of England Newspaper. |
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The Archbishop of Melbourne July 17, 2008
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The Most Rev Philip Freier on the opening day of the Lambeth Conference
Brisbane to act quickly on child sex abuse cases: CEN 6.27.08 p 8. June 29, 2008
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The Synod of the Diocese of Brisbane has passed legislation requiring the automatic de-frocking of clergy convicted of child sexual abuse.
The June 22 vote by the synod’s 600 delegates was unanimous. Archbishop Phillip Aspinall said the diocesan board will now be “able to proceed straight away to make a determination rather than having to retry the whole matter.”
“It is a big improvement because it doesn’t require victims to have to go through a quite long and arduous church process as well as what they have had to go through in the court,” he said.
The Diocese of Sydney welcomed the Brisbane synod’s adoption of a simpler process of dealing with priests convicted of child abuse. “We must do everything possible to make sure the church of Jesus Christ is the safest place for the most vulnerable members of our community,” says Bishop Rob Forsyth, diocesan spokesman and bishop of South Sydney.
The new rule does not affect the case of the Rev. Robert Sharwood, a priest jailed for child abuse, however.. Recently released from prison, the diocese has begun proceedings to defrock Mr. Sharwood.
In other business the synod adopted legislation permitting women to serve as bishops in the diocese.
Adelaide apology over child abuse cases: CEN 6.20.08 p 6. June 21, 2008
Posted by geoconger in Abuse, Anglican Church of Australia, Church of England Newspaper.add a comment
| AUSTRALIA: The premier of South Australia has offered a formal apology on behalf of the government and the Anglican, Roman Catholic and other churches to children in foster care who suffered abuse at the hands of sexual predators.
On June 17 Premier Mike Rann read the joint apology before the state parliament saying the government and churches acknowledged that “that some children and young people who were placed in our care suffered abuse that has impacted their lives. This should never have happened.” Read it all in The Church of England Newspaper. |
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Middle East call: CEN 6.13.08 p 3. June 18, 2008
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Read it all in The Church of England Newspaper.
The Primate of Australia, Archbishop Phillip Aspinall of Brisbane has joined Catholic and Reformed church leaders in endorsing an open letter to Prime Minister Kevin Rudd calling for a negotiated settlement to the Arab-Israeli conflict.
Archbishop Aspinall, Uniting Church president the Rev. Gregor Henderson, Caritas Australia chief executive Jack De Groot and 53 other church leaders urged the government to work towards ending 60 years of dispossession, military occupation, armed hostilities and violent deaths.
They urged a negotiated settlement acceptable to all parties, greater recognition of the plight of Palestinians after 41 years of military occupation; and a quadrupling of Australia’s aid contribution to the social and economic development of Palestine.
The June 3 letter urged the Labor government to come out from the shadows of Anglo-American policy towards Israel as followed by the Liberal-National government of former Prime Minister John Howard and take an activist independent approach to the Middle East.
Adelaide pays high cost of abuse: CEN 6.06.08 p 8. June 9, 2008
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| The ANGLICAN diocese of Adelaide paid out over £342,000 last year in sexual abuse claims, delegates to a special meeting of synod heard on May 31.
However, it may be further liable for up to £1 million, and it is “uncertain whether any part of these paid claims or the future potential claims paid may be covered by insurance,” diocesan reports note. Read it all in The Church of England Newspaper. |
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Protocols published: CEN 5.30.08 p 8. June 1, 2008
Posted by geoconger in Anglican Church of Australia, Church of England Newspaper, Women Priests.3 comments
Read it all in The Church of England Newspaper.
The Anglican Church of Australia has published the text of its protocol on women bishops, offering an informal guarantee to opponents of women clergy that they will not be marginalized or expelled from the Church.
During their meeting in Newcastle, NSW earlier this year, the bishops acknowledged they were not of one mind on the question of the validity of women clergy.
They affirmed that those who accepted, and those who rejected women clergy were acting in “good faith” and had a “valued and respected place in this Church.”
However, the 4-3 decision by the Church’s appellate tribunal, opening the way for women bishops, necessitated a protocol to maintain the “highest possible level of collegiality” among the bishops. The consecration of Perth suffragan Kay Goldsworthy last week and the forthcoming consecration of a women assistant bishop for chaplaincies in Melbourne will be the first test of the protocol.
Opponents of the women bishops have yet to be convinced the agreement will hold, pointing to the American church’s intolerance of those not sharing the views of its hierarchy and its repeal of protections for opponents of women clergy.
The protocol rejected pleas from those who said that as a matter of justice and inclusion opposition to women bishops could not be tolerated, stating that “every member of this Church, whatever their belief as to the acceptability of a woman holding office as a bishop” should be granted “pastorally sensitive and appropriate episcopal ministry.”
“We encourage all dioceses who desire to appoint or elect women as bishops to make provision for reasonable and appropriate episcopal ministry,” permitting alternate confirmation, ordination, oversight and pastoral support.
The bishops recommended altering the current practice of having the Primate or Metropolitan of the ecclesiastical province serve as chief consecrator when “necessary.” Sydney Archbishop Peter Jensen, the Metropolitan of New South Wales has announced he will not consecrate women bishops in his province.
At the same time, liberal archbishops were urged to recognize that some bishops and dioceses will require all of their consecrating bishops to be male, and to show “respect for one another in the ordering of services.”
While the protocol does not have the force of canon law, Australia’s tradition of decentralized authority, supporters of the protocol note, may allow it to avoid the recriminations and bickering that have plagued the American church on this issue.
Church leaders denounce Zimbabwe’s ‘descent into anarchy’: CEN 5.09.08 p 9. May 11, 2008
Posted by geoconger in Anglican Church of Australia, Anglican Church of Southern Africa, Church of England, Church of England Newspaper, Zimbabwe.1 comment so far
The Archbishops of Canterbury and York have added their voices to the chorus denouncing Zimbabwe’s decent into anarchy as Robert Mugabe seeks to maintain his hold on power.
On April 24, Dr. Rowan Williams and Dr. John Sentamu released a joint statement warning that unless the international community takes action, the “continuing political violence and drift could unleash spiraling communal violence.”
Nobel laureate and former Archbishop of Cape Town Desmond Tutu warned “Zimbabwe is staring into the abyss. Violence is growing and the people are suffering greatly as a result. It is now vital that we all do what we can to calm the situation.”
He backed the call of the present Archbishop of Cape Town Thabo Makgoba for an arms embargo on Zimbabwe. “It is obvious that supplying large quantities of arms at this stage would risk escalating the violence, perhaps resulting in the large-scale loss of life,” he said on April 24.
The Primate of Australia, Archbishop Phillip Aspinall of Brisbane joined his Roman Catholic counterpart Archbishop Philip Wilson and other church leaders in releasing a statement of “deep concern over the deteriorating political, security, economic and human rights situation in Zimbabwe.” If “nothing is done to help the people of Zimbabwe from their predicament, we shall soon be witnessing atrocities similar to that experienced in Kenya, Rwanda and Burundi,” they warned.
Drs Williams and Sentamu also voiced concern over the state sanctioned violence unleashed against the people of Zimbabwe. “Faithful men, women and young people who seek better governance in either political or church affairs continue to be beaten, intimidated or oppressed,” they said.
“Churches across England have been praying for Zimbabwe before, during and after the polls,” the English archbishops said. They urged all Christians to pray for the peace of Zimbabwe, adding “we must work to build a civil society movement that both creates political will and gives voice to those who demand an end to the mayhem that grows out of injustice, poverty, exclusion and violence.”
