Thursday, April 30, 2015

Can Satan Deceive God’s Elect?


In Matthew 24:24, Jesus warns His disciples, “False Christs and false prophets will rise and show great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect.”

These words appear to refer to the events surrounding Jerusalem’s destruction in AD 70. But the deception Jesus has in view is part of an ongoing pattern. From the beginning, Satan has been deceiving God’s people (Gen. 3:13). He will continue to do so until the lawless one is revealed “with all power, signs, and lying wonders” (2 Thess. 2:9–10). John’s vision of the millennium ends with a worldwide rampage of deception on Satan’s part (Rev. 20:8). Jesus’ warning is therefore relevant to us. Keep reading

The Anglican Book of Common Prayer: What Relevance Does It Have to Today's Contemporary Worship? [Audio]


More and more pastors and church leaders are discovering the remarkable contribution Thomas Cranmer made to us all through his Book of Common Prayer. This Reformation martyr's understanding of what matters in worship is reverberating more and more through the evangelical community all around the world. The genius of Reformation Anglicanism is found in Cranmer's timeless insights into the human heart and our motivations for Christian service. In this workshop we will acquaint you with the background and some of the major insights of the Book of Common Prayer and what we are learning about how it relates to personal and corporate worship today. Listen now

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I am posting a link to this audio for those who may wish to hear it. I do not agree with a number of the statements and inferences that the Yates make. What passes for Anglican worship in North America has been strongly-influenced by the nineteenth century Anglo-Catholic Movement and I discern its influence in what they are saying--the presence and symbolism of the candles and flowers, for example.

The consistency one sees between contemporary Anglican liturgies has little to do with Cranmer's reformed Prayer Book of 1552 but can be traced to the recommendations of the sub-committee on the Holy Communion service endorsed by the 1958 Lambeth Conference. These liturgies may have a similar order: it is known as the "ecumenical order" for the Holy Communion service. It not the 1662 order.  Here the similarity ends. These liturgies differ in their doctrine. Contemporary Anglican service books may include two or more eucharistic rites that reflect different theologies of the eucharist in an attempt to accommodate the doctrinal views of the various schools of thought in a province.

The doctrine of the Real Presence as it has come to be understood is not what the 1662 Prayer Book (and the 1552 Prayer Book on which it is based) teach. They teach the doctrine of the True Spiritual Presence. Christ is present but his presence is spiritual. It is a real presence in the sense that it is not imagined but not in the sense that it is substantive. The locus of Christ's presence is not in the consecrated elements but the heart of the believing communicant. Feeding upon Christ is a spiritual operation that does not require the believer to consume the bread and wine. See the rubrics in the Communion of the Sick in the 1662 Prayer Book. The view that the Yates presented does not exclude a substantive presence in the elements. Roman Catholics also speak of Christ's presence in his Word, in his gathered people, and in the sacrament--the elements.

During the twentieth century two views of the eucharist would make inroads in the Episcopal Church in the USA and other Anglican provinces. One view was that there is a real, objective presence of Christ in the consecrated elements. See Byron D Stuhlman's 'Eucharistic Celebration 1789 to 1979.' The other view was that the eucharist is a participation in the ongoing sacrificial activity of Christ. This view is known as the 1958 Lambeth doctrine of eucharistic sacrifice. It was one of the recommendations of the sub-committee on the Holy Communion service endorsed by the 1958 Lambeth Conference. See J.I. Packer and R. T. Beckwith's 'The Thirty-Nine Articles: Their Place and Use Today.' Among their conclusions was that the doctrine is not consistent with Holy Scripture and the Thirty-Nine Articles.

The Lambeth doctrine is articulated in the 1979 Prayer Book's An Outline of the Faith, or Catechism. It is given liturgical expression in Eucharistic Prayers A, B, C and D in Rite II. See Leonel L. Mitchell's 'Praying Shapes Believing: A Theological Commentary on the Book of Common Prayer.'

Not Tweeting? Repent!


Ed Stetzer on why ignoring social media is no longer an option for church leaders.

Ed Stetzer is best known as a church researcher. He's a missiologist, church-planter, and president of LifeWay Research. But in recent years, he's added a new line to his bio: social media maestro. With a well-trafficked blog and large followings on Facebook and Twitter, Stetzer has expanded his ministry through these new platforms. Drew Dyck and Kyle Rohane of Leadership Journal sat down with Stetzer (physically, not virtually) to talk about his experiences with social media, the implications they have for ministry, and why he jokes that pastors who aren't on Twitter need to repent. Keep reading
This article is classified "registered/limited access." You may need to register with Leadership Journal/Christianity Today in order to read it.
Photo credit: Pixabay, public domain 

TGC 2015 National Conference Talks Now on the Internet [Video]


The Gospel Coalition’s 2015 National Conference was held in Orlando, Florida April 13-15, 2015. More than 6,000 gathered together to consider the theme of our eternal home from 50 states and over 50 countries.

The conference titled Coming Home: New Heaven and New Earth sought to stir longing for our ultimate home in heaven as we explored the sweep of redemption from creation to consummation, from Genesis to Revelation. Through times of worship, prayer, fellowship and instruction, we sought to reaffirm the Bible’s teaching on eschatology and declare in word and song with joyful hope that Jesus is returning soon. Along with the nine main plenary sessions we had more than 50 workshops and focus gatherings led by speakers addressing topics including evangelism, homosexuality, student ministry, sexual abuse, faith and work, and more.

Watch Video and Hear Talks

Why more millennials are choosing to be childless


Births among American women aged 20 to 29 are at 'the slowest pace of any generation of young women in US history,' says a new study by the Urban Institute. What's behind the decline?

For a growing number of women in their 20s, kids are not part of the picture.

That’s according to the Urban Institute, a Washington, DC-based think tank whose new report is the latest to highlight a change in values among today’s young adults, as a weak economy and shifting goals and opportunities encourage women to push starting a family lower on their list of priorities.

“Although birth rates in the United States had been fairly stable for more than three decades, beginning in 2008 they began to fall, especially for women in their twenties,” the report’s authors wrote. Keep reading

Also see
Millennial Childbearing and the Recession

Photo credit: Pixabay, public domain

Islam in the News: Seven Articles and One Video


The Ideology Of Islamic State And The Caliphate’s Importance

The March edition of Atlantic Magazine published an article1 about Islamic State (IS) that examined its theology and ideology. This article along with a paper from the Brookings Institute2 on the ideology of IS form the basis of our report this week.

In this report, we will examine the intellectual foundations of Islamic State, showing how it evolved from two different sources of thought. We will follow this with an analysis of the concept of the Caliphate and the critical importance it has in Islamic theology. A Caliphate is a form of Islamic government which, in some Islamic conceptions, is a universal government for all people. An examination of the eschatology of Islamic State will also be included. The consequences of IS’s ideology will be discussed. As always, we will conclude with potential market ramifications. Keep reading

Survey: Islam Will Become World’s Largest Religion in 2070

At a youthful 1,400 years, Islam is the youngest of the world's major religions — and it's on track to be the largest sometime this century.

That's the prediction from demographers at the Pew Research Center who say high fertility rates among Muslim women and a youth bulge in the faith are fueling its growth.

A Pew survey released this month, “The Future of World Religions,” says that if current trends continue, Islam will surpass Christianity in 2070 to become the world’s largest faith.

A panel of demographers discussed the findings of the report recently during a seminar at the headquarters of Pew’s Religion & Public Life project. Keep reading

German police foil Islamist attack ahead of Frankfurt cycle race

German police said on Thursday they had thwarted a planned Islamist attack, detaining a couple with suspected Salafist militant links, and cancelled a Frankfurt May Day cycle race after they had been seen along the route. Keep reading

Australia foils alleged terror attack for Gallipoli centenary

Hundreds of Australian police on Saturday arrested five teens planning an Islamic State-inspired terrorist attack next week at an event to mark the centenary of the landings at Gallipoli during World War One, Prime Minister Tony Abbott said.

More than 200 police were involved in a series of raids in the southern city of Melbourne in the early hours of Saturday, police said, following a month-long sting operation. Five men aged 18 and 19 were detained. Keep reading

Muslim American Organizations Are on the Wrong Side of History on the Armenian Genocide

During a lavish dinner and reception at the Turkish Embassy for leaders in the Muslim community several weeks ago, myself and some of the other more than two dozen community members found ourselves baffled at the presentations centered on denying the Armenian Genocide. It became clear to me that the event was in fact aimed at currying favor with Muslim Americans and getting their assistance in lobbying against any efforts to recognize the Armenian Genocide. Soon after the event, I started receiving emails that outright denied any kind of systematic extermination of the Armenian community by the Ottoman Empire and urged me to do advocacy on Capitol Hill about the "events of 1915." Keep reading

What Stories Help Us Fight Anti-Muslim Bigotry in America?

The religious community tells a lot of stories. We tell stories from our sacred texts, we tell stories from our history, and we tell stories about what it's like to be a member of our community today.

As co-founder of Shoulder to Shoulder, a national interfaith campaign to combat anti-Muslim bigotry, I am always interested in the stories we tell -- in the media and to one another -- about Islam. More directly, I want to know what stories will help make life in America easier for our Muslim brothers and sisters, and what will fan the flames of bigotry. Keep reading

Ex-Muslim Ayaan Hirsi Ali Proposes 5 Changes to Islam That Could Help Lead Its Religious Reformation

In speaking at the National Press Club on Tuesday, best-selling author, former Muslim and outspoken critic of Islam, Ayaan Hirsi Ali, offered five amendments to the religion of Islam that Muslims should take seriously if they really want to bring about a peaceful reformation to their religion.

In discussing her new book, Heretic: Why Islam Needs a Reformation Now, Hirsi Ali explained that in the last five years she has seen a wave of Muslims throughout the world express interest in reforming Islam so that it is not brutally oppressive toward women, those who break Islamic law, and religious minorities.

Hirsi Ali, who is originally from Somalia and is a survivor of genetal mutialiation, further explained that Islam needs to follow in the footsteps of Christianity and Judaism, which have both previously undergone their own reformation periods. Keep reading

Also see
NPC Luncheon with Ayaan Hirsi Ali [Video]
I have included one article by a self-appointed defender of American Muslims against "anti-Muslim bigotry" in the United States and an article about an ex-Muslim whose "vitroil" he claims is fueling anti-Muslim sentiment in the United States and the speech she gave to the National Press Club. I have also included a video of the talk. It would appear that in liberal circles anyone who is outspoken about the teaching and practice of Islam that contribute to Islamicist terrorism is perceived as being Islamophobic and purveying hate. This mindset is highly problematic as it treats as hateful the free discussion of Islam and its teaching and practice.

Wednesday, April 29, 2015

The World Is Always Listening and Watching


“Let your light so shine before men that they may see your good works and glorify your Father who is in Heaven” (Matthew 5:16).

“And all the other prisoners were listening to them” (Acts 16:25).

You’ve been put on the spot.

Someone is challenging you, daring you, cursing you, or slandering you. You squirm. Nothing about this is pleasant. You try to think of an appropriate response.

Before you act, I have a suggestion.

There is one huge factor you should always bear in mind: Your response to your challenger is less for them than for the spectators who surround the two of you, observing this little conflict. They’re watching you. They want to see how you react, if you can take it, if you will respond in the flesh or show yourself to be a genuine Christian.

Unfair, you say? Maybe so, in some ways. But in another, this creates an opportunity for the Holy Spirit to do something everlasting.

All He needs is a willing Christian, someone who can (ahem) “take a licking and keep on ticking.” He needs someone who understands the wisdom of Luke 6:27–“loving your enemy, doing good to those who hate you, blessing those who curse you.”

The Godly have a built-in audience for this. The world has bought tickets to the show that is you. Keep reading

Photo credit: Pixabay, public domain

5 Reasons You Should Host a Backyard Bible Club This Summer [Giveaway]


Summer brings one of the best outreach opportunities churches will have all year. Long days, restless kids, and desperate parents combine to open doors to church-sponsored events that might otherwise remain closed. Day camps, sports and arts camps, and Vacation Bible Schools remain popular summer diversions with churched and unchurched families alike.

VBS alone attracts millions of kids, teens, and adults, with an average of 10 percent reporting to be unchurched. While hosting activities on the church campus remains the most popular way of providing summer ministry opportunities, churches are beginning to expand the evangelistic potential of the summer by hosting a campus Bible school, then taking it outside the walls of the church and into the community by way of Backyard Kids Clubs.

By transferring the traditional activities of VBS to backyards, front porches, and shade trees, churches are taking the gospel to kids and families who might never respond to an invitation to a church campus event due to lack of interest, awareness of the opportunity, or transportation. Keep reading

Photo credit: LifeWay

Carey Nieuwhof: Orange Conference 2015 Talk Notes: Two Articles


5 Reasons Churches Stop Growing

This week I’m excited to be speaking at the Orange Conference in Atlanta Georgia.

As a way of serving those who attend my talks (and couldn’t be there but want to track with what’s happening) I’ll be posting the outline to each talk I give here on the blog.

Even if you don’t attend the conference, I hope you can glean a few insights from them that might help you lead better now. And if you’re in the session, you won’t have to guess what that pesky blank you forgot to fill in was all about.

Here’s my talk outline for my 5 Reason Churches Stop Growing session. Keep reading

7 Keys to Leading High Capacity Volunteers

This week I’m excited to be speaking at the Orange Conference in Atlanta Georgia.

As a way of serving those who attend my talks (and couldn’t be there but want to track with what’s happening) I’ll be posting the outline to each talk I give here on the blog.

Even if you don’t attend the conference, I hope you can glean a few insights from them that might help you lead better now. And if you’re in the session, you won’t have to guess what that pesky blank you forgot to fill in was all about.

Here’s my talk outline for my 7 Keys to Leading High Capacity Volunteers session. Keep reading

In Defense of the Ass: Is the Sermon a "Relic of the Reformation?"


This is the first half of Mike Glodo's article, the second of which will come later in the week ~ Editor.

Recently I was presented with a question about preaching. "Given that contemporary communication studies show that people learn better with a Q&A format, should we abandon the traditional form of the sermon?" The stated premise behind the question was that the sermon form as we know it is a "relic of the Reformation" for which there is no biblical sanction.

This is a great question because it puts to test the kinds of things I teach my students about preaching, challenging them to apply the biblical principles that underlie preaching to answer a contemporary question. And this is not a question entirely foreign to my thinking, having published on the subject of postmodernism and worship some twenty years ago and having taught preaching at the seminary level the majority of my ministry.[1] Keep reading

Photo credit: Pixabay, public domain

The Clarity of Scripture [Audio]


Does the incredible variety of Christian denominations and interpretive traditions imply that the Scriptures themselves are unclear? How can we know what the Bible really says if there are so many different interpretations of it? Michael Horton discusses this issue with Australian theologian Mark Thompson, author of Clear and Present Word: The Clarity of Scripture. Hear now

Purchase 'Clear and Present Word: The Clarity of Scripture' from Amazon.com
'Clear and Present Word: The Clarity of Scripture' is also available for purchase from other book dealers. Google the Internet for dealers offering this book for purchase.
Photo credit: Pixabay, public domain 

The Gospel Is Not ‘You Do,’ It’s ‘Jesus Did’


How does the raising of Lazarus affect the way we share the gospel?

Just as the Father spoke life into the void through his Word in creation, so he speaks new life into his people through the Word-made-flesh, Jesus Christ. That’s key to the evangelistic endeavor.

The gospel is not about making good people religious. It’s about making dead people live. Keep reading

Photo credit: wikiart.org, public domain

This map shows the dominant religious group in every US county (as of 2010)


The demographics of religion will change dramatically over the next four decades, and countries across the world will transform with them. Pew research suggests Christianity will be on the decline from 2010 to 2050, and this map — which is based on the 2010 census data — provides a snapshot of the religious fabric of America. About 83% of Americans identify themselves as Christians. Keep reading

Also see
Christians are leaving the faith in droves and the trend isn't slowing down

Photo credit: Pixabay, public domanin

“It is Going to Be an Issue” — Supreme Court Argument on Same-Sex Marriage Puts Religious Liberty in the Crosshairs


It is … it is going to be an issue.” With those words, spoken yesterday before the Supreme Court of the United States, the Solicitor General of the United States announced that religious liberty is directly threatened by the legalization of same-sex marriage. Donald Verrili, representing the Obama Administration as the nation’s highest court considered again the issue of same-sex marriage, was responding to a question from Justice Samuel Alito. His answer confirms with candor the threat we have long seen coming. Keep reading

Also see
New: What to Expect After the Supreme Court’s Marriage Decision
Wait for ruling puts focus on Kennedy
American Christians split on gay marriage as Supreme Court begins historic case
Explainer: How the Bible splits Christians on homosexuality

Photo credit: Pixabay, public domain

Tuesday, April 28, 2015

How Do I Know if God Wants Me to Plant a Church?


Discerning the call of God to plant a church can be tough.

“How do I know the Lord wants me to go here?” is a common question I get from young church planters trying to decide about a planting a church. The answer to that question is of utmost importance. Keep reading

Also see
5 Bad Reasons to Plant a Church

Photo credit: Pixabay, public domain

How to Be Remarkable


Recently I visited a restaurant in Atlanta that a friend had said was “remarkable.” No research. No looking it up online. I just took his word for it. After taking it in, I totally agreed. It was, as he said, “remarkable.”

What really is remarkable? Webster’s defines remarkable as “notably or conspicuously unusual; extraordinary. Worthy of notice or attention; striking.”

It’s what you remember. What you talk about. What you retweet. What you share. What you post about on Facebook. The ideal pic shared on Instagram. The news that we text to our friends and family. Keep reading

4 Steps Toward Better Meetings


How to get the most of your leadership team.

There are many ways to do effective meetings, but a few key practices make a big difference. Ryan Hartwig and Warren Bird, in their new book Teams That Thrive (IVP 2015), report on four practices that make a difference for top church leadership teams. Keep reading

Photo credit: Pixabay, public domain

Paul in Rome in the Sixties


The book of Acts indicates that Paul was under ‘house arrest’ in Rome, most probably between 60-62. Luke’s text suggests that Paul was then released, something First Timothy and Titus also imply. Second Timothy, written from Rome, however indicates that Paul was soon to face execution. Presumably, this execution was at the decision of Nero Caesar following the Great Fire in 64.

As I suggested in another paper (‘“Paul lived in Rome two whole years”. The Mysterious Ending of Luke-Acts’ ? http//paulbarnett.info) the reason Luke did not write about Paul after Acts 28 (his two-year imprisonment in Rome) was that he knew this information could be gleaned from the letters to Timothy and Titus (whose authorship he may have contributed to ? so C.F.D. Moule).

It is tragically clear why in 64 or 65 Paul was beheaded following the Fire (as a Roman citizen he would not be crucified). But why was he released in c. 62, as he expected to be, based on the general thrust of Philippians and the open ended close of Acts? Keep reading

Also see
‘Paul lived in Rome two whole years’. The Mysterious Ending of Luke-Acts

Persecution of Christians in China at record high


Scholars estimate that by the year 2030, Christians in China will exceed the number of Christians in the United States, thus making China the largest Christian nation in the world.

Christians are currently experiencing record numbers of abuse and persecution due to a state-sponsored crackdown on dissent.

The recently released annual report from the Christian human rights organization China Aid documented 572 cases of persecution in which 17,884 religious practitioners were persecuted. This represents a 300 percent increase in abuse and persecution against Chinese Christians since 2013. Of those persecuted, 1,592 were church leaders.

The Chinese government sanctioned three rectifications and one demolition campaign, which targeted churches, claiming to eradicate illegal structures. The campaign removed crosses from churches, in many cases demolishing the entire building. Keep reading

Monday, April 27, 2015

The Anglican Church in North America and the Struggle over Anglican Identity


By Robin G. Jordan

Over the past five years the Anglican Church in North America has shown no evidence of changing its direction from that reflected in the particular theological bias of its doctrinal statements to date—NONE WHATSOEVER!!

Folks in the ACNA who maintain that the denomination is a work in progress and that it is too soon to draw any conclusions about what it will become theologically are indulging in wishful thinking. This type of thinking may enable them to remain in the denomination despite the mounting evidence that the most influential denominational leaders—those who are determining its present direction—are NOT committed to creating an environment in the denomination in which ALL schools of conservative Anglican thought are able to flourish. But it is wishful thinking nonetheless.

Without serious, meaningful reform the ACNA will keep moving in its present direction. The same leaders have a vested interest in ensuring that it does. They have a particular vision of the denomination.

Their vision does not include the creation of an environment in which conservative Evangelical congregations and groupings of congregations are able to thrive alongside Anglo-Catholic ones. It is the vision of a denomination in which various forms of Anglo-Catholicism are flourishing but not confessional Anglicanism  It is the vision of a denomination in which those congregations and groupings of congregations that are not fully Anglo-Catholic in doctrine, order, and practice are moving progressively in that direction.

Folks in the ACNA who do not see any evidence of a theological bias in the denomination’s doctrinal statements are choosing to ignore a substantial body of evidence which shows that its doctrinal statements favor the views of the denomination’s Anglo-Catholic – philo-Orthodox wing over those of the other groups in the ACNA. Denial of the existence and extent of this body of evidence may be what enables them to remain in the denomination.

Folks in the ACNA who tell conservative Evangelicals that they should look elsewhere if they want to be a part of a Reformed denomination are the most honest with themselves and others out of the three groups. They are willing to say what those shaping the official doctrine of the ACNA are not willing to say. Saying it might cost them the support of the GAFCON/GFCA Primates and they are not willing to burn that bridge—at least not at the present time. It offers them a connection with the global Anglican Communion and legitimacy that they might otherwise not have. Telling conservative Evangelicals to look elsewhere would be acknowledging that they are pursuing a policy of exclusion.

Since the nineteenth century Anglo-Catholics have sought to dislodge the Thirty-Nine Articles from its central place as Anglicanism’s confession of faith and to change the identity of the Anglican Church. See J. C. Ryle’s essay, “The Thirty-Nine Articles” in Knots Untied (1877). They have not only attacked what Ryle in Knots Untied calls “Evangelical Religion,” but have endeavored to rid the Anglican Church of Evangelicals and their theological outlook. They succeeded in the Episcopal Church in the United States in the late nineteenth century. In South Africa the result was two churches identifying themselves as Anglican—one faithful to the teaching of the Bible and the doctrine of the Articles, the other embodying Anglo-Catholic principles.

The struggle over what is constitutive of a genuine Anglican identity did not conclude in the nineteenth century but continues to this present day. Among its results is the split between liberal Anglican provinces in the West and conservative ones in the global South, the unsuccessful Anglican Covenant, the Global Anglican Future movement, the Global Fellowship of Confessing Anglicans, and the Jerusalem Declaration and Statement.

This struggle has not been confined to the provinces of the Anglican Communion but has also affected the extramural Anglican churches. Douglas Bess has documented the struggle over what is constitutive of a genuine Anglican identity in North America’s Continuing Anglican Movement in Divided We Stand: A History of the Continuing Anglican Movement (Apocryphile Press, 2006). The result would be the early demise of the first Anglican Church in North America, the dominance of an “extreme form of Anglo-Catholicism” in most of the resulting splinter churches,  a fragmented movement, and declining and dying churches. The particular form of Anglo-Catholicism that has come to dominate the Continuing Anglican Movement seeks to reconstruct Anglicanism along the lines of the supposedly undivided Church of the early High Middle Ages before the East-West Schism.

This struggle has also been evident in the Reformed Episcopal Church since the closing decades of the twentieth century.  There has been a concerted effort to substitute a revisionist reinterpretation of the Evangelical principles of the denomination’s founders for their views on key issues. This reinterpretation reflects the Anglo-Catholic leanings of the REC’s present leadership and is intended to persuade the folks in the REC that the direction in which that leadership is taking the REC is consistent with what its founders believed, taught, and practiced. Anyone who takes the time to read the writings of the REC founders and to study the history of the REC knows that that is not the case.

I have received credible reports of the hostility that Anglo-Catholics in the REC show toward those who continue to uphold the REC founders’ Evangelical principles, dismissively referring to them as “Presbyterians.” I have myself been the object of their hostility when I have drawn attention to the discrepancy between what they believe, teach, and practice and what the REC founders believed, taught, and practiced.

I have also received credible reports of how Anglo-Catholic REC bishops have discriminated against candidates seeking ordination in the REC and clergy seeking reception into the REC from a protestant denomination because they adhered to the REC founders’ Evangelical principles. In addition, I have received credible reports of the unethical conduct of REC bishops in their dealings with clergy. A REC bishop who at the time was a member of the Common Cause Partnership’s Governance Task Force and director of communications for his denomination told me that I had approached the wrong person when I contacted him with a proposal for an alternative constitution for what would become the second Anglican Church in North America for the consideration of the REC bishops. It was an obvious lie albeit a sixteenth century Jesuit might argue that the bishop in question was not being entirely dishonest with me: He was not the right person to approach with the proposal as he supported the Common Cause Partnership’s Governance Task Force’s proposed constitution for the ACNA, which he had helped to draft.

When viewed together, the doctrinal positions taken in the ACNA’s constitution, canons, ordinal, trial eucharistic liturgy, catechism, and other doctrinal statements represent a revisionist reinterpretation of Anglicanism, one that is closely related to the "extreme form of Anglo-Catholicism" that has dominated the Continuing Anglican Movement and which is antithetical to “the protestant and reformed principles of the Anglican Church based on Holy Scripture and as set out in the Book of Common Prayer and the Thirty-Nine Articles.” 

The Anglo-Catholic Movement would benefit from the Broad Church Movement’s acceptance or tolerance of its beliefs and practices in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century. The retrograde 1928 Prayer Book is a product of their collaboration. The two movements also collaborated on the passage of a 1925 General Convention resolution that sought to drop the Thirty-Nine Articles from the American Prayer Book. The Episcopal Church’s canons did not require clerical subscription to the Articles. However, both Anglo-Catholics and Broad Churchmen objected to their inclusion in the Prayer Book as they were an irritating reminder of Anglican Church’s “protestant and reformed principles,” principles which they did not themselves uphold.

The liberalism that eclipsed Anglo-Catholicism in the Episcopal Church from the mid-twentieth century on has its roots in both movements. The ordination service for deacons in the 1928 Prayer Book did away with the requirement that candidates for the diaconate in the Episcopal must “unfeignedly believe all the Canonical Scriptures of the Old and New Testament.” It removed that particular obstacle to modernism which had been making substantial inroads in the Episcopal Church. Interestingly the ACNA Ordinal also does away with this requirement.

The Anglo-Catholic Movement has benefitted from the Convergence Movement’s acceptance or tolerance of its beliefs and practices in the first fifteen years of the twenty-first century. The Convergence Movement has championed a number of these beliefs and practices among North American evangelicals and charismatics. Both the Anglo-Catholic Movement and the Convergence Movement are strongly represented in the ACNA.

The adherents of both movements warm to two ideas that former ACNA Archbishop Robert Duncan champions. Along with the regression of the North American Anglican Church to the beliefs and practices of an earlier period in Church history, to those of a time before the Reformation, Duncan advocates what he described as a “new settlement.” The Elizabethan Settlement, he argues, is outdated. Contemporary Anglicans have entirely different views on a number of doctrinal issues and related practices that were argued about in the sixteenth century. This “new settlement” would reflect these views.

As Roger Beckwith and others have pointed out, the Elizabethan Settlement is what has shaped the particular character of the Anglican Church—a church which, when it it is true to the principles of the Anglican Reformers, is protestant, reformed, and evangelical. What Duncan is championing is a complete change of Anglican identity, something that Anglo-Catholics have been promoting since the nineteenth century and liberals since the twentieth century. It is noteworthy that the GAFCON Theological Resource Group in The Way, the Truth, and the Life: Theological Resources for a Pilgrimage to a Global Anglican Future identify Anglo-Catholicism and liberalism as the two major challenges to the authority of Holy Scripture and the Anglican formularies in the Anglican Church from the nineteenth century on (pp. 32-33.)

Whatever they may say, Duncan and those who share his views or have similar views are constitutionally and ideologically opposed to GAFCON’s affirmation of the Elizabethan Settlement in The Way,the Truth and the Life: Theological Resources for a Pilgrimage to a Global Anglican Future; the Global Fellowship of Confessing Anglicans’ position on the doctrinal foundation of Anglicanism, on what defines core Anglican identity; the Jerusalem Declaration and Statement; and Being Faithful: The Shape of Historic Anglicanism Today.

Present ACNA Archbishop Foley Beach ostensibly supports “the renewal of Anglicanism.” But his actions as well as a number of his public statements suggest that what Beach really supports is a reconstruction of Anglicanism. He has joined with the other members of the College of Bishops to endorse the doctrinal statements that the ACNA has produced to date. He has taken steps to implement these documents in his own diocese.

Beach has also voiced the opinion that Anglicanism is confessional because its adherents accept the authority of the catholic Creeds. This is a revisionist reinterpretation of Anglican confessionalism. The GAFCON Theological Resource Group in The Way, the Truth and the Life in its discussion of the struggle with theological pluralism equates Anglican confessionalism with Anglicans’ acceptance of the authority of its reformed confession of faith, The Thirty-Nine Articles (p. 24). Their view of Anglican confessionalism is the longstanding, historical view of such confessionalism.

What is coming to the fore in the Anglican Church in North America is not support for the recovery of confessional Anglicanism, which the GAFCON Theological Resource Group identifies as essential to a clear definition of Anglican identity but support for a purportedly new understanding of Anglicanism, one which is in actuality an old Anglo-Catholic understanding of Anglicanism in a new guise. 

Photo credit: Pixabay,public domain

Seven Reasons Some Church Members Don’t Want Their Churches to Grow


It is highly unusual to hear church members say that they don’t desire their churches to be obedient to the Great Commission. Indeed, it is common for the members of a pastor search committee to tell a prospective pastor that they are looking for a leader who will guide the church toward growth.

And most church members do desire to see their churches grow . . . until the growth affects them. It is at that point they can become disillusioned and critical.

So what is it about growth that impacts some members negatively? Let me suggest seven reasons. Keep reading

Photo credit: Pixabay, public domain

The Missing Conviction of Developing Leaders


Often our churches don’t make leaders because we lack conviction. Granted, it’s probably much more than that, but it is certainly not less. Based on the lack of leadership development in many churches it is clear that many church leaders lack a real conviction for developing leaders.

If we look at Moses and Joshua, his successor, we see conviction for developing leaders in one and lacking in the other. And we also see that the implications of either possessing or lacking a conviction for development are huge.

Conviction for developing others gripped Moses. As you read through the Scripture, you see Moses pouring into Joshua. Moses served his people by pouring into the life of another. And immediately after Moses’ death, Joshua was ready to lead Israel.
After the death of Moses the Lord’s servant, the Lord spoke to Joshua son of Nun, who had served Moses: “Moses My servant is dead. Now you and all the people prepare to cross over the Jordan to the land I am giving the Israelites (Joshua 1:1-2).
The leadership legacy of Joshua, sadly, is very different.... Keep reading

What Does It Mean to Be a Servant of the Word?


What does it mean to be a servant of the Word? First, if we are to be servants of the Word, the priorities of our ministry must be such that the preaching of the Word is central—everything else must fall into place behind this priority. Are there other important tasks of ministry? Of course. Are there other important priorities of the church? Of course. But your personal schedule must reflect the priority of preaching, showing just how serious you are about it. You can find out quickly what a church believes about preaching by looking at its calendar for worship and other activities, and you can find out what a preacher believes about preaching by looking at his schedule. Every other task and priority must be subordinated to that first priority, the preaching of the Word—with the promise that it will balance all the others. Everything comes into proper balance because we do not have to worry about balancing a schedule, balancing a budget, or balancing priorities when we understand that the Word of God will establish those priorities. Then everything else will become clear. Keep reading

Expository Preaching: From Theology to Experience


Expository preaching usually begins with a biblical text and lets the text shape the sermon. The preacher intends to have the theological message of the text become the message of the sermon. Expository preaching by definition seeks to expose the intended meaning of the text for the contemporary audience. This is usually done by preaching through a Bible book in a series. As a result, expository preaching has been criticized as academic and out of touch with the needs of real people.

An emphasis on human experience may seem to compromise expository preaching and undercut its adherence to the biblical text. But that is not necessarily the case. Granted, felt-need preaching has often seemed more concerned with feelings and needs than with answers from Scripture. Sometimes this kind of preaching mistakes a sympathetic analysis of the trouble as a solution. While sympathy is appreciated, biblical wisdom is what we want.

The skill emphasized here is tracing from theological concepts in the text to the corresponding points of contact in human experience. Notice the emphasis on “tracing.” We begin with theological concepts in a text. We study the words of the text writer to discover the theological ideas he is presenting that will become the truths the sermon presents. We find the one central idea of the text and word it as subject/modifier. We then find what the writer said about that central idea and identify these ideas as predicates. Keep reading

MBTS website to encourage & equip the church


Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary has launched the website FTC.co providing Gospel-centered resources to engage, encourage, and equip those ministering within the local church.

The FTC.co site, to be overseen by managing editor Jared Wilson, will host blogs, articles, practical application tools and other resources to assist current pastors, ministry leaders, and lay men and women in their ministry roles. Keep reading

Faith leaders call for religious protections ahead of gay marriage hearing


As the U.S. Supreme Court prepares to hear arguments on Tuesday (April 28) that could wind up legalizing gay marriage nationwide, dozens of Christian leaders have issued a call to civil authorities to preserve “the unique meaning of marriage in the law” — but also to “protect the rights of those with differing views of marriage.” Keep reading

Also see
Court readies for arguments over definition of marriage

Photo credit: Pixabay, public domain

Saturday, April 25, 2015

The Anglican Church in North America: Different Emphases?


A Survey of ACNA Doctrinal Statements and Their Theological Leanings: The Constitution

By Robin G. Jordan

In Article I the constitution of the Anglican Church in North America identifies seven elements that it maintains comprise the doctrinal foundation of Anglicanism—what defines core Anglican identity. The third, sixth, and seventh of the elements identified in the article clearly represent partisan doctrinal positions. This was drawn to the attention of the Common Cause Partnership’s Governance Task Force when the proposed constitution was first made public for examination and comment for a very brief period before its adoption and ratification. The reaction of the Governance Task Force was to deny their partisan character.

CANA Bishop Martyn Mimms also raised the issue of the partisan character of these positions at the Provisional Provincial Council meeting at which the draft constitution was adopted. The Anglo-Catholic members of the Council would block any major changes to Article I, showing that they had a vested interest in the particular wording of the article.

We examined Article I.3 in my previous article, “The Anglican Church in North America—a Church for All Conservative North American Anglicans?” The position articulated in this clause of the article, in the words of the late Peter Toon, “excludes most Anglicans worldwide today and excludes the millions of evangelical Anglicans who have been faithful Anglicans over the generations!”

Article I.6 recognizes the 1662 edition of the Book of Common Prayer and the 1661 edition of the Ordinal as “a standard for Anglican doctrine and discipline.” Article I.6 infers that other standards exist. The two historic formularies are just one of a number of standards. This included standards based upon what John Henry Newman and the Tractarians maintained is the “Catholic faith” and which they constructed out of “extracts from the Fathers and the Caroline Divines.” It also includes standards drawn from Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox teaching. Article I.6 effectively waters down these two formularies as a part of the doctrinal foundation of Anglicanism—of what defines core Anglican identity.

This view of the two historic formularies is particularly congenial to Anglo-Catholics. As Anglo-Catholic ACNA Bishop of Forth Worth Jack Iker in a sermon preached at the Synod Eucharist of the annual gathering of the REC Diocese of Mid-America on February 21, 2014 put it, “we [a reference to Anglo-Catholics] rather like the 1549 Prayer Book as the standard.”

Article I.6 does not preclude the ACNA from making not only the partially-reformed 1549 Prayer Book its standard but also the pre-Reformation medieval service books such as the Sarum Missal from which the various Anglican missals are derived. These manuals enable Anglo-Catholic clergy to transform the Anglican Communion Service into a facsimile of the Roman Mass.

In its recognition of the Prayer Book and the Ordinal as “the standard for the Anglican tradition of worship” Article I.6 adds this qualification “with the Books which preceded it.” Article I.6 does not identify which books. Keith Aker, a presbyter with the REC Diocese of the West, in the Book of Common Prayer 2011 takes the position that the books in question include the pre-Reformation service books as does the ACNA Liturgy and Common Prayer Task Force in Texts for Common Prayer (2013).

The inescapable conclusion is that Article I.6 is neither theological nor liturgical neutral. It favors the development of a liturgy that is Anglo-Catholic in its doctrine and its liturgical practices.

Anglo-Catholics would hail the inclusion of the phrase, “taken in their literal and grammatical sense,” in Article I.7 as an endorsement of John Henry Newman and the Tractarians’ reinterpretation of the Thirty-Nine Articles in a Rome-ward direction, disconnected from their original historic context and the original intent of their framers. In Tract 90 Newman contended that the reference in the Royal Declaration of Charles I to only “the literal and grammatical sense” freed interpreters of the Articles from considering "the known opinions of the framers" in interpreting them.

The phrase “expressing the Anglican response to certain doctrinal issues controverted at that time” in Article I.7 infers that doctrinal issues referred to in that phrase are no longer of concern to the Anglican Church, a view taken by liberals as well as Anglo-Catholics. Since the sixteenth century the Anglican Church in their estimation has moved on and come to a different understanding on these doctrinal issues. For example, the Anglican Church no longer recognizes only two sacraments. The Anglican Church no longer insists that a vital faith is necessary to receive any benefit from the sacrament of the Lord’s Supper. The Articles, in other words, are a relic of the past and are not relevant or authoritative for today’s Anglicans.

The phrase “expressing fundamental principles of authentic Anglican belief” leaves to the interpreter to decide what such fundamental principles that the Articles express, permitting the interpreter not only to selectively chose from the Articles what he considers genuinely Anglican—in other words, consistent with his own particular reconstruction of Anglicanism, but also to give his own spin to what he cherry-picked from the Articles. Instead of the Articles determining what is Anglican, the interpreter determines for himself what is in the Articles is Anglican. This completely sabotages the functions for which their framers intended the Articles to serve.

The view of the Thirty-Nine Articles expressed in Article I.7, while it may be congenial to Anglo-Catholics and liberals, is far from agreeable to conservative Evangelicals and other Anglicans who take the Articles seriously as Anglicanism’ confession of faith, comprising with the Book of Common Prayer in its 1662 edition and the Ordinal in its 1661 edition, the long-recognized doctrinal standard of Anglicanism. (The Book of Homilies is also a part of this standard, recognized in the Articles themselves as containing “Godly and wholesome doctrine” and expounding in more depth and detail the doctrine of the Articles.) It is not a view of the Articles that is compatible with that of the Jerusalem Declaration which upholds the Articles “as containing the true doctrine of the Church agreeing with God’s word and is authoritative for Anglicans today.” There is no equivocation in the acceptance of the authority of the Articles in the Jerusalem Declaration as there is in Article I.7.

The other doctrinal statements that the Anglican Church has produced to date show conclusively that the ACNA does not accept the Articles’ authority but treats them as something with which it can do whatever it pleases or which it can ignore altogether. In this regard the ACNA is no better than the Episcopal Church from which it broke away.

The view of the Thirty-Nine Articles expressed in Article I.7 is decidedly not theologically-neutral. It favors both Anglo-Catholic and liberal views of the Articles.

The partisan character of the ACNA constitution is not limited to Article I. It is also evident in Article X.1, which describes the College of Bishops as serving “a visible sign and expression of the Unity of the Church,” echoing themes found in Letters to the Bishops of the Catholic Church on Some Aspects of the Church Understood as Communion (1992).

Article XIII in permitting dioceses to maintain a claim of ownership over the property of churches in the diocese points to Anglo-Catholic view of the nature of the diocese and of the churches forming the diocese and to an underlying Anglo-Catholic ecclesiology of the Church.

Also see:
The Anglican Church in North America – a Church for All Conservative North American Anglicans?

Photo credit: Pixabay, public domain

8 Reasons Church Change Is so Difficult


Healthy change is essential for any church or ministry to thrive. Lasting change requires individuals to change first before an organization will change. The changes won’t last or will disrupt your church unless those on your team personally embrace them, at least at some level. So it’s vital we understand why most people initially resist change.

Brain insight helps us understand the hidden processes around which we can design our change initiatives. Being aware of how the brain responds to change can help you craft lasting change and overcome barriers that stifle healthy change. Keep reading

Photo credit: Pixabay, public domain

No, Hanging Out with Your Friends Is Not the Church


Who doesn’t like getting together for a fun dinner with friends and sharing about life? What’s not to love about having deep conversations about spiritual truths with those close to you?

Those things are great and we should do more of them, but—I’m sorry to break this to you—they aren’t church.

Increasingly, I see younger evangelicals (like the one in this Relevant blog post) wondering if they can call their spiritual hang outs with friends a congregation. They are exploring the question: What is church?

That is a worthwhile question and we can affirm various styles of doing church. A different methodology does not automatically mean heretical ecclesiology. Keep reading

Also see
Dinner With Friends Is My Church. Is That OK?

Photo credit: Pixaby, public domain

10 Pointers for Evangelistic Preaching


There are far more qualified voices on this subject, but nevertheless, here are 10 pointers to ponder as you anticipate preaching evangelistically. Keep reading

Why These 66 Books?


Have you ever looked at your Bible and wondered, “How do we know that these 66 books, and no others, comprise the inspired Word of God?”

That is a critically important question, since there are many today who would deny that these 66 books truly make up the complete canon of Scripture. Keep reading

Photo credit: Pixabay, public domain

Former SAAB showroom home to Baton Rouge Anglican church


BR Anglican church finds home in former SAAB showroom

At first glance, a Cadillac dealer’s showroom may not seem like a “mission outpost” of Christianity, but that’s exactly how Holy Cross Anglican Church was described by a visiting bishop when he blessed the congregation last Sunday evening.

Holy Cross Anglican worships at the Gerry Lane Cadillac dealership, in a spacious showroom where SAAB cars were once sold until the Swedish company liquidated three years ago.

Shepherded by the Rev. Ernie Saik, the 70-member congregation began worshipping there in September, but he didn’t want to make it public until the group could be blessed by the Rev. Clark W.P. Lowenfield, bishop of the Anglican Diocese of the Western Gulf Coast of the Anglican Church in North America.

“On this third Sunday of Easter we celebrate 1,982 years ago, when 11 apprentices of Jesus stepped off a mountain after being told to go and make more apprentices … and they changed the world,” Lowenfield preached as the sun streamed through the large showroom windows. “They started mission outposts all over the world. Mark went to Constantinople and Thomas went to India … and they began to establish exactly what you have established here — a mission outpost of the kingdom of God.”

“This is a place where others can come and taste and see and know Jesus as they come into his kingdom,” Lowenfield said. “You are ushering in the kingdom of God by your very faithfulness.” Keep reading
Holy Spirit was a unique church. It was multi-racial and multi-ethnic when most Louisiana Episcopal churches were homogeneous—Anglo-American, Afro-American, or Hispanic.

While Holy Spirit owned property, it chose to plant gardens and start a fish farm on the property rather than build a worship center. It donated the produce from the gardens and the fish from the fish farm to the Sisters of Mercy’s feeding program for the poor. The property had a modest-sized house on it, which the church used as an office during the day and a homeless shelter at night.

Holy Spirit held its weekly celebrations of the Holy Eucharist in the chapel of Episcopal High School in Baton Rouge. The rector and the congregation were unashamedly charismatic. Instead of a choir and an organ the church had a music group—guitar, piano, stacked bells. The music used in its Eucharist celebrations was contemporary for the times. The lyrics were projected onto a screen. The congregation clapped and raised hands as it worshiped and spoke in tongues as it prayed.

Holy Spirit was active in mission. The church offered the Alphas Course for those in the Baton Rouge area wanting to learn more about the Christian faith. It sent short-term mission teams to Honduras where the teams built churches, taught Vacation Bible School, and provided medical treatment to Hondurans living in remote villages far from a clinic. It ministered to Sudanese refugees in the community. It also sponsored the Church of the Beloved, a church plant in my former deanery, which is a 60 minute drive from Baton Rouge.

I was a frequent visitor to Holy Spirit during the time I lived in Louisiana. Joe Rhodes, its former rector, its founding pastor and Ernie Sykes’ predecessor, was the rector of the Cursillo weekend that I attended.

I was not the only member of my former parish who established a connection with the church. A number of folks from my former parish were involved in its short-term mission trips to Honduras and a number of folks from Holy Spirit were involved in the Women’s Joy Conference—a diocesan-wide gathering that had its origin in my former parish.

When my former rector refused to provide a placement for the candidate that he had recommended for the diaconate because the candidate’s wife had stopped attending the church, Holy Spirit’s former rector agreed to provide the candidate with a placement, enabling him to be ordained as a deacon. The candidate’s wife had started the Women’s Joy Conference and played a leading role in my former parish’s prayer and healing ministries. She was one of a number of women who stopped attending the church after the rector arbitrarily withdrew his support of my former parish’s newly-formed Daughters of the King chapter after having agreed to its formation. This was one of a series of decisions that eventually led to a church split that resulted in the loss of almost one-third of the church’s member households.

I also know Earnie Sykes from when he was assistant rector of St. Luke’s Baton Rouge and rector of Christ Church, Slidell. He is an Anglo-Catholic and a charismatic. He was one of several charismatic Anglican and Episcopal clergy who presided and preached at the Eucharist celebrations of the Church of the Beloved.

The bishop had initially refused to allow the planting of a new church in the shadow of my former parish, fearing that it would further weaken that parish. However, the bishop changed his mind after the Anglican Mission in America announced its plans to start a new church in the area. The new church at first thrived. However, unfolding events in the Episcopal Church in 2003 would damage the denomination’s public image in what is a politically and socially conservative area and cost the new church most of its members. When I last visited the Church of the Beloved on one of my infrequent visits to Louisiana, it was a ghost of its former self.

The Church of the Beloved was not the only church to suffer. What had been a thriving mission church in East Baton Rouge would close. A parish on the West Bank, across the Mississippi River from New Orleans, would revert to mission status. My former parish would hang onto parish status for four more years when it also reverted to mission status.

I do not know the story behind the closure of Holy Spirit.

I do not believe that worshipping in an automobile showroom will present any serious difficulties for Earnie and his new Anglican congregation made up of former members of Holy Spirit. 
Photo credit. Mark A. Hunter 

Friday, April 24, 2015

3 Important Church Trends in the Next Ten Years


Christianity in the United States may look very different in 10 years.

As someone who both cares about the mission of the Church and leads a research organization, I watch the trends in the Church and the culture. Occasionally, someone asks me to share some thoughts on the big picture, in the case of the North American context, questions related to "streams" of Protestantism.

Based on research, statistics, extrapolation, and (I hope) some insight, I notice three important trends continuing in the next 10 years. Keep reading

Common Church Board Blind Spots


Facts worth noting as you plan your board's next meeting agenda

Ashley: What are common blind spots for church boards when it comes to child abuse prevention? How can boards implement a culture of safety and protection?

Brian: Boards don’t think abuse will happen at their churches. There’s just a lack of awareness of how prevalent it is and that it can happen. There’s an ignorance and a mentality of, “Oh, we know everybody [in our church], so we really don’t need a program. Everybody knows everybody.” That’s one of the biggest issues I see. People put their heads in the sand.

Peter: Boz talked about a culture of protection. I once heard this culture described as the roots of the tree. We tend to prune the trees at the limb, but the root—that takes irrigation. It takes a long time.

Culture is a mindset. It has behavioral elements to it. I think it’s also strategic, and the board needs to be strategic. There could be elements of campaigning, like billboards, messaging, and themes around the issue of awareness. Education would help.

There are people out there talking about doing “fire drills” relative to an incident of abuse. You would simulate that you’ve had an event of some sort, an incident, and how you might respond. How would the communication process move along? What are the best practices? Typically a church may have one incident that surfaces in its history, yet the church can really struggle as an organization if it’s not handled well, as we’ve seen. Keep reading
Child abuse is far more common than people imagine. For every reported case there are many more unreported cases. While stranger abuse receives the most attention in the media, abuse by someone known to the child is more common in sexual abuse cases. Most state and county child protection agencies will work with churches in educating their boards and their church members about child abuse, neglect and exploitation  
Photo credit: Pixabay, public domain 

7 Steps to Raise Your Visibility Before a Skeptical World


Today in an increasingly skeptical world, the church must move beyond branding and build a new, more powerful reputation. Here are seven steps to elevating your visibility in a community. Keep reading

British Baptists and gay marriage: will it split the denomination?


British Baptists could be facing a bruising controversy over homosexuality, as one of the regional associations has dissented from the denomination's declared position, Christian Today can reveal.

The West of England Baptist Association (WEBA) – one of 13 regional associations of the Baptist Union of Great Britain – has effectively challenged guidance issued by the Union which says each minister can make up its own mind on the issue of same sex marriage.

The matter of what is and isn't allowed is complex for Baptists because of the way they are structured: each Baptist church is independent, but the Union is responsible for setting national standards for the conduct of ministers. Keep reading
From this article I gather that the Baptist Union of Great Britain does not have anything equivalent to the Southern Baptist Convention's The Baptist Faith and Message. To become "cooperating church" in the SBC, a Baptist church must be in agreement with The Baptist Faith and Message and must contribute to the denomination's Cooperative Fund.

Armenian killings were genocide, says World Evangelical Alliance – and Turkey should admit it


Turkey must open its archives to historians so that the Armenian genocide and the mass killings of 600,000 other Christians can be properly acknowledged, the secretary general of the World Evangelical Alliance has said.

In an open letter to leaders of the ancient oriental Churches, Bishop Efraim Tendero wrote that the world-wide commemoration today of the genocide, in which Ottoman Turks killed up to 1.5 million Armenians, also provided an opportunity to remember the parallel ethnic cleansings and killings of 300,000 Pontic Greeks and 300,000 Aramaic-speaking Christians. The killings lasted for nearly 10 years. Keep reading