The Anglican Church in North America - a Church for All Conservative North American Anglicans?

By Robin G. Jordan

While I would not go as far saying that it is characteristic of all folks in the Anglican Church in North America, the ACNA does have its share of people who do not want to hear anything that is in their way of thinking even remotely critical of their denomination. They do not want drawn to their attention the areas in which the denomination needs reform. They exhibit a high level of defensiveness. On more than one occasion I have been told in so many words that if I do not have anything nice to say about the ACNA, I should not say anything at all. This is unfortunate because there is a real need for meaningful reform in the ACNA particularly at the denominational level if the ACNA is to be anything more than the latest Anglo-Catholic Continuing Anglican Church in the United States and Canada.

Among the areas in which the Anglican Church in North America is in greatest need of reform is that its most influential leaders evidences no commitment to creating an environment in the ACNA in which all schools of conservative Anglican thought can flourish. The doctrinal statements that the ACNA has produced to date favor the doctrinal positions and related practices of one particular school of conservative Anglican thought over the others. The adherents of the school of thought in question “identify with Roman Catholic teaching and liturgical practices and holds a high view of the authority of clergy and tradition.” [1] In recent years a number of its adherents have also come to identify with Eastern Orthodox teaching and liturgical practices. While some of its adherents idealize the early High Middle Ages period as a golden age of Christianity, others display a greater affinity with the Counter Reformation and post-Tridentian Roman Catholicism.

The Anglican identity of this particular school of thought has been controverted since the nineteenth century. Adherents of the school argue that it alone represents genuine Anglicanism. Critics draw attention to the numerous ways in which it departs from Holy Scripture and the Anglican formularies, the touchstones of historic Anglican identity.

One of the first writers to recognize the lack of such commitment in what was then the Common Cause Partnership leadership was the late Peter Toon. Toon was an Anglican presbyter, theologian, and author: Amazon.com has a complete list of his books. He coined the phrase, “Anglican Way,” to describe the distinctive characteristics of authentic historic Anglicanism. He wrote a number of articles drawing attention to the controversial positions that the Common Cause Partnership took in its Theological Statement. The constitution of the Anglican Church in North America incorporates into Article I the “seven elements” listed in the CCP Theological Statement as “the fundamental declaration of the province,” which Article I identifies “as characteristic of the Anglican Way” and “essential to membership.”

In a private email, “Proposed Doctrine for the Network: Can it be improved?”posted on the Internet, Toon points out that the original proposed CCP Theological Statement exhibited “problems of an internal lack of coherence” and took positions that “self-respecting educated Evangelical Anglicans” could not accept.

In regard to the statement’s position on the Councils of the Church, Toon goes on to point out if one follows Canon A5 of the Church of England Canons and carefully reads the Thirty-Nine Articles:

“…one will get a full and clear statement of the authority and sufficiency of the Scriptures for instructing us in the way of salvation and godliness. One will also learn what are the Catholic Creeds and why they are accepted in the Church in relation to the Bible. And the same goes for the two Dominical Sacraments. (See also the Catechism in the BCP)”

He further points out:

At the same time one will learn that Councils may err and so one will not accept automatically the teaching of “the Seven Ecumenical Councils.” And this is especially important with regard to the seventh, the Second Council of Nicea, whose teaching on the veneration of icons is effectively rejected by the Articles and specifically by the Book of Homilies to which Article XXXV points. The historic Anglican Way has always affirmed four general councils and stopped at that – leaving to the area of discretion by local churches whether to affirm more. (In this regard the Affirmation of St Louis set forth by Anglo-Catholic Continuers in 1977 went way past any previous official, provincial or Lambeth Conference Anglican statement in relation to the Councils by making 7 councils and their teaching mandatory – a big mistake.)”

In regard to the statement’s position on the Episcopate Toon notes:

“… if one reads the Articles and the Ordinal together then one will not be able to say on the basis of them (or by direct deduction from the New Testament) that the historic Episcopate is necessary for the full being of the Church. This statement is an Anglo-Catholic doctrine and belongs, I think, to the distinctions between the Episcopate seen as the bene esse (of the well being) or the plene esse (of the fullness of being) or the esse (of the necessary being). Anglicans have held varied doctrines of the relation of the Episcopate to the Church and it is not clear what is being claimed by the English expression, “full being” here. Whatever is claimed it excludes the majority of Anglicans since 1549 who have recognized other Churches (Lutheran, Presbyterian etc) as genuine churches with genuine presbyters, even if lacking the good thing of the Episcopate.”

In regard to the statement’s position on the Book of Common Prayer Toon notes:

“It is the 1662 edition that is in the Constitutions of the majority of the Anglican Provinces and this Book has been translated into 150 languages or more. (Go to provinces like Uganda and see it used each Sunday and find it written into the Constitution.) No official province of the Anglican Communion authorizes the 1549 or the 1552 or the 1559 or the 1604 editions. A very small continuing group here or there may authorize the 1549.”

The Common Cause Roundtable would modify the language of the proposed CCP Theological Statement but it did not retreat entirely from the Anglo-Catholic positions of the original proposed statement. In its position on the Book of Common Prayer, it would expand its standard of worship to include not only the 1549 Prayer Book but also the pre-Reformation Medieval service books. It would recognize the 1662 Prayer Book and the Ordinal appended to it as a standard of doctrine, which is a far cry from recognizing these two formularies as comprising with the Thirty-Nine Articles the longstanding doctrinal standard of authentic historic Anglicanism. The choice of wording did not exclude the 1549 Prayer Book and the pre-Reformation Medieval service books as standards of doctrine.

In his article, “The Ordaining and Consecrating of a Bishop – but what is his real identity?” Toon concludes the article with a discussion of the debate over whether bishops are essential to the church:

“It has often been observed that the original Ordinal of the Church of England left open various possibilities of the origin of the Threefold Ministry and its precise relation to the apostolic age. One question, often debated in the past, is whether the Episcopate is of the bene esse, the plene esse or the esse of the Church through space and time. By the Chicago Quadrilateral (later approved by the Conference - not Synod - of Bishops assembled at the Lambeth Conference) the Protestant Episcopal Church had virtually outlawed the bene esse approach (which had been and is very widely held by Anglicans) by insisting that the Episcopate was truly necessary for either the fullness of being or the very being of the Church. That is, the Church either is only really the Church when it has the Episcopate or is only the Church when it has the Episcopate (what does this approach do to the millions of Baptists, Methodists etc. in the U.S.A.?).”

Toon goes on to point out:

“The Chicago-Lambeth Quadrilateral has of course no force in any province other than the American unless that province has actually adopted it by synodical action. Thus a majority of Anglicans worldwide still hold to the bene esse or at strongest the plene esse view of the Episcopate! The esse is seen as Roman Catholic or Orthodox in most places.”

Toon further points out:

“However, the strong temptation in the USA, in the competitiveness of the massive religious supermarket, is for the zealous in Episcopal Churches to claim that the Episcopate is either absolutely or very nearly absolutely necessary for there to be real and true, valid and efficacious, means of grace, sacraments and salvation. Anglicans in other lands where the competition is not so diverse and fierce can highly value the Episcopate without make it absolutely necessary!”

He then notes:

Regrettably, if I understand the document aright, the recent (mid August) proposed theological basis of the Common Cause of the A C Network, includes a commitment to what appears to be the doctrine that the Episcopate is certainly of plene esse of the Church and maybe of the esse! If so, it excludes most Anglicans worldwide today and excludes the millions of evangelical Anglicans who have been faithful Anglicans over the generations! It reads:

‘We confess the godly historic Episcopate as an inherent part of the apostolic faith and practice, and therefore as integral to the fullness and unity of the Body of Christ.’

This of course puts a particular spin on the 1662 Ordinal (which this Confession accepts) and prohibits the comprehensiveness that has always been part of the genius of the Anglican Way!”

With the adoption of the present ACNA constitution and canons and the ACNA College of Bishops’ endorsement of subsequent doctrinal statements it has become increasingly clear that Peter Toon was right in his assessment. The doctrinal positions of the Anglican Church in North America and the related practices disallow the comprehensiveness that has historically been a part of the distinctive character of Anglicanism. They treat as an undesirable element in the ACNA congregations and clergy who are evangelical in their theological outlook and who wholeheartedly subscribe 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.” [2] They do not make room for the adherents of this school of conservative Anglican thought to prosper and thrive in the ACNA.

This particular school of thought stands in continuity with the English Reformers more than any other school of thought in Anglicanism. Its adherents in Africa, Asia, Australia, and the United Kingdom have recognized the Anglican Church in North America. The ACNA has reciprocated by withholding its recognition of their theological views and making no provision for such views in its formularies. It is a classical case of biting the hand that feeds, repaying support with wrong.

It is quite within the realm of possibility to develop statements of doctrine that do not favor one school of thought over another and that articulate positions on which there is general agreement. Those in positions of influence in the Anglican Church in North America, however, have shown no interest in the development of such doctrinal statements. Rather they have exhibited a strong inclination to impose the doctrinal positions and related practices of the Anglo-Catholic-philo-Orthodox party on the denomination, at the expense of other groups in the ACNA. This makes the GAFCON/GFCA Primates’ support of the ACNA even more puzzling since they have also made a public commitment to intervene on the behalf of groups excluded by their province or diocese. It casts doubt on their credibility.

In upcoming articles I am going to look at how each doctrinal statement that the Anglican Church in North America has produced is partisan in the doctrinal positions that it takes and the related practices that it mandates or permits. I will show that there is clear and consistent pattern of favoring the theological and ecclesiological views of the Anglo-Catholic-philo-Orthodox party in the ACNA over those of other groups. This pattern points to what has all the earmarks of being a calculated policy of discriminating against these groups and excluding their theological and ecclesiological views from the official doctrine of the denomination. Such a policy serves only two purposes—to transform the denomination into a body that is solely unreformed Catholic in doctrine, ecclesiology, and practice and to reduce and eventually eliminate the presence of conservative evangelicals and other confessional Anglicans in the denomination.

Endnotes:
[1] The Episcopal Diocese of New York Church Terminology and Glossary of Terms
[2] The Anglican Church League's Policy Objectives

The Counter-Cultural Statement Of a Strategic Small Church

The church I pastor will probably never be a really big church.

Not because we don’t want to grow. We do. And we are.

But, given the specific combination of gifts, location, property, demographics and God’s call on our church, small works better for us.

And we’re not alone in this.

Many churches are in situations like ours. Their smallness is not an indication of failure, it’s the best way for them to do the ministry God is calling them to do. Keep reading

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Border Crossing: Renting to Churches of Other Cultures Part 1

When immigrants need worship space, think twice before renting.

A small immigrant congregation seeks space for worship services, and an established host-culture church with ample facilities weighs whether to make room. Should they do it?

Though few realize it, the more important question is why. Not answering it honestly from the start can lead to failure.

Renting is just one of several types of relationships between cultural groups sharing church facilities.[1] Though it lies at the end of the spectrum that least exemplifies the inclusive discipline of border crossing that Jesus modeled, renting can work for certain purposes. It can also disappoint disastrously, pushing partners further afield from their original financial or spiritual goals.

Depending on the answer to the “Why are we doing this?” question, renting can take at least three forms. Today’s post focuses on the first: renting as material gain. Keep reading

Solving High Food Expenses at Church

Examination and innovation can often yield cost savings.

Not too long ago, as I poured through our church expenses, I discovered something interesting: our church eats a lot.

Name most any type of church activity we had and you could usually find food from a caterer or restaurant associated with it.

Our meal provisions were so generous that, if someone served in multiple ways on a Sunday morning he or she could eat quite well—not just once, but two or possibly even three times. Keep reading

Let's not forget being generous, eating together, and feeding the hungry are an integral part of living our faith. Let's not confuse stinginess with stewardship. 

Photo credit: Pixabay. public domain 

Send Your Sermon

Don’t let your sermon be confined by the four walls of your church. Get your message out to the world. Here are a few ways to send it out on a mission.... Keep reading

Ask often, “What does the Bible say?”

Some of the most important changes in my life occurred when I thought to ask, “What does the Bible say about this?”

The way I spend the Lord’s Day, for example, and my thinking about what activities please God in worship were dramatically changed when I purposed to study what God’s Word said about those matters.

Far more often than we do, Christians should ask such questions.In our relationships, finances, use of time, priorities, parenting, simplifying, and everything else, we should more quickly ask, “What does the Bible say about this?” Keep reading

Also see
How to Be Productive According to the Bible

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11 Places to Use Church Greeters

The church where my wife and I attend, Restoration Church in Wake Forest, NC, does a great job greeting us as we arrive at our worship location (currently, a middle school). Our leaders have done their homework and have recognized the importance of making positive first impressions.

Many people who write about church growth recognize the importance of having trained greeters at the doors when guests arrive. I agree (as you’ll see below), but I also think there are many other places to use greeters.... Keep reading

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Eight Reasons People Are Leaving Denominational Churches for Non-denominational Churches

While working on an unrelated research project, I recently came across some data published by the Hartford Institute of Religion Research. Though the information was five years old, it still seemed highly relevant today. In essence, the data showed that non-denominational churches are now the second largest Protestant group in America. Only the Southern Baptist Convention is larger. Keep reading

Photo credit: Pixabay, public domain

Is It About Marketing? Or Reputation?

You need to decide whether your real issue is about marketing or about reputation. The two concepts are distinct, depending on the people you most want to reach.

If you just want to reach churchy people (or people with church memories), then basic marketing may be sufficient. Place your facility in a highly visible, easily accessible location; provide lots of parking; surround yourself with illuminated, changeable signage. Identify yourself by your tradition, or use Christendom jargon for self-description: “Bible-Based,” “Spirit-Filled,” or franchised denominational slogans like “Open Hearts, Open Minds, Open Doors.”

The media you use for wider advertising depends largely on the lifestyle segments you want to reach. Some lifestyle segments read, some don’t; some rely on radio or TV, some on face-to-face gatherings and oral communication, some on the Internet. But be aware of the symbolic power of the media you use. If you use print, some will say you are “old-fashioned.” If you use social media, some will say you are “young, hip and shallow.” If you use it all, some will say you lack integrity and are just running a business. Keep reading

3 Reasons Why You Aren’t Allowed to Be Theologically Dumb

Everyone’s a theologian....

See? Even Oprah says so. And goodness knows she’s a theologian.

Everyone’s a theologian because everyone thinks something about God, even if your thought about him is that you think he’s not real. Everyone operates with a theology. There are Christian theologians, Buddhist theologians, Muslim theologians, Atheist theologians, and all other sorts.

You’re a theologian.

For the Christian, that means something unique. The Christian cannot be a passive theologian who has idle thoughts about God here and there. Christians are called to be active theologians who are constantly trying to learn more about the God we worship.

In my experience, Millennial evangelicals care far more about loving God with their hearts than they do loving God with their minds, and as a result, the God they love is nothing more than a construction of who they want God to be.

When you love God with your heart but not your mind, you end up loving the god of your imagination, not the God of the universe.

In our present age, you better know why you believe what you believe or you won’t believe it long.

This is why so many young people (and people in general, really) deny God in hard times. When the God you claim to love is a God that protects you from anything bad, you’re not worshiping the Christian God—you’re worshiping a fantasy god you’ve created in your mind that vaguely resembles the God of the Bible.

Here are three reasons you need to love God with your mind and not be theologically dumb.... Keep reading

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Tips for Evangelistic Intentionality

Faithful evangelism is so crucial to the health of a church. The gospel that is grasped is given away. Most Christians agree and even want to see this happen but often struggle with implementing it in their lives. In this post I want to provide a few practical, immediate things that you can do to foster more evangelistic faithfulness. Keep reading

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Ridván Festival: Bahá'í Holy Day Celebrates Bahá'u'lláh And Garden Of Paradise [Photos]

The twelve day Festival of Ridván, celebrated April 21 to May 2, is considered the holiest for members of the Bahá’í Faith. During those dates in 1863, Bahá'u'lláh, the founder of the Bahá’í Faith, left Baghdad and entered gardens now known as the Garden of Ridván, which means paradise in Arabic. Keep reading

Bahá'ís are the most persecuted religious group in Iran where their faith originated.

Photo credit:  Pixabay, public domain

Can American Muslims Become a Cohesive Political Force in the 2016 Election?

The Presidential election campaigns in the U.S. have begun. Major candidates like former secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Senator Ted Cruz from Texas have thrown their hats into the fray. Once again we confront the challenge, what role can American Muslims play in American politics?

The growth of Islam in America, driven by migration and conversions, has created a diverse and multicultural Muslim community. While it is difficult to state with great confidence how many Muslims there are in the United States, most estimates vary between 3-6 million. In democracies anyway it is not just numbers that matters, but the number of people who are politically engaged and willing to participate with their activism and their resources that counts.

Composed of people from all races, and from nearly every country on the planet, American Muslims have rapidly become a microcosm of the global Muslim community. The politics of identity and identity formation that are shaping the American Muslim community cannot be fully understood until the internal diversity within the community itself is fully appreciated.

The two issue areas that have the greatest impact on the development and politics of the American Muslim community are religious development and political goals. The community has been very successful in building Islamic institutions like mosques and Islamic centers, Islamic schools, and Islamic societies for Dawah (religious outreach) and religious development of the community. In these endeavors they have succeeded to a great extent. It is very easy for Muslims from diverse backgrounds to unite and share resources to build a mosque, which is essential for all and can serve everyone equally to fulfill their religious obligations. Keep reading

This development merits the close attention of Christians, Jews, and other religious groups in the United States.

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Churches and religious institutions publicly opposing new Tanzanian constitution to be closed, says government

Tanzania’s Minister of Home Affairs, Mathias Chikawe, has announced that churches and religious institutions that publicly oppose the country’s new constitution will be deregistered, beginning from 20 April. Tanzanian Christians oppose a bill that would introduce Kadhi (Islamic) courts across the country’s mainland, in the new constitution.

Speaking in Dar es Salaam on 14 April, Mr Chikawe announced that institutions that do not follow legal requirements will face being deleted from the register of institutions. "Some of the requirements include to submit the annual audited accounts to the register of the social and religious institutions and to pay the annual fee," he said.

However, according to Tanzania Christian leader “Peter”, it is public opposition to the constitution that is the driving force behind the Minister’s move. Angered by Tanzanian Christian leaders who have told their followers to vote against the Kadhi bill in the upcoming referendum, Mr Chikawe said: “It is true that the leaders of these institutions have the right to participate in political affairs as individuals, but it is illegal to use their leadership to convince their believers to carry out their political preferences.” Keep reading

Such action on the part of the Tanzanian government is a gross violation of the human rights of Tanzanian Christians and their religious freedom. The establishment of separate court system for Muslims is clearly a stepping stone to the imposition of sharia upon all Tanzanians. Christians throughout the world should join together in condemning this action and those in democratic countries should call upon their governments to denounce this serious human rights violation by the Tanzanian government. 

One dead, 20 sick with Botulism symptoms after church potluck

One person has died and at least 20 others were sick with symptoms of foodborne Botulism following a weekend church potluck in Ohio, hospital officials said on Tuesday.

The Fairfield Medical Center said in a statement that the patients, five of whom were in a critical condition, had all attended a picnic at Cross Pointe Free Will Baptist Church in Lancaster on Sunday.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention had sent anti-toxin to treat the sick, the hospital said, while local health officials invesytigated the cause of the outbreak. Keep reading

As well as potlucks, churches hold banquets, barbecues, breakfasts, dinners, picnics, and other functions that involve the preparation and serving of food. The sale of food is also a common church fund-raising activity. Churches also operate Mothers' Day Out Programs and early childhood development centers that provide children with snacks and a cooked or brown bag lunch. Food poisoning traced to a church can not only damage the church's reputation but also involve the church in costly litigation. Churches need to educate their congregations, organizations, and small groups about food safety, develop and implement food safety guidelines for church functions and food sales, and take steps to ensure that Mothers' Day Out Programs and early childhood development centers are following adequate food safety practices. The Iowa State University Extension and Outreach website has extensive resources related to food safety and food preparation.  

Also see 
Botulism poisoning at church potluck leaves one dead, 20 others ill
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: Food Safety
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: Botulism
Foodsafety.gov: Home
Foodsafety.gov: Botulism
Iowa State University Extension and Outreach: Food Safety*
Iowa State University Extension and Outreach: Food Preparation*
University of Floria IFAS Extension: Preventing Foodborne Illness: Clostridium botulinum

Leadership Challenges in Church Revitalization

Church revitalization is messy, but love people and lean on the faithfulness of Jesus.

I fell in love with church revitalization early in my ministry when I served a church of senior adults during a brief stint teaching at a seminary.

The median age of the people was 68. It seemed like there was an oxygen tank or a walker at the end of most pews.

They came to me and said, “Dr. Stetzer, help us reach the young people.”

Leading a church in revitalization has taught me some invaluable lessons. While the process is often difficult and slow moving, if approached correctly it can reinvigorate and empower God’s people to produce lasting fruit. Keep reading

The church shown in the photo is St. Paul's Episcopal Church, Hickman, Kentucky, the oldest Episcopal church in westernmost Kentucky. 

Photo credit. archive.constantcontact.com

5 Words of Encouragement to the Church Planter or Young Leader

Recently I was able to share some encouragement with church planters in Chicago. Having been a planter twice, I understand the unique challenges facing planters. They are constantly struggling with leadership issues, finances and simply knowing what to do next.

I get it. Most of what I know now came from experience and the wisdom of others.

Many of the suggestions I shared are suitable for young leaders in any field. Keep reading

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Why Pastors Often Leave Their Church in the Third Year – Rainer on Leadership #117 [Podcast]

In may seem confusing, but most pastors leave their church in the third year and the average length of a pastorate is 3.6 years. In today’s podcast, we explain the math behind that and the reasons for it. I also answer the question “should the expectation of church growth be placed on a new pastor?” Keep reading

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 20:29 — 18.8MB)

Debunking Ministry Myths – Part 2

A myth is “an unproved or false collective belief that is used to justify a social institution.” Several of the assumptions I embraced at one time about ministry have turned out to be “unproven or false.” Many of these myths hold fragments of truth, but eventually break down on the frontlines of ministry.

Last week I asked my pastor friends on Twitter to submit ministry myths that they experienced, which I included with my own. Last week we debunked these myths: pastors only work one day a week; pastors are on call 24/7; pastors can’t befriend members; missionaries live somewhere you don’t; statistics about pastors must be true. My desire to debunk these myths is fueled by a love for pastors and desire for them to lead healthy lives and ministries. Keep reading

Also see
Debunking Ministry Myths 

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Does the Bible Contradict Itself?

How to think about differences in scripture.

Does the Bible contradict itself?

Most people answer this question either with an adamant “Yes!” or passionate “No!” Too often, though, both sides fail to understand or represent the other side. Not everyone who says that the Bible contains contradictions is an angry, arrogant, card-carrying atheist. And not everyone who believes there aren’t any contradictions is a backwoods, unscientific, raging fundamentalist with his head in the sand. Keep reading

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Outreach Ideas from Outreach Magazine: Three Articles

Host an Art Walk: Northland Village Church

Years ago, Los Angeles resident Don Nocon worked as an assistant pastor. But over time, his passion to serve God faded.

“I got kinda disillusioned,” says Nocon, who now works as a Starbucks manager. “Not too much with God and my own personal walk, but just the way I related to church. I was walking away because I didn’t know if church could be a place that was safe for me.”

But a few years ago, Nocon was introduced to Pastor Nick Warnes of Northland Village Church through the Atwater Art Walk, an annual event the church organizes, showcasing local artists along a Bohemian strip of shops in its artsy LA neighborhood of Atwater Village in a way that brings the community together.

Nocon entered his photography and ended up winning first place. He and Warnes talked, and over time Nocon began to attend Northland. Now he helps oversee the 5-year-old festival, held every June. Keep reading

VBS: Not Just for Kids

Your halls will be swarming with children during Vacation Bible School and you’ll have lots of opportunities to connect with and teach them about Jesus throughout the week. But if you want them to come back for more—worship, Sunday school, regular children’s ministry events, etc., chances are you need to connect with their parents, too. Are you maximizing all the opportunities your VBS affords to meet and get to know parents? Here are a few ways.... Keep reading

Spring Cleaning for the Community

Do you have a day set aside for volunteers to do a postwinter clean up at your church? Why not use that time, instead, to clean up your community? Get out, enjoy the sunshine and brighten your neighbors’ day by serving. Keep reading

What might your church, fellowship, or small group do to build bridges with your community? The first step is to learn more about your community, its needs, and its concerns and then brainstorm how your church, fellowship, or small group might meet one or more needs or respond to one or more concerns. Be creative and think outside of the box.

Photo credit: Pixabay, public domain 

Religious Liberty Is Not Freedom from Ridicule

About a year ago, I found myself seething, over a compliment. Someone in Washington political circles said, “It’s really amazing; you’re a real-deal born-again type, and yet you are really intelligent and thoughtful.” I rolled my eyes, because I have seen this before. When I showed up in Washington as an 18 year-old congressional intern, a colleague from Massachusetts said, “You’re from Mississippi and you sure read a lot; good for you!” In both cases, I simmered inside, because both compliments were really forms of ridicule.

In my mind, I was upset because I was protective of the reputation of evangelical Christianity. I thought: “Are you so ignorant that you’ve never heard of Augustine or Justin Martyr or Blaise Pascal or Carl Henry?” And, years ago, I thought I was protective of my home state. I thought, “Yes, I think maybe William Faulkner and Eudora Welty and Tennessee Williams read more than I do.” But in both cases, I was wincing at a personal slight. I’m a born Mississippian and a born-again Christian. When one insults these categories, one is insulting me—and I didn’t like it.

In recent weeks, we’ve seen an unprecedented and nasty turn in American culture against basic religious freedoms, freedoms that once were at the bedrock of the American consensus. In the years to come, we will be called upon to advocate for religious liberty and soul freedom for everyone, over and against a government and a media culture hostile to the very idea. In order to do that, though, we must learn to differentiate between persecution and insult, between religious liberty and freedom from ridicule. They are not the same thing. Keep reading

9 Things You Should Know About Genocide

Because several genocides began in April or have a major anniversary in the month, many organizations and institutions around the world have set aside April to be a month of genocide awareness and action against genocide. Here are nine things you should know about genocide in the twentieth- and twenty-first centuries:

1. The term genocide was coined in the 1940s by Raphael Lemkin from the rooted words genos (Greek for family, tribe, or race) and -cide (Latin for killing). Lemkin, a Polish lawyer who emigrated to the U.S. in 1941, drafted the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, a resolution which was adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in 1948. The Genocide Convention was the first human rights treaty adopted by the General Assembly of the United Nations.

2. Article 2 of the Convention defines genocide as any of the following acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnic, racial or religious group:

(a) Killing its members;

(b) Causing serious bodily or mental harm to members of the group;

(c) Deliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part;

(d) Imposing measures intended to prevent births within the group;

(e) Forcibly transferring children of the group to another group.

3. In what is widely considered the first genocide of the twentieth century, the Ottoman Empire subjected the Armenian people to deportation, expropriation, abduction, torture, massacre, and starvation during World War I. The genocide began on April 24, 1915, when the Turkish government arrested and executed several hundred Armenian intellectuals. A group of nationalists known as the “Young Turks” organized “killing squads” or “butcher battalions” to carry out, as one officer put it, “the liquidation of the Christian elements.” An estimated 1.5 million of the 2 million Armenians living in the Ottoman Empire died between 1915 and 1923. Keep reading

In calling for the forced sterilization of Christians and Muslims in India earlier this month, a Hindu political leader was advocating the commission of genocide against these religious groups and warrants international condemnation. It is noteworthy that India ratified the Genocide Convention only on the condition that none of its citizens could be tried by an international court for committing genocide. 

Anglicans Ablaze Monday Special Edition: April 20, 2015

In this Monday special edition of Anglicans Ablaze:.

• Farewell Franchise Ministry
• Dangers of Consumer Church
• Why Doing the Right Thing Isn’t Enough for a Healthy Church
• Steward the Gifts God Has Assigned to You
• Cost-Effective Ways to Raise Your Visibility
• 5 Important Ways Evangelism is Shifting In Our Post-Christian World
• Latest Edition of Themelios Now on Internet
• Primers for Pastors: The Practical Shepherding Series, Parts 1 and 2
• ISIS Slaughters Ethiopian Christians, Vows to Slaughter Western Christians

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Farewell Franchise Ministry

Why is megachurch pastor John Mark Comer ditching conventional church-growth wisdom? Two words: mission and millennials.

You find the entrance to John Mark Comer's office at the back of a hip coffee shop in Portland, Oregon. Stop for a moment to savor a couple shots of freshly roasted espresso pulled by a man who looks like a logger with sleeve tattoos and an iPhone. Leave the cup in the bin, then make your way through the renovated warehouse. When Comer welcomes you into his small office, note the view of the Pearl District, the stuffed deer head on the wall, his retro bicycle, and that mid-century couch under the window.

Only the Bible on the desk and the theological books on the shelves suggest this is still a pastor's space. Comer's warm welcome and gesture toward a comfortable seat open a lively conversation.

Comer came of age in the ministry spotlight, taking over Solid Rock, a megachurch in the suburbs of Portland, Oregon, when he was only in his late 20s. From early on, Solid Rock had the makings not just of a large church, but a very large church, even in the "post-Christian" Northwest.

I'd heard that the church was restructuring. People on the fringes gave me conflicting reports—some said the church was splitting, albeit amicably. Others reported that it was just expanding to more locations. Still others claimed it was planting new, unrelated churches.

Each version turned out to be both wrong and right. I sat down with Comer to get the story straight. Keep reading

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Dangers of Consumer Church

Can self-centeredness be leveraged for the gospel?

“We are unapologetically attractional. In our search for common ground with unchurched people, we’ve discovered that, like us, they are consumers. So we leverage their consumer instincts.”—Andy Stanley in Deep and Wide

“In order to help people follow Christ more fully, we would have to work against the very methods we were using to attract people to our church…we slowly began to realize that, to be faithful to the gospel of Jesus, consumerism was not a force to be harnessed but rather an anti-biblical value system that had to be prophetically challenged.”—Kent Carlson and Michael Lueken in Renovation of the Church

So which is it?

Are “consumer instincts” morally neutral (or at least morally inevitable) and thus fair game for being leveraged toward spiritual ends, or are they something the gospel intends to crucify?

Can a person’s innate self-orientation be used to introduce him to Jesus and to becoming less self-oriented and more God-oriented? Or is a person’s self-centered orientation the very problem that the gospel seeks to cure? Keep reading

Why Doing the Right Thing Isn’t Enough for a Healthy Church

Have you been struggling to lead your church to health and strength, but can’t seem to get there?

You’re doing what you believe God is calling you to do and you’re taking wise counsel from others, but there’s very little, if any progress being made? Not just numerically. But in health, discipleship, worship and the other essentials.

This post might be for you.

There are four ways to lead:

1. Do the right thing in the right way
2. Do the right thing in the wrong way
3. Do the wrong thing in the right way
4. Do the wrong thing in the wrong way

Only one of those combinations will produce a healthy church. Let’s take a look at all four and see what happens with each one. Keep reading

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Steward the Gifts God Has Assigned to You

Each of us has received grace-gifts from God. And, “as each has received a gift,” we are to “use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God’s varied grace” (1 Peter 4:10). We are given these gifts for the “progress and joy” of one another’s faith (Philippians 1:25). Keep reading

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Cost-Effective Ways to Raise Your Visibility

In the summer of 2001 a church plant coach suggested our emerging church plant would need to spend $30,000 on initial branding, or as he said “ … to get your name out there.” But we didn’t have $30,000; and even if we did our core team agreed that’s not how we’d want to spend it. We wondered, Is there a better way?

Jesus said, “Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven” (Matt. 5:16). I’ve learned this is not only a cost-effective strategy for raising a church’s visibility, but a sustainable one that God honors. Indeed, the innovative good works of a church that reflects its community will be noticed and, more importantly, appreciated by diverse others beyond its walls.

In my own church and those I coach, we apply this strategy and it makes a difference. Consider these examples.... Keep reading

5 Important Ways Evangelism is Shifting In Our Post-Christian World

Almost every Christian leader I talk to has a passion for reaching people who don’t know Christ.

But as we’ve seen before, our culture is changing so rapidly before our eyes that many of the methods we’ve used to tell people about Christ become less effective with every passing month.

If you keep using methods that worked decades ago to talk to people outside the Christian faith about Jesus, you might see some fruit. But I’m quite certain you’ll lose the vast majority of people you’re trying to influence, and I’m positive you’ll lose the vast majority of people under age 35.

In the post-Christian, post-modern age in which we live, the methods of evangelism have to change in order to keep the mission alive. Keep reading

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Latest Edition of Themelios Now on Internet

The Gospel Coalition just released the latest issue of Themelios, which has 194 pages of articles and book reviews. It is freely available in three formats: (1) PDF, (2) web version, and (3) Logos Bible Software (coming soon). A print edition will be available for purchase in several weeks from Wipf and Stock publishers.

The latest issue opens with editorials by D. A. Carson and Mike Ovey. It includes a review essay by Nathan Finn on three recent books on evangelicalism. The remaining four articles focus on the patriarch Abraham. Learn more

Primers for Pastors: The Practical Shepherding Series, Parts 1 and 2

Whether moving into a solo pastor situation immediately following seminary studies or other preparation, or transitioning into a senior pastor position after serving on staff, many pastors have the experience of seeing their own initial sense of confidence evaporate before the demands, sometimes unexpected, of every day pastoral ministry. While some will blame inadequacies in their seminary preparation, to be fair, it is likely not possible for some things to be learned prior to being thrust into actual ministry experience. Nonetheless, those wanting to develop important ministry skills, or those wishing to improve them, can use mentors, whether personal or literary, in those early days of ministry.

The Practical Shepherding series, published by Zondervan and edited by Brian Croft, Senior Pastor of Auburndale Baptist Church in Louisville, Kentucky, seeks to help fill this need. Projected ultimately as seven slim books, most of which will be published later this year, the series begins publication with two short works that will benefit pastors in the early days of ministry, as well as their more experienced colleagues looking for either a refresher or a different perspective on ministry concerns. Keep reading

ISIS Slaughters Ethiopian Christians, Vows to Slaughter Western Christians

Approximately two months after the Islamic State (IS) published a video depicting its members slaughtering 21 Coptic Christians in Libya, on Sunday, April 19, the Islamic jihadi organization released another video of more Christians in Libya being massacred, this time for not paying jizya—extortion money demanded of the "People of the Book" according to Koran 9:29.

Two scenes appear in the 29-minute-long video published by al-Furqan, the Islamic State's media wing. The first scene consists of a group of Christian Ethiopians dressed all in black, on their knees, with their arms tied behind their backs. Masked IS members stand behind the Ethiopians with rifles aimed at their heads. According to the video, this scene takes place in the city of Fezzan. The Christian captives are called "Worshippers of the cross belonging to the hostile Ethiopian Church."

The second scene shows more Christian Ethiopians dressed in orange uniforms and standing on the shores of Barqa, the same region where 21 Egyptian Christians were earlier decapitated for refusing to convert to Islam.

Other scenes include the narrator referencing the fatwas of medieval jurist Ibn Taymiyya that proclaim all Christians "infidels." Then Abu Malik ibn Ans al-Nashwan, apparently one of the group's leaders, appears saying that "The dealings of the Islamic State with Christians under its authority is according to Allah's Sharia [Islamic law]. Jizya [tribute] is imposed on those who accept, and war on those who resist."

The final scene is of the Christians in Fezzan being executed by gunfire to the back of their heads and the Christians in Barqa all having their heads carved off. Keep reading

Eight Warning Signs Your Church is Drifting from God’s Mission

God’s mission is clear: He seeks and saves the lost. Therefore churches should be intentionally gospel-centered, intentionally evangelistic, and intentionally seek justice. A church excited about the gospel is a church with a laser focus on making disciples. Churches with purpose pour collective energy into one direction.

Churches without purpose tend to drift. Like the flotsam and jetsam in the sea, a church adrift does little more than float along as aimless debris. I have yet to see a church drift towards God’s mission. The current of apathy always pulls away. It’s obvious to point out drifting churches as lacking purpose. But what causes this drift? What are some early warning signs of an unraveling in a congregation? Let’s look at eight practical indicators. Keep reading

Issues in Church Leadership: Three Articles

5 Ways An Aligned Team Is A Better Team (What I’ve Learned From North Point)

Ever wonder what would happen if you got everyone in your church or organization moving in the same direction?

For the last seven years, I’ve led a North Point Strategic Partner Church and have learned so much about the benefit of having an aligned church. One of the key benefits of a simple church model (which North Point and its partners practice) is alignment.

Alignment happens when you have a team of people – from the top leadership right through to the newest volunteer – pulling in the same direction not only around the same goals, but using the same strategy.

Seems simple, but it isn’t. Keep reading

7 Traits of Leaders Who Hire Well

For a leader, there is not a greater responsibility or a more important task than choosing the people who will serve alongside you in fulfilling the mission of the organization or ministry. Great coaches are known for their masterful and careful recruiting, ensuring the potential player fits both the team’s strategy of play and the culture of the organization. In similar fashion effective leaders care deeply about the people they invite to join their teams. They know, as Jim Collins has stated, “Great vision without great people is irrelevant.”

The only time the Bible records Jesus praying all night long was before He chose His disciples (Luke 6:12-13). He had no plan B. He chose to ensure the gospel would spread through the disciples, and He prayerfully selected those who He would hand the mission to.

In my role, I interact daily with leaders and managers who hire people, who invite others to join the teams they lead. I have observed these seven common traits in leaders who hire well, leaders who seem to excel at attracting the right players to their teams. Keep reading

The Case In Favor Of Micro-Management

Micro-management is a bad word in business today. Leaders and managers alike are disowning the word like it’s a bad disease. It’s a common word that disgruntled employees will use when leaving a company. And, in reality, it is a bad thing....mostly.

But, I want to submit to you that there are some times that a leader should utilize this technique to leading those around him/her. I would never go as far as to say that it’s ok for a person to micro-manage the team. In fact, apart from the times listed below, I would say that it is never ok for a leader or manager to micro-manage and it actually leads to a lower-quality product and a dis-enchanted team.

I have found 3 distinct times when it’s important to micro-manage someone. They are.... Keep reading

How do I encourage my pastor?

Based on the emails, notes, and phone calls I continue to get, trust me…your pastor needs encouragement. He needs to know that what he does week in and week out means something to God as well as those for whom he labors. Here are 5 suggestions to accomplish this.... Keep reading

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Pastoral Ministry Basics: Three Articles

Top 5 Mistakes Pastors Make with Church Finances

I came into ministry after a long business career, so I’m sometimes considered unique in my involvement or interest in our church finances. I work closely with our Business Administrator and finance committee on the budget and administration of our church finances.

Working with different churches over the years, I’ve seen lots of approaches by pastors in this area of finances. Some are completely hands-on, while others run from the issue completely. It’s helped me form some thoughts around the topic; specifically some mistakes I think we can avoid.

Here are the top 5 mistakes pastors make regarding money.... Keep reading

The Pastor's Personal Holiness

The most important thing a pastor can do is pursue personal holiness. Robert Murray M’Cheyne, the famous nineteenth century Scottish Presbyterian, was right when he said, “The greatest need of my people is my own holiness.”

This may sound like pastoral hubris, but it is just the opposite. A faithful pastor knows that He must passionately pursue Christ. This is essential to being a pastor. A gospel minister who acknowledges this truth rightly ascertains the seriousness of his calling and the source of its fruitfulness. Keep reading

5 Ways to Recover Your Passion for Pastoral Leadership

I’ve been there. I’ve been burned out and depressed, discouraged and defeated. I’ve led in atmospheres where every creative idea was smothered by questions rooted in fear. I’ve been distracted by secondary interests. I’ve given into my own emotions and have isolated myself from healthy, life-giving relationships.

And I’ve recovered. That doesn’t mean I’m where I need to be – I’m still on the journey and have a long way to go. But I’ve learned the hard way how to bounce back to passionate preaching and leadership in the local church. From my own past and my own painful experiences, let me shoot from the hip with five big ways you can bounce back from burnout and be a passionate leader once again. Keep reading

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Preaching the Ten Commandments

When I preach through the Ten Commandments, each sermon has four points, because each commandment does four things at once. Keep reading

Social media: hashtag dos & don'ts for churches

The hashtag (or # symbol) has become vital for online communication over the last few years. Church and ministry leaders can use it to better engage their target audience and bring a Christian perspective to popular topics on social media.

Though the hashtag is now used on a number of social media platforms for similar purposes, the symbol first became popular on Twitter in 2007. While it's frequently used today to add emphasis (#Truth) or sarcasm (#Really?) to the end of a tweet or status update, it also allows people to join online discussions about particular events.

The hashtag has become one of the most powerful forces on social media. In 2011, the hashtag helped topple the Egyptian government and catalyze the Arab Spring. Just last year, "#Ferguson" made a suburb of St. Louis the center of the online world.

But for the church, they can be used for more than jokes or sending a tweet about the Super Bowl. Hashtags can help churches communicate more effectively and encourage engagement. They show up as a link, and clicking on the hashtag allows anyone to read all the tweets about that topic or join the conversation with their own thoughts.

For those new to social media or even for longtime Twitter users, here are some basic dos and don'ts churches and pastors should be aware of when it comes to hashtags.... Keep reading

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2 Real Reasons People Don't Go to Church

People give all types of reasons for why they no longer attend church. Most of those given mask the real reasons someone becomes a former church member? It’s the same motivations for virtually every other human decision: pain and pleasure.

If you associate church with pain or church with interfering with your pleasure, you probably won’t go. Those are the real reasons why you don’t go to church, but they still shouldn’t be what keeps you out. Here’s why. Keep reading

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Conservative Anglicans poised for 'leap forward', deny schism

Anglican leaders are preparing to step up their operations with a charity based in London that will be seen by opponents as a schismatic rival to the worldwide Anglican Communion.

The charity, the Global Fellowship of Confessing Anglicans, or GFCA, set up for the "advancement of the Orthodox Anglican Christian Faith", is to start employing staff to teach and preach a conservative gospel to an increasingly secular world.

The charity, which currently has a turnover of more than £100,000 annually and operates in England, Wales, Australia, Chile, Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria and Rwanda, is aiming to raise £500,000 a year to expand its mission.

The plans emerged after the primates' council of Gafcon, the Global Anglican Futures Conference, met in London this week behind closed doors. Keep reading

Also see
Bishops back Church of England breakaway congregations

Photo credit: The Rev. Canon Andrew K. Gross/Anglican Church in North America

GAFCON and the Future of Biblical and Reformed Anglicanism in North America

By Robin G. Jordan

The GAFCON Primates Council has released a public statement on its meeting in London this week. Among the developments reported in this communiqué was that the Council had unanimously elected ACNA Archbishop Foley Beach to that body, not a particularly surprising development in that Archbishop Beech’s predecessor was also a member of the Council. It does show the GAFCON Primates’ continued willingness to overlook what is happening in the Anglican Church in North America and to extend their unqualified support to the ANCA, a state of affairs that does not bode well for the future of Biblical and Reformed Anglicanism in North America.

Even before the formation of the Anglican Church in North America, during the days of the Common Cause Partnership, there was clear evidence that the leadership of what is now the ACNA were not fully in alignment with the Bible, the Anglican formularies, and the Jerusalem Declaration in their doctrine and practice. The evidence of this gap has become more undeniable since that time. The gap itself has also widened.

The GAFCON Primates, however, gave into persistent lobbying from the Common Cause Partnership and endorsed its formation of a new Anglican province in North America. They would subsequently recognize the ACNA as “a genuine expression of Anglicanism” even with its departures from the teaching of the Bible and the doctrine of the Anglican formularies, and the purely cosmetic nature of its affirmation of the Jerusalem Declaration.

The GAFCON Primates have continued to back the ACNA in spite of the exclusion of provisions from its formularies, which genuinely make room for differences in doctrine and practice in key areas between the different schools of conservative Anglican thought. They have turned a blind eye to the de facto ban on Biblical and Reformed Anglican doctrine and practice in the Anglican Church in North America.

The actions of the GAFCON Primates give the impression that they are unwilling to admit to having made a mistake in the case of the Anglican Church of North America. Their actions also suggest that their acceptance of the authority of the Bible and the Anglican formularies is not what it ought to be and falls short of full acceptance of these touchstones of authentic historic Anglicanism. Their commitment to the Jerusalem Declaration and their support of Biblical and Reformed Anglicanism and its adherents is open to question. Whatever is the truth of the matter, they certainly give this appearance. They have done nothing to change or dispel this impression.

The communiqué makes reference to the planting of 483 new congregations, which Archbishop Beech gave as evidence of the rapid growth of the Anglican Church in North America. Nowhere on the Internet does the ACNA, to my knowledge, make public detailed, reliable statistics on its new congregations. To evaluate Archbishop’s claim, we need at a minimum the following information.

1. The number of new congregations started annually from 2009 on.

2. The number of new congregations still in existence a year after their launch, two years, and so on.

3. The number of new congregations that have failed and how soon after their launch it was decided to discontinue the work.

4. The rate at which the new congregations are growing not in terms of average weekend attendance but the number of regular attenders worshiping with the congregation at the end of each year during the period from 2009 to 2015; the number of attenders who visited worship gatherings two or more times and then stopped coming; the number of regular attenders active in the congregation’s ministries, the attrition rate; the number of regular attenders contributing financially to the support of the new congregation’s work; the number of small groups, the size and duration of small groups, and the failure rate, and so on.

5. The demographics of the ministry target groups of the new congregations and the demographics of the actual population bases of these congregations.

6.The location of the new congregations—urban, suburban, university, rural, small town, etc.

7. Number of new congregations targeted at unreached, unengaged population segments; number of new congregations targeted at traditional Anglican/Episcopal constituencies.

8. The percentage of regular attenders in each new congregation who were believing Christians before they began to attend, the number of regular attenders in each new congregation who came to faith after they began to attend.

9. The number of adult baptisms.

10. The number of new congregations that were formed from former Anglican/Episcopal congregations, from core groups hived off from an existing ACNA congregation, and by other means (e.g. cold starts).

11. The specific beliefs and practices of clergy pastoring the new congregations in key areas:

• Revelation
• Holy Scripture
• Regeneration
• Justification
• Sacraments
• Baptism
• Lord’s Supper
• Apostolic Succession
• Bishops
• Church Government

This list is not exhaustive but it offers a good place to start. With this information we would have a much more accurate picture of the ACNA’s purported growth. I base this conclusion on my study of the literature and my experience in planting a new congregation in 1980s and in pioneering a number of new congregations since 2002.

This information I suspect would also strengthen the case of adherents of Biblical and Reformed Anglicanism for a separate parallel structure to the Anglican Church in North America, one which is faithful to the teaching of the Bible and the doctrine of the Anglican formularies and genuine in its affirmation of the Jerusalem Declaration.

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