More Anglican turmoil

The Bishop of Pittsburgh, the Rt Rev Robert Duncan has said he will not appeal against the ruling, as bishops worldwide condemned the Episcopal Church of the manner of his deposition. He said: “I’m very sad, sad for the Episcopal Church. In 15 days the diocese will determine whether it too wants to be part of the Southern Cone and figure out whether it wants me back as bishop. That is up to the diocese, although I have a sneaking suspicion they will want me back.” “This is of course a very painful moment for Pittsburgh Episcopalians,” the president of the diocesan standing committee the Rev David Wilson said. “The leadership of the Episcopal Church has inserted itself in a most violent manner into the affairs and governance of our diocese.”The Archbishop of Sydney, the Most Rev Peter Jensen, said: “The unfolding tragedy of the Episcopal Church starkly reveals the folly of the original decision to break with the Bible and centuries of historic Christianity on the issue of human sexuality.”

Click here for the full article

GP

Go the under dog!

Trinity@Night

Greetings

Trinity@Night offers a Certificate in Christian Studies which has been developed by Trinity Theological College to prepare people for effective Christian service. This term we will be offering 2 units in the metro area, the details are below. I would also like to thank you for your willingness to assist us in promoting the upcoming Trinity@Night courses in your church or organisation.

The Term 4 enrolment form has been attached. Simply download, print and fill it in.

Click here for website

Kind Regards

David Mullender
Trinity@Night Co-ordinator
PO Box 115, LEEDERVILLE WA 6902
Level 2, 632-634 Newcastle Street, LeedervillePhone: +61 8 9228 9067Fax: +61 8 9228 3862Web: www.ttc.wa.edu.au
Preparing People for Effective Christian Service

Gafcon, what next ?

Following GAFCON, the organisers write:

"We invite individuals, churches, dioceses, provinces and parachurch organisations who assent to the Jerusalem Declaration to signify their desire to become members of the Fellowship of Confessing Anglicans...."

Click here for website invitation

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For snippets on what has been happening in the national, and international Anglican scene....

Click here for ACL Website

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Pray that people will walk the walk, as well as talk the talk.

GP

Postcard from Cambodia: The Painters CMS

Dear praying friends and supporters

While the Cambodian Church has been growing at a tremendous rate since Cambodia was opened to the world in 1991, in recent years the pace of growth has very much slowed. To help identify the problems with growth, a group has been started, calling itself Mission Kampuchea 2021 (MK2021). Their plan is to see a "transformational church" in every village in Cambodia (13 000 villages) by 2021. At present it is estimated that there is only a Christian presence in about 2600 villages, so this is an ambitious project. They estimate that the number of churches will need to double every four to five years. However, the committee obviously believes that through the power of God it is achievable. Further, some have pointed out, it is in line with the objectives of the government, that wishes to promote "religion" throughout the country. Across the top of all official documents are the words "Nation, Religion, King".

Last week I had the opportunity to visit the branch church of the Anglican Church that we are part of in Phnom Penh. This church is in a town called Tak Kmau, about 20 kilometres away. It was planted by students from Phnom Penh Bible School back in the mid 1990's and handed over to the Anglican Church as part of the partnership that existed.

There were about 25 people meeting together in a room opening out to the street. As a guest, I was placed under the one fan, a position I appreciated as the morning heated up. The sun was beating down upon an iron roof, less than a metre above the head of the Rev. Tit Hieng, the Anglican pastor from Phnom Penh who was preaching that morning. After the meeting I spoke to one of the leaders. He said that this church had no regular pastor for many years, but relied on visiting speakers for their spiritual nourishment. Apparently nobody is willing to come to this place – it being too far out of the city.

Our experience is that the situation with this church at Tak Kmau is a common one. Bible literacy is very low. Churches often depend upon a travelling "expert" who will come out every now and again to share words of wisdom, to only quickly depart and return to their home in the city (I too was about to return there). People here showed that they are eager to learn God's Word, but the opportunities to regularly deepen their understanding are often far and few between.

In our time in Cambodia, we have learnt that while people may be quick to respond very positively to foreign ideas, friendship, and practical support, unless there is competent, regular Bible teaching in their own language, their worldview generally remains unchallenged. The Buddhist worldview remains largely untouched in a Christian veneer. Often only the only the nature of the religious language and the shape of the building they meet in has transformed. So while there the church here is numerically strong –our understanding is that "the Khmer soul" remains largely untouched.

This week please pray for:
· Dave as he preaches on Sunday to the Khmer congregations at the Anglican churches in Phnom Penh and Tak Kmau.
· Leoni, as she continues working with the ladies of the EFC Women's Commission.
· The Anglican Church – that has just appointed a new minister for the English congregation – Rev. Norman Beale, a former missionary from Nepal.
· Peter Blowes, as he prepares to come for a CMS pastoral visit to Cambodia early next month.
· PPBS – enrolments are disappointingly low this year, with only 14 first year students.
· For our local community – two families have broken up in the last month, (resulting in the departure of one of Grace's playmates).

Back to St. Matts

Dear friends
We're looking forward to our celebration of Back to St Matt's this weekend. About 100 people have already booked in to our Saturday night get together with lots of food, friends and a few surprises. If you are planning to come along on Saturday night and haven't been able to buy your ticket, you will be able to do so on the night - but we need to know now that you are coming so we can advise the caterer of final numbers by Wednesday. We'd love to have your company - please let us know if you are planning to come.

And don't forget the BYO picnic at Shenton Park Lake on Saturday from 11am.

in Christ Kanishka

Postcard from Mexico

I am reposting this comment from Shelley Chapman for your encouragement and action:


Hi Gavin,

Thank you for posting something so clear for people who have adopted a missionary and are supporting them; both "Caring for your Missionary" #1 and #2 are practical and pretty much spot on. We are confident in the knowledge that we are faithfully prayed for at St Matts, but it really does make it special when people tell us so.We also love to receive emails and letters/postcards and are really encouraged by people doing this; it's not always easy to reply as quickly as we would like, but it helps us feel connected.We do enjoy hearing about general news from Australia. It's quite true that Australia doesn't feature much in the news here. And while we COULD just log on to a newspaper website and find out ourselves, it's always more fun to hear it from the more particular perspective of a friend.The church bulletin and sermons are also always welcomed. Especially hearing the Australian accent!!Finally, just a word about phone calls to missionaries. We've received a number of calls from well-meaning friends who thought about us and decided to call us - at 3am our time. At least for us in Mexico, emails are a lot easier!! (And we can cope with attachments.)Hope this missionary perspective is helpful. God bless!

Shelley Chapman

Caring for Your Missionary #3

The apostle Paul was very clear about the importance of caring for each other. He wrote to the church at Galatia: “As we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.”(Gal 6:9) Looking after our adopted missionaries can be difficult because they are so far away. The St Matthew’s Missions Working Group encourages you to think creatively about how to do this. There are many different and special ways that we can care for them. It needn’t take much time or money on your part to spoil your missionary but it will have a big impact on them.

Treat Them

You can help missionaries to feel cared for by sending birthday, Easter or Christmas cards, video recordings, magazines, books, chocolates or things for their children. Missionaries Paul and Sandra King look forward to a yearly ‘Postpak’ of goodies from a link church, and Sue Jaggar, a missionary in the Congo, enjoys receiving chocolate and cheese - rare commodities in Africa. Check first to see what they would like. If you send parcels check first that they won’t have to pay heavy customs duties. Mark your parcel ‘printed matter only’ (if that is what it is), ‘NCV’ (no commercial value) or ‘gift’. Tell them that you are sending the parcel and what is in it.

For missionaries who are departing, try not to give them heavy or bulky gifts to take with them. Small items like cards and photos are a good idea, as they are lightweight and nice mementos of home. If you have the address of where they will be living when they arrive at their posting, send them a small card or gift ahead of time so they will receive it when they arrive. A reminder that people from home care can be a lovely touch when missionaries land in a foreign country.
You could also send resources to help with their work. Missionary Frances Boland said, “It’s most encouraging when link churches send books, ideas and give creative suggestions for reaching activities and presentations for students and children.” Sue Jaggar in Africa welcomes craft things, balls and pencils, as well as puppets to explain Bible stories.
You could also treat them with a visit. A well–planned visit from supporters can be a great encouragement to missionaries. When booking your next business trip or holiday overseas, consider a side-trip that would enable you to call in on your missionary. They will love you for it.

Khim Harris

Caring for Your Missionary #2 Keep in touch

St Matthew’s Mission Working Group was delighted to hear during the week about people who have adopted a missionary and taken the first step to supporting them by praying for them. Today our tip for supporting missionaries is to keep in touch with them.

The writer of Hebrews tells us “let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds…let us encourage one another” (10:24). The missionary life has particular challenges. As we send out missionaries we have a special responsibility to encourage them because of the work they are involved in. Often missionaries work in physically and spiritually difficult environments. Their life is often very different to what they were used to at home. Take time to consider how you can spur your adopted missionary on toward love and good deeds…and how you can encourage them in their work for the gospel. One important way you can do this is by communicating regularly with them.

Keep in Touch

Write to your missionary. Even though you may not know your missionary very well, writing is a great way to encourage them. First of all introduce yourself and perhaps include a photograph. Let them know what’s been happening in your family, church, neighborhood. Missionaries often say they love hearing about ordinary things at home. Your emails, letters or postcards don’t need to be long. Let them know that you don’t expect a reply so they are not burdened.

In some countries email downloads are charged according to their size (including attachments). Please check before sending any attachments or long messages. In certain countries emails are monitored. Find out if there are topics that you should avoid mentioning for security reasons.

Keep them in the loop! Send the church bulletin occasionally and tell them about what’s going on at church. Keep them up to date with Australian news. Australia doesn’t feature very highly in overseas media.

Send a sound recording. If you prefer talking to writing then send sound recording (tape, CD or electronic – depending upon their preferred format) of you or people at church. You could also send sermon CDs to encourage your missionary.

Ring them! Next time you take out a telephone contract, consider signing up for a plan that allows cheap calls to your missionary’s country. Let’s smother our adopted missionary with love and care—they are working for the gospel of Jesus on our behalf.
Khim Harris