wfn.org | Episcopalians: News Briefs

[dmack@episcopalchurch.org]

March 28, 2003

2003-069

Episcopalians: News Briefs

Archbishop Rowan Williams' Easter message to the Diocese of 
Canterbury

(Canterbury Outlook) The following message was sent by 
Archbishop Rowan Williams to the Diocese of Canterbury.

"As I write, we are contemplating the threat of war, and I have 
no idea how things will be by the time you read this.

"It's a sobering business trying to guess where we'll be in a 
few weeks' time and seeking a word of gospel to speak into this 
unknown situation.

"Yet it's just this kind of situation that Easter is most 
relevant to. The resurrection is not the solution to a problem 
-- 'how do we go on believing in God when God's Son dies?' It is 
the beginning of a new creation, a new world: 'The first day of 
the week' in which God will remake the whole of the broken 
universe.

"I don't know yet what I need from God, I don't know how to pray 
as I should, as St Paul says. But what God has to give me is not 
something to fill in the gaps in my desires and my plans, but a 
comprehensive new relationship with him which changes 
everything.

"So here I sit in mid-Lent, not knowing what to pray for, not 
knowing what words will be necessary if and when the reality of 
war overtakes us, what words will be necessary in the aftermath 
of war with all its tragedies and losses here and elsewhere in 
the world.

"And, as St Paul promises, it is the Holy Spirit who teaches me 
what to do and say: look to the new creation begun in Christ's 
resurrection, the glorious liberty of God's children, and keep 
it in focus even without words or specific hopes.

"Just sit in prayer and long for it -- because it is there, 
promised for us, even when we don't know how or when or where it 
will fully come.

"At Easter we recognize what God has done; and if God has done 
it, it stays done, as we say! There is a new world. At every 
moment it stands at the edges of our failure and violence, and 
nothing can take it away, nothing can build a wall so high that 
it cannot impact on the everyday world.

"But it comes always as a surprise, just as the resurrection 
came as a surprise (not as the solution to a problem). What 
makes it clear that the resurrection is God's action, is 
precisely the fact that it reshapes everything, that it doesn't 
fit into our small world but demands that we grow into a bigger 
world, God's world.

"War or peace, success or failure, this is always the Easter 
gospel; thank God for it."

Iraq war 'morally and legally justifiable,'says dissenting 
Anglican bishop

(ENI) A senior Anglican bishop, Peter Forster, has broken ranks 
with most of his colleagues and with the archbishop of 
Canterbury to voice support for the US-led military action in 
Iraq. Forster, who is the bishop of Chester in northwestern 
England, described the military action as "both morally and 
legally justifiable."

"Although there were and are risks in taking this action, I 
believe that there were greater risks in permitting the regime 
of Saddam Hussein to remain in power," he said. Forster's 
spokesman, David Marshall, told ENI: "The bishop has supported 
military action in principle for months, but he wanted to make 
his position clear after the outbreak of war."

The statement put him at variance with Rowan Williams, the 
archbishop of Canterbury, who, in a joint statement with Roman 
Catholic Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O'Connor before the outbreak of 
hostilities, had challenged the "moral legitimacy" of a war with 
Iraq.

Since the start of fighting, Williams has continued to indicate 
reservations about the action. In an article for The Times 
(London) on March 25, Williams said "the greatest casualty away 
from the arena of war [has been] a coherent approach to 
international law and to the maintenance of alliances."

He told his fellow Anglican primates around the world on March 
24: "We must pray that, whatever the many and varied misgivings 
expressed, the military action now being undertaken may help to 
bring about a more stable future for the whole region, with 
justice for all."

The Church of England's house of bishops declared in January 
that "a conclusive case has yet to be made in favor of military 
action,"  although since the statement, two diocesan bishops in 
addition to Forster have expressed dissenting views.

John Oliver, the bishop of Hereford, called much anti-war 
sentiment "simplistic and naive."  Pointing to the brutality of 
Saddam Hussein's regime, he said, "If one tries to weigh the 
balance in terms of innocent suffering, war can still be made to 
look like a good bet."

Michael Nazir-Ali, the bishop of Rochester, said national 
governments could be justified in taking action "if the Security 
Council produces irrefutable evidence of a material breach of 
its own resolutions but fails to act." 

Anglican peace groups pray for peace, protest war

(ENS) The Anglican Pacifist Fellowship and the Episcopal Peace 
Fellowship have released a joint statement criticizing the 
American and British governments for initiating war with Iraq 
and calling for "a better way than war to solve our 
differences."

"Our Prime Minister and our President are confident we will 
unite to send our Armed Forces our thoughts and prayers. We must 
do more than that," the statement said. "Nurse Edith Cavell, 
before she was shot in the First World War, declared, 
'Patriotism is not enough. I must have no hatred or bitterness 
toward anyone.' Our concern, as Christians, is not only for our 
own Forces, but for all the people of Iraq and throughout the 
Middle East."

The statement recalls that the UN's chief weapons inspector had 
requested more time for inspections in Iraq before the 
initiation of hostilities. "Instead, we invaded with massive 
force including the use of cluster bombs, whose unexploded 
fragments act like landmines to kill indiscriminately, and 
missiles tipped with depleted uranium whose long-term effects 
may well be deadly," the statement said. "Protests have failed 
to stop the war, but concerned voices may help to build the 
peace. We must insist that: the U.S. and U.K. Governments, 
having spent hugely on destruction, now spend equally on 
rebuilding and restoration; the United Nations, rather than the 
combatant nations, is in control of the reconstruction program; 
we ourselves say 'Never again' should unilateral national action 
be allowed."

Facing humanitarian crisis in Iraq, aid agencies step up relief 
plans 

(ENI) International church-related relief agencies are warning 
that the US-led war in Iraq may exacerbate a long-standing 
humanitarian crisis in the region.

The human toll of Iraq's recent history--international 
sanctions, the effects of the 1991 Gulf War and a protracted war 
between Iraq and Iran in the early 1980s--have "hardly 
penetrated the long noisy months of political and military 
news," said Jonathan Frerichs, a spokesperson for Lutheran World 
Relief (LWR), based in Baltimore, Maryland. LWR is a member of a 
coalition of US church groups and agencies taking part in a 
joint effort entitled "All Our Children" to raise funds for 
ongoing medical needs for Iraqi children.

At least 500,000 Iraqi children have died in recent years 
because of the continuing humanitarian crisis, according to the 
United Nations and humanitarian groups. US church groups are 
also supporting efforts by the Action by Churches Together (ACT) 
International, a Geneva-based global alliance of churches and 
relief agencies. 

ACT recently issued a warning that the military action could 
aggravate the humanitarian crisis in Iraq and affect neighboring 
countries such as Jordan, Syria, Iran, Turkey and Lebanon, where 
displaced persons will most likely seek refuge. "Extensive human 
suffering is an inevitable and predictable consequence of 
military action," ACT noted.

ACT is responding by coordinating efforts by the Middle East 
Council of Churches, UK-based Christian Aid, Norwegian Church 
Aid, the Lutheran World Federation and the Dutch-based Inter 
Church Organization for Development Cooperation/Kerkinactie.

Relief agencies affiliated with the major US mainstream 
Protestant denominations also have long-standing contacts with 
Christian churches in the Middle East. "Helping the people of 
Iraq, especially now, is something that congregations or groups 
within parishes across the US are ready for and are beginning to 
support," said Frerichs.

Conservative groups praise theology committee's 'Gift of 
Sexuality' report

(ENS) The American Anglican Council (AAC) and Episcopalians 
United for Reformation, Renewal and Reformation (EURRR) welcomed 
the final report of the theology committee of the House of 
Bishops, urging the 2003 General Convention not to pass 
legislation sanctioning the development of blessing ceremonies 
for gay and lesbian relationships. 

"Though we don't agree with every element of this report, it is 
apparent that the bishops have offered measured and thoughtful 
recommendations intended to prevent schism in both the Episcopal 
Church and Anglican Communion," said the AAC president, the Very 
Rev. David C. Anderson, in a statement released March 27. "We 
find many of the suggestions helpful in moving the Episcopal 
Church toward unity and we appreciate the hard work put in by 
the committee." 

"The strong affirmation by both the Theology Committee and the 
House of Bishops that we are part of the world-wide Anglican 
Communion is what Episcopalians United has worked toward for 
almost a decade," said the Rev. Todd H. Wetzel, executive 
director of Episcopalians United. "The coalition we have built 
among bishops from Africa, the Southern Cone and Asia has been a 
work of great joy and has finally shown fruit. I thank God that 
the bishops of the Episcopal Church in the USA are finally ready 
to acknowledge their interdependence on the mind of the 
Communion. Any other action would have produced chaos in our 
church and certainly, more schism."

Anderson noted that the AAC had not officially agreed to 
participate in a "national reconciliation conversation" between 
members of the Claiming the Blessing coalition, including 
Integrity, and members of conservative groups, set for May 7-10 
at St. James Episcopal Church in Wilshire, California. 
Episcopalians United also declined an invitation. 
"Reconciliation is the act of a penitent. There is nothing 
penitent about the stance of Claiming the Blessing or Integrity. 
They know what they want and they want it now, regardless of the 
price," Wetzel remarked. 

Open-doors safest bet for churches, say British security groups 

(ENI) For churches worried about being targets of crime, 
Britain's National Churches Tourism Group (NCTG) has some 
advice: leave the doors unlocked during the day. The 
interdenominational group says locked churches are twice as 
likely to suffer crime as unlocked ones.

"Professional church thieves will know there are no 'easy 
pickings' in an unlocked church, and that they are very likely 
to be disturbed [in action]," said Rosemary Watts, NCTG 
secretary.

The problem of the impact of crime on churches was highlighted 
on March 10, when Archbishop David Hope of York said fear of 
crime was making it hard to fill posts in inner-city parishes.

Ecclesiastical, a company that insures most of Britain's 16,000 
Anglican churches, stressed that the key to church security was 
keeping the building open and occupied. "Unlocking a church does 
not reduce crime by itself," Brian King, Ecclesiastical's head 
of publicity, told ENI. "Cathedrals don't suffer much from crime 
because there are always people about."

However, the tourism group's Watts said that even in rural 
Lincolnshire, where visitors may be rare, open churches were 
safer than locked ones. The "randomness of visitors" was a more 
important deterrent than having attendants on duty, she said.

Ecclesiastical supports the tradition of leaving church doors 
open throughout the week, and does not increase insurance 
premiums for churches that do so. 

'Living with Money' curriculum helps churchgoers understand 
role, power of money

(EMC) A groundbreaking educational curriculum for churches that 
helps people understand the role, power and impact of money in 
their lives is now available from the Episcopal Media Center. 

Living with Money, a video-based program with supporting printed 
materials, "shines the light of faith on the taboo subject of 
money to help people develop a balanced, wholesome, rewarding 
'money life,'" said the Rev. Louis C. Schueddig, producer and 
the Episcopal Media Center's president and executive director. 
"Living with Money encourages dialog on the subject of money in 
the context of the Christian faith."

The catalyst for the project, which took four years to fund and 
develop, is the Rev. Davis L. Fisher, an Evanston, Illinois, 
money consultant and Episcopal priest. "Everyone has a 'money 
life,' whether we acknowledge it or not," Fisher says. "Almost 
nobody talks about it. From our earliest years and throughout 
our life our attitude toward money influences who we are and 
what we become." 

Living with Money features four video programs with a panel of 
eight experts from a variety of disciplines. Their conversations 
supply the foundation for further discussion by participants and 
a group leader. Panelists, in addition to Fisher, are Glinda 
Bridgforth, Detroit-based financial counselor, founder of 
Bridgforth Financial Group and author of "Girl, Get Your Money 
Straight"; John Haughey, a Roman Catholic Jesuit priest, 
professor of Christian ethics at Loyola University in Chicago, 
and author of "The Holy Use of Money" and "Virtue and 
Affluence"; George Kawasaki, a Chicago branch manager of Ron 
Blue & Company, which offers financial, estate and investment 
counsel; Olivia Mellan of Washington, DC, a psychotherapist 
specializing in conflict resolution of money issues, and author 
of "Money Harmony"; Francisco Menachca, senior bank officer with 
Bank One in Chicago and manager of community outreach and 
education programs; Vicki Robin of Seattle, president of New 
Roadmap Foundation, and co-author of "Your Money or Your Life"; 
and William Schweiker, professor at the University of Chicago 
School of Divinity, chairman of an international research 
project called People and Property, and author of 
"Responsibility and Christian Ethics."

Each set of Living with Money includes four programs on two 
videos with closed captioning, a leader's guide and a 
participant's journal, and sells for $125 plus shipping and 
handling. The printed resources were prepared by Morehouse 
Publishing. For more information, call 800-229-3788 or visit the 
Episcopal Media Center website, www.episcopalmedia.org.

Liberia tense as fighting escalates

(ENS) In a cell phone conversation from the capital city of 
Liberia with the Rev. Benjamin Musoke-Lubega, the Episcopal 
Church's partnership officer for Africa, Bishop Edward Neufville 
reported that Cuttington University College had been evacuated 
but that several important generators still had to be retrieved 
and moved to Monrovia. He confirmed that Phebe Hospital, near 
the Cuttington campus, had also been abandoned, with most staff 
and patients moved to Monrovia. Neufville said that the health 
minister confirmed the evacuation.

Neufville  expressed confidence that it would be possible for 
the college to use the British International School for its 
classes. "The board is still reviewing the situation," the 
bishop said. When asked about the mood in Monrovia, he said that 
it was "tense." He said that there were reports of skirmishes 30 
miles from the capital but added that the government was 
claiming that the rebels had been stopped. 

"The number of displaced people is increasing," the bishop said, 
"as people flee for their lives." As a result, the camps for 
these people are seriously overcrowded. "This is a serious and 
pathetic situation," Neufville said. He expressed his gratitude 
for the phone call, calling it "a source of encouragement for 
us."

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