Archbishop Isingoma deplores Florida consecrations
Archbishop of the Congo Henri Isingoma has repudiated the consecrations of two bishops in Florida as “Bishop Emissaries” to dioceses in Congo and Tanzania. (See Pittsburgh Update story here.) According to a May 12, 2015, story at Anglican Ink, the consecrations were carried out by “the Most Rev. Emmanuel Kolini, the former primate of Rwanda, and the Most Rev. Yong Ping Chung, the former primate of South East Asia, the Rt. Rev. Charles Murphy, the former leader of the AMiA [Anglican Mission in the Americas] assisted by three Congolese bishops, a Tanzanian bishop and a Ghanaian bishop.” Isingoma sees the consecrations as an interference in his own church.Bishop of Maidstone: 10% of CoE members oppose female bishops
The newly appointed Bishop of Maidstone, the Rev. Prebendary Rod Thomas, has estimated that 10% of Church of England members oppose female bishops. He has suggested that there are 300 individual parishes that cannot accept the authority of a woman bishop. Thomas was selected for his opposition to female ordination and his ability to minister to those who hold similar views. (See Pittsburgh Update story here.) Premier reported this story May 11, 2015.Independent group writes memorial and offers alternative resolutions to General Convention
On May 14, 2015, Ascension Day, a group of seven Episcopalians unveiled a new Web site carrying the title “Episcopal Resurrection: Calling the 78th General Convention to Proclaim Resurrection.” Anyone who follows Episcopal discussion on the Web will recognize the names of at least some of the authors: Susan Brown Snook, Tom Ferguson, Scott Gunn, Frank Logue, Brendan O’Sullivan-Hale, Steve Pankey, and Adam Trambley. The site contains a memorial addressed to the General Convention and a collection of proposed resolutions. The memorial is not very different in spirit from the the introductory material in the report from the Task Force for Reimagining The Episcopal Church, but the resolutions offer a different view of how the church can be revitalized.The Web site includes a brief description of how it came to be, and at least two of the authors have blogged about the development (here and here).
Episcopalians are invited to endorse the memorial, though not the resolutions. To date, endorsers include 25 bishops, including Bishop Dorsey McConnell. Of the Presiding Bishop candidates, only Ian Douglas has signed on. Deputy and alternate deputy endorsers include Bruce Robison and Lou Hays from Pittsburgh. People can sign on as endorsers by sending their name and status (bishop, deputy, alternate deputy, or other) to endorse@episcopalresurrection.org.
Pew Research Center paints dim picture of Christianity in America
On May 12, 2015, Pew Research Center released a report titled “America’s Changing Religious Landscape.” As might be expected, the message from Pew is not encouraging for mainline churches. Fewer Americans are calling themselves Christian. Non-Christian faiths are growing, as are the ranks of the unaffiliated. The Pew report has lots of tables and graphs.Number of PB candidates fixed at four
The Joint Nominating Committee for the Election of the Presiding Bishop (JNCPB) announced May 13, 2015, that no additional candidates have been submitted to stand for the election as the next Presiding Bishop of The Episcopal Church. Therefore, the next leader of the church will be selected from among- Bishop Thomas E. Breidenthal of Southern Ohio
- Bishop Michael B. Curry of North Carolina
- Bishop Ian T. Douglas of Connecticut
- Bishop Dabney T. Smith of Southwest Florida