Week Ending 5/30/16

New Zealand Church Delays Vote on Replacing Confirmation

The Anglican Church in Aotearoa, NZ and Polynesia decided to hold over to their next synod a proposal to replace  the rite of Confirmation with The Laying on of Hands for Affirmation, Renewal and Reception.  The proposals for changes to baptism and replacement of confirmation were left lying on the table at the synod recently concluded. The church will use the time to hold wider conversations.  Those who made the proposal noted that the rite of confirmation has slowly lost its importance since the church made baptism the entry point for communion.  Others were concerned about the replacement of the rite with a very different ritual. This discussion should be of interest to the Episcopal Church given that the TEC has a very similar stance on baptism.

Archbishop of Canterbury Tries to Mend Rift with Scottish Episcopal Church 

The announcement shortly before Christmas that the Church of England and the (presbyterian) Church of Scotland had drafted an accord for closer ties, blindsided the Scottish Episcopal Church. (See update stories here and here.)  To the Scots, it appeared that the Church of England was crossing boundaries and inserting itself into another province's business.  The Church of Scotland approved the agreement at its recently concluded General Assembly.  Archbishop Justin Welby was present and addressed the Assembly.  In his address he took responsibility for blindsiding the Scottish Episcopal Church and requested that as the conversations continue and details are worked out, that the Scottish Episcopal Church be given a seat at the table. For at least some this gesture is too little too late.  See the commentary here.

Still Another Episcopal School Dealing with Possible Sexual Improprieties

St. Andrews School in Boca Raton, LA has dismissed its headmaster, Peter Benedict, Jr.  and a month later announced it had hired two law firms with experience in sexual misconduct issues to represent the school.  One of the firms has been charged with conducting an investigation to see if there has been any improprieties.  The board has also contacted parents to find out if there are unaddressed incidents of sexual misconduct.  There is no specific charge pending at St. Andrews, but the previous headmaster, the Rev. George Andrews's name has surfaced in conjunction with investigations at St. George's School in Rhode Island. 

Newest Bible Translation in Emoji!

Given the texting shortcuts used extensively by younger Americans, it was bound to happen.  A translation of the Bible is now available using emoji and all the abbreviations used by frequent texters.  The Episcopal Cafe has a sample of the new text. 

PBS Interview with Presiding Bishop Curry Available

Both the video and a transcription of Judy Woodruff's interview of Presiding Bishop Michael Curry are now available.  She interviewed him to see how things were going after 6 months in office.