Anglican Mainstream

Dr JI Packer. Named by Time magazine as one of the ten most influential theologians of the 20th century.

May I begin by saying where I come from. If a certain dignitary kept his word and threat, I am here under false pretences. Two days ago I will have been deprived of the ministry to which I was ordained in 1952 and I ought not to be wearing a clerical collar. It is utterly tragic. This led me to resonate deeply with the way AB Venables presented in his talk. I have a joyful heart. One cannot be seeking to live under the leading and power of the Holy Spirit without joy in one’s heart. Joy has been added to my state of mind. Despite the fact that in Acts 27 the ship was wrecked, everyone was saved and got safe to land, and we have got safe to land in the same way through the generous offer of jurisdiction from AB Venables which we have settled for most gratefully. I want to celebrate the goodness and graciousness of AB Venables. This is not two Brits together but two Christians together. AB Venables has lightened my gloom considerably. As he illuminated what has gone wrong, I was saying Amen sir you are right, but oh dear.

I think that scripture stories are meant to prompt us to ask what God was doing. I ask the same question: what is God doing not to the Anglican Church of Canada but the disorder that only seems to grow in the old west (US, Canada, UK, Australasia) We pray for an end to it but we do not see an end to it. I continue to pray that out of all this God is going to purge the old west of its poisonous liberalism which is weakening and shrinking the churches. Gods way of purging is letting a thing grow to its full stature so that its real nature can be seen so that finally it is squeezed out. I pray that that will be the outcome of the inflow of liberalism. God is preparing and toughening us for specially demanding conflict. In our call to mission, I suspect that over the next generations it is going to be exceedingly tough as we face secularism and ethnic religions surge which do not tolerate Christianity. The pressure is on and increasing. God is toughening us for mission.

Meantime in our Anglican Communion the principle of geographical exclusiveness for the diocese and its bishop has been breached in a way that cannot be restored. We are realigning within the province of Canada. It seems to me that in a situation where arguably, elected bishops become heretical, what is the divine answer to that, there must be possibility for realignment for the faithful where heresy, doctrinal and moral is approved.

Meantime, the Archbishop has indicated what we are called to do as the Anglicans we are, now realigned with the Southern Cone. No sheep stealing, but let us reach out, plant churches, and do what the whole Anglican Communion has needed to do for the last 100 years, and re-establish catechesis to adults, that every Christian all through life needs to keep learning and every Christian needs to teach. Lay weakness in the Anglican world is our biggest weakness. We are free to re-establish catechesis as part of lifelong learning in our churches. The situation we are now in, calls us to dwell deep in the Lord, to be strong in the Lord and the power of his might. ENDS

AM website notes that the 15 churches in the ANIC have more members than 16 dioceses together in the Anglican Church of Canada which has 31 Dioceses. In Australia, farmers do not build fences to keep the sheep in, they dig wells for them to come to.

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