http://www.freerepublic.com/tag/ecusa/ en-us Tue, 29 Dec 2009 17:01:30 GMT Focus Forum 15 http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/2417015/posts I have been looking for God my whole life. I first recognized Him in the black foster parents I worked with who manifested Christ-consciousness. I then found him four years ago, when my parents died three weeks apart and I was carried by a force stronger than myself. And more recently, as I’ve gone from left to right, I have discovered him in the many conservatives guiding me, such as AT readers. American Thinker http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/2417015/posts#comment Tue, 29 Dec 2009 17:01:30 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/2416070/posts New L.A. Episcopal Bishop's Historic Journey By Duke Helfand December 27, 2009 The Rev. Canon Diane Jardine Bruce still remembers the moment 23 years ago when she fell in love with the Episcopal Church. Raised as a devout Roman Catholic, Bruce happened to visit an Episcopal parish in New Mexico, where the mother of a friend was officiating. Bruce was moved by the joy inside the sanctuary and delighted by the sight of the female priest, something prohibited by the Catholic Church. She found unexpected similarities between the two approaches, including the Eucharist. "There was something about being in an... Los Angeles Times http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/2416070/posts#comment Mon, 28 Dec 2009 04:21:20 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/2402128/posts Father John Lipscomb was the bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Southwest Florida. He converted to Catholicism in 2007, a few months after his retirement, and was ordained a priest this week. LUTZ — John Lipscomb, the married, 59-year-old former bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Southwest Florida, was ordained a Catholic priest Wednesday.The morning after, he expressed joy and a sense of relief. He’s at peace, spiritually. He’s just a priest now. He’s not the boss.“The part of the job that never fit was sitting in judgment of other people’s lives,” he said. “I’m at a point in my... Anglicans United http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/2402128/posts#comment Mon, 7 Dec 2009 17:41:06 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/2402441/posts Mainline Protestant churches seem to have weathered the past decade better than many people have assumed, but the future is raising serious challenges to continued stability, said a Christian pollster. George Barna analyzed data for The Barna Group's latest report examining mainline denominations. Weekend attendance at mainline churches has remained relatively stable, ranging from 89 to 100, over the past decade but the report suggests that they may be "on the precipice of a period of decline." Mainline bodies – which the research group identifies as American Baptist Churches in the USA; The Episcopal Church; the Evangelical Lutheran Church in... Christian Post http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/2402441/posts#comment Tue, 8 Dec 2009 00:27:19 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/2402008/posts Reporting from Los Angeles and Riverside - The Episcopal Diocese of Los Angeles on Saturday elected the first openly gay bishop since the national church lifted a ban that kept gays out of its highest ordained ministry, a move that deepened divisions between liberals and conservatives in the faith. Clergy and lay leaders, meeting in Riverside for their annual convention, chose the Rev. Canon Mary D. Glasspool, 55, who has been in a committed relationship with another woman since 1988, from a field of six candidates. She is a canon, or senior assistant, to the Diocese of Maryland bishops. Glasspool's... Los Angeles Times http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/2402008/posts#comment Mon, 7 Dec 2009 14:55:55 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/2402385/posts I don't envy Archbishop Rowan Williams. The leader of the global Anglican communion has had a busy couple of months -- on one hand, dealing with the news of the Vatican's offer of a personal ordinariate within the Catholic Church for Anglicans looking to convert... and now, on the other, with the Episcopal Church in the United States electing an openly lesbian bishop to the Los Angeles diocese. If confirmed, the Rev. Canon Mary D. Glasspool would be the first lesbian bishop in the Anglican communion.But the global communion is still struggling with the question of whether practicing homosexuals should... Inside Catholic http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/2402385/posts#comment Mon, 7 Dec 2009 22:58:05 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2401801/posts The future of the worldwide Anglican Communion was in jeopardy last night after the Archbishop of Canterbury said that the election of a lesbian bishop in the United States raised “very serious questions”. Dr Rowan Williams added that the choice of Canon Mary Glasspool to be a suffragan bishop in Los Angeles had “important implications”. The election of Canon Glasspool, who has lived with the same female partner since 1988, is the second appointment of an openly homosexual bishop in the US Episcopal Church Times on line http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2401801/posts#comment Mon, 7 Dec 2009 02:45:58 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2401251/posts The worldwide Anglican Church has been plunged into a fresh crisis after a lesbian was chosen as its second gay bishop. In a move that will dismay the Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams, Canon Mary Glasspool was elected as an assistant bishop for the diocese of Los Angeles. The Rev Rod Thomas, the leader of the conservative evangelical group Reform and a member of the General Synod, said: ‘I feel deeply ashamed that this is happening in the Anglican Church. ‘I think a schism is absolutely inevitable.’ Daily Mail http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2401251/posts#comment Sun, 6 Dec 2009 00:29:16 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/2401205/posts BREAKING: Diocese of Los Angeles Elects Non-Celibate Lesbian As Suffragan Bishop Stand Firm http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/2401205/posts#comment Sat, 5 Dec 2009 22:56:43 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2396669/posts Five years after same-sex marriage became legal in Massachusetts, the local Episcopal bishop yesterday gave permission for priests in Eastern Massachusetts to officiate at same-sex weddings. The decision by Bishop M. Thomas Shaw III was immediately welcomed by advocates of gay rights in the Episcopal Church, who have chafed at local rules that allowed priests to bless same-sex couples, but not sign the documents that would solemnize their marriages. The decision is likely to exacerbate tensions in the Episcopal Church and the global denomination to which it belongs, the Anglican Communion, which has faced significant division in the wake of... Boston Globe http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2396669/posts#comment Mon, 30 Nov 2009 05:48:43 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/2387682/posts Former Episcopalians who have found a traditional refuge in Catholicism, where the priesthood remains closed to women and openly gay clergy, are applauding the Vatican’s plan to help additional dissatisfied conservatives convert. But while the welcome extends to married priests — a narrow loophole in the Catholic Church’s celibacy requirement — most of those who have already converted say they want to remain rare exceptions. “We trust the church’s wisdom regarding the discipline of celibacy,” said the Rev. D. Paul Sullins, who left the Episcopal Church 10 years ago with his wife and recently surveyed his colleagues on this issue.... Religion News Service http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/2387682/posts#comment Mon, 16 Nov 2009 20:50:04 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2387616/posts Out of the Closet; Into the Church Homo McGreevey Finds Higher Calling thelastcrusade.org What does a gay governor do after he resigns from political office in disgrace? He becomes an Episcopalian and enters the priesthood. Jim McGreevey, the former New Jersey love gov, has gone from Turnpike truck stops to All Saints Church in Hoboken, where he is known as “Father Jim.” Last Sunday, the ex governor administered the sacrament of baptism to a bevy of babies, blessed the Eucharist, and carried the cross during the processional. In 2004, Mr. McGreevey resigned as Governor of New Jersey after revealing... The Last Crusade http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2387616/posts#comment Mon, 16 Nov 2009 19:09:24 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/2387679/posts The Episcopal Church is joining the Interfaith Immigration Coalition postcard campaign, aimed at sending a holiday message to members of the U.S. Congress. The message: "Help keep immigrant families together by supporting comprehensive immigration reform now." An action alert from the Episcopal Public Policy Network (EPPN) said its goal is to collect 10,000 signed postcards "and send a strong message to Congress that people of faith want to see action on comprehensive immigration reform." "Your participation in the Holiday Postcard campaign will help us remind Members of Congress that our broken immigration system is hurting immigrant families, and needs to... [Episcopal News Service] http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/2387679/posts#comment Mon, 16 Nov 2009 20:36:27 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2387130/posts "Gay American" Jim McGreevey is spending his Sunday mornings with a new man -- Jesus. The former New Jersey love gov has gone from Turnpike rest stops to the church rostrum as part of his training to become an Episcopal priest, working each weekend at All Saints Church in Hoboken. McGreevey -- who resigned from office in disgrace in 2004 -- isn't far enough along in his seminary studies to actually give sermons, but he assists the Rev. Geoffrey Curtiss at three Masses on Sunday and participates in parish programs, donation drives and activities. The New York Post http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2387130/posts#comment Mon, 16 Nov 2009 00:17:42 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2385981/posts Planned Parenthood Director Who Quit Now Rejected by Episcopalian Church Bryan, TX -- The religious denominations that embrace abortion do so supposedly because they are tolerant and welcoming of people who disagree on issues like abortion. Yet, that is not proving to be the case for Abby Johnson, the former Planned parenthood director who quit after converting to the pro-life perspective. http://www.LifeNews.com/state4578.html LifeNews.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2385981/posts#comment Sat, 14 Nov 2009 00:17:03 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/2374648/posts In the wake of Vatican plans to make it easier for Episcopalians to become Catholic, the Episcopal bishop of Maryland would like to make one point clear: The door swings both ways. Lost in talk of the splintering of the Anglican Communion, Bishop Eugene Taylor Sutton says, is the appeal that the 45,000-member Episcopal Diocese of Maryland has held for former Roman Catholics and others looking for a big-tent church. While attention focused on the conversion en masse last month of a Catonsville-based order of Episcopal nuns to the Catholic Archdiocese of Baltimore, the Episcopal Diocese of Maryland has received... Baltimore Sun http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/2374648/posts#comment Fri, 30 Oct 2009 16:31:19 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/2372254/posts Philadelphia, Pa., Oct 27, 2009 / 04:49 am (CNA).- A Pennsylvania Episcopal church which joyously greeted the announcement of a provision to assist Anglicans who wish to become Catholic could be among the first to take advantage of the church structure put forward by Pope Benedict XVI.The Church of the Good Shepherd, an Episcopalian parish in the Philadelphia Maine Line suburbs, is an “Anglo-Catholic” parish in the Episcopal Diocese of Pennsylvania. According to the Rosemont Journal, its liturgy is celebrated in the “high church” style reminiscent of traditional Catholic churches: with incense, elaborate vestments, and a choir that may sing... cna http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/2372254/posts#comment Tue, 27 Oct 2009 20:07:10 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/2351568/posts S.C. Supreme Court Rules for Breakaway Episcopal Parish Tuesday (RNS) A South Carolina parish that split from the Episcopal Church in 2004 can keep its church property, the state's Supreme Court has ruled, handing a rare legal victory to conservative dissidents. A majority of members of All Saints Church at Pawley's Island voted to secede from the Episcopal Church five years ago, after an openly gay man was consecrated bishop of New Hampshire. The Episcopal Church maintains that congregations hold their property in trust for the denomination; if they decide to leave, the property stays with the diocese and the... Beliefnet http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/2351568/posts#comment Wed, 30 Sep 2009 14:39:42 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2335190/posts Ten religious sisters and a priest who were formerly part of an Episcopal religious community were received into full communion with the Catholic Church at a Mass in Maryland on Thursday. One sister said God will use them to bring unity to the Church. The women were members of the Society of All Saints’ Sisters of the Poor. The former Episcopal priest, Fr. Warren Tanghe, was their chaplain. “We know our beliefs and where we are,” the sisters’ superior, Mother Christina Christie, told the Baltimore Sun. “We were drifting farther apart from the more liberal road the Episcopal Church is... EWTN http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2335190/posts#comment Wed, 9 Sep 2009 04:54:48 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2323375/posts Me http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2323375/posts#comment Mon, 24 Aug 2009 17:51:49 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2321008/posts The general convention of the Episcopal Church ended last month in Anaheim, Calif., with a whimper, despite these rather staggering announcements: it would, after years of internal battling, continue to elevate gay priests to bishops, and it would consider blessing same-sex unions in the states that allow gays and lesbians to marry. The convention—and these announcements—received a fair amount of obligatory coverage, but the news cycle quickly moved on. In the wake of that coverage I received the following e-mail from an editor: "I've been following this story and trying, without success, to think of an interesting line of argument.... Newsweek http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2321008/posts#comment Fri, 21 Aug 2009 04:48:18 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2317406/posts FRIDLEY, Minn. - The Rev. Dave Glesne stood before the members of Redeemer Lutheran Church a few weeks ago and told them there might be some painful decisions in the near future. Glesne is against letting people in same-sex relationships serve as pastors of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America, and he says his congregation is behind him. They're worried this suburban Minneapolis church could find itself on the losing side as leaders of the nation's largest Lutheran denomination vote on whether to take that step at their biennial national convention, which starts Monday in Minneapolis. "Of course the question... One News Now http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2317406/posts#comment Sun, 16 Aug 2009 19:12:52 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/2306885/posts Gay, lesbian priests nominated for bishop LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Two Episcopal priests in same-gender relationships are among the nominees for assistant bishop of Los Angeles, officials said Sunday. The Rev. John L. Kirkley of San Francisco and the Rev. Mary Douglas Glasspool of Maryland will be among six candidates on the ballot when lay people and clergy vote in December, despite a long-standing request from world Anglican leaders for a moratorium on consecrating openly gay bishops. Los Angeles Bishop Jon Bruno said in a statement Sunday that he was "pleased by the wide diversity" of the nominees. Separately, the... www.washingtontimes.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/2306885/posts#comment Mon, 3 Aug 2009 06:09:52 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/2306627/posts Conservative Anglican leader the Rt. Rev. Martyn Minns has a message for the Archbishop of Canterbury: "We're here; we're doing the work of Gospel; we are within the Anglican mainstream; and we are doing the very things that he declares that we should be about." ut he can't say the same for The Episcopal Church. Minns celebrated the growth of his breakaway group, the Convocation of Anglicans in North America, this week during their third annual council in Herndon, Va. It's a story of redemption, Minns said Friday. "Birthed because of a disaster, the abandonment of biblical Christianity by the... Christian Post http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/2306627/posts#comment Sun, 2 Aug 2009 19:33:52 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2306764/posts Episcopal Church leaders in Los Angeles today nominated an openly gay priest and an openly lesbian priest as bishops, becoming one of the first dioceses in the national church to test a controversial new policy that lifted a de facto ban on gays and lesbians in the ordained hierarchy. The nominations of the Rev. John L. Kirkley of San Francisco and the Rev. Canon Mary Douglas Glasspool of a Baltimore-based diocese are likely to further inflame theological conservatives in the U.S. church and their global partners in the Anglican Communion, who have repeatedly warned about the repercussions of such action.... Los Angeles Times http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2306764/posts#comment Mon, 3 Aug 2009 00:13:37 GMT