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Episcopal Seminaries Struggle With Costs Long-Held Training Model Faces an Uncertain Future By G. Jeffrey MacDonald Religion News Service Saturday, May 17, 2008; B09 In the cloistered world of Episcopal seminaries, time sometimes seems to stand still as clergy-in-training gather in stone chapels to pray in ways familiar to their forebears centuries earlier. But the semblance of timelessness can be deceiving. Some of the 11 seminaries affiliated with the Episcopal Church are slashing core programs, while others report rapid growth in enrollment. Still others are reexamining conventional wisdom about what it takes -- and how much it costs -- to...

Refutation of Protestant Polemicist William Webster's Critique ofCatholic Tradition and Newmanian Development of Doctrine  Dave Armstrong  vs. William Webster  William Webster is a prolific opponent of the Catholic Church and author of  many papers and published books along these lines. This is a response to his Internet essay,  Rome's New and Novel Concept of Tradition: Living Tradition (Viva Voce - Whatever We Say) A Repudiation of the Patristic Concept of Tradition, which is reproduced in its entirety and thoroughly answered. The subject headings are my own. Mr. Webster's words will be in blue.  TABLE OF CONTENTS(hyper-linked)I. Protestant Historians on Church...

III. Remaking the Diocese of San Joaquin: a Canonical Proposal for Harmony Given the background that is in Part I of this Memorandum, and the analysis that is in Part II, the way forward to reconstitute the Diocese of San Joaquin according to the Constitution and Canons of The Episcopal Church is clear. Recall that the Diocese has always been an unincorporated association, and that such an entity is simply a gathering together of like-minded people for a common purpose. The group known as Remain Episcopal can therefore be fully accommodated in the ongoing Diocese, along with the other parishes,...

Chapter 9 Of Free Will 1. God hath endued the will of man with that natural liberty, that it is neither forced, nor, by any absolute necessity of nature, determined to good, or evil.a2. Man, in his state of innocency, had freedom, and power to will and to do that which was good and well pleasing to God;b but yet, mutably, so that he might fall from it.c3. Man, by his fall into a state of sin, hath wholly lost all ability of will to any spiritual good accompanying salvation:d so as, a natural man, being altogether averse from that...

II. A Tale of Two Dioceses As noted in Part I, a Diocese of The Episcopal Church has a dual existence: it is canonically recognized as a Diocese by The Episcopal Church, and it is legally recognized as a separate entity by the State in which it geographically exists. Thus the Diocese of San Joaquin was recognized both as a diocese belonging to Province VIII of The Episcopal Church, and within California it was recognized as an unincorporated association by the State of California. An "unincorporated association" is just a gathering of two or more people to accomplish some lawful...

There seems to be so much confusion about what is going on in the Diocese of San Joaquin that it is probably too optimistic to expect that another post on the subject will assist anyone in understanding the situation. In considering how to approach the subject, and on how to place the current lawsuit in context, it occurred to me that one viewpoint that has not yet been seen is that of a chancellor's advice to a Presiding Bishop of The Episcopal Church who genuinely wants to honor and to follow TEC's Constitution and Canons. So let the following memorandum...

Martin Luther, Augustinian, to his friend, Herman Tulich, Greeting 1.1 Like it or not, I am compelled to learn more every day, with so many and such able masters vying with one another to improve my mind. Some two years ago I wrote a little book on indulgences, which I now deeply regret having published. For at the time I still clung to the Roman tyranny with great superstition and held that indulgences should not be altogether rejected, seeing they were approved by the common consent of men. Nor was this to be wondered at, for I was then engaged...

Last summer, I received an essay from a friend—a leading Evangelical intellectual—who said that the label Protestant should fade out in favor of the label Evangelical because, in part, Protestant was “negative.” In many people’s minds, it certainly is. It sounds like it is about dissent and disagreement. It evokes images of picketers carrying poorly made signs back and forth in front of a factory. Indeed, it sounds disagreeable. More recently, another friend published an engaging account of his exploration of Catholicism. The book is Jon Sweeney's Almost Catholic, and you can read an excellent review of it on my...

All, Mission To The World, the PCA's international ministry, has issued an appeal for funds to aid in the relief of Myanmar cyclone victims. I know that most of us have heard stories about countries and large relief agencies having their hands tied, but God will provide a way for His church to break through manmade barriers. _________________________________________________________________ Horrifying and harrowing stories are emerging in the aftermath of the catastrophic tropical cyclone that devastated much of already poverty-striken Myanmar. Reuters News is reporting as many as one million people left homeless. No one really knows how high the death toll...

Chapter 8 Of Christ the Mediator 1. It pleased God, in his eternal purpose, to choose and ordain the Lord Jesus, his only begotten Son, to be the Mediator between God and man,a the Prophet,b Priest,c and King,d the Head and Savior of his church,e the Heir of all things,f and Judge of the world:g unto whom he did from all eternity give a people, to be his seed,h and to be by him in time redeemed, called, justified, sanctified, and glorified.i2. The Son of God, the second person in the Trinity, being very and eternal God, of one substance...

Preaching: Preach to Make Them Sweat Now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, "Men and brethren, what shall we do?" --Acts 2:37 I preach to my congregation week after week. And I pray that I may be able to preach with such convicting power that my people will sweat! I do not want them to leave my services feeling good. The last thing I want to do is to give them some kind of religious tranquilizer--and let them go to hell in their relaxation. The Christian...

The regional governing body of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) and representatives of the Stow Presbyterian Church have reached an agreement that allows the local congregation to keep the church property. The pact comes after 18 months of discussions between the Stow church and the Eastminster Presbytery, according to the Rev. Dan Schomer, who leads the Mineral Ridge-based presbytery, which includes 55 churches in Summit, Portage, Columbiana, Mahoning and Trumbull counties. ''The action to dissolve the congregation effectively severs the ties of the church to the denomination and permits it to continue its ministry as an independent congregation,'' Schomer said in...

COLORADO SPRINGS — An El Paso County District judge ruled Tuesday that the Episcopal Diocese of Colorado and officials of Grace Church and St. Stephen's Parish in Colorado Springs must resolve their $17 million property dispute at trial. District Judge Larry E. Schwartz concluded that he cannot make a decision based solely on matters of law because "there is virtually no agreement as to the facts."

The Most Rev. Katharine Jefferts Schori The Episcopal Church USA 815 Second Avenue New York, NY Dear Bishop Katharine, I received word of your letter through a colleague who had seen it on the internet. Without the internet, I may never have known that you had written such a personal, yet sadly ironic, letter to me. Unfortunately, you appear to have been misinformed about key matters, which I hope to clear up in this letter. 1. I am not visiting a church in the Diocese of Georgia. I am visiting a congregation that is part of the Church of Uganda....

Preaching: The Authority of God ...I am sending you to them, and you shall say to them, "Thus says the Lord God." As for them, whether they hear or whether they refuse--for they are a rebellious house--yet they will know that a prophet has been among them. -Ezekiel 2:4-5 I don't want to be unkind, but I am sure there ought to be a lot more authority in the pulpit than there is now. A preacher should reign from his pulpit as a king from his throne. He should not reign by law nor by regulations and not by board...

Chapter 7 Of God’s Covenant with Man 1. The distance between God and the creature is so great, that although reasonable creatures do owe obedience unto him as their Creator, yet they could never have any fruition of him as their blessedness and reward, but by some voluntary condescension on God’s part, which he hath been pleased to express by way of covenant.a2. The first covenant made with man was a covenant of works,b wherein life was promised to Adam; and in him to his posterity,c upon condition of perfect and personal obedience.d3. Man, by his fall, having made himself...

I have been following and participating in these Protestant/Catholic debates for a while now, and there is something that is bothering me. Time after time, we get into dogfights with the people we are trying to debate. What is bothering me is the fact that we (myself included) are, more often that I would like to admit, responsible for starting these dogfights. While the official rules may not prohibit little snide comments, they only harm our cause. If we are going to speak the truth of Christ, it would be expedient of us to behave in a manor that is...

Q. If the Catholic Church has such good reasons for calling Mary the Mother of God then why did the Protestants stop using this title?A. It is not known when the Protestant churches dropped this title for Mary or by what authority they did so since all of the principle reformers vigorously affirmed and defended this doctrine. Martin Luther: “In this work whereby she was made the Mother of God, so many and such good things were given her that no one can grasp them…Not only was Mary the mother of Him who is born in Bethlemem but of...

Preaching: A Voice Instead of An Echo But Peter and John answered and said to them, "Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you more than to God, you judge. For we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard." --Acts 4:19-20 To escape the snare of artificiality it is necessary that a man enjoy a satisfying personal experience with God. He must be totally committed to Christ and deeply anointed with the Holy Spirit. Further, he must be delivered from the fear of man. The focus of his attention must be...

Chapter 6 Of the Fall of Man, of Sin, and of the Punishment Thereof 1. Our first parents, being seduced by the subtilty and temptation of Satan, sinned, in eating the forbidden fruit.a This their sin, God was pleased, according to his wise and holy counsel, to permit, having purposed to order it to his own glory.b2. By this sin they fell from their original righteousness and communion with God,c and so became dead in sin,d and wholly defiled in all the parts and faculties of soul and body.e3. They being the root of all mankind, the guilt of this...

What in heavens is going on with WJMJ? The radio station, heard at 88.9 FM in the Hartford area, is owned by the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Hartford but offers air time to programming from other religions. Earlier this month, Protestant leaders were informed that most or all of their programming would be dropped as the station went to a more Catholic format. The Rev. John Gatzak, executive director of the archdiocese's Office of Radio and Television, said last week that the station would become more active in Catholic evangelization. He said it was becoming an affiliate of EWTN Radio,...

Preaching: Prophet, Not Orator And I have put My words in your mouth; I have covered you with the shadow of My hand, that I may plant the heavens, lay the foundations of the earth, and say to Zion, "You are My people." --Isaiah 51:16 The Christian minister, as someone has pointed out, is a descendant not of the Greek orator but of the Hebrew prophet. The differences between the orator and the prophet are many and radical, the chief being that the orator speaks for himself while the prophet speaks for God. The orator originates his message and is...

Chapter 5 Of Providence 1. God the great Creator of all things doth uphold,a direct, dispose, and govern all creatures, actions, and things,b from the greatest even to the least,c by his most wise and holy providence,d according to his infallible foreknowledge,e and the free and immutable counsel of his own will,f to the praise of the glory of his wisdom, power, justice, goodness, and mercy.g2. Although, in relation to the foreknowledge and decree of God, the First Cause, all things come to pass immutably, and infallibly;h yet, by the same providence, he ordereth them to fall out, according to...

Albert Einstein described belief in God as "childish superstition" and said Jews were not the chosen people, in a letter to be sold in London this week, an auctioneer said Tuesday. The father of relativity, whose previously known views on religion have been more ambivalent and fuelled much discussion, made the comments in response to a philosopher in 1954. As a Jew himself, Einstein said he had a great affinity with Jewish people but said they "have no different quality for me than all other people". "The word God is for me nothing more than the expression and product of...

Women's Ordination Was Non-Negotiable When the Church of England’s General Synod voted to allow the ordination of women to the Anglican priesthood in 1992, it caused a seismic row in the Anglican church. A number of clergy, including five bishops, eventually left to join the Catholic Church. Among them was Fr. Peter Geldard, who, as chairman of the Church Union, led the opposition to the ordination of women and opened the debate by speaking against the then-Anglican archbishop of Canterbury, George Carey. The debate took place not merely in the synod itself but throughout the media in the days and...

A sermon preached by the Rt Revd Dr Alan Smith, Bishop of Shrewsbury at a confirmation at Christ Church, Shelton and Oxon on 11th May 2008 As Delivered Scripture: Acts 2 1 - 21 There are inevitably two focuses to our worship today. Gathered here are the candidates for confirmation with families and friends. It’s a joyful occasion as we come to celebrate with them this stage in their spiritual life. But we’d be kidding ourselves if we don’t face the fact that the other factor behind our worship today is the plight of those people in Myanmar (the place...

Preaching: Eloquence And I, brethren, when I came to you, did not come with excellence of speech or of wisdom declaring to you the testimony of God. For I determined not to know anything among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified. --1 Corinthians 2:1-2 There are few things in religious circles held in greater esteem than eloquence. Yet there are few things of less actual value or that bring with them greater temptation or more harm. One qualification everyone expects a preacher to have is the ability to discourse fluently on almost any religious or moral subject. Yet such...

Chapter 4 Of Creation 1. It pleased God the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost,a for the manifestation of the glory of his eternal power, wisdom, and goodness,b in the beginning, to create, or make of nothing, the world, and all things therein whether visible or invisible, in the space of six days; and all very good.c 2. After God had made all other creatures, he created man, male and female,d with reasonable and immortal souls,e endued with knowledge, righteousness, and true holiness, after his own image;f having the law of God written in their hearts,g and power to fulfill it:h...

This is the second in the series; and if you haven’t already read the one on Creation, I would encourage you to do so before moving on to this post. And the Lord God planted a garden in Eden, in the East, and there he placed the man whom he had formed. – Genesis 2:8 Immediately after his account of God’s creation of the world, Moses goes on to describe the creature in whom would be centered God’s design for creation, namely, the man whom he had formed; and likewise he describes the place in which the fulfillment of this...

New technology has always played a part in religious polemics and in the sense of identity generated through the heated exchange of opinion - such as we see in cyberspace today. The invention of the printing press in the fifteenth century has been credited by Reformation scholars as an important factor behind the success of sixteenth-century Church reformers. The impact of the new technology was nowhere more apparent than in the career of Martin Luther. In the aftermath of the indulgence controversy of 1517 that ultimately led to his rejection of Roman authority, Luther published numerous tracts that flew across...

IT IS becoming clear that the conservative case is going to be well represented at the forthcoming Lambeth Conference in Canterbury. At least two conservative bishops have confirmed that they will be attending, with the express purpose of promoting their cause. One is the Presiding Bishop of the Southern Cone, the Most Revd Greg Venables. He told The Times that he would attend both the Global Anglican Future Conference (GAFCON) in June and the Lambeth Conference in July. Bishop Venables has been censured in recent weeks for ministering to congregations in Canada and San Joaquin, in the US, without the...

The meeting went very well. We arrived ready to offer half of a six hundred thousand dollar bequest in exchange for a diocesan agreement to quit any claim to parish property. Property prices in Central New York are quite low compared to those in Virginia and elsewhere so the offer was a generous one. The amount offered would, we would later (after a joint appraisal) discover, fall just under fair market value. But, we reasoned, this first meeting was just the beginning of negotiations and we were ready to offer more if necessary. It did not prove necessary. Bishop Adams...

If the Anglican Communion is to be "in Philippi", and I agree with Kings that it is, then it is time to obey God fully and send the dogs, the enemies of the gospel, away from the table. The problem with Lambeth is that Euodia and Synthyche would have to share their Sunday roast with wolves despite the Philippian church being told that they should do no such thing. There is, of course, an alternative. There is another gospel table where the dogs are not invited but Euodia and Syntyche sit side by side. At GAFCON evangelicals and anglo-catholics will...

An extraordinary on-line archive, The Proceedings of the Old Bailey, now makes available (and searchable) the records of London's main criminal court from 1674 through 1913. There's a staggering amount of material to play around in. Keyword "Romish" produced 102 records, including the following account of the 1674 condemnation of a Catholic priest. At this Sessions of Oier and Terminer for the City of London, and County of Middlesex, holden at Justice-Hall in the Old-Bayly, begun the Ninth, and continued till the 12th of this Instant December, 1674. Several Bills being found by the Grand Jury, or Inquest. Amongst many...

Chapter 3 Of God’s Eternal Decree 1. God, from all eternity, did, by the most wise and holy counsel of his own will, freely, and unchangeably ordain whatsoever comes to pass:a yet so, as thereby neither is God the author of sin,b nor is violence offered to the will of the creatures; nor is the liberty or contingency of second causes taken away, but rather established.c 2. Although God knows whatsoever may or can come to pass upon all supposed conditions,d yet hath he not decreed anything because he foresaw it as future, or as that which would come to...

DID I REALLY LEAVE THE HOLY CATHOLIC CHURCH? The Journey into Evangelical Faith and Church Experience William Webster This article was first published by Moody Press in the book titled, Roman Catholicism: Evangelical Protestants Analyze What Divides and Unites Us in 1994. In light of the recent reversion of Francis Beckwith to Roman Catholicism I felt that perhaps the testimony of one who was Roman Catholic and is now a convinced evangelical Protestant might prove helpful to some. The arguments presented here as to why I could never become a Roman Catholic, based on the truth of Scripture and the...

A Roman Catholic Dogma Originating with Heretics and Condemned as Heretical by 2 Popes in the 5th and 6th Centuries. By William Webster The Roman Catholic doctrine of the assumption of Mary teaches that she was assumed body and soul into heaven either without dying or shortly after death. This extraordinary claim was only officially declared to be a dogma of Roman Catholic faith in 1950, though it had been believed by many for hundreds of years. To dispute this doctrine, according to Rome’s teaching, would result in the loss of salvation. The official teaching of the Assumption comes from...

One of the first internet hoaxes to reach a mass audience was the claim in a 1994 press release that Microsoft had bought the Catholic Church. Its success signalled the enormous power of the new online technology to disseminate information, or misinformation, in ways that sidestepped the traditional gatekeepers of the media. The press release, which bore a Vatican City dateline, noted that this was “the first time a computer software company has acquired a major world religion". It quoted Bill Gates as saying that he considered religion to be a growth market and that, “The combined resources of Microsoft...

Chapter 2 Of God, and of the Holy Trinity 1. There is but one only,a living, and true God,b who is infinite in being and perfection,c a most pure spirit,d invisible,e without body, parts,f or passions;g immutable,h immense,i eternal,k incomprehensible, l almighty,m most wise,n most holy,o most free,p most absolute;q working all things according to the counsel of his own immutable and most righteous will,r for his own glory;s most loving,t gracious, merciful, long-suffering, abundant in goodness and truth, forgiving iniquity, transgression, and sin;u the rewarder of them that diligently seek him;w and withal, most just, and terrible in his...

The Bible Elfriede Wilde's grandfather gave her was nearly destroyed half a dozen times. That it survived is a story much like those the Bible itself tells -- a story of faith lost and found. For as long as she can remember, Wilde has been schooled in the history of her family's Bible -- a 1686 German edition translated by Martin Luther, the leader of the Protestant Reformation whose much-admired translation is still heard today. A native of Germany now living in Texas, Wilde recently donated the 322-year-old tome to Mars Hill College, a small Baptist school 16 miles north...

May 11 In 1189 Emperor Frederik I Barbarossa and 100,000 crusaders left Regensburg in southern Germany for the Holy Land. In 1421, Jews were expelled from Styria in Austria. In 1610, Italian Matteo Ricci, a renowned Christian missionary in China, died. In 1676, beggars were told that they needed permission from priests to beg in Montreal and Quebec City. In 1816, the American Bible Society was founded in New York. In 1921, Tel Aviv was declared the first all-Jewish municipality. In 1949, Israel was admitted to the United Nations as the world body's 59th member. In 1960, Israeli security forces...

The Right Thing To Do... When Senator Barack Obama tells "Fellow Child-Murder Advocates" at Planned Parenthood that providing "Sex Education For Kindergartners" is "The Right Thing To Do", is he alleging that NOT teaching children how to "Get It On" is "The Wrong Thing To Do"? Can we all agree that NOT providing food and shelter for one's children would be "The Wrong Thing To Do"? Can we all agree that a Parent who fails to provide for their children should have their children taken from them... by force... if necessary? -

In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth....And God said, “Let there be light!” And there was light. – Genesis 1:1,3 When Jesus offered up for all believers his high-priestly prayer in their behalf, he summed up the essence of his request thus: “Father, I desire that those whom you have given me might be with me, where I am, in order that they might behold my glory, which you gave me because you loved me before the foundation of the world” (John 17:24). From which circumstance we may learn that the very essence of what Jesus died...

Chapter 1 Of the Holy Scripture 1. Although the light of nature, and the works of creation and providence do so far manifest the goodness, wisdom, and power of God, as to leave men unexcusable;a yet are they not sufficient to give that knowledge of God, and of his will, which is necessary unto salvation.b Therefore it pleased the Lord, at sundry times, and in divers manners, to reveal himself, and to declare that his will unto his church;c and afterwards, for the better preserving and propagating of the truth, and for the more sure establishment and comfort of the...

Preaching: A Shell Here and a Shell There And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth. --John 1:14 None of us can approach a serious study and consideration of the eternal nature and person of Jesus Christ without sensing and confessing our complete inadequacy in the face of the divine revelation.... What should we do, then? All we can hope to do is to toddle along on our short legs and gaze heaven-ward, like a goose whose wings have...

Preface In 1643, during a period of civil war, the English "Long Parliament" (under the control of Presbyterian Puritans) convened an Assembly of Divines (mostly Puritan ministers, including a few influential Scottish commissioners) at Westminster Abbey in London. Their task was to advise Parliament on how to bring the Church of England into greater conformity with the Church of Scotland and the Continental Reformed churches. The Westminster Assembly produced documents on doctrine, church government, and worship that have largely defined Presbyterianism down to this day. These documents included a Confession of Faith (1646), a Larger Catechism (1647), and a Shorter...

Preaching: John 3:16 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. --John 3:16 I have heard that John 3:16 is a favorite preaching text for young preachers, but I confess that as far as I can recall, I have never had the courage to prepare and preach a sermon with John 3:16 as my text. I suppose I have quoted it as many as 15,000 or 20,000 times in prayer and in testimony, in writing and in preaching, but never as a sermon...

Machen (1881-1937) was Professor of New Testament, first at Princeton Theological Seminary, and afterwards at Westminster Theological Seminary, Philadelphia. Published in God Transcendent (1949). ________________________________________________________ "And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul; but rather fear him, which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell" (Matthew 10:28). These words were not spoken by Jonathan Edwards. They were not spoken by Cotton Mather. They were not spoken by Calvin, or Augustine, or by Paul. But these words were spoken by Jesus. And when put together with the many other words...

Preaching: A Sense of Inadequacy Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think of anything as being from ourselves, but our sufficiency is from God.... --2 Corinthians 3:5 I believe I had anticipated that it was going to be a pleasure to expound this beautiful and high soaring Gospel of John. However, I must confess that in my preparation and study a sense of inadequacy has come over me--a feeling of inadequacy so stunning, so almost paralyzing that I am not at this juncture able to call it a pleasure to preach. Perhaps this will be God's way of...

Rowan Williams Notes 2 Sides to Story of Vatican-Anglican Relations VATICAN CITY, MAY 5, 2008 (Zenit.org).- The archbishop of Canterbury, ahead of a private meeting with Benedict XVI, acknowledged that the Anglican Communion is going through an "unprecedentedly difficult time."Archbishop Rowan Williams told Vatican Radio before his encounter with the Pope today that he was expecting "a fairly informal and low-key meeting."Williams added: "I hope to bring him up to date on our plans about the Lambeth conference, perhaps to discuss with him a little what's going to be happening at the [Christian-Muslim] conference this week at Palazzola and...