WRONG BED

Don't blame me. Blame Doug.

HOBOKEN JUSTICE

From the ABAJournal:

A law school graduate who works as a Bulgarian translator has refused to accept a plea bargain stemming from an accusation of improper staring and a refusal to answer a question about his country of origin.

Vesselin Dittrich, 64, says his troubles began after he stared at a heavily tattooed woman on a train in the station at Hoboken, N.J., and refused her demand to leave the car, the New York Times reports. Dittrich, who has faulty eyesight, says he was staring because the woman appeared to be blue. Dittrich tells the newspaper he has law degrees from Bulgaria and the United States, but he failed the New York bar exam.

I can't stop laughing, and it's wrong all wrong. The poor fellow has poor eyesight.

Plus, I sincerely hope I have not gone beyond fair use with my quote. I would not want to be sued by the ABA Journal. If I am sued, I have an idea who will defend me pro bono.

YOU ARE GOD'S BELOVED - I AM GOD'S BELOVED

I saw that God
never began to love us.

For just as we will be
in everlasting joy
(all God's creation is destined for this)

so also we have always been
in God's foreknowledge,
known and loved
from without beginning.

Julian of Norwich

I love the Book of Common Prayer. I love both Rites for the celebration of the Holy Eucharist and all the Eucharistic prayers. I love the "Prayer of Humble Access", although a good many folks I know don't care for the prayer because of the emphasis on "We be not worthy...." There are people who have been so beaten down by "the changes and chances of this uncertain world" that they do not want nor do they need to hear that they are not worthy, and I fully understand. Still, I love the prayer for myself.

We do not presume to come to this thy Table (O merciful Lord) trusting in our own righteousness, but in thy manifold and great mercies. We be not worthy so much as to gather up the crumbs under thy Table. But thou art the same Lord, whose property is always to have mercy: Grant us therefore, gracious Lord, so to eat the Flesh of thy dear Son Jesus Christ, and to drink his Blood, in these holy Mysteries, that we may continually dwell in him, and he in us, that our sinful bodies may be made clean by his Body, and our souls washed through his most precious Blood. Amen.

Sometimes I say the prayer before communion, because the words express what is in my heart at the moment. I sing "Amazing Grace" without cringing at "a wretch like me". What I am, I am by the grace of God, who says to me, "You are my beloved." All is grace. All is love. That I am God's beloved trumps all.

I know what I was without God in my life, and I see what I am with God in my life. To express in words the difference between living in hope and living with little or no hope, between knowing the love of God surrounds me and is within me and knowing the emptiness when I believed God had not much to do with me is close to impossible.

Before I formed you in the womb I knew you....

The knowledge that I am God's beloved is my salvation every day of my life. Therein lies my strength and my song. Yes, I have my moments (even hours and days!) of discouragement, but the secure knowledge of God's love and God's grace at work in me draws me back into the circle of hope.

The Lord is my light and my salvation;
whom shall I fear?
The Lord is the stronghold of my life;
of whom shall I be afraid?

Thanks be to God!

Image from Wikimedia Commons.

HILLARY CLINTON'S GREAT SPEECH

Hillary Clinton gave a great speech at the UN meeting in Geneva on Human Rights Day. Watch the video and read the transcript at the Advocate. Perhaps Clinton would have given the same speech three years ago, but since she holds her position at the pleasure of the president, she may not have been permitted to give the speech by the Obama administration. On the other hand, Hillary Clinton came late to support the repeal of DOMA. During her campaign for the Democratic Party's nomination, she supported repeal of only Part 3 of DOMA.

Now we are heading into an election period, and you will hear many brave speeches by members of the administration, so pardon me if I'm a bit cynical and don't join in the celebration with unalloyed joy. Pardon me if I think, 'Better late than never'.

Now, there is still, as you all know, much more to be done to secure that commitment, that reality, and progress for all people. Today, I want to talk about the work we have left to do to protect one group of people whose human rights are still denied in too many parts of the world today. In many ways, they are an invisible minority. They are arrested, beaten, terrorized, even executed. Many are treated with contempt and violence by their fellow citizens while authorities empowered to protect them look the other way or, too often, even join in the abuse. They are denied opportunities to work and learn, driven from their homes and countries, and forced to suppress or deny who they are to protect themselves from harm.

I am talking about gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender people, human beings born free and given bestowed equality and dignity, who have a right to claim that, which is now one of the remaining human rights challenges of our time. I speak about this subject knowing that my own country’s record on human rights for gay people is far from perfect. Until 2003, it was still a crime in parts of our country. Many LGBT Americans have endured violence and harassment in their own lives, and for some, including many young people, bullying and exclusion are daily experiences. So we, like all nations, have more work to do to protect human rights at home.

Now, raising this issue, I know, is sensitive for many people and that the obstacles standing in the way of protecting the human rights of LGBT people rest on deeply held personal, political, cultural, and religious beliefs. So I come here before you with respect, understanding, and humility. Even though progress on this front is not easy, we cannot delay acting. So in that spirit, I want to talk about the difficult and important issues we must address together to reach a global consensus that recognizes the human rights of LGBT citizens everywhere.

The first issue goes to the heart of the matter. Some have suggested that gay rights and human rights are separate and distinct; but, in fact, they are one and the same. Now, of course, 60 years ago, the governments that drafted and passed the Universal Declaration of Human Rights were not thinking about how it applied to the LGBT community. They also weren’t thinking about how it applied to indigenous people or children or people with disabilities or other marginalized groups. Yet in the past 60 years, we have come to recognize that members of these groups are entitled to the full measure of dignity and rights, because, like all people, they share a common humanity.

This recognition did not occur all at once. It evolved over time. And as it did, we understood that we were honoring rights that people always had, rather than creating new or special rights for them. Like being a woman, like being a racial, religious, tribal, or ethnic minority, being LGBT does not make you less human. And that is why gay rights are human rights, and human rights are gay rights.

Secretary Clinton strikes all the right notes, and her words will be quoted time and again, as they well deserve to be. The words were spoken, and they cannot ever be blotted out from history. Congratulations due, Madame Secretary.

STORY OF THE DAY

doesn't really want to punish anybody,
but it seems to be the only way they'll
admit she's right

From StoryPeople.

GOOD FOR PORVOO COMMUNION - NOT GOOD FOR ANGLICAN COMMUNION

From Eurobishop:

From 1 to 4 November, the Churches of the Porvoo Communion held a consultation in Turku, Finland on the Churches’ teaching on marriage. Delegates represented the Anglican Churches in England, Ireland and Scotland, and the Lutheran Churches in Iceland, Norway, Denmark, Sweden and Finland. Observers were present from the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Latvia, the Lutheran Church in Great Britain, and the Latvian Lutheran Church Abroad.
....

The consultation concluded that differences over the introduction of same-sex marriage remain unresolved. The Churches hold a variety of views and pastoral practices along a theological spectrum. Some believe same sex marriage to be a legitimate development in the Christian tradition, whilst others see the potential for a serious departure from the received tradition. Nevertheless the consultation affirmed the benefits of "belonging to one another" and the value of honest encounter. The strong relationship of the Porvoo Communion, provides a “platform of sustained communication in the face of issues which raise difficulties for [the Churches]” (My emphasis)

Boggles the mind, doesn't it? One wonders why "belonging to one another" is not a priority for the leadership in the Anglican Communion. Why can't we have a “platform of sustained communication in the face of issues which raise difficulties for [the Churches]” of the Anglican Communion? I don't know about you, but the dissonance is deafening for me.

The Archbishop of Canterbury assures us that there is no alternative to the Anglican Covenant. My goodness! The statement above looks to me very much like a foundation upon which to build an alternative. TINA begone! Covenant begone!

H/T to Ann Fontaine at The Lead and Simon Sarmiento at Thinking Anglicans.

HAPPY SAINT NICHOLAS DAY!

Remember the follow the bouncing ball singalong shorts at the movies? Warning: If you say yes, you may give away your age. It's been a long, long time.

So. You have work to do. Sing along as you follow the bouncing ball.

Now if you'd like something a bit more serous about St Nicholas, check out the following:

Padre Mickey

MadPriest

Maria Evans (Kirkepiscatoid) at Speaking to the Soul.

NEWS RELEASE FROM THE NO ANGLICAN COVENANT COALITION

noanglicancovenant.org

NEWS RELEASE
DECEMBER 6, 2011
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

COALITION CELEBRATES SUCCESSES, PLANS FOR THE FUTURE

LONDON – After slightly more than a year, the No Anglican Covenant Coalition can point to several successes, according to Coalition Moderator, the Revd Dr Lesley Crawley.

• Four dioceses of the Church of England have rejected the Covenant (Birmingham; St. Edmundsbury and Ipswich; Truro; Wakefield). Where synod members were provided with balanced background material (i.e., material that presented both the case for and the case against the Covenant), the synods have voted it down. Four dioceses, where little or no material was presented other than officially sanctioned pro-Covenant material, have approved the Covenant (Lichfield; Durham; Europe; Bristol). A total of 23 diocesan synods must approve the Covenant for the matter to return to the General Synod.

• The Tikanga Maori defeated the Covenant at their biennial runanganui, virtually ensuring the defeat of the Covenant in the Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia.

• The Philippine House of Bishops has indicated they will not support the Anglican Covenant, likely ensuring the defeat of the Covenant in the Episcopal Church in the Philippines.

• Individual dioceses in the Anglican Church of Australia (Newcastle; Sydney) and The Episcopal Church (California; Eastern Oregon; Michigan; East Carolina; and others) have indicated their opposition to adoption of the Covenant.

“In November 2010, we launched the Coalition to ensure that the case against the proposed Anglican Covenant would be given a fair hearing,” said Dr. Crawley. “Today we are seeing our efforts bear fruit. When fair debate has been allowed, the results have been gratifying.”

Critical to the success of the campaign, especially in the Church of England, has been the support of the Coalition’s Episcopal Patrons, Bishops John Saxbee and Peter Selby, who have encouraged diocesan bishops to allow for a full and open debate. In the coming months, 37 more English dioceses will vote on the Anglican Covenant. Only 18 additional no votes are needed for the Church of England to reject the Covenant.

The No Anglican Covenant Coalition continues to provide assistance to those researching the proposed Covenant. The Resources section of the Coalition website (noanglicancovenant.org) is regularly updated with new material and analysis.

In the coming year:

• The Episcopal Church will consider the Covenant at its General Convention in July in Indianapolis, Indiana. The Executive Council of the church has circulated a draft resolution to reject the Anglican Covenant.

• The Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia will consider the Covenant in July at its General Synod/Te HinotaWhanui in Fiji. Given the rejection of the Anglican Covenant by Tikanga Maori, rejection of the Covenant by that church seems assured.

• The General Synod of the Church of England is scheduled to consider the Covenant at its July session. However, unless 19 more diocesan synods have approved the Anglican Covenant by that date, the matter will not return to General Synod.

“Anglican Communion Office officials have repeatedly responded to criticism of the Anglican Covenant by suggesting that critics have not read the document,” said the Coalition’s Canadian Convenor, the Revd Malcolm French. “Ironically, we find that the more familiar people are with the document, the more likely they are to reject it. The Coalition is committed to ensuring a proper and balanced debate in churches throughout the Anglican Communion.”

The No Anglican Covenant Coalition is an international group of Anglicans dedicated to protecting the Anglican Communion from the dramatic changes that would be effected by the Anglican Covenant.

noanglicancovenant.org

The Revd Dr Lesley Crawley (England) +44 1252 820537
Dr Lionel Deimel (USA) +1-412-512-9087
The Revd Malcolm French (Canada) +1-306-550-2277
The Ven Lawrence Kimberley (New Zealand) +64 3 981 7384
The Revd Canon Hugh Magee (Scotland) +44 1334 470446

RWANDA HOUSE OF BISHOPS TO AMIA BISHOP CHUCK MURPHY: RECANT OR RESIGN

From George Conger at Anglican Ink:

The head of the Anglican Mission in America has been threatened with ecclesiastical discipline for contumacy. Unless Bishop Chuck Murphy repents of his disobedience and apologizes for his offensive statements within seven days, the Rwanda House of Bishops will assume that he has “made a de facto choice to withdraw as primatial vicar” of the AMiA.

In letter from the Rwandan House of Bishops to Bishop Murphy dated 30 Nov 2011, the AMiA leader was chastised for disobedience and abuse of office.

Just read Conger's entire article. I am dumfounded.

H/T to Susan Russell at An Inch at a Time.

Update from the same article:

Questions were also raised at the meeting about the degree of accountability the AMiA had towards the Rwandan House of Bishops. Bishop Murphy charged the Rwandan bishops with seeking to impose a “reverse colonialism” on the AMiA. Overseeing a church half a world away had not worked during the age of colonial expansion when London missionary societies oversaw African churches and could not work today, he argued.

Who would ever have expected...? If that is the case, then may we expect problems in CANA and ACNA?

UPDATE: More letters here and here and rumors, but only rumors, as of now, of more resignations of Anglican bishops from Rwanda House of Bishops from Stand Firm.

SHEEP IN ECSTASY

Courtesy of MadPriest.

For lagniappe, an action-packed picture of the Mad Dogs at the beach.

The photography is not bad, not bad at all. You can see more pictures, many more, at the link above.

BROTHERS CALL A BROTHER TO A MEETING

From Episcopal News Service:

The bishops of the Episcopal Church’s Province IV have asked their colleague, Diocese of South Carolina Bishop Mark Lawrence, to meet with them “to have a clarifying conversation” about his decision to issue property deeds to each diocesan congregation.

Diocese of East Carolina Bishop Clifton Daniels, provincial vice president, requested the meeting with Lawrence. He said in a letter to him that that bishops had “determined that it is our duty as bishops of this province to address these concerns in direct communication with you, as Jesus exhorts his followers in Matthew’s Gospel (18:15-20), and in accord with our ordination vows regarding the unity and governance of the church.”

He noted that “we have had no direct communication from you regarding these reported actions.”

Collegiality! It seems only right.

Daniels said that Lawrence’s fellow bishops discussed his action “with some concern” at the Nov. 29 – Dec. 1 meeting of the provincial House of Bishops. He told Lawrence that the other bishops want to know under what canonical authority he proceeded, whether he involved the diocesan Standing Committee, and whether the members of the Standing Committee were in accord with his action. Daniels also asked who signed the quitclaim deeds.

Daniels asked Lawrence to provide a sample copy of a deed and the letter of explanation that accompanied it.

The provincial bishops “respectfully request,” Daniels wrote, that Lawrence meet with several of them in Charleston, the seat of the South Carolina diocese, “or elsewhere if you desire.”

Bp. Lawrence said that the day after he issued the quitclaims to the parish properties was the first time that he felt like the bishop of the diocese, which seems rather strange to me. You'd think it would happen at his consecration. What has Mark Lawrence been all this time if not bishop of the diocese? Is issuing quitclaims to parish property now part of the process of becoming a bishop in the Episcopal Church?

If you don't like the rules, then make them up as you go along.

Matthew 18:15-20

‘If another member of the church sins against you, go and point out the fault when the two of you are alone. If the member listens to you, you have regained that one. But if you are not listened to, take one or two others along with you, so that every word may be confirmed by the evidence of two or three witnesses. If the member refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if the offender refuses to listen even to the church, let such a one be to you as a Gentile and a tax-collector. Truly I tell you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven. Again, truly I tell you, if two of you agree on earth about anything you ask, it will be done for you by my Father in heaven. For where two or three are gathered in my name, I am there among them.’

H/T to Jim Naughton at The Lead.

A CHRISTMAS STORY

There was once a man who didn't believe in God, and he didn't hesitate to let others know how he felt about religion and religious holidays, like Christmas. His wife, however, did believe, and she raised their children to also have faith in God and Jesus, despite his disparaging comments.

One snowy Christmas Eve, his wife was taking their children to a Christmas Eve service in the farm community in which they lived. She asked him to come, but he refused. "That story is nonsense!" he said. "Why would God lower Himself to come to Earth as a man? That's ridiculous!" So she and the children left, and he stayed home.

A while later, the winds grew stronger and the snow turned into a blizzard. As the man looked out the window, all he saw was a blinding snowstorm. He sat down to relax before the fire for the evening. Then he heard a loud thump. Something had hit the window. Then another thump. He looked out, but couldn't see more than a few feet.

When the snow let up a little, he ventured outside to see what could have been beating on his window. In the field near his house he saw a flock of wild geese. Apparently they had been flying south for the winter when they got caught in the snowstorm and could not go on. They were lost and stranded on his farm, with no food or shelter. They just flapped their wings and flew around the field in low circles, blindly and aimlessly. A couple of them had flown into his window, it seemed.

The man felt sorry for the geese and wanted to help them. The barn would be a great place for them to stay, he thought. It is warm and safe; surely they could spend the night and wait out the storm. So he walked over to the barn and opened the doors wide, then watched and waited, hoping they would notice the open barn and go inside. But the geese just fluttered around aimlessly and did not seem to notice the barn or realize what it could mean for them.

The man tried to get their attention, but that just seemed to scare them and they moved further away. He went into the house and came back out with some bread, broke it up, and made a breadcrumbs trail leading to the barn. They still didn't catch on. Now he was getting frustrated. He got behind them and tried to shoo them toward the barn, but they only got more scared and scattered in every direction except toward the barn. Nothing he did could get them to go into the barn where they would be warm and safe.

"Why don't they follow me?!" he exclaimed. "Can't they see this is the only place where they can survive the storm?" He thought for a moment and realized that they just wouldn't follow a human. "If only I were a goose, then I could save them," he said out loud. Then he had an idea. He went into barn, got one of his own geese, and carried it in his arms as he circled around behind the flock of wild geese. He then released it. His goose flew through the flock and straight into the barn -- and one by one the other geese followed it to safety.

He stood silently for a moment as the words he had spoken a few minutes earlier replayed in his mind: "If only I were a goose, then I could save them!" Then he thought about what he had said to his wife earlier. "Why would God want to be like us? That's ridiculous!" Suddenly it all made sense. That is what God had done. We were like the geese -- blind, lost, perishing. God had His Son become like us so He could show us the way and save us. That was the meaning of Christmas, he realized. As the winds and blinding snow died down, his soul became quiet and pondered this wonderful thought. Suddenly he understood what Christmas was all about, why Christ had come. Years of doubt and disbelief vanished like the passing storm. He fell to his knees in the snow, and prayed his first prayer:

"Thank You Jesus for coming in human form to show me the way out of the storm!"

By David L. Griffith

Thanks to Mark at Facebook and to Nij in the comments here for a shorter version.

TWO ELEPHANTS REUNITED AFTER MORE THAN 20 YEARS

Did your eyes stay dry as you watched the video? Mine didn't.

From britches1985, who posted the video:

Yes, they had horrific lives before retiring to The Elephant Sanctuary which is why they are so scarred and lame. It is indeed heartbreaking. Go to The Elephant Sanctuary and look up their stories. Jenny has sadly passed away since this video and so is in their In Memory section of Meet Our Elephants, Shirley is in the Asian Elephants section. (My emphasis)

The Elephant Sanctuary "operates on 2700 acres in Hohenwald, Tennessee. It costs $125,000 annually to provide sanctuary to one elephant and we want to rescue 100."

PRAYER FOR THE RIGHT USE OF TECHNOLOGY

For Our Facebook Group
By Josh Thomas

O God, thank you for new discoveries and technologies that strengthen our relationship with you by providing universal access in Word, song, art and prayer. Help us to use our Daily Office Facebook group, blogs and other internet tools and applications to glorify you and carry out your mission of justice, healing and peace, in Jesus' name. Amen.

Thank you, Josh.

RICHES

There once was a rich man who was near death. He was very grieved because he had worked so hard for his money and he wanted to be able to take it with him to heaven. So he began to pray that he might be able to take some of his wealth with him.

An angel hears his plea and appears to him. "Sorry, but you can't take your wealth with you." The man implores the angel to speak to God to see if He might bend the rules just a little bit.

The man continues to pray that his wealth could follow him. The angel reappears and informs the man that God has decided to allow him to take one suitcase with him. Overjoyed, the man gathers his largest suitcase and fills it with pure gold bars and places it beside his bed.

Soon afterward the man dies and shows up at the Gates of Heaven to greet St. Peter. St. Peter, seeing the suitcase, says, "Hold on, you can't bring that in here!"

The man explains to St. Peter, however, that he has special permission and asks him to verify his story with the Lord. Sure enough, St. Peter checks and comes back saying, "You're right. You are allowed one carry-on bag, but I'm supposed to check its contents before letting it through."

St. Peter opens the suitcase to inspect the worldly items that the man found too precious to leave behind and exclaims: "You brought pavement?!!!"


Cheers,

Paul (A.)

"GOOD GOLLY MISS MOLLY" - LITTLE RICHARD

The video above, with good sound quality, shows a live performance by Richard for Muhammed Ali's 50th birthday. Richard is in his 50s, and he's still a fine performer.

The video below, with poorer sound quality, shows the young Richard with his incredible energy. Note that the audience is all white. Back in the day, blacks were allowed in the venues only if they were performing.



I heard the song on my Underground Garage radio station yesterday and today, so I figured someone was giving me a hint to post the video.

I dedicate the song to my grandniece, Miss Molly, who lives in Kansas City.

QUESTION OF THE DAY

If we believe in God Incarnate in Jesus Christ, that God came to be one with us as fully human with joys and sprrows just like ours, why is belief in the Virgin Birth a stumbling block for a good many Christians?

ACNA PARISH IN FORT WORTH WILL JOIN ROMAN CATHOLIC ORDINARIATE

From George Conger:

A Diocese of Fort Worth mission congregation will put to a vote of its members Pope Benedict XVI’s invitation to enter into full communion with Rome through the Anglican Ordinariate.

On Dec 2, Bishop Jack Iker announced that the congregation of St Timothy’s Church in Fort Worth will hold a meeting on 11 Dec 2011 to discuss the petition of the vestry and its vicar, the Rev. Christopher Stainbrook, SSC to enter the ordinariate. The congregation will vote on the proposal the following Sunday.

Not all of the members of the Anglo-Catholic congregation are expected to support the decision to enter the Catholic Church, however. The 18 Dec 2011 vote will allow Bishop Iker the opportunity to gauge the degree of support the move has in the congregation, and permit him to plan for the pastoral and sacramental care of those not going over to Rome.

St Timothy's is presently part of the schismatic ACNA diocese in Fort Worth.

The photo from St Timothy's reminds me of my olden days in the pre-Vatican II Roman Catholic Church.

Godspeed to the folks at St Timothy's. In the comments at the church website are questions about property. As the property held by ACNA is still under litigation between the Episcopal Church and the schismatics, I doubt that the Roman Catholic Church will want to be involved with the court process, but we shall see.

Thanks to Ann V. for the link to George Conger's blog. H/T to Nicholas Knisely at The Lead for further information.

THE PARROT

A young man named John received a parrot as a gift. The parrot had a bad attitude and an even worse vocabulary. Every word out of the bird's mouth was rude, obnoxious, and laced with profanity. John tried and tried to change the bird's attitude by consistently saying only polite words, playing soft music, and anything else he could think of to "clean up" the bird's vocabulary. Finally, John was fed up, and he yelled at the parrot. The parrot yelled back. John shook the parrot, and the parrot got angrier and even ruder. John, in desperation, threw up his hands, grabbed the bird, and put him in the freezer.

For a few minutes the parrot squawked and kicked and screamed. Then suddenly there was total quiet. Not a peep was heard for over a minute. Fearing that he'd hurt the parrot, John quickly opened the door to the freezer. The parrot calmly stepped out onto John's outstretched arms and said "I believe I may have offended you with my rude language and actions. I'm sincerely remorseful for my inappropriate transgressions and I fully intend to do everything I can to correct my rude and unforgivable behavior."

John was stunned at the change in the bird's attitude. As he was about to ask the parrot what had made such a dramatic change in his behavior, when the bird continued, "May I ask what the turkey did?"

I hope my friend Cathy doesn't read this joke. Cathy, if you do, please don't blame me. Blame Doug.

A ROCKY ROAD AHEAD FOR AMIA?

An interesting post from George Conger via Jim Simons at Three Rivers Episcopal:

The Anglican Mission in America (AMiA) has denied speculation that its chairman, Bishop Chuck Murphy, has offered to step down in the wake its dispute with its parent church, the Province of Rwanda.

On 28 November 2011, a spokesman for the AMiA told The Church of England Newspaper that a report in the Christian Post that stated Bishop Murphy was going to retire was incomplete.

The resignation of AMiA Bishop Terrell Glenn coupled with a show of no confidence in Bishop Murphy over the planned reorganisation of the American church group by the Rwandan Church had led to speculation the American leader would step down. Sources in the AMiA told CEN they also had been briefed by senior leaders that Bishop Murphy was going to retire, however, the AMiA’s spokesman stated this was incorrect.

“While Bishop Murphy has indicated for quite some time that he plans to step down as Chairman of the Anglican Mission sometime around December 2013, he has not made any ‘formal announcement’ either internally or externally,” spokesman Cynthia Brust said.

Read the rest.

Somehow I doubted that the American bishops who placed themselves under the authority of African archbishops were likely to have an easy journey, and it appears that the road is, indeed, a bit rocky at the moment.

The story was first published in The Church of England Newspaper which requires a subscription to read the online version.

Thanks to Ann V. for the link.

Now there's another letter (pdf) to AMiA signed by all the Rawandan bishops, which seems rather ambiguous to me.

WHERE IS THE NEWS?

Tonight I kinda sorta watched/listened to Lawrence O'Donnell's 'news show', Last Word, and mostly did some stuff on my computer. Half the show (or so it seemed) was dedicated to an interview with Ginger White, the woman who claims she had a 14 year affair with Herman Cain. The story could have been covered in 2 minutes...okay...5 minutes, because it's about sex. Is there nothing else of interest happening in the world? Where is the news? Oh, that's right. I forgot. The news is on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart and The Colbert Report with you know who.

STORY OF THE DAY - NOTHING TO SAY

He really doesn't have that much to say,
she told me, so don't get him started.

From StoryPeople.