"WE HAVE A POPE!"

From Christopher Webber in the comments to Jim Naughton's post at The Lead titled "The disinvitations arrive".

There were no tendrils of smoke from the chimney of the Sistine Chapel, so far as I know, but I awoke this morning to discover that the Anglican Communion now has a Pope. He speaks and it is done. Surprise!

The Archbishop of Canterbury had sent a letter out several weeks ago on the subject of Pentecost. Pentecost, he reminded us, was the occasion on which the Holy Spirit overcame the divisions of language and understanding. The Archbishop’s letter, however, had to do with solidifying divisions. He took note of the fact that the “Instruments of Communion” had requested gracious restraint in relation to the issues that divide us until the member churches of the Anglican Communion could act on the proposed Covenant. There was, in other words, a request, not an order, for restraint, not abstinence.

Nevertheless, the Archbishop proposed (note that word) that those churches that had not been sufficiently restrained in relation to the issues that divide us should no longer be participants in the ecumenical dialogues in which the Communion is formally engaged. How, he asked, could persons not in agreement represent the Communion? One might have thought that a Communion embracing diverse viewpoints would need to be represented by individuals with diverse views, but that seems not to have been the Archbishop’s understanding of Anglicanism. The member churches had not yet spoken as to the Covenant, but the Archbishop would enforce it anyway. He was “forced to act,” he said, because the member churches had not yet acted. “Agree with me quickly,” he said in effect, “or I will have to act for you.” Included in this proposal, said the Archbishop were not only The Episcopal Church but other churches also and not only in North America.

That was alarming enough, but today we have learned that what the Archbishop proposes, the Secretary General of the Anglican Communion disposes. A letter has been sent by the SG to the members of The Episcopal Church representing the Anglican Communion in ecumenical discussions thanking them for their past contributions but informing them that they will no longer serve in that capacity. They may continue to be consultants but their membership has been “discontinued.” They were not appointed by the Archbishop, but he seems to feel that he can, nevertheless, discontinue their membership.

The Archbishop had not indicted The Episcopal Church alone for its waywardness but other churches as well and specifically not only in North America. The Secretary General has, therefore, written to the Church of Canada and the Province of the Southern Cone inquiring whether they would like to be disciplined as well. No time limit was suggested for their response but the SG does not seem to like to wait so they had better hurry. One might have thought from the Archbishop’s letter that he was also concerned about certain African provinces and dioceses, but these have not engaged the SG’s attention.

It is interesting to remember that Archbishop Longley of Canterbury was reluctant in 1868 to invite the first assembly of Anglican Bishops to Lambeth and made it clear in doing so that they would make no decisions relating to the Communion. “I should refuse,” he wrote, “to convene any assembly which pretended to enact any canons, or affected to make any decisions binding on the Church.” We have come a long way since then. We have moved in not much over 150 years from a church moving tentatively toward communion-wide consultations to one with a presiding officer who speaks and it is done.

Has Archbishop Williams, then, smoothed the path toward reunion with Rome? If we are to have a bishop with papal authority, why not the real thing?

THE EPISCOPAL CHURCH GETS LETTERS

Letters of disinvitation from the Rev. Canon Kenneth Kearon, secretary general of the Anglican Communion arrive:

Last Thursday I sent letters to members of the Inter Anglican ecumenical dialogues who are from the Episcopal Church informing them that their membership of these dialogues has been discontinued. In doing so I want to emphasise again as I did in those letters the exceptional service of each and every person to that important work and to acknowledge without exception the enormous contribution each person has made.

I have also written to the person from the Episcopal Church who is a member of the Inter Anglican Standing Commission on Unity Faith and Order (IASCUFO), withdrawing that person’s membership and inviting her to serve as a Consultant to that body.

Read more at The Lead, including Jim Naughton's commentary and the opinions in the comments that follow the post.

UPDATE: See also Marshall Scott's post.

I have come to the conclusion that the Episcopal Church should concentrate on maintaining communion with the Church of England and membership on the Anglican Consultative Council, and if not signing this Covenant results in a “second-tier” membership, so be it. However, having so narrowly applied the consequences of all the actions that have divided the Communion, when so many have participated, can only seriously undermine trust in Canterbury, not only in the Anglican provinces in North America, but throughout the Communion.

UPDATE 2: Also Saintly Ramblings' muscular response.

How does the phrase "I am therefore proposing ..." in the Archbishop's letter get translated into action by Kenneth Kearon. Where the hell does he get the authority to take such a move? He is Secretary General of a federation of churches that are simply bound together by the "three-legged stool" of tradition, scripture and reason. He is not the overseer of a single entity that has a single set of rules, interpretations and practices.

DOCUMENTING THE ATROCITIES

From News Inferno:

BP reported some progress in containing the Deepwater Horizon oil spill over the weekend, saying Saturday that its latest fix had captured 10,500 barrels of crude coming from the gushing well a mile beneath the Gulf of Mexico. Unfortunately, crude is still pouring into the Gulf, as government scientists have estimated 12,000 to 19,000 barrels of oil a day, at a minimum, to be leaking from the well. [Other experts estimate that the leak could be spewing as much as 25,000 barrels of oil a day.]

The Deepwater Horizon oil spill began on April 20, when the oil rig exploded, killing 11 crew. Since then, roughly 23 million to 49 million gallons of oil have leaked into the Gulf. The spill has already surpassed the Exxon Valdez disaster, and ranks as the worst oil spill in U.S. history.
....

BP CEO Tony Hayward told the BBC that the company hopes a second containment system will be in place by next weekend. Once the cap is fully operational it could capture a maximum of 630,000 gallons of oil a day if it is successful. But the oil leak won’t be permanently stopped until BP completes one of two relief wells it is drilling nearby. The earliest that will occur is mid-August.

The oil has already fouled stretches of coast in Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama. Tar balls have been reported on beaches along the Florida panhandle, and the slick is just a few miles from shore there. According to a report on MSNBC, officials along the Texas Gulf Coast have also reported that dead birds with oil on them were found for the first time in that state.

From ABC News:

BP, the very company responsible for the oil spill that is already the worst in U.S. history, has purchased several phrases on search engines such as Google and Yahoo so that the first result that shows up directs information seekers to the company's official website.

A simple Google search of "oil spill" turns up several thousand news results, but the first link, highlighted at the very top of the page, is from BP. "Learn more about how BP is helping," the link's tagline reads.

The live stream from the well.

Photo from The Huffington Post.

D-Day - In Remembrance

In remembrance of all who fought and all who died in the Normandy beach landings which began on June 6, 1944, and in the battles to secure territory that followed the landings.

The Normandy American Cemetery and Memorial in France is located on the site of the temporary American St. Laurent Cemetery, established by the U.S. First Army on June 8, 1944 and the first American cemetery on European soil in World War II. The cemetery site, at the north end of its ½ mile access road, covers 172.5 acres and contains the graves of 9,387 of our military dead, most of whom lost their lives in the D-Day landings and ensuing operations. On the Walls of the Missing in a semicircular garden on the east side of the memorial are inscribed 1,557 names. Rosettes mark the names of those since recovered and identified.

From the American Battle Monuments Commission.

It's amazing that the plan for an invasion of this magnitude by the Allied Forces was kept secret and completely surprised the German forces in the area.

Grandpère and I visited in the late 1980s. The cemeteries are sad and beautiful. The ghosts linger on the hallowed ground. I remember seeing old veterans searching for the graves of their comrades in arms, and family members searching for the graves of their loved ones, and the quiet tears that often followed once they found the markers.

Until I visited the site, movies notwithstanding, I never quite realized the difficulty of the landing at Omaha Beach, the steepness of the cliffs, the exposure once the troops reached the top, not to mention those who were shot or drowned when they left the landing boats. More than 4,400 Allied troops died in a single day.

For Those who have died in service of their countries.

ALMIGHTY God, our heavenly Father, in whose hands are the living and the dead; We give thee thanks for all those thy servants who have laid down their lives in the service of their countries. Grant to them thy mercy and the light of thy presence, that the good work which thou has begun in them may be perfected; through Jesus Christ thy Son our Lord. AMEN.

(Book of Common Prayer, p. 42)

Note: Reposted from last year.

DIVORCED CLERGY MAY BECOME CHURCH OF ENGLAND BISHOPS

From the Telegraph via Thinking Anglicans:

Divorced clergy are to be allowed to become Church of England bishops for the first time in a move which has been condemned by traditionalists.

Critics described the change in Church rules as “utterly unacceptable” and warned it would undermine the biblical teaching that marriage is for life.

Conservative and liberal bishops have been deeply divided over the issue, which they have been secretly discussing for months.

While Dr Rowan Williams, the Archbishop of Canterbury, supported relaxing the rules, John Sentamu, the Archbishop of York, is understood to have fiercely argued against a change.

H/T to Wormwood's Doxy who says:

So +Rowan thinks that Jesus' plain words about divorce are negotiable, but not any of the other scriptural referents to homosexuality?

Veddy interesting.....

Jasper [The Great Dog] says to tell you all that hypocrisy reeks. And not in a good way.

Jasper knows the Gospel.

The Church of England will find it much more difficult to continue to dither over women bishops and hold the line against gay bishops.

Are all the churches in the Anglican Communion on board, or is this a unilateral decision?

"A GREAT URGENCY...."

FROM CHIEF ARVOL LOOKING HORSE
19th generation Keeper of The White Buffalo Calf Woman Pipe


A Great Urgency To All World Religious and Spiritual Leaders

My Relatives,

Time has come to speak to the hearts of our Nations and their Leaders. I ask you this from the bottom of my heart, to come together from the Spirit of your Nations in prayer.

We, from the heart of Turtle Island, have a great message for the World; we are guided to speak from all the White Animals showing their sacred color, which have been signs for us to pray for the sacred life of all things. As I am sending this message to you, many Animal Nations are being threatened, those that swim, those that crawl, those that fly, and the plant Nations, eventually all will be affect from the oil disaster in the Gulf.

The dangers we are faced with at this time are not of spirit. The catastrophe that has happened with the oil spill which looks like the bleeding of Grandmother Earth, is made by human mistakes, mistakes that we cannot afford to continue to make.

I asked, as Spiritual Leaders, that we join together, united in prayer with the whole of our Global Communities. My concern is these serious issues will continue to worsen, as a domino effect that our Ancestors have warned us of in their Prophecies.

I know in my heart there are millions of people that feel our united prayers for the sake of our Grandmother Earth are long overdue. I believe we as Spiritual people must gather ourselves and focus our thoughts and prayers to allow the healing of the many wounds that have been inflicted on the Earth.

As we honor the Cycle of Life, let us call for Prayer circles globally to assist in healing Grandmother Earth (our Unc¹I Maka).

We ask for prayers that the oil spill, this bleeding, will stop. That the winds stay calm to assist in the work. Pray for the people to be guided in repairing this mistake, and that we may also seek to live in harmony, as we make the choice to change the destructive path we are on.

As we pray, we will fully understand that we are all connected. And that what we create can have lasting effects on all life.

So let us unite spiritually, All Nations, All Faiths, One Prayer. Along with this immediate effort, I also ask to please remember June 21st, World Peace and Prayer Day/Honoring Sacred Sites day. Whether it is a natural site, a temple, a church, a synagogue or just your own sacred space, let us make a prayer for all life, for good decision making by our Nations, for our children¹s future and well-being, and the generations to come.

Onipikte (that we shall live),

Chief Arvol Looking Horse
19th generation Keeper of the Sacred White Buffalo Calf Pipe

Thanks to Ann.

WHAT THE OIL PLUMES WILL KILL

From Susan D. Shaw in the New York Times:

FOR the last few days, attention has understandably been directed at the shores of the Gulf Coast as oil has started to wash up on beaches and in marshes. But last week I had the chance to see the effects of the spill from another perspective — when I dived into the oil slick a few miles off the Pass a Loutre wetlands in southern Louisiana. What I witnessed was a surreal, sickening scene beyond anything I could have imagined.

As the boat entered the slick, I had to cover my nose to block the fumes. There were patches of oil on the gulf’s surface. In some places, the oil has mixed with an orange-brown pudding-like material, some of the 700,000 gallons of a chemical dispersant called Corexit 9500 that BP has sprayed on the spreading oil. Near Rig No. 313, technically a restricted zone, the boat stopped and I (wearing a wetsuit, with Vaseline covering exposed skin) jumped in.

Only a few meters down, the nutrient-rich water became murky, but it was possible to make out tiny wisps of phytoplankton, zooplankton and shrimp enveloped in dark oily droplets. These are essential food sources for fish like the herring I could see feeding with gaping mouths on the oil and dispersant. Dispersants break up the oil into smaller pieces that then sink in the water, forming poisonous droplets — which fish can easily mistake for food.

Though all dispersants are potentially dangerous when applied in such volumes, Corexit is particularly toxic. It contains petroleum solvents and a chemical that, when ingested, ruptures red blood cells and causes internal bleeding. It is also bioaccumulative, meaning its concentration intensifies as it moves up the food chain.

Further from Newsweek:

These undersea rivers of oil, though not nearly as concentrated as oil at the surface, are likely to affect the gulf through two mechanisms. The first is oxygen depletion, which has been estimated at 30 percent in the plumes. The other will be direct toxic effects of the oil and methane. Leatherback turtles and sperm whales dive to the 3,200-foot depths where plumes have now been detected, and aren't smart enough to take evasive action. "They don't necessarily recognize the plumes as something dangerous," says marine scientist Ellycia Harrould-Kolieb, who works with the green group Oceana. Sharks, shrimp, and squid are all inhabitants of the deep, which would protect them from a Valdez-type spill on the surface, but now puts them in the crosshairs. Marlin, snapper, and grouper swim hundreds of feet down. One of the biggest losses may be bluefin tuna. Already imperiled from overfishing, the species breeds only in the Mediterranean Sea and the gulf. "This could spell the end to bluefin," says Harrould-Kolieb. Even small bits of crude, like those in the plumes, can suffocate fish by gunking up their gills.

Other species imperiled by the deep-sea plumes include those that migrate down from the surface and others that make the reverse commute. "There are plankton that go from the surface to the middle of the water column, and other things eat them and go down deeper, and other things eat them and go to the bottom," says oceanographer Lisa Levin of Scripps Institution of Oceanography. "All the zones of life interact, and now they're probably all being hammered."

The worst effect of large-scale death on the gulf floor is nothing as photogenic as dead pelicans, but much more pernicious. "The organisms most likely to be harmed by the oil plumes are those at the base of the food chain," says biological oceanographer Andrew Juhl of Lamont-Doherty. "Most of the primary producers, such as phytoplankton, live throughout the water column. Effects on them would cascade to the larger species we care about."

To hear those who know say that the oil in the marshes and on the beaches, and the oil-covered birds and turtles demonstrate the least of the damage from the oil gushing into the Gulf, is sobering, infuriating, and depressing. What we will see is killing on a grand scale. Marine biologist Jeffrey Baguley of the University of Nevada says, "In the time scale of man, this will be a catastrophic event".

"WHAT'S THE MATTER WITH THE WELL?"

bwinship1 — May 31, 2010 — Written as a plea, a shout out, a prayer for the folks & critters of the Gulf. Memphis Minnie's "What's the Matter with the Mill" was calling for this re-write. While I had fun creating this, it is my sincere hope that it becomes obsolete sooner than later. Thanks to Mike Dowling, Jeff Newsom, John Kidwell and my boys, Owen & Sam, for helping with this.

As Ann's correspondent said, "Music is a great catharsis for such disasters". Those of us down here feel so helpless. We wanted to go to Grand Isle to see the damage there and take pictures, but the beach is closed off to visitors.

Tom talked to a man whose company is running boats, one of which he pilots, under contract to BP. According to him, the clean-up work is quite disorganized and, in many cases, ineffective. An entity besides BP should be put in charge of mitigation and clean-up. It's nice that Obama visits, but what will he do to correct the problems now that he's back in the White house?

Thanks to Ann for the link.

PLEASE PRAY FOR THEME (NEAL)

From Petty Witter:

I was right - the light at the end of the tunnel was indeed the next train about to hit us. Husband dearest was admitted to hospital this morning (4th of June)

Husband dearest is TheMe (Neal) at Conscientization. Since Neal has spoken about his illness on his blog, I don't feel that I'm breaking a confidence to reveal that he has Crohns disease, which, as many of you may know, is difficult to treat.

His lovely wife, Petty, was badly injured in an accident years ago and uses crutches in the home and a wheel chair when she goes out. I met the two of them when I was in England last year. They are a wonderful couple, charming company. Despite a good deal of adversity in their lives, Petty and Neal face the world with admirable courage. They are two of the bravest people I know.

Heavenly Father, giver of life and health: Comfort and relieve your sick servant Neal, and give your power of healing to those who minister to his needs, that he may be strengthened in his weakness and have confidence in your loving care; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

UPDATE: Petty says if Neal "remains stable over the week-end, he may be home Monday (I so hope so)".

I hope so, too.

UPDATE 2 from Neal:

...and so he is.

...home that is. Good news, indeed, Neal.

NOT "UNJUST DISCRIMINATION" TO FIRE GAYS - USCCB

In All Things at America Magazine posts a letter sent to the members of Congress by the USCCB (US Conference of Catholic Bishops) on Same-Sex Marriage and ENDA

The Catholic Church makes an important distinction between actions and inclination. While the Church is ardently opposed to all unjust discrimination on the grounds of sexual inclination, whether homosexual or heterosexual, it does teach that all sexual acts outside of a marriage between one man and one woman are morally wrong. The Catholic Church’s teaching cannot, therefore, be equated with “unjust discrimination,” because it is based on fundamental truths about the human person and personal conduct. Homosexual conduct is categorically closed to the transmission of life, and does not reflect or respect the personal complementarity of man and woman. In contrast to sexual conduct within marriage between one man and one woman—which does serve both the good of each married person and the good of society— heterosexual and homosexual conduct outside of marriage has no claim to special protection bythe state.

Just as every other group in our society, the Catholic Church enjoys the same rights to hold to its beliefs, organize itself around them, and argue for them in the public square. This is guaranteed by our Constitution. This includes the right to teach what it holds to be the truth concerning homosexual conduct—and to act as an employer consistent with that truth—without the threat of government sanction.

The USCCB continues to oppose “unjust discrimination” against people with a homosexual inclination, but we cannot support a bill – such as ENDA in its current form – that would legally affirm and specially protect any sexual conduct outside of marriage.

H/T to Andrew Sullivan at The Daily Dish, who says:

Notice that there is no attempt here to argue that straight people who violate church doctrine - anyone who masturbates or uses contraception, is divorced or re-married - should not be protected from discrimination. It is always just the gays who are the target, because their identity inherently proves their iniquity, while most straight people can hide theirs. Notice also that the focus here is entirely on the victims of discrimination, not the perpetrators.

So the church that emerged from a man who preached the story of the good Samaritan, is now in the business of identifying Samaritans and ensuring they remain the targets of discrimination in the workplace. It does not matter whether they are good at their job; their orientation, even if no one even knows it results in sodomy, is sufficient to allow them to be fired and no law be broken.

And what about the unmarried folks? Must each single employee affirm that she/he is not sexually active?

There are church laws and church laws - laws that must not be transgressed by the employees of Roman Catholic institutions and other laws that may be transgressed and will not trigger job termination. My goodness! That sounds an awful lot like "unjust discrimination".

Of course, the Roman Catholic Church has "...the right to teach what it holds to be the truth concerning homosexual conduct...", but the church does not have the right to impose those teachings on the rest of us who do not belong to the fold.

Not too very long ago, I included Andrew's blog in my Google Reader, but he more than monopolizes the space with his vast number of new posts. I say that only because I'm jealous of and daunted by his prolificity. Does he even take potty breaks?

Thanks to Wade for the link.