Pope Benedict XVI

True to his word, His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI has announced his retirement for the good of the church because the burden of office demands more than his failing strength can muster. Appointed at an age when he was looking forward to retirement his early vigour has visibly waned before our eyes, suffering the indignity of being wheeled around on a trolley and in danger of becoming a figurehead manipulated by others, something  he was determined to avoid. His visit to Britain was a momentous occasion saddened only by the separation of the church. Who could not have been impressed with the grandeur of the occasion when James MacMillan's music announced the Pope's Westminster Cathedral entrance in contrast to the frail figure bestowing his blessing on all. God grant him a long and happy retirement.

Read More

Beyond belief

'Retiring' Archbishop Barry Morgan      Source: Wales Online

A fawning article in Wales Online "Archbishop Barry Morgan on love, bereavement and Christmas hope" affords the Archbishop more credit than he is due. It conceals the sense of loss experienced by many members of the Church in Wales as the direct result of Dr Morgan's actions and inaction.

The article continues: "Archbishop Barry Morgan is preparing for his last Christmas as leader of the Church in Wales and his first without his beloved wife, Hilary. Throughout his ministry he has sought to comfort people who have faced loss and illness, and now he is sharing his experiences of bereavement in the hope that it will help others."

The story ignores the needless pain Dr Morgan has inflicted on others, a sense of loss that either he fails to understand or chooses to ignore. Many believe the latter. He could have retired years ago but he chose to stay at the helm, leading the Church in Wales into the wilderness as hisheretical mentor, Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori, did forTEC.

Loss is a terrible thing and can be heartbreaking but loss resulting from the deliberate actions of supposed Christian leaders is inexcusable. That is the situation many members of TEC have found themselves in. A situation that is being repeated in the Church in Wales simply because as 'loyal Anglicans', they are unable in conscience to depart from the traditional Apostolic faith of the Holy Catholic Church. As priest and bishop it is Dr Morgan's duty to comfort people who have faced loss so to cause that sense of loss is unforgivable.

The lives of regular churchgoers often revolve around the church. Their religious and social lives are intertwined. When ostracised there is a vacuum. That is the position in which many church members have found themselves. The attitude of the Archbishop and the Bench is one of take it or leave or look elsewhere. Alternative provision as in the Church of England for anyone who does not subscribe to Dr Morgan's liberal rencana would be in his words,over his dead body. There is no comfort in that.

Campaigners for the ordination of women and some gay Christians love to protest that they have been persecuted but little if anything is heard about church members, often cradle Anglicans, who have been excluded for maintaining their historic belief in the Apostolic Church.  In my own experience supposedly devout Anglicans have refused to share the Peace and refused to speak because their liberal cause has been rejected. How very liberal!

Some 'traditionalists' have battled on in such circumstances while others have succumbed under the pressure of their harsh treatment and left the church. Although deprived of spiritual support many have found the experience liberating. Little surprise then that regular Sunday attendance in the Church in Wales has dropped to less than 1% of the population and continues to fall.

Read More

Archbishop's intervention argues for Brexit!

Source: Wales Online

Wales online reports that the Archbishop of Wales, who, in his episcopal capacity represents just 1% of the population of Wales, "urges Wales to vote to stay in the European Uniondanquot;.

Given his record of duff appointments and the state of the Church in Wales under his stewardship, the fact that Dr Morgan is in favour of remaining in the EU suggests that exit is probably advisable.

Average Sunday attendance has dwindled to around 30,000. Under his stewardship the Church in Wales facesextinction. With no accountability Dr Morgan has pursued a flawed agenda with his fixation on gay 'rights' culminating in a GB exercise to accept same sex marriage, reflecting the whims of a secular society rather than making disciples of all nations, Dr Morgan has followed a policy modelled on the example of the fatally flawed Episcopal Church of the United States.

As the Archbishop approaches retirement age, coincidentally the forthcoming meeting of the Governing Body of the Church in Wales is to consider the retirement age for clergy but fears that this had  been inspired by the Mugabe instinct of self perpetuation may be unfounded.

To their credit the Age Limits Working Group (Para. 29) favours retention of a compulsory retirement age for clergy believing that...

"this is justifiable, in terms of the Equality Act 2010, for a number of reasons. First, while recognising the high proportion of clergy approaching the current retirement age, the Group believes the future needs and mission of the Church would best be served by taking all steps necessary to encourage more (and younger) vocations rather than by permitting clergy to stay longer in office. A second reason is to avoid the potential tensions and harm – both to an organisation and to individuals – which can arise when it is deemed necessary to invoke capability procedures because of the declining performance of someone with long and valued service. Through Terms of Service the Church now has a mechanism to manage ‘competency’ issues but it would be undesirable for all involved for this to be used as a means of bringing about retirements. A third reason is that retention of a retirement age will, in time, provide the opportunity to achieve a better gender balance, particularly amongst clergy in senior posts. As the 2015 ‘Report on Representation of Women in the Church in Wales’ has shown, women are still significantly under-represented in senior posts. In 2014 only 11% of Bishops, Deans, Archdeacons and Area Deans were women. In part this is because women have only been ordained priest in the Church in Wales since 1996. But retirement of senior clerics now provides much more opportunity to select from both genders as many more women clerics have been ordained for sufficient time to have acquired the necessary experience for such posts. Retention of a compulsory retirement age also provides more opportunities for ‘career progression’ to senior appointments generally."

I would go further. The position of Archbishop should be subject to re-election after three years at the most to avoid repeating the sort of rencana which has split the Church resulting in faithful worshippers virtually excommunicated, attendance at an all time low and the demise of the historic Parish system. Without revival the Church in Wales has had its day. Headship must give way to leadership with a chance to change if leadership is not clearly demonstrated.

Read More

Two sides of the coin

"During his time as archbishop, Dr Morgan has championed many changes in the Church in Wales, including a change in its law to enable women to be ordained as bishops.

He also apologised "unreservedly" to gay couples for prejudice in the church." BBC Report

Such comments are the highlights of many fulsome reports of the impending retirement in January 2017 of the Archbishop of Wales, Dr Barry Morgan, all written from a secular viewpoint including the announcement on the Church in Wales website:

"Dr Morgan, who is the longest serving archbishop in the worldwide Anglican Communion and also one of the longest serving bishops, will retire on his 70th birthday at the end of January. He will also retire as Bishop of Llandaff after more than 17 years service, having previously been Bishop of Bangor for nearly seven years....During his tenure as Archbishop, Dr Morgan has championed many changes in the Church in Wales, including a change in its law to enable women to be ordained as bishops and the implementation of a radical strategy, 2020 Vision, to help the church grow and prosper in the approach to its centenary year.  He has also played a prominent role in public life, campaigning most notably for a fair devolution settlement for the Welsh Government and speaking out on matters of moral concern."

Reading some of the tributes, "the Archbishop of Canterbury described Dr Morgan as an 'extraordinary servant' who would be 'deeply missed' while the First Minister of Wales praised his 'vast contribution' to Welsh life"and "Wales’ senior bishop, the Bishop of Swansea and Brecon, praised his 'courageous leadership' of the Church in Wales", the casual observer is left in ignorance of the decline to near extinction of the Church in Wales under Dr Morgan's 'leadership'.

You can read a more balanced view of the Archbishop's secular agenda during his time in office in VirtueOnline Viewpoints from which I quote:

Morgan is among the most revisionist of Western archbishops in the Anglican Communion, whose only legacy was changing a law enabling women to be ordained as bishops and then apologizing "unreservedly" to gay couples for prejudice in the church. Under his tutelage, there was no evangelical revival and churches continue to wilt and die.

In Sept, 2014, I wrote about the The Washed up World of the Anglican Church of Wales and noted that Morgan said that he would resist the founding of another province with every fiber of his body. He was, of course, alluding to the Anglican Church in North America (ACNA). He made this statement at the 2009 Virginia Annual Council.

Well, his body might need new fibers because his Church might not be around for very much longer at the present rate of decline.

According to the latest statistics (2013), the Anglican Church in Wales shows Average Sunday Attendance (over 18) of just a little over 31,000 and under 18 of just a few over 6,000. That's a drop of some 1,728 persons (over and under age 18) from 2012. The Church is not attracting Millennials.

The ekspresi dominan for the future will be much the same as the past as there are no green shoots of renewal extant in the province, a source told VOL. Wales is the former ecclesiastical home of the less than notable, Dr. Rowan Williams.

Dr Virtue also writes:

As the Episcopal Church sinks slowly into the sunset, with millions of dollars in Trust Funds, valuable properties worth millions of dollars strategically located in large cities and a healthy Church Pension Fund, the other side of the coin is that its pulpits will lose several thousand priests and close more than 1500 churches over the next six years.

The Episcopal Church will see a drop of more than dua,000 full time parish priests in the next half dozen years, as retirement numbers increase geometrically, with a likely decrease of ordinands going into the ministry, Church statistics reveal.

This translates into the number of full time priests being reduced by 65% - 75% of total congregations in the denomination. These numbers are from 2014, the last year reported in some cases. Indications are that the situation is probably worse now in 2016. The average age of an Episcopal priest is 59 (or the mean - half older, half younger) there is a tsunami of retirements headed their way in the next 5-10 years with no possible way of filling pulpits with new ordinands.

For all its efforts to double the Church by 2020 and TREC, an attempt to reimagine the Church, nothing, it seems, is working. The church continues on its Gadarene slide.

That Dr Morgan should have chosen the oceanographer and Presiding Bishop of the US Episcopal Church (TEC), Katharine Jefferts Schori as his guiding light says it all.

Read More