Path to extinction

Source: Church Growth Modelling 8 July 2015

"The Bishop of Monmouth-elect, the Ven. Cherry Vann, said that it would be a 'sad day if all the focus on growth was just about numbers', but that 'we can’t ignore the fact that church congregations, generally speaking, are either stable or declining'." - Twitter @ChurchTimes

Cherry Van is right on course to discover far more about decline when she takes her notion of stability to Wales.

The Church in Wales is heading for extinction in around 20 years time along with the Episcopal Church of Scotland and the US Episcopal Church. Fortunately for her and her liberal colleagues she will have retired before the collapse leaving others to sort out the mess the 'progressives' have created.

Decline continues as traditional roles are overturned. Over the last couple of decades, women have been leaving mainstream Christian churches at about twice the rate of men while more women than men are enteringclergy training in the Church of England.

Promised benefits of the ordination of women have not just failed to materialise, they have been reversed.

In 1993 when Michael Alison (Second Church Estates Commissioner, representing the Church Commissioners) moved, That the Priests (Ordination of Women) Measure, passed by the General Synod of the Church of England, be presented to Her Majesty for her Royal Assent, he said:

"For those millions of people, the Church of England, with its formal state link, is a kind of valuable stalking horse by which they can bring pressure to bear on the powers that be to promote or to maintain Christian standards in education, complex moral and ethical issues, and so on."

Instead we have bishops who advocate same-sex marriage in Church and appear oblivious to the dangers of confusing children by spreading LGBT propaganda in primary schools in the guise of sex education.

In 2015 the Church Growth Modelling blog forecast that attendance figures for the Church in Wales, the Scottish Episcopal Church and the Episcopal Church of the USA (TEC), indicated extinction dates around 2040. The Church of England was "on the margins of extinction with some calibrations say yes, just; some say no, just."

The liberal leaning Canadian Episcopal Church must be added to the list.

Regular attendance figures from Canada show that the Anglican Church of Canada (ACC) is in serious trouble, "running out of members in little more than two decades if the church continues to decline at its current rate". Statistics for 2017 indicate that average Sunday attendance has dropped to 97,421. The rate of decline is increasing suggesting an extinction date also of 2040 based on 'five different methodologies'. Figures for baptism, confirmation, marriage and funerals show an even faster rate of decline.

There is a common factor. Churches that have adopted liberal programs are in decline while conservative Protestant churches which take a more literal view of the Bible continue to thrive.

On his retirement the Archbishop of Wales reflected that he had supported numerous secular causes, including gay marriage. He has also backed women clergy during his 'leadership'. Commenting on the consecration of the Church in Wales' first female bishop he said: "I think that was pretty important as a matter of justice, as a matter of equality and as a matter of doing what was right".

No theology; pure secularism.

On gay marriage, Dr Morgan had previously called for the church's view on same-sex marriage to change with popular opinion adding "That's quite something, I think, in a church that hasn't always been known for its liberalism."

The Anglican Church is now soaked in liberalism and heading for disaster. Liberals have what they want at the price of extinction.

In Wales, Membership and Finance figures for 2018 show "continued decline in most measures of participation in parish life." Regular Sunday attendance has sunk to 26,110 or 0.8% of the population. The political appointment of Ms Vann to the position of bishop of Monmouth has been welcomed by liberals who no longer see the traditional teaching of the Church as relevant.

In the Church of Ireland clergy have objected to the appointment of a conservative bishop because of his membership of the Global Anglican Future Conference (GAFCON). These clergy believe that GAFCON’s policies "are 'antithetical' to the principles a Church of Ireland bishop must commit to in the rite of consecration. These include 'fostering unity, care for the oppressed, and building up the people of God in all their spiritual and sexual diversity'" showing how far many Anglicans have strayed like lost sheep.

This fromChurch Times illustrates how absurd the liberal position has become in undermining traditional beliefs: The Dean of Waterford, the Very Revd Maria Jansson, told The Irish Times that "the Bishops’ attendance at GAFCON had undermined unity within the Church. 'How can Bishops Harold Miller and Ferran Glenfield reconcile the vows they made at their consecrations as bishops ‘to maintain and further the unity of the Church’ with their support of GAFCON, which stridently endeavours to undermine that very unity?', she asked."

More to the point, how can liberally progressive bishops reconcile their vows to maintaining the unity of the Church when they represent a small and shrinking percentage of the 87 million Anglicans worldwide?

The Church is in crisis.Only 2% of young adults identify as C of E.

Interlopers have changed the Anglican Church to satisfy their own desires, driving forward an agenda to validate a lifestyle incompatible with the Gospel.

From Virtue Online: "Progressive Pansexualist 'Christians' have declared war on orthodox believers. Their goal is not mere acceptance, but to overthrow the moral order and destroy conservative churches who hold the line on faith and morals."

What we are left with is not Christianity but Churchianity and it is spreading.

Anglicans often described themselves as ?Episcopally led and Synodically governed.? That is fine so long as bishops remain guardians of the faith but many are in the forefront of aggressive change, putting 'progressive' provinces at odds with mainstream Anglicanism.

Now Pope Francis is calling for a 'synodal' Church giving progressive Catholic bishops a similar platform to Anglican bishops for driving forward change with claims of being moved by the Holy Spirit.

Is there no end to this madness?

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Bishop of St Davids is right but probably wrong

Joanna Penberthy is right to encourage people to vote and to vote wisely in the forthcoming General Election.

Probably she will not. The first female bishop in Wales is a proud Corbynista which may account for the subliminalred vote going into the ballot box on the St Davids diocese web site and the red X on the ballot paper rather than the traditional graphite pencilled X.

Former MI6 chief Sir Richard Dearlove has warned that Jeremy Corbyn isa danger to national security and unfit to become Prime Minister. Sir Richard who spent 38 years with the intelligence service warned bluntly: "Do not even think of taking the risk of handing this politician the keys to No. 10."

"Jeremy Corbyn and his then-lover Diane Abbott

 visited communist East Germany together in the

1970s "                 Credit: Times Newspapers Ltd  According to a report inThe Sun Jeremy Corbyn was "granted access by communist East Germany to go behind the Iron Curtain in the 1970s. He travelled with his then-lover, and now Shadow Home Secretary, Diane Abbott." He also attended a wreath-laying ceremony for Palestinian terrorists who "castrated and murdered Israeli athletes at the 1972 Munich Olympics".

The Daily Mail has accused Jeremy Corbyn, John McDonnell and Diane Abbott of being "unashamed apologists for terror, who have devoted their lives to befriending the enemies of Britain while undermining the very institutions that keep us safe in our beds."

In her video address to electors the bishop of St Davids says that in what is "undoubtedly the most important election in British history", we will be voting on "what sort of people and what sort of behaviour we want to see in those we elect to Westminster. Ask yourself: Does this person have my community's interests at heart? Can I trust them?"

Based on the above press reports the Corbynista cannot be trusted.

Numerous Anglicans in Wales can testify that Penberthy and her fellow bishops on the bench are not best placed to speak of trust.

They promised twin integities to provide mutual flourishing when women were admitted to the priesthood. A promise they quickly dropped while developing an 'inclusive' Church which excludes anyone who follows scripture and tradition, effectively excommunicating them for believing what most of the world's 86 million Anglicans believe.

Why would anyone believe a bishop in the Church in Wales?

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No Christians allowed

Welcome - but not if you are a Christian                                Source: CBNNews

From CBN News:

No Christians Allowed: Muslim UN Officials Block Syrian Christian Refugees from Getting Help

"Christian Syrian refugees have told CBN News that they have been blocked from getting help from the United Nations Refugee Agency, the UNHCR, by Muslim UN officials in Jordan.

"One of the refugees, Hasan, a Syrian convert to Christianity, told us in a phone call that Muslim UN camp officials 'knew that we were Muslims and became Christians and they dealt with us with persecution and mockery. They didn't let us into the office. They ignored our request.'

"Hasan and his family are now in hiding, afraid that they will be arrested by Jordanian police, or even killed. Converting to Christianity is a serious crime in Jordan.

"A clear pattern of discrimination by the United Nations refugee agency in Jordan against Christians. And it appears to be one reason that while tens of thousands of Syrian Muslim war refugees have been settled in the United States and Britain, only a small number have been Christian."

And the two governments that could stop this persecution of Christian refugees – the US and Britain – have done little to nothing about it."

Full CBN News report HERE.

I doubt that this problem will be mentioned in cosy inter-faith gatherings far away from suffering Christians.

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£10 million church fund targeted to support free love

Note the Diocese of Monmouth's statement on mission and priorities: "Our mission and priorities. We work with stonewall.org.uk".

That statement sums up the current direction of church and state.

The Church in Wales has initially allocated £10 million to an Evangelism Fund for dioceses to 'enact their strategies on evangelism and church growth'. The Diocese of Monmouth, soon to be headed by the first openly same sex partnered woman bishop, has targeted evangelism fund money to plug same sex relationships through @MissionMonmuth#lovewithoutlimit.

Earlier this month Anglican Mainstream published an article“The Tory Party at prayer”?  If so says their Executive Secretary, Andrew Symes, the Church of England reflects the new ‘conservatism’ of the secular progressive elites, not tried and tested values.

Bishops fail to grasp the anti-Christian philosophy behind the LGBT agenda, he says:

"It is the Conservative Party which introduced the change in the definition of marriage; which has overseen and facilitated the exponential rise in ‘gender transition’, and is now pushing through the new Relationships and Sex Education programmes in schools. Rather than oppose this, or at least equip faithful Christians to understand the rapid cultural change and live distinctively in relation to it, the C of E has taken the side of the sex and gender radicals. This website has tracked many examples of this, but just in the area of education: following on from the release of Valuing All God’s Children, the C of E’s LGBT-affirming guidance on ‘homophobic and transphobic bullying’ co-written with Stonewall was released two years ago; Church of England primary schools are using the transgender lobby group Mermaids to ‘train’ staff and governors and backed by Diocesan education departments in doing so, and now senior leaders have expressed approval for the new RSE programme in this document released last week....

"No doubt many Bishops see RSE as a done deal and not worth risking the relationship between church and government; some see the new regulations as merely a way of teaching children to be positive about difference and kind to others, without understanding the anti-Christian philosophy behind the LGBT agenda. But this ideology like a virus has proved adaptable: previously attaching itself only to the political left and secular atheism, it has morphed to be find a home also among Conservative politicians and church leaders. The long march through the institutions is almost complete."

Transforming institutions means allowingdrag queens to read same sex storybooks to children.

It means encouraging bishops to support pride events in which naked men parade in front of impressionable young children.

It is making a mockery of Christ's sacrifice when he was dragged through the streets to the Cross.

Police with Wesh Pride                                           Source: Twitter @PrideCymru

“Give me a child until he is 7 and I will show you the man.”

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Difficult questions!

A meat cleaver that the 'Three Musketeers' plotters planned to use in their attack (West Midlands Police). Source: INDEPENDENT

Usman Khan, perpetrator of the latest Islamist terrorist atrocity in London, will have expected to be greeted by 72 virgins as his reward for being 'martyred' for his faith when he was shot dead by police.

The two young people Khan killed were taking part in aprisoner rehabilitation program. Khan had been invited to participate but the hand of friendship was of no consequence. Whatever good work his victims were doing to help Khan and other ex-prisoners, they were still classed as infidels in the  ideology to which Khan subscribed.

He would have regarded himself as a martyr because he, along with many other Muslims, was waging war on the kafir. The fact that his targets were innocent was irrelevant. In their book non-Muslims are regarded as 'unbelievers' deserving punishment, as do erring Muslims who can be sentenced to death for theirapostasy .

Khan was sent to prison as a convicted terrorist. He entered a 'breeding ground for Islamist extremism' where he lied about his de-radicalisation as permitted under his ideology thus earning early release from prison.

The Independent reported following an earlier terrorist incident in 2018 that three prisoners, the  'Three Musketeers', mingled with fellow extremists they met in jail. They reinforced their beliefs there before turning their attention to "wreaking bloodshed" in the UK.

The lead commissioner for Countering Extremism told the Independent at the time: “Experts and those working in prisons have raised significant concerns with me about the spread of extremist ideas and behaviours among serving prisoners. This includes the risk that individuals are becoming more extremist in prisons. There are also fears about what happens when prisoners who advocate extremist beliefs and behaviour – whether Islamist or far-right supporters – are released into our communities.”

After the latest killings outraged commentators again demanded answers to some "difficult questionsdanquot; about early release and de-radicalisation but what drives a desire to kill and maim innocent people who do not share their beliefs?

That is the most difficult question but it will not be addressed for fear of attracting accusations of Islamophobia, a label concocted to ensure that, unlike other faiths, Islam is beyond question.

Postcript [04.12.2019]

Five boys and pastor among 14 Christians shot dead in Burkina Faso church massacre

"An Islamist extremist attack on a church in Komondjari Province, south-east Burkina Faso, during Sunday morning worship on 1 December."  -Barnabasfund

Far away from London and one of many Islamist attacks abroad which are seldom mentioned in the British media.

These are not about historical events. Christians today are being persecuted all around the world.

From theInterim Report of the Bishop of Truro’s Independent Review for the Foreign Secretary of FCO Support for Persecuted Christians:

"Violent persecution exists in many forms. Firstly there is mass violence which regularly expresses itself through the bombing of churches, as has been the case in countries such as Egypt, Pakistan and Indonesia, whereby the perpetrators raise levels of fear amongst the Christian community and attempt to suppress the community?S appetite to practice its right to public expression of freedom of religion and belief. State militaries attacking minority communities which practice a different faith to the country?S majority also constitutes a violent threat to Christian communities such as the Kachin and Chin people of Myanmar and the Christians of the Nuba mountains of Sudan. The torture of Christians is widespread in the Democratic People?S Republic of Korea (DPRK) and Eritrean prisons, and beatings in police custody are widely reported in India."

If Islam became dominant in this country why would Christians here be treated differently to Christians abroad?

Postcript [07.12.2019]

Islam has three political strategies; immigration, population and violence. Reflections on Usman Khan...

"There is a precondition for rehabilitation -- you've got to want it ... It doesn't just happen through educational programmes

Facts of 'terrorist' killings are clear but our society is divided by the meaning" -Bishop Gavin Ashenden

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Ask your candidate to reject Stonewall's manifesto

Source: Citizen Go

From CitizeGo:

Stonewall have produced an 18 page election manifesto which they are asking candidates to make a public pledge of support for. While it is not unusual for lobby groups to produce election literature, the sheer scale and depth of Stonewall's maifesto demonstrates the extent to which they wish to influence government policy and public life. Other lobby groups, such as for example, the World Wildlife Fund and the Citizens Advice Bureau and the Royal College of General Practiioners have kept their manifestos to 1-dua pages.

Stonewall is already influencing policy in every area of public life and has managed to achieve institutional capture of many of our public bodies such as the police force and education authorities, where they are pushing an agenda which seeks to trample all over the existing rights and freedoms. Their manifesto seeks to embed these more deeply. We can already see the effect that they are having in schools, universities, local police forces and local authorities across teh country.

Candidates in this general election need to be challenged to uphold the fundamental freedoms we all enjoy, which enable social life to be lived decently. This is why we are asking canddiates to explicitly reject the Stonewall manifesto and instead pledge to support the following lima principles:

1. Say no to Reform of the Gender Recognition Act

dua. To keep single-sex prison facilities, rape shelters, lavatories, changing facilities, sports categories and sports facilities

tiga. To uphold fundamental freedoms of conscience and freedoms of expression

4.  To protect parental rights, young children and vulnerable adolescents

5. To uphold the impartiality of our public bodies, many of whom seem to be have been unduly influenced by Stonewall's ideology

Pledge to reject Stonewall's election manifesto HERE

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Diane Abbott is missing

Shadow Home Secretary Diane Abbott with Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn  Source: Independent/PA

Diane Abbott, Shadow Home Secretary and former lover of party leader, Jeremy Corbyn has been conspicuous by her absence in the General Election campaign.

An Express report suggests: ?They have hidden Diane Abbott from the cameras, not only because her son was arrested after allegedly biting a police officer, but because she literally makes no sense at all when she speaks. And yet she is the shadow home secretary, who in a few days might find herself in charge of the country?S police forces and MI5, which she once said should be abolished."

According to the MailOnline, Abbott's privately-educated son, 28, was arrested after 'biting one police officer and spitting at another outside Foreign Office' where he used to work. He was bailed to appear back in front of magistrates in February by which time his mother could be Home Secretary.

There have been too many instances when Abbott's bungling have given the impression that she is simply not up to the job, examples here and here, but old loyalties may prevail.

Many voters would feel more comfortable if Diane Abbott were missing from the political stage permanently.

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