Anglican Network Conference
Oct 28th, 2007 by Peter
Cross-posted from my personal blog, an op-ed piece FYI.
Just to give you a quick heads-up, I will be attending the Network conference in Burlington, Ontario on 22nd-23rd November (details here). This time, it’ll be as a participant, not as a blogger - though I will try to let you know what is happening when I have time to do so and as discretion allows.
This conference, as the link above outlines, is not going to be another talking shop - this is the real deal. The lifeboat is being launched. If you want to know where I stand at this time, well, this should tell you enough:
Ichabod
June 2004
I saw a mid sized tree (or possibly a large bush) with only bare brown branches. The tree was dead, and represented to me the apostate church. Springing from the same ground, a little to one side, was a strong shoot, green and sprouting. This represented the new church that is being brought forth to life. I saw the potential that this shoot had, to become a strong vibrant tree, full of flowers and fruit.
This acted as a reinforcement of my current feeling that God is dividing the Church – not just letting it be divided, but actively making it happen, indeed using those with a liberal agenda to His purposes. The dead tree is ‘ichabod’ – the Glory has departed. The structure is still there, and indeed may take some time to decay, but the Glory is there no more. I am left with the impression that investing any more time in this structure is futile, a waste of time. Rather, we should be considering the growth of what God is raising up. It has a real potential, but it’s still potential now, we need to be obedient in being grown. Don’t concentrate on the birth pains, concentrate on what is being born!
So glad you are able to go Peter. We shall wait for news at your discretion.
I think you are right. But I wonder why I see so many people around me so excited, and I am still so heartbroken and sad.
[…] I will be at the conference that is talked about here as well. I should be excited, I want to be excited - but I am still so very heartbroken. I wonder […]
I think you are entirely right Mrs Falstaff. When I attended an Essentials conference a couple of years ago I was struck with a sense of deep sorrow and need for repentance - knowing that the problem wasn’t ‘them’ - it was us.
Indeed, that it was so important to enter into what God is preparing with that understanding and attitude, not thinking that we were somehow the righteous, and leaving in that self-righteousness to what ‘we’ were making.
Rather to understand that we dropped the ball - both corporately and individually, and come to the Lord in repentance , genuine humility and sorrow - Lord we messed up, please forgive and restore us.
If we don’t enter into the Lords plan with that heart, then we’ll just bring the mess and rubbish we think we are leaving behind with us.
Lord, have mercy!
[…] I wanted to include a comment and my reply from over at the AEC blog - as I think this is crucial to our understanding of this […]
I agree Peter - we do need to have a deep repentance for what we have allowed to happen to our Church, but also the corruption has been so well hidden I think we can be excused somewhat for not noticing what was happening. For instance we now have to deal with the latest scandal in our Diocese, the Grenville Christian College’s abuse of its students by Anglican Priests who ran the place. We had no idea of a previous Bishop’s involvement in this College and his collusion with the Community of Jesus, but I guess others did. Now our present Bishop has to carry the load. It is so difficult to know who to trust.
Peter,
Prayers and best wishes for the conference. I am very glad to hear you’re going. (I can’t make it.) Please keep us informed as you have time and energy to do so. Canadian Anglicans are hoping and praying that God’s Holy Spirit will move mightily in Burlington.
I agree that the situation in the ACC is very sad and that orthodox Anglicans need to repent for our lack of care over what has been entrusted to us. At the same time, we are where we are and must act as God would have us act now. We can learn a lesson for the future, and we pray that God will rebuild us as his church. His grace is sufficient for us, and his power is made perfect in our weakness.
Thanks for the comments! I will keep folk informed as much and when I can, though obviously some stuff would be best not blogged.
Regarding our culpability, or otherwise - I guess it’s a complicated matter and probably not very well articulated in a blog comment. Suffice to say I think that our identity is more than just individual; rather there are many layers: family, local church, national church, ’secular’, national etc. In our identity as Canadian Anglicans, I believe we share in the responsibility for all that has happened to this church, even when we have not individually contributed to this situation.
Certainly, if we don’t enter into this with a spirit of humility and repentance, we are in grave danger of just dragging the mess with us.