"Let it be known to you that this salvation from God has been sent to all peoples" (Acts 28:28).

Jesus is very clear that the field is 'the world' (Matt 13.38) not the ekklesia. This is a parable about being a disciple in an evil world, not about being faithful in an evil 'church'. -- On the Parable of the Weeds in Mt. 13 by Ian Paul

Our mandate comes not from identity politics but from our identity in Christ. -- Nigel Genders

Charles Spurgeon believed the gospel must have an impact on all areas of life:
Was Spurgeon involved in the culture wars? Well, if you mean by that, did he believe that Christ should be Lord over all of life? Did he believe that Christians are called to be salt and light in all that we do and wherever we are? Did he believe that the gospel has relevance even in social, cultural and political arenas? 'Yes' is the answer to all of these questions. --- Bill Muehlenberg

Dear Brothers and Sisters
www.virtueonline.org
July 21, 2023

GENERAL SYNOD brings out the worst in the Church of England. It's full of Anglicans in shorts trying to outdo each other with niceness. But really we're all waiting for some aggro in the bar, writes Giles Fraser in The Guardian.

"Dante's vision of hell was colourful, of course. But for the real deal, look no further than the General Synod of the Church of England," he wrote.

"There is all the code language. You have to use the word "mission" a lot (a word so general it has come to be all but meaningless) and talk about "fellowship" happening in the bar, which is the Christian word for friendship, which mostly consists of gossip and gentle bitching about the opposition. For recreation, the Anglo-Catholics giggle about their frocks. Liberals plot global revolution through inclusive language. And the evangelicals have half a shandy before an early night."

By all accounts, and there were many, this week's synod was one of the worst ever. Susie Leafe of Anglican Futures catalogued the failure here: https://virtueonline.org/general-synod-24-snippets

All the talk was about "two integrities" and "walking together" the new nomenclature of hopefulness, and "squaring the circle" of inclusion so no one gets left behind. Of course, that is completely delusional. The Law of Non-Contradiction won't allow it.

Lay lesbian extraordinaire, Jayne Ozanne, bewailed that six years of talking about the Living and in Love and Faith proposal was still being held up by those nasty conservatives who can't see beyond their binary noses.

In what Theo Hobson, of The Spectator, described as a "significant episcopal utterance," the Bishop of Dover, Rose Hudson-Wilkin, told General Synod that, "The women bishops thing ain't working." https://virtueonline.org/church-england-it-aint-working

And it's not the only 'thing' that 'ain't working' - the vast majority of the Anglican Communion have seen through the chimaera of 'walking together', rejecting Welby's leadership in the process.

The Living in Love and Faith (LLF) report will be the Church of England's final undoing. Synod members and press were subjected to four hours of a presentation on Prayers of Love and Faith, which demonstrated yet again the divisions which lie ahead but offered very little by way of solutions to the unbridgeable divide between the two sides.

There were indications that the College of Bishops is coming to terms with the idea that differences on this cannot be put into the category of 'things indifferent' -- they are matters of the deepest conscience and Biblical obedience. Click here for the Presentation: YouTube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CamIXZ_gL4o

Dr. Ian Paul, an evangelical theologian and clergy member had this to say: "How do we rebuild trust when we are told, "Pay attention to power," then we are now told these things are going to bypass Synod and they are going to be commended by the archbishops -- the greatest possible concentration of power. How do we rebuild trust, when we are told by the board here -- that we want to approach something in a celebratory way, which is clearly contrary to the doctrine of the church -- all the while upholding the doctrine of the church at the same time."
"There is a massive trust deficit both in and outside the church, from every side of this discussion. How and when are we going to rebuild that trust? Are we going to get to the point of saying actually this is an irreconcilable difference and be honest about it?"

And you wonder why GAFCON and the GSFA primates and bishops have no interest in listening to anything Justin Welby has to say about Anglicanism and his leadership as they watch his church disappear down the same rabbit hole as The Episcopal Church.

Earlier, the Archbishop of York, Stephen Cottrell got into hot water over remarks he made about calling God 'our Father', describing it as problematic for victims of abuse as well as people who have suffered under "oppressive patriarchy".

Liberal, feminist clergy supported the archbishop's comments while others said he was taking his 'cue from culture rather than scripture' You can read more here: https://virtueonline.org/calling-god-our-father-problematic-says-archbishop-york

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Church of England bishops are being called on to ban conversion therapy. The General Synod has voted overwhelmingly to reject what they call coercive Conversion Therapies. "We recognise the difficulties in defining Conversion Therapies and look forward to working closely with the Government to develop a viable definition and subsequent legislation."

This is to deny freedom of choice. Coercive therapies never work, but optional choices do work, as I have seen it for myself in operation in London.

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In what can only be described as bizarre, the Archbishop of the Anglican Church of Uganda, The Most Rev. Stephen Mugalu Kaziimba, appealed to the President of the Islamic Republic of Iran Ebrahim Raisi to help Uganda in the fight against homosexuality.

Kaziimba made the appeal at the Uganda National Mosque at Kampala Hill in Uganda's capital where Iran's visiting President, Ebrahim Raisi joined believers for the Muslim-Christian dialogue on the philosophy of waiting for the Saviour in Islam and Christianity.

This is what happens, when 'the enemy of my enemy becomes my friend.' When western pansexualists push their LGBTQ agenda onto African nations the results can lead to bizarre alliances. Iran is hardly known for its pro-Christian outlook; in fact their Mullahs happily persecute, jail and kill Christians. You can read the full story here: https://virtueonline.org/ugandas-anglican-archbishop-courts-iranian-president-over-homosexuality

Almost in the same breath word came from the Anglican Church of Canada that a transexual priest by the name of Theo Robinson in the Diocese of Rupert's Land blasted the Ugandan Church for its lack of inclusion on matters of sexuality. You can read it here: https://virtueonline.org/canada-new-trans-inclusive-liturgy-approved

Conservative Canadian Anglican David of Samizdat had this to say; "Robinson is delighted that it reaffirms we are an inclusive church. The bishop of Rupert's Land, Geoff Woodcroft, is also excited by the prospect of using the liturgy for what, undoubtedly, will be a flood of candidates eager to fill his church's deserted pews to partake of the new offering. Woodcroft is so enamoured of his progressive openminded omnierudite pieties (poop™ for short), he is bent on exporting them to those whom he regards as less enlightened than himself, specifically Ugandans."

I wrote a piece pulling this altogether which you can read here: https://virtueonline.org/iran-uganda-canada-and-undermining-global-south-over-homosexuality

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On a more positive note, I did an exclusive interview with the Bishop of the Diocese of the Arctic, (ACoC) David Parsons. He is a solid evangelical and he intends to keep his diocese on the straight and narrow way, happily allying himself with the ANiC and ACNA defying his own church over hot button issues tearing his denomination apart.

"As long as the ANiC or ACNA remain in communion with Jesus Christ, the Word of God and the worldwide Anglican Communion I will remain in communion with them," he told VOL.

He said this; "I believe that the church is decreasing because we have departed from Jesus' teaching and Jesus' plan, and therefore if we are not doing what we're supposed to do we need to repent." You can read my interview with this godly bishop here: https://virtueonline.org/diocese-arctic-bishop-defies-national-church-over-hot-button-issues

To complete my take on the antics of the Anglican Church of Canada, I wrote a piece titled, ANGLICAN CHURCH OF CANADA'S DEATH WISH, a summary of the latest madness that took place at their recent 43rd General Synod where they authorized a set of gender-themed liturgies, including a blessing on gender transition, for use in the ACoC.

Evangelical Canadian blogger David of Samizdat noted that this action illustrates the delusion that has bedeviled the ACoC for decades. Doing more of what has brought it to the verge of extinction will, for some incomprehensible reason, reverse the decline. It won't, of course, it is merely another nail in the coffin of the ailing church. You can read it here: https://virtueonline.org/anglican-church-canadas-death-wish

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TEC Presiding Bishop Michael Curry has been holding "revivals" around the country in the hope of jump-starting his church's decline. I have searched in vain for any sign that these revivals are working. They certainly bear no resemblance to the Asbury Awakening, so I waxed contra mundum on his revivals here: https://virtueonline.org/episcopal-presiding-bishops-love-sermons-will-not-bring-revival-he-yearns-or-make-churches-grow

I argue that Curry's "It's all about love," sermons will not halt the steady decline of The Episcopal Church. It might, in fact, speed it up.

I did try to offer a solution to TEC's decline here; https://virtueonline.org/if-i-were-episcopal-bishop-would-be-my-diocesan-address-today It is unlikely to be heeded because it would demand that priests get off their butts and contact the two-thirds of parishioners who never show up on a weekly basis.
Jeffrey Walton of Juicy Ecumenism saying that top Episcopal Church officials are warning of increasing anxiety at climate change as well as the need for healing amidst mental health and wellness crises.

"Are we ready to use our healing to help with anxieties around the climate crisis?" House of Deputies President Julia Ayala Harris asked, referring to participants at the recent Episcopal Youth Event gathering held in College Park, Maryland. "I heard one young person bravely say, request, demand, that The Episcopal Church is perfectly positioned to have programs for religious healing, especially on those who identify as LGBTQIA2S+."

You can read his piece titled "She's Tickling Our Souls': Episcopalians Proclaim of Holy Spirit at Jesus Festival" here: https://virtueonline.org/shes-tickling-our-souls-episcopalians-proclaim-holy-spirit-jesus-festival

Accusers Raise the Stakes Regarding Bishop Singh. The adult sons and ex-wife of Bishop Prince Singh have escalated their accusations of abuse with the launch of episcopalaccountability.com, an extensive website with searingly painful video messages and copious citations of canons and General Convention resolutions related to church discipline.

Nivedhan and Eklan Singh and their mother, Roja Singh, in June Facebook posts publicly accused the bishop of years of physical and emotional abuse. Prince Singh, the provisional bishop of the neighboring dioceses of Eastern Michigan and Western Michigan, has denied the allegations.

The accusers have now called for an independent investigation of what they describe as an inadequate response to their allegations by Presiding Bishop Michael B. Curry and Bishop Todd Ousley, who heads the church’s Office of Pastoral Development. They also call for an investigation of the two senior bishops under Title IV, the section of the canons regarding clergy discipline. You can read more here: https://livingchurch.org/2023/07/17/accusers-raise-the-stakes-regarding-bishop-singh/ and here at Anglican Watch: https://www.anglicanwatch.com/family-of-episcopal-bishop-singh-publicly-allege-domestic-abuse-call-for-withholding-funds-until-tec-takes-action/

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The Anglican Church of Angola has elected its first female bishop. Bishop-elect Rev. Filomena Tete Estevão will be the first woman bishop for the Anglican Church of Mozambique and Angola. The Anglican Church of Angola and Mozambique have now joined other Anglican provinces like Kenya, Southern Africa, Brazil, and South India which have female bishops.

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On the home front the ACNA Diocese of C4SO under its Bishop Todd Hunter is showing remarkable growth. When you compare the state of most TEC dioceses which have lost an average of 50% average weekly attendance during and since COVID, the C4SO is doing remarkably well.

The ACNA diocese was founded in 2013 and has maintained some 50 parishes, losing only three down from 53. Membership pre-Covid in 2019 was 10,493. It rose to 11,539 in 2020. Post-COVID it is 9,103.

APSA (Average Principal Service Attendance) in Pre-COVID 2019 was 9,373. During COVID in 2020 it rose to 11,280. Today it is 8,017. Post-COVID Recovery 2021-2022 it has risen by +2,540 (+46.4%).

Post COVID attendance saw a recovery of 22.2% in 2021-2022. This might have something to do with preaching a solid biblical gospel and making it relevant to Gen X and Z.

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If you think Western Christianity is going to the dogs, then you might be onto something. The Edina Community Lutheran Church in Minneapolis created a stir recently in posting part of a Pride Month service that featured a radically modernized take on the faith passed down through the ages -- the Sparkle Creed.

"I believe in the non-binary God whose pronouns are plural. I believe in Jesus Christ, their child, who wore a fabulous tunic and had two dads and saw everyone as a sibling-child of God. I believe in the rainbow Spirit, who shatters our image of one white light and refracts it into a rainbow of gorgeous diversity," affirmed the congregation, which -- in the video -- appears to consist primarily of aging Baby Boomers. It continued with this is a video: "I believe in the church of everyday saints as numerous, creative and resilient as patches on the AIDS quilt, whose feet are grounded in mud and whose eyes gaze at the stars in wonder. I believe in the call to each of us that love is love is love, so beloved, let us love. I believe, glorious God. Help my unbelief." I think the ancient creeds will outlive this nonsense.

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CULTURE WAR READS

How Many People Leave Their Childhood Religion? Sociologist Ryan Burge writes about how and what children do when they are raised in the faith. You can read it here: https://virtueonline.org/how-many-people-leave-their-childhood-religion

NOT EVERYONE WANTS TO CELEBRATE PRIDE MONTH. Retailers promoting Pride Month have seen their products left on shelves and their company stocks fall. https://virtueonline.org/not-everyone-wants-celebrate-pride-month

Top Psychiatrist Says 'Go Back to Church' as Loneliness Now a Major US Health Threat. The U.S. Surgeon General says loneliness is now a public health threat so severe that it's on par with smoking and obesity. You can read more here: https://virtueonline.org/top-psychiatrist-says-go-back-church-loneliness-now-major-us-health-threat

Secular Pentecostals vs. Secular Episcopalians: What Happens When Both Sides...
https://virtueonline.org/secular-pentecostals-vs-secular-episcopalians-what-happens-when-both-sides-secularize

Comprehensive Sexuality Education [CSE], Kids and Us
https://virtueonline.org/comprehensive-sexuality-education-cse-kids-and-us

LAW AND GOSPEL: But did you really hear the Gospel?
https://virtueonline.org/law-and-gospel-did-you-really-hear-gospel

What if the Nones Really Do Herald the Decline of Religion?
https://virtueonline.org/what-if-nones-really-do-herald-decline-religion

WHY CONSERVATIVES KEEP BENDING THE KNEE TO GAY RIGHTS
https://virtueonline.org/why-conservatives-keep-bending-knee-gay-rights

Why I left the Brisbane Anglicans to join the Diocese of the Southern Cross
https://virtueonline.org/why-i-left-brisbane-anglicans-join-diocese-southern-cross

Realists Unite! New Documentary on Gender-Affirming Care Presents "Pro-Reality" Position in Response to Trans Ideology. "We align with people who are pro-reality, who respect core community values such as truth and honesty, and who see the human being as a whole: body and soul. There is no metaphysical "gendered soul" separate from the body. Teaching body dissociation to kids ("born in the wrong body") has led to a tidal wave of self-hatred, body dysmorphia, depression, anxiety, and self-harm. You can read more here: https://www.thepublicdiscourse.com/2023/06/89416/

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THEOLOGY

Anglicans, Let's Stay True to Our Confessional Heritage, writes Gillis J. Harp.
Since the latter part of the 20th century, Anglican churches in the West have experienced divisions over liberal theology and sexual ethics. In response, there's been a welcome reassertion of creedal orthodoxy in some quarters. My denomination, the Anglican Church in North America, is one expression of that response. Recently, several Anglican clergy have urged a return to a more self-conscious and consistent confessionalism. You can read more here: https://virtueonline.org/anglicans-lets-stay-true-our-confessional-heritage

"NATIONAL APOSTASY". The Tractarians moved away from the doctrine of justification by faith alone which they considered necessary in the 16th century to curb the works-righteousness of Medieval Catholicism, to a theology of 'holy living', writes Dean Chuck Collins takes a hard look at the Oxford Movement and is none to happy at what it spawned. You can read more here: https://virtueonline.org/national-apostasy

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The Chinese Communist Party uses a variety of covert tactics to repress freedom of speech and religion on American soil. It targets Falun Gong, Uyghur Muslims, Chinese Christians, Tibetan Buddhists, and public critics of CCP policies--including American citizens. This is part of a criminal CCP program known as transnational repression, which has existed in the US for at least 20 years. The CCP's tactics include sanctions, physical assaults, cyberattacks, campus bullying and threats, disinformation campaigns, coerced repatriations, surveillance, and intimidation, writes Nina Shea at the Center for Religious Freedom at Hudson Institute. You can read more here: https://www.hudson.org/events/chinas-transnational-repression-against-americans-first-amendment-freedoms

FACTOIDS: Since the beginning of this century, the number of Evangelical churches in Portugal has almost doubled. The number of evangelical believers is now thought to exceed 30,000. A recent rally saw 5,000 in attendance with many making first time commitments to Christ. Six in 10 evangelical churches plan to plant new congregations. According to research, 44% of Portuguese evangelical churches were started after the year 2001. Many pastors are from Brazil but 7 in 10 new believers are nationals.

Evangelical churches in Brazil have grown 543% in 20 years. In 2019 alone, 17 new churches were opened every day, according to a study by the University of Sao Paulo. Millions of evangelicals took to the streets for The March for Jesus 2023 in Brazil / March For Jesus. The Roman Catholic Church is being dealt body blows over these conversions. In 1990, there were 7,033 evangelical churches in the country. In 2019, the number increased to 109,560. Evangelicals, who were a minority in previous decades, could become a majority in the coming years, the researchers expect.

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VOL. Dear friends. The cyber world is constantly changing and with it the growing needs of VOL to make much needed web changes for our readers. We need your help to make this happen. I am hoping VOL's readers will come to our aid to make this transition possible. You can make a tax-deductible donation by check, credit card or PAYPAL below.

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