As GAFCON’s new-found addition to its congregational strength in Australia, this new parish under the leadership of former Sydney ‘Anglican’ Archbishop Glenn Davies adds one more local congregation (now totalling five parishes) to his GAFCON-based Diocese of the Southern...
As GAFCON’s new-found addition to its congregational strength in Australia, this new parish under the leadership of former Sydney ‘Anglican’ Archbishop Glenn Davies adds one more local congregation (now totalling five parishes) to his GAFCON-based Diocese of the Southern Cross, raised up initially to accommodate ‘refugees’ from the Australian Anglican Church.
The A.C.A., which – like most Anglican Provinces around the world, in their anxiety to rid the Church of historic sexism and homophobia, remains in Communion with the Founding Church of England in its recent acceptance of LGBTQI+ people as part and parcel of the Gospel Mission of ‘Good News’ to all people – irrespective of their innate gender or sexual orientation.
It is remarkable that, though there have been fights about all newly-formed (usually justice based) polity – based on what those Churches believe to have been a theological call to “Hear What The Spirit is Saying to The Church” in a more scientifically-informed theological response to important questions of human, non-binary, sexual identification; neither the majority acceptance of the Ordination of women, nor the Re-Marriage of Divorcees (which many Conservative Evangelicals have considered to be ‘against the Teaching of Scripture) have been the cause of large-scale schismatic breakaway of the GAFCON/GLOBALSOUTH Churches. mostly on grounds of scriptural interpretation
Apparently, the ‘straw that has broken the camel’s back’ – to the point where GAFCON/GSFA leadership is counselling a schismatic departure from the Lambeth-based A.C.C. has been the justice-based action of the Church of England General Synod in deciding to ‘Bless the Partners in a Same Sex Civil Marriage’ thereby declaring the ancient shibboleth against homosexuality as the ultimate Sin against the Holy Ghost to be no longer acceptable by the Anglican Church as sinful – but, rather; being subject to the same moral judgement as the sexual activities of heterosexuals in the conduct of their own sexual lives. When Saint Paul said ‘It is better to marry than burn’, he could well have said this about homosexual relationships, as well as those of the binary heterosexual majority of the population. Blessings are a gift of God – distributed by the Church, but not exclusively. (Civil Marriage bestows a legal relationship on all its beneficiaries).
In a ‘Christian’ context, where President Putin would like to align his own personal abhorrence of what he personally regards as the ‘sins’ of homosexuality with that of the Russian Orthodox Church; one wonders, does that justify the ‘Blessing’ of Soviet tanks to engage in his deadly attacks against Russia’s Ukrainian neighbours. When, in such a situation, can a ‘blessing’ be recognised as the curse it has proved to be – not only for those attacked, but also for the doctrine of the Universal Church, that is committed to bring the Gospel of Peace and Justice to all? In The C. of E.s acceptance of the Blessing of Same-Sex couples in a stable, monogamous legal relationship – and for its willing recipients no longer to be subjected to an inhumane criticism of their inbuilt human nature as ‘sinful’ and an ‘abomination’ – the decision of the Church of England to follow other partners in the Anglican Communion, who have campaigned against a social and moral situation of ‘Corban’ to be pronounced against a minority community in the Church that happens to be ‘different’; the Diocese of Sydney has publicly teamed up with the schismatic GAFCON-sponsored ‘Diocese of The Southern Cross’ (now consisting of 5 parishes), in its determination to battle against Same-Sex Relationships as a cause-celebre of what GAFCON – and the Sydney ‘Anglican Orthodox Diocese’ – considers to be an ‘heretical’ move against an ‘Anglican Doctrine of Marriage’ that excludes S/S Blessings and is designed to exclude Gays from living into a loving, faithful way of commitment to another human being – outside of the binary model which seems to be subject to the very same problems of unfaithfulness and pain that are clearly evident in the Church – no less than outside of it – in the world of today.
(n.b.) the Diocese of Sydney has a history of prejudice against Women’s Ordination, which its leaders see as being ‘against the teaching of Scripture’ – which is quite consonant with Sydney’s well-known prejudice against the LGBTQI Community, on the same basis. The very co-existence of traditional Anglican reliance upon the 3-legged stool of theology -‘Scripture, Tradition, and Reason’ – thought by some modern scholars as needing the addition of ‘Experience’ (without which – guided by the Holy Spirit – none of us is capable of ‘knowing’ God) seems anathema to the teaching of Sydney’s diocesan bishops – one of whom (former Sydney Archbishop Glenn Davies) is already engaged in running the rival, schismatic, GAFCON 5-parish Church diocese. (See Proclamation below the line).
Father Ron Smith, Christchurch New Zealand
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Christ our Refuge, Brisbane — new church in Diocese of the Southern Cross
Posted on March 2, 2023 – by ANGLICAN CHURCH LEAGUE (Sydney)
Filed under Diocese of the Southern Cross
“On Wednesday, 22 February, Bishop Glenn Davies formally commissioned Rev Dave Miers as the Pastor of Christ our Refuge – the fifth church in the new Diocese of the Southern Cross
Christ our Refuge is a new church launching later this year in Brisbane’s Inner North.
Our dream is to be a city of refuge within the city of Brisbane, where many people have found refuge, security, and hope in Christ.
We see a mature, generous, and kingdom-minded community with a prayer to plant four new gospel-centred Anglican churches in Brisbane by 2032.
Find out more about our weekly gatherings, joining our team, prayer updates, and financial partnership here: christrefuge.co”
– News as well as photos of the Commissioning service can bee seen on their Facebook page.
See also the Diocese of the Southern Cross church directory.
Give thanks for all who are stepping out in faith to make Christ known – and especially Dave Miers and the members of this new church in Brisbane.
