On April 23rd 2004, Montreal archbishop Andrew Hutchison was elected as Primate of the Anglican Church of Canada. Hutchison said he personally favours church blessings for same-sex couples but remained open regarding how he would vote on the issue.
I’ve no idea how Hutchison eventually voted but if he voted against, he did so against his conscience; if he voted for, he did so against the Bible.
And we wonder why the Anglican Church of Canada is in trouble.
Will be closed for Good Friday Earth Day.
Is it just me, or is this the most lugubriously dolorous Easter message ever delivered?
The Anglican Church of Canada and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada have been in “full communion” now for ten years. During that time, both denominations 
have been hurtling pell-mell down the road of increasing theological liberalism and both have been suffering equally catastrophic numbers of people fleeing their churches for less “inclusive” pastures.
Considering that the numerical growth has been drastically negative, it is a little odd that the churches are getting together to pool their successes and even more odd that they are planting a tree together to symbolise “continued growth” – which if it continues at the present rate will see the end of both denominations within a few decades.
From here:
Tree planting symbolizes hope for continued growth.
Anglican and Lutheran leaders ended their first joint meeting with a tree planting ceremony on the grounds of the Queen of the Apostles Renewal Centre, a symbol of their hope for the continued growth of their Full Communion.
The Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada’s (ELCIC) National Bishop, Susan Johnson, said the tree is a “reminder of the work that needs to be done” to realize the full potential of Full Communion.
Canadian Anglicans and Lutherans are “standing back with great humility and joy,” as they celebrate a decade of Full Communion this year, said Archbishop Fred Hiltz, primate of the Anglican Church of Canada. He described the meeting of members of the Anglican church’s Council of General Synod (CoGS) and the ELCIC’s National Church Council (NCC) as a “watershed moment.”
It’s a rare pleasure to see so much nonsense condensed into so few words; of course, the Montreal Anglican has had a lot of practice.
From here (page 5):
CHRISTIANS ARE ON THE CUSP of a revelation that Christ “has not only redeemed the world but revealed the lie of imperialism” that underlies systemic evils like colonialism, resulting in environmental crisis, substance abuse and abuses in residential schools, Bishop Mark MacDonald, national indigenous bishop for the Anglican Church of Canada, said in a special service on Ash Wednesday for students at the three denominational theological colleges at McGill University. He said it has been unhelpful for churches to deal with sin as just a personal problem. Here, the bishop, right, chats over lunch with Rev. Canon Paul Jennings of the Montreal Diocesan Theological College.
The ACoC page as of this writing is, much like its subject, totally devoid of content.
One person “likes” it, although that number might diminish once the person realises what he has got himself into.
The Rev. Canon Gordon Baker is suggesting that the Anglican Church of Canada changes its name. He is not proposing to take the obvious and needed step to avoid prosecution under the false advertising act: remove the word “Church”. Instead he wants to align with the other sinking ship south of the border, The Episcopal Church. In the popular vernacular, I think it means Fred would become Katharine’s bitch – assuming he isn’t already.
From here:
So I raise the question, “Is it time for a name change from The Anglican Church of Canada?” After all, we changed it once before, in 1955, from The Church of England in Canada to The Anglican Church of Canada. This was done to recognize and proclaim our existence and autonomy as something other than a colonial religious outpost. However appropriate the use of the word “Anglican” was at that time, it is now more than 50 years later, and our church has changed in its understanding of itself and its mission in a greatly changed Canadian social context.
Today we are developing new mature relationships with the aboriginal peoples of Canada and they are our sisters and brothers in faith and mission. Our clergy in Quebec are becoming totally bilingual so as to work comfortably within a French culture. The tag in western Canada of being the “English Church” no longer holds true.
I submit that it is time for us to be fully grown up and give thanks for all we have received from the Church of England, and others, but have a name that more truly expresses who we are. I believe that the name, “The Episcopal Church of Canada,” would do just that.
From here:
There will be a special service this spring to celebrate 10 years of full communion between Lutherans and Anglicans in Canada and the United States, the churches have announced.
In 2001, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada (ELCIC) and the Anglican Church of Canada (ACC) signed the Waterloo Declaration. The same year, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America signed a similar agreement with The Episcopal Church, USA, Called to Common Mission.
As you can see, the two denominations are called to a Common Mission; but what is that mission? To convince the general public to think like them, of course. Early attempts looked something like the following video, although “missional” merchandising has become more radical since it was made.
Does that mean “welcome back ANiC, you can stay in your buildings”? Probably not.
From here:
In June, the second international conference of the Anglican Communion Safe Church Consultation will ask some hard questions about social and religious structures that perpetuate abuse. Partnering for Prevention: Addressing Abuse in Our Communion & in Our Communities, scheduled to take place at the University of Victoria, June 24 to 26, will explore the legacy of church abuse and how to prevent it and foster healing.
“Abuse happens in the church because we perpetuate structures of clericalism that place clergy in unrealistic positions of power and adulation among the faithful,” said Rev. Mary Louise Meadow, past canon pastor of the diocese of British Columbia and a conference co-coordinator.
I must admit, I am well past the stage of adulating clergy. Come to think of it, for most ACoC clergy, I seem to have passed rapidly from indifference to contempt with no intervening period of adulation.