Diocese of Niagara litigation costs

Posted on by
11

For the first time that I’m aware of, the Diocese of Niagara has included the cost of suing ANiC parishes in a financial statement.

You can find the statement here and the relevant line shows that in 2009 the diocese, while not preoccupied with distributing free hugs, spent $395,895 on lawsuits:

Where did this money come from? It wasn’t budgeted – and it still isn’t. It presumably came from the diocese’s primary source of income: the diocesan assessment. That means that with a total assessment in 2009 of $3,044,139, 13 cents out of every dollar contributed by Diocese of Niagara parishioners was used to sue fellow Christians.

The financial statement goes on to declare that the diocese was the defendant in the 2009 legal action; it was actually the plaintiff – the instigator of the suit – as can be seen here. In addition, even if the diocese does finally win all the litigation, it will not recover its legal costs; of the $395,895, only around $80,000 of  was recovered.

Diocese of Niagara publishes its religion of works

Posted on by
2

And they are green works. The list is here and includes the 10 pieces of dogma to which a person must adhere to be fit for green heaven.

Just as in real Christianity, some of the articles of faith are harder to comprehend than others: a notable example is the difficulty in deciding whether to use a garbage bin, green box or blue box to chuck your Niagara Anglican in before reading it. The diocese suggests the pious family will ensure that “[e]veryone in the home has been “trained” in the correct use of the blue, green and regular garbage bins.”

It goes without saying that:

Low flow shower heads are installed
Single use plastic bottles are not used in the home
Fair trade coffee and other products are used in the home
At least two days a week are designated as meat free
Organic Ontario food is bought when possible
One day a week the car stays in the garage

And so on. As you can see, the Diocese of Niagara is keen to inflict  its 21st C version of self flagellation on parishioners and is encouraging family members to inform on one other when a miscreant is caught sneaking a bite of non-organic Texas beef by the light of an incandescent bulb in between swigs of water from a plastic bottle. With non-fair-trade coffee to follow. Violators will be incarcerated in the nearest Justice Camp for re-education.

Diocese of Saskatoon votes for same-sex blessings

Posted on by
Reply

From here:

Members of the Anglican Diocese of Saskatoon recently voted to bless same-sex marriages, a policy that must still be approved by church bishops.

In this video Jim Comar – an Anglican man who is “married” to another man – notes that the Anglican Church has been “hampered by what we consider sin”. The entire human race is hampered by sin but, of course, that’s not what he meant. Comar is upset that if the church views his sexual activity as sinful, it puts a cramp in his style, so he wants the church to modify its teaching, freeing him to romp in unfettered homoerotic bliss. And it appears he is getting his wish.

[flv:https://anglicansamizdat.net/wordpress/videos/Same-sexSaskatoon2.flv 600 400]

Having approved same-sex blessings, Toronto Bishop Colin Johnson calls for Charity

Posted on by
2

Bishop Colin Johnson has sent a letter to the clergy of the Diocese of Toronto explaining his decision to allow the blessing of same-sex unions in his diocese.

It contains the expected boilerplate, including this section which exhorts its readers to exercise Christian charity towards one another:

Not all will welcome this development: some because it goes too far, some because it is not nearly enough. You will note that there are strong affirmations in these guidelines assuring a continued and honoured place in all aspects of diocesan life for those who do not agree with this response.

All of us need to extend to each the most generous Christian charity that our Redeemer calls us to exercise as we, together, seek to discern and live out God’s will.

Charity – or agape love –  is explained by St. Paul in 1 Cor 13. It includes this:

Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up, Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil; Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth; Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things.

And here we have the problem: charity “Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth”. What Johnson means by charity is not what St. Paul meant: charity does not require compromise on revealed truth. How can clergy who oppose same-sex blessings, out of charity, “rejoice in the truth” when they are being compelled to be an accessory to the lie that man can bless something that God has forbidden?

What Johnson means by “charity” is a mushy mealy-mouthed liberal feel-good moral relativism that wants us all to grin and nod inanely at one another as we  sink together into a morass of antinomian depravity. That isn’t charity.

Having instigated 7 years of Anglican havoc, Bishop Gene Robinson to retire in 2013 because of the strain

Posted on by
1

From here:

The first openly gay Episcopal bishop said Saturday that he will retire in 2013, due in part to the “constant strain” on him and his family from the worldwide backlash against his election seven years ago.

Bishop V. Gene Robinson, whose consecration convulsed the global Anglican fellowship, said he was announcing his retirement early so the transition would be smooth for the Diocese of New Hampshire. He assured congregants that he is healthy and sober after seeking treatment for alcoholism five years ago. He will be 65 when he steps down.

Robinson revealed his plans at the annual diocesan convention in Concord.

“The fact is, the last seven years have taken their toll on me, my family and you,” the bishop said, in prepared remarks released by the diocese. “Death threats, and the now-worldwide controversy surrounding your election of me as bishop have been a constant strain, not just on me, but on my beloved husband, Mark.”

The thought of the constant strain on Gene and, his beloved husband Mark, tears at the heartstrings, but surely even someone as dopey as Vicki Gene could have foreseen the aggravation his consecration would cause. Of course, his main worry is for himself and those who agree with him, not the 70 million equally aggravated Anglicans who don’t

Islamists prevent church construction in Kuwait

Posted on by
Reply

From here:

The government and the emir have approved the project but the Kuwait City Municipal Council refuses to issue building permits or explain its reasons for doing so. About 460,000 Christians share four official churches, two Catholic, one Evangelical and one Anglican. A Coptic church is under construction.

A group of Christians has complained that Kuwait City’s Municipal Council is preventing them from getting land to build a church. “The Municipal Council is the big problem preventing us from getting land; not all of the members, just the Islamic fundamentalists,” said Archimandrite Boutros Gharib, head of the local Greek Catholic Church.

Recently the municipal council blocked an attempt by the Greek Catholic Church to acquire land in Mahboula, an area in the Ahmadi governorate south of Kuwait City. The request has been pending for several years.

Fr Gharib noted that his church is paying US$ 6,944 a month for a villa that is also shared by two other congregations. If they did not find land soon, the church would have to close, he said. “It’s all excuses. It’s all lies,” he said. “Every time they promise, but all their promises are for nothing.”

Perhaps Fr Gharib would have more success if he called the church a Cultural Centre.

The Tea Party shows that democracy works

Posted on by
1

Reader Warning:  “Bush”, “Fox News”, “Hannity” and “Tea Party” about to appear in one sentence; liberals should avert their gaze to prevent the danger of concentrated conservative input triggered brain implosion syndrome.

From here:

The rise of the Tea Party movement shows “democracy works,” former President George W. Bush says in an interview to air Tuesday night on Fox News’ “Hannity.”

“Here’s what I see. I see democracy working. People are expressing a level of frustration or concern and they’re getting involved in the process,” Bush told Sean Hannity in advance of the release Tuesday of his memoir, “Decision Points.”

“And the truth of the matter is, democracy works in America,” Bush said.

Air Canada starts profiling passengers

Posted on by
Reply

From here:

Air Canada has ordered its staff to subject anyone connected to Yemen to undergo extra security checks after the discovery last week of two packages containing explosives that originated from the country.

A memo, circulated at several major Canadian airports, directs Air Canada staff to take aside any passenger who was born or is a resident in Yemen, is travelling to or transiting through Yemen, or has started a trip in the country.

An outbreak of sanity from, of all places, Air Canada.

Mosque bombed in Pakistan; 60 dead

Posted on by
Reply

From here:

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — A suicide bomber detonated an explosives-laden vest inside a mosque in northwestern Pakistan during midday prayers on Friday, according to government officials, a strike apparently aimed at worshipers who had denied support to the Taliban.

State television reported that at least 60 people were killed. “At least 70 people are injured,” said Shahid Ullah, a district official in the district, near Peshawar. “Many are in a critical condition.”

Later in the day, another explosion ripped through a mosque in the same area during evening prayers, a local television news network reported. At least three people were killed and at least 14 wounded. The nature of the second blast was not clear.

The Pakistani Taliban claimed responsibility for the earlier bombing, Pakistani news media reported.

The attack seemed intended to punish elders of the village of Darra Adam Khel in North-West Frontier Province, who have resisted the influence of militants in the area and raised a private militia to oppose them.

Muslims who routinely riot, prance around in the street and trample each other to death to protest cartoons of Mohammed and obscure igniters of the Koran, largely ignored the bombing in order to concentrate their outrage on these more important matters. Including this troubling development:

Muslims in Mumbai are up in arms against a United States military sniffer dog allegedly with name tag of ‘Khan’ that has landed in the city as part of President Barack Obama security arrangements.

On Tuesday, the German Shepherd arrived in the Mumbai airport from a Hercules C130 transport plane. The German Shepherd allegedly had a tag around its neck which read ‘MWD Khan.’ MWD stands for Military Working Dog. Khan is alleged to be the name of the dog.

Angry Muslims in the city and the state are threatening to protest this ‘insult’ to the community.