Archbishop Duncan

TO ALL THE PEOPLE OF THE ANGLICAN CHURCH IN NORTH AMERICA:
Dearest Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

Recent events within the Anglican Mission in the Americas have challenged us all. This letter is a brief report to you all about those events and about our efforts to find a path forward. The present reality is brokenness. The vision, however, that governs our fledgling Province remains unchanged: a Biblical, missionary and united Anglicanism in North America.

The resignation of nine Anglican Mission bishops, including the Bishop Chairman, from the House of Bishops of Rwanda, changed relationships with Rwanda, with fellow bishops and with the Anglican Church in North America. The resigned bishops lost their status in our College of Bishops as a result of their resignation from Rwanda. The Anglican Mission also lost its status as a Ministry Partner, since that status had been predicated on AMiA’s relationship with Rwanda. In addition, confusion and hurt has been created in Rwanda and in North America, and there is much serious work ahead of us.

Representatives of the Anglican Church in North America and of the Pawleys Island leadership met today in Pittsburgh. For the Anglican Church in North America the starting point was the importance of our Provincial relationship with the Province of Rwanda (a sister GAFCON Province) and with His Grace Archbishop Onesphore Rwaje, of our relationship with the North American Bishops Terrell Glenn and Thad Barnum and all the clergy licensed in Rwanda, and of our relationship to those represented by the Pawleys Island group with whom we were meeting. We, as the Anglican Church in North America, have been deeply connected to all three, and we can only move forward when issues and relationships have been adequately addressed and necessary transitions are in progress.

The agreement from today’s meeting in Pittsburgh was that the Anglican Church in North America is prepared to enter into a process by which our relationship with those who will rally to the Pawleys’ vision and leadership (Anglican Mission in the Americas, Inc.) might be restored to a status like the one existing before the Ministry Partner decision of 2010. All those at the meeting today agreed “that there were no subjects that were not on the table.” For the Anglican Church in North America, these subjects must include leadership, relationships, and jurisdictional participation in a way that is fully Anglican.

We made a partial beginning. Bishops Leonard Riches and Charlie Masters agreed to lead the negotiations from the Anglican Church in North America. Bishops Doc Loomis and TJ Johnston will lead from the AMiA side. There is much about what has happened that will have to be faced. The other part of this beginning will be to come alongside P.E.A.R. and their designated bishops (Barnum and Glenn), clergy, people and parishes in North America as they discern their next steps. The good news is that we know a God who has called us and who is able. [I Thess. 5:24] We are sure that He wants all the pieces back together in an ever-more dynamic, ever-more-submitted, ever-more transformed and transforming North American Church. [John 17]

Keep praying. With God nothing shall be impossible. [Luke 1:37] And besides that, He works all things together for good for those who love Him, who are called according to His purpose. [Rom. 8:28] Blessed Christmas!

Faithfully in Christ,

Archbishop and Primate
Anglican Church in North America

Rev. Rodney May

My dear friends,Greetings in the name of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ.

As we approach the Nativity of Jesus, I pray that His peace continues to reigning your hearts. I am fairly certain that all of you, in one way or another, are well aware of the remaining few days we have left before we gather as Church to celebrate that glorious day, the birth of Jesus.

There are always the last few gifts to buy or make And there may be these other things that are going on in your lives as well – trimming the tree, baking,preparing and buying for the dinner menu, writing cards, wrapping presents, visiting with friends and relatives, rushing here and there, and the list goes on.It’s the season of Christmas, and well, it is so much more than all our preparations for it.

It is a time when we can hopefully be with our families and dear friends; when we can be a blessing to them, and a blessing to the stranger whom God puts in our path, to share his love within us with them.I am writing to you today because I don’t want you to miss the things going on all around you that God is involved with.

And so, it helps to be reminded of the real meaning of Christmas.

Christmas tells us that God’s love for the world has been revealed, and that our lives can now be experienced as kingdom people in Christ, under God’s holy reign. Both the Nativity of Our Lord and his Passion on the cross reminds us not only of God’s love, but also that we are invited by God to imitate His Son’s example of self-giving.

If God’s heart was so moved to love us enough to send his only Son into this world, then know too that He desires our own hearts to be moved as well – to share the Good News of Jesus Christ with others and to be a blessing. This implies a concrete doing of something to enhance another’s  life for the better, whether it be by our thoughts about them, our words or deeds. Indeed, the Feast of Christmas points us to the path upon which the Christmas story leads all of us……to God.

It is my sincere prayer and hope that this Christmas may be for you a special experience of God’s loving compassion and kindness towards you and others. May your celebration of Christ’s Nativity, include following Jesus, and spreading the love of God into that part of the world in which you live.

I pray for the peace and blessing of God Almighty, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, to rest upon you, your families, and other loved ones, at this time and always. Amen.

With much love, Rodney +

SERVICES CHRISTMAS EVE Saturday, Dec. 24th at 8:00pm (Holy Eucharist)

CHRISTMAS DAY Sunday, Dec. 25th at 9:00am (Holy Eucharist)

NEW YEARS DAY Sunday, Jan. 1st at 10:00am (Holy Eucharist)

 Cross Roads has taken on King’s Daughters Ministry as a Parish Mission. Our hope is that we can also by used by others who would like to partner with us in supporting this ministry through our prayers, our finances, developing relationships with the staff, board and the girl’s themselves and by providing opportunities to visit and work at the KDM home in Kampala Uganda. At the present time Cross Roads in Canada and Pauline Hildebrand of Church of the Apostles in Fairfax Virginia are representing this ministry in North America.

KDM was founded in 2000 by Sally W’Afrika. She helps the disadvantaged girls and young women by meeting their spiritual and basic needs like shelter, food, clothes, education. Currently we are supporting the home in Kampala Sally has a dream of reaching to the whole African continent.

Sally’s ministry is a kind of “pay it forward” ministry. She has gone through a very difficult time growing up and was blessed by her Church family and having become an adopted member of the Orombi family. Archbishop Orombi is the Primate of the Church of Uganda.

My wife Lyn and I have been blessed to visit KDM Kampala during the summer of 2009. We were very encouraged be the fruit of this ministry in the lives of the girls and young women in residence. We have been delighted to “adopt” two daughters- Joselyn and Betty, develop a relationship with them and had the privilege of supporting them in their education.

If you, your church, or your organization would like to support this ministry in any way please contact us at anicpenpro@gmail.com.

Bless you! Mark+

A little bit about Rodney:

Rodney’s usual day job is associate priest at Christ the King Anglican Church in Victoria. Rodney is one of those rare folks who actually comes from BC. Following his calling to heal God’s people while attending UBC, he later was sponsored to attend seminary at the College of Emanuel and St. Chad, Saskatoon. To date he has served in the Dioceses of Yukon, Qu’Appelle, and British Columbia.

Through a lengthy discernment process, he left the Anglican Church of Canada in March 2009 and now serves within the Anglican Network in Canada. He has served as both rector and associate priest since 1989, and rejoices with the people of Christ the King at how the Holy Spirit is drawing them and enabling them to become vibrant witnesses of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

If you would like to get a hold of Rodney please email him at anicpenpro@gmail.com

Yes, those quirky and lovable (often noisy)and always thought provoking) evenings of Inter*Active Bible Study at the Brentwood Inn Pub will be back, starting on Tuesday May 17 until June 21, 6:30pm-7:45pm. Ruth Heard and Pastor Mark will be PIP’s fearless leaders and the theme will be: Resurrection Encounters with Jesus. Consider yourself invited!

“I’ve never done anything like this before?”

“What’s that?”

“Sat in a pub, drunk beer, and talked about what Jesus said!”

We know that many people, perhaps especially men, can find it pretty difficult to actually show up at a church on a Sunday morning. Church can be intimidating, or boring, or uncomfortable, or just plain dull. But a pub? Ah, that’s not a bad place to get together: and what we have learned  is that there have been many people  who have enjoyed not only the ambiance and beer and food of the Brentwood Bay Inn and Lodge, but also the fun of discussing interactions with Jesus.

So, how does it work? We’ve booked tables in the mezzanine level of the Brentwood pub, often with a “Private Function” sign on the stairs, and in spite of distractions like the World Cup on the tv screen and pop music on the speakers, have found an ideal place for our conversation.

We’ve asked people not to bring their bibles, because after ten minutes around that opening question we have simply handed out a single page with the text typed up. Then the fun starts! Questions come fast and furious: answers, comments, insights, hesitations, declarations, wonderment and puzzlement flood the tables for a spirited 40 minutes of talk that goes back and forth like a tennis ball at Wimbledon.

Somewhere in the middle of the resulting chaos of a dozen excited voices conclusions and convictions slowly emerge. That everybody has many many things to say of value and depth and insight and wisdom. That asking good questions is more important than coming up with somebody else’s answers. That these interaction encounters with Jesus are slippery and dynamic; that reading them is more like riding a rodeo bull than stroking a tame lamb. That the Kingdom of God is not exactly what we thought it was!

6th of Easter, 2011

Hi All,

Just a final reminder that on Saturday May 28th our sister parish, Christ the King Victoria, will be hosting the Bible in a Day course. This promises to be a great way to get a good, usable overview of the Scripture. I’ll be there and I encourage you to come along as well. Please check out the brochure here Bible in a Day Brochure.

In case you have been away for awhile we are now meeting at Brentwood Bay United Church at 9am- see map below. Also, our bulletin for Sunday can be found here May 29, 2011.

Blessings! Mark+

Church Map Location

Cross Roads Map

Combining an Evangelical message with the Eucharistic Sacrament.

Every 1st, 3rd and 5th Sundays (some exceptions) we offer a Eucharistic Service with a Biblical and life informing/changing message.

Our worship is informal yet serious. Our music includes both modern and ancient forms.

During the Ministry of the Word we have an excellent Sunday School led by creative and dedicated volunteers.

We’d love to see you this Sunday!

At Brentwood Bay United Church 9:00 AM.

Announcing the Inter*Action Eucharist 2nd and 4th Sunday Mornings (usually but occasionally subject to change)

Many Anglican churches today realize the need to “do something new” on a Sunday morning and are discovering the exciting effectiveness that comes in re-creating the form of our Sunday morning services.

Inter*Action is one of those adventures.

We spell the word with the star in the middle to help emphasize the two parts that come together to bring creative energy to the service. “Inter” lets us know that the time we spend together – is “Inter-generational”.

But children are important: kids are kids! And that leads us into the second part of the word, the “Action”. We will do something special with and for the children each time we meet. Songs, skits, crafts, games: embedded into the service itself will be a time when we involve the children and continue to teach them the story of Jesus.

A second “Action” will involve the adults, and here we will begin a teaching/study of the Gospel of Mark. But this is no sermon! The teaching will be interactive: the learning will be conversational with the richness of all our voices: the study will be inductive: we will raise questions, answer some, and send you home with more.

And we might be sitting around tables with a cup of coffee in our hands.

Ah, yes, you say, but will it be Anglican! Although this is a “Fresh Expression” of what it means to be in church on a Sunday Morning, it will be thoroughly Anglican because it will centered on Jesus Christ and his Word. The liturgical shape of the service — yes, there will be a liturgical shape! — will be grounded in the Four Fold Order of the Eucharist

Certainly, we will adapt that and choose what serves us best in our intent to create a form that makes for informality and engagement. But using the Book of Common Prayer is a wonderful and familiar “echo” for many older people who were brought up on the pattern of alternating Eucharists and Morning Prayer.

So, a whole new “Fresh Expression” for the second and fourth Sunday of each month.

As creative and engaging a form as we can manage. But we are not changing or adapting our classical orthodox theology in any way at all. The faith that was “once and for all delivered to the saints” (Jude 2) is our faith too; and the faith that undergirds and empowers Inter*Action.

We do not pretend for one minute that Inter*Action is the perfect solution to the problems of reaching out into the community, or drawing in new people to our church, or even revitalizing our own community of faith. But it is, we believe, a God-given idea, one that we are called to explore and investigate, to the ultimate glory of God.

The Rev’d Dr Michael Pountney