It has been suggested that Sydney Anglicans show little interest in matters affecting the Anglican Communion in North America, because it is so far removed from us. Indeed many Sydney Anglicans would consider themselves relatively safe from such outrageous behaviour of bishops and senior clergy, as has been witnessed in recent years in North America. However, as Thomas Jefferson is reputed to have said, eternal vigilance is the cost of liberty.
Last week I attended a fascinating talk given at St Andrew’s, Roseville by Mrs Lesley Bentley, a churchwarden at St John’s, Shaughnessy in Vancouver. Sydney Anglicans have a greater interest in St John’s than most Canadian churches because Canon David Short, a Sydney-trained minister, is the rector, although Sydney connections with the parish go back to the time of David's predecessor, Dr Harry Robinson.
St John's is a parish in the Diocese of New Westminster, where the infamous Bishop Michael Ingham rules. In 2002 the synod of the diocese voted to authorise the blessing of same-sex unions, which occasioned the representatives of St John's and 10 other parishes to walk out of the synod and declare themselves in "impaired communion with the diocese".
This was a costly decision, but one that we should all applaud, despite its irregularity. Desperate times require desperate measures. It has meant the loss of episcopal ministry, which St John's highly values (they are not independents!). It has meant that David Short and Dr Jim Packer (a member of the congregation and honorary assistant) have been charged with abandoning their ministry and of being disobedient to the bishop. It has meant opprobrium in the press, not only from the Diocese but also much of the community, as Vancouver has the second largest gay population (after San Francisco) in North America. Although last year St John's came under the episcopal oversight of Archbishop Greg Venables of the Province of the Southern Cone (South America), St John's and the Diocese of New Westminster are now engaged in a costly court battle for the right to keep their land and building.
Such an event should call all faithful Anglicans - in Sydney and elsewhere - to pray for God's blessing upon the outcome of this legal dispute. The questions being asked of Mr Justice Stephen Kelleher of the Supreme Court of British Columbia are: (1) who are the rightful trustees of the parish? (those elected by St. John's or those imposed by the bishop); and (2) who owns the buildings and land - the parish or the diocese? (The Diocese has not provided any money for the parish, other than a loan which was repaid.)
The court sits on Monday May 25 for three weeks. Will you pray for justice for those who are faithful to the Lord of Scripture and the historic teaching of the Anglican Communion as exemplified by resolution 1.10 of the 1998 Lambeth Conference?
