The Monthly Update

This edition of the Monthly Update has a disproportionate amount of information on the situation in the Episcopal Church; what happens in that denomination will be a predictor of what will happen in ours if we make similar decisions in crucial areas.

Each December, we make our annual request for contributions. We ask that each of you pray and seek the Lord's leading as to how you might support the ministry of Concerned Methodists. We believe that we make the most efficient use possible of the money you entrust to our work. We are able to translate the maximum amount of donations into our ministry of informing people about what is happening within our United Methodist Church.

The past eighteen months have been especially trying in that we simply have not rebounded since the September 11th attack. Since we are in the preparation stage for the 2004 General Conference in Pittsburgh next year this is an especially crucial time for us. We have never been so far "behind the curve" in terms of what we need to do and the resources to meet those needs. By our projections we will need a little over sixty-three hundred dollars between now and the middle of February if we are to finance the materials for the mailings that we will need to send to the General Conference delegates. Please pray as to how you might help us meet these requirements.

We have another need of a more far-reaching nature. We would like to move out of the office building where we presently are located and into a house that would eliminate the cost of the office rental and at the same time provide us with more space for files and work area expansion. In addition we would be able to consolidate some of our members’ home offices into one building. Could you pray as to this need? We are hoping that some business or individual in the Fayetteville area will need a tax deduction and would be willing to donate a house or other facility to us.

Once again, we appreciate so much your partnering with us in the mission that we believe the Lord has called us to. May we ask for your continued help through your gifts and your prayers?

From all of us here, we wish you the very best during this Christmas and throughout the year.

In His service,

Allen O. Morris, Executive Director

A woman was out Christmas shopping with her two children; after many hours of looking at row after row of toys and everything else imaginable, and after hours of hearing both her children asking for everything they saw on those many shelves, she finally made it to the elevator with her two kids.
She was feeling what so many of us feel during the holiday season time of the year - overwhelming pressure to go to every party, every housewarming, taste all the holiday food and treats, get that perfect gift for every single person on our shopping list, make sure we don't forget anyone on our card list, and the pressure of making sure we respond to everyone who sent us a card.
Finally the elevator doors opened and there was already a crowd in the car.
She pushed her way into the car and dragged her two kids in with her and all the bags of stuff. When the doors closed she couldn't take it anymore and stated, "Whoever started this whole Christmas thing should be found, strung up and shot."
From the back of the car everyone heard a quiet, calm voice respond, "Don't worry. We already crucified him."
For the rest of the trip down the elevator it was so quiet you could have heard a pin drop.

Don't forget this year to keep the One who started this whole Christmas thing in your every thought, deed, purchase, and word. If we all did it, just think of how different this whole world would be.

+ October 12, 1492, two hours after midnight, Columbus sighted land. He named the first island San Salvador, meaning "Holy Saviour." After meeting the natives, Columbus wrote: "So that they might be well-disposed towards us, for I knew that they were a people to be...converted to our Holy Faith rather by love than by force, I gave to some red caps and to others glass beads... They were greatly pleased and became so entirely our friends that it was a wonder to see.... I believe that they would easily be made Christians, for it seemed to me that they had no religion of their own." - E-mail. American Minute with Bill Federer, October 12, 2003.

+ ...The "Save the Commandments Caravan" is making its case before the U.S. Supreme Court today. The group, which held demonstrations in five other states on its way to Washington, DC, will hold a prayer rally in front of the High Court to protest court decisions that have blocked public displays of the Ten Commandments and other public expressions of faith in God. The Caravan was prompted, in part, by the suspension of Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore, who refused to remove a monument to the Ten Commandments from a public area of a state building. Meanwhile, the Supreme Court is taking up two other cases involving separation of church and state issues. A Washington State case addresses whether state-funded scholarships for secular education must also be made available to students concentrating in theology or religion. And the high court is considering whether to hear another dispute involving recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance in public schools: the Bush Administration, a California school district, and an atheist with a school-age daughter have asked the court to decide whether the phrase "under God" is allowed under constitutional law. A California appeals court ruling last year sided with the parent last year. - AgapePress Christian News Service, October 6, 2003.

Adults in their 20s make decisions about everything from education to marriage, from career to kids. Their faith practices and spiritual priorities are also established during the formative years spanning ages 20 to 29. In this report, learn more about the faith journeys of America's twentysomethings, including:

· Church attendance, giving to churches, Bible reading, and personal prayer

· Overall commitment levels to Christianity and views of religion's importance

· Participation in leadership within local congregations - and their perceived leadership ability

 Methodist congregations located as far apart as Kansas, Alaska, and New Zealand are fighting in court for control of church property. Members of Gove UMC in northwest Kansas are attempting to use an argument described by Thomas C. Oden, a professor at UM-related Drew University School of Theology, Madison, N.J., in their effort to retain the church property and disassociate with the denomination. "If a bishop or conference can be shown to be unfaithful to the doctrinal and disciplinary standards required in the trust clause," Oden wrote in an essay on the subject, "they can indeed be required to show cause that they have legitimate access to local church property."

  The 125-member congregation voted May 9 to disassociate from the denomination because it had allegedly violated doctrinal standards by "allowing and condoning the following: same-sex unions, homosexual ordination, Sophia worship, goddess worship, Wicca worship, pagan practices, anti-trinitarianism, [and] opposition to the virgin birth and the deity of Christ." The conference filed a lawsuit June 5 to maintain the property within the UMC. A temporary restraining order froze the assets and enabled the building to be used for UM worship. Sandra Jellison-Knock, a laywoman, now leads worship services in Gove UMC for 17 remaining members. Meanwhile, Paul Woodall, a former licensed local pastor who has been dismissed by the conference, is leading the breakaway congregation that now meets in a nearby Baptist church. A hearing date on the lawsuit has not been set.

Members of a Fairbanks, Alaska, congregation are engaged in a similar effort to retain their church property, though they are not the only other U.S. congregation to test the trust clause recently. To date, the Judicial Council has ruled that the Alaska Missionary Conference (AMC) had the right to close the 60-member church, but civil courts have yet to rule on the disposition of the property. Last October, a superior court judge in Juneau denied a motion to evict members of the former St. Paul UMC from its sanctuary and parsonage. The 15 people still worshiping in the building have removed "United Methodist" from its name, but the court action does not determine who owns the church building.

Outside North America, five UM scholars from the United States testified to a New Zealand court regarding a property dispute with some members of the Otahuhu Tongan Methodist Church (not a part of the UMC). In February

2001, a group of church members told their district superintendent they wanted to separate from the denomination after a self-professed homosexual was admitted to the ministry. They subsequently asked a district judge to divide assets between those who wanted to remain with the denomination and those who wanted to establish a new church. Among a series of arguments asking the judge to divide assets was a claim that the admission of a homosexual to the ministry involved a change in Wesleyan doctrine upon which the church was founded. "The break means the [denomination's] final authority is a break in the trust under which the Otahuhu property is held," argued the dissidents.

The judge ruled on July 23 that the congregation had no basis to claim a "stand-alone status" and found that the conference is the final authority within the Methodist Church on all questions concerning the interpretation of its doctrines.

[Note: We have been working with the members of the Fairbanks, Alaska, congregation. They were closed down for no apparent violation of the Book of Discipline nor for any misconduct. The AMC has not posited any valid reason for their actions. – Editor] - J. Richard Peck, UM News Service, as reported in Newscope, November 14, 2003.

+ American Anglican Council Begins Preparations for Realignment of Anglicanism in America
The American Anglican Council (AAC) held a special board meeting at Truro Church, Fairfax, VA on October 22-23, 2003 to begin preparations for the coming realignment of Anglicanism in America. Over the course of the meeting, the AAC Board moved forward with developing a "Network of Confessing Dioceses and Parishes" and created a process by which orthodox parishes can apply for the provision of "adequate episcopal oversight." The AAC Board also heard a report from AAC leaders who met with the Archbishop of Canterbury the morning after the Primates Meeting.

The board gathered in the wake of the AAC's highly successful Dallas/Plano "A Place to Stand" conference and last week's strong rebuke of the American Episcopal Church by the Anglican Primates. Also attending the meeting were leaders from the Anglican Communion Institute, The Ekklesia Society, several bishops, lawyers, youth leaders, theologians and other church and AAC leaders.

"Our course is getting clearer each week," said the Rev. Canon David Anderson, AAC President. "We are beginning the process of realignment of Anglicanism in North America that the Primates laid out for us in their statement." The AAC Board spent a considerable amount of time discussing plans for "adequate episcopal oversight" for congregations who maintain Biblical faith and practice, but are located in dioceses that support the consecration of Canon Robinson or are otherwise hostile to their orthodox beliefs. The Anglican Primates made provision for such oversight in their statement last week. According to the Primates, this oversight is to be provided in consultation with the Archbishop of Canterbury, on behalf of the Primates themselves -- an unprecedented move that is reflective of the growing role of the Anglican Primates in the life of the Anglican Communion.

In response to the Primates' direction, the AAC Board developed "Guidelines for Congregations Seeking Adequate Episcopal Oversight" and an "Application for Adequate Episcopal Oversight" which will provide congregations with a way to formally request such oversight. The AAC also created an "AAC Bishops Committee on Adequate Episcopal Oversight" which will handle the oversight requests and address other oversight-related matters. The guidelines and application will be posted on the AAC website shortly.

"With the Archbishop of Canterbury's encouragement, the AAC Bishops' Committee on Adequate Episcopal Oversight is coordinating requests for oversight," said Canon Anderson. "We are proceeding deliberately and carefully to insure that this oversight is available sooner rather than later."

The AAC Board also moved forward with the establishment of a "Network of Confessing Dioceses and Parishes" in the Episcopal Church.

"A first component of the new realignment is the establishment of a 'Network of Confessing Dioceses and Parishes,' which is actually a name given to us by the Archbishop of Canterbury," said Canon Anderson. "It is with great joy that we report that this network is already coming together, with orthodox dioceses and AAC parishes leading the way. The network is growing dramatically, and we expect continued rapid growth."

"This network is intended to be a safe haven for all those Episcopalians who are distressed by the direction that the Episcopal Church has taken over the past 30 years - actions that culminated in the grievous decisions of General Convention this past August," added Canon Anderson.

The day following the Primates Meeting, four AAC bishops and two clergy leaders met with the Archbishop or Canterbury, The Most Rev. Rowan Williams. The Board heard a report on the meeting from the Bishop of Pittsburgh, the Rt. Rev. Robert Duncan, and the Rev. Canon Martyn Minns, rector of Truro Church.

"It was clear at the meeting that Archbishop Williams understands that separation has happened and that realignment is a coming reality," reported Bishop Duncan. "The big question and concern is whether we will be able to be reconfigured in an orderly manner or whether we will we slide into chaos."

"The AAC sees the scheduled consecration of a non-celibate homosexual as bishop to be the watershed moment in modern Anglicanism," said Canon Anderson. "As a result, the AAC adds our voices to a vast number of Anglicans and other ecumenical leaders who have asked Canon Robinson to step down for the sake of the future of the Anglican Communion."

"As an increasing number of provinces withdraw fellowship from the American Episcopal Church because of its controversial actions, the Episcopal Church will find itself no longer in the Anglican Communion," said the Rev. Donald Armstrong, Director of the Anglican Communion Institute headquartered in Colorado Springs. "The only way for these divisions to be healed is for us to reclaim the historic teaching of our church on human sexuality as expressed in the Lambeth Resolution 1.10 and repudiate these innovations which are so destructive to the persons involved as well as our common life in the church."

The American Anglican Council is a network of individuals, parishes, specialized ministries and Episcopal Bishops who affirm Biblical authority and mainstream Anglican orthodoxy within the Episcopal Church. For more information on the AAC, and to register for the Plano Meeting, please visit our website at

Evidence of Attempted Manipulation of the Primates meeting

The staff of the Anglican Consultative Council [ACC] in London will attempt to manipulate the agenda and format of the forthcoming Primates Meeting scheduled for October 15-16 in London in a bid to "nullify" any conservative outcome in the battle raging within the Anglican Communion over homosexuality. A proposed agenda and a strategy memorandum accidentally distributed by the ACC at the International Anglican Doctrinal and Theological Commission [IADTC] meeting earlier this month will seek to "make sure nothing happens" at the emergency meeting called by Archbishop Rowan Williams. The ACC, critics charge, will use financial intimidation and a manipulative agenda to frustrate the will of the majority of the Primates of the Anglican Communion. "I was given by mistake two classified documents," stated the Very Rev. Paul Zahl, a member of the IADTC. "One was a proposed schedule for the Primates Meeting a blow by blow on the fifteen minute schedule for the entire meeting of the Primates. And the other was a very carefully typed one and one half page memo which was a very strongly worded recommendation as to how to deal with 'the conservative Americans' and the 'conservatives'."

A noted theologian and dean of the 3000-member Cathedral Church of the Advent in Birmingham, Alabama, Dr. Zahl remarked the way in which he was given the documents "was hilarious. It was sort of like an Alfred Hitchcock movie". Dr. Zahl joined the IADTC meeting at Virginia Theological Seminary in Alexandria, Virginia, on September 8, four days into the proceedings. When he arrived he was given a sheaf of papers that he began to read as he listened to the morning presentation. Two documents, an agenda and an unsigned memo, seemed to Dr. Zahl out of place.

He told the Church of England Newspaper, "they were very duplicitous and highly compromising papers." The agenda for the Primates Meeting had been "carefully scripted". "The schedule had four or possibly five discussion points, but in each case a 'conservative' was to be linked with a 'liberal' to give equal time." The meeting was designed not to achieve any sort of consensus or "executive decision" but "was a typical sort of Anglican 'process' situation where you take the fangs out of any position by always making it into a 'conversation'," noted Dr. Zahl. "It would say 'well we'll have a conservative speak on the gay thing and then we'll also have a liberal'. Every 'no' was paired with an equally equivalent 'yes'. It seemed like just another in the interminable kinds of process discussion that I have witnessed over the last thirty years with no resolution, no time to actually deliberate. It seemed to give no room that I could see for anything like deliberation or anything like action." Dr. Zahl's impression was one of conscious manipulation by the Conference planners. "I was horrified. I wanted to say who had been consulted? Had the Primates been consulted? It looked like a very careful job to suppress any kind of action."

The second document, a memorandum to the Archbishop of Canterbury, argued that it was imperative that the will of the majority of Primates be frustrated. As Dr. Zahl read the document he said, "two things caught my eye". The memo argued "the conservatives and the Americans will try to get their way by making a lot of fuss, but we must resist at all costs listening to that."

Dr Zahl stated the document noted "four potential outcomes" for the meeting. The first was "some kind of parallel jurisdiction" in North America. The memo urged that this outcome, "at all costs must be fought because it would be disastrous." The remaining three outcomes were variations upon the theme of study, dialogue and delay: "none of them [sought] discipline or Godly admonition" of the American Church. Dr Zahl said they were "ways of staving off any kind of decision."

"The overwhelming thought I had as I read it" Dr. Zahl told us, was "these people want to prevent and block any possible action that the Primates might try to take." To achieve this political end, the memo in Dr. Zahl's words, recommended "let's not give them anything they want, let's do all we can to prevent any kind of substantive action." No attempt at any "substantive theological, biblical, or even ecclesiological comments" was offered he added.

As he was reading the papers, Dr. Zahl told us he asked himself, "Holy Moses! Why did I get these?'" Ten minutes after being given the papers, an ACC secretary, Mrs. Christine Codner, asked Dr. Zahl if he would return them to her as there had been a "mistake". Dr. Zahl's conference papers were swiftly collected and a second set, less the two documents was given to him in their place.

One UK-based theologian who attended a gathering of 13 Primates in Nairobi on September 27 stated that the attempts to nullify the will of the Primates were unfair. "The un-level-playing-field, away-game, racist, patronizing, un-inclusive and Western dominated character of these gatherings -- all the while applauding like mad at the new inclusive atmosphere" had generated anger among the non-Western leaders of the Anglican Communion. Canon Bill Atwood of the Ekklesia Society, a second participant at last week's Nairobi meeting stated the Primates would not submit to manipulation. "The primates are being very wise and very tough. Those who think they will cave in are wrong."

The director of communications for the Anglican Communion Office was not available for comment at the time of going to press.

[Note: This is included even though it is chronologically outdated, yet it is highly instructive as to tactics used.]

The service of November 2nd 2003 was held in defiance of the statement and appeal against such an action, issued unanimously on October 14th, 2003, by world Anglican primates at Lambeth. For the Presiding Bishop in America - himself a signatory to that statement - then personally to have overseen the ceremony involving Canon Gene Robinson, indicates a demeaning of his fellow primates (including the Archbishop of Canterbury) and deviousness in Christian leadership that is unworthy of a Shepherd of the flock of Jesus Christ.

In planning to consecrate as bishop a divorcee, now in an active homosexual relationship, the Episcopal Church in the United States of America has caved in to prevalent western cultural pressures and reverted to the paganism of the ancient Graeco-Roman world that was vigorously challenged by the early Christian church. In doing so, ECUSA has departed from the boundaries of orthodox Anglicanism, in contempt of the consistent biblical witness to the God-given institution of marriage, and of 2,000 years of universal church practice across all Christian traditions.

We also wish warmly to affirm those sisters and brothers, already in membership with orthodox churches, who - while experiencing same-sex desires and feelings - nevertheless battle with the rest of us, in repentance and faith, for a lifestyle that affirms marriage and celibacy as the two given norms for sexual expression. There is room for every kind of background and past sinful experience among members of Christ's flock as we learn the way of repentance and renewed lives, for Such were some of you. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God (1 Corinthians 6:11).

This is true exclusivity. - RICHARD BEWES, Rector of All Souls Church November 2003

Gene Robinson, the New Hampshire priest who was consecrated this week as the first openly gay bishop in the Episcopal Church, said it may be time for his denomination to split because of theological differences.

The church's top bishop, Presiding Bishop Frank Griswold, who has come under fire for his support of Robinson, has said repeatedly that there is room enough in the church for various interpretations of biblical references to homosexuality.

Traditionalists and their allies overseas disagree. Forward in Faith, an evangelical group, said those who support Robinson are an "eccentric religious sect." "Those who affirm and celebrate the episcopal ministry of Gene Robinson have placed themselves outside the Christian religion," said the Rev. David Moyer, the group's president. Moyer is urging conservatives in liberal dioceses to seek oversight from other bishops, stop giving money to the national church and create "new, orthodox congregations in dioceses whose bishops supported the consecration."

...While American troops in Iraq are still being targeted by Iraqi terrorists, the killers have turned their attention to other targets: Iraqi democracy advocates, Iraqi police, and the United Nations facilities. U.S. military strategist Jack Spencer says this demonstrates one thing. "It shows us that it's not that the Iraqi people don't want the coalition there, it's that the terrorists don't want the coalition there," he says. Spencer believes that radical dissidents will continue to attack anyone working to stabilize Iraq. "It doesn't matter if it's Americans, or coalition forces, or U.N. personnel or nationals from some other country -- the terrorists will attack them, because it's they who will bring about the stability that [the terrorists] so much don't want." Security is tightening in Iraq and lessons are being learned as to how to make the country safer for coalition forces and Iraqi citizens who want peace. - AgapePress Christian News Service, September 25, 2003

Islam. General William Boykin. Religious conservatives in Congress are defending the Pentagon general who told church groups that America is a Christian nation while Muslims worship a false god. Lt. General William Boykin, who is Undersecretary of Defense for Intelligence, also depicted the war on terror as a fight against Satan. The general has apologized to those offended by his comments. But Republican Congressman Todd Tiahrt of Kansas has drafted a letter asking Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld not to discipline Boykin. He says doing so would discourage the free exercise of religion -- one of the freedoms Americans are fighting to protect. A Christian evangelist who was once a Muslim says National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice had no idea what she was talking about when she said this weekend that the war on terrorism is not a war between religions. Rice reacted to the Boykin comments by telling ABC's This Week program that no one should describe the war on terrorism as a war between religions. But former Muslim W. L. Cati had this reaction to Rice's comment. "I have not just studied Islam for 15 years; I was a part of it," Cati says, "and I know the dark side -- the real side -- of Islam." She adds that "most people who are out there on their bandwagon saying that it is not a war between two religions have no clue what they're talking about." Cati, who founded Zennah Ministries, says Ms. Rice and other members of the Administration simply do not understand Islam. The former Muslim says Rice is right in one respect: she says the ongoing war on terror is not a war between two religions -- it is more. "It is a war between heaven and hell. It is a war between the Holy Spirit and the evil spirit," Cati says. [On a personal note, I know General Boykin. He is a man of the highest character and spirituality.] - AgapePress Christian News Service, October 21, 2003.

Liberia.

+ Christian relief agencies and nongovernmental organizations are cooperating to address the needs of an embattled populace. Partnering with the World Food Programme, World Vision has been supplying food to nearly 150,000 displaced men, women, and children in camps in and around the capital city of Monrovia; and three World Vision health clinics are now providing emergency and preventive health care to orphans and displaced people. A recent survey focusing on areas where the organization is not currently distributing food indicated that almost 40% of the people in the region's displacement centers suffer from moderate malnutrition, while 11% of children under five are severely malnourished. Four therapeutic and supplementary feeding centers have also been established, but in the rural areas, many are still desperate for assistance. World Vision is also developing a food-for-work project with the goal of restoring war-damaged public buildings around the nation. - AgapePress Christian News Service, September 25, 2003.

+ United Methodist missionaries return to Liberia

United Methodist missionaries evacuated from war-torn Liberia in June are returning to the West African country.

 The process is expected to be complete in early December, according to the Rev. R. Randy Day, chief executive of the United Methodist Board of Global Ministries.

For the first time in more than 15 years, the National Council of Churches of Christ has endorsed consumer boycotts.

The ecumenical organization has 36 member denominations, including the United Methodist Church, and represents some 50 million U.S. Christians in 140,000 local congregations. Previously, the National Council of Churches endorsed a boycott in May 1988 against Royal Dutch/Shell Oil because of the company's connections to the apartheid system in South Africa. [Note: This is a deceptive statement. Rarely does the NCC reflect the wishes of a fraction of these people.]

The boycott against Taco Bell was called in March 2001 by the Coalition of Immokalee (Fla.) Workers after the company refused to address charges of exploitation in the fields of its tomato suppliers, particularly Six L's Packing Co., one of the largest U.S. tomato growers. The coalition, representing some 3,500 farm workers in southwest Florida, seeks higher farm worker wages through an increase in the per-bucket rate paid for tomatoes.

The council also agreed to support the Farm Labor Organizing Committee boycott of products produced by the Mt. Olive Pickle Co., based in Mt. Olive, N.C. Farm workers have been unsuccessful in convincing Mt. Olive management to participate in negotiations to improve the wages and working conditions of workers who produce the cucumbers processed by the North Carolina company. Mt. Olive is the nation's largest independent pickle producer and the second largest processor of pickles and related products.

 In other business, the NCCC general assembly:

 · Adopted a resolution on "The Church and Public School," urging council members to increase support of public education, such as working to bridge the achievement gap between rich and poor schools and addressing the segregation of public schools over the past 12 years.

· Approved a resolution on the Middle East conflict that calls for dismantling the "separation wall" being constructed between Israel and the West Bank. [They habitually adopt a anti-Israel and anti-capitalistic positions.]

"Let no one ever come to you without leaving better and happier." - Mother Teresa