7908

English Churchman Fridays, 17th & 24th October 2014

English Churchman A P R O T E S TA N T FA M I LY N E W S PA P E R

№.7908 2

Fridays, 17th & 24th October 2014

2 50p

Sanctification Conference in unbearable burden of Scotland re-registration?

CRIMEA: the

by a correspondent To Gartmore House, a few miles east of the “bonnie banks” of Loch Lomond travelled eager saints from England, Scotland, Wales, N. Ireland, the Republic

of Ireland, Hungary, Singapore, the United States and Canada. The ethnic mix was enriched by folk of Italian, German, Dutch, Filipino and Trinidadian stock.

They were there to learn the biblical truth of sanctification at the 2014 British Reformed Fellowship (BRF) family conference (26 July – 2 August).

The conference theme, “Be Ye Holy,” was ably developed in the six main speeches and two Sunday sermons

by David Engelsma and Herman Hanko, experienced ministers of the Word, seminary professors and

Christian authors. Sanctification was understood in the light of God’s grace, compared and contrasted with justification, and related to the moral law (no antinomianism!). The imperfection and yet the victory of our sanctification in this life was clearly set forth.

Rev. Martyn McGeown of the Limerick Reformed Fellowship in the Republic of Ireland gave the opening address,

explaining the role of good works in a holy life. In light of the conference subject and location (Scotland), the historical lecture by Pastor Angus Stewart from N. Ireland was “A Scottish Classic on Sanctification: James Fraser of Alness’‘explication’ of Romans 6:1 – 8:4.”

The two day trips to St. Andrews and Edinburgh were introduced by

a PowerPoint presentation on John Knox (born half a millennium ago this year), emphasizing his connection with both cities. Coach trips to Loch Katrine, Stirling and Loch Lomond were also much enjoyed. But how does one do justice to the rich fellowship of God’s people together for a week under His Word calling us to holiness?

All of the speeches plus some of the author interviews with Profs. Hanko and Engelsma, are available in an attractive box set of 12 CDs or DVDs for just £12 (inc. P&P in the British Isles). The conference also saw the unveiling of the new BRF book, “Ye Are My Witnesses” (only £5.50 inc.

P&P). These may be ordered from Mary Stewart, 7 Lislunnan Road, Kells,

A Crimean church receives ‘a visit’ from insurgents during the morning service.

A

N. Ireland BT42 3NR (028 25891851).

The next biennial BRF Conference is scheduled for 16-23 July, 2016, in Castlewellan Castle, County Down, with speakers from Singapore and America. Its subject is the end times and its beautiful theme is “Behold, He Comes Quickly” (www.britishreformed.org).

ll 1,546 religious communities in Crimea which had state registration with the Ukrainian authorities are being required to re-register under Russian law by 1 January 2015 if they wish to retain legal status. A wide range of communities have complained to Forum 18 News Service of the burden of having to prepare documentation and the lack of information about how to go about it. Communities that function throughout Crimea will have to register in Moscow, the rest in Crimea.

Many communities which wish to remain part of Ukrainian religious organisations - including the Moscow Patriarchate and Kiev Patriarchate dioceses, the Greek Catholic Exarchate and Roman Catholic, Lutheran and Armenian Apostolic parishes - remain uncertain as to whether this will be allowed. Nikolai Barylyuk of the Crimean Department of the Russian Justice Ministry refused to tell Forum 18 whether religious communities’ previous registration under Ukrainian law remains valid.

WEA Secretary General Reflects on Impact on Evangelicalism of Historic ‘Christian Witness’ Document

A

t the Mission Respect Congress in Germany, World Evangelical Alliance (WEA) Secretary General Dr. Geoff Tunnicliffe shared his reflections on how the historic document ‘Christian Witness in a Multi-Religious World: Recommendations for Conduct’ has influenced evangelicalism over the last years. He spoke about why the WEA joined the document’s working group and expressed his hope that it will serve as an example of fruitful collaboration between the three world church bodies in areas of common concern.

The Congress that was co-hosted by the German Evangelical Alliance, was held in celebration of the third anniversary of the landmark document “Christian Witness in a Multi-

Religious World: Recommendations for Conduct.” Released on June 28, 2011 by the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue (PCID) of the Roman Catholic Church, the World Council of Churches (WCC) and the World Evangelical Alliance (WEA), it was the first time ever that the three world church bodies - that together represent over 90% of the more than two billion Christians today - have issued a joint document.

“Sometimes evangelicals and our Pentecostal constituency are criticized for methods of evangelism and witness. The WEA wants to listen to such criticism, accepting and changing where our practices fall short of the rule of Christ, but also correcting unmerited criticism and ensuring that we both listen and are listened to,” Dr.

Tunnicliffe said in reflection on WEA’s decision to accept the invitation of the WCC to join the document’s working group.

“Evangelicals have something to offer to the wider conversations, particularly in terms of our reverence for the authority of Scripture, our commitment to evangelism and mission, and our commitment to the centrality of the Cross and the Resurrection,” Dr. Tunnicliffe remarked. “And we have much to learn from our ecumenical partners: active involvement in the ‘Christian Witness’ process has helped build and strengthen wider conversations and relationships.”

Reflecting on the three years since the release, Dr. Tunnicliffe said that the document has provided tools for

building relationships around the world and has helped facilitate WEA’s members to further develop their ecumenical participation.

Asked about how ‘Christian Witness’ will shape evangelicalism in the future, Dr. Tunnicliffe said: “Furthermore, the Christian Witness document has shown how working together in an area of common concern can bear fruitful results. Given the state of the challenges facing the world today, particularly for Christian minorities, it is essential that we find ways of engaging together with other Christian bodies in responding to the current reality.”

There are three main parts to the Recommendations for Conduct.

The first is “The Basis for Christian

Mission.” The second section, “Principles,” includes: acting in God’s love; living with integrity, compassion and humility; rejecting any form of violence; and offering respect to all people. The text concludes with six recommendations: study the document; build respect and trust with people of all religions; strengthen religious identity and faith while at the same time deepening knowledge and understanding of different religions; advocate justice and respect for the common good; call on governments and representatives to ensure religious freedom for all people; pray for the well-being of neighbours, recognizing prayer is integral to the Christian life and of Christian mission.

1

English Churchman Fridays, 17th & 24th October 2014

English Churchman Letters for publication should be sent to: PO Box 60163, London, SW19 2TL or email: englishchurchman@aol.com

THERESA MAY THREATENS GOSPEL FREEDOM: contact your MP today Dear supporter,

Please email your MP today Home Secretary Theresa May announced plans which have alarming implications for gospel freedom and for people who speak out for family values. We need to act now to stop this idea going forward.

It’s because we judge the Conservative manifesto proposal to be so dangerous that we are asking supporters to act now by emailing their MP. In effect the plans set up State gagging orders which are maintained by the threat of prison. As someone has said, this destroys democracy in the name of protecting democracy.

If the idea of the Government trying to control free speech sounds familiar, that’s because it is.

Alarmingly so.

Remember annoyance orders, Section 5 and the Religious Hatred Bill These new proposals look set to far exceed even Tony Blair’s notorious Religious Hatred Bill in their scope to put Gospel freedom in jeopardy. Christians vigorously opposed that Bill and, with your help, we will oppose this one just as strongly.

Theresa May wants to create ‘Extremist Disruption Orders’ (EDOs) to silence people who have not committed any crime. Under these draconian plans, the police will be able to apply for a court order to restrict “harmful activities”.

According to press reports, “The authorities would have to show, on the ‘balance of probabilities’, that the individual ‘is undertaking, has undertaken, or proposes to undertake activities that spread, incite, promote or justify hatred against a person or group of persons on the grounds of that person’s or group of persons’ disability, gender, race, religion, sexual orientation, and/or transgender identity’” (Daily Mail, 30 September 2014). Even the mere risk of causing “distress” would be enough to trigger the new powers (The Guardian, 30 September 2014).

This looks like a gagging order, triggered by anything deemed to breach the tenets of the Equality Act. It’s not hard to see how this could be misused against Christians. The mildest opposition to same-sex marriage, for example, is routinely labelled as ‘hatred’. Where will it leave a minister who preaches that salvation is through Christ alone?

Earlier this year the Government was prevented from outlawing people being ‘annoying’ in public.

And it’s less than a year since changes to Section 5 of the Public Order Act were finally made to prevent prosecutions against people deemed to have ‘insulted’ someone. Prior to this we saw many cases of innocent Christians being arrested or unfairly treated by over-zealous or misinformed police officers.

Powers are already available There are already extensive anti-extremist powers available to the authorities, but they are not being fully used. For example, the Government is turning a blind eye to Sharia courts. The law already protects against incitement, harassment and violence. But the law should also uphold free speech. It should not be used to suppress legitimate religious freedoms.

Threat to Christians This is a very dangerous proposal. Of course we support Government efforts to combat the Islamist threat but the extremists will win if we sell out our civil liberties along the way. The Home Secretary’s proposals fly in the face of her very public espousal of ‘British values’. Freedom of expression is an essential freedom for any democratic society.

Please email your MP Miss Angie Bray MP(angie. bray.mp@parliament.uk) today.

Be polite but firm; you may want to make one or two of the following points in your own words: Tell your MP you oppose Theresa May’s planned ‘Extremist Disruption Orders’.

Austria blamed Serbia, a close neighbour of Bosnia. Bosnia had trained and supplied the Black Hand Gang with weapons, in the hope that Bosnia would unite with her and form a Balkan state.

Austria decided that Serbia should suffer reprisals for this action.

Serbia fearing a war with Austria called on her ally Russia for help. Although Austria had a huge army she knew that the Russian army was too much for her. So she called on her ally Germany whose agreement provoked France to declare war on Germany.

The German plan was simple. Under the guidance and leadership of Count Alfred von Schlieffen, they would invade France and defeat the French army. Then they would transport their vast army to the Russian border before Russia had time to immobilise their army. This would eliminate the necessity of fighting a war on two fronts, east and west. Their problem was the most direct route to France was through neutral Belgium which brought Belgium’s ally Great Britain into the war.

What everyone thought would be a quick war and convinced it would be over by Christmas, sadly saw the horrors of trench warfare and the deaths of over 37 million people.

Say that the announcement seems to deem anyone who opposes political correctness as a potential ‘extremist’.

Although there had been conflicts and hostilities over a number of years which may have led to the Great War, there is no doubt that the assassination of Archduke Ferdinand was the fuse which lighted the powder keg, which led to four years of horrendous bloodshed, and all because Leopold Lojka took the wrong turning.

Remind your MP that the Conservative Party opposed the Religious Hatred Bill and ask how they can possibly endorse a manifesto commitment that proposes something far worse.

Today each of us stands at a fork in the way.

“There is a way that seems right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death” Proverbs 14:12. The other way is Jesus Christ who says,

Email Miss Angie Bray MP today

”I am the way the truth and the life, no man cometh unto the Father but by me” John 14:6.

Choose life and live.

Say that freedom of speech and religious liberty are vital for democracy and they are threatened by the Conservatives’ plans.

The proposed EDOs are more dangerous for gospel freedom than Tony Blair’s religious hatred law and would be far easier to use against Christians.

Please continue to pray for the protection of gospel freedom and that the Conservatives would drop this disturbing proposal.

Robert Bamford

Yours in Christ,

Scotland’s better choice

Colin Hart

Dear Sirs,

Director Christian Institute

A wrong turn that led to disaster Dear Sir, I have enjoyed the articles on the First World War which have appeared in the English Churchman.

Although serious trouble had been brewing for some time, the murder of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, heir to the Austrian Empire in the Bosnian capital Sarajevo is accepted by most historians as the immediate cause of the First World War. Many in Bosnia had expressed a desire to set up their own independent state, which would be free from Austrian rule.

On both occasions, the over-broad powers were stopped by the House of Lords after lengthy campaigns by The Christian Institute and others, with the Government suffering huge defeats.

Franz Ferdinand had been advised that his visit to Sarajevo could provoke trouble, and that he should cancel his trip. However the Archduke wanted to demonstrate that his family was still in control of Bosnia and chose to ignore this advice and went ahead with his trip.

It seems the Home Secretary is again trying to take draconian powers to regulate free speech.

Ferdinand travelled through the town in an open topped car, which would have been common at

2

the time. During his tour an Austrian officer travelling in another car was injured when his car was hit by a grenade, thrown from a member of the Black Hand Gang. This organisation wanted to rid Bosnia of Austrian rule. Still Ferdinand refused to cancel his tour, but ordered his driver, Leopold Lojka, to change his route as he wished to visit the injured officer in hospital. Lojka unfortunately did not fully understand the instructions and took a wrong turning into a side street. When he reversed back on to the main road he unfortunately stopped right in front of Gavrilo Princip, a member of the Black Hand Gang. Princip pulled his hidden revolver and shot both Ferdinand and his wife, Sophie Duchess of Hohenberg who both died as a result of their wounds.

Although the referendum result over Scottish independence is known to everyone, it is quite evident that many disgruntled folk in the ‘yes’ camp are clearly unhappy, because the vote went against them. It has left SNP politicians in disarray. The devastating defeat was too much to bear for Alex Salmond, so he quickly resigned as First Minister. Other nationalists are still bickering and squabbling over the vote, unable to accept that Scotland has said ‘no thanks’ to independence. Many even in the ‘no’ camp are getting restless over what type, and how many, chocolate sweeties politicians at Westminster are going to offer Scotland for remaining within the Union.

Yes, on both sides, many are wondering whether all the devolution powers, pledges, promises will really be fulfilled and given at the end of the day. All these uncertainties, along with 1,001 unanswered questions, are causing much turmoil and commotion amongst ‘yes’ and ‘no’ campers across the country.

Since the independence count, one couldn’t help but reflect on the blessing that Scotland would undoubtedly enjoy if people across our grand little nation said ‘YES’ to the free offer of the gospel and ‘YES’ to the saving grace of the Lord Jesus Christ. The absolute truth of the Bible leaves us in no question about this certainty: “Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord.” (Psalm 33:12)

In Genesis 22:18, and various other portions of the Bible, we are also reminded how a nation is blessed beyond measure when it obeys God’s voice and word. Yes, God’s unchanging promise to every soul in Scotland, who repents and believes the gospel, brings bliss beyond compare.

To them all, He gives the personal assurance that “whoso trusteth in the Lord, happy is he” (Proverbs 16:20) and “whoso putteth his trust in the Lord shall be safe.” (Proverbs 29:25) What glorious pledges and promises that can unquestionably be relied upon when we lay hold of them by faith. Unlike politicians, God never twists His words, plays mind games or causes any confusion. No, God never plays mind tricks: He means what He says and He says what He means. A wise ancient Christian father once said “God’s promise is better than any bond or note on any bank, financial institution, or most stable government, for all these may have to repudiate their bond; God never does so.” How different to the pretend promises of Alex Salmond. In the poetic words of Isaac Watts: Proclaim salvation from the Lord, For wretched, dying men; His hand has writ the sacred Word, With an immortal pen.

Engraved as in eternal brass, The mighty promise shines; Nor can the powers of darkness rase, Those everlasting lines.

He that can dash whole worlds to death, And make them when He please, He speaks, and that almighty breath, Fulfils His great decrees.

His very word of grace is strong, As that which built the skies; The voice that rolls the stars along, Speaks all the promises.

The many ‘wrongs’ which people were allegedly guilty of - before, during and after - the referendum vote was highlighted by the press and media, as politicians and non-politicians alike, spoke for and against independence. We heard words like ‘dirty campaigning’, ‘deceptive statements’, ‘slanderous inaccuracies’, ‘fictitious statistics’, ‘false figures’, ‘lies and deceit’, ‘deceitful politicians’… and the list goes on! The Bible has a word for all these so-called ‘wrongs’: it is called sin. A reminder to us that the heart of man “is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it? “(Jeremiah 17:9) Yes, “Every way of a man is right in his own eyes: but the LORD pondereth the hearts.” (Proverbs 21:2) When we say ‘YES’ to the good news message of the gospel, all the ‘wrongs’ are replaced by the amazing grace of God. “A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh… and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanses us from all sin!” (Ezekiel 36:26 & 1 John 1:7). An Independent Scotland may or may not have wanted to ‘cut out’ our Christian heritage, but we rejoice that God does not want to ‘cut us off’ from a relationship with Him or ‘cut us out’ from heaven. Just as we were given a choice on how to vote at the count box, so God is inviting us to vote on a far greater and weightier matter than independence. It concerns our soul and eternal destiny: choose you this day whom ye will serve.

God is calling us to choose life, with the promise “whosover shall call upon on the name of the Lord shall be saved.” (Romans 10:13)

Donald J Morrison Inverness

Ed: We have some hand written letters to publish and apologise for the delay.

Opinions expressed in the correspondence columns are not necessarily those of The English Churchman. We welcome letters of less than 400 words and reserve the right to abbreviate letters. Please state clearly whether letters addressed to the editor are for publication or not.

English Churchman Fridays, 17th & 24th October 2014

Archbishop of Canterbury reflects on the “pilgrimage of justice and peace” Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby recently visited São Paulo, Brazil as part of a personal journey that has taken him to 31 Anglican provinces around the world since his enthronement as archbishop in March 2013.

Dr Marcelo Schneider, World Council of Churches communication liaison for Latin America, was granted an interview on the subject of “the pilgrimage of justice and peace”. The concept “pilgrimage of justice and peace” is found in a call to Christians and others of good will from the 10th Assembly of the WCC, an event in the Republic of Korea addressed by Welby in November 2013.

Welby on the pilgrimage of justice and peace This pilgrimage comes with encouragements and challenges.

The more I travel, I observe that the world is less capable of dealing with the diversity. Rather than embracing the “other” who is different, it seems we grab each other by the throat. Over the past years there has been conflict at a number of levels, including violent conflicts. In places such as the Democratic Republic of Congo and South Sudan, I have heard the horrible stories of killings, rape and torture of women and children.

Another aspect of conflict is the conflict over the environment. While I was in the Solomon Islands, I observed that the problem is not simple. This nation has experienced a war recently and is struggling with reconciliation. The overwhelming issue there is rising sea levels. Whether we let countries submerge in water or bomb them, both actions count as injustice.

Injustice and lack of peace go together. Therefore peace includes justice.

In this pilgrimage, there are encouragements in the life of the church. Yes, there are divisions, but we see that the Spirit of God is at work in moving people into a deep commitment to justice and peace. Let me give you some examples. The church leaders in South Sudan, rather than taking sides in the war, are calling for reconciliation at great personal risk. In the Democratic Republic of Congo, the African Great Lakes Initiative, led by church leaders particularly from Catholic, Anglican, Protestant and Pentecostal traditions, is generating the first signs of hope amidst the conflict, not just in the Congo, but also in Rwanda, Burundi and Uganda.

I will soon meet with leaders from the mining industry to discuss the meaning of operating well in the extraction industry. The initiative comes from Christians in the mining industry.

Spirit of God at work The Spirit of God is at work overcoming denominational differences to address the issue of human trafficking and slavery. The dialogue between Pope

CORNWALL B&B Tamar Valley

en-suite rooms.

Ideal for Moors, Coasts and National Trust properties www.higherchapel.co.uk email:smjwg@tiscali.co.uk

Francis and me on this particular subject has been positive. He is a man with humour and a depth of spiritual life which is challenging and wonderful. We spoke about an initiative between the Catholic Church and the Anglican Communion on human trafficking and human slavery. The project is supported by an Australian source deeply committed to end human trafficking and slavery.

This is for the first time since the Reformation that we have a major joint global project to challenge human trafficking and slavery, together with the NGOs, charities and churches that have been working on these issues for many years. This is a massive challenge.

The Anglican Communion has a global network for a campaign against domestic violence and gender-based violence, particularly in conflict situations. This summer in England, there was a conference organized by the British government against gender-based violence. Cardinal Nichols, the Cardinal Archbishop in England, and I addressed this issue.

I really want to say that a global church that seeks afresh the presence of Jesus Christ will find itself centred by the Spirit in a pilgrimage of justice and peace and will change the world.

Fundamentalism, and relationships between Christianity and Islam Fundamentalism is more of a sociological issue than merely a religious one. It can exist in any religion. Fundamentalism, in the sense we use it today, is usually a response from a group of people who find it difficult to cope with change in the society around them. So they try to create a place in which there is no change, in which they are safe.

On exclusion from the society, fundamentalists end up very quickly opposed to the mainstream of society. So fundamentalism is a general characteristic that we find throughout history.

Following my meeting with the Christian leaders from the Middle East in England, we describe the trauma faced by people in Iraq and Syria as worse as anything that has hit the Christian community in the region since the invasion of Genghis Khan in 1259.

So how should we respond to that?

We have seen a number of young Muslims in Europe, the United States and the United Kingdom who find a purpose in life by being involved in Jihad. This understanding of Jihad which implies violence is rejected by the vast majority of Muslims. The only way we can address this issue is not to simplify but to take into consideration all aspects. This issue must be addressed in a way that brings together all religious traditions that value a nonviolent approach to dealing with conflict.

The question that was raised with Pope Francis was how we should respond immediately to these issues. And he said he was not calling for bombing, nor am I, but we do need to look at all possible means of creating a safe haven for Christians in that region. That may involve soldiers and intelligence operations. The governments need to decide how that is done. But one of the things that changed my mind came after a meeting with leaders in the Middle East who said, “we don’t want asylum. We want to be in the area in which we lived for 2000 years.”

Finally, relations with Islam are complicated because there is this particular, very small minority, who are incredibly dangerous. But on the 3rd of September there was a meeting outside Westminster Abbey with Muslim, Jewish and Christian leaders in a vigil for peace in Iraq and Syria.

One danger is to simplify what is an incredibly complicated problem. The other danger is to think that we can deal with this quickly. It’s going to take years of building relationships, of dealing with social and economic problems, but, above all, of enabling young people to tackle issues of materialism in society so that they realize a spiritual purpose in which they can serve God faithfully within the great tradition of an internal Jihad for peace and justice in our lives.

Ed: This article is a news release from the World Council of Churches.

Christmas Starts with Christ campaign ‘stemming the tide’ More young people say they now understand more about the true meaning of Christmas

The Christmas Starts with Christ church advertising campaign, started six years ago, is making in-roads into raising awareness about the true meaning of Christmas, according to a ComRes survey. The release of the survey results come as organisers say that the campaign is backed by the largest number of churches ever.

Francis Goodwin, of the ChurchAds.Net, says 4,500 churches joined the campaign last year but he would like more to come on board this year to reach a target of 10,000 in order to achieve even greater momentum to raise awareness of the Christmas message.

“When we started this campaign we were worried because 51 per cent of adults thought that the birth of Christ had no relevance to Christmas but research has shown that we are reversing this, especially among the 18 to 24-yearolds. In this group four out of 10 who saw the ads now understand more about the true meaning of Christmas,” he said as the campaign released its Christmas 2014 resources.

All of the resources are available free of cost for download and use through the website www.

ChristmasStartsWithChrist.com for churches, church groups, Christian organisations, radio stations, newspapers and anyone who needs material to promote the true meaning of Christmas in their local areas.

There are 16 posters, three radio ads, 10 web banners & social media images, the campaign logo and a resource pack for churches available for use this year.

“If Christian organisations and churches remember just one thing,” said Goodwin, “all of the material is FREE, FREE, FREE. There is nothing to pay, no permission to be sought, no rights sign-off to be had, just download them and use them.”

Ed: This article is an edited press release, not our wording.

The Rainbow

3: A Memorable Sign God’s Word assures us that He remembers His promises, such as when He said of the rainbow: ‘And I will remember my covenant, which is between me and you…’ 1 In that context, ‘remember’ is an assurance that God will always give special attention to every part of His covenant, such as: ‘While the earth remaineth, seedtime and harvest, and cold and heat, and summer and winter, and day and night shall not cease.’2 Secondly, the rainbow is a memorable sign, because it is full of reassurance where nothing else is certain. Consider it this way: the rainbow that graced the sky in the days of Noah is exactly the same as those of today.

Thus it reminds us that God the Father,

Events

N. Ireland Reformation Day Lecture

“Gottschalk: Medieval Confessor of God’s Absolute Sovereignty” Rev. Angus Stewart

Friday, 31 October at 7:30 PM

Covenant Protestant Reformed Church, 83 Clarence St., Ballymena BT43 5DR Also on Thursday, 6 November at 7:15 PM at: The Round Chapel, 274 Margam Road, Port Talbot, SA13 2DB Enquiries: Mary (028 25 891851) or www. cprc.co.uk

United Protestant Council Saturday November 1st, 1pm AUTUMN CONFERENCE John Knox on the Mass Jonathan Edwards on Islam

Rev ET Kirkland Venue: St Johns Wood Road Baptist Church, London NW8 8XQ Contact Mr Ian Henderson on 01723 891868 or Hendos146@aol.com

CAMBRIDGE LECTURE

The Annual Cambridge Lecture will be held (D.V.) on

Monday November 3, 2014, 7.30pm, at The Round Church, Bridge Street, Cambridge CB2 1UB. Rev. David Silversides (Loughbrickland) will be speaking on JOHN KNOX’S MINISTRY IN ENGLAND, and there will be opportunity for questions after the lecture.

- See more at: http://protestanttruth. com/

by Peter Murcott

Son and Holy Spirit, like His Word, does not change.

Why are we so variable? If only God’s Word dominated our minds, above all else! This thought was Charles Wesley’s life’s longing:‘See me, O Lord, athirst and faint!

Me, weary of forbearing, see!

And let me feel Thy love’s constraint, And freely give up all for Thee; True in the fiery trial prove, My gratitude for dying love!’

Use it as a prayer for obedience and holiness! Remember Christ’s promise: ‘Ask, and it shall be given you.’ 3 1: Genesis 9:15 2: Genesis 8:22 3: Matthew 7:7

Tel.: 01579 350894 3

English Churchman Fridays, 17th & 24th October 2014

Trinitarian Bible Society Progress Report

PART ONE

Philip J. D. Hopkins, Editorial Director of the Trinitarian Bible Society has prepared the following status report on all the TBS foreign language editorial projects. English Churchman has kindly been given permission to publish this report as a series of twelve articles. It is our hope that this will encourage our readers to pray more fervently for this vital work.

Scope: This paper provides comprehensive information on all the other language projects currently in hand, not merely the editorial aspects, but also the production, financial and planning components of all the different language projects in which the Trinitarian Bible Society is involved or in which we have done research recently. Some of these additional aspects involve personnel outside of the Editorial Department.

A) In the past 6 months the following have been published: Shona New Testament Thadou New Testament Chinese Gospel according to John (web-only edition) – imminent publication on the TBS website B) The following items are due to be published within the next twelve to eighteen months, if the Lord will. (Further details about all of these projects are supplied on the following pages.)

Farsi/Persian Bible Norwegian Bible Romanian Bible Mongolian New Testament Spanish New Testament Amharic Gospel according to John Chinese Gospel according to John (print edition) French Gospel according to Matthew Farsi/Persian Gospel according to John C) The following are languages where we have a definite project in which some progress (in terms of preparation or publication of Scriptures) has been made over the last six months.

Amharic (Ethiopia), Eastern Armenian, Bulgarian, Chinese, Dan/Gio (Liberia), Farsi/Persian (Iran), French, German, Greek (Modern), Hebrew (Modern/ Biblical), Maltese, Mongolian, Ndebele (Zimbabwe), Nepali, Norwegian, Original

JESUS, my Master and my Lord, I would thy will obey, Humbly receive thy warning word, And always watch and pray.

My constant need of watchful prayer E) The following are languages in which we have I daily see and feel, To keep me safe from every snare stalled projects.

Lhaovo (Burma/China), Swahili, Swedish, Tamil Of sin, and earth, and hell.

(India/Sri Lanka), Urdu (Pakistan).

Into a world of ruffians sent, I walk on hostile ground, F) The following are languages in which projects Wild human bears on slaughter bent, or explorations have come to a premature end (at And ravening wolves, surround: least for the present).

The lion seeks my soul to slay Dimasa (India), Thai In some unguarded hour, The following section provides more detail on all And waits to tear his sleeping prey, the languages in which we are working, with the And watches to devour. languages arranged in alphabetical order.

But worse than all my foes I find The enemy within, (Abkhazia) – Abkhaz is the The evil heart, the carnal mind, official language of the My own insidious sin: Autonomous Republic of Abkhazia (technically My nature every moment waits part of the Republic of Georgia, although proTo render me secure, claiming independence), and is also spoken by And all my paths with ease besets, the Abkhazian diaspora. Our contact, who hopes To make my ruin sure. to translate the entire Bible into Abkhaz from the Biblical languages, continues to work hard in But thou hast given a loud alarm; And thou shalt still prepare the study of Abkhaz grammar. He is compiling a vocabulary list from the grammar books to assist My soul for all assaults, and arm him once he begins the actual work of translation. With never-ceasing prayer; O do not suffer me to sleep, The list matches Abkhaz words to Hebrew and Who on thy love depend; Greek words, taking account of the spectrum of meaning that words have both in the original lan- But still thy faithful servant keep, guages and in the target language. Compilation of And save me to the end! the list is expected to take a few months more, at which point it is hoped that work can commence on the translation of the Gospel according to John: A gossip type column in the Daily Telegraph has the starting point for the eventual translation of suggested that Archbishop Welby has refused the whole Bible. to be a vice president of the Royal College of The only other current effort towards a complete Organists because he prefers the bongo drums Abkhaz Bible, which has recently come to our which featured at his consecration service. The attention, is being made by an elderly Abkhaz role is traditional for Archbishops as is association man who is working from the Russian Synodal Bible and using dynamic equivalence principles of with the RSPCA which Welby also refused in order translation. His work may be useful as a reference, to concentrate on core priorities. Had Welby made but translating indirectly in this way from another the full Book of Common Prayer consecration language is far less accurate than making a formal vows, he would have not only rejected peripheral equivalence translation directly from the original tasks but also made the driving away of false teaching a core priority.

Hebrew and Greek.

Abkhaz, Catalan, Chichewa (Malawi), Dakota, Hindi (India), Hungarian, Lisu (Burma/China), Japanese, Kalenjin (Kenya), Pokot (Kenya), Polish.

Abkhaz

While we weep for the Christians who are severely persecuted in North Korea we pray that the sorry state of Kim Jong-Un might lead him to repentance.

SHORT HAIR FOR MEN Archaeologists in Spain claim to have found one of the earliest pictures of Jesus which depicts him as clean shaven and with short hair.

The Image is engraved on a 4th century glass plate in Castulo, Andalusia.

While images of God the Son are contrary to the Second Commandment, the traditional long haired imagery is also inconsistent with biblical teaching. “Doth not even nature itself teach you, that, if a man have long hair, it is a shame unto him?” 1 Corinthians 11:14.

BETTER TO GIVE THAN RECEIVE A Guide Dog charity carried out a survey and found that people feel good for several weeks after giving and even longer after volunteering.

Let us beware lest our giving is more to cheer ourselves than to glorify God. This motive will also mean that we will also prefer to direct our giving through the local church.

GRAVE CRIMES Joseph Collier, 72, of DSM scrap metal merchants, Croydon, London, has been found guilty of receiving 398 memorial plaques stolen from various cemeteries across the South-East of England.

Collier claimed ignorance but the police found CCTV footage of him overseeing the cutting up of the plaques and also tricked him into buying rolls of what he was told were stolen power cables.

EUTHANASIA ESCALATING IN HOLLAND

NON TRADITIONAL WELBY

TO BE CONTINUED, GOD WILLING

184 Fleet Street, London, EC4A 2HJ Telephone: 020 7405 4960 E-mail: ptsbookshop@btconnect.com

My Pocket Companion Diary for 2015

This popular Christian Diary is now in its 100th year of publication

My Pocket Companion 2015

It includes a text for each day (AV) Containing 96 pages, it has a laminated cover, available in a choice of two pictorial designs. £2.40 (£3.00 by post) 10 for £24.00 (post free) 20 for £35.00 (post free) Please order by post, telephone or e-mail as above.

4

WESLEY INSPIRED THATCHER’S “ENEMY WITHIN”

Chris Collins, a historian at the Margaret Thatcher Foundation, said Mrs Thatcher was likely to have picked up the term “enemy within” from a hymn sung during her Methodist upbringing. She applied the phrase to the miners’ unions where(Biblical) languages, Romanian, Russian, as in the hymn it refers to the sin that remains in Shona (Zimbabwe), Simte (India), Spanish, Tagalog, Thadou (India), Turkish, Waray-Waray the believer.

(Philippines), Welsh.

A Collection of Hymns: For the Use of the People Called Methodists by John Wesley contains the D) The following are languages in which we are phrase “enemy within” in the hymn, Jesus, my exploring the possibility of doing some (further) Master and Lord. work.

PTS CHRISTIAN BOOKSHOP

My Pocket Companion 2015

inspections of military bases and factories which involves extensive walking.

SCIENCE AGAINST FORNICATING Research at University of New South Wales, Australia, published in Ecology Letters has found evidence that a mother’s previous partner may affect the physical characteristics of her children.

While the research has only been carried out on fruit flies, if the same is true of humans, it would support the biblical teaching that all sex outside marriage is immoral.

GLUTTONOUS KOREAN DICTATOR KIM JONG-UN, the North Korean dictator, has become so fat while in office that his ankles have fractured under his own weight. The 5ft 9in dictator is now believed to weigh at least 20 stone due to heavy drinking and eating Swiss cheese which he has loved since he was a student at a Swiss university. The situation is apparently worsened by his wearing relatively high heeled shoes to make him look taller when carrying out

Official figures show the number of deaths by euthanasia in Holland to have risen sharply by 15 per cent in just a year, from 4,188 cases in 2012 to 4,829 in 2013. Experts blamed the ‘slippery slope’ of extending the practice to new groups of people. Euthanasia is permitted in the country in cases where there is ‘hopeless and unbearable suffering’, which is increasingly interpreted to cover mental anguish. Some 3,600 of last year’s cases were cancer sufferers, but doctors also killed 97 people with dementia. Three times more people with ‘severe psychiatric problerns’ died by euthanasia than in 2012, rising to 42 from just 14.

Dr Peter Saunders of Christian Medical Fellowship said, “What we are seeing in the Netherlands is the steady intentional escalation of numbers with a gradual widening of the categories of patients to be included. The lessons are clear. Once you relax the law on euthanasia steady extension will follow as night follows day.”

In 2005 the House of Lords calculated that a Dutch type law in the UK would lead to over 13,000 such deaths each year but Saunders says that may well be a gross underestimate.

Professor Theo Boer is involved in regulating euthanasia in Holland and was once a firm advocate. He warned the UK Parliament in July not to follow their example. He predicts euthanasia deaths in Holland will reach 6,000 this year.

Doctors in neighbouring Belgium, which this year legalised euthanasia for children, now kill an average of five people every day by assisted suicide, a 27 per cent surge in the last year alone.

English Churchman Fridays, 17th & 24th October 2014

One of world’s earliest Christian charms found

A 1,500 year-old papyrus fragment found in The University of Manchester’s John Rylands Library has been identified as one the world’s earliest surviving Christian charms.

The remarkable document uniquely contains some of the earliest documented references to the Last Supper and ‘manna from heaven’. It is the earliest surviving document to use the Christian Eucharist liturgy - which outlines the Last Supper - as a protective charm.

Dr Roberta Mazza, a Research Fellow of the recently established John Rylands Research Institute came across the Greek ‘amulet’ while working on thousands of fragments of unpublished historical documents that are kept in the library’s vaults.

According to the researcher, the charm casts important new light on early Christianity - just 300 years after the Roman emperor Constantine converted to the religion.

It shows how Christians adopted the ancient Egyptian practice of wearing amulets to protect the wearer against dangers. This practice of writing charms on pieces of papyrus was continued by the Christians who replaced the prayers to Egyptian and Greco-Roman gods with extracts from the Bible.

Dr Mazza also discovered the document was written on an ancient version of recycled paper by using cutting-edge spectral imaging techniques.

Faint lettering on the back of the charm is thought to be a receipt for the payment of grain tax which was certified by the tax collector from the village of Tertembuthis – this is in the countryside of the ancient city of Hermoupolis (modern el-Ashmunein).

Dr Mazza said: “The amulet maker would have cut a piece of the receipt, written the charm on the other side and then he would have folded the papyrus to be kept in a locket or pendant. It is for this reason the tax receipt on the exterior was damaged and faded away.”

The document had been held at the library since around 1901, but its significance had not been realized until Dr Mazza spotted it. She said: “This is an important and unexpected discovery as it’s one of the first recorded documents to use magic in the Christian context and the first charm ever found to refer to the Eucharist – the last supper – as the manna of the Old Testament. The text of the amulet is an original combination of biblical passages including Psalm 78:23-24 and Matthew 26:2830 among others.

“To this day, Christians use passages from the Bible as protective charms so our amulet marks the start of an important trend in Christianity.

“Though we know almost nothing about the owner of the charm, we think it could have been owned by

TURKEY: What will happen to state-confiscated places of worship?

T

he use and ownership of Turkey’s many state-confiscated places of worship raises many questions, including how to address past injustices and the present needs of religious communities and historical preservation.

Opinions are divided on who Christian churches

a resident of the village nearby Hermoupolis (el-Ashmunein). We can say this is an incredibly rare example of Christianity and the Bible becoming meaningful to ordinary people - not just priests and the elite.

“It’s doubly fascinating because the amulet maker clearly knew the Bible, but made lots of mistakes: some words are misspelled and others are in the wrong order.

This suggests that he was writing by heart rather than copying it.

“It’s quite exciting. Thanks to this discovery, we now think that the knowledge of the Bible was more embedded in sixth century AD Egypt than we previously realized.”

Professor Peter E Pormann, Director of the John Rylands Research Institute said: “We’re very excited about this find - it’s a great way to herald the official launch of the John Rylands Research Institute on 13 October.”

“It is a statement of intent of how the Institute will bring together library and academic staff from inside and outside the University to explore our breathtaking Special Collections. Experienced curators and conservators look after this national treasure of global importance which has rich, untapped potential for research and discovery.

“So by bringing together the world class expertise at the University’s Faculty of Humanities and the library, we shall help unlock the secrets of these treasures.”

Rachel Beckett, Head of Special Collections at University of Manchester Library and Associate Director of the John Rylands Research Institute said: “This is a truly remarkable discovery, and clearly demonstrates the strength and global significance of the library’s collections. It also demonstrates the value of close collaboration between library staff and academic colleagues, helping us to reveal the riches of the Rylands which is home to many of the finest collections of rare books, manuscripts and archives in the world.”

The full text of the papyrus: “Fear you all who rule over the earth.

Know you nations and peoples that Christ is our God. For he spoke and they came to being, he commanded and they were created; he put everything under our feet and delivered us from the wish of our enemies.

Our God prepared a sacred table in the desert for the people and gave manna of the new covenant to eat, the Lord’s immortal body and the blood of Christ poured for us in remission of sins.”

Ed: The above, including the title of the article, is a press release from Manchester University. We know that superstition came into the church very early and continues in Roman and Eastern Churches today, but we are not sure whether this really was a “charm” invoking “magic” rather than a legitimate use of Scripture. It may also be that rather than replacing the prayers to Egyptian and Greco-Roman gods, these extracts were following Old Testament instructions as Deuteronomy 6:8,9 and 11:18-20. “Therefore shall ye lay up these my words in your heart and in your soul, and bind them for a sign upon your hand, that they may be as frontlets between your eyes. . . . And thou shalt write them upon the door posts of thine house, and upon thy gates”.

converted into mosques centuries ago and then turned into museums should be returned to. Many Alevi tekke (dervish lodges) were turned into mosques under the control of the government’s Diyanet or assigned to the use of municipalities. The many current uses of such buildings, and the legal status of their potential or past owners, also affects Turkey’s implementation of its international obligations to protect freedom of religion or belief. With little or no consultation with religious or belief communities and other interested parties and no general guidelines, state decisions on this delicate subject are bound to be taken on an arbitrary basis.

Forum 18 News Service notes.

Shunem House Sermons THOROUGHLY REFORMED SERMONS!

TUTU Archbishop Desmond Tutu joins the blasphemers

by Professor Arthur Noble PART THREE

“God is not a Christian”

T

he ‘religion’ of these professing ‘Christian’ leaders is epitomized in the title of Tutu’s book God is not a Christian: and other provocations. It contains a collection of his controversial speeches and writings, grouped by themes, in which he aims to confront those in power in order to protect the oppressed, the poor, and other victims of injustice; but its ultimate message is a blatant and unconcealed attack on Biblical truth. The gravity of Tutu’s error is described in the accusation that he is “spitting in God’s face and taking a Lucifer-like stance on one of God’s most sacred and original edicts”.1 Tutu is proclaiming a more self-righteous position than God. If he would not want to be in heaven because of God’s laws on homosexuality, then Tutu has condemned himself with his own lips. He fails to understand that “God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap”.2

1 http://forums.catholic.com/showthread. php?p=11036282 2 Galatians 6:7 3 http://spiritual-lessons.blogspot.co.uk/2013/08/ desmond-tutu-is-risking-eternal-hell.html

As one commentator put it: “Is the spiritual light so dim in the world that Christian Archbishops are calling God homophobic?

TO BE CONTINUED, GOD WILLING

If Tutu had any inkling of that which awaits him in hell, he would rip his tongue out and beg for Divine mercy and grace. He actually said if God accepted him into Heaven but refused to accept homosexuality that Tutu would deny God His presence and happily leap into the pit of hell. I am just flabbergasted that anyone could say something so incredibly dangerous as to tempt Almighty God. [...] I wouldn’t be anywhere near Desmond Tutu, and I would warn those around him that they are in eternal danger.”3

UNITED PROTESTANT COUNCIL Chairman: David Carson

Autumn Conference will be held (D.V.) on

SATURDAY, 1st NOVEMBER, 2014 Subjects:

1 p.m. John Knox on the Mass 2.30 p.m. Jonathan Edwards on Islam Speaker:

Rev. E. Trevor Kirkland (Minister of Ballyclare/Doagh Free Church of Scotland Continuing)

The Doctrine(s) of Grace Undiluted and Definitively Declared Unmistakably Calvinistic; Unashamedly Dogmatic; Unquestionably Forthright; Undoubtedly Passionate.

ST. JOHN’S WOOD ROAD BAPTIST CHURCH NW8 8QX (Nearest Tube Stations: St. John’s Wood or Warwick Ave) All welcome

Preacher- William M Black (Motherwell, Scotland)

Tea and biscuits between meetings Free Will Offering.

FREE TO LISTEN OR TO DOWNLOAD ONLINE AT

Shunemhouseministries.org

Hon. Secretary: Ian Henderson.

Phone: 01723 891868 Email: Hendos146@aol.com

5

English Churchman Fridays, 17th & 24th October 2014

& St. James’s Chronicle E N G L I S H C H U R C H M A N 1 8 4 3 y ST. JA M E S’S C H RON IC LE 1 7 6 1

Issue No. 7908

Fridays, 17th & 24th October 2014 PO Box 60163, London, SW19 2TL Telephone: 0208 417 0875 Mobile: 07946 465156

GREAT DELUSION

BY J S WILTSHIRE

e-mail: englishchurchman@aol.com

Administration (Subscriptions and advertisements only): 64 Ripley Road, Worthing, West Sussex, BN11 5NH Tel: 01903 505555 e-mail:englishchurchman.admin@ntlworld.com Annual Subscription: UK £24.00 including postage Free postage for UK Subscriptions of 5 copies or more For Europe & Overseas: Please contact the administration office for rates

A safe stronghold our God is still

W

e should not overlook the importance of the Reformation for our Nation, even though we live in a modern Britain. Those who often berate Protestants sometimes seem to behave quite inconsistently. Recently we have had Roman Catholic politicians standing up for the Union of Great Britain, yet a true Roman Catholic is supposed to give his allegiance first to the Pope. Well, we’re most grateful for our Roman Catholic friends, voting in favour of a “Better Together Campaign.” After all, the Union settlement is a Protestant affair - and all the better for it! It is the very bedrock of our freedom and privileges. “I will to the utmost of my power maintain in the United Kingdom the Protestant Reformed Religion established by law” (Coronation Oath; 1953). Long may it be so!

About this time, Protestants remember the Reformation. A handful of reformed Episcopalians remember with deep thanksgiving to Almighty God, October 16th, 1555.

Many dear children of God died then, in England, at the hands of a bloody papist monarch, simply for loving Jesus, and the Gospel of sovereign grace. Two of the finest believers were outstanding bishops of the Church of England - Hugh Latimer and Nicholas Ridley. Both were mighty preachers of the Word of God. Both were clear in understanding the true gospel of God’s saving grace in Jesus Christ. And who could ever forget the memorable words of Latimer, or its heartfelt prayer, as a bag of gunpowder was tied to their necks, and the terrifying fire lit under their feet - the most cruel and inhumane death conceivable? “Be of good comfort, Master Ridley, and play the man; we shall this day light such a candle, by God’s grace in England, as I trust shall never be put out”.

Rome never changes. Why should she? She thinks she is right, and we should all bow the knee to her. Despite massive numbers of paedophile priests, she has her own gospel - the confessional and priestly absolution. “ Since Christ entrusted to his apostles the ministry of reconciliation, bishops who are their successors, and priests, the bishops’ collaborators, continue to exercise this ministry. Indeed bishops and priests, by virtue of the sacrament of Holy Orders, have the power to forgive all sins ‘in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit’ (paragraph 1461; The Seven Sacraments of the Church; Catechism of the Catholic Church; 1994).

The selling of indulgences - a licence for sin - by Dominican friar Johann Tetzel (c14651519) was the final straw for one awakened German monk, Martin Luther. Indulgences have been described as a kind of 16th century bingo (Here I stand - a Life of Martin Luther; Roland H. Bainton; 2009; Hendrickson Classic). Tetzel‘s jingle reveals the enormous scandal then, and the despicable behaviour of gospel-less churches now, which rob the people of forgiveness, peace, and assurance in Jesus:

It takes the Bible to describe catastrophic events with a smile. When Aldous Huxley began his novel ‘Brave New World,` there was no happy ending. All was bleak.

We need another Reformation-Revival. Hallelujah! We can still have one. For “A Safe Stronghold our God is still“…“With force of arms we nothing can, Full soon were we downridden; But for us fights the proper Man, Whom God Himself hath bidden. Ask ye, who is this same? Christ Jesus is His name, The Lord Sabaoth’s Son; He, and no other one, Shall conquer in the battle”.

6

It is only the Bible that can handle subjects like a great

Huxley wrote out of despair. The failure of capitalism at the time of the Wall Street crash in 1929 bred the Great Depression of 1931; the only way out of the chaos was, as he saw it, the imposition of order however draconian its inception. Yet this proposal by Huxley was disingenuous. He was a revolutionary who associated with the Bloomsbury Group, that radical group of writers who proposed the dismantling of society in order to break away from the restrictions they so hated and which, if taken to their logical

Huxley

“As soon as the coin in the coffer rings, The soul from purgatory springs”.

Luther immediately went on the attack - with his 95 theses - nailing them to the door of the Wittenberg University Church. Only God Himself can forgive sins (Mark 2:7). The believing sinner has direct access to Him, through Jesus Christ, the everlasting Priest (1 Timothy 2:3-6). He willingly forgives those who are supernaturally born-again of God’s Spirit; who by sovereign grace alone, are made repentant and believing, and come, personally, to Jesus Christ, for salvation. “For God sent not His Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God” (John 3:17-18).

The Book of Revelation, by contrast, started not with the human problem of sin and its consequences but with the answer in the form of a revelation of Jesus Christ; not the Jesus of Nazareth that the writer John knew, but as the Exalted One who dresses and walks authoritatively between the seven churches whom He will shortly judge. It is the book’s focus on Christ that holds the reader steady. The believer is constantly reassured because he knows Christ’s authority in his own life. However unfamiliar the settings – earth or heaven – or however disquieting the revelation of the times being unfolded, the reader is held firm and safe until the final pages when the New Jerusalem is seen coming down from heaven, perfect and undefiled.

conclusion, would engender anarchy.

Interestingly, Huxley recognised the limitations of the world his book described. In the partitioned world he had created, he described two states, one of order – a brave new world – and another in which the pain and trial of life was preserved and which bore a remarkable similarity to the Victorian and Edwardian values he and his Bloomsbury counterparts eschewed. Neither states were satisfactory. He couldn’t countenance the existence of God, pain, family and striving in the second world; but neither could he feel satisfied that there was a real answer within the rigid order of his created world with its gross hedonism.

delusion without becoming a victim to being part of the delusion itself. Huxley falls into a trap. He wants to use drugs and to enjoy sex without restriction but this in itself is a delusion. It is a denial of the restrictions and taboos God Himself placed upon society in the beginning. This is what Huxley and his kind work for; and his contemporary and similarly deluded counterparts are just as busy today.

Revelation, the Book, never ceases to warn.

Revolutionaries who try to tear the world apart will succeed and wreak havoc. But they will have only so much rope. Just as Christ pronounced judgement on His church of the first century so He will pronounce judgement on the world his opponents bring about. And like Huxley, they will see too late their own folly.

Privately, Huxley acknowledged the unsatisfactory nature of his self-created world. But neither could he bring himself to tolerate life as it was understood in the context of his own time. His final, off the record answer? Bring in God! A strange conclusion for an avowed and active atheist!

English Churchman Fridays, 17th & 24th October 2014

The Calendar

26th October to 8th November 2014

PRAYER BOOK WORSHIP

ARE WE TAKING ERROR SERIOUSLY? John J Murray

S

cripture and history tell us that the destruction of men’s best interests is brought about by the reception of error.

When churches embrace a lie rather than God’s truth there is an inevitable spiritual and moral decline. R L Dabney wrote towards the end of the 19th century: ‘While German scholarship has been busy with its labours it has suffered almost a whole nation to lapse into a semi-heathenish condition’. In the same era, C H Spurgeon concluded: ‘Modern criticism, like modern theology, is like the sirocco that blasts and burns, it is without dew or suction, it proves itself to be unblest of God and unblessing to men’. What can be said of the situation today?

WHERE WE ARE TODAY 1. No place for truth. There was a day when men believed there was such a thing as objective truth and believed that the truth could be stated in propositions, using human language and comprehensible to human minds. A sea-change has taken place in Western intellectual life. It is now argued that we can no longer speak of objective truth. Truth and falsehood has been replaced by what is ‘true for me’ or ‘true for you’. This has infiltrated the church, as has been shown in David Wells’ book No Place For Truth, a work which charts the demise of evangelical theology in the United States. He said: ‘The emptiness of evangelical faith without theology echoes the emptiness of modern life’.

2. No fear of error. How can we profess to love God without loving His truth? Truth is the revelation of his nature, character and works.

Horatius Bonar warned in his day: ‘The spirit of the age which makes light of error, as if it were not sin. Even some who call themselves Christians, have lost their dread of error, and are hurrying on from opinion to opinion, exulting in their freedom from old fetters and trammels, reckoning themselves peculiarly honest and unprejudiced. Alas for truth in such a case! How can it be reached? Alas for the love of truth! How can it exist where there is no fear of error?

3. No exercise of discipline. Ministers and elders can hold the most outrageous views and no action is taken against them. Trials for heresy seem to have become a thing of the past. We are living in a day when such matters have ceased to concern the evangelical church. Professor Thomas C Oden has said: ‘The very thought about asking about heresy has itself become the new heresy. The archheresiarch is the one who hints that some distinction might be needed between truth and falsehood, between right and wrong’.

WHAT WE MUST DO 1. We must be intolerant of a false gospel. Paul

was intolerant of a false gospel. He said about those who were perverting the gospel in the churches of Galatia: ‘But although we, or an angel from heaven preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you let him be accursed’. (Gal 1.7-8). Commenting on this, J Gresham Machen said: ‘Surely Paul ought to have made common cause with teachers who were so nearly in agreement with him; surely he ought to have applied to them the great principle of Christian unity. As a matter of fact, however, Paul did nothing of the kind; and only because he (and others) did nothing of the kind does the Christian church exist today’. It is interesting to see how Paul made a distinction in the case of the church at Philippi, where some were preaching Christ from wrong motives: ‘Notwithstanding every way, whether in pretence or in truth, Christ is preached; and I therein do rejoice, yea, and will rejoice’. (Phil 1.18) Professor John Murray said: ‘We too readily become the victims of a charity (love) that denies the exclusiveness of the Gospel, the charity that assumes that decent respectable friendly people are not heirs of damnation. If we are governed by that charity it is because we have not been captivated by the love of Christ. And if we are inclined to lend some sympathy to that charity it is because our love to Christ has been waxing cold and has not been fanned by Christ’s love to us’.

2. We must separate from false teachers. An indication of the way the heretics were viewed in the past is illustrated in a story about the apostle John. The early church father, Polycarp, a disciple of the apostle, tells of an incident where John abruptly left the public baths at Ephesus when he heard that a false teacher named Cerinthus had entered. John reportedly said, ‘Let us flee, lest the baths fall in with Cerinthus; the enemy of the truth is within’. Why did the gentle Apostle of Love react so vehemently against Cerinthus?

Because Cerinthus denied the humanity of the Lord Jesus Christ.’

A distinction has to be drawn between acceptance of, and fellowship with, genuine Christians who may be mistaken and misled in their beliefs and the acceptance of the same in the appointed leaders of churches. This applies to the Arminianism which prevails in so many churches today. In the The Forgotten Spurgeon Iain Murray writes: ‘Arminianism obscures the glory which belongs solely to the free grace of God and is therefore an error sufficiently serious for there to be no room for compromising. We may have fellowship with those who are under the influence of those errors but in the standards and teaching of the church there can be no wavering on the issue.’

There is a solemn word from Francis Schaeffer: ‘Let us never forget that we who stand in the historic stream of Christianity really believe that false doctrine, at those critical points where false

October 26th

November 2nd

Nineteenth Sunday after Trinity

Twentieth Sunday after Trinity

M. Ezekiel 14; 1 Timothy 3 E. Ezekiel 18 or Ezekiel 24:15-27; Luke 18:31-19:10

THE COLLECT

O GOD, forasmuch as without thee we are not able to please thee; Mercifully grant, that thy Holy Spirit may in all things direct and rule our hearts; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

The Epistle. Ephesians 4:17-32 The Gospel. St Matthew 9:1-8

doctrine is heresy, is not a small thing. If we do not make clear by word and practice our position for truth as truth and against false doctrine, we are building a wall between the next generation and the gospel. And twenty years from now, men will point their finger back at us and say of us, this is the result of the flow of history. ‘ 3. We must recover the Church as the pillar and foundation of the truth. We need to recover the doctrine of the Church. Reformed theology has always emphasized the centrality of the visible Church with its ministry, sacraments and government. This concept has been seriously undermined in recent years. We have a freelance type of Christianity which pays scant attention to church order and government. Church membership is not taken seriously. With all the concentrated effort to recover Reformed theology in the last fifty years it has not worked through to the reformation of the church. The church confesses the truth that God has given to her through the inspired Word of God. It is in this core of confession that the church’s identity is preserved across the ages. Without this knowledge, it is bereft of what defines the church as the people of God.

M. Ezekiel 34; 2 Timothy 3 E. Ezekiel 37 or Daniel 1; Luke 22:1-30

THE COLLECT

O Almighty and most merciful God, of thy bountiful goodness keep us, we beseech thee, from all things that may hurt us; that we being ready both in body and soul, may cheerfully accomplish those things that thou wouldest have done, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

The Epistle. Ephesians 5:15-21 The Gospel. Matthew 22:1-14

Without the church on the New Testament pattern you cannot have the guarding of the truth from generation to generation.

In the great battle for orthodoxy in the early 20th century in America, J Gresham Machen appeared as the champion defender of the faith. He had to counter liberalism. He made it abundantly clear that what lay behind the problem was doctrinal indifferentism in the church. It is as, Carl Trueman says, ‘that attitude which regards the individual’s or the church’s experience of Christ as essentially separable from, more important than, or even opposed to, a clear understanding of His Person and work.’

Dr Trueman in speaking of the stance taken

by Machen emphasizes the importance of the doctrine penetrating from the pulpit to the pew: ‘The history of the church is peppered with examples of churches which enjoyed powerful faithful preaching for many years and yet which all but collapsed into doctrinal apathy and even heresy on the retirement or the death of their minister.’ When will we learn from history?

Liberty, Freedom and Equality in the view of Homosexual Activists by our Dutch Correspondent

A

Free Evangelical Church in Utrecht rents out its halls to organisations wanting to hold meetings.

Thus it creates an extra source of income. Although this church is near to charismatic and no way near sound Reformed orthodoxy, it took a stand when homosexual activists wanted to rent a hall for young gays wanting to come out. The church refused and said this would be difficult for many members. Of course, the case was taken to court and shame was to be put on those old fashioned discriminating religious people.

The judge thought that discrimination because of sexual orientation was a greater crime than refusing freedom of conscience where it is against the politically correct notions of modern day society. Thus it was decided that churches renting out their premises on a commercial ground should not discriminate.

We may object to churches renting out their premises to unbiblical political parties, as this church did, but this will be a problem for churches for whom renting out a hall is a valuable source of income. They will have to choose between losing a source of income or losing their moral standards. This is again a sign of how Christian values, and those keeping to them are denied a place in society. Freedom of carnal pleasure is esteemed more than acting according to man’s conscience.

How decadent! A society bathing in this kind of decadence should wonder about its future.

An option for churches wanting to rent out their premises is to state exactly for which activities they are available. It will be difficult to do this. If a church will let marriages, of course a ‘samesex mariage’ will be knocking at the door. Homosexual activists are often not interested in the premises, but in finding out organisations refusing their conduct. We should ask the question: Who is discriminating more: Those upholding a Biblical lifestyle or those who are forbidding Christians to trade, because they will be forced to do things against their conscience, imbedded in the Word of God? While dark clouds seem to be upon the future of the Christian Church, the end shall be bathed in light and glory. One day God shall bring victory over His despised people. Where shall our soul be then? We may have a Christian lifestyle and reject sodomy, but what we need is life given by Christ to prevail in Him. Otherwise we may suffer and die for the Christian religion, but it shall not be for Christ’s sake.

7

English Churchman Fridays, 17th & 24th October 2014

English Churchman

The Book of Common Prayer: A Biography Alan Jacobs

Princeton University Press; 2013; Hbk, 256pp; £16.95; ISBN: 978-0-691-15481-7 From the title and dust jacket of this handsome little volume one would think its subject would be the English Prayer book, that great national deposit of Protestant truth, and expect to find a detailed history and celebration of its unique place in the life of the Christian Church. It is an easy and interesting read; though it has a somewhat unsettling secularism in its tone, it is not entirely dry and scholastic, but rather it is written in a popular style.

This would perhaps be a good thing, if the subject of the book were what it appeared to be at the outset. However, as the chapters pass by and as the gentle picture of Anglicanism it paints through a study of common prayer emerges, it is not an image of the heritage of the English Reformation, but another familiar criticism of that heritage that comes into view. The true subject of the volume appears in the second half, which tells the story of John Henry Newman, Gregory Dix, and the movement to eject the Reformation and restore Romanism, which it calls by the pleasant sounding euphemism of “tradition”, and how this movement culminates in the prayer book of the Episcopal Church in the United States, and its broad influence throughout the English-speaking world. What we have, if we have anything, is not a biography of the “Book of Common Prayer”, that same book of 1662 which appears on the jacket, a book which is still the formal standard of the Church of England, and many of its heirs throughout the world till this day, but of Anglo-Catholicism, and from a particularly American perspective. The real danger of the book is that it is so very biased; it presents this American journey as the natural and primary Anglican way, and the American Prayer Book becomes the “Book of Common Prayer”. However, at a time in which it seems the Church of England is becoming a similitude of the Episcopal Church in the U.S.A., might it be a benefit to them, and us, to share with Americans the real truth? — there is still only one Book of Common Prayer, and by God’s amazing grace, he has preserved it to us both Protestant and Reformed.

DH Graham

The Christian attitude toward war Loraine Boettner

Presbyterian & Reformed Publishing Co; Box 817, Phillipsburg, New Jersey, USA; 1985; 91 pages; Pbk; ISBN 9-780875-521183.

This is an old work, originally published in 1940, as the 2nd WW gathered momentum. It was updated and re-printed in 1985 and is now reviewed with a renewed interest in the First World War, and the centenary this year. Also, the 70th anniversary of the end of the Second World War will be recalled next year.

There is no lack of good books on War, or even the theory of war. It is

8

also possible to find occasional treatment of war from a philosophical or theological point of view in the numerous ethical sections of larger volumes.

What is really needed is a succinct overview - a readable, easily-digested, and mind-stretching, creative work, while at the same time being biblically-sound. This is the book, too long overlooked, and which punches well above its size and weight.

I have found it valuable over the years to return to this precious little piece of work and incorporated it, not only into lectures and theses, but also into sermons. The late Dr. Loraine Boettner, distinguished author of The Reformed Doctrine of Predestination, Studies in Theology, Roman Catholicism, The Millennium, Immortality, and several other substantial Reformed writings, has a remarkable way of making profound and complex issues simple and clear. In this respect, The Christian Attitude toward War is exemplary.

Not only is this a book for Christian Armed Service personnel, but it furnishes a pastoral armoury for those who have to counsel and encourage them. Dr. Boettner does not gloss over the issues, or dodge the difficult biblical passages. Although he was an American writer for a new world audience, his stimulating material is widely applied. Writing, as he did, at the beginning of the Second World War, he could not avoid speaking about the “Present Crisis.” Yet, he takes us to the Old Testament and the New to build his theology of war, its consequences and cures.

The symbolism of war in the Scriptures is likewise expounded, as are some historical aspects touched on by the Puritans, Oliver Cromwell, and the struggle for free and protestant Holland. Returning to the Scriptures, he takes up the origin of war, the place of police and the military, obedience and non-obedience to Government, pacifism, and radicalism as it impinges on military service, compulsory military service, the consequences of war not all bad, and finally deals with future dangers facing the world.

Germany is now reunited and the wall has collapsed but, as the author points out, the dangers of socialistic and Marxist philosophy still remain. “It is a fact that most outstanding pacifist leaders of America and Europe today are men who have broken with evangelical Christianity, men who frankly deny most, or all of the great fundamental beliefs of Christians.”

Two things in particular are worthy of further mention. Loraine Boettner unashamedly tackles a matter which one rarely hears from a contemporary Christian pulpit - “War as a Judgement on Nations”.

Isaiah, Jeremiah and Habakkuk are quoted to great effect, as, indeed, is the Book of Judges - a precious portion of God’s inerrant Word, too often neglected.

He concludes… “The marvel is, not that God has brought some nations to judgment through war, but that in His mercy He has granted such long periods of peace and has allowed so many nations to escape those horrors for such a long time”. These are solemn words for our own post-war Nation, currently in steep moral and spiritual decline, and lacking strong, biblically-literate Statesmen.

There are a few weaknesses in the book.

Sometimes, one would like the author to say more.

Other times, the illustrations of Communism seem a little bit dated. And, of course, in 1940, the unique problem of Islam had not yet shown its real teeth, as far as the West is concerned. But the book is a gem - even pure gold - and the lines of thought, perhaps not fully developed into the 21st century, will prove catalytic for the discerning and thoughtful Christian. At less than £4 second hand, which believer can afford not to have a copy of this unique little book, especially as Jesus indicated wars would prevail until He returns.

Rt Rev Dr J B Shucksmith

THE FIRST WORLD WAR

A Military Theology Rt Revd Dr J Barry Shucksmith Royal Navy (Rtd)

PART SIX - 1918 Pushing for Peace Continued from Page 10 joined in antisubmarine and convoy activities, although 5 battleships joined the British Grand Fleet.

President T. Woodrow Wilson - the 14 points President Wilson (January 8th, 1918) laid down his possible programme for peace - all 14 points. 1. Open covenants, openly arrived at. 2. freedom of seas in war and peace. 3. Removal of trade barriers. 4. National armament reductions. 5. Impartial adjustment of colonial aims 6.

Evacuation of Russian Territory and independent solution by Russia of her political development and national policy. 7. Evacuation and restoration of Belgium. 8. Evacuation and restoration of all occupied French territory and return of Alsace-Lorraine. 9. Readjustment of Italian frontiers on lines of nationality. 10. Autonomy for the peoples of Austria-Hungary. 11. Evacuation of Rumania, Serbia, and Montenegro, restoration of occupied territories, and Serbian access to the sea 12. Turkish portions of the Ottoman Empire to be assured secure sovereignty but other nationalities under Turkish domination to

be freed. 13. Independence of Poland, to include territories with predominantly Polish population, with free Polish access to the sea. 14. Formation of an associations of nations ensuring liberty and territorial integrity of great and small alike.

Thomas Woodrow Wilson was the 28th President of the USA, (1856-1924) He received the Nobel Prize in 1919, largely due to his championship of The League of Nations and this plan for peace.

On the Western Front, in 1918, we have the Somme Offensive (21 March) By the end (April 5th), Allied casualties were 240,000 and German figures almost as high. The Aisne Offensive began on May 27th, when the Germans made considerable progress across the Vesle, west of Fismes, and reached the Marne in three days (May 30th). This was followed by a new German offensive against American forces - Battles of Chateau-Thierry and Bellua wood. This made a serious dent in the Allied Front. More offensives followed - Noyon-Montidier, ChampagneMarne, (2 battles) and losses were reversed.

The Germans withdrew and ceded important ground. American troops were now arriving by 300,000 a month.

There now followed an Allied counter-offensive (July 18-August 5th). This was the turn of the tide. On the Allied side troops of four nations - France, Great Britain, the United States, and Italy, successfully participated in a unified operation. German Ludendorff lost 30,000 prisoners, more than 600 guns, 200 mine throwers, and 3,000 machine guns. France’s Field Marshal Foch launched two major assaults - one British, another Franco-American which jeopardized the entire German logistical situation on the Western Front. The final phase came (November 1st-11th) when the last German positions were smashed northeast and west of Buzancy. In fact, Germany had requested an Armistice on 6th October 1918. It actually took place on the 11th hour, of the 11th day, of the 11th month, 1918. Then, the cost of the war was calculated.

Total numbers mobilized = 65,038, 810 Military Battle Deaths = 8,020,780 Military wounded = 21, 228, 813 Civilian dead = 6,642, 633 Economic and financial cost ($ million) 281,887 (Acknowledgements to Collins Encyclopedia of Military History (4th Edition).

It seems, all things considered, few meaningful words can be found to describe 1914-1918.

Perhaps, these words help a little: “The heathen raged, the kingdoms were moved: he uttered his voice, the earth melted…He maketh wars to cease unto the end of the earth…Be still, and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth” (Psalm 46).

English Churchman Fridays, 17th & 24th October 2014

CLERGY

APPOINTMENTS BIRMINGHAM Revd Canon Quentin David Warbrick, Priest-in-charge, Kings Heath, All Saints, to be Vicar.

BRISTOL Rev Leighton CARR, formerly Assistant Curate (SSM) to be known as Associate Minister, Kingswood and Hanham to become Assistant Curate (SSM) to be known as Associate Minister, Christ Church with Emmanuel, Clifton.

Rev Dr Ian BAILEY, Assistant Curate (SSM), St Peter, Henleaze, will be Assistant Curate to be known as Associate Minister (Self Supporting), St Mary, Shirehampton.

Rev Ian TWEEDIE-SMITH, formerly Priest in Charge, Purton, has been appointed Vicar following the lifting of suspension effective 28 August 2014. Bishop of Bristol will Collate Tweedie-Smith at the Bishop’s Chapel, Winterbourne, on 5 November and the Archdeacon of Malmesbury will Induct the him at St Mary, Purton on 9 November at 10.30am.

Rev Leighton CARR, formerly Assistant Curate (SSM) to be known as Associate Minister, Kingswood and Hanham to become Assistant Curate (SSM) to be known as Associate Minister, Christ Church with Emmanuel, Clifton.

CANTERBURY Dr Ivan Patricio Khovacs (SSM) has been ordained Deacon of Willesborough with Sevington, by the Bishop of Dover.

Rev Ronald Geoffrey Davis retires as Vicar of Boughton Monchelsea with effect from 18th January 2015.

CHESTER Antony John DUTTON, Assistant Curate at Malpas St Oswald and Threapwood St John and Bickerton Holy Trinity, to become Incumbent of Great Sutton St John the Evangelist, with effect from 17 November 2014.

Jonathan Robert GIBBS, Incumbent at Heswall St Peter, to be the first Bishop of Huddersfield in the diocese of West Yorkshire and the Dales, with effect from 17 October 2014.

Philip William HIGHTON, Formerly Vicar of Cheadle All Hallows, to become SSM Curate (known as Assistant Minister) of Hartford St John, and also Chaplain to Hartford Church of England High School with effect from 20 October 2014.

Robin James ISHERWOOD, Formerly Incumbent at Alsager St Mary Magdalene, now Chaplain at Charterhouse.

Robert Ian McLAREN, Incumbent at Poynton St George and Rural Dean in Cheadle Deanery, to also be Honorary Canon of the Cathedral Church of Christ and the Blessed Virgin Mary at Chester.

Christopher Mark PAINTER, holds Bishop’s permission to officiate in Chester, to be NSM Assistant Curate at Hale Barns with Ringway All Saints.

Timothy ROBINSON, Incumbent at Stalybridge St Paul, to become Incumbent of Macclesfield St John the Evangelist with Henbury St Thomas.

James WILKINSON, Pioneer Evangelist in the Church Army, has

been appointed to Ellesmere Port St Thomas and All Saints and St Lawrence.

Steven Marcus HILDRETH, NSM Assistant Curate at Chester St Paul, to retire.

James Thomas McNAUGHTANOWEN, Incumbent of Latchford St James, to retire.

Bernard James SWORD, Priest In Charge of Bredbury St Barnabas, to retire.

Ian Melville THOMAS, Incumbent of Eccleston St Mary and Pulford St Mary, to retire.

LONDON Rev Mike Talbot, Incumbent, Emmanuel, Northwood and Priest in Charge, St. Joseph the Worker, Northolt To cease as: Priest in Charge, St. Joseph the Worker.

Rev Ed Kendall, Was: Curate, St. Peter, Fulham, Is now: Pioneer Minister for the Mission Church of St. Michael and St. George, Fulwell.

Rev Brian Dodsworth, Was: Permission to Officiate, Southwark, Is now: Permission to Officiate, London.

Ven Dr. Lyle Dennen, Formerly: Archdeacon of Hackney and Incumbent of St. Andrew, Holborn, Is now: Permission to Officiate.

Rev Matthew Burridge, SSM Curate, St. Silas-the-Martyr with Holy Trinity, Kentish Town, To be: SSM Curate, St. Benet Fink, Tottenham and St. Phillip the Apostle, Tottenham. Date for licensing: 24th November 2014 Rev Oliver Douglas-Pennant, is now: Interim Priest in the Parish of Brentford.

SALISBURY Rev Paul Taylor, Vicar, Salisbury St Francis and St Lawrence Stratford sub Castle, has been licensed Rural Dean of Salisbury Deanery.

Rev Simon Woodley, Rector, Bemerton, has been licensed Assistant Rural Dean of Salisbury Deanery.

Rev Jean de Garis will be installed as a Non-residentiary Canon.

Rev Gerald Osborne will be installed as a Non-residentiary Canon.

Mr Michael Keller MA MLS will be installed as a Sarum Canon.

YORK Rev Alistair John Rycroft, Assistant Curate, York St Thomas with St Maurice, has been appointed as Leader of the St Thomas Mission Unit under a Bishop’s Mission Order which becomes effective on Friday, 3 October 2014.

Rev Malcolm Masterman, Lead Chaplain, South Tees Hospital NHS Trust, retired from that position, remaining Bishops’ Adviser on Chaplaincy, co-ordinator of the NHS Advisers’ panel and has the Archbishop’s permission to officiate.

Rev Jason Scott Clark, granted Permission to Officiate. Previous Diocese: Ripon & Leeds.

Rev Richard David Baxter, granted Permission to Officiate. Previous Diocese: Carlisle

WOMEN’S RULE “As for my people, children are their oppressors, and women rule over them. O my people, they which lead thee cause thee to err, and destroy the way of thy paths.”

Isaiah 3:12.

Rhiannon Elizabeth Jones, Transforming Church Co-ordinator, to be Director of Mission, Birmingham.

Janet Knox, Self-supporting Assistant Curate, St Boniface, Quinton, to be Assistant Priest (SSM) of St Boniface, Quinton, Birmingham.

Kate Blake, Curate, St. John the Baptist, Pinner, To be: Incumbent of all Saints, Queensbury, London, licensing: 24th November 2014.

Janet Buchan, Curate, St. Paul, West Hackney, London, To be: Priest in Charge, St. Paul, Goodmayes, Chelmsford.

Janina Ainsworth, SSM Curate, St. George-in-the-East, London, To be: Associate Vicar (House for Duty) in Turton Moorlands Team Ministry, Manchester.

Norma Georgina ROBINSON, NSM Assistant Curate at Hyde St George, to become NSM Assistant Curate (known as Associate Minister) of Macclesfield St John the Evangelist with Henbury St Thomas, Chester.

Julie Lorraine WALKER, Assistant Curate at Wybunbury St Chad and Audlem St James with Doddington St John the Evangelist, to become Incumbent of Haslington St Matthew and Crewe Green St Michael & All Angels, Chester.

Emma Louise WATSON, Formerly NSM Assistant Curate at Frankby St John the Divine with Greasby St Nicholas, Chester, became Priest in Charge of Tregony with St Cuby and Cornelly, Truro.

Vivien Barbara GISBY, NSM Assistant Curate at Sutton St James, Chester, resigned.

Jean Saddington, Associate Priest of Dorchester, is also to be licensed House for Duty Team Vicar of the new benefice of Dorchester and the Winterbournes, Salisbury.

Licensing takes place 6 November at Winterbourne St Martin, 7pm, with the Archdeacon of Sherborne officiating.

Vanessa Herrick will be installed as a Non-residentiary Canon, Salisbury.

Norma Fergusson, Permission to Officiate, Salisbury.

Canon Jemima Prasadam MBE, Priest-in-charge, Lozells, St Paul & St Silas, retiring with Bishop’s Permission to Officiate, Birmingham; remaining Honorary Canon Emeritus, Birmingham Cathedral.

Audrey Atkinson, Team Vicar, Oakham Team, in the Benefice of Langham St Peter and St Paul has been appointed as Anglican Chaplain to Her Majesty’s Prison, Full Sutton, York.

Josephine Ann Robertson retires as Assistant Curate of the Canonry Benefice, Canterbury, with effect from Saturday 31st January 2015.

CHURCHES & MINISTRY ABERDEEN. Free Church of Scotland [Continuing]. Ruthrieston West Church Broomhill Road. Sabbath 12.30pm and 6pm.

Midweek 7.30pm, AV & Metrical Psalms.

Rev T. McGlynn, tel no 01224 865714 Website: www.fccontinuing.org/ aberdeen BARNOLDSWICK, Lancashire. Free Presbyterian Church of Scotland, Kelbrook Road, Barnoldswick, Lancs. BB18 5TD. Sabbath services 11.00am and 6.00pm. Prayer meeting Friday 7.30pm. Contact Rev. K.M.Watkins, 1 North Street, Barnoldswick, BB18 5PE Tel: 01282 850296 BALLYMENA, NI. Covenant Protestant Reformed Church, Clarence Street, BT42 3NR Sabbath:11am, 6pm. Expository preaching, Metrical Psalms, AV. Rev. Angus Stewart: (028) 25891851 www.cprc.co.uk BROADSTAIRS, Kent. Free Presbyterian Church of Scotland. Sabbath services: 11.00am and 5.00pm at Portland Centre, Hopeville Avenue, St Peter's. Tuesdays: 7.00pm, Quaker Meeting House, Fordoun Road. Rev. John MacLeod. Tel. 020 8309 1623. www.fpchurch.org.uk

SOUTH BUCKS. The Free Methodist Church, Penn (near High Wycombe). Traditional worship, expository preaching. Lord's Day 11.00am, 6.30pm. Rev. Peter Simpson Website: www. realchristianity.org.

Telephone: 01494 816202.

WEST MIDLANDS. Tipton, St. Paul's, Owen Street. Sundays 10.30am; 6.00pm. Prayer Meeting, Wednesday 7.30pm; BCP services.

WOLVERHAMPTON. St. Silas. C of E [Continuing], 49 Long Street, WV1 1HU. Morning Prayer 11am (HC 1st Sun) Evening Prayer 6pm (HC 3rd Sun) AV & BCP. Tel. 01785 254687.

CHEADLE, Cheshire Free Presbyterian Church of Scotland. Sabbath Service: 6pm in Trinity church, Massie Street, Cheadle SK8 1DU (entry at rear). Contact Rev. K.M.Watkins, 1 North Street, Barnoldswick, BB18 5PE Tel: 01282 850296

English Churchman

DUBLIN. Arann Reformed Baptist Church1 Quinn’s Road, Shankill, County Dublin.

Services: Lord’s day: 11am and 7pm Wednesday Bible Study and prayer meeting: 8.30pm. contact Mark Fitzpatrick, (00353) 862667070 AV & Metrical Psalms, www. arann-reformed.org, Website: www.sermonaudio.com/arann

CLASSIFIED

Advertising Rates

2014

12p per word; minimum charge £2.40 Box number 50p extra.

Series discount 5% for six insertions.

Classified advertisements must be prepaid.

DISPLAYED Single column centimetre £1.25 (minimum five centimetres or two inches £6.25).

Quarter-page £40. Half-page £80. Full page £140. One eighth page £20.00 Special position 10% extra.

Copy for all advertisements should be received two weeks before publication.

EDINBURGH. Free Church of Scotland [Continuing]. ‘Services held at 29 Arthur Street, Edinburgh, EH6 5DA. Lord’s Day 11am & 6:30 pm. Thursday prayer meeting 7:30 pm.AV and Metrical Psalms. Minister Rev. James Gracie. Tel: 0131 667 4730 www.edinburghfreechurchcontinuing.com FRINTON & TENDRING DISTRICT. Holy Trinity, C of E (Continuing) Lord's Day Morning Prayer 11am at Frinton Community Centre. 6pm Evening Prayer. BCP (1662) & AV. Mr Philip Lievesley 07972 159908.

GLASGOW. Knightswood Free Church Of Scotland (Continuing) 361 Fulton Street, G13 2SP 11am & 6.30pm Tuesdays 7.30pm, Rev William Macleod 0141 959 0292

IMPORTANT NOTE: The inclusion of these clergy appointments is for information only and in no way implies our approval.

The English Churchman holds to the 39 Articles of Religion which have been abandoned by the National Church in favour of both doctrinal and practical rebellion, as seen in her antibiblical ritualism, liberalism, charismaticism, ecumenism and moral anarchy.

READING. St. Mary's Chapel. Castle Street.

Sundays: 11 am Morning Prayer (1st Sunday, Lord's Supper); 6.30 pm Evening Prayer (3rd Sunday, Lord's Supper). Prayer Book Services, A.V. Bible Study and Prayer Meeting Tuesdays 8pm (2nd Tuesday Missionary Prayer Meeting). Rev. E. J. Malcolm 0118 959 5131

LONDON N22. Pilgrim Tabernacle. Reformed Evangelical, Lords Day 10.00am and 6pm service and Tuesday 7.30pm Bible Study. Friday 7.30pm Prayer. For venue of services please Contact Pastor John Sherwood 0208 368 8080 www.pilgrimtabernacle.co.uk LONDON E1. Free Presbyterian Church of Scotland, Varden Street, Whitechapel.

Sabbath services 11.00am and 6.30pm.

Wednesdays: 7.00pm. Rev. John MacLeod.

Tel. 020 8309 1623. www.fpchurch.org.uk LONDON. South Wimbledon, St Johns C of E [Continuing]. Sabbath Day Services 11am, 6.30pm. AV. Prayer Book (1662). Phone: Rev. Peter Ratcliff 0208 417 0875.

BE A REGULAR READER Please send me the English Churchman regularly for the next:

Twelve months:- I enclose £24.00p inc. postage.

Six months:- I enclose £12.00p inc. postage.

Rev./Mr./Mrs./Miss (BLOCK CAPITALS)

Address:

Post Code:

I enclose PO./Cheque for £

.

Date:

English Churchman

64 Ripley Road, Worthing, West Sussex, BN11 5NH

9

th English Churchman Fridays, 22 17nd & & 24 29ththOctober August 2014 2014

Wilfred Edward Salter Owen (18931918) was just 25 years old when he was killed, one week before Armistice.

He was a gifted poet, born near Oswestry, Shropshire. His poems are particularly poignant, charged with emotion, and express the horror of the cruelty and waste of war. They were first collected in 1920 by Loraine Sassoon (1886-1967). Sassoon was also a poet and a novelist. He was born in Brenchley, Kent , and is also remembered for his hatred of war.

This was fiercely expressed in his “Counterattack” (1918) and “Satirical Poems” (1926). Indeed, a whole generation of writers were to take up the theme of the horrors of the 1st World War, to try to make sense of it.

Sometimes the poets turn in upon themselves, or draw in friends and relatives, to try and explain the incongruity of such vast human wastage: And of my weeping something had been left, Which must die now, I mean the truth untold, The pity of war, the pity war distilled.

Now men will go content with what we spoiled.

Or, discontent, boil bloody, and be spilled.

They will be swift with swiftness of the tigress, None will break ranks, though nations trek from progress.

Courage is mine, and I had mystery; Wisdom was mine, and I had mastery; To miss the march of this retreating world Into vain citadels that are not walled.

Then, when, much blood had clogged their chariot wheels, I would go up and wash them from sweet wells.

Even with truths that lie too deep for taint.

I would have poured my spirit without stint But not through wounds; not on the cess of war.

Foreheads of men have bled where no wounds were.

I am the enemy you killed, my friend.

(Strange Meeting; Wilfred Owen; ‘The Little Book of War Poems’;1999; Parragon; London).

Loraine Sasoon (left) and Wilfred Owen (right)

10

THE FIRST WORLD WAR

A Military Theology Rt Revd Dr J Barry Shucksmith Royal Navy (Rtd)

PART SIX -1918 - Pushing for Peace Widows and bereft sweethearts As we continue to record the progress of the First World War, the mind-stretching statistics of ever-larger numbers of casualties, and the conclusion of 1918, we should not forget those who were physically and mentally-damaged for the rest of life.

Neither should we allow the memory of distraught and damaged families to be forgotten. A whole generation of husbands, sons, and other loved ones, were lost for ever. Apart from anything else, 1918 for many women was the year that sealed their inevitable commitment to the single state.

Sweethearts had gone to war and never returned. After the war, there just were not enough men to go around. Widows and bereft fiancees could be seen everywhere, in cities, towns, and villages, dressed in permanent mourning black. It took years for the “Edwardian dark dress” to disappear from society, hindered by vast numbers of mourning women - their hopes and happiness finally dashed.

Jeremiah and a vision of total war The prophet Jeremiah visualised similar circumstances and realities in a time of national trouble, when Israel had departed from God. In England and Germany, things would be very different, but the picture conveys the reality of enemy-action. “For who shall have pity upon thee, O Jerusalem? Or who shall bemoan thee?, or who shall go aside to ask how thou doest? Thou hast forsaken me, saith the Lord, thou art gone backward: therefore will I stretch out my hand against thee, and destroy thee; I am weary with repenting. And I will fan them with a fan in the gates of the land; I will bereave them of children, I will destroy my people, since they return not from their

ways. Their widows are increased to me above the sand of the seas: I have brought upon them against the mother of the young men a spoiler at noonday: I have caused him to fall upon it suddenly, and terrors upon the city. She that hath borne seven languisheth; she hath given up the ghost; her sun is gone down while it was yet day: she hath been ashamed and confounded: and the residue of them will I deliver to the sword before their enemies, saith the Lord. Woe is me, my mother, that thou hast borne me a man of strife and a man of contention ot the whole earth! I have neither lent on usury, nor men have lent to me on usury; yet every one of them doth curse me. The Lord said, Verily it shall be well with the remnant; verily I will cause the enemy to entreat thee well in the time of evil and in the time of affliction. Shall iron break the northern iron and the steel? Thy substance and thy treasures will I give to the spoil without price, and that for all thy sins, even in all thy borders. And I will make thee to pass with thine enemies into a land which thou knowest not: for a fire is kindled in mine anger, which shall burn upon you.” (Jeremiah 15:5-14).

God is in war, as a judgment It is never legitimate to make absolute parallel

between Israel, God’s chosen people, and the contemporary Nation-state.

But there is a levelling parallel in all sinful human behaviour. God can favour, or judge a nation, according to its acknowledgement of Him, and its obedience, or rejection of His revealed law. This is a warning to 21st century Britain, in her departure from revealed-truth and gospel-privilege. Protection of a Nation lies in the hands of a Sovereign Creator-Redeemer God. “Happy is that people whose God is the Lord” (Psalm 144:15). Spoke one of the great Continent Reformers, “Wars are not kindled accidently, or by arrangement of men, but by command of God” (John Calvin, Commentary on the Prophet Isaiah). Many readers will not like this concept of God being in War, or using it to judge a sinful and disobedient people. But the Scriptures must be taken seriously.

Deuteronomy 28:25-68 is only one of many places in Holy Scripture where the matter is raised. Those godly Christian leaders, providentially given in the Second World War, as in the First, came to terms with the Divine reality and prayerfully sought to serve, with a gun in one hand, and the Bible in the other - so to speak. Protector Oliver Cromwell is not the only leader to say…”Keep your powder dry, and trust in God”.

Germany and the United Kingdom can trace their prominence in the world to the mighty benefits and blessings received, on submitting to the authority of God’s Word Written.

A United States General, later 18th president of the U.S., Ulysses S. Grant (1822-1885), led Union Forces to victory in the American Civil War. He is also remembered for his perceptive writings. President Grant exhorted his people… “Hold fast to the Bible as the sheet-anchor of our liberties; write its precepts on your hearts and practise them in your lives. To the influence of this book we are indebted for the progress of civilization, and to this we must look for our guide in the future”.

If it is not obvious, we lack these godly political leaders today.

Grant speaks, surely, not only for America, but for all nations who truly value the revealed Word of the Living God? These include Great Britain and Germany, where the reformation stand was first taken by Martin Luther.

“Unless I am convicted by Scripture and plain reason - I do not accept the authority of popes and councils, for they have contradicted each other my conscience is captive to the Word of God. I cannot and I will not recant anything, for to go against conscience is neither right nor safe. Here I stand, I can do no otherwise” (Martin Luther; Diet of Worms; 1521).

An ethical dilemma

Two great Protestant Nations in conflict

But this leads us to a serious question; what is sometimes referred to as an ethical dilemma. How can a good and gracious God be also a Righteous Judge? Reams have been written on it. We can circumvent them for now, and save time and space by reading Romans, chapter eleven. God is both a God of severity and a God of judgment in His being, as in His actions (Romans 11:22). There is nothing in the whole of creation which is not at His disposal - to use all for His own honour and glory - including war.

“For who hath known the mind of the Lord? Or who hath been his counsellor? For of him, and through him, and to him, are all things: to whom be glory for ever” (Romans 11:34, 36).

But why the United Kingdom? What sin had England, or Germany, for that matter, committed against Almighty God, to so provoke Him? The fundamental reply is obvious. All sin provokes Almighty God. “The Lord shall judge the people: judge me, O Lord, according to my righteousness, and according to mine integrity that is in me. Oh let the wickedness of the wicked come to an end; but establish the just: for the righteous God trieth the hearts and reins. My defence is of God, which saveth the upright in heart. God judgeth the righteous, and God is angry with the wicked every day. If he turn not, he will whet his sword; he hath bent his bow, and made it ready. He hath also prepared for him the instruments of death; he ordained his arrows against the persecutors” (Psalm 7:8-12).

…the Bible, sheet anchor of our liberties Among the many sins of England and of Germany at the turn of the 20th century is a real turning away from the mighty blessings of the Protestant Reformation. The Protestant Reformation has been described by several writers as the greatest outpouring of the Holy Spirit since the Day of Pentecost. Both

But did Germany and Great Britain continue to hold to this great Protestant truth - light and liberty through the infallible Word of God? No! Within three centuries, perhaps less, after so much national and personal blessing - other influential, sinful, human beings were allowed to position themselves above the Word of God. Satan had first raised the doubt, and Adam and Eve believed the lie. “Yea hath God said?” (Genesis 3:1). The whole world was corrupted immediately, with a mighty Universal Fall. It is only an observation, but worth further thought, Germany led the field in the arena of biblical criticism, and so-called scientific examination of the Bible. Great Britain (shaped on the anvil of the Protestant Reformation, and a blessing to the nations of the world, with its Empire and 19th century missionary movement) readily embraced the proud findings of the critics. Liberal critics arose (and were allowed to remain) in the National Church, and pioneered her downfall. Could this be just one reason why the Judgment of a Righteous and Gracious God, led to a World War between the two mightiest protestant nations of the world? Of course, it is not these details which bind the pages of recorded history.

But then, man, where Almighty God is concerned, invariably omits truth.

“Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever Amen.” (Romans 1:25).

1918 began as a year of frustration for the Allies. Allied offences had bogged down in 1917 in a welter of cross-purpose and disunity of command.

The U.S. was faced with organizing, equipping, training, transporting, and supplying an expeditionary force in Europe. Overseas, the Service of Supply became an empire in itself, manning 9 base sections. Overseas transportation, the province of the U.S. Navy was in part provided for by the German Merchant Fleet which had been seized. The American Navy - with 800,000 personnel primarily Continued page 8