Surprise to me, at least… maybe not to others. Bishop of Kentucky and interim DioRumpFW bishop Ted Gulick has voted not to consent to the election of Kevin Thew Forrester.
More details later.
We write as religious leaders who share a belief in God and the dignity of human life. We wish to acknowledge with realism and humility the severity of the current economic crisis and the sheer complexity of the global and local challenge faced by political leaders. We pray for the leaders of the G20 as they prepare to meet in London this week. They, and we, have a crucial role to play in recovering that lost sense of balance between the requirements of market mechanisms that help deliver increased prosperity, and the moral requirement to safeguard human dignity, regardless of economic or social category.
Many people are suffering as a result of the economic crisis. The World Bank estimates that 53 million more people could fall into absolute poverty as a result of the crisis. The likelihood is that more will face significant hardship before it comes to an end, and those who are already poor suffer the most. Along with the leaders of the G20 we all have a duty to look at the faces of the poor around the world and to act with justice, to think with compassion, and to look with hope to a sustainable vision of the future.
Opening a car trunk or controlling a home air conditioner could become just a wish away with Honda’s new technology that connects thoughts inside a brain with robotics.
Honda Motor Co. has developed a way to read patterns of electric currents on a person’s scalp as well as changes in cerebral blood flow when a person thinks about four simple movementsâ€â€moving the right hand, moving the left hand, running and eating.
Before David Fischler went all Presby on us, I offered him a spot on the Stand Firm blogger staff. I am routinely relieved that he hasn’t gone far, as in this post where he picks up on James Manley’s comment in our Katherine Ragsdale thread and runs with it:
This person is not a scholar, but an activist. She is known entirely as a result of her abortion rights advocacy. She is one of the founders of the Religious Coalition for Reproductive Rights, and is on the board of directors of NARAL. And now the president of an Episcopal seminary. Those who have chosen her have put their stamp of approval on one of the most extreme pro-abortionists in the country, much less the church.
So I think it is now safe to say that, in fact, there are people in the mainline churches–some of whom are even in prominent positions–who are not pro-choice at all. They are pro-abortion, and according to the ancient standards of the church–standards that go all the way back to the early 2nd century and the Didache–they should be treated as anathema.
Details of Bishop Nazir Ali’s new work have not been finalized, the diocese noted, leading to speculation that the 59 year old bishop might be preparing for another role in the Anglican Communion in light of his high profile stance within the conservative wing of the church.
However, the General Secretary of the Church of Pakistan, Humphrey Peters tells The Church of England Newspaper the news of the resignation came as a surprise. “So far we have no idea nor have we heard anything from Bishop Michael Nazir Ali. But, in case he feels like working for Church in Pakistan in these most critical times, the Church will be more than happy to welcome him.â€Â
A spokesman for the Gafcon movement, stated while its leaders were generally aware of Dr. Nazir Ali’s wish to move on, they had no specific knowledge about his Saturday announcement.
THE first task for the leaders of the Group of 20, who will meet in London on April 2nd, will be to do no harm. Don’t fall out over whether Germany and China are spending enough public money to get the world economy going. Let’s not have a row over how to run the IMF. And spare us a tirade against “market fundamentalismâ€Â.
The second task is to do something useful. Ideally, the G20 would boost government spending, partly by giving the IMF more money. And it would take five minutes to shunt the re-regulation of finance into groups that can deliberate now and act later, when there is more time and less ire: the last thing to fear from Wall Street today is irrational exuberance.
It is the third task that is being neglected. Publicly, the G20’s leaders would be shocked, shocked if anyone were to turn against open markets. Even so, trade is collapsing and an insidious protectionism is on the rise (see article). As the storm rages, the London summit looks like offering nothing but pieties. The trading system needs more than that.
The headline almost reads like that’s a bad thing:
Tim Kaine, the Virginia governor and President Barack Obama’s hand-picked choice as the head of the Democratic National Committee, infuriated abortion-rights groups Monday by signing legislation that gives abortion foes a long-sought victory.
Kaine brushed off intense lobbying by abortion rights supporters in Richmond to sign a bill that allows Virginia motorists to advertise their anti-abortion views by sporting “Choose Life” specialty license plates.
The revenue from the specialty plates would go to crisis-pregnancy centers, which many abortion-rights backers believe proslyetize against abortion and encourage women to keep unwanted children.
If Kaine were merely the governor of the Old Dominion, the move might have been less notable. Kaineâ€â€a Catholic who says he is personally opposed to abortion but pledged to leave the right to choose intactâ€â€won office in Virginia partly by seeking to reassure social conservatives.
But he is now on a national stage. And his decision could echo among women’s activists who are among the most powerful financial supporters of the party.
JN:
What is the nature of the moral challenge they face?
ABC:
Commitments have been made. The Millennium Development Goals I think provided a really important focus over the last few years for the responsibility of the developed nations to the less developed ones. This is no time to think of alibis for that because there is no economic problem that is just local in our world. We’ve already seen growth rates slowing down in Africa. It’s estimated that perhaps as many as over 50 million people could be in absolute poverty in the next few years – so I think that has to be at the top of the list this week.