Chrism Mass

Iker

I took a break from exotic game hunting to go to this morning's Chrism Mass at our cathedral, St. Vincent's, in Bedford; Bedford is a kind of suburb of Fort Worth. The Episcopal Church (TEC), which is suing our diocese for daring to say no to gay marriage, is keen to get its pink mitts on the cathedral. 

Pyrrhus

It'll be a Pyrrhic victory if they do. Millions of dollars spent on lawsuits to get an empty church, to say nothing of the moral downside.

Judas Betrays

Regardless of that, Bishop Iker preached an excellent sermon on the Last Supper, reminding us of our Lord's statement that one of those eating with Him would betray Him. "Is it I, Lord?" they asked. Apparently every one of them considered themselves capable of the crime. I'll leave you to draw the personal application, and the solution? Our Lord's Mandatum, to love one another as He loved us, acted out in the parabolic washing of feet. Powerful medicine against the snake pit of wickedness.

On that note, you may be glad to know I made my Confession. Not before time... all should, some must...

Blessed Holy Week,

LSP

TEC Loses. Quincy Wins.

Boy Bishop

The Episcopal Church (TEC) has been losing lately, and not just members! After defeats in Texas, South Carolina and Quincy, TEC's lost again in a rearguard spoiler action against the small Midwest Diocese of Quincy. 

After the Diocese of Quincy withdrew from the the Episcopal Church, TEC wasted no time in suing the recalcitrant trads in 2009 for all their money and assets. Part of that meant writing to the Diocese of Quincy's banks and getting $4 million of diocesan money frozen pending a legal outcome in the courts. The court decided against TEC this September, allowing the trad diocese to break free of TEC with its property and cash intact. But TEC isn't one to give up and filed a motion with the courts to keep diocesan money frozen. 

Nice

That was defeated earlier this month, when Judge Orbtal ruled that the Diocese of Quincy was the owner of its money. 

TEC has spent at least $22 million in litigation against traditionalists in the last 10 years. During that time the incredibly shrinking denomination has lost well over 1 million members and now has an average Sunday attendance of maybe 650,000 people. 

Down You Go

Some people would say that TEC's tanking. Others argue that it's going to make a come back, like Detroit, or a bad pop star.

Well done Quincy. 

God bless,

LSP

Are You Being Served?

boy bishop

For those of you who don't know, the Episcopal Church (TEC) is busy suing everything that moves, most recently the vaguely traditional Diocese of South Carolina. AS Haley has this to say about TEC's mindset:

"One can but marvel at the madness that drives megalomania. First of all, it knows no boundaries: no matter what the odds or the ultimate cost, everything can be sacrificed so long as the sacrifice is seen as advancing the goal, which is to annihilate anything that appears to be threatening, or that is not already under complete subjugation. And individual megalomania is as nothing compared to the institutional variety, which signals all too often the last stage of an institution's eclipse. For when the rank and file are too ensconced in their ways to see where their leaders' follies and delusions are taking them, then the outrages of those leaders grow in proportion as the institution itself declines."

crowd pleaser

Well said, Mr. Haley. 

TEC has apparently spent some $20 million in ongoing lawsuits against trads and is busy losing some 20,000 members annually.

Carry on.

LSP