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December 8, 2008
Dear Brothers and Sisters, It is with some sadness that I have to tell you that I
believe our AGO E-mail Prayer and Information Group has passed its "Best
Before" date and reached the end of its shelf life, so that the time has
come to bring it to a close. The situation has changed enormously in the five years since
we began it in September of 2003. We started it as a Prayer Group for the
ACoC, mainly in the Diocese of Ottawa, but gradually expanded it to cover more
and more territory. Fairly soon, we added the information component
because the pray-ers needed to understand what they were praying about and in
those days the ACoC's policy of almost totally ignoring the whole situation
made it very difficult for most people to find out what was going on, or to
connect with other concerned Anglicans who thought and felt as they did.
Most people in the pews, and a great many priests also, really had no
idea that anything at all out of the ordinary was going on. But as I said, things have changed. Our original focus
was to pray for the repentance of the Diocese of Ottawa - and later of
the ACoC - for its acquiescence in heterodoxy and the blessing of sin, and for
the healing of the deep cracks that that tolerance had begun to cause in the
fabric of Canadian Anglicanism. As things have developed, the ACoC has
progressed rapidly along its wayward path and, far from being able to heal the
cracks and preserve the unity of the ACoC, its determined deviation from
historic Anglicanism and apostolic doctrine and practice has led to the
creation of the separate Anglican Network in Canada Church. Moreover the
rot is now seen to have spread widely, far beyond Canada, so that a major
realignment is currently in progress throughout Anglicanism worldwide, and a new
Anglican Province in North America was provisionally launched less than a week
ago. Clearly, though the need to pray for the ACoC is greater than ever, the
way to do it has to change. The relationship between Essentials and
ANiC is changing and it is clear that the task of managing the prayer and
information needs of the traditionally orthodox Anglicans who still remain
in the ACoC needs to be undertaken by the Essentials Network within the
ACoC, rather than by the Network Church outside of it. On the information front, news of the launching of ANiC a
year ago and of ACNA last week has made it into the headlines of the secular
media so that it is no longer possible for the ACoC to suppress knowledge
of the realignment and its causes and most people know about it.
Knowledge of the internet has also grown so that using it to find out
what one needs to know is far more widely spread. In addition, ANiC is
now sending out regular and very excellent newsletters. Moreover, there
are now several ANiC churches and church plants in the Ottawa area and a high
percentage of our E-group members now belong to them and receive those
newsletters e-mailed directly to them. Even those who don't, can make
individual arrangements to receive them, or can read them on the ANiC website,
so that there is no need for duplication. I have felt for some time,
therefore, and especially since Lambeth last summer, that the need for our AGO
E-group was disappearing. And now seems to be the time to put it to bed. All of which adds up to the decision to bring our E-group to
a formal close at the end of this year. I shall not be sending you any
more monthly prayers and information mails after that. I have collected
some material for you on the launching of ACNA and have arranged it in three
batches, which relate mainly to Canada; GAFCON and England; and the U.S.A.
You can easily ignore them if you wish, and I won't be sending any more
after them. From time to time, I may perhaps send you occasional notices
of events or urgent prayers that I think you would like to have. If you
would like to receive these, please remember to let me have updates when you
change your e-addresses. I pray that none of you will feel in any way abandoned by
the shutting down of our long association. If any of you do, or have any
difficulty in filling the space it has occupied in your life, remember that I
am still here and there is nothing to stop you from e-mailing me. If
there is anything I can do to help, I should still be most happy to do it. It only remains now for me to say a big "Thank
you" to you all for all your faithful participation in this E-group.
I have valued it greatly and I believe that in our small way we have all
been contributing to the Lord's work in our little corner of Anglicanism.
Be sure to keep awake to what is happening in the Church, won't you?
And be sure also to keep praying for it. I am praying for that for
you all and committing you to the Lord with prayers for your well-being of
spirit, soul, body and circumstances. I am also wishing you a most blessed and joyous Christmas
and the happiest of Happy New Years in 2009. Lovingly, Patricia. Patricia Birkett Anglican Gathering of Prayer Co-ordinator
birkett.lewis(at)rogers.com
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