• Statement on the fire at Notre Dame

    The fire at Notre Dame Cathedral is a tragedy not only for Paris and the people of France but for the world.

    Those who know the building will be unable to see the pictures of the fire without feeling heartbroken.

    So many different things that make up the building are priceless – the medieval roof, the woodwork, the organ, the stained glass, the relics. But this tragedy is more than the loss of them all. It is the loss of the heart of Paris, the loss of a place of pilgrimage and the loss of a place of romance.

    Every day this week, Christians will be reflecting on the heartbreak of Mary, the Mother of Jesus, to whom Notre Dame was dedicated. Every day as we do so, we will be praying for the Paris its people as they face their own heartbreak.

    Notre Dame means Our Lady. Notre Dame doesn’t just belong to Paris, it belongs to us all.

    This was a building that is utterly associated with Paris. But it was an utterly priceless treasure for the world.

    It was truly ours, and this tragedy is our tragedy.

    Our Lady of Paris, pray for us and for all affected locally.

    Our Lady of Paris, we pray for you.

7 responses to “Remember the Anglican Covenant?”

  1. chris Avatar

    A timely post, with diocesan synod coming up. May well print out. (There is virtually no signal for online devices to be used usefully in the Highland Gathering Halls in Oban. Who knew?)

  2. Anglican Covenant: reports and reactions…

    The Church Times reports this week on the progress of voting in English dioceses on the Anglican Covenant: Covenant tastes defeat in diocesan voting. ALMOST a quarter of C of E dioceses have now voted against the Anglican Covenant. It……

  3. Susan Sheppard Hedges Avatar
    Susan Sheppard Hedges

    “. . .if there is any truth in that thesis, its days are numbered. . .”
    As we say in my home state, ‘your lips to God’s ears.’

  4. Jonathan Clatworthy Avatar

    Excellent post Kelvin.
    If the Covenant does get rejected in England, we’ll certainly need a period of time asking ourselves what really went wrong and how we could do things better. And Scotland will be well placed to set the ball rolling.

    1. kelvin Avatar

      Thanks Jonathan – and thanks for your article on alternatives to the Covenant which we are looking at next week at our Diocesan Synod next week to balance the stuff from the Anglican Communion Office.

  5. Paul Bagshaw Avatar
    Paul Bagshaw

    “Some have worried that we might be the first province to declare ourselves out of sorts with the Anglican Covenant.”

    They need not worry. The Philippines have already voted against it.

    It also seems probable that New Zealand will vote against.

    The Irish voted for it but with the caveat that it would not supplant the existing governing documents – though it’s not clear whether they would be able to sustain this.

    Source: http://noanglicancovenant.org/background.html#cofe

  6. Alan T Perry Avatar

    Thanks for this, Kelvin!

    What really amazes me is that the Covenant has done so well with virtually no attempt to put forward an argument (with reference to the actual text) as to why it is an unalloyed Good Thing. Proponents claim it will save the Communion without explaining just how it will do that. Those voting for it are voting for a black box.

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