Rev. Philip Ashey Interview

Bishop Lamb Confirms Lack of Quorum to Elect Him

From the Anglican Curmudgeon -

May 27, 2009

Bishop Lamb has finally provided proof that there was not a sufficient quorum of clergy canonically resident in the Diocese of San Joaquin who were present at the "Special Diocesan Convention" which was held in Lodi a year ago March 29. Today he acknowledged that last Friday and this Tuesday, he signed certificates with the intent of deposing 61 clergy in the Diocese for having "abandoned the Communion of this Church" in leaving to follow the Rt. Rev. John-David Schofield and his Diocese out of ECUSA. (H/T: VirtueOnLine.)

The full article is here

BISHOP OF SAN JOAQUIN RESPONDS TO RECENT ACTIONS

May 27, 2009

It is with a mixture of sadness and joy that we received today a letter from Bishop Lamb wherein he purports to depose 36 priests and 16 deacons as of May 22, 2009. It is heartbreaking that The Episcopal Church chooses to take such a punitive action and condemn 52 active clergy with “Abandonment of the Communion” when all of these men and women are recognized around the world as priests and deacons in good standing within the Anglican Communion. Clearly, the traditional understanding of what it means to be a member of this historic Communion has been tragically altered by this action; and thereby The Episcopal Church needlessly isolates itself from their brothers and sisters around the world.

The Diocese of San Joaquin continues to reach out to the central third of California in active ministry. It will become one of 23 founding Dioceses, along with 5 more in formation, within the new Province of the Anglican Church in North America at its first Provincial Assembly in Bedford, Texas, June 22-25. Despite The Episcopal Church’s disregard for valid Anglican Orders and ongoing legal actions against us, the bold vision to bring all to an ever expanding knowledge and joy of the Lord Jesus Christ remains unchanged within the diocese. We rejoice over the growing number of ministries seeking to join themselves with us in the mission field God has put before us.

We are, however, grieved that the leadership of The Episcopal Church feels compelled to create this unprecedented division between the ministries of The Episcopal Church and their brothers and sisters throughout the rest of the Anglican Communion. For our part, we continue to recognize the orders of those who are properly ordained according to the Book of Common Prayer and who have chosen to continue to serve Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior within The Episcopal Church. May God bless all of us who share a common vision of ministry.

+John-David Schofield, Bishop
The Diocese of San Joaquin

Parents

Parents

Dcn. Dale Matson

05-22-09

“Honor your father and your mother, as the Lord your God commanded you, so that your days may be long and that it may go well with you in the land that the Lord your God is giving you”(Deuteronomy 5:16). This is the fifth of the Ten Commandments. St. Paul restates this commandment in Chapter 6 of Ephesians. “Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right.  ‘Honor your father and mother,’ which is the first commandment with promise:  ‘that it may be well with you and you may live long on the earth.’ “He also notes that it contains a promise.

What if I don’t honor my parents? What if they don’t deserve being honored? What then? These are questions many individuals would ask concerning their parents. “My parents were terrible and abusive”, some might say. Some have raised their children using their parents as reverse role models. Parents who were uninvolved also find that their children can’t find the time for them when they grow up. The late Harry Chapin wrote an excellent song (1974) about this called “Cat’s in the Cradle”. A line from the song states, “I've long since retired and my son's moved away. I called him up just the other day. I said, "I'd like to see you if you don't mind."He said, "I'd love to, dad, if I could find the time.

At age fifty it became evident to me that my parents would always be with me. Even after they passed on, they would still be inside my head as models for me in relating to my sons. At that time they were still living. Was I honoring them? No, I was still filled with resentment about my treatment from an emotionally distant father and angry about an alcoholic mother suffering from depression. Was it going well with me? No, many of my relationships were contaminated with the same resentment and anger I had toward my parents. My relationship with my sons was distant at best and oppositional at worst.

It was time to make peace with my parents. I knew that was what I needed to do and began writing letters and calling them on the phone. It was as if God had prepared their hearts for this reaching out on my part. Things went well and my dad actually wrote me two letters. The first one ended “Sincerely” but the second one ended “Love Dad”. Sometimes the feeling have to follow the actions. We know what we need to do before we are willing to do it. Once the will to love is there, that is what unlocks the good memories held captive for so many years. My parents are with the Lord now and inside my head and heart. We are all finally at peace and yes, things are going very well. My sons and I are closer now than ever because I’m at peace with my parents.

Swimming in Open Water

Swimming in Open Water 05-18-09

Dcn Dale Matson

Last week, the U.S. open water swimming championships were held near Fresno, CA at nearby Millerton Lake. Participants came from all over the country with ages ranging from 18-84. The course was essentially an “out and back” marked in one eighth mile increments with large orange buoys anchored to the lake bottom. My wife and I train at Millerton Lake and volunteered to help our friends the race directors. We were stationed in Kayaks near each of the buoys along with others. We were there to help the swimmers stay on course and to assist if a swimmer got into any kind of trouble while swimming the course. There were four separate starts for the swimmers grouped by increasing age. The last person in the final age group was a 79 year old lady who was swimming in open water for the first time. She was having navigation problems in the open water. If you are a pool swimmer, there are lines in the bottom of the pool for each lane and warning markers near the ends of the lanes to signal that the wall is near. Thus a pool swimmer can focus on swimming and turning. I believe it is a natural inclination of a Deacon to want to come along side someone who needs help, so I called to her to ask her name as she desperately swam in a fruitless zigzag pattern. “My name is Georgia from Texas” and I can’t see the buoys. She was beginning to panic with lots of water in front and underneath her. Most swimmers don’t consider that they could drown in a pool but there is something different about swimming in open water that can intimidate even an accomplished swimmer. I pulled alongside and offered to escort her the last three quarters of a mile with my Kayak. I told her to just keep me in sight on her breathing side and I would keep her in a straight line and on course. From time to time I needed to yell out to her to swim to her left or right to get back on course. I also yelled out encouragement that she could “do it” to bolster her sagging confidence. She made it to the finish line under the cutoff time with a renewed sense of self efficacy. She was filmed, interviewed and cheered, deserving the attention and adulation. She did not seek me out to thank me and that is fine because I was working for Christ.

What is the purpose of this story? How does it apply to your life? Is God calling you to come alongside someone else? If we are willing to be used by our Lord and use Him as our navigational reference point, He will give us the opportunity to come alongside others who struggle as they unexpectedly find they are swimming in the “open water” of real life. We can be the encouraging voice helping others that have lost their way. We can also help others by conducting our lives in a gracious way. By keeping our lives on course, others can be guided by our actions. Sometimes listening helps another speak a solution to their own problems. Sometimes when others simply know we are available to help them, they are able to remain independent and empowered.

Superior Court Denies Episcopal Diocese's Motion for Attorneys' Fees

NEWS FROM ST. JAMES ANGLICAN CHURCH

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

SUPERIOR COURT DENIES EPISCOPAL DIOCESE’S MOTION FOR ATTORNEYS’ FEES BROUGHT AGAINST ST. JAMES CHURCH AND ITS VOLUNTEER BOARD IN CHURCH PROPERTY CASE

SANTA ANA, Calif. – May 15, 2009 – Orange County Superior Court Judge Thierry P. Colaw today denied a motion by the Episcopal Diocese of Los Angeles which would have forced St. James Church and its volunteer board of directors to pay the Diocese’s attorneys’ fees in this ongoing property dispute.

The case began when St. James Church disaffiliated from the Episcopal Diocese of Los Angeles and the Episcopal Church over theological differences in August 2004. The Diocese then sued St. James Church, All Saints Church in Long Beach, and St. David’s Church in North Hollywood, and each of their volunteer board members in September 2004. Subsequently, the national Episcopal Church intervened in the lawsuit with its own claims. The three local churches brought special motions to strike the Diocese’s suit under a unique California statute providing for early evaluation of cases involving free speech rights.

The Superior Court initially granted St. James Church’s motion, but the case made its way to the California Supreme Court, which reversed and reinstated the Diocese’s suit. St. James Church recently announced that it will file a petition for writ of certiorari with the United States Supreme Court to seek further appellate review. Even as St. James Church prepares its bid to the United States Supreme Court, the case continues to proceed in the Superior Court.

Today’s motion was a heavy-handed attempt by the Diocese, which has engaged in “scorched earth” litigation tactics against St. James Church for years, to recoup its attorneys’ fees. The Diocese claimed that St. James Church’s earlier special motion to strike was “frivolous” and warranted the sanction of a fees award.

The Superior Court considered briefs filed by both sides and heard oral argument. While the special motion procedure had never before been used in a church property dispute, the Court ruled that it was not frivolous, and had been brought in good faith by experienced and well-qualified defense counsel. As a result, the Court denied the Diocese’s motion for attorneys’ fees and set the case for a further status conference in September.

St. James Church continues to hold services and to operate in its property at 3209 Via Lido in Newport Beach, and remains committed to spreading the Gospel and the traditional Faith.

For more information about the court case: http://www.steadfastinfaith.org.

On Grieving the Loss of a Pet

Dcn Dale Matson 05-11-09

On Grieving the Loss of a Pet

Our thirteen year old Airedale died a few weeks ago and the grieving and remembering continue. It is so hard to let go of such a wonderful dog. We have owned other dogs and two other Airedales have preceded him. Airedales are Terriers and Terriers are….well, they just are. You never really own one. You are merely a consultant. He graduated from puppy class but was remedial in more advanced classes since he tended to be willful about things. Brown never really mastered the obedience thing but that is an Airedale trait too. He, like Sharon was into gardening and watered the plants, dug holes and ate some of the vegetation. He was also a great cheese catcher when Sharon threw some his way. He was really her dog and followed her around the yard as she did her gardening. There will never be another like him and we will never forget him.

It was not easy then and it is even more difficult now. I think grief is cumulative. I have lost friends, mentors relatives and parents and the grief while seemingly resolved, comes back with a passion and such a vengeance that it startles me. Pets become a part of the family. They even take on some of the idiosyncratic aspects of the families in which they reside. They relate to us unconditionally. I have seen patients in hospitals and nursing homes smile at a therapy dog when unresponsive to humans. Pets know when we are sick and offer comfort as best they can. They are really so much more than pets. They are our companions.

I was disappointed that there is no prayer of comfort for those who have lost a pet in our Book of Common Prayer. (There are a number of wonderful prayers in the “Prayers and Thanksgivings” section page 810-841.) I offer this prayer for those who grieve the loss of a pet.

Prayers for Family and Personal Life

For the loss of a pet

Merciful God, Father of all creation you have bestowed upon us the gift our pets as family members and companions. They have shared and enriched our lives, worked and played with us and have protected us. They have guided the blind, rescued the lost and comforted the sick, aged and lonely. They have been steadfast in their devotion to us and allowed us to exercise loving stewardship of your creation. Take pity on those who grieve and comfort them in their time of sorrow. Amen