Archived Article: Making a Real Difference - Part 1

(This article was printed in the August 30, 2009 edition of SpiritAlive! and was seen by the brothers at that point.) Brothers, I read something online the other day that I need to share with you. It’s all about taking our talents, our mistakes, and our desire to be transformed in a direction that will bless the Lord and those around us. Now I can’t speak for the people talked about/interviewed in the article – as to whether or not they’ve given control of their lives to Jesus – but I can vouch for the applicability of what they’re thinking and doing to our circumstances and goals in the Lord. I’ve shared my heart with you regarding the call the Lord gave me about establishing The Fellowship of Saint Joseph in this place. I’ve shared with you how I believe he’s calling us to be men who are committed to Prayer, Worship, and Charity (sharing the love of Jesus in the form of self-giving service to others). In fact, I think he’s calling us to take vows of Prayer, Worship, and Charity – just as other men in the religious life (monks) take vows of Poverty, Chastity, and Obedience. More on that a little later. For now, without any further ado, here’s the internet article I want to share with you. It’s called “‘Put-pockets’ Give a Little Extra Cash”: LONDON (Reuters) – Visitors to London always have to be on the look out for pick-pockets, but now there’s another, more positive phenomenon on the loose – put-pockets. Aware that people are suffering in the economic crisis, 20 former pick-pockets have turned over a new leaf and are now trawling London’s tourist sites slipping money back into unsuspecting pockets. Anything from 5 pounds ($8) to 20 pound notes are being surreptitiously deposited in unguarded pockets or open handbags in Trafalgar Square, Covent Garden and other busy spots. The initiative, which runs until the end of August in London before being rolled out countrywide, is being funded by a broadbrand provider, which says it wants to brighten up people’s lives in unusual ways. “It feels good to give something back for a change – and [the British people] certainly need it in the current economic climate,” said Chris Fitch, a former pick-pocket who now heads TalkTalk’s put-pocketing initiative. “Every time I put money back in someone’s pocket, I feel less guilty about the fact I spent many years taking it out.” London’s police have been briefed about the plan, which will see at least 100,000 pounds given away. Isn’t that something?!? You and I have been placed here because we’ve got issues to deal with – I don’t care whether they’re issues having to do with the law or nothing to do with the law. We’re here because the grace of God knew we needed each other. We’re here because something in our lives needs to be corrected. The best way – the only way – to see real change in our lives is to put our focus entirely on Jesus. Just as the put-pockets are putting the focus on restoring what was stolen – in a manner of speaking – Jesus is calling us to put the focus where it always should have been: On him! We can spend our time in this place thinking about and praying for ourselves – which means that we’ll end up looking like the world, not the men Jesus is calling us to become. Or, we can spend our time here fixing our gaze upon the One who can make us whole, who can restore what we’ve stolen from others and ourselves, and who can put the broken pieces back together in the right way. I’m struck by what those put-pockets are trying to do. I’m struck by the fact that they’re going about their act of charity in a way that could get them accused of doing something very different than what they’re doing, something very illegal. Their willingness to be vulnerable as they seek to restore, share, and love is exactly what Jesus has in mind for any who will willingly follow him. The question for us is this: Are we ready to say to Jesus, each other, and the world around us that we’re now in the ‘business’ of loving God and our neighbor, even if it’s difficult and/or dangerous? I hope so. Because loving the world in the Name of Jesus has never been something for the faint of heart! It requires both a radical giving away of self and a denial of one’s own wants and pleasures and choices in favor of obedience to the Lord. In fact, for centuries faithful men and women have sought to love Jesus and their neighbors by taking vows of poverty (owning very little, if anything at all), chastity (abstinence from sexual activity), and obedience (submitting to the authority of brothers/sisters in Christ within the context of a religious or monastic community). What I want to spend the remainder of this little article explaining (and the one to follow in next week’s SpiritAlive!), however, is not how we can take vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience – or even whether we should desire to do that. Let’s face it, we’re already living as though we’ve taken vows of poverty (we own very little in this place), chastity (presumably, we’re abstaining from sexual activity), and obedience (every moment of every day we’re forced to obey the rules of this institution). No, what I want to do is something quite different – I want us to explore the kind of vows that will change our hearts, not just our outward appearance. I want us to explore the kind of vows that will move us toward giving ourselves away to Jesus, just as a bride and groom give themselves to each other. What our friends in London – the put-pockets – are doing, and what our friends who have taken vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience are doing is an attempt to bend and break the heart by acts of self-denial. We are already being denied; the question is, are our hearts being broken open for Jesus? If the point of taking vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience is to force the heart open to Jesus, then, my brothers, we’re a step ahead of our friends in the religious life (men and women who have committed themselves to living solely for Jesus in a monastic community). Where they struggle to rid themselves of possessions and worldly attachments in order to focus more clearly on loving Jesus and their neighbors, we have been stripped naked of those things and left to ask ourselves the question: Jesus, how can I start loving you and my neighbors as you rightly deserve? I guess it all begins where God’s Word tells us it begins: With listening to him, loving him, and loving those around us as ourselves. More to come in next week’s SpiritAlive! Until then, God bless you! Father Todd Boyce, Vicar The Fellowship of Saint Joseph Sunday, August 30, 2009

Archived Article: Something’s Happening!

I’ve noticed something happening over the past few weeks during Mass. I’d like to ask your prayers that it keeps happening. Whenever and wherever a relationship with our Lord is begun or strengthened, it’s worthy of our prayerful support. This past Sunday, October 11, it happened again. Hands were raised in worship - and not just during the singing. I glanced up from behind the Altar as I was leading the congregation in the Eucharistic prayer - the Great Thanksgiving - and noticed that a couple of the brothers had their hands raised in the air with sweet expressions on their faces! I also noticed that some of the brothers were deep in prayer after receiving the Blessed Sacrament - real work, real conversation with our Lord Jesus was going on! And then it happened. After we sang our parting hymn, I spoke with some of the brothers. I was a little fearful of what I might hear. My homily focused in on the fact that we have to surrender our dearest hopes and dreams - including getting out of prison and going home - if the Lord is calling us to a deeper work with and in him. I noticed that one of the newer brothers was having an intense conversation with one of the brothers who's been with us since the beginning. That newer brother passed me on his way out and thanked me for a good time of worship. Because the rest of my Sunday was wild - literally! - I didn’t think about it again until later in the evening, when the other brother came to me to share about the conversation that had taken place. He told me that the newer brother came up to him wanting to talk about the Mass. He indicated that he’s not Catholic - or Anglo-Catholic - and that he'd been surprisingly touched by what the Lord was doing in our midst! The other brother told me that he thought he was going to get the usual anti-Catholic diatribe. Instead, the Lord blessed him with news that God uses whatever he chooses to bless his children. That same brother who’s been with us since the beginning also told me something else that made me want to cry tears of joy! You see, he’s been struggling with the Lord’s call to share his coffee with those who ask - by the way, he gave me permission to share this story. Now, for you and I, sharing our coffee is a no-brainer. But for a prisoner, it's a VERY expensive proposition. He took to heart the message our Lord shared with us during Mass – “What, Exactly, Do We Have to Sell to Follow Jesus?” - taken from Saint Mark 10:17-31. I suggested to the brothers that we have to “sell” our deepest desires in order to follow Jesus - especially if they hinder, in any way, our relationship with him. The truth is, we had a big old “garage sale” right there in the Chapel! I shared that one of the deepest desires of my heart is to go home to the shores of Lake Michigan; to hear the waves, to watch the sunsets, to talk with the Lord there, and just to be home with family. I told them that I know their deepest desire is to go home, too. Nevertheless, we all have to surrender such desires - along with lesser ones - if the Lord is calling us to do something else. I guess I shouldn’t have been surprised by the story this brother related to me last evening. He told me that as he walked by the T.V. room in his wing, following Mass, he noticed a man who’s been asking him about Jesus - a man who’s also asked him for coffee from time to time. This brother told me that the Lord almost instantly laid it upon his heart to share some coffee with that man. He did so, saying, “The Lord told me to share this with you.” Once the shock wore off and they talked for a few minutes, the man asked our brother about Jesus and what it would take for him to finally commit. Our brother led him to the Lord right there. Just think, all it took was a little “selling” of something we hold dear! The Lord is moving in our little fellowship. Please, PLEASE keep praying for us. There are precious few sermons being preached on growing in the Lord in our prison. There are precious few worship services that point directly to Jesus and not the preacher. Please ask the Lord to guide and use us! Also, don’t forget the prayers in the sidebar – “The Gathering Prayer for Sunday’s Mass” and “The Prayers of the Brothers”. Both of these are used by the brothers during the Mass on Sunday. Please join us in praying them! Father Todd Boyce, Vicar The Fellowship of Saint Joseph Monday, October 12, 2009

Archived Article: This Transitory Life

(This article was printed in the August 16, 2009 edition of SpiritAlive! and was seen by the brothers at that point.) The life we live, brothers, is the life of those longing, pushing, hoping, and praying to be fully born into Glory. As I sit in the quietness of this day and look about me, there is nothing I see that is not passing away; there is nothing I see that I cannot do without; everything around me – save the precious souls the Lord has graciously placed in my life – is worthless. “In the end,” Saint Paul reminds us, “there are only three things that last – faith, hope, and love. And the greatest of these is love.” If that’s true – and I know it is – then my whole life has to change. I have to stop thinking of what I want, and start thinking about what God wants. Why God? Because “God is love.” Because “our lives are hidden with God in Christ Jesus.” Because “our hope is in the Name of the Lord.” I have discovered, often very bitterly, over the past few years that what I lack – what is withheld from me or taken from me – is often the very thing that would have hindered my understanding of God’s love. In fact, when the truth is told, the very experience of being ‘deprived’ of something brings me closer to the heart of God. The act of willingly surrendering to deprivation and suffering – which certainly is not something we seek in and of itself – is the very means by which we come to understand the deprivation and suffering of our Lord Jesus. It’s also the means by which we are joined to Christ in his sufferings, that we might be raised with him into glory. I have learned to think of this transitory life in the following manner: This world in which we live is but a womb. Those who want nothing to do with God and his call in their life are like those who really don’t care about seeing the world outside the womb. They have made the womb, rather than the life beyond it, their home. In so doing, they are failing to develop the requirements for life beyond the womb. When their time comes to be born, they are like the baby that is still-born – dead at the moment of birth. Such people are lost eternally when they leave the womb of this earthly life. For those of us who say “Yes” to Jesus while we are still in the womb of this earthly life, we are more or less developing and growing like a healthy baby. From the moment we say our “Yes” to Jesus, we begin growing and moving – hopefully and confidently – toward the birth canal. To the extent that we desire to see the world beyond the womb – the world that God is promising to us – we begin to look at the womb as nothing more than a place of pilgrimage. It’s no longer our home, our haven, or our ‘heaven’. But sometimes, because we get wrapped up in the gift of the womb that God has provided for us, we forget that our focus is to be on the Giver, not the gift – especially not a gift intended only to be ‘life-support’ for our journey toward real life. I have heard estimates from various followers of Jesus claiming that anywhere from 50% to 90% of all Christians have fallen into the trap of loving the gift more than the Giver, the womb more than the life beyond the womb. I would believe it – I’ve done it. Having done it, I’ve had to repent of it. Having repented of it, I have to continually be vigilant against it. This life – with all its beauty, joy, sorrow, and emotion – is not the end of the road for me. But neither is it meaningless. As I grow in the things of God, I learn to give him ever greater glory for what he’s done and how he’s done it. I’ve learned to proclaim, “how great thou art!”; to humbly sing, “I surrender all”; and to understand what it means to “rescue the perishing.” Brothers, we have been called together, not by the actions or thoughts of men, but by the love and desire of God. We have been called together to see and understand our lives for what they are – for what God intended them to be. Even as we begin to develop in this womb of life and move confidently toward our birth into God’s amazing glory, we learn to say “I love you” in a way that’s totally foreign to the world around us. We learn to say it in the way Jesus said it – and still says it. We learn to say “I love you” by the surrender of our lives, our desires, and our selfishness. When people who know and love Jesus say “I love you”, what they’re really saying is “Come with me, don’t get stuck here, there’s glory waiting!” In fact, it’s through that kind of love – that self-giving and sacrificial love – that we begin to see a glimpse of glory here in the womb of life. We see it when we worship. We see it when we welcome someone who’s been ripped apart by the circumstances of life. We see it when we say “Jesus, I love you more than all of this.” Most of all, we see it in the eyes of a brother or sister who finally realizes that they’ve never experienced real love until they’ve looked into the eyes of Jesus and heard his promise of welcome. Brothers, there are three ways in which we can experience and share the love of Jesus. First, we can commit ourselves to the vocation (work) of prayer. We have time on our hands. To say it a another way: Unlike the world beyond these walls we are keenly aware of what it means to be in a womb, waiting to be born. Since God never wastes an opportunity, neither should we. WE CAN PRAY – and we can do it without ceasing. That's something the busy and misguided world beyond these walls often will not do. Second, we can experience and share the love of Jesus by committing ourselves to the vocation of worship. Worship is both work and mindset. It is work in the sense that it is the supreme sacrifice we can offer the Lord. It is our saying to him “You’re more important than TV, sleeping in, or anything else that enters my mind.” It is a mindset in the sense that whatever we worship becomes supremely important to us – it becomes, if you will, our god. Brothers, let God be our god and let us share him with the world! Finally, we can experience and share the love of Jesus – true Charity – by giving of ourselves for the needs of others. Our options are limited for doing so in this place. But may I suggest that until we learn the primacy of prayer and worship in the life of a believer, we will never be able to deny ourselves and share in other ways – not even when we move beyond these walls. Brothers, our care for the lost and those who are struggling to grow in Christ must begin on our knees – both in private times of prayer (the Daily Office) and in the Mass. I suspect that you have come to Mass today, or are reading this, because God is calling you and because a brother in Christ has cared enough to share his vision of life beyond the womb with you. I urge you, with all that’s in me, to “seek the Lord while he wills to be found.” God bless you, brothers, as you worship today, pray throughout this week, and share the Charity – love – of Jesus with hungry souls! Father Todd Boyce, Vicar The Fellowship of Saint Joseph Sunday, August 16, 2009

Archived Article: Inaugural Mass for The Fellowship of Saint Joseph a Blessed Event!

What a day this was! God's favor was upon us, and I know that your prayers availed much! This afternoon at one o'clock the Fellowship of Saint Joseph (a prison outreach ministry of the Missionary Society of Saint John the Evangelist) celebrated its first Mass! I wasn't quite sure what to expect - in fact, I wasn't quite sure that the fliers posted in the dorms would stay up, be read, and acted upon. But, as I made my rounds, I found that they did stay up - and created a little bit of a buzz. Most of the Inmates, I guess, aren't quite used to seeing an Icon showing Saint Joseph holding our Lord (then again, maybe that's something new for most of us). As the hour neared for Mass to begin, there were about five Inmates in the smaller Chapel. I was thrilled with that - until I learned that not all the dorms had released to normal operations. When the rest of the dorms did so, the number swelled to 19. I vested and made my way into the Chapel, shared a little bit about the Liturgy, and that our primary, secondary, et cetera focus was on worshiping Jesus. With that we prayed silently until the music swelled and we filled the Academic Wing with God's praises!!! The Spirit of the Lord was working in and among us. The fear of making 'mistakes' subsided and we entered into the Holy of Holies. I was astounded at what was coming out of my mouth - the Holy Spirit was really working on us. As we came to the Altar for the Great Thanksgiving some Inmates were gathered outside the door for movement back to their dorms. I heard some snickering...until I elevated the Host. All of a sudden they were quiet. Isn't it amazing what the Presence of Jesus can do? I think God is up to something there. I faced numerous challenges in the last week, and especially today that made me want to give it all up. When God's people are on the move, the Enemy doesn't like it, does he? I had to fight hard to not feel like giving up; I had to meet it head-on with the love of Jesus and with fasting. Praise God! The break came, and by the time the Celebration was set to begin nothing was going to hold us back! Following Mass we prayed for and laid hands on a brother dealing with physical illness; we chatted for a while; I fielded some questions; and some of us retired to the Chapel Library for tea! How Anglican-ish is that?!? We didn't have the obligatory biscuits, but we did have some more wonderful fellowship in the afterglow of what God had done for us and with us! I'm hoping to have the text of my homily posted here in the next couple of days. Unlike most times, I just couldn't reduce it to written form prior to preaching it. This one had to literally work its way out of me in the assembly of the saints. Thank you! Thank you! Thank you for your faithful prayers!!! God bless each of you! Father Todd Boyce, Vicar The Fellowship of Saint Joseph Sunday, July 5, 2009

Archived Article: The Fellowship of Saint Joseph - Who We Are

Like Saint Joseph, we vow to serve Jesus the Christ. By the grace of God, we will strive to order our lives in humility; we will listen to the voice of the Church; we will serve our families, our friends, our enemies, and each other; and we will allow our brothers to pick us up when we fall. Like Saint Joseph, we may not understand the entirety of God’s will for our lives. Even so, we will seek God with all our heart; we will hold no part of our life beyond his reach; and we will give him permission to take us apart, piece by piece, that he might re-construct us in holiness and peace. Like Saint Joseph, we know that a man intent on serving Jesus is a man who’s not afraid to fade into the background. Therefore, we will not seek the spotlight; we will refuse to take credit for what God is doing in our midst; we will seek to be servants of the servants of God; we will freely offer our glory to him alone; and we will humbly honor our brothers and sisters as more worthy than ourselves. Saint Joseph, pray for us. Pray for us, that we might be ever more deeply filled with the love of Jesus. Pray for us, that we might become the men God has created us to be. Pray for us, that we might follow in your footsteps and, in so doing, become protectors for our families, messengers of the Good News of Jesus, and instruments of his peace. May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God the Father, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit accomplish all these things within and among us. Amen. Father Todd Boyce, Vicar The Fellowship of Saint Joseph Thursday, June 25, 2009

Archived Article: Some Food for Thought...and Much Prayer!

Thanks to your prayers and several wonderful interactions I’ve had with folks over the past few weeks – not to mention the grace of God at work in many ways – I think I’m ready to move forward with the Fellowship of Saint Joseph-behind-the-Walls. As I’ve prayed, reflected, and sought the advice of trusted people, the way has become much clearer for the start-up of ministry behind the walls. To put it bluntly, I needed to be reminded – as I have been repeatedly over the past few weeks – that the Church beyond the walls is different from the Church behind the walls only in the degree of sins and crimes committed. To put it another way, the only difference between the sins committed by people beyond the walls versus those that have landed men behind the walls is the nature of their temporal consequences. The temporal consequences of telling a lie are very different from the temporal consequences of murder. The people in the pews beyond the walls are, often times, no different than those behind the walls. Both groups often are found jockeying for political position within the Church; both are wanting to make the Christian life a little easier on themselves; and both are often wanting to sweep their past under the rug, rather than dealing with it and growing up. Yet, in terms of the gravity of sins committed and the consequences of actions taken, there is a special dimension added to prison ministry that does not exist in ministry to a “normal” parish. While Inmates are no worse in their sinfulness than those beyond the walls (a sinner is a sinner is a sinner – we are all equally deprave prior to our regeneration in the waters of Holy Baptism), they nevertheless have acted in ways (allowing a degree of freedom to their sinfulness, if you will) that you and I would never dream of doing. And so the process of catechizing or making a disciple of such a person is one that must take into account their past, their lack of tools for living a decent life, and the precarious position in which they find themselves – both within the prison walls and in the eyes of society. God’s grace can accomplish anything – ANYTHING! God’s grace can take away bitterness; it can reform same-sex attractions; it can turn the heart of a mother to her unborn child as she enters an abortion mill; it can cause the violent heart and mind of a husband or boyfriend to stop beating on the woman he says he loves; it can cause a drug addict to put the needle down; it can heal any emotional or physical or spiritual brokenness that we human beings experience!!! So why do we, as a society, lock men up who have done nasty things and hope they’ll just go away? Why do so many Christians (often allowing their preacher to speak for them from the pulpit with ill-conceived and ignorant words) speak condemnation rather than hope to the men behind the walls? Is it because we feel guilty for what we’re also doing in the dark, when we think no one’s watching? So, what are some of the problems these men behind the walls are facing? What are some the things you can be praying for in their lives? Here’s a short, and very insufficient, list: 1. No grounding in the faith (no rock on which to stand); 2. No firm family structure (for the vast majority of the men); 3. No sense of respect for human life – theirs or any other – because of items 1 and 2; 4. A deficiency in dealing with wives, girlfriends, and children (this is often expressed in serial monogamy and/or living together in sin); 5. A repeated desire for gaining things – emotional and physical – by illegitimate means (that is, feeling good by doing drugs; sexual gratification by looking at porn and/or forcing deviant intercourse); 6. Because of 1 through 5, there is an underlying desire among many who turn to Jesus while in prison to use him to regain respectability and freedom. Now, I know what I just wrote sounds harsh – especially number 6. But it’s the reality. Does that mean that Jesus is offended? Absolutely not! (Just take a moment and recall all of the “Santa Claus” prayers you’ve lifted to the Lord for want of this or that – did the Lord turn his back on you because you wanted to use him like a gift dispenser?) The Church is full of infantile believers who think they’re doing God a favor and/or getting brownie points by showing up for worship. At least the men behind the walls are asking for restoration of dignity and freedom rather than materialistic gain and selfish pleasure. The last time I checked, our Lord is in the business of restoring both dignity and freedom to the sin-sick soul. Now, it may not come in the way the petitioner hopes for; but, if they’re willing, the Lord will provide it in his way and in his own time. Lifting his children out of the gutter and freeing them from sin and guilt is EXACTLY what our Lord loves to do. Your assignment, my dear prayer partners, is to pray for the men behind the walls. Pray that they will begin to desire a lasting change in their lives. Pray that they will want to address the problems I listed. Pray that we will have enough resources (Bibles, books, and time) to meet their needs. Pray that they will be moved to come and talk with me about (and to make confession of) their issues. Pray that my words will be helpful. And pray that they will grow in the Imageo Deo (Image of God). God bless you! Father Todd Boyce, Vicar The Fellowship of Saint Joseph Tuesday, June 23, 2009

Archived Article: A New Day Has Dawned!

The smell of incense, the sounds of a pipe organ played in the English style, the chanting of the Psalter, voices raised in song proclaiming the “Faith of Our Fathers”, the people devoutly kneeling in their pews as the Body and Blood of Jesus are raised before them at the Altar – the sights, sounds, and smells of Solemn High Mass. I’ll never forget it as long as I live: Hands raised in worship, people bowing before the cross of Christ as the procession enters the nave of the church, the lines of people coming forward to receive the Sacrament of Holy Unction (healing prayer with the anointing of oil), and the deep reverence for the king of Sacraments: The Holy Eucharist. Of course, it would hardly be an Anglican gathering without the praying of the Daily Office (Morning and Evening Prayer), lots of good food, music, and a sip or two of one’s favorite libation. Such was my first experience in the wonderfully warm water of the Anglican Communion, via the Annual Assembly of Forward in Faith, North America. FiFNA is one of the Diocesan jurisdictions comprising the new Anglican Church in North America. In fact, this week, in Fort Worth, our first Archbishop will be enthroned and the new Province will officially be born (check out http://acnaassembly.org/index2.php for live coverage and updates). For those of you who don’t know what this means or why it’s happening, let me explain. There are thirty-eight Provinces of the Anglican Communion throughout the world. In essence, wherever the British Empire went, the Church of England followed through settlers and missionaries. Hence, the first Province of the Anglican Communion was/is the Church of England. The Anglican Communion is found in every continent, with the greatest number of Anglicans found in Africa. In fact, the African Provinces (ie. – Nigeria, Kenya, Rwanda, Ghana, et cetera) are bursting at the seams! I wish as much could be said for the Provinces in places such as Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Scotland, England and the United States. The new Province being created in North America (the Anglican Church in North America) has been established by the missionary efforts of Provinces and Primates (a Primate is the Archbishop or head of a Province) in Africa and South America, along with faithful Anglicans in North America. The pre-existing Provinces of Canada (the Anglican Church of Canada) and the United States (the Episcopal Church, USA) have, for many decades, faltered in their practice and teaching of the Apostolic faith handed down to them from Jesus himself. Indeed, they have given in to the prevailing liberalism of the cultures in which they were called to be salt and light. As the Anglican Church of Canada and the Episcopal Church, USA labor under falsehood and continue to shrink, faithful North American Anglicans, acting through the authority of South American and African Primates, are once again lifting the banner of Apostolic faith in our midst! Forward in Faith, North America (of which my religious order, the Missionaries of Saint John, is a part) is not only the voice of Anglo-Catholicism within the new Anglican Church in North America, it is also one of that Church’s founding dioceses. The ACNA has already been recognized as the replacement for the Anglican Church of Canada and the Episcopal Church, USA by 22 of the 38 global Anglican Provinces (that’s more than 70% of the Anglican Communion). Of course, the Anglican Church of Canada and the Episcopal Church, USA (along with the more liberal and ever-shrinking Provinces of New Zealand, Australia, Scotland, and England) have not recognized us as the new North American Province, though pressure is growing on the various Primates outside of Canada and the USA to do so (especially on the Archbishop of Canterbury). It probably doesn’t help their position to know that the power base long ago shifted from “white” Anglicanism to “brown” and “black” Anglicanism in the southern hemisphere! More to follow later. Until then, God bless each of you! Father Todd Boyce, Vicar The Fellowship of Saint Joseph Monday, June 22, 2009