Posted on 03/06/2008 12:55:56 PM PST by NYer
... the Episcopal Church and the Episcopal Relief and Development office. The stations, reports Christianity Today, are called "Stations of the Millennium Development Goals", and the "liturgy" consists of the following "stations":
Set up for the Liturgy
• Designate eight stations around your church.
• For each station, have a poster-size paper listing one of the eight MDGs:
MDG 1: Eradicate Extreme Poverty and Hunger
MDG 2: Achieve Universal Primary Education for Children
MDG 3: Promote Gender Equality and Empower Women
MDG 4: Reduce Child Mortality
MDG 5: Improve Maternal Health
MDG 6: Combat HIV/AIDS, Malaria, and Other Diseases
MDG 7: Ensure Environmental Sustainability
MDG 8: Create a Global Partnership for Development
There is, in fact, only one reference to a cross:
Station 5: Have a poster-size piece of paper for each pilgrim and a thick black permanent marker. Ask each pilgrim to write the first-name only of every woman they know who had a baby in the past year. When the list is complete, draw a black cross next to the name of every 16th woman. Explain that this represents the plight of women in sub-Saharan Africa, where one in 16 pregnant women die from complications of pregnancy and childbirth each day.
Not surprisingly, some Anglicans are less than happy with the political proje—er, "liturgy." (Note to self, file this story next to the one about striving to have a smaller "carbon footprint" during Lent.)
Someone, I'm guessing, will read this and say, "Hey, mean person, what do you have against helping poor people and fighting disease in Third World countries?" The short answer is, "Absolutely nothing at all." But liturgy and devotions such as Stations of the Cross should never be turned into social projects or political forums; they are meant to transform us by bringing us into closer communion with Jesus Christ. Then we are to go into the world and apply our love of God and our knowledge of man in doing the vital work of helping the poor, fighting disease, and so forth.
When liturgy and devotion become the servants of political activism, it is inevitable that people will—logically, it should be noted—wonder, "Why bother doing this when I can simply participate in this or that social project or political movement." And then they leave Christianity behind, thinking it has little or nothing to offer the world that cannot be found many times over in secular movements.
Ping!
Just more confirmation that our flight from the Episcopal Church in August 2003 was the correct decision.
As Chris Johnson of MCJ says from time to time, it's becoming impossible to parody the Episcopal Church because everything they do is a parody anyhow.
Today’s Church of England: Forget Christmas, we take the Christ out of Christianity!
Sheesh.
This needs the Mother of all Barf Alerts
Social gospel 1.2.
Good grief.
Heresy and apostasy have been in fashion with the Episcopalians for some time now. So far as I am concerned they are not a Christian faith but are rather more of a liberal social club.
Anglican Ping
Though my Church has been conservative, I attended a Saturday “visioning session” where we made posters and discussed new goals for the church. An outside consultant was brought in to moderate the groups. Might be time to evaluate what is going on and who is bringing this stuff in.
I've led a sheltered life, I guess -- what exactly is a "visioning session" (and what could it possibly have to do with making posters)?
More train wreck coverage of The Episcopal “Church”...
Thanks to Fractal Trader for the ping!
What the?
Why not get a roll of butcher paper - very appropriate - and wrap it all the way around the church. Then let everyone take shifts, day and night, marking crosses on there for all the babies being aborted every day. That ought to keep them busy.
mdg....isn’t that Miller genuine....oh no, forget it that’s
MGD
You’re not kidding! I thought this was a parody or joke! I was laughing as I read thinking: “this is clever satire, far-fetched of course, almost believable, if not so ridiculous.” Then I finished the article; I could still not believe it was true until I followed the links to the official church website and saw for myself.
“The stations, reports Christianity Today, are called “Stations of the Millennium Development Goals”, and the “liturgy” consists of the following “stations”:
Set up for the Liturgy
• Designate eight stations around your church.
• For each station, have a poster-size paper listing one of the eight MDGs:
MDG 1: Eradicate Extreme Poverty and Hunger
MDG 2: Achieve Universal Primary Education for Children
MDG 3: Promote Gender Equality and Empower Women
MDG 4: Reduce Child Mortality
MDG 5: Improve Maternal Health
MDG 6: Combat HIV/AIDS, Malaria, and Other Diseases
MDG 7: Ensure Environmental Sustainability
MDG 8: Create a Global Partnership for Development”
This is a joke, right?
Stations of the cross - Way of the cross [Devotional]
Stations of the Cross [Catholic/Orthodox Caucus]
Thousands contemplate the saving power of the Cross during Way of the Cross in Rome
WAY OF THE CROSS COLOSEUM PART 1-2006
"WAY OF THE CROSS" AT COLOSSEUM (Part 2) - 2006
Way of the Cross to Focus on Loss of Sense of Sin
Stations of the Cross - In the Light of the Shroud
The Way of the Cross, with Prayerful Meditations authored by Saint Francis of Assisi
The Way of The Cross - a devotional reflection on Christ's Passion
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