A minor

Since nine North American Anglican entities partnered and signed "A Statement of Anglican Common Cause" together in Atlanta a little over a year ago, I have come across three websites for regional common cause networks:

1. Anglican Common Cause Mid-South
2. Anglican Alliance of North Florida
3. Great Lakes Anglican Network
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Note: These networks are to be distinguished from the Anglican Communion Network (ACN), the Episcopal Church's "faithful" remnant, although the ACN was one of the nine partners that signed the common cause statement.

Marks of the Church

The Reformed tradition points to three marks of the church: [1] word, [2] sacraments (baptism and the Lord's supper), and [3] discipline.

By contrast, here is a quote from an Anglican tract pointing to four marks of the church: [1] faith, [2] ministry, [3] word, and [4] sacraments (baptism and the Lord's supper as those "of the Gospel," as well as five that are "commonly called sacraments"):

From the teachings of our Lord, and the practice of the first Christians, we learn four basic characteristics of the historic Church: Faith - Trinitarian formula, gradually taking permanent form in the Apostles' and Nicene Creeds; Ministry - Bishops, Priests, and Deacons in a direct line of succession from the Apostles; Bible - Old Testament entire, plus the traditions of Christ, soon written in book of the New Testament; Sacraments - Two "of the Gospel": Baptism in water and Communion in bread and wine. (Also five "commonly called sacraments": Confirmation, Orders, Matrimony, Penance, and Unction.)

From "A Chart of Church History," originally prepared by the Rev Dr Victor Hoag, updated 1990, Morehouse Publishing.

Remy has started a publicly-archived Google Group called De Copia: On Offspring. Go give it a look.

Sorry there hasn't been much in the way of new posts here lately. I've been too busy with work, wife, kids, friends, and life in general, but I hope to resume posting more regularly in the next few days. I have a three-day weekend coming up, and John Armstrong will be here; I'm looking forward to both.

In the meantime, if you haven't already, go read the latest conversation with Claire that Joel posted.

Public Service Announcement

I looked at the Audubon Zoo webpage today and found that the zoo memberships are being extended another four months due to Hurricane Katrina. Yay! Jon has a few Kinko's classes to attend in New Orleans next month so we are planning to make a mini vacation of it and take the boys to the zoo. The aquarium is still undergoing repairs; reopening is scheduled for later this summer. An extension will be available for aquarium membership as well.

I was in the local newspaper yesterday. In the course of preparing a story on positive Lenten spiritual practices, religion reporter Magin McKenna (who's been to our theology pintnight group before) interviewed Father Errol, my spiritual director, who suggested that Magin interview me as well. Obviously, the risk in doing such an interview (and in linking the article here) is the temptation of spiritual pride. But Father Errol encouraged me that an awareness of this risk goes a long way toward defusing it - and that fear of this risk can prevent us from bearing witness to the hope within us. So I agreed to talk with Magin, and it couldn't have gone better (thanks in large part to her interviewing skills).