Chapter 29: Institutional Churches and Emerging Churches in Australia

After a busy two years in senior student ministry, my church work is morphing into an online music and prayer ministry with fuzzy edges, rather than a clear and conventional parish clergy role. This, I am told, is called "emerging church", and many of my student ministry colleagues are facing similar challenges. When I observe the unremitting work load of those ordained to a parish, I cannot help thinking that God would prefer the load to be spread a little. As for my activities in my "emerging church", ecumenical prayer with members of other Christian denominations is a great way of building up the local church.

Since the Internet has broadened our religious horizons, cosy village parish churches are seen as outdated, and have become increasingly difficult to maintain. But in adapting to these rapidly changing circumstances, Australian Church communities have invented many new forms of church gathering and worship. Innovations suggested by overseas "mother" churches have often  been adopted in city churches, but there has never been any dearth of uniquely Australian ways of celebrating Christ in our far-flung Great South Land. 

After all, Australian churches have always been "emergent" and "messy" churches. From the very beginning of non-indigenous settlement in Australia, Christians were faced with the need to adapt their worship and Christian lifestyle to the harsh realities of a land devoid of homeland comforts. Our churches began with perfunctory, enforced military ceremonies, policed by drunken redcoats. Our colonial ancestors had no venerable clergy, few ornaments and vestments, and no church buildings except those they built from scratch, with hard labour. Spat out by mother England, these illegal immigrant settlers built fortress parishes and took refuge in them, while Australia's many indigenous peoples looked on in wonder at the mad ghost people who insisted on staying in one place and destroying the bush and its creatures, instead of sensibly and cleanly following seasonal food sources. The European invaders believed that they could reproduce the churches of their homelands, but this was impossible. Australia and its indigenous peoples have influenced and shaped every Australian immigrant Christian church community in subtle, unforeseen, powerful ways. As a result, Australian churches have acquired superb resilience, and a well developed capacity to adapt to change.

Chapter 28: Trial, nourishment, and growth in the Parable of the Sower

Trial, error, and growth are part of human life, and in nature this is reflected. As Jesus tells us in the Parable of the Sower, seeds grow according to the conditions they find themselves in; some grow well and bear fruit, others grow for a time, but die, and some do not grow at all. It all depends on where they fall. 

Lately, I’ve been growing alfalfa sprouts in my kitchen. In order to grow, the seeds need to be washed with fresh water twice a day. The growth occurs in stages. The watered seed first swells, then bursts, then sends out an exploratory root, to test if there is sufficient nourishment and protection for the tender shoot to grow. Only when the root senses that the environment is friendly and supportive, will the shoot appear and begin to grow into a sprout. Stop watering, and the shoot never appears. Starve the sprout of water, and it wilts and dies.

Human beings seeking a community, test to see if the right conditions are present for them to grow and flourish happily. We speak of putting a feeler out, or testing the waters, to explore new ventures such as a property or business deal. Usually our testing is tentative. It’s like testing bath water – we put a toe or an elbow in to find out if it’s too hot or too cold. We don’t jump straight in, because we might get burnt. We taste food as we’re cooking it, to see if it’s too bland, too sour, too sweet, or too salty. We like the taste balance to be just right. We test church communities, too, to see if we can fit in and serve God well in that place. When we find the right conditions, we put down roots, and up comes a shoot. Like the alfalfa root’s explorations, our testing is completely legitimate. Like the alfalfa seed, we know that we are mortal and have human limitations: we must seek and find a generous supply of fresh water to flourish and grow.

Human beings begin as a tiny seed, gifted by God with life and the potential for growth. Despite a tendency to sin, the growth potential of a human seed is so great that scientists call it toti potenti – an unlimited potential to grow progressively into its destined form. The human blueprint is written (by God, Christians believe) into the DNA of our human cells, together with a marvellous, but circumscribed, ability to adapt to new environments. 

As Christian human beings we grow towards God through Jesus Christ, but how does that process start? The Church teaches us that Christian baptism begins our journey to God, and confirmation provides us with the gifts of the Holy Spirit to strengthen us for mature Christian mission. We say that in baptism we experience death to sin, and gain the ability to turn to Christ for forgiveness from sins that recur. In this sense, immersion in baptismal water symbolises death to sin and rebirth into Christ. But since we all began as toti potenti seeds, and are now at various stages of growth, it is also meaningful to think of baptism as immersion in the water of life that nourishes the seed and enables it to send out an exploratory shoot. Indeed, human seeds are produced by mature human plants that bear and raise their children, brand new human seeds that need a reliable supply of generous nourishment, as well as gentle guidance, to grow. May God grant that all children of Christian parents will find nourishing Church communities where they can grow, flourish, and produce good fruit in the Kingdom of God.

Chapter 27: Extraordinary Student Ministry Inthe Sydney Anglican Diocese

Recently many people have asked me about what it is like to be a female Anglican student minister discerning a vocation for the Anglican priesthood, and living and working in the Sydney Anglican Diocese in 2014. Apparently no one else is doing this right now - if there is some other brave soul out there, please contact me. Some think I am tempting fate, treading the radical Patricia-Brennan-cum-Muriel-Porter path. My path is actually much more conservative and cautious, though equally as committed to the cause of Anglican women's ordination, which I believe to be God's will and desire.

My situation is extraordinary for an Anglican student minister in Sydney. Leaving aside the fact that I am mature aged, have four adult children and one grandchild, and have completed a BA, DipEd, BTh, BPhil, STB, Musicology studies in Gregorian chant, and an Anglican Cantor's Certificate, the most unusual aspect of my situation is that because of my female gender and my declared priestly vocation, no Sydney Anglican Ministry College is properly equipped to supply me with appropriate or complete Anglican ministry discernment and training for Anglican priesthood. This being the case, I took action to address this deficit, namely enrolling as a distance education student (on the advice of a senior Anglican minister) in the Advanced Diploma of Ministry and Theology at St Marks National Theological College, Canberra ACT, applying for discernment of ordination vocation with a friendly diocese, and negotiating a local parish field placement. Hopefully, in 2014, under the direction of the Rev. Dr. Andrew Cameron, and with Bishop Stuart Robinson's oversight, St Marks NTC will continue to supply this Anglican Orders course at an equivalent standard and with equivalent curriculum content to Melbourne's Trinity College Anglican Orders course.

Apart from my ministry studies, there are many positive aspects to my female Anglican student ministry situation here in Sydney. For a start, Anglicans (even so-called "Low Church" Sydney Anglicans) are a lot more comfortable with, and accepting of, women ministers of all ranks, than my former denomination, the Catholic Church. Among Anglicans it is common practice to praise and encourage women ministers, while praise and encouragement is exclusively reserved to males in the Catholic Church. Being received into the Anglican Church by Bishop Robert Forsyth in 2013, after a sojourn in a Church where women are "protected" but also hugely oppressed, overworked, and often ridiculed and thoughtlessly insulted by male priests and their assistants, was a joyful liberation for me, and an exciting opportunity to follow God's call to fuller and happier Church ministry. My Anglican parish mentors, for whom I thank God, have provided me with many ministry opportunities that were deliberately denied to me in my former denomination.

Of course I knew about the current Sydney Anglican Synod ban on women's ordination to the priesthood well before I was received in 2013, but that does not negate the fact that God is calling me, and is slowly but surely equipping me, to be an Anglican priest. God has healed and strengthened me for my ministry journey, and has blessed me  in my family life, academic studies, spiritual formation, and music ministry. My vocation discernment and student ministry receives support from my family, my friends from several Church denominations, sympathetic parish colleagues, and extra-diocesan sources. So while I am conscious of local barriers to my ministry, I am also a global citizen with a global online ministry. It is clear to me that while the Anglican episcopal hierarchy maintains traditionally confining structures for ministry location and governance, it also allows fresh expressions of Church, and so God's broad vision for my priestly ministry will not necessarily be totally confined within a specific geographical boundary.

I was delighted to discover that in Sydney, female Anglican licensed lay ministers and deaconesses vastly outnumber male lay and diaconal ministers. Instead of exclusively male head servers, both male and female servers and lay assistants happily cooperate. Instead of authoritarian clerical managers and minions inspecting the troops and reporting doctrinal errors, I found Anglicans freely engaging in healthy debates and discussiions on current issues. Visitors to any Sydney Anglican Church will see both unvested and vested women buzzing around doing all sorts of work, not only "housekeeping" tasks. However, the push to fast-track an army of young Anglican men into priestly ministry (accompanied by Christian marriage to a trained female minister) is also creating team ministries and domestic church plants based on the complementarian model. For many Anglican women, the complementarian ministry model is sufficient, but for women called to priesthood, a co-ordination model of ministry is required.

I hope and pray that God will provide the Anglican women of Sydney who have heard God's call to priesthood ( and I am convinced that there are many) with a means to fulfil their call to ministerial service.

Chapter 26: Anglican Women Bishops approved by Church if England General Synod

After a lengthy debate chaired by Archbishop John Sentamu the Church of England General Synod has approved enabling legislation that opens the way to the nomination and election of women to the UK Anglican episcopate. Thank God for this landmark decision, which begins a new era of peaceful and cooperative relationships between diverse Anglican communities who are all members of the Body of Christ.

Chapter 25: St Marks National Theological College Ministry Intensive, Canberra, July 11-13 2014

Last week I attended the Advanced Diploma of Ministry and Theology Ministry Intensive at St Marks National Theological College, Canberra, conducted by Bishop-Elect Rev. David Robinson, who will be consecrated as Bishop of Rockhampton on September 2, 2014. Rev. David has been guiding my distance studies in Anglican ministry since January 2013. I spent an enjoyable and relaxing week before the Intensive at a family reunion in Adelaide, catching up with my Ridge, Speer, Wilson and Baitup relatives, and also fitted in visits to some of my former church communities, St Peter's Anglican Cathedral, St Ann's Anglican University College, and Clearview Uniting Church. 

Clearview Uniting Church, Central Ave, Clearview. This church was originally founded as a Presbyterian congregation by my father George Melville Simpson, who was Vestry Clerk of the founding Committee in 1954. Following the Union of the Presbyterian, Congregational and Methodist communions it became a Uniting Church, and is now led by Rev. K. Colliver and Committee Chair Doug Amey.

St Ann's Anglican College, North Adelaide, my home during my BA student years.

It was particularly good to share family history research and ministry experiences with my cousin Rev. Keith Ridge (4th from left below) and his wife Wendy, recently retired from ministry with the Church of Christ, but (as most retired ministers are) still very active in parish life.

I flew to Canberra from Adelaide on Thursday 10th July, and spent Friday 11th and Saturday 12th July at St Marks College, Blackall Street, Canberra. The well equipped College is set among pleasant native gardens overlooking Lake Burley Griffin, close to the Charles Sturt University Centre for Australian Culture and Christianity. We engaged in sessions on Evangelism, Leadership and Change, discussed and presented our term assignments, and were treated to delicious home-cooked meals while sharing our parish ministry experiences. My student colleagues come from diverse educational and occupational backgrounds, both urban and rural locations, both traditional and evangelical Anglican parishes, and all ages: I was pleasantly surprised to find many other mature age students attending. Some are just beginning theur studies, and others are well advanced, with a few attempting Masters level studies. We attended Morning and Evening Prayer (using APBA Daily Prayer with Psalm and Gospel readings) in the College Chapel each day.

On Sunday morning (July 13th) we attended a delightful Christmas in July Service presented by a St Marks student team at Grace Chapel, set in the grounds of the Meredith Burgmann Anglican School at Gunghalin. The style of the well attended family Service was informal and welcoming, with carols, a Kidspot session, and "show bag" children's gifts, which kept the children happy and occupied during the sermon. Several St Marks students are training for Defence Services Chaplaincy, and the sermon was preached by Craig, who provided insights on combining family life with army chaplaincy. After the Service we went to the school library, where the incoming St Marks Director, Rev. Andrew Cameron, was introduced to us. Rev. Andrew then listened to and commented on each student's account of their ministry studies, community, vocation and progress, and invited us to continue engaging with him for vocation support and feedback.

After Sunday luncheon at a local restaurant we drove to Goulburn for a hospitable winter evening prayer service at St Saviour's Cathedral, organised by another St Marks student team, and hosted by Bishop Stuart Robinson and the Rev. Archdeacon Caroline Campbell. The weather was freezing, but enthusiastic singing of Hillsong-style praise songs led by Ruth and Susan, a brilliant sermon on the parable of the sower preached by Tim Williams, warm knitted blankets and piping hot minestrone and pumpkin soup and rolls following the service broke the ice. It was great to meet the Canberra-Goulburn Anglican Diocese students and reconnect with the Bathurst Diocese students, who from now on will be attending Intensives at St Marks Canberra. Thanks to Michelle and Dan for helping me with transport, and for the warm welcome provided by St Marks staff.

Chapter 24: Church Community Polarity Analysis

In academic Church community studies, the latest theory to hit the podiums is Roy Oswald's Polarity Analysis. This method claims to be a foolproof circuit breaker for factional warmongering within a congregation. The trick is to identify critical factions and thought leaders within your congregation, and harness energy wasted on destructive competition into positive cooperation focused on common interests. When kept on track, this process produces mutual benefit and community growth. If your Church community has tied itself up in factional knots, unravel them and increase goodwill with a unifying community project such as a fundraising fair, regular community Church music days hosted by Choristers who Care, or an outreach program such as organising Welcome Dinners for newly arrived immigrants. Taking this approach is putting the apostle Paul's advice into practice - my mother's favourite Bible quotation in Philippians 4:8 - "Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things." (King James Bible)).

Chapter 23: Travel and Ministry

As a Church ministry trainee, cantor, chorister and conference speaker I've clocked up my fair share of travel hours and expenses. Reducing my travel and accommodation costs, and my travel hours, to a minimum, means I can devote more funds to local Church work and causes. But at the same time, taking part in retreats and conferences plays a part in coordinating and focusing our ministries regionally and globally. The maxim "think global, act local" holds true in Church ministry as long as we don't indulge in the kind of hubris (pride) that puts us out of touch with local grass roots issues. Integrating regional and international Church consultations and debates with local ministry and worship, seems to be one of the most important skills for effective Church ministry today. Trainee ministers would benefit from advice on how best to balance these tasks in their particular situation, and reducing travel costs to a minimum is an important part of this.

Chapter 22 . . . Films that promote Christian values

This month, while recovering from surgery (successfully), I saw two films that promoted Christian values in subtle, powerful ways. Food for thought about how decisions we make either in groups, or as individuals, may have permanent and often serious effects on other people.

The film "Silent Wedding" begins with a cynical young man driving through a Balkan post-war zone with a film crew. He is a news journalist, seeking interviews. The car stops, and a group of old Romanian women, clad in black, emerge from the ruins of a village. A woman tries to answer the journalist's  questions haltingly, as he thrusts a microphone in her face, and the cameramen, intent on getting the light and film angle right, chatter in the background. The story flashes back to the past, to the women's rustic Romanian country village full of bonhomie, mischievous youngsters, wise elders, hardworking women, and irresponsible drunkards, all loveable characters despite their imperfections. The villagers are preparing to celebrate a wedding. In the middle of the post-wedding celebrations, local Russian officials arrive and announce that Stalin is dead. An official mourning period has been declared, and the wedding festivities must cease immediately.  The villagers obediently pack up the party under the watchful eye of the officials. But since Stalin was their colonial oppressor, the villagers gather after nightfall to avoid arrest, and resume the party in silence. At first everything goes well, with the villagers playing silent games, giggling, passing whispers, and feasting. But then the bride, sad that there is no music for the first dance with her husband, breaks down in tears. In sympathy, the villagers spontaneously rebel, courageously resuming their noisy celebrations. Russian troops arrive, shoot the bridegroom and the harmless, happy village idiot, massacre the men, and burn the village, leaving the women to mourn in the ruins. The film flashes back to the interview, showing a birthmark on the neck of the former bride, who is now an old woman, and panning out to the journalists, who are reduced to silence. This film sends strong messages about the precious value of simple but imperfect human communities, and the senseless inhumanity of the violent military massacre. The disconnection between the situation of the privileged, careless journalists, and the dispossessed, innocent, elderly women victims, highlights the injustice of the situation.

The USA film "King of Kong" is also about human competition, overcoming unjust dominance, quiet persistence, and families, but in a totally different arena. It is about two men who are Donkey Kong gamers, and is based on actual events. Both men are intent on achieving a world record score in Donkey Kong. One is a career gamer, a wealthy Donkey Kong champion who holds the world record, who profits from products associated with his gaming success. The other is a quiet, likeable, unassuming family man and school teacher, who plays Donkey Kong in his garage, and dreams of beating the champ. His wife deplores his gaming addiction, and considers him a failure. The quiet gamer sends a tape of his highest scoring game to the Donkey Kong officials. Egged on by the champ, the officials doubt his score. They send spies to look over his gaming machine, talking his grandma into allowing them in while he and his wife are out. Confident of his ability, the quiet player challenges the champ's score publicly, and travels interstate to play publicly at the main Donkey Kong venue. The Donkey Kong champ's fans crowd around and try to distract him as he plays, but are won over by his skill. His prowess impresses the judges, and he beats the champ's record score, but the champ refuses to meet him or play in public. The champ submits a taped game with a higher score than the quiet gamer. The judges notice faults in the tape, but the champ is declared the winner, although he didn't play publicly. The quiet player is devastated and returns home with his family. His wife and children are on his side by now, and encourage him. The judge writes to him, praises his achievement, and urges him to continue his record attempts. He persists, finally sets an unbreakable record, gains the respect of his wife, children and the Donkey Kong community, and gets into the Guinness Book of Records. The film shows the value of quiet, honest, confident persistence against insurmountable odds, and also shows how unattractive, corrupting, self-deceptive and hurtful, greedy ambition for dominance over another, can become.

Chapter 21: Anglican Social Responsibility and Royal Commission Funding

Socially responsible Churches cannot turn their back on grave injustices without betraying their fundamental Christian beliefs, and all Churches hasten to agree that a preferential option for the poor, disadvantaged, injured and needy exists. Australian Church activity is not limited to dispensing charity and spiritual care: Christians fill significant roles in public and legal forums, claiming to uphold Christian values, and they are judged by God, their Christian colleagues and the public on how well they do this. Fortunately, the Anglican Church in Sydney has a Social Responsibility Unit, managed by Ann Cunningham, to which all Anglicans in Sydney can make submissions and suggestions. For both parishioners and clergy, Anglican Social Responsibility covers a broad palette, and every Anglican is obliged to engage in some positive way in social justice leadership, advocacy and commentary. For instance, out of compassion for the poor, the Mother's Union supplies trained Anglican court volunteers to support poverty-stricken women and children. Mr. Hockey's Federal "austerity" Budget that we are presently coming to grips with, which appears to be driven by massive unconcern for disadvantaged Australians, struggling students, the unemployed, and asylum seekers, presents us with an opportunity to state our Christian obligations, intentions and principles firmly and unequivocally, as we have done on asylum seeker issues.

When Australian society is faced with massive systemic injustices at home, as it appears to be today, all Churches are obliged to respond swiftly and without complicity with oppression. To their credit, Anglican leaders have always done this in the past, and Australian Church members are generally not reluctant to march in street protests to make their views known. But it helps to do a little research into the issues involved before Churches act, for knowledge, and the ability to state a case well, confers power and authority. The current issue involves the Churches in a particular way, and their response will either draw many to rejoin Church congregations, or drive compassionate Christians away in disgust. I refer to the scandalous withdrawal of funds from the Royal Commission into Child Sexual Abuse (RCCSA). Should the Australian Churches support blocking funds to this Commission, all Christians will be deemed guiltily complicit with covering up massive institutional child sexual abuse within Churches. At a time when even the Catholic Pope Francis has insisted on zero tolerance of child sexual abuse within the Catholic Church, and is bringing three formerly powerful senior clergy to justice, it is clear that the Australian Church must insist that Attorney-General George Brandis restores diverted funds to the Royal Commission into Institutional Child Sex Abuse.

As I commented on Facebook today (after yesterday's announcement that previously allocated funds had been precipitately transferred from the Royal Commission to investigate Institutional Child Abuse, to the Royal Commission investigating the unhappy effects of the Commonwealth Insulation Scheme) the allocation of public funds to royal commissions has never been a competitive tender process. No Royal Commission should have to beg or bid for a percentage of government funding, in the same way that commercial corporations do. Royal Commissions are neither corporations, nor courts: they occupy the middle ground as independent investigative bodies, rendered independent by adequate and generous public funding to enable them to carry out a mandated task. The funds of Royal Commissions are allocated by the people's mandate and call, by right of law, by the social contract between people and government to maintain the public good, and as a consequence of their legal appointment to perform a particular task under particular terms. The warrant of the RCCSA is particularly strong and urgent, and all Australian Churches have committed themselves to assist the RCSSA investigations in a spirit of truth and reconciliation. The Australian Churches' commitment to protect vulnerable children from harm and expose deceitful criminals who injured children while pretending to be Christian, should be honoured and supported.

If the current Australian government has no intention of maintaining the public good by allocating adequate public funds to enable all Royal Commissions to carry out their urgent and mandated tasks, and blocks government funds in order to impede the work of commissioners, it should be held to account for failure of supply and consequent serious public injury.

Chapter 20: Focusing on the Needs of Others in Lent

Christian Lenten reflection takes many forms, all of which are active, not passive. Lenten prayer and repentance is not a matter of sitting in our pews and nodding off while the choir sings a beautiful anthem, nor is about the Church praising itself. Christian music should take us beyond petty ambition, it is meant to involve us God's love for humankind and creation to such a degree that we can't wait to go out into the world and put Christ's words into action. 

When we listen with open ears and faith, worship of God that is focused on Christ's Gospel teachings leads us to Christian mission - in spite of inevitable human deficiencies, annoyances, ridiculous mistakes and excesses. God sees far beyond our liturgies, which may be skilled and praiseworthy, but at best can only give us a brief glimpse of God's glory. If we continually close our ears and minds to Christ's urgent message, over-congratulate ourselves on our moral excellence and worship skills, and gorge ourselves with luxurious living while millions starve, there is something badly wrong. 

Lent reminds us that we are fallible and mortal, and that we have a serious, daily obligation to reject personal and communal greed, and share God's generous gifts to the very best of our ability. Conversely, there is no Christian imperative to be so overcome by sin and guilt that we are reduced to silence, shame, starvation and immobility. God loves and values everyone, and when we call upon Christ, God lifts up servants to help those in need.

Opposition to helping and supporting those in need, according to God's will, is rampant in our time. Christ firmly opposed oppression and victimisation of vulnerable people, and taught his followers to do likewise.  Overt or covert subjugation of women and girls – historical, cultural, religious or legislative - was never part of Christ's teachings. Christians are obliged to do everything possible to eradicate practices and prejudices that condone or promote the subjugation of women. A sermon on active Christianity, podcast from Birmingham Cathedral on February 16th, put me on the right path this Lent. Download  the Podcast App and search Birmingham Cathedral sermons to find it.

My 2014 Lenten resolutions are therefore to translate my Christian faith more rigorously into sharing what God has temporarily loaned to me, and to pray for all women involved in Church ministry. This morning I reduced my wardrobe to essentials, washed and ironed the excess, and packed them into my "granny trolley" to donate to the Salvos down the road. Then I called a Church friend, and arranged to share prayer and a sandwich lunch with her. The Church is strengthened and reassured when well intentioned Christians meet to pray together.

May your Lent be filled with healthful prayer, mindful contemplation, and service of others.

Chapter 18: Dr. Sarah Macneil - First Australian Anglican Diocesan Woman Bishop

Today, Saturday March 1st 2014, the Rev. Dr. Sarah Macneil was consecrated the 11th Bishop of Grafton Anglican Diocese at Christ Church Anglican Cathedral Grafton, to loud applause. The Very Reverend Bishop Sarah Macneil is now our fifth Australian Anglican woman bishop, and the first Australian woman elevated to Anglican Diocesan episcopal leadership. Her consecration reflects a forward-looking movement towards cooperative inter-diocesan Anglican ministry that respects the diversity of the Australian Anglican communion. Bishop Macneil was  consecrated by Bishop Stuart Robinson of the Canberra-Goulburn Anglican Diocese, as the official delegate of the Metropolitan Bishop of Sydney, the Very Rev. Glenn Davies. In January 2014 Bishop Davies, speaking at an Anglican Bishops' Convention at Goulburn attended by male and female Anglican Bishops, opened the way to increased communication and collegial ministry cooperation between the Sydney Anglican Diocese and other Anglican Dioceses. 

Bishop Macneil's capable ministry as Dean of St Peter's Anglican Cathedral Adelaide demonstrated her integrity, skill, good judgement and dignity, and following further archdiaconal ministry in the Canberra-Goulburn Diocese she has risen to eminence rapidly. Bishop MacNeil is well capable of applying sound justice and a true sense of Christian values to situations of grave conflict, such as the Grafton Diocese is currently facing.

Rev. Dr. Macneil's consecration places Australia well ahead of the UK in the international Anglican female bishop stakes, despite the fact that Australian Anglican bishops do not currently enjoy "established national Church" status or parliamentary seats. Taking a leaf out of our (de facto if not de jure) disestablished Aussie Anglican book, the UK's tortoise-like waddle towards female Anglican episcopacy may

(according to UK PM David Cameron, as reported in The Telegraph, see

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/religion/10462311/Church-of-England-votes-overwhelmingly-for-women-bishops.html)

be shackled to reactive legislation that will deprive the UK's first female Anglican bishops of the House of Lords seats their episcopal brothers have traditionally occupied for centuries. Lest they be made scapegoats of a coincidence, it should be noted that none of the UK Anglican female bishops-in-waiting have been instrumental in the proposed demise of Anglican religious representation in the UK parliament.