Membership Stats for ECUSA and Fort Worth
New statistics are out today regarding membership in our diocese. Some folks might wish to read meaning into the solid growth in the "conservative" diocese of Fort Worth while the national church has continued its steady decline. I leave it to you, Gentle Reader, to determine what you think. (Hat tip to Fr. Nelson.) By the way, attendance at virtually all of our Holy Week services at St. Vincent's was up this year over last year. (There was a slight dip on Maundy Thursday, for some reason, but other services had dozens more in attendance this year than last.)
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posted by Texanglican (R.W. Foster+) | 5:35 PM
2 Comments:
St. Vincent's had a 12% increase in Holy Week and Easter Attendance over last year, from 1850 in services to 2064 in services.
We continue to Confirm and Baptize four to five dozen people a year and are seeing about a 3% increase in overall attendance each year since 2002.
Unlike most of ECUSA, we don't condemn our soldiers and government, we don't side with Hollywood liberals, Hugo Chavez, or Fidel Castro. We are not trying to be so relevant that we have become irrelevant by watering down the Gospel so that we actually have nothing to say in the end.
We preach Christ and Him Crucified and He deserves the credit. Sorry Consortium Folks for using the pronoun He, but we don't get to make up the rules. They've been given to us.
ECUSA will likely dwindle into nothingness if it dosn't change its course. Who wants to be part of church where no one really believes anything anyway.
In the end, Christ is Risen. He has saved us from our sins and if we repent and follow Him as the Lord of Our Life, we can have life eternal. You won't hear much of that in a lot of ECUSA.
I think the decline is a good thing as less and less people are being exposed to heresy and apostacy, less people are being left dead in their sins. Woe to you false shepherds.
Dean Reed on an Easter Rant
I have no idea if my present parish increased its Easter attendance. There were about 300-400 at the Vigil service (I don't know about the earlier family service), probably about 400 at 7 AM, 600+ at 9 AM, 600+ at 11:15. I don't know about 1 PM.
Footwashing at Maundy Thursday took about thirty five minutes, despite being the most efficiently run (and spiritually fulfilling) service I've ever seen. 300+ there. 200+ at evening Tenebrae.
We baptized eleven adults and older children and several infants at the family Vigil. We'll have 10-20 adult confirmands next round (counting on fingers). I don't know how many youth.
The church evangelizes Hollywood liberals and sides with Hugo Chavez when people are calling for him to be murdered.
On the other hand, I have some agreement with the critiques of your ranter, but all the while I remain ever more convinced of Christ and Him Crucified and give Him all glory for what I see around me.
I don't know who the Consortium is (probably popular in these parts), but I suspect they are less justified than they believe and more justified than Mr. Reed believes.
As for TEC, it is not my charism to prophesy doom. I'll continue to stay as long as I sense the power of the Spirit within her, which I'm sure I'd find at St. Vincent's and find here, too.
"Who wants to be part of church where no one really believes anything anyway?"
I think you mean, "Who wants to be part of a church where large portions of the church do not believe in her historic doctrines, including her bishops?"
Those who are called into this vineyard. It ceased being a matter of desire some time ago.
"In the end, Christ is Risen. He has saved us from our sins and if we repent and follow Him as the Lord of Our Life, we can have life eternal."
Amen.
"I think the decline is a good thing as less and less people are being exposed to heresy and apostasy, less people are being left dead in their sins. Woe to you false shepherds."
I never knew how dead I was in my sins until I ran into some of the people you might call heretics and apostates.
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