Tributes paid at Episcopalian funeral of Dick Cheney
THE funeral of the former Vice-President of the United States Dick Cheney was held in Washington National Cathedral last week. He died on 3 November, aged 84. He had served from 2001 to 2009, under President George W. Bush, who gave a eulogy. Mr Bush said: “In a profession that attracts talkers, he was a thinker and a listener.” Mr Cheney’s daughter, the former Wyoming Representative Liz Cheney, also gave a eulogy. The Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church, Dr Sean Rowe, officiated.
New Jersey diocese donates $1 million to Gaza
THE Episcopal diocese of New Jersey is donating $1 million to the diocese of Jerusalem to support medical and trauma care for children, youth, and families in Gaza and the Palestinian Territories, a joint pastoral letter from the Bishops of those dioceses announced this week. “This fund supports children and youth facing significant and lifelong medical challenges, including physical disabilities, injuries, and other serious conditions,” the letter said.
Cathedral may be auctioned off, Bishop of the Arctic warns
THE Bishop of the Arctic, in the Anglican Church of Canada, the Rt Revd Alex Pryor, has warned that St Jude’s Cathedral, Iqaluit, is at risk of being auctioned off if its finances are not addressed, ENS reports. An outstanding tax bill with the City of Iqaluit, rising insurance rates, high operational costs, and congregational decline have combined to threaten the parish’s ownership of the cathedral, he said. The bill was accrued under a 2023 city by-law requiring institutions to pay tax on land used for places of worship. The original building, designed by its architect, Ron Thom, in the 1970s to resemble an igloo and built by volunteers, was severely damaged by arson in 2005.
Vatican reiterates teaching on Christian marriage
THE Vatican has published a Doctrinal Note, Una caro [one flesh]. In Praise of Monogamy, which reiterates the value of marriage as indissoluble and an “exclusive union and mutual belonging”. It also emphasises conjugal charity as fruitfulness (“though this does not mean that every sexual act must explicitly aim at procreation”). It condemns all forms of violence, both physical and psychological. The document, in seven chapters, was approved by Pope Leo and presented on 21 November, Vatican News reports. The Prefect of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith, Cardinal Víctor Manuel Fernández, writes in the introduction that one of the main concerns addressed is the current “global context of expanding technological power”. Because of this, he suggests, people perceive themselves as “creatures without limits”, which distances them from the value of exclusive love reserved for one person.
Take down Ten Commandments, Texan judge rules
DISTRICT JUDGE Orlando L. Garcia, in Texas, has issued a preliminary injunction requiring certain public (publicly funded) school districts to remove displays of the Ten Commandments by 1 December. District Judge Fred Biery had earlier stalled a new state law mandating the display of the Ten Commandments in every classroom. Judge Garcia’s order will remain in place while a lawsuit over the matter continues.