ANGLICAN MEN’S SOCIETY

The National Council in

NEWSLETTER No. 96 Thirty Forth Year of publication February, 2012 ISSN 1836-7364

How Christ-like is God?

Bishops do a lot of driving and invariably run late due to a sequence of back to back daily meetings in various parts of the city. So I have lost a few demerit points and a lot of money in fines of late. As a consequence I’ve begun to drive at the set speed limit. This is an illuminating social experiment because there is an unspoken drivers’ compact which says we; all of us; will exceed the speed limit at every opportunity. Not to do so offends this compact and often elicits a great deal of rage in ones fellow commuters. I have noticed many windows dropped hastily, through which arms extend with hands forming what I call “Bunny-Rabbits”; at least that’s what they look like although some only have one ear! The angry looks on the faces of those who form these “Bunny-Rabbits” leave one in no doubt these gestures are intended to convey the hostile disapproval of my fellow commuters.

It seems that violence is just under the skin in most of us. We see it in the way some school leavers celebrate their transition into adulthood which can form a terrifying spectacle on our evening TV news. We see it in the same news slot revealing how nations deal with each other or how oppressive governments deal with their own citizens.

Even those of us who do not engage in overt violence, benefit from violence done to others in one form or another. Most of the coffee we drink or the cocoa in the chocolate we eat is produced by trafficked and indentured labour. William Wilberforce swung public opinion in Britain against slavery by pointing out that the sugar good respectable people placed in their tea was a product of slave labour. He would be astonished to know that there is more human slavery and child labour on the planet now than in all of the transatlantic human trafficking in his own time! Violence is definitely a human activity and I am suggesting not an attribute of God whose “thoughts are not our thoughts and ways are not our ways”. I don’t believe that Jesus died on the cross to “pay” a punitive God because I don’t believe the God Jesus revealed is punitive. I do believe Jesus died to save us from our sins by showing us that the end of all our judgement and violence is what it always has been, death.

Many theologians following the “game shifting” writings of Rene Girard have begun to reread the Holy Scriptures to ask whether or not the violence attributed to God is really God’s or our violence “projected” onto a benevolent divinity who as John’s epistle tells us is LOVE.

The powerful lesson in the Parable of the Prodigal Son is the one in whom “wrath” and “judgement” is located by Jesus. It’s not in the father figure whose forgiveness and healing compassion are offered before the prodigal son even opens his mouth! NB Salvation is always at God’s initiative. This is the opposite to “religion”, which always begins with human initiative ie dividing the world into the saved and the dammed – which is exactly what the elder brother in the parable does. He is the place where “wrath” and “judgement” fit to kill is to be found. Not the Father! When Jesus locates the wrath and judgement in the “good” son he is telling us violence is woven into all of us. It’s a part of the human condition.

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In the Resurrection Event Jesus the victim of our violence came back, not breathing retribution but peace, signally revealing that God in the essence of His being is entirely Christ-like. So the Resurrection is consistent with the forgiveness and healing Jesus manifested throughout his public ministry which is consistent with His Abba, the loving benevolent creator of this world who was, is, and always will be heavily into the LIFE business.

May we men venture into this New Year exercising the Love, Joy and Peace we so recently reminded ourselves of in the exchange of Christmas cards bearing those very words, which are the primary attributes of the God revealed to us in the gift of His son, all glory be unto Him. May His PEACE dwell richly in us all.

Bishop Tom Wilmot 31 January 2012 ______

NEWS FROM TANZANIA

Geoff Crittall writes “Here are excerpts from a letter I received dated 15 Dec. from Val Peters. I was very thrilled to get this”.

“…..Since arriving Ivan has been busy on tractor getting shambas (farmlets) ready for planting. Yesterday a big storm – 39mls a lot for here. Ivan out cultivating already, sandy soil. Some are planting today. It will be a busy few days. To think the land was so dry and dusty and windy when we arrived. The monkeys will be happy as the rain will bring on their natural food. They get very cheeky around the house. About 24 of them and they get fed peanuts twice a week. Will come in the house and steal fruit or bread rolls. Have been to a few long services at local churches. Last Sunday 3.5 hours. A new Dean was installed, 9 choirs from the different churches, clergy and more clergy. Local services are mostly 2 hours and not pews as we know them . Chairs last Sunday. The orphanage we support is progressing. Hope to finish the building before we leave (end of March 2012). In Laidley through a stall we raised about $14000. The exchange rate here was very high. One US dollar was = 1700 Tanzanian shillings. Still plenty of people coming for help. Lots of malaria around. Mossies are VERY bad. We take a tablet each day so hopefully we are safe. Lots of students wanting sponsorship for their education, but can’t help all who come. The farm here looks good, grapes doing well, planting maize today. Sunflowers after Christmas. Schools are doing well, need more buildings but cash flow has to be adhered to. John has solar system here and works well. Has a small truckie frig. that works well and keeps them cool. Has to be switched off at night and put on only early of a morning. I did a couple of weeks cooking while cook was away on charcoal stove even the bread turned out OK …..” Val Peters What a wonderful job they are doing Cheers - Geoff Crittall (the letter was sent to Geoff)

Ed. – Ivan and Val Peters returned home suddenly at the end of December, 2011 as their daughter, Vicki, passed away as a result of illness. A card was forwarded by the Secretary and our thoughts and prayers are with the Peters in this time of sorrow. ______

REVISED AMS SERVICES The Rev’d Trevor Smith of Melbourne Diocesan Council has revised the Order of Service for AMS meetings and also the Order of Service for Admission to the Society. Both of these services can be found on the Web Site. The last National Council meeting endorsed the use of these services which use modern English while retaining some of the traditional AMS prayers. Branches are asked to use these new services and report on their suitability at the next National Conference. Web Site is www.amsnational.org.au ______2

BRING A MATE MONTH On Friday 3rd February the National Executive plus the additional representatives from each State participated in a Phone conference with Bishop Tom Wilmot as Chairman. It was decided promote ‘Bring a Mate Month’ in August this year. Most Provincial or Diocesan groups hold an AMS Day Dinner in August which provides an excellent opportunity for members to invite and bring along a friend to an AMS function. This is a method of increasing our membership and it may also be very beneficial to the prospective member by increasing his social network and his avenues for community service and maybe join the Society.

Tubby Clayton and Toc H.

On the 12th December, 1885 Philip Byard Clayton was born at Maryborough, Queensland of British parents who were involved in the grazing industry in Queensland. The family returned to the UK in1886 and Philip attended St. Paul’s School, and later to Oxford University where he studied the classics and theology and graduated with first class honours. Being 5 foot six inches tall and blessed with a rather rotund build he was given the nick name Tubby as a school boy and that name stayed with him for the rest of his life. He was ordained into the Church of England and was a School Teacher for some years before becoming a curate in the large Portsea Parish (one of eighteen Clergy). In 1915 with World War 1 in full action he was released to join the Army as a Chaplain. He soon found himself at Flanders, Belgium the nearest town was Poperinghe. Tubby never married and as a chaplain at 30 years old he was eccentric, resourceful, energetic, a lateral thinker with a lot of humour. His Chaplain duties took him far and wide but he was keen to have a base cum hostel to provide the troops with a club where they could rest and recuperate away from the front. Eventually the Army rented a large house at 16 Rue de L’Hospitale, Poperinghe and Tubby was appointed to run the place. The house was named Talbot House after his boss and old friend from Oxford days and this was shortened to Toc H using Army signals language. The House provided food, accommodation, friendship, fellowship, a Library and a Chapel in the Attic which required one to climb a ladder to gain entry. House rules were few but Rank counted for nothing at Toc H while the other rule was “Today’s guests are tomorrow’s hosts”. Tubby referred to himself as the Innkeeper. Tubby’s main help was his batman, Arthur Pettifer, also known as “The General” and his powers of borrowing or acquiring any item required were the topic of legends. A charge was made for accommodation and the House became self supporting when Tubby enlisted someone to look after the books. A place of much happiness amid the chaos and horror of the war Tubby and staff worked unceasing on about 3 hours sleep per day while on his Chaplain duties as well as running the house. Every nine months Tubby returned to the UK to recover his health. The House always operated better when he was present and it is to the Army’s credit that he was not transferred to other tasks. Tubby keep a visitor’s book and records of all men taking communion which became a very valuable contact list after the war. After the war he had a list of 500 men who were prepared to attend school for further education and be tested for their suitability for ordination in the C of E. He was able to obtain the use of an abandoned Prison at Knutsford as for use as a live in School. Late in 1919 Tubby was living in London and wished to keep the Toc H ideal alive. He rented a small house and so started Toc H in civilian life. His cousin, , was Vicar of St. Martin’s in the Fields and using his Newsletter told parishioners about his plans for Toc H in London. This resulted in 10,000 pounds being donated to his cause from parishioners of that Church. The numbers grew steadily and bigger houses were rented and branches were established outside London. Tubby was appointed the Vicar of All Hallows by the Tower, London in 1922. This Church was well endowed and gave Tubby time for promoting Toc H and visiting new branches across the country while All Hallows became the Guild Church for the new movement. As Toc H grew in numbers it had a job search group, carried out charitable works and started to formerly commit to paper Aims and Objects, Rule of Life, Constitution and Bylaws etc. and have a formal organisation. Lord Baden Powell of Scouting fame was an early Chairman. An early group was a Drama League which included a young John Gielgud as one of its members. As a result of the new constitution in 1922 Toc H gained a Royal Charter with the Prince of Wales as Patron. Tubby formed a Women’s Auxiliary, which was a master stroke, as it quickly became a large force in its own right and the movement later became very family orientated with youth development programs which continue today. The organisation took a bronze lamp of Roman origin as its badge. This style of bronze lamp had been used by the early Christians in the Caves and Catacombs around Rome when escaping from persecution. The lighting of 3 this lamp is known as the ‘Ceremony of the Light’ and commemorates the fallen in the First World War The organisation spread beyond the UK to the colonies and to Canada, USA, Australia, New Zealand and South America. Tubby was involved in many overseas trips promoting the movement and seeking financial support. World War 2 arrived and with it came the blitz and the bombing of London. All Hallows was severely damaged after one raid in 1940. After the war Tubby used his American connections to seek funds for the rebuilding of this Church. It appears that Captain William Penn (founder of Pennsylvania) and other notable colonists had been parishioners of All Hallows before leaving for the New World. One suggestion which came from a retired American ambassador to the UK was to have University undergraduates travel to the UK for six weeks and assist the parish of All Hallows help the London East enders rebuild after the War. The first team of volunteers arrived in the summer of 1948. On 19th July, 1948 HM the Queen laid the foundation stone for the rebuilding of All Hallows, and the stone bore this inscription:-

“Ethelburga founded me in 675, Samuel Pepps rescued me from the Great Fire in 1666. 1940 the enemy gravely wounded me, 1948 loving friends restored me”.

Toc H had many members and friends in influential places including 76 MPs in the House of Commons who were members. Tubby would have regular briefing sessions with these members to keep them inform of Toc H developments. In 1929 the old Toc H house in Poperinghe was purchased and endowed by Lord Wakefield as a perpetual shrine for the movement. This has become a place for pilgrims to visit when returning to visit the old battlefields. In 1932 Tubby travelled to West Africa (now Nigeria) to visit branches and members. While there and Army doctor took him to a Leper colony at the town of Kano. Tubby was appalled with the medieval conditions with no sanitation or treatment for the lepers. Returning south to the coast he visited another leper colony at Zaria run by the CMS. This was run on Christian lines with excellent hygiene and treatment for the inmates. Returning to the UK by ship he travelled with a world expert on the disease who gave him a thorough grounding on the disease and the current treatment methods. With this information he lectured his MP members and branches on the problem and called for volunteers to be trained as medical orderlies to improve the treatment of lepers. In six months he had raised 25,000 pounds and had 50 volunteers for the program – three of the volunteers were MPs. Tubby Clayton was an outstanding Priest and humanitarian similar to Father Tucker of the Melbourne Diocese of the Anglican Church who founded the Brotherhood of St. Lawrence in Melbourne. In both cases the Anglican Church was unsure how to recognise their achievements. In Tubby’s case the State found a way and in 1933 Tubby was created a Companion of Honour limited to fifty people throughout the world and second only to the Order of Merit. In 1936 Tubby was appointed Chaplain to the King. During the Second World War Tubby enlisted as a chaplain in the Royal Navy as the Army considered him too old at 55. Following the War rebuilding the All Hallows Church was a major task for Tubby, his parishioners and members of Toc H.

Reference: Tubby Clayton – A personal saga by Melville Harcourt. Published by Hodder & Stoughton Toc H Web Sites: Australia = www.toch.org.au UK = www.toch-uk.org.u ______

EXPANDED NATIONAL EXECUTIVE As reported in the last Newsletter the National Council voted to expand the National Executive by having Diocesan Councils nominate a man to represent them on the expanded executive. These delegates are listed below: Queensland: Quinn Humphreys -e-mail: [email protected] Perth: Geoff. Leiper - e-mail: [email protected] Victoria: Warren Cole - e-mail: [email protected] Tasmania: Colin Hingston - e-mail: [email protected] NSW: Ron Neate (Goulburn) - e-mail: [email protected]

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NATIONAL CONFERENCE - 2012 – LAUNCESTON Dates: Friday 14th to Monday 17th September, 2012 Location: based on Holy Trinity Church, Cameron St, Launceston Accommodation: Hotel Grand Chancellor, 29 Cameron St, Launceston – opposite the church. web site - www.ghihotels.com AMS Contact: Colin Hingston – phone: (03) 6339 1145, e-mail: [email protected] Registration papers and program will be in the June Newsletter but book transport asap to get the best deals. The organising committee in Tasmania are hoping to make the cost of the Conference similar to last year. ______WEB SITE – www.amsnational.org.au More information has been placed on this web site and this is an important point of contact for younger men looking to make contact. Chris Bissett of Newcastle is our Web master and he is keen to expand the information available. Under the heading locations we have listed the contacts for the various Diocesan Councils. Now we wish to add a contact person for each Branch. Could Branch Secretaries please supply a Contact name, phone number and/or an e-mail address to their Diocesan Secretaries for inclusion on this Web site?? ______

Harold Boddy celebrated his 100th Birthday on 8th January, 2012 in Melbourne. Family members totalled 50 and there were many other invited friends, Masonic Lodge members and AMS members in attendance. AMS presented a large card which is shown below.

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From the Herald Sun, January 16 page 18: “Doctors don’t always know best”

St.Oswald’s church in Glen Iris, Victoria put on a turn for Harold Boddy’s 100th birthday last weekend. That’s not surprising, he’s the oldest parishioner, but Bill from the church says the birthday was a lot more special than even that. “When he was born…he was a very sickly baby and they said he would not survive one week” Bill says. “Is this the medical profession’s longest wrong diagnosis?” ______BOOK REVIEWS

MARY REIBEY - The Woman on the $20 Note by Kathleen J. Pullen An biographical / historical novel. This edition published in 2011 by New Holland Publishers (Australia) Pty Ltd. First published by Ure Smith in 1975. Mary arrived in Sydney as a convict at the age of 14years. He prospects were very dim until she catches the eye of one of the ship’s officers, Lieutenant Thomas Reibey. As a married pair they survived in early Australia and Mary becomes Australia’s first lady of trade and the family home for the next generation of Reiby’s is Entally House, Hadspen, Tasmania.

THE GREAT WALL – The extraordinary history of China’s wonder of the world. by John Man published by Transworld Publishers 2008. John Man is a historian and writer with special interests in China and Mongolia. While he separates myth from fact about the Great Wall he gives us a history lesson of China and Mongolia. Excellent colour photographs of the walls.

ANGLICAN MEN’S NETWORK

As reported in the last Newsletter the National Council approved the promotion of this network to link Anglican Men’s groups using the Web Site as a link between the various groups. It is planned that these groups would receive the (a) National Newsletter, (b) access to the AMS web site and Facebook (we need some help with this one) (c) advice in establishing a men’s group in the Parish (d) provision when available of guest speakers (e) attendance at the National Conferences.

The Executive is also planning to provide some Secretarial assistance to the National Chairman. Someone to work one day per week to follow up leads – we have had two enquires about the Anglican Men’s Network from the mid north coast of NSW – keep everybody up to date with men’s groups in the Anglican world.

These developments persuaded the National Council to increase the National Fee by $5 to $15 per head to cover these extra activities.

Three old guys are out walking. First one says, ‘Windy, isn’t it?’ Second one says, ‘No, it’s Thursday!’

Third one says, ‘So am I. Let’s go and have a beer’.

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DIRECTORY OF NATIONAL COUNCIL OFFICE BEARERS.

Chairman: Vacant

Clerical Vice Chairman: The Right Rev’d Tom Wilmot, GPO Box W2067, Perth, WA, 6846 Tel: 08 9325 7455 - Fax: 08 9325 6741 - e-mail: [email protected] Lay Vice Chairman: Trevor Cowell, PO Box 22, PERTH, Tasmania, 7300 Tel/Fax: 03 6398 2507 - e-mail: [email protected] Secretary: Ivan Holt, 3 Scarborough Road, Vermont South, Vic, 3133. Tel: 03 9886 8516 - e-mail: [email protected] Treasurer: Neil McMullen, PO Box 603, Toukley, NSW, 2263. Tel: 02 4392 5328 - e-mail: [email protected]

AMS WEB PAGE: www.amsnational.org.au

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