"We are shocked and saddened by the violence used against Christians while worshipping in Nepal this morning. We deplore the use of terror and the targeting of innocent civilians in this atrocity. May God comfort the families of the deceased in their grief and may they sense the presence of Jesus Christ with them in their sorrow and loss. We will keep them and the injured in our prayers. We extend our condolences to them, to the Roman Catholic community of the Church of the Assumption and to the wider Catholic community in Nepal. We are also aware that this leaves many other Christian Churches in Nepal in an unsettled and anxious state. We extend to all our prayers for peace and for safety.
The Revd Norman Beale
Dean
Anglican Church of Nepal"
We should follow Fr. Beale's request and remember in our prayers the people of the Christian community in Nepal particularly at this anxious time.
Second, those who do not follow such matters with some care may not know that there is an "Anglican Church of Nepal." In the Anglican Communion Provincial List, under the Province of Southeast Asia, there is a link to the Diocese of Singapore. If you go there, you will find the following chart:
of
Diocese of Singapore
| Deanery of Cambodia |
|
| Deanery of Indonesia |
|
| Deanery of Laos |
|
| Deanery of Nepal |
| Deanery of Thailand |
|
| Deanery of Vietnam |
While the Deanery of Nepal does not list The Rev. Norman Beale as the dean, it is simply a matter of updating the website, I suspect. Norman Beale has been a long time missionary in Nepal dating from a time when christian mission was very difficult. At that point I believe Fr. Beale was working under the auspices of the United Mission to Nepal. The UMN was supported through the National Council of Churches and by The Episcopal Church through its contribution to that effort. Staff persons from the Church Center worked with the NCCC committee on mission.
For a while in the period from the late 60's to the early 90's there was some hope that mission efforts in places where Christianity had not had a foothold would develop in a more ecumenical, or better, non-denominational, way. For a while it looked as if this would happen in Nepal.
However, as the Christian presence in Nepal has grown it looks as if denominational presentation of the faith is well underway. This is not neither good or bad in itself, just a fact. The question is, what good does denominational difference serve? To some extent it is a reflection of support communities.
Third: The Diocese of Singapore has made an effort to extend and build up the presence of Anglicanism in the whole of the Indochina and in more far afield in Nepal. The Indochina effort has been part of a long term strategy meant to result in a new Province.
The Diocese of Singapore has been working closely with the Anglican Communion Network in mission work in Nepal. The circle of this story, then, involves all sorts and conditions of Anglicans - an ecumenically based organization, supported by denominations including The Episcopal Church, the Diocese of Singapore, the Anglican Communion Network, but it finally comes back to mission in action on the ground. Finally it is about faithful people on the ground who are there and write to ask for our prayers.
So let us remember the National Council of Churches, The Episcopal Church, the United Mission to Nepal, the Diocese of Singapore, the Anglican Communion Network mission work, and, oh yes, the Christians on the ground who ARE the mission.
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