Church of Mormon wins fight with BC polygamous leader

James Keller  The Canadian PressA religious leader in a small polygamous commune in southeastern British Columbia has been forbidden from using trademarks belonging to the Mormon church, which has long condemned such fundamentalist splinter groups that continue to practise multiple marriage.

The Utah-based Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints filed a lawsuit in B.C. Supreme Court last year after learning Winston Blackmore had registered the corporate name Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints Inc. in the province.

Blackmore, who was charged last year with practising polygamy, is one of the leaders of Bountiful, a community whose residents follow a fundamentalist form of Mormonism that condones polygamy.

The mainstream Mormon church renounced polygamy more than a century ago and it has taken pains to make it clear it is not connected to Bountiful or a number of similar groups in the United States.

Canadian Gay Couple Becomes First To Be Married In Mennonite Church

Craig Friesen, left, and Matt Wiens, right, were married by the pastors of Nutana Mennonite Church (where they currently attend) in Osler Mennonite Church, the church Friesen grew up attending. (Rachel Bergen/CBC News)

Rachel Bergen, CBC News
New Year's Eve is a special time for many, and for Craig Friesen and Matt Wiens, it was especially meaningful.

The Saskatoon couple was married on Dec. 31 in Osler, Sask., in the presence of family, friends and the church community.

The men's wedding marks a point in history for the Mennonite denomination in Canada. Friesen and Wiens are the first same-sex couple publicly married in a Canadian Mennonite church.

"Our relationship doesn't feel different, but our relationship with our community and with our faith has changed at least a little bit. It was really beautiful and freeing," Friesen said.

Friesen and Wiens are hopeful other LGBT Mennonites will learn from their example that they don't have to choose between their faith and their sexuality.

"Historically, the church has been oppressive to the queer community," Wiens said.

Parents Boycott Church After Reverend Says Santa Is Not Real

Telegraph
Parents have spoken of their disgust after a clergywoman told children that Father Christmas is not real.

Rev Margaret McPhee made the mistake during a choir concert for primary school children from Stalham Academy, in Norfolk.

During the service at St Mary's Church in the town, the curate asked pupils what they thought Christmas was about.

When one child said "Father Christmas", she replied that he was make-believe and not real.
Angry parents posted on Facebook to express their disappointment over the incident on Monday evening.

One wrote: "Sorry my child will not attend any more church services again, she would not like it if we said there was no 'God'."

United Church Minister Ruin Wedding Ceremony In Ontario

Newlyweds Casey and Jessica O'Donnell 

Rosa Marchitelli, CBC News
An investigation by CBC News's Go Public has revealed that ministers from a group called the United National Church  have been performing marriages that aren't necessarily recognized in some Canadian provinces.

Newlyweds Casey and Jessica O'Donnell at first thought they just had a terrible wedding ceremony with awkward pauses and errors. But upon learning more about the man who officiated their ceremony, they're wondering if it was all a bad joke.

"It was brutal. The ceremony anyways. It was painful," said O'Donnell, who lives with his wife in a community just north of Peterborough, Ont..

After setting their wedding date, they were having trouble finding a minister who wasn't already booked for the busy August weekend this year.

Finally Church of England Set to Approve Introduction of Female Bishops

Telegraph

The final hurdle to women becoming bishops is set to be removed when leaders of Church of England voted on Monday, revoking gender restrictions on top jobs.

A show of hands among Anglicans meeting in London is expected to clear the way for the first appointment in January.

However, the vote to allow women to serve in the Church’s highest posts came 20 years after the first female priests were ordained.

The legislation approving the change was passed unanimously in July and Monday’s vote rubber-stamped that change in the rules.

It brought England into line with other Anglican Churches around the world, as there were women bishops in Australia, Canada, India, South Africa and the U.S..