An interfaith group of leaders commended President Barack Obama over his recent gun control efforts and are looking toward Congress to continue to advance more gun control.

Faiths United to Prevent Gun Violence, a group comprised of 40 faith-based organizations and denominations, stated their support for the new efforts to reduce gun violence that were announced Wednesday.

Jim Winkler, chief executive of the United Methodist Board of Church and Society and chair of the coalition, said in a statement that Congress should seek to ban assault weapons and high-capacity gun magazines. more >>

Anglican leaders in Africa have expressed their outrage over the Church of England's decision to approve gay bishops in its order, saying that the decision could put an end to hopes of healing broken relationships in the Communion.

Archbishop Nicholas Okoh of Nigeria, one of the world's largest provinces of the Anglican Communion with 17 million members, said that the affirmation of gay bishops "could very well shatter whatever hopes we had for healing and reconciliation within our beloved Communion," Reuters reported.

Okoh added that the Church of England has given into "the contemporary idols of secularism and moral expediency," and that it is "one step removed from the moral precipice we have already witnessed in The Episcopal Church and the Anglican Church in Canada." more >>

The Church of England has decided to drop its ban on gay clergy in civil partnerships seeking to become bishops, as long as they make a promise to remain celibate. Conservative Anglicans, however, insist celibacy would be difficult to enforce, noting that the decision undermines church doctrine on marriage.

"The House has confirmed that clergy in civil partnerships, and living in accordance with the teaching of the Church on human sexuality, can be considered as candidates for the episcopate. There had been a moratorium on such candidates for the past year and a half while the working party completed its task," the Right Rev. Graham James, Bishop of Norwich, said in a statement on Jan. 4 on behalf of the House of Bishops of the Church of England.

The Rev. James added that the House has deemed it would be "unjust" to exclude from consideration for the episcopate anyone who lives their lives in full accordance with the Church's teachings on sexual ethics and personal discipline. more >>

The Texas Supreme Court will determine whether or not a diocese that broke away from The Episcopal Church four years ago holds the right to the 52 church properties in its territory.

The Episcopal Diocese of Fort Worth, led by conservative bishop Rt. Rev. Jack Leo Iker, appealed a lower court decision giving them 30 days to give the disputed property to The Episcopal Church.

Arguments for the case were heard in October and presently both the departed diocese and its continuing Episcopal counterpart await the court's decision. more >>

A spokesman for the Diocese of South Carolina, which voted to leave The Episcopal Church over theological differences, has denounced the recent decision by the denomination to "accept the renunciation" of their bishop.

Episcopal News Service reported that Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori "has accepted the renunciation of the ordained ministry in the Episcopal Church of Mark Lawrence."

The Rev. Jim Lewis, Canon to the Ordinary for the diocese, told The Christian Post that the official report on the renunciation is inaccurate since Lawrence "never offered a renunciation of his orders." more >>

Only 10 days after rejecting a proposal to accept female bishops, the Church of England has already started taking steps toward a new initiative at its governing General Synod to get the issue up for another vote.

A 19-member archbishops' council said that a meeting next month will "put in place a clear process for discussions in the new year with a view to bringing legislative proposals before the Synod in July."

Bishops have described the issue "as a matter of urgency," and U.K. Prime Minister David Cameron has urged the church to "get on with it" after expressing his disappointment at the failed vote on Nov. 20. Cameron has said that the church should resolve the matter on its own, but The Associated Press noted that some lawmakers have suggested that they might abolish the Church of England's exemption status if it is deemed guilty of gender discrimination. more >>