Grieving the Anglican Communion: English Primacy and the Anglican Consultative Council
“After the high drama of the Church of England’s General Synod, we had one day to wash and repack before flying to Ghana for the eighteenth plenary meeting of the Anglican Consultative Council (ACC-18), hosted by the Province of West Africa.
It was like being evacuated from the battlefield to a temporary sanctuary, where the artillery bombardment is hushed, wounds can be bandaged, and the foot soldiers of rival armies lay down their weapons for mutual refreshment and embrace. Eight days of Anglican bliss, while all around us the Communion implodes. …
The Anglican Communion has been in choppy seas for several decades, but the bishops of the Church of England are now driving it directly towards the rocks. If they do not change course, then what can be salvaged from the imminent wreckage? At the ACC we worked gallantly, with cheerful smiles, trying to believe it was ‘business as normal’, but all the time aware that the epoch-changing statement from the primates of the Global South Fellowship of Anglican Churches (GSFA) would be waiting for us when we returned home.”
– At Psephizo, Andrew Atherstone reflects on the meeting of the Anglican Consultative Council last week and the seismic shift taking place in the Anglican Communion.
He points out,
“Global South provinces have now seized the initiative to establish firebreaks between themselves and the Church of England. Emergency action is needed, if the riches of the Anglican Communion are not to be squandered forever.”
Andrew Atherton is Latimer Research Fellow at Wycliffe Hall, Oxford, and biographer of Justin Welby.
“Welby’s Lambeth invite apology smooths way for Anglican Consultative Council to walk together”
“Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby, working with others, preserved the unity of the 17th meeting of the Anglican Consultative Council on May 4 by apologizing for his 2020 Lambeth Conference decisions about bishops in same-sex relationships and agreeing to renew the communion’s 21-year-old promise to listen to the experiences of LGBTQ people.
‘I ask your forgiveness where I made mistakes,’ Welby said.
The April 28-May 5 meeting came close to breaking down during the afternoon of its last business day, not over the Lambeth Conference, but over the larger issue of how much the council ought to say about the full inclusion of LGBTQ people in the life of the church. …”
– This report from The Episcopal News Service speaks of the Archbishop of Canterbury’s apology for seeking to disinvite the spouses of bishops in same-sex marriages from the 2020 Lambeth Conference.
Photo: Archbishop of Canterbury’s website.
For some historical perspective on the trajectory of the Anglican Consultative Council, see this post from ten years ago (June 2009) from the American Anglican Council:
Corrupting the Anglican Communion Listening Process:
“The next stage of the Anglican Communion’s attempt to resolve its differences over theology, sexuality and the authority of scripture will involve more “listening processes,” but this time those processes will be paid for by a retired Episcopal priest who advocates same-sex blessings. The money given by the Episcopal priest will be monitored by a group of sex “experts” who advocate a vision of sexual freedom and “justice” that bears little resemblance to mainstream Christian doctrine or tradition …“
and also this June 2009 statement from then President of the Anglican Church League, Rev. Dr. Mark Thompson –
Apostasy and deception: Statement on ACC-14 from the Anglican Church League:
“The reports from the 14th Anglican Consultative Council meeting being held in Jamaica make for depressing reading. ‘Assume incompetence rather than malevolence’, the old saying goes. That is becoming harder and harder to do, even for the optimists amongst us.
The intervention of the Archbishop of Canterbury at crucial points to serve the interests of TEC and its presiding bishop and to thwart the attempts to bring real accountability to bear on those who have abandoned the teaching of Scripture and are pursuing the property of faithful Anglicans through the courts, undermines any suggestion that he is providing genuine leadership at this crucial time. The activities of other officials from the Anglican Communion Office were even more openly serving the revisionist agenda. …”
Plus this report from Canon Phil Ashey in 2012 –
A Report from the Anglican Consultative Council meeting in Auckland:
“In terms of what schemes seem to be emerging, I would respectfully suggest the following as a ‘pincer’ movement that ACC/ACO is going to place upon confessing Anglicans:
1. Through Continuing Indaba dialogue and stories, bolstered by the work of the BILC resources, Biblical interpretation of human sexuality and its limits will be rendered value-neutral with no limits on Biblical interpretation within the Communion. Lambeth 1.10 will be declared in effect non-binding;
2. Then, through the new Code of Conduct and the Safe Church resolution, any objection to sexual expressions that are not Biblical will be deemed ‘harassment,’ chilling any speech and bringing consequences to those who, in Anglican communion meetings, dare to raise the subject.
I pray I am mistaken, but that is my best look into the future. …”
– and many other posts on our website.
Letter to GAFCON Primates from Anglican Consultative Council Secretary General
George Conger at Anglican Ink has published the letter from Dr Josiah Idowu-Fearon, Secretary General of the Anglican Consultative Council, to the GAFCON Primates – dated 13th June 2018.
“I am persuaded to write to you all, as members of the Primates’ Meeting and therefore and one of the four instruments that make up the smooth running of our Communion of Churches, about this month’s letter from the Chairman of GAFCON. …”
– The full letter may be read here (PDF), courtesy of Anglican Ink.
Related:
- GAFCON Chairman’s June 2018 Letter – GAFCON.
- Response to the ACC Secretary General’s Criticism of Gafcon’s Ministry Networks – 21 June 2018.
- Which is the Real Josiah Fearon? – David Ould.
Anglican Consultative Council declines to go along with ‘consequences’
“An April 18 Anglican Consultative Council marathon resolution-passing session saw ACC members take stands on climate change, gender justice, safe church environments, youth involvement in the communion, solidarity with persecuted people, and interfaith and ecumenical relations, among other issues.
And the council declined to endorse or take any action similar to the primates’ call in January for three years of so-called “consequences” for the Episcopal Church…”
– A sadly unsurprising decision by the Anglican Consultative Council – via The Episcopal News Service. (Related: Genesis 3:4.)
What is the Anglican Consultative Council meeting for?
“The Archbishop of Canterbury has written to urge all Anglican primates to attend the Anglican Consultative Council in Lusaka from April 8-19.
The primates of Nigeria, Kenya and Uganda have indicated that their representatives cannot attend because the spirit of the Primates Meeting in Canterbury, which introduced consequences for TEC and its participation in Communion decision-making on doctrine and polity, appears to be being overridden or ignored. …
Kenya and Nigeria were very gracious in trusting the conversations at Canterbury and the decisions made there. They now suspect that they were misled.
Lusaka is not the place to sort out church polity, unity, doctrine or matters of sexuality. Those are the callings of the primates meeting and the Lambeth conference of Bishops.”
– Chris Sugden writes for The Church of England Newspaper. Via Anglican Mainstream.
A Report from the Anglican Consultative Council meeting in Auckland
Canon Phil Ashey reports from what he sees as an “intensively stage managed and choreographed” meeting of the Anglican Consultative Council.
Canon Ashey is Chief Operating and Development Officer of the American Anglican Council.
Here’s his conclusion:
“In terms of what schemes seem to be emerging, I would respectfully suggest the following as a “pincer” movement that ACC/ACO is going to place upon confessing Anglicans:
1. Through Continuing Indaba dialogue and stories, bolstered by the work of the BILC resources, Biblical interpretation of human sexuality and its limits will be rendered value-neutral with no limits on Biblical interpretation within the Communion. Lambeth 1.10 will be declared in effect non-binding;
2. Then, through the new Code of Conduct and the Safe Church resolution, any objection to sexual expressions that are not Biblical will be deemed “harassment,” chilling any speech and bringing consequences to those who, in Anglican communion meetings, dare to raise the subject.”
Read his full report to see why – Read more
Time to remove Canterbury as the guardian of the entrance door to the Anglican Communion?
From Church Society:
Canterbury and the Future of the Anglican Communion
Two crucial Anglican gatherings take place in the next few weeks. First in Rome (29 April to 2 May), a gathering of the Anglican Primates, called together by the Archbishop of Canterbury. Soon afterwards, in Cairo (11 to 15 June), a gathering of the Global South Fellowship of Anglican Churches, for their inaugural assembly. High on the agenda at both meetings will be the future structures of the Anglican Communion. But twelve Primates from the Global South Fellowship have already publicly rejected the current Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, as leader of the Communion. It remains to be seen whether any of these twelve will be present in Rome. Several younger Anglican provinces, like Chile (founded in 2018) and Alexandria (founded in 2020), have begun the process of deleting Canterbury from their constitutions. Other Global South provinces will soon follow suit.
Yet in our Anglican polity, to be “in communion with the See of Canterbury” is often viewed as an essential part of Anglican identity. For example, in the controversy over the failed “Anglican Covenant” proposals, the Church Times declared: “Communion with the see of Canterbury has always been the defining feature of what it means to be an Anglican”. Likewise, Paul Avis asserts in his popular textbook, The Identity of Anglicanism: Essentials of Anglican Ecclesiology (2008): “The litmus-test of membership of the Anglican Communion is to be in communion with the See of Canterbury.” Avis goes so far as to call it “the ultimate criterion”.
Almost a century ago, the 1930 Lambeth Conference include the phrase, “in communion with the See of Canterbury”, as part of its famous description of the Anglican Communion (Resolution 49). This idea has cascaded down the generations and still holds sway in the 2020s. But its origins and contested meaning are interrogated in a new article in the Spring 2024 edition of The Global Anglican, written by Andrew Atherstone, an Oxford historian and member of the Anglican Consultative Council (one of the four so-called “instruments of Communion”). He argues that our Anglican textbooks should be re-written, and that the time has come for Canterbury to be removed as the guardian of the entrance door to the Anglican Communion. …
Church Society has made Andrew Atherstone’s article available for free download as a PDF file. Well worth reading and pondering.
(Emphasis added.)
The Kigali Commitment — GAFCON IV Conference Statement — resetting the Anglican Communion on its biblical foundations.
The Kigali Commitment –
Released on the final day of GAFCON IV, 21 April 2023
PDF version here. Or full text below:
(Also available in Swahili, French, Spanish and Portuguese.)
What next for the Anglican Communion & Church of England – with Dr Peter Jensen
In this week’s The Pastor’s Heart, Dominic Steele speaks with Dr Peter Jensen, former General Secretary of the GAFCON movement and former Archbishop of Sydney.
There is deep sadness over what has happened.
“This has been, and is, the decisive moment,” he says.
Mentioned in the conversation is the Anglican Consultative Council meeting in Acra, Ghana. Here are videos of
Welby proposes pulling Canterbury out of Anglican instruments of communion
“The Archbishop of Canterbury will surrender his authority as first among equals among the primates of the Anglican Communion in light of the General Synod of the Church of England’s adoption of gay blessings.
Speaking to the opening ceremony of the Anglican Consultative Council meeting in Accra, Ghana on 12 February 2023, the Most Rev. Justin Welby stated ‘I will not cling to place or position as an Instrument of Communion.’
His concession comes the day before 12 of the primates affiliated with the Global South Fellowship of Anglicans meet to offer a united response to last week’s vote in General Synod. The decision to introduce same-sex blessings, without seeking a Scriptural or theological foundation for the decision, or respecting the church’s agreements with other Anglican provinces has prompted the largest provinces: Nigeria, Rwanda, Uganda, and Kenya to break fellowship. …”
– Is the Archbishop of Canterbury offering to jump before he is pushed? George Conger has this report at Anglican.ink.
Photo credit: Jaqui J Sze, Archbishop of Canterbury’s office.
The Anglican Church in Brazil and the Anglican Communion
GAFCON General Secretary, Dr. Peter Jensen, has responded to a claim that the new Anglican Church in Brazil is not authentically a part of the Anglican Communion:
“Of course the new Anglican Church in Brazil is an authentic part of the Anglican Communion.”
Why say that? Read his full statement below, dated 25 May 2018 –
“In the London Church Times (18th May 2018), Bishop Josiah Idowu-Fearon, the Secretary General of the Anglican Consultative Council claimed that Gafcon had been ‘inaccurate’ in describing the newly formed Anglican Church in Brazil as part of the Anglican Communion and claimed that “To be part of the Anglican Communion requires being in communion with the see of Canterbury, which this Church is not.”
Here lies the difference between mere institutionalism and spiritual reality.
The basic reason why there is a division amongst the Anglicans of Brazil is because the Episcopal Church of Brazil has departed from the teaching of Scripture, and hence from Anglican teaching, concerning sex and marriage. The division is not over a matter of church politics or personal ambition. It is a matter of the fundamentals of the faith, of what makes a true church, of the authority of God’s word.
In 2005, the Diocese of Recife withdrew from the existing Church body over this issue. In so doing it was being true to Scripture and to the overwhelming majority view of the Communion’s Bishops as expressed in Lambeth 1.10 of 1998. In 2016, after court cases, it had to surrender much of its property. And yet, under God, the Diocese continues, grows and is now in a position to become a Province, with several Dioceses.
Throughout this period, orthodox Bishops (such as Archbishop Greg Venables of South America) upheld the Diocese and supported it and ministered within it. Because this was an issue of basic theology, the Gafcon movement recognised the Diocese and arranged for the consecration of the present Archbishop. Gafcon held on to faithful Anglican Christians whose ‘fault’ was merely that they were accepting biblical and Anglican teaching. Gafcon holds the Communion together while we wait to see if other instruments of the Communion will do what is right.
The Gafcon Primates Council was not mistaken in recognising the Anglican Church in Brazil as a Province of the Anglican Communion. This step has also been supported by leaders of the Anglican Global South. This also is a recognition of spiritual reality.
Communion with the see of Canterbury used to be a welcome, useful and easily understood way of describing the Anglican Communion. But with leadership comes responsibility. So far, the recent Archbishops of Canterbury have not used the power of their office either to discipline those who have created disorder and threatened the basis of our faith, or to reach out the right hand of fellowship to those who have stood firm.
The institution has triumphed while faithful Anglicans are disaffiliated and deprived.
It was this failure that our 2008 Jerusalem Statement and Declaration faced when it was affirmed that ‘While acknowledging the nature of Canterbury as an historic see, we do not accept that Anglican identity is determined necessarily through recognition by the Archbishop of Canterbury.’ The only justification for the continued pre-eminence of the see of Canterbury would be if it serves the apostolic gospel. At present it is not doing so effectively. Again, the Jerusalem Statement and Declaration brings the problem into focus when it claimed ‘We can only come to the devastating conclusion that we are a global Communion with a colonial structure’.
Of course the new Anglican Church in Brazil is an authentic part of the Anglican Communion. It is not a matter of recognition by Canterbury. But, like the Anglican Church in North America (ACNA), the Brazilians invite Canterbury to recognise spiritual reality, and to use its influence to help align the old instrument of the Anglican Communion with the spiritual reality and new growth of the Communion. Will this happen?”
– Source: GAFCON. (Emphasis added in the pull-quote at top.)
Who decides membership in the Anglican Communion? Not the Secretary General of the ACC!
“It is simply not true to say that ACNA is part of the Anglican Communion,” he [Idowu-Fearon] said. “To be part of the Communion, a province needs to be in communion with the See of Canterbury and to be a member of the Instruments of the Communion. ACNA is not in communion with the See of Canterbury—and has not sought membership of the Instruments.” Idowu-Fearon added that “There is a long-standing process by which a province is adopted as a province of the Communion… ACNA has not gone through this process.” <http://www.anglicanjournal.com/articles/acna-not-province-anglican-communion-secretary-general-clarifies/> Accessed 13 Sep 2017.
The Secretary General’s statement that The Anglican Church in North America (ACNA) is not a province of the Anglican Communion is misleading at best.
It ignores the very process of recognition of the Anglican Church in North America by some GAFCON provinces as early as July 2009.
It ignores the public and published recognition of Archbishop Foley Beach as “a fellow Primate of the Anglican Communion” by those Primates of the Anglican Communion who installed him as the second Archbishop of the Anglican Church in North America on October 9, 2014.
The Secretary General ignores the recognition of the Anglican Church in North America as a “partner province” of the Global South by the Primates of the Global South in their October 2016 Communique. …”
– Canon Phil Ashey, President of the American Anglican Council, challenges a declaration by the Secretary General of the Anglican Consultative Council.
‘Secretary General of the Anglican Communion rebukes Nigerian primate for boycotting meeting’
“Archbishop Josiah Idowu-Fearon, Secretary General of the Anglican Communion has told Premier it is “sad” that the leader of Anglicans in Nigeria has decided to not attend a meeting called by The Archbishop of Canterbury, Most Rev Justin Welby.
The meeting scheduled for next month in Canterbury is for the Primates from the 39 provinces.
But Most Rev Nicholas Okoh Primate of All Nigeria has refused to attend because of what he deems as a lack of progress on the issue of sexuality.
The last meeting of its kind was in January 2016 where there was much disagreement about the Church’s view on sexuality.
Archbishop Josiah disagrees with the primate’s stance.
He told Premier: “At their meeting in January 2016 the Primates agreed to walk together.
“The primate of Nigeria was present at that meeting. In effect, he is now reneging on this decision which is very sad. …”
– Report from Premier UK. Photo: Abps Justin Welby and Josiah Idowu-Fearon.
However, Archbishop Okoh’s reasons are much more serious: (emphasis added)
“The only difference between the present and 2008, when Gafcon was formed, is that we have a different Archbishop of Canterbury. Everything else is the same or worse.”
“I attended the Canterbury Primates Meeting held in January 2016 because I believed it might be possible to make a new start and change the pattern of repeated failure to preserve the integrity of Anglican faith and order. I was disappointed.
The Anglican Consultative Council meeting in Lusaka the following April neutered the Primates’ action to distance The Episcopal Church of the United States (TEC) from Communion decision making. TEC has not repented, and continues to take aggressive legal action against orthodox dioceses. For example, the congregations of the Diocese of San Joaquin are currently having to turn over their places of worship to TEC, which has no realistic plan for filling them with worshippers. At the same time, the Diocese of South Carolina is now facing the potential loss of many of its historic buildings.
My disappointment was shared by the other Global South Primates who gathered in Cairo last October and we concluded in our communiqué that the ‘Instruments of Communion’ (which include the Primates Meeting of course) are “unable to sustain the common life and unity of the Anglican Churches worldwide” and do actually help to undermine global mission.
The only difference between the present and 2008, when Gafcon was formed, is that we have a different Archbishop of Canterbury. Everything else is the same or worse. There is endless debate, the will of the orthodox Primates is frustrated and misrepresented, false teaching is not being corrected, and nothing is being done to halt orthodox Anglicans in North America (and maybe soon elsewhere) being stripped of the churches that have helped form their spiritual lives.
In these circumstances, I have concluded that attendance at Canterbury would be to give credibility to a pattern of behaviour which is allowing great damage to be done to global Anglican witness and unity. Our energies in the Church of Nigeria will be devoted to what is full of hope and promise for the future, not to the repetition of failure. …”
– Read all of his Pastoral Letter for September 2017.
GAFCON Primates’ Council Communiqué April 2016
The GAFCON Primates have released this Communiqué after their meeting in Nairobi this week.
“We are a global family of authentic Anglicans standing together to retain and restore the Bible to the heart of the Anglican Communion. Please continue to pray for our global Anglican future.”
Be sure to read the Appendix too.
_______________
Primates’ Council Communiqué
April 22, 2016 – Nairobi, Kenya
Introduction
We the Primates of the Global Anglican Future Conference met in Nairobi, Kenya from April 18-21, 2016. We give thanks for the gracious hospitality of the Anglican Church of Kenya, their Primate, the Most Rev. Eliud Wabukala, and All Saints Cathedral Diocese. As the location for GAFCON 2013, All Saints holds a special place in our history and in our hearts, and we have been encouraged to be here again.
We began our meeting with prayer and a Bible study that focused on Mark 2:1-12. In this passage, the Scriptures retell the story of a man who could not walk, but was assisted by friends who helped bring him to Jesus. Unable to get their friend through the front door, they loved him enough to find another way.
It is a story about the grace of God at work both in the power of fellowship and the merciful love of Jesus. We ourselves have received His forgiveness, and because He first loved us, we are passionate about doing all that we can to bring others into a saving relationship with Jesus Christ. We met this week to find practical ways of removing obstacles so that all those who need healing can be brought close to Jesus, be forgiven of their sins, and walk again.
Mission and Discipleship
GAFCON works to guard and proclaim the unchanging, transforming Gospel through biblically faithful preaching, teaching, and programs which free our churches to make disciples by clear and certain witness to Jesus Christ in all the world.
This week we made progress on a wide variety of initiatives to build up the body of Christ. We planned for GAFCON 2018, approved a program that will facilitate bishops’ training, received good news from our provinces and branches, added staff to further the ministry, and made a transition in Primatial leadership. We have also paid careful attention to the facts that have arisen from the Anglican Consultative Council’s meeting in Lusaka.
GAFCON 2018
As a global family we are continuing to make preparations for GAFCON 2018. This will be the third conference since our founding, and the ten year anniversary of the Jerusalem Declaration. The GAFCON movement uniquely draws together the majority of the world’s Anglicans, both clergy and laity, into one proportional and representative body.
We are excited to gather for worship that represents the breadth of the Anglican Communion, as we come together under the authority of the Bible. The conference will provide teaching from God’s Word, fellowship that spans continents, break-out sessions that teach on the themes of mission, discipleship, and evangelism, especially in places where persecution is rife.
It is our hope and prayer that disciples will be so inspired by the vision of the glory of God among the nations, that the Church will be revived and joyously released to spread the love of Jesus.
A coordinator has been appointed to take this work forward, a planning team is being formed, and more will be shared in the coming months.
Bishops’ Training
The Bishops’ Training Institute, launching in September 2016, will equip bishops to be men of prayer, diligent in Bible study and godliness. The inaugural class will bring together twenty new bishops from across the world. Its vision and mission is to equip today’s bishops for effective ministry by seeking the wisdom of the whole church, and especially senior bishops. It will gather, train, mentor, challenge, and sustain episcopal leadership so that today’s bishops will be empowered to live for Christ and make Him known.
Growth
We give thanks for the continued growth of GAFCON. Our meeting included representatives from ten provinces (Congo, Kenya, Myanmar, Nigeria, North America, Rwanda, South America, South Sudan & Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda) and two branches (Australia and the United Kingdom).
We also celebrated the newest branch of the movement that has been founded in New Zealand. While we were meeting in Nairobi, 500 people came together in Auckland and Christ Church, New Zealand to stand together for the truth of the Gospel. They have our full support, and we are excited to see what God will do in and through them in the years to come.
Staffing the Movement
GAFCON has demonstrated that it is a growing movement that now requires more staff to undergird its development. Mr. James Stileman has been appointed as our Operations Manager to work with the General Secretary, the Most Rev. Peter Jensen, in growing GAFCON’s capacity to serve the movement. The Rev. Canon Charles Raven is heading a new office of Membership Development, and will be working to increase and strengthen GAFCON’s branches and provinces. Ms. Tina de Souza has joined us to head our Communications Department, and she has overseen the development of our website and overall communications strategy. We welcome this team, and give thanks for their dedication to the cause of Christ.
Leadership
We also give thanks for the wise and faithful leadership of the Most Rev. Eliud Wabukala, as his term as our Chairman comes to an end. His six years of service came at a critical time in the life of our movement, and he has put us on a good footing as we enter this next chapter of our life together.
We are excited to announce that the new chairman of the Primates’ Council is the Most Rev. Nicholas Okoh, Primate of the Anglican Church of All Nigeria. He is joined in leadership by the new vice-chair, the Most Rev. Stanley Ntagali, Primate of the Anglican Church of Uganda. Archbishops Okoh and Ntagali have been deeply committed to the GAFCON movement since its founding, and are well prepared to lead.
Canterbury to Lusaka
We went to Canterbury out of a desire for unity. In our hearts we desire to see the tear in the fabric of the communion mended. The sanctions passed at that meeting were the mildest possible rebuke to only the worst of the offenders, but they were one step in the right direction. Regrettably, these sanctions have not been upheld. This is disappointing, but sadly not surprising. A more comprehensive statement appears in the appendix to this document.
Conclusion
This is an important time in the life of our churches. The grassroots outpouring of messages of support has shown the strength of our movement, and we are deeply thankful for the prayers of our laity and clergy over the last few months. We are a global family of authentic Anglicans standing together to retain and restore the Bible to the heart of the Anglican Communion. Please continue to pray for our global Anglican future.
Members of the Primates’ Council Present
The Anglican Church of Kenya
The Most Rev. Eliud Wabukala
Anglican Church of All Nigeria
The Most Rev. Nicholas Okoh
Anglican Church in North America
The Most Rev. Foley Beach
Province de L’Eglise Anglicane au Rwanda
The Most Rev. Onesphore Rwaje
The Anglican Church of Tanzania
The Most Rev. Jacob Chimeledya
The Church of the Province of Uganda
The Most Rev. Stanley Ntagali
Appendix: From Canterbury to Lusaka
Last January, we spent time together at the Primates Gathering contending for a restoration of godly order within the Anglican Communion. The sanctions passed at that meeting were not in themselves capable of restoring order, but they were a potential first step.
At that meeting, we acknowledged the reality of the “significant distance” between us and “expressed a desire to walk together” if possible. This distance was created when The Episcopal Church walked away from the Anglican Communion’s doctrine on sexuality and the plain teaching of Scripture.
Within hours of the meeting’s end the public responses from many bishops, clergy, and lay people of The Episcopal Church made it clear that they did not desire to share the same journey. The biblical call to repentance is a call to make a 180 degree turn. It grieves us that many in The Episcopal Church have again rejected this call. While we desire to walk together, until there is true repentance, the reality is that they are deliberately walking away from the Anglican Communion and the authority of Scripture at a distance that continues to increase.
The recent meeting of the Anglican Consultative Council in Lusaka, Zambia has again highlighted the inability of the current instruments to uphold godly order within the Communion. Delegates from the Episcopal Church, by their own admission, voted on matters that pertained to polity and doctrine, in defiance of the Primates. This action has damaged the standing of the Anglican Consultative Council as an instrument of unity, increased levels of distrust, and further torn the fabric of the Communion.
Nonetheless, we give thanks that these events have brought further clarity, and drawn GAFCON closer together in the mission of the Gospel. We are of one mind that the future of the Anglican Communion does not lie with manipulations, compromises, legal loopholes, or the presentation of half-truths; the future of our Communion lies in humble obedience to the truth of the Word of God written. What others have failed to do, GAFCON is doing: enabling global fellowship and godly order, united by biblical faithfulness. This unity has provided us with great energy to continue to work for the renewal of the Anglican Communion.
____________
from GAFCON. Photo: GAFCON.
Anglican Church of Kenya will not take part in the ACC meeting in Lusaka
To the Bishops, Clergy and all the Faithful of the Anglican Church of Kenya
from the Most Rev’d Dr Eliud Wabukala, Primate of Kenya and Bishop, All Saints Cathedral Diocese Nairobi
Statement on Anglican Consultative Council 16, Lusaka
Greetings in the precious name of our Lord Jesus Christ!
I am deeply committed to the unity and restoration of our beloved Anglican Communion. It was for this reason that I and brother Primates from GAFCON and other orthodox provinces were willing to accept the Archbishop of Canterbury’s invitation to a meeting of Primates in Canterbury earlier this year, despite the representation of Provinces with which the Anglican Church of Kenya is in a state of broken communion.
It seemed that this might be an opportunity to restore godly faith and order and, although the resolution agreed by an overwhelming majority of those present was not all we hoped for, it sent a powerful message around the world that the collective mind of the Communion was to remain faithful to the Scriptures and God’s purpose for man and woman in marriage.
In particular, the Episcopal Church in the United States (TEC) was required to withdraw its representatives from groups representing the Anglican Communion ecumenically and it was agreed that TEC should not participate in votes on doctrine and polity in the Communion’s institutions.
However, the Presiding Bishop of TEC has made it clear that his Church will not think again about same sex ‘marriage’ and he expects his Church to play a full part in next month’s Anglican Consultative Council (ACC) meeting in Lusaka. This defiance of the Primates’ moral and spiritual authority has been supported by the Chairman of the ACC, Bishop Tengatenga, who has confirmed that TEC will participate fully.
There can be no true walking together with those who persistently refuse to walk in accordance with God’s Word and the Anglican Church of Kenya will not therefore be participating in the forthcoming meeting of the ACC in Lusaka.
An opportunity has been missed to use the ACC for good and it is increasingly clear that the GAFCON movement must continue to provide a focus for that godly unity so many of us desire.
via GAFCON.
What we believe
The message at the heart of Christianity is really quite simple…