Gafcon Stands with the Alliance
Here’s a press release from the Chairman of Gafcon, 16 July 2024:
With faithful Anglicans around the globe, including Gafcon and GSFA Provinces, we grieve that our Mother Church, the Church of England, has abandoned her children who wish to uphold the teaching of our Lord Jesus Christ on marriage and his apostle’s clear denunciation of all forms of sexual immorality.
The recent decision of the General Synod to approve the use of prayers of blessing for same-sex couples is to bless what God does not bless, and is nothing less than prayers which sanctify sin.
In answer to a question asked at General Synod (Q52), which requested assurance that such prayers were not a departure from the doctrine of the Church, the Bishop of Leicester replied that they did ‘not involve any departure from doctrine in “any essential matter”.’ Yet the apostle Paul indicates quite clearly that those who engage in sexual immorality, including homosexual acts, will not inherit the kingdom of God (1 Corinthians 6:9-10; Ephesians 5:3-5), for on accounts of such behaviour, the wrath of God is coming (Colossians 3:5-7; Revelation 22:15). How can any bishop, let alone the majority of the House of Bishops claim that sexual immorality is not an ‘essential matter’ of doctrine when it affects one’s salvation?
Like the Pharisees of old, they incur the same judgment of Jesus that they are blind guides, who will be uprooted, for they refuse to believe that sexual immorality defiles a person (Matthew 15:10-20).
Gafcon provinces stand with the members of the Alliance who desire a third province in the Church of England, and who recently commissioned overseers to provide pastoral care for those who are in impaired communion with their bishops. We endorse these developments. While we recognise the legal complexities of the Church of England, we support the creation of a third province for those who wish to remain in the Established Church. While we have already made provision for the Anglican Network in Europe, which includes three biblically orthodox dioceses operating in England and Europe, Gafcon supports all faithful Anglicans, whether they choose to stay and provide a witness to the truth in their home church, or whether they wish to leave for the sake of conscience. Wherever faithful Anglicans find themselves, Gafcon is ready to support, encourage and defend them—they are not alone.
The Most Revd. Dr. Laurent Mbanda
Chairman of the Gafcon Primates Council
Archbishop & Primate of Rwanda (EAR)
Bishop of Gasabo.
– Also published at the Gafcon website.
Roadmap for a reset communion — with Paul Donison and Glenn Davies
From The Pastor’s Heart:
“The chair of Gafcon Laurent Mbunda and chair of Global South Justin Badi Arama are to meet to work out a roadmap for the resetting of the Anglican Communion.
Global South Anglicans have endorsed the Former Sydney Archbishop Glenn Davies call for the communion to be reset on biblical foundations. The Global South have called on their Primates to work with the GAFCON Primates Council and other Orthodox leaders to reset the communion on its biblical foundations as a matter of urgency.
In other Anglican news:
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The Church of England General Synod is meeting in York. They are considering whether to press go to move towards the next stage of endorsing their bishops’ proposals for same sex blessing. Orthodox Anglicans united under a banner called The Alliance are calling for structural differentiation in England (essentially a new province). The Bishop of Oxford has hit back telling The Alliance to take a running jump.
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Orthodox Anglicans from across Australasia gathered in Brisbane last week. New daughter churches are being planted within the fledging diocese of the Southern Cross.
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A new Archbishop appointed to lead the Anglican Church of North America. Steve Wood will replace Foley Beach.
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A collective meeting of orthodox leaders in Cairo has met for a week on ways that faithful christians might be able to reset the Communion. The Global South Anglicans met in Cairo the week before that and voted to call for the chair of the Global South Justin Badi Arama to work with the chair of Gafcon to reset the communion.
Our guests are new General Secretary of Gafcon Paul Donison and new Bishop of the Diocese of the Southern Cross (and former Archbishop of Sydney) Glenn Davies.”
– Dominic Steele speaks with Bishops Paul Donison and Glenn Davies.
- Strong words for the Church of England Bishops from Bishop Davies.
- Bishop Donison reminds us of what happened in the Diocese of New Westminster and then in The Episcopal Church.
- Encouraging news from last week’s GAFCON Australia conference.
A prayer to Global Anglicans from Brisbane
“The Building the Future Conference began its final day being led in prayer by the young people who were part of the Future Leaders program.
The young people took the stage to lead the session and then broke the adults into groups, each around a ‘future leader’. …”
– from Russell Powell at SydneyAnglicans.net.
See also:
The Brisbane Collects – GAFCON Australia:
“The 2024 Gafcon Australasia Conference concluded today with the launch of not one, but three, Brisbane Collects. The prayers were drafted this week with input and responses from all delegates. Together, The Brisbane Collects address our Lord, petition our Lord and express trust in our Lord who will answer these requests according to his will. …”
GAFCON Australasia Conference 2024 underway
“Starting with a children’s song and an Anglican confession in a large Baptist auditorium in Brisbane before an audience of people from across Australia, guests from the Pacific and South East Asia and including sixty under 18s, signals the comprehensiveness of GAFCON Australasia’s second conference. …”
– The GAFCON Australasia Conference is underway, and Russell Powell has this report.
Bishop Stephen Hale’s EFAC Global message after the GFSA Conference
“Message from Bishop Stephen Hale, Chairman of EFAC Executive Committee
Greetings in the name of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.
This EFAC Global report has been written while I’ve been in Cairo participating in the Orthodox Leaders Meeting (AOL) organised by the GSFA and GAFCON Global. It is a new meeting that arose out of the Ash Wednesday Declaration of the GSFA in 2023 and the Kigali Commitment also in 2023. Its purpose is to connect the Primates with the many mission partners and groupings who are involved in conversations about resetting the Anglican Communion. A Statement from this meeting will be issued in due course.
The background to all of this for EFAC Global is a remarkable journey from the Lambeth Conference in 2022 to today. …”
– Read it all, via Anglican Mainstream.
GSFA, ACNA, and the Future of Conservative Anglicanism
“The 176 delegates, observers, and invited guests who gathered for the First Assembly of the Global South Fellowship of Anglican Churches (GSFA) on June 11 in the Egyptian desert surely brought a variety of hopes with them.
Some had been working on what is now called the GSFA’s Covenantal Structure for nearly a decade, and were excited to see the body finally convene and elect its leaders. For them, these are crucial steps in building the kind of institution the Anglican Communion hasn’t been in a long time, a body that acts like a global church, standing firm against false teaching and binding its members in mutual submission and common order. …“
– This report, by Mark Michael at The Living Church, is one perspective on what happened at the GSFA Assembly. (We’ll post links to other reports if they come to hand.)
Click here for the full size version of the Assembly group photo, courtesy of GSFA via The American Anglican Council.
Report from Global Assembly of Global South Fellowship of Anglicans, Egypt
From the American Anglican Council’s Canon Phil Ashey:
“Dear friends in Christ,
I am writing from the St. Mark’s Coptic Monastery in Khataba, Egypt, where almost 200 delegates from 11 Anglican Provinces, 3 ‘Provinces-in-formation’ duly constituted by Gafcon and recognized as such by the GSFA, and numerous mission agencies from over 40 countries are gathering for the first Global Assembly of the Global South Fellowship of Anglicans (GSFA). This Global Assembly marks an historic ‘reset’ of the Anglican Communion with regards to:
1. What Anglicans believe (a common confession of faith based on Biblical faith, Apostolic tradition and the Anglican formularies);
2. A true and genuine Communion of Anglican Churches based upon covenantal structures that provide clear and fair criteria for membership– with mutual accountability and discipline within the boundaries of Reformational Anglicanism; and
3. A passionate commitment to Christ’s Great Commission to make disciples of all nations (Matt. 28:16-20) – undeterred by false teaching – through mission partnerships that will enable Anglicans to proclaim Christ faithfully to all nations…”
– e-mail, via Anglican Mainstream.
How should we respond to the world as we now find it?
The Anglican Diocese of the Living Word’s Missions Conference and Synod was held in Pennsylvania over the last few days.
Dr. Carl Trueman was the invited speaker.
In his first talk, he focussed on the underlying things that shape the way we think today. Starting at 5:35.
In his second talk, Dr. Trueman speaks of the three things the church has to do in our present context. That address starts at 34:12.
(Prior to his address, Gafcon General Secretary Bishop Paul Donison is interviewed from 18:18.)
The previous night, the Rev. Yoel Ben David gave his testimony of conversion from Judaism.
At the start of the Conference, Bishop Julian Dobbs gave this address. This, alone, is well worth hearing.
The videos are available with thanks to Anglican TV.
Joyful unity, diversity and gospel growth — Press Release from the Anglican Network in Europe
Here’s a Press Release from the Anglican Network in Europe:
The Anglican Missionary Congregations (AMC) becomes the third diocese to join the Anglican Network in Europe
The Anglican Network in Europe (ANiE) is delighted to announce that on 23rd May 2024, its Synod voted to welcome the Anglican Missionary Congregations (AMC) to join the emerging province.
Bishop Andy Lines, Presiding Bishop of ANiE, said, “It is a great thrill to me that Synod joyfully and overwhelmingly approved the accession of the Anglican Missionary Congregations as a third diocese after an open and constructive debate.”
This has taken place after many months of prayerful liaison and detailed discussion between the leadership of ANiE and AMC and is a witness to the unity that the gospel brings across the variety of human cultures.
AMC has grown from a single Nigerian diaspora congregation in Manchester to 35 congregations all over the UK and some parts of Europe, served by 52 self-supporting clergy.
AMC’s lead missioner, Venerable Dr Gideon Chukwudalu Ilechukwu said, “We are grateful to the Lord for what he has done in making it possible for us to be accepted as a Diocese in Gafcon’s Anglican Network in Europe. We are also grateful to the Most Reverend Dr Henry Ndukuba, Primate of All Nigeria, with whose blessings we got to this place. We are excited to be part of ANiE and we look forward to our ministry together in this family of believers in Christ. Europe needs the Lord and together as a team we will till this field by his grace.”
ANiE believes the different gifts and cultures of each Diocese and its members will contribute to the faithful proclamation of Christ to the nations of Europe and will work together powerfully for the furtherance of God’s kingdom. We trust that through this partnership “God’s multi-faceted wisdom may now be made known through the church to the rulers and authorities in the heavens.” (Ephesians 3:10, CSB).
Note: Further details on a service to celebrate the inauguration of the diocese and the election and consecration of a diocesan bishop will be announced in due course.
The Anglican Network in Europe (ANiE) is the provision of the Primates’ Council of Gafcon (representing the vast majority of the Anglican Communion) to provide a faithful ecclesial structure for orthodox Anglicans within Europe.
ANiE now comprises three dioceses: The Anglican Convocation in Europe (ACE), The Anglican Mission in England (AMiE), and The Anglican Missionary Congregations (AMC).
Also published at the ANiE website.
Following in Faith: The Good Shepherd Leads Global Anglicans
“Many global Anglicans face a challenging question: whether and when to join the Gafcon movement.
In this second conversation, Philip de Grey-Warter explains when and why he connected with Gafcon. Such decisions, complex and often costly, rightly begin in prayer, and Philip encourages church leaders to find comfort in their simple obedience to God.
When we follow the Good Shepherd, God will provide the support we need: friends, fellow leaders, genuine spiritual oversight, and strength in the gospel.”
– In the latest Global Anglican Podcast, Gafcon General Secretary Bishop Paul Donison continues his conversation with the Rev. Philip de Grey-Warter.
Update on the Worldwide Anglican Communion from Bp Jay Behan
“The upcoming Global South Fellowship of Anglicans (GSFA) meeting in Cairo is being held from 11-15 June, and I will attend.
Its purpose is to gather orthodox Anglican leaders from around the world who are committed to a new covenantal structure to unite Anglicans worldwide in mission and ministry. …”
– In a recent e-mail update from the Church of Confessing Anglicans Aotearoa NZ, Bishop Jay Behan commends Archbishop Laurent Mbanda’s GAFCON Response to the Primates meeting in Rome, and explains why he will attend the GSFA meeting in Cairo.
You Are Not Alone: Standing with the Global Faithful
“Standing up for the authority of Scripture begins in loving obedience to the Lord and all the roles he has given us to play.
For the Revd Philip de Grey-Warter, a Gafcon leader in the UK who stepped out in faith from the Church of England, his joy is evident as he serves first his family and parish, and also gives generously of his time to the growing global fellowship of orthodox Anglicans.
Philip tells how Gafcon has given many worldwide Anglicans a renewed sense of belonging, and he encourages those among us who feel isolated to reach out and serve.”
– Episode 5 of Gafcon’s Global Anglican Podcast has just been released. Gafcon General Secretary Bishop Paul Donison speaks with the Rev. Philip de Grey-Warter.
Very encouraging, and food for your prayers for the faithful – both those who remain in the Church of England, and those who have stepped out and found support and fellowship through Gafcon.
A Response to the Primates Meeting in Rome
Archbishop Dr. Laurent Mbanda, Chairman of the Gafcon Primates Council, has released this response, 6 May 2024:
“To my dear Anglican brothers and sisters contending for the faith once delivered to the saints,
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Last week, at the invitation of the Archbishop of Canterbury, 32 Primates of the Anglican Communion gathered in Rome to meet with one another and to hold a private audience with Pope Francis. In their Communiqué, published on May 2, they highlighted the pope’s admonition to them to “embrace our disagreements without fear” and issued their own call “to mutual respect and accompaniment with one another.” They also expressed their own renewed commitment to “make every effort to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.”
As the Communiqué itself acknowledges, however, multiple Anglican Primates did not attend the gathering. To be specific, 12 primates did not attend this meeting in Rome, which means that those who did attend represented 30 of the 42 recognized provinces of the Anglican Communion. Such numbers are misleading, however, since the Primates of the three largest Anglican provinces (Nigeria, Uganda, and South Sudan) were among those absent. Those Primates who did attend represent a minority, perhaps 30%, of active Anglicans worldwide. The Communiqué makes no mention of how unrepresentative a gathering this meeting was, nor does it explain the reason that multiple Primates declined the invitation to participate.
The truth is that most of those who refused to attend are leaders of Gafcon and the Global South, and our absence was not accidental, but intentional. Though we do pray for the unity and health of the Anglican Communion, we chose not to attend because, as last year’s Kigali Statement made clear, the current divisions within the Anglican Communion are neither minimal nor new. These divisions have arisen from more than 25 years of “repeated departures from the authority of God’s Word” that, despite the persistent warnings given by the majority of Anglican Primates, have continued unabated.
We know how dear the unity of the church is to the heart of our Lord. For it is he who prays to his Father that we might be one, even as he and the Father are one (John 17:21). At the same time, we also recognize that such unity is not simply a matter of institutional belonging or cultivating attitudes of “mutual respect.” The unity of the Father and the Son consists in a harmony of will and mind, of mission and message (John 8:16-18, 10:37-38, 12:49-50, 17:25-26). Jesus came speaking the word of his Father and he wanted us to be sanctified in the truth of that word (John 17:17). It is only as we agree on the truth and authority of Scripture, therefore, that we can be one as Jesus prayed.
It is unfortunate when the orthodox remnant within the Anglican Communion are portrayed as the source of disunity. To the contrary, as Bishop J.C. Ryle once said,
If people separate themselves from teaching which is positively false and unscriptural, they ought to be praised rather than reproved. In such cases separation is a virtue rather than a sin…He is the schismatic who causes the schism…Unity which is obtained by the sacrifice of truth is worth nothing. It is not unity that pleases God.
The proposals made by the Anglican Primates at the Rome meeting, which consist of minor revisions to the description of the Anglican Communion and modifications to its existing structures, will do nothing to mend the torn fabric of our Communion. Nothing apart from a return to the Lord through deep repentance and renunciation of false teaching by erring provinces will suffice. To quote the Kigali Statement once more, “without repentance this tear cannot be mended.”
In Christ, I am your servant,
The Most Rev. Dr. Laurent Mbanda
Chairman of the Gafcon Primates Council
Archbishop of the Anglican Church of Rwanda
Bishop of Gasabo.”
Also at the Gafcon website.
Related:
The Kigali Commitment – GAFCON IV, 21 April 2023. (PDF file)
Save the date for Anglican Aid’s 2024 Conference
From Anglican Aid in Sydney:
“We are thrilled to announce that Anglican Aid’s 2024 one-day conference will take place on Saturday 31 August at Moore College.
After the success of last year’s ‘Social Justice Reframed’ event, we will once again gather with 200 thoughtful Christians to consider the intersection of Christian aid, development, and the gospel.
This year’s international guest speaker is Bishop Mwita Akiri, Anglican Aid’s partner in the Diocese of Tarime, Tanzania and Chairman of GAFCON Tanzania. …”
A high stakes game of ecclesiastical poker in the Anglican Communion — with Justin Badi Arama and Paul Donison
From The Pastor’s Heart:
“It is almost D day in the Anglican Communion.
Today we give the background for two highly significant meetings. One to take place next week in Rome. The second in June in Cairo.
The Rome gathering has been called by the rejected Canterbury leadership. The Cairo gathering has been called by the leadership of the Global South.
As background, The Church of England, the historic mother church of the Anglican Communion, under the leadership of the Archbishop of Canterbury formally abandoned the historic Christian faith when the English General Synod voted to follow Archbishop Welby and his house of bishops in voting for same sex blessings.
In reaction, the majority theologically orthodox have drawn a line in the sand and parted company with The church of England.
The Global South Churches said in their important Ash Wednesday 23 statement that the Church of England has disqualified herself from leading the Anglican communion.
Gafcon said the Archbishop of Canterbury’s leadership has been irreparably damaged.
We speak with the chair of the Global South Archbishop Justin Badi Arama of South Sudan and the new General Secretary of Gafcon Bishop Paul Donison.”
Asked by Dominic Steele if the Rome gathering is “an attempt to play ecclesiastical poker”, Gafcon General Secretary Bishop Paul Donison replies –
“…I can’t really speak with much clarity or knowledge on what Archbishop Welby is hoping for, but we should assume based on all the games that have been played, I think poker is a good analogy over the last decade and longer from Canterbury that this is yet another attempt to obfuscate, to confuse, to get a win for the traditional revisionist structures.
And my prayer is simply that all of the Bible-loving global primates can see through that.
Hopefully many will see that ahead of time and not go.”
What we believe
The message at the heart of Christianity is really quite simple…