The Fall of Canterbury

“The Kigali Commitment recognizes that Archbishop Welby has abandoned his office and that Instruments of Communion have failed to uphold essential doctrine regarding human sexuality, thereby undermining their very purpose. Those signing the Commitment no longer recognize the authority of the existing Communion structures. The Commitment empowers GAFCON and the Global South Fellowship of Anglican Churches to establish new structures for orthodox Anglicans wherever they are. …”

– At First Things, Matt and Anne Kennedy share their thoughts on GAFCON IV.

Image: At GAFCON Jerusalem in 2018, Russell Powell (left) interviews the Kennedys. (Well worth watching.)

Highlights, insights, reflections and things I learned in Africa – Dominic Steele

Dominic Steele at The Pastor’s Heart:

“In almost every personal conversation I’ve had since returning from Africa I’ve been asked about my personal reflections on the almost four weeks that Catherine and I spent there.

How was Gafcon? What was significant? What stood out? How has Africa impacted you?”

– Watch or listen here. Most encouraging.

“We are the Anglican Communion; we represent 85% of all church-going Anglicans” — Bishop Glenn Davies

“We have a de facto re-ordered Communion now. We are not leaving the Anglican Communion, but reforming it along Cranmerian lines, where the Scripture is supreme and obedience to Scripture is essential; we represent 85% of Anglicans worldwide and are moving forward. …”

– David Virtue at VirtueOnline has published an interview with Bishop Glenn Davies.

Photo: Bishop Davies speaks at GAFCON IV in Kigali.

Southern Cross, May – June 2023 now available

The May – June 2023 issue of Southern Cross, the magazine of the Diocese of Sydney, is now available.

Copies can be picked up at local churches, and you can also download it here.

From Russell Powell:

“Southern Cross this month has all anyone needs to know about GAFCON IV, including the Archbishop writing on Why GAFCON matters, as well as 

Bishop Stuart Bell interviewed on GB News

The Anglican Network in Europe’s recently-consecrated Bishop Stuart Bell spoke with Calvin Robinson on GB News last weekend.

While both attended GAFCON IV, they have differing opinions on the way forward. Bishop Bell spoke of the impending collapse of the Church in Wales.

GAFCON IV and the revolution in world Anglicanism

“Lambeth Palace needs to ‘wake up and smell the coffee.’ As an English Anglican, my experience at GAFCON was deeply sobering. The churches to which the vast majority of Anglicans belong feel completely betrayed by the Archbishop of Canterbury and by the Church of England as their mother church. …”

– Martin Davie writes at Christian Today.

Photo: GAFCON IV.

Trekking through Tanzania

“On a trip to honour veteran CMS Missionary Helen Hoskins and to visit Sydney’s Anglican Aid projects, Archbishop Raffel is travelling through Tanzania.

Soon after the final session of GAFCON IV in nearby Rwanda, the Archbishop was on his way to a series of engagements in the Diocese of Mara. …”

– Story from Russell Powell at SydneyAnglicans.net.

GAFCON 101 – everything you need to know

From David Ould:

“I wrote this brief article last week for my church newsletter. It’s a basic primer on what GAFCON is, how it came about, what happened at Kigali and why it was necessary.…”

– Read here.

Photo: Bishop Glenn Davies at GAFCON IV in Kigali.

A 3 minute report on GAFCON IV to play in your church

From The Pastor’s Heart.

Download link just above the video on that page.

What now after Canterbury’s leadership implosion – with Sydney Archbishop Kanishka Raffel

Just released from The Pastor’s Heart – while visiting Bunda Bible College in Tanzania, Dominic Steele speaks with Archbishop Kanishka Raffel.

“Sydney’s Archbishop Kanishka Raffel has responded to Gafcon’s Kigali Commitment which says the Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby’s continued leadership of the Anglican Communion is entirely indefensible.

Leaders representing 85% of the Anglican Communion say they have no confidence in the Archbishop of Canterbury or the other instruments of the Anglican Communion.

In his first interview, since the release of Gafcon’s Kigali Communique, Archbishop Raffel sits down with Dominic Steele while on a tour of Anglican Aid projects in rural Tanzania.”

Also much encouraging news on the impact of Anglican Aid.

The FAQs: Anglican Group Calls on Church of England’s Leader to Repent

“…their example is showing Christians around the globe what it looks like to remain faithful to Christ in an age of compromise.”

– At The Gospel Coalition, Joe Carter addresses one of his ‘explainer’ articles to outline what GAFCON is doing and why.

Photo: GAFCON IV in Kigali, cotters GAFCON.

“The church world has changed because of GAFCON IV”

George Conger shares his experiences of GAFCON IV at Anglican Unscripted.

Spoiler: Very positive and encouraging.

The Kigali Commitment — the statement from GAFCON 4

“After a horrible few months in the Church of England, in which we feel that we have been punched in the stomach and kicked in the teeth by our own bishops, it’s really great to be here in Rwanda, where we experience the warm embrace of brothers and sisters in Christ from around the world. …

As Kanishka Raffel told us, ‘the GAFCON Primates and GAFCON branches have been attacked and ridiculed and criticized but they have stood up and stood alongside those who were defamed and isolated for the sake of holding to the truth of God’s word.’ But it is clear that we stand together in unity here. How good and pleasant that is! (Psalm 133)…”

– Read all of Lee Gatiss’ report from GAFCON IV at the Church Society website.

Statement from Lambeth Palace, 21 April 2023

“Responding to ‘The Kigali Commitment’ issued by GAFCON IV today, a spokesperson for Lambeth Palace said:

‘We note that The Kigali Commitment issued by GAFCON IV today makes many of the same points that have previously been made about the structures of the Anglican Communion. As the Archbishop of Canterbury has previously said, those structures are always able to change with the times – and have done so in the past. The Archbishop said at the recent Anglican Consultative Council meeting in Ghana (ACC-18) that no changes to the formal structures of the Anglican Communion can be made unless they are agreed upon by the Instruments of Communion.’ …” (emphasis added)

– Archbishop of Canterbury’s website.

And from the GAFCON IV Kigali Commitment, representing perhaps 85% of global Anglicans:

“Public statements by the Archbishop of Canterbury and other leaders of the Church of England in support of same-sex blessings are a betrayal of their ordination and consecration vows to banish error and to uphold and defend the truth taught in Scripture. …

We have no confidence that the Archbishop of Canterbury nor the other Instruments of Communion led by him (the Lambeth Conference, the Anglican Consultative Council and the Primates’ Meetings) are able to provide a godly way forward that will be acceptable to those who are committed to the truthfulness, clarity, sufficiency and authority of Scripture. The Instruments of Communion have failed to maintain true communion based on the Word of God and shared faith in Christ.

All four Instruments propose that the way ahead for the Anglican Communion is to learn to walk together in ‘good disagreement’. However we reject the claim that two contradictory positions can both be valid in matters affecting salvation. We cannot ‘walk together’ in good disagreement with those who have deliberately chosen to walk away from the ‘faith once for all delivered to the saints’ (Jude 3). The people of God ’walk in his ways’, ‘walk in the truth’, and ‘walk in the light’, all of which require that we do not walk in Christian fellowship with those in darkness (Deuteronomy 8:6; 2 John 4; 1 John 1:7).

Successive Archbishops of Canterbury have failed to guard the faith by inviting bishops to Lambeth who have embraced or promoted practices contrary to Scripture. This failure of church discipline has been compounded by the current Archbishop of Canterbury who has himself welcomed the provision of liturgical resources to bless these practices contrary to Scripture. This renders his leadership role in the Anglican Communion entirely indefensible. …” (emphasis added)

Great Encouragement — yet much Grief that this is needed

Dominic Steele and the team in Kigali have posted a number reactions to the Kigali Commitment.

Do watch them here to understand something of the sadness and pain in this moment, as well as the encouragement to stand firm in Christ.

Interviewees include (not in order) –

* Michael Stead, Statement Committee Chair
* Richard Coekin, Co-Mission Network, London
* Jay Behan, New Zealand Bishop
* Lee Gatiss, UK Church Society Director
* Andy Lines, Bishop for Anglican Network in Europe
* Julian Dodds, USA Bishop
* Vaughan Roberts, Minister of St Ebbes Oxford
* William Taylor, Minister of St Helens London
* Matt and Anne Kennedy, Binghamton New York
* Pete Smith & Jennifer Hercott, Gafcon Australia
* Bill Atwood, Regional Secretary for the Americas
* Rico Tice, Christianity Explored
* Jonathan Pryke, Jesmond Parish Church, Newcastle upon Tyne
* Trevor Johnson, Tim Anderson, Ireland

Photo: William Taylor and Vaughan Roberts speak of their great encouragement at the release of the Kigali Commitment – as well as their sadness and grief that this is needed.

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