Thinking Anglicans

C of E sends observer to ACNA?

According to the remarks of the Archbishop and Primate of the Anglican Church in North America, Robert Duncan, speaking on 21 June:

Our global commitments remain strong and we continue to be seen as “gospel partners” and bearers of “authentic Anglicanism” (South-South Encounter IV) by most of the world’s Anglicans. The GAFCON Provinces accord our Province status as the North American Province and I am seated as a Primate in the Primates Council. I was privileged to be present at Archbishop Ian Earnest’s invitation at the All Africa Bishops Conference (of the Council of Anglican Provinces of Africa) last August in Entebbe and was accorded a seat there for public and state events as one of the archbishops of the provinces. It is the greatest of joys to welcome Archbishop Ian Earnest – Archbishop of the Province of the Indian Ocean and Chairman of CAPA – to this Provincial Council as speaker, observer and friend, and to our College of Bishops as Bible teacher and consultor. It is also a privilege to welcome Fr. Thomas Seville, CR, of the Faith and Order Commission of the Church of England here as participant and observer, in partial response to the action of the General Synod of the Church of England in February 2010 regarding consideration of an appropriate form of recognition or relationship with the Anglican Church in North America.

Mark Harris has commented at length about this, in So, explain again just what the Church of England is up to in America?

…Participant and observer….sounds like more than just an exploratory visit. What in the world is the Church of England proposing to do “regarding consideration of an appropriate form of recognition or relationship with the ACNA”?

I presume the Archbishop of Canterbury, not in communion with ACNA as yet, knows that the Archbishop of ACNA is not the Archbishop of a Province of anything, much less a Province of the Anglican Communion. So it must be that in sending Fr. Seville over to participate and observe, the CofE is feeding the optimistic fires of ACNA’s Archbishop for recognition…

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Cynthia Gilliatt
Cynthia Gilliatt
12 years ago

Duncan, counting up how many times people have seated him among the other pointy hat boys, is pathetic. If he collects enough cereal box tops, maybe he can get a secret de-coder ring.

Matthew Duckett
Matthew Duckett
12 years ago

Simon, could you remind us please of the Synod motion from last year in which, as I recall, an amendment recognising ACNA was rejected. The question being whether the action described above (if correctly reported) is ultra vires.

Simon Sarmiento
12 years ago

Matthew here is the information you seek
http://www.thinkinganglicans.org.uk/archives/004231.html

Randal Oulton
Randal Oulton
12 years ago

Hi, not sure if the moderators read here or not, wasn’t sure how to contact them but the left hand search field / button on this site is broken; the search doesn’t work anymore, gives a Movable Type error page.

EmilyH
EmilyH
12 years ago

Some of the really interesting parts of his address for me were his discussion of “lead bishops” It made me wonder, who are the “lead” bishops? How ere they elected/appointed? What powers did they have? Interestingly, almost all (I think now all) of those originally named in the Barfoot memo as recipients have now been appointed bishops in ACNA/CANA, I think it took a while for anyone (i.e. Cone or African) to sponsor Inglefritz, the most theologically Anglo-Catholic, but now ALL except Alison Barfoot herself, for more than obvious reasons, is now a bishop… i.e. “lead” bishop. I have wondered… Read more »

Leonardo Ricardo
12 years ago

Look on the brightside. Dr. Rowan Williams is in Kenya and other parts of Africa clearing up the Anglican Communion mess: ¨Archbishop Williams told church leaders they must stand up against land and money grabbers. “It will pit you against some of the most powerful individuals but God is always on the side of the righteous,” No doubt Anglican Archbishop Eliud Wabukala (who is the recently elected chairman of GAFCON) will immediately ask/demand that +Duncan, +Orombi, +Okoh, +Minns and the self-propelled ¨Anglican¨ Bishop of Recife, the Rt. Rev. Robinson Cavalcanti stop with the land and money grabbing nonsense! One thing… Read more »

A J Barford
A J Barford
12 years ago

Reliable sources inform me that tonight’s performance of Oscar Wilde’s The Importance of Being Earnest at the University of Kent’s theatre in Canterbury – crime scene of the 1998 Lambeth conference resolution 1:10 – was only a quarter full despite rave reviews.

Wilde’s devastating critique of the Church’s abandonment of Augustine’s treatise on truth might have attracted a full house of bishops in July 1998 and prevented a lot of shilly-shallying in recent times.

Cynthia Gilliatt
Cynthia Gilliatt
12 years ago

the self-propelled ¨Anglican¨ Bishop of Recife, the Rt. Rev. Robinson Cavalcanti .

I like th image of self-propelled faux bishops. Flying bishops with propellers? Someone should draw a picture.

Father Ron Smith
Father Ron Smith
12 years ago

What is happening in the minds of the ACO? Is this a ‘dummy run’ at according ‘Anglican Communion’ status to the dissident pseudo-Anglican ‘Province of ACNA’? in North America? And is Abp. Earnest really ‘earnest’ about his intention to bypass the authentic Anglican Provinces of TEC and the Anglican Church of Canada?

At the very least, it seems unwise of Fr.Seville (C.R.) of the ‘Anglican Communion Faith and Order Office’ to precipitate the unseemly posturing of proud prelate Bobby Duncan in his bid to become kosher in North America.

Jeremy
Jeremy
12 years ago

Regardless of whether this “participation and observation” is a response to the 2010 Synod enactment, it also looks like an effort to pressure the Episcopal Church into signing on to the Canterbury Covenant — or else. Of course, any such effort isn’t going to work. The Episcopal Church has been constitutionally independent of Canterbury for over 200 years. It won’t give up that independence now. Furthermore, if Canterbury were to extend some form of recognition and Communion membership to schismatic organizations like ACNA, then the Church of England might find its own interests similarly disregarded. Some parishes in England might… Read more »

Lapinbizarre
Lapinbizarre
12 years ago

Didn’t they send an observer – about whose presence the secessionists made much, but which amounted to nothing – to ACNA’s opening shindig? No reason to see this as anything different. A sop to the GAFCON & a few others, maybe? Mirfield hardly seems a hot-bed of reaction. Is there any real cause for worry?

Many here are familiar with the learned posts of Göran Koch-Swahne. Göran has been ill for some time, and is now in a hospice. He has a facebook page – https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=730122005

Leonardo Ricardo
12 years ago

I like th image of self-propelled faux bishops. Flying bishops with propellers? Someone should draw a picture¨ Cynthia Gilliatt

There are a lot of rust sounding ¨grindings¨ going on and silent/sweet ¨gliding¨ doesn´t occur at all (not with all the hot air blowing in and out and all about the atmosphere)…of course none of these faux flying bishop fellas, and they are fellas, fly that far up/up and away from being grounded because of stormy weather.

Robert ian Williams
Robert ian Williams
12 years ago

The Church of England sends observers to the Methodist Conference etc I don’t think it implies recognition.

However wait until the ACNA sends representatives to the new Reform body.

Laurence Roberts
Laurence Roberts
12 years ago

Thank you for letting us all know of Goran’s health Lapin.

I see a postal address listed for him on that page too.

JCF
JCF
12 years ago

Prayers ascending for Goran!

Perry Butler
Perry Butler
12 years ago

“observer” I understand…is “participant” Duncan’s spin?

Fr James
Fr James
12 years ago

Well, the way I see it, it would be a good idea for the CofE to have some idea of exactly what’s going on in ACNA, since it looks like we may be facing a similar situation in the future…

What better way to gather information than by sending Fr Thomas CR? He’s hardly a controversial figure, and he belongs to a religious community which is just as divided on the same issues dividing the Anglican Communion.

JPM
JPM
12 years ago

Rowan’s chickens have come home to roost.

I’m trying very hard not to feel all schadenfreudey, but I can’t quite manage it.

A J Barford
A J Barford
12 years ago

“it would be a good idea for the CofE to have some idea of exactly what’s going on in ACNA” – Fr James

Spot on! the only way to subvert it is to get close to it…

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