Meeting under the umbrella of GAFCON – the Global Anglican Fellowship of Confessing Anglicans – representing more than 75% of the Anglican Communion, the Primates, led by Kenyan Archbishop Eliud Wabukala urged Archbishop Justin Welby to articulate the “historic and biblical teaching” of the church on marriage recognizing that decisions made by the Church of England have a “global impact.”

“We are particularly concerned about the state of lay and clerical discipline. The House of Bishops’ guidance that those in same sex marriages should be admitted to the full sacramental life of the church is an abandonment of pastoral discipline,” said a communique released by the GAFCON Primates.

“While we welcome their clear statement that clergy must not enter same sex marriage, it is very concerning that this discipline is, apparently, being openly disregarded. We pray for the recovery of a sense of confidence in the whole of the truth Anglicans are called to proclaim, including that compassionate call for repentance to which we all need to respond in our different ways.”

The Primates Council communique which you can read here http://tinyurl.com/m274w9m follows the successful Nairobi Conference which met last October, at which over 1,300 delegates from 38 nations and 27 Provinces of the Anglican Communion were present.

The Nairobi Commitment affirmed, among many things, that Jesus is the sole ground of salvation; supporting mission both local and globally including outreach to Muslims in obedience to the Great Commission; defending essential truths of the biblical faith even when this defense threatens existing structures of human authority (Acts 5:29).

The bishops at GAFCON 2013 resolved '”to affirm and endorse the position of the Primates' Council in providing oversight in cases where provinces and dioceses compromise biblical faith, including the affirmation of a duly discerned call to ministry. This may involve ordination and consecration if the situation requires.

“We commit ourselves to the support and defense of those who in standing for apostolic truth are marginalized or excluded from formal communion with other Anglicans in their dioceses. We have therefore recognized the Anglican Mission in England (AMiE) as an expression of authentic Anglicanism both for those within and outside the Church of England, and welcomed their intention to appoint a General Secretary of AMiE.

“We commit ourselves to teach about God's good purposes in marriage and in singleness. Marriage is a life-long exclusive union between a man and a woman. We exhort all people to work and pray for the building and strengthening of healthy marriages and families. For this reason, we oppose the secular tide running in favor of cohabitation and same-sex marriage.”

The meeting in London now puts enormous pressure on Welby to repudiate civil partnerships, in fact to declare that any and all sexual activity outside of marriage between a man and a woman is unacceptable and that biblical disciplinary measures should be applied where such violations occur.

Recently, a CofE priest Canon Jeremy Pemberton, married his partner raising the stakes on whether or not Bishop of Lincoln Christopher Lowson will apply disciplinary measures for disobeying the House of Bishops ruling that marriage must be between a man and a woman. There is a minor glitch in that the priest in question is a hospital chaplain and does not have a parish of his own.

In their communique, the Primates said that the GAFCON movement is emerging as a faithful instrument of unity capable of gathering the majority of faithful Anglicans in communion globally. “We are now taking practical steps to heal, renew and revitalize the Communion for future mission by growing our membership, improving the frequency and range of our communication and setting up networks, which will equip us to fulfill the Great Commission. We are already eagerly anticipating GAFCON 3 in 2018.”

When he was briefly in Nairobi at GAFCON II, Welby admitted that the Instruments of Unity had failed to hold the Communion together. He offered more talks on “reconciliation” and “facilitated discussions”, but no solutions. He seemed reluctant to recognize GAFCON as the foot soldiers of a renewed evangelical witness in the Anglican Communion.

He will either get on board or get left behind, a source told VOL. “He cannot equivocate indefinitely, there is too much pressure on him. He cannot foot drag forever.”

Cries of homophobia have been rejected by Global South Africans. The issue of women bishops, which Welby supports, sits uncomfortably with numerous provinces that have yet to ordain women to the priesthood.

The Anglican Communion is at a break point. The legacy of Dr. Rowan Williams hangs like a Damoclean Sword over the communion. The question is whether Welby is capable or willing to fully break with the past even if it means alienating liberals and revisionists in his own church for the higher cause of truth and the gospel.

Should he not do so, the Anglican Mission in England (AMiE) will move into high gear drawing away the Church of England’s most vibrant wing – its evangelicals – who dominate the seminary scene and will fill the next generation of Church of England parishes. Furthermore, African evangelical Anglicans are poised to flood England with messengers to preach the same gospel that was brought to them.

Primates present in London were:

The Most Rev’d Daniel Deng Bul, Archbishop, Episcopal Church of Sudan
The Most Rev’d Robert Duncan, Archbishop, Anglican Church in North America
The Most Rev’d Stanley Ntagli, Archbishop, Anglican Church of Uganda
The Most Rev’d Nicholas Okoh, Archbishop, Anglican Church of Nigeria (Vice Chairman)
The Most Rev’d Onesphore Rwaje, Archbishop, Anglican Church of Rwanda
The Most Rev’d Dr Eliud Wabukala, Archbishop, Anglican Church of Kenya
(Chairman)
The Most Rev’d Tito Zavala, Presiding Bishop, Province of the Southern
Cone

Also present:

The Most Rev’d Dr Peter Jensen, Diocese of Sydney, General Secretary
The Most Rev’d Peter J. Akinola, Church of Nigeria, Trustee
Most Rev’d Emmanuel Kolini, Anglican Church of Rwanda, Trustee
The Most Rev’d Dr Ikechi Nwosu, Anglican Church of Nigeria

END