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ORTHODOX GLOBAL SOUTH BISHOPS WILL STAY IN THE COMMUNION AND HOLD THE LINE
By David W. Virtue in Canterbury
www.virtueonline.org
August 5, 2022
Two orthodox Anglican archbishops -- one from South Sudan and the other from Chile, stated emphatically today that they would not leave the Anglican Communion and that the revisionists would have to leave if they refused to repent of sexual behaviors not sanctioned by Scripture.
In a prepared statement, Archbishop Justin Badi, Primate of South Sudan reiterated that we cannot be a Communion with a plurality of beliefs. "There needs to be limits to theological diversity, limits that are set by a plain and canonical reading of Scripture and which is supported by church history. We cannot accept the hermeneutic of revisionist Primates and {Provinces that allow a plurality of views on the essential truth contained in 'the faith once for all delivered to the saints' (Jude v3)."
The matter of same-sex unions is not a secondary issue that allows for a position of adiaphora (indifference). God's revealed intention for marriage to be a life-long commitment and union between a man and a woman is an essential truth in the corpus of 'the faith once delivered.'
Archbishop Badi said he came to Lambeth 2022 "to reset the Communion on its biblical foundation in person and as a unified grouping of orthodox bishops within the Communion."
The South Sudanese Primate accused the revisionist provinces of adapting the Word of God to the prevailing culture, bringing in unorthodox interpretations of God's word and would end up condoning what is morally wrong in God's eyes. Failing to correct false teaching is to fail to act in love. Orthodox bishops are duty-bound to God not to 'live and let live' under the guise of simply walking together in continuing dialogue with those who have departed from the path of truth.
"We want to make it clear that we have no intention of leaving the Communion." He said that several orthodox Provinces are 'fire-proofing' their section of 'the house' from false teaching that is spreading in various parts of the Communion. "We will find ways to be mutually accountable to one another as orthodox Provinces in staying true to the Word of God."
"In the words of Elijah, the Communion cannot afford to 'go on limping between two different opinions'" (1 Kings 18:21). We are not content to go on with endless dialectical conversations about what Scripture requires of us is there is not a fundamental 'givenness' to God's call on all of us (Mic. 6:8).
Despite all that is amiss in our Communion, the world-wide Anglican Church is still our spiritual home, he said.
"The current situation warrants us to adopt suitable forms of 'visible differentiation'. We will seek not to be schismatic, however, we will use appropriate degrees of freedom to ensure that we indeed fulfill our vows before God at our consecration of bishops."
"We therefore ask that a resetting process commence without delay at the Primates level for specific proposals to be discussed for the repair of the tear in the Anglican Communion."
"If it is the case that the Archbishop of Canterbury neither has nor seeks the authority to discipline a church of the Anglican Communion and that matters of discipline are the responsibility of the Primates, the Primates of GSFA will prayerfully consider this new position statement."
"We will gladly stand with bishops from every part of the Anglican Communion whether part of the GSFA or not, for biblical truth as historically received and to express our commitment to the authority and supremacy of Holy Scripture."
Said Primate Badi; "Let the revisionists go away, let those with revisionist theology go or repent. The West had the gospel and took it to us in Africa. We may have to bring it back."
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