Commentary on Kenya’s new woman Bp: Gafcon, ACNA, FiFNA respond; Ashey, Nelson, Kennedy analyze

Oct 16, 2021 by

by Barbara Gauthier (received by email):

Four weeks ago Abp. Jackson Ole Sapit consecrated Rose Okeno as Bishop of Betere in the Anglican Church of Kenya.  She is actually the third female bishop consecrated by a Gafcon province.

In 2015, the Gafcon Primates Council had commissioned a Task Force on Women in the Episcopate to provide guidance on the advisability of consecrating women as bishops in the Church. But before the Task Force could finish its report, retired Abp. Daniel Bul Deng consecrated a woman bishop in 2016 as an emergency measure to provide oversight in a diocese that had been decimated by ongoing violence.

In 2018 the Gafcon Primates, having received the Task Force report accepted and approved its recommendation “that provinces of GAFCON should retain the historic practice of the consecration only of men as bishops until and unless a strong consensus to change emerges after prayer, consultation and continued study of Scripture among the GAFCON Fellowship.”

In 2019, the Gafcon Primates Council unanimously reaffirmed their commitment to maintaining the moratorium on women bishops in accordance with the Task Force’s recommendation.  Five years earlier, the Kenyan bishops had agreed to their own 5-year moratorium on consecrating women bishops in the Anglican Church of Kenya even though their constitution and canons clearly permitted it.  In 2019, Synod voted not to reaffirm their commitment to the Gafcon moratorium and immediately cleared the way for women to be admitted to the episcopate.  The Rev. Emily A. Onyango was elected shortly thereafter to serve as an assisting bishop in Bondo diocese.  At the time Abp. Ole Sapit said that he intended to abide by the Gafcon moratorium, which had been unanimously renewed by the Gafcon Primates at their 2019 Meeting.  He did not attend Onyango’s consecration, but he also did not take any action to prevent it from happening. Sources in Kenya had said then that ++Ole Sapit’s decision not to block Bishop Onyango lay in legal advice given to the primate that such an action would violate the church’s constitution and canons.

The consecrations of the first two women bishops caused concern, but were not seen as potentially divisive as the most recent one.  The first one was seen as a temporary response to an emergency situation by retired Primate Daniel Bul Deng in South Sudan, who was no longer an active bishop with jurisdiction.  The second one, in Kenya, was an female academic instructor who was consecrated by a local bishop as an assisting bishop and not as a bishop with jurisdiction, nor would sh actually be resident in the diocese.  Moreover, Onyango’s election and consecration were contested by a number of Anglican leaders and clergy in the area.
But this third consecration was different.  The Rev. Rose Okeno was consecrated as the new Bishop of Butere, a diocesan bishop with jurisdiction — and her chief consecrator was the Kenyan primate himself, Abp. Jackson Ole Sapit, a member of the Gafcon Primates Council.  After the ceremony, Abp. Ole Sapit congratulated Bp. Rose Okeno “for rising above cultural norms and her courage that saw her battle it out with men for this position and make history as the first woman ACK bishop.”  George Conger stated the obvious at the end of his report: “It is unclear whether the consecration of Bishop Okeno will have wider consequences for the wider GAFCON movement.”
We certainly didn’t have long to wait for that clarity to arrive. As divine providence would have it, the Gafcon Primates were also gathered in Nairobi that week for a hybrid in-person and online meeting, spending two full days “in prayer, fellowship, discussion and discernment about many challenging issues” such as the coronavirus pandemic and its impact on worship, ministry, discipleship and outreach.  Their September 16 Communique conveyed their encouragement at “the great hope that is seen as the gospel of Jesus Christ is being proclaimed and embraced even in the midst of difficult circumstances and terrible persecution.”  Noting that the Anglican Church of Kenya had consecrated its first woman as a Diocesan Bishop a few days earlier, the Gafcon primates also passed this brief resolution:

“The Jerusalem Declaration affirms that the Bible makes a distinction between salvation issues and other secondary issues. In our discussion, the Primates acknowledged that while there is disagreement and ongoing discussion on the issues of the ordination of women as deacons or priests, and the consecration of women as Bishops, we are agreed that these are not salvation issues and are not issues that will disrupt our mission: to proclaim Christ faithfully to the nations.”

That same day, Abp. Foley Beach, the Chairman of the Gafcon Primates Council, issued his own pastoral statement agreeing with the Primates’ emphasis on the centrality of the gospel message of salvation.  The Archbishop of the Anglican Church in North America expressed his own deep disappointment at what happened in Kenya and assured members of the ACNA that “this decision does not change how our Province operates as our constitution and canons are clear.”  He acknowledged that “Gafcon is not an ecclesial jurisdiction; it is a conference.”  Since the Gafcon primates at present are “not of a common mind on this issue,” it cannot be considered a truly conciliar body based on the consensus fidelium.  Nevertheless, the Archbishop added, “we will continue to stand with these brothers and sisters to the greatest extent possible to maintain the Biblical Faith in the Anglican Communion and proclaim the saving Good News of Jesus Christ.”
The very next day, Mark Marshall posted a response on behalf of traditional laity like himself who had left The Episcopal Church more than a decade ago over TEC’s rejection of both scriptural authority and the duty of bishops to guard the faith and discipline those who depart from it.  Marshall has not forgotten that exodus of faithful laity nearly fifteen years ago that cost them dearly, and the lessons learned in the process have been learned well.  Traditional laity respect their bishop’s role in holding them accountable to the faith, Marshall contends, which is why laity find the Kenya consecration and the conduct of certain ACNA bishops so upsetting to the faithful.  But laity have a role to hold bishops accountable as well, and “if we do not wish to become TEC 2.0, ACNA laity must speak up.”
The Standing Committee of the Diocese of Fort Worth at their regular meeting several days later passed a unanimous resolution expressing their enthusiastic support for Archbishop Foley Beach’s promise that “we will continue to stand with these brothers and sisters to the greatest extent possible to maintain the Biblical Faith in the Anglican Communion and proclaim the saving Good News of Jesus Christ.”  The Standing Committee celebrates as well “the rich contribution of women vitally engaged with significant impact in the ministry of the church throughout her long history.”  However, they thoroughly and unanimously object to the Gafcon Primates’ classification of the consecration of a woman bishop as a “secondary issue” for two reasons.
First of all, the innovation of the ordination of women is not consistent with Holy Scripture nor is it “respectful of the church’s historic and consensual reading of scripture.”  The 1662 BCP clearly states that the validity of the sacraments is “contingent upon the minister being a valid priest or bishop in Holy Orders.”  Therefore, an invalid ordination effectually invalidates sacraments and thus cannot be considered a “secondary” matter.  Secondly, bishops in the Anglican tradition are consecrated for the whole church as a visible and outward sign of the Church’s unity, and that unity which our Lord himself prayed for cannot be of secondary importance. The Standing Committee thus concludes that “the way forward toward our global Anglican future lies in faithfulness to the Holy Scriptures and the received tradition, not in a theological innovation which would seek to overturn created order by attempting to consecrate women as spiritual fathers.”
The ten ACNA bishops of Forward in Faith North America then posted an open letter to Abp. Jackson Ole Sapit of Kenya expressing their “profound sadness at the decision of the Anglican Church of Kenya to break two thousand years of episcopal principle and practice.”  Even more distressing is the Kenyan primate’s “decision to act unilaterally in opposition to the expressed concerns and agreements of the GAFCON Primates Council is a break in the fraternal love and respect that has been a hallmark of GAFCON and witness to orthodox Anglicans worldwide.”   They maintain that the actions of the Province of Kenya directly harm Christ’s Church by failing to uphold the “doctrine, sacraments and discipline of Christ, as the Lord has commanded and as this Church has received them” and deny the Church a common assurance of sacramental validity.
By breaking with the holy Biblical tradition given by all male apostles to all male successors, this action impairs the relationships and Christian mission of the Church and her call to fulfill the Lord’s prayer for unity, by healing division and carrying out Gospel mission together with other Christians. Perhaps most troubling, is Kenya’s succumbing to the world’s siren call to redefine the Church’s doctrine, dismiss her discipline, and foment division.  The ACNA bishops presciently conclude that “while the Anglican Church in Kenya currently maintains an orthodox understanding of the Gospel, it should be noted that every province that has adopted women into the episcopate has, in time, yielded to the pressures of the culture and left Biblical morality” (let the reader understand).
Roughly a week after Bp. Okeno’s consecration, commentaries began appearing — and though few in number, each one is well worth reading in its entirety.  They are very well thought-out, solidly scriptural and doctrinally grounded, and taken together. they present a variety of different perspectives on why this irregular consecration is both theologically troubling and problematic in practice. What these analyses all had in common is that they focus, not on Okeno’s consecration, as one might expect, but primarily on the responses given by Gafcon and Abp. Foley Beach — and ponder in depth what those responses might portend for both the future of ACNA’s global relationships and Gafcon in general.
I’m providing here links to Matt Kennedy’s two insightful podcasts on the consecrations and its ramifications on Gafcon and ACNA, along with of a brief summary of the commentaries from Canon Phil Ashey on the apparent demise of conciliarism within Gafcon and from Lee Nelson on how the Gafcon Primates seem to have misinterpreted the Jerusalem Declaration, why the ordination and consecration of women to Holy Orders does indeed constitute a “salvation issue,” how the promotion of gay marriage and women’s ordination both stem directly from gender ideology, and why trimming one’s sails in order to appear gracious and charitable to one’s friends can be deadly when discussing doctrine.
The Rev. Matt Kennedy hosts the excellent podcast Stand Firm and in this 50-minute episode, #69 ” A Gentleman’s Agreement: Kenya, GAFCON and the Tenuous Compromise,” Fr. Matt is joined by two of his colleagues to talk about the recent consecration of a woman to the episcopate in Kenya, wonder about its effect on the ACNA’s global relationships, and discuss GAFCON’s middle ground on women’s ordination.  Their most recent podcast, #70 “Salvation Issues? Bishops, Discipline and Unity” discusses what makes an Anglican an Anglican: what keeps us together, what’s worth splitting over, and what might be considered our “salvation issues.”
Canon Phil Ashey, President of the American Anglican Council, has been instrumental in the development of governance structures for both Gafcon and Global South Anglicans in accordance with the Anglican understanding of conciliar polity, as described in his Anglican Conciliarism: the Church Meeting to Decide Together.  Ashey and Bp. MIchael Nazir-ali have provided the theological and ecclesiological underpinnings of Anglican consiliarism, as articulated by +Nazir-ali in his  address to the bishops and delegates at Gafcon 2013. How does the Church deal with potentially divisive differences among its members?  By having its bishops meet together in council and through prayer, consultation and Scripture study, embrace a biblical consensus together that all would agree to abide by. This was the way forward proposed by the Gafcon Force on Women in the Episcopate, a plan that would enable the Gafcon provinces to function together as a conciliar body and thereby avoid the danger of having a premature and unilateral action by one member church destroy the fellowship and unity of the Gafcon Movement.  Is Gafcon to be a conciliar Communion or an international Conference, because If Gafcon Is Merely a Conference, What’s the Point?
Ashey notes here that the GAFCON Primates here were caught flat-footed and found themselves unable to speak with a united voice on Kenya’s unilateral decision to consecrate as bishop the Rev. Rose Okeno. This action took place in direct violation of the Primates’ own unanimous decision in 2019 to reaffirm their Gafcon moratorium on women bishops “until and unless a strong consensus to change emerges after prayer, consultation and continued study of Scripture among the GAFCON Fellowship.” So the Primates conceded the matter as adiaphora.  They did not do the hard, sustained, time intensive and lengthy work that Anglican Conciliarism requires.  Instead, they opted for “open reception.”  If GAFCON were acting in a truly conciliar way, we would expect to find such evidence of a strong consensus to change by a strong majority of the GAFCON fellowship after sustained prayer, consultation, and continued study of the Scriptures together.  This is the nature of conciliar governance as Dr. Steve Noll observes in his essay on “Women Bishops and Reception.”
So, Abp. Foley Beach, Chairman of the Gafcon Primates Council, indeed spoke truly when he declared that “GAFCON is not an ecclesial jurisdiction; it is a conference.”  Perhaps “GAFCON’s aspiration to be conciliar is a bridge too far,” Ashey concludes.  The Jerusalem Statement (2008) launched the GAFCON movement as a “Fellowship of Confessing Anglicans” and maybe it is thus “time for GAFCON to return to its roots, to this original charism which authenticated, recognized, and helped birth biblically faithful Anglican Churches in North America, Brazil, and New Zealand.”  
It may also be time to look to Global South Anglicans as an example of conciliar leadership.  As Ashey has written extensively elsewhere, “the Cairo Covenant of the Global South Anglican Fellowship (October 2019) provides truly conciliar structures for a Global Anglican Communion based upon a biblical and apostolic confession of doctrine, discipline, and worship. What might happen if GAFCON, true to its calling, focused its efforts on “authenticating and recognizing confessing Anglican jurisdictions” by actively bringing them to the Global South for membership on the terms of the Cairo Covenant?”
What might happen indeed.

The Rev. Lee Nelson chaired the committee that developed the ACNA’s “To Be A Christian” catechism, so it is not at all surprising that he chose to focus on the Gafcon Primates’ agreed statement that “these [ordinations and consecrations of women] are not salvation issues and are not issues that will disrupt our mission to proclaim Christ faithfully to the nations.”  Nelson explores what is going on doctrinally here and what constitutes a “salvation issue.”  It appears, Nelson says, that “even good bishops need to be catechized” since they are after all thechief catechists of the Chuch.

The director for catechesis in the ACNA bases his discussion of “Salvation Issues From An Anglican Perspective” on what is clearly stated in the ACNA’s Anglican catechism: #6 How does God save you?  God forgives my sins and reconciles me to himself through his Son, Jesus Christ, whom he has given to the world as an undeserved gift of love… “that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.”  But that’s just the beginning.  Salvation is more than just forgivenss and reconciliation with God: it is a participation in the life of God, granted through the great gift of Jesus Christ as taught by Holy Scripture. Therefore the Articles proclaim that Baptism and the Eucharist are not merely marks of profession, but “certain sure witnesses, and effectual signs of grace”

If the grace of God, which is first and foremost necessary to salvation, is given in the Sacraments, then they too become necessary to salvation as strengthening our participation in the life of God. For orthodox Anglicans who hold to the tradition of the historic Church, the clear teaching of Scripture and witness of apostolic practice confers holy orders only on men. Any woman so “ordained” cannot thus be considered a valid minister of the sacraments that impart the salvation grace of sanctification — and therefore such ordinations and consecrations do rise to the level of a “salvation issue.”

Nelson proposes that GAFCON is a bit wishy-washy on its own Anglican doctrine due to the phenomenon of the East African Revival, which avoided any sacramental content whatsoever, primarily because this massive revival was not the working of one church or another, but an extra-denominational movement. This meant historically that the doctrinal definitions of such movements were, of necessity, sparse.

 

Another doctrinal element that Nelson finds to to be curiously missing from the Gafcon Primates’ catechetical training is their insistence on what seems to be a complete dichotomy between proclaiming the Word and ministering the Sacraments.  He notes that “the Primates’ exaltation of the mission to proclaim Christ faithfully to the nations as some higher-ordered good than sacramental conformity is mystifying: the Sacraments are the mission.  After all, Jesus did command us to “Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.”

“The Church is not herself merely because of the faithful proclamation of the Word, but because of the faithful administration of the sacraments as well…. In fact, we should be willing to say that a proclamation of the Gospel sans the sacraments is no Gospel at all. It is a disembodied Gospel. It is more gnostic than Christian. …
“The current controversy illumines the manifold difficulties of re-casting Anglicanism as a confessional Church. Even the Jerusalem Declaration does not presume to be a confession. In 2008, confessionalism was not the only solution on offer. Bishop Michael Nazir-Ali and others articulated the need for a renewal of conciliarism.”

Nelson concludes that the need is rather acute: bishops need to meet and decide on critical issues. A simple statement is insufficient: we were simply were told, “Let’s just move on. This is unimportant. Get over it. ”   Trouble is, “for those who hold Anglican identity as a thing worth preserving, there is no getting over it. These issues are issues of salvation. And we will continue to say so.”

The Rev. Lee Nelson also wonders if the Gafcon Primates might be experiencing some short term memory loss as well — or perhaps it is simply a matter of ” Convenient Forgetting“.  As a group they seem bent on forgetting that there is still great division among them, especially on issues of the ordination of women to the episcopate. They have chosen instead to move forward in a way that relegates these very serious issues to secondary, adiaphora hang-ups.
But the greater problem is that they have even misrepresented the language of the Jerusalem Declaration. Nelson warns that this is particularly dangerous. The Primates say that “The Jerusalem Declaration affirms that the Bible makes a distinction between salvation issues and other secondary issues.”  But the Jerusalem Declaration says no such thing. First, Holy Scripture is abundantly clear concerning the possibility of women bishops. Second, the Anglican Ordinal is abundantly clear that only men may be ordained to any order in the Church, and thirdly, it simply isn’t true that the issue of Holy Orders does not pertain to salvation.
Nelson adds, “Everyone knew that for a GAFCON province to proceed with the consecration of a woman to the episcopate, our unity and fellowship would be deeply imperiled.” But this too seems to have been conveniently forgotten for the moment. The Primates appear to be committed to a “principle” of dual integrities.  Nelson wishes to remind them: “We have been down this road before. It is an idea far more Hegelian than Christian. Two contradictory understandings of Holy Scripture and the received faith cannot be simultaneously true.” The Gafcon faithful look to them for serious and sober leadership during these times. In such a short period, they have exchanged pursuit of the truth for convenient forgetting — and “that is not only regrettable, it’s deadly.”

In addition to embracing this “convenient forgetting,” the Gafcon Primates may also have fallen victimm what the Rev. Lee Nelson calls ” The Art of Hypocrisy.” Were the Primates merely self-deceived, each one minimizing his own views for the sake of appearing charitable towards one’s friends? After all, Nelson says, “We like our alliances. We like being liked. And if the cost is unanimous agreement on a statement that one might find partially false, it makes sense that one would live to fight another day while presenting a united front. But the statement that emerged appears to tell a different story.  The “art of hypocrisy,” as Nelson defines it, is the sin of pretending to virtue or goodness and in this case, employing exemplary niceness as an opportune cover to avoid bringing up an uncomfortable truth. The truth is frightening because it demands that we suffer for it when we would prefer to project “an underserved admirability in the sight of others.”The truth that is at stake here has less to do with the consecration of a woman bishop than it does with a tacit acceptance of the secular ideology of genderless human interchangeability in all aspects of human life. Nelson reminds us that “since 2003 at least, it has been the understanding of the Primates who have formed the backbone of GAFCON that same-sex marriage is a hill to die on, worth breaking fellowship over, even against the dictates of the Windsor Report, to commit to so-called ‘boundary crossings,’ even if it meant the ire of Canterbury.”  It was a bold proclaming of the Gospel truth to counter “the confusion that comes from the extremely post-modern assertion that gender is a subjective matter, and not one of nature.” The Gospel demands orthodoxy when it comes to the institution of marriage, which is considered by the Church to be holy and a sacramental reflection of the relationship between Christ and his Church.

As for the sacrament of Holy Orders, is this not at the very least on a similar level with marriage?  But the Office of Bishop embodies yet an additional truth in the “long-standing assumption that the historic episcopate is essential to Anglican unity.” Bishops are elected for the entire church and not just for an individual diocese and this is why the members of the College of Bishops have to give their consent to all bishops-elect in order for them to be consecrated by the Church for the Church.

In the case of Marriage, the biblical truth of Gospel orthodoxy was then non-negotiable for the Gafcon Primates. But now in the case of Holy Orders, all of a sudden, the Gafcon Primates have declared the same Gospel truth as “neither a salvation issue, nor a danger to the GAFCON Fellowship, nor a fundamental declaration in the eyes of our own Archbishop. Nelson concludes that the Primates are here “fulfilling the very definition of hypocrisy, pretending to virtue or goodness.” In other words, they have chosen pretense over substance, prefering to be seen as congenial conciliatory leaders instead of orthodox bishops defending truth with integrity.

 

There has been nothing more forthcoming during the past week, so I think what is posted here can probably be considered a comprehensive gathering of all the essential materials related directly to the consecration of Kenya’s first female diocesan bishop and its immediate repercussions on both Gafcon and ACNA.

You will find below the full texts of the news article and the various responses and commentaries posted in full.

Pray for the Church,
Barbara
Third Woman Bishop Consecrated for GAFCON Conference — George Conger (Anglican Ink)

The Archbishop of Kenya, the Most Jackson Ole Sapit writes he consecrated today the Rt. Rev. Rose Okeno as the fourth bishop of Butere. In a statement posted on Facebook on 12 Sept 2021, Archbishop Ole Sapit reported the ”ordination and Installation of the 4th Ordinary of the Diocese of Butere. The LORD bless my sister, Bishop Rose Okeno, the first Woman Anglican clergy in Kenya to be elected into the position of Diocesan Bishop.”

During the four hour ceremony held at the Butere Girls School sports compound in Kakamega County, Western Kenya, Archbishop Ole Sapit laid hands upon the new bishop, handing to her symbols of her episcopal ministry: a copy of the Scriptures, a pectoral cross, pastoral staff and a church flag.

“She is now the Rt Rev Rose Okeno. I congratulate her for rising above cultural norms and her courage that saw her battle it out with men for this position and make history as the first woman ACK bishop,” the archbishop told the congregation.

At the start of the ceremony, Archbishop Ole Sapit told the political leaders gathered for the service that they would not be permitted to speak to the congregation. ODM leader Raila Odinga and his Amani National Congress counterpart Musalia Mudavadi were among the political leaders present. The archbishop explained: “We welcome everyone, but we have to make the church to be the church. We have many leaders in attendance who we shall just recognise.”

Kenya’s general elections are scheduled for next year, and political leaders often address church congregations and gatherings to rally their supporters.

Bishop Okeno is the second woman bishop for the Anglican Church of Kenya. She was elected by a special meeting of the Butere synod on 31 July 2021. She becomes the fifth woman elected to the Anglican episcopate in Africa.

It is unclear whether the consecration of Bishop Okeno will have wider consequences for the wider GAFCON movement. The GAFCON primates adopted a moratorium on consecrating women bishops in 2018; however a spokesman for the GAFCON secretariat told Anglican.Ink earlier this year the moratorium had expired in 2019. This claim has been disputed, however, by one GAFCON leader who told AI they had reaffirmed the moratorium at their 2019 meeting.

2021 GAFCON Primates’ Communique ( Nairobi, Kenya)
16 September 2021

Agreement on the essentials of the faith as outlined in the Jerusalem Declaration provides a solid foundation for collaborative outreach to the world to proclaim Christ faithfully to the nations.

Meeting at All Saints Cathedral in Nairobi, the Gafcon Primates experienced a welcome of lavish hospitality from the Anglican Church of Kenya.

In a hybrid in-person and online meeting, the Gafcon Primates spent two days in prayer, fellowship, discussion and discernment about many challenging issues in today’s world. Discussions included conversations about the coronavirus pandemic and its impact on worship, ministry, discipleship and outreach; the challenge of the “other virus” of departures from biblical authority; and the great hope that is seen as the gospel of Jesus Christ is being proclaimed and embraced even in the midst of difficult circumstances and terrible persecution.

Archbishop Stephen Kaziimba, Primate of the Anglican Church of Uganda said, “Even when our church buildings are closed in the pandemic, the gospel is being proclaimed and embraced. God is being glorified as lives are being changed and enriched by Christ.”

Noting that the Anglican Church of Kenya had consecrated the first woman as a Diocesan Bishop, the Primates passed the following resolution:

“The Jerusalem Declaration affirms that the Bible makes a distinction between salvation issues and other secondary issues. In our discussion, the Primates acknowledged that while there is disagreement and ongoing discussion on the issues of the ordination of women as deacons or priests, and the consecration of women as Bishops, we are agreed that these are not salvation issues and are not issues that will disrupt our mission: to proclaim Christ faithfully to the nations.”

Gafcon General Secretary, Archbishop Ben Kwashi, updated current programs, and introduced a new initiative to establish a Doctor of Ministry program for Bishops that have attended the Gafcon Bishops Training Initiative (BTI). This new doctoral program will be based at the Alexandria School of Theology and will incorporate studies that are faithful to upholding biblical truths and capitalize on the rich heritage of North African Christianity. In addition, a list of Gafcon-accredited theological schools will be published allowing Bishops to readily identify institutions where they can confidently send ordination candidates for theological training.

Faithful Christians in Wales who are heartbroken over their Province’s formal decision to bless same-sex marriages, reached out to the Primates Council following the unanimous decision of the Bench of Bishops in Wales to proceed with blessing same-sex marriages. The Gafcon Primates responded with encouragement and solidarity for the sake of the gospel. Speaking for the entire Council, Chairman Foley Beach said, “To the faithful in Wales, we understand the decision to implement the blessing of same-sex marriages in your Province has been a significant disruption to the faith. It is important to say that you are not alone. As you discern your responses to the situation, you can be sure that we will stand with you in solidarity as you bear witness to the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints. Remember the words of Joshua: ‘Have I not commanded you? Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go’ (Joshua 1:9) – and we are with you as well.”

In Australia, circumstances have arisen that require the establishment of an extra-provincial Diocese to provide a home and oversight for those congregations who are committed to maintaining the historic, biblical faith, as expressed in the Jerusalem Declaration. The Gafcon Primates remain committed to our core values to maintain and proclaim the faith. That includes establishing Dioceses or even Provinces where needed. We recognize the establishment of such an extra-provincial Diocese as being authentically Anglican.

The Primates noted with concern the rise of severe persecution of Christians, especially in Nigeria, and the tragic circumstances in Afghanistan. Archbishop Henry Ndukuba, Metropolitan and Primate of All Nigeria said: “Persecution will never stop the gospel, it only fuels revival. To those who are suffering, we want to assure you of our love and support. When they kill you, they think they are doing a good work. Stand strong, the God of Jacob is our refuge. He will never leave you or forsake you. Gafcon is standing with you!”

There was great enthusiasm at the decision to hold our next assembly, GAFCON IV, in Rwanda in May of 2023.

Contact: Archbishop Ben Kwashi, General Secretary
Gafcon
Email: gensec@gafcon.org

RESPONSES:

Pastoral Message Regarding GAFCON and Women in the Episcopate — Abp. Foley Beach (ACNA)
16 September 2021

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

I am writing to you today from Nairobi, Kenya at the close of the recent Gafcon Primates Meeting.  I am thankful for our global fellowship that is providing encouragement for many, from those undergoing persecution in Nigeria to those grappling with theological innovations in Wales.  I encourage you to read more from the press release here.

There is one matter coming out of our meeting that is a challenge for a number of us in the Anglican Church in North America, myself included.  The Anglican Church of Kenya recently consecrated a female diocesan bishop, and there has been speculation about how this development might affect our fellowship.  At our meeting, the Gafcon Primates agreed we have not come to a consensus on the issue of women in holy orders, and specifically women in the episcopate.  At its founding, Gafcon articulated in the Jerusalem Declaration the centrality of the Gospel message of salvation while acknowledging differences in secondary matters and pledging “to work together to seek the mind of Christ on issues that divide us.” Such matters will certainly stretch our fellowship, but our unity in Christ remains strong.

I recognize that this decision will come as a deep disappointment to some.  I share in that disappointment.  I wish Gafcon were of a common mind on this topic, but the reality is that we are not. However, let us remember that Gafcon founded the Anglican Church in North America, and these orthodox leaders in the Anglican Communion sacrificially put their lives on the line for the Gospel of Jesus Christ every day.  This decision does not change how our Province operates as our constitution and canons are clear.  Gafcon is not an ecclesial jurisdiction; it is a conference. Nevertheless, we will continue to stand with these brothers and sisters to the greatest extent possible to maintain the Biblical Faith in the Anglican Communion and proclaim the saving Good News of Jesus Christ.

Please join me in praying for the Church:

Gracious Father, we pray for your holy Catholic Church. Fill it with all truth, in all truth with all peace. Where it is corrupt, purify it; where it is in error, direct it; where in anything it is amiss, reform it. Where it is right, strengthen it; where it is in want, provide for it; where it is divided, reunite it; for the sake of Jesus Christ your Son our Savior. Amen (Prayer for the Universal Church, pg. 646, BCP 2019)

The Most Rev. Dr. Foley Beach
Archbishop and Primate, Anglican Church in North America

ACNA Laity: It’s Time To Speak Up — Mark Marshall (Stand Firm)

A brief note at the end of a difficult week in the Anglican Church in North America (ACNA).

In the aftermath of GAFCON failing to discipline or even rebuke the Anglican Archbishop of Kenya for consecrating a woman bishop*, I heard a rousing exhortation in a private setting, which contained the following:

Keep being loud. Get the laity involved and call out the powers that be. At the end of the day many of us are constrained by our bishops about what we can say and how. But if the laity rise up and hold the bishops to account. Then that is a different story.

I heartily agree. One of the reasons the mainline denominations went to pot in the 20th Century is that the laity were passive in the face of progressing apostasy. Few said much. Most just kept sending in their offerings. Most of the laity were enablers of apostasy. We laity in ACNA must not follow that too familiar easy path.

One of the points of the exhortation is something Anglican laity must also take to account. Clergy, by their vow of obedience to the bishop, are constrained in what they can say. That makes it that much more important for us laity to speak up when it is needful. And, in case you haven’t noticed, it is needful.

In ACNA, I have heard time and again of traditional clergy being in effect told to shut up by their bishop. (At the same time, there are bishops encouraging their traditional clergy to speak out as some of us here at Stand Firm know personally. We are thankful for these.) Meanwhile, there are bishops, few but dangerous, that allow, nay, encourage their dioceses to become playgrounds of wokeness and error. It has become a rigged game in much of ACNA.

Well, this layman is not going to play that game. Being a layman, I do not have to play that game. Bishops may get unhappy with me, and I’ve been rather clearly informed of that happening in the past. But, although I respect most of them, I swore no vow of obedience to any of them. I respect their role to hold me accountable, and traditional Anglicans place much weight on the scriptural authority and duties of bishops – which is why the Kenya consecration and the conduct of certain ACNA bishops is upsetting – but laity have a role to hold bishops accountable as well.

I intend to fulfill that role. Join me! If we do not wish to become TEC 2.0, ACNA laity must speak up. And the College of Bishops deserve to be informed, and informed clearly, that if they continue to lead us in the current direction, many of us traditional Anglican laity will not follow them.

—–
*I should add that I respect and appreciate ACNA Archbishop Foley Beach’s pastoral statement afterward. It is hard to see how he could have said anything better in his difficult position. I will also add that we laity should pray for him and for the College of Bishops during this trying time.

Resolution of the Standing Committee of the Episcopal Diocese of Fort Worth

21 September 2021

Saint Matthew, Apostle and Evangelist

“Beloved, being very eager to write to you of our common salvation, I found it necessary to write appealing to you to contend for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints” (Jude 3).

In a 2017 communique from the Global Anglican Future Conference (GAFCon), the Primates noted: “It is our prime recommendation that the provinces of GAFCon should retain the historic practice of the consecration only of men as bishops until and unless a strong consensus to change emerges after prayer, consultation and continued study of Scripture among the GAFCon fellowship.” In 2021, the Chairman of GAFCon, Archbishop Foley Beach, noted: “At our meeting, the GAFCon Primates agreed we have not come to a consensus on the issue of women in holy orders, and specifically women in the episcopate.” And yet, three women have been consecrated in the GAFCon provinces of Sudan and Kenya since the moratorium on such consecrations went into effect, despite the lack of consensus.

We enthusiastically support the statement of our own Primate, Archbishop Beach, that “we will continue to stand with these brothers and sisters [of GAFCon] to the greatest extent possible to maintain the Biblical Faith in the Anglican Communion and proclaim the saving Good News of Jesus Christ.” And we enthusiastically celebrate the rich contribution of women vitally engaged with significant impact in the ministry of the church throughout her long history. In an effort to strengthen and not to whither our bonds of affection, we also wish to record our strong objection to the recent consecrations of women in provinces of the Global Anglican Future Conference and to the classification of the action as a “secondary issue.”

Primary and Secondary Issues

“Speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ . . . Therefore, putting away falsehood, let every one speak the truth with his neighbor, for we are members one of another” (Ephesians 4:15,25).

In their recent meeting, the primates of GAFCon passed a resolution which noted: “In our discussion, the Primates acknowledged that while there is disagreement and ongoing discussion on the issues of the ordination of women as deacons or priests, and the consecration of women as Bishops, we are agreed that these are not salvation issues and are not issues that will disrupt our mission: to proclaim Christ faithfully to the nations.”

Issues that touch upon the salvation of souls are always primary issues, and certainly not to be considered adiaphora (“things indifferent”). The catechism of the 1662 Book of Common Prayer describes the sacraments of Baptism and the Supper of the Lord as “generally necessary to salvation.” The Jerusalem Declaration affirms as a tenet of orthodoxy (#6), that “we uphold the

1662 Book of Common Prayer as a true and authoritative standard of worship and prayer.” The validity of the sacrament of the Supper of the Lord is contingent upon the minister being a valid priest or bishop in Holy Orders. The validity of a sacrament that is generally necessary to salvation is, by definition, a salvation issue.

The Jerusalem Declaration affirms as a tenet of orthodoxy (#2), “The Bible is to be translated, read, preached, taught and obeyed in its plain and canonical sense, respectful of the church’s historic and consensual reading.” The innovation of the ordination of women is not respectful of the church’s historic and consensual reading of scripture.

Bishops for the Whole Church

“The saying is sure: If any one aspires to the office of bishop, he desires a noble task” (1 Timothy 3:1).

Bishops are consecrated not just to serve a local diocese, but are consecrated for the whole church. What one province does in this matter affects all.

We recognize that the ordination of women has been a contentious and divisive issue. We urge our brethren and spiritual fathers to move away from divisiveness, not toward it. We affirm the unanimous statement of the ACNA College of Bishops about the subject on 7 September 2017. While acknowledging that the ordination of women is practiced within some dioceses of the Anglican Church in North America, it stated: “we also acknowledge that this practice is a recent innovation to Apostolic Tradition and Catholic Order” and “we agree that there is insufficient scriptural warrant to accept women’s ordination to the priesthood as standard practice throughout the Province.” This standing committee, together with our bishop, believes that the same principle of restraint should be applied locally as well as in the global church.

In our view, the way forward toward our global Anglican future lies in faithfulness to the Holy Scriptures and the received tradition, not in a theological innovation which would seek to overturn created order by attempting to consecrate women as spiritual fathers. The sacred trust placed in the episcopal office, as successors to the apostles, is to hand on the historic Christian faith and practice to a new generation of believers.

Adopted unanimously at the 21 September 2021 regular meeting.

The Rev’d Timothy M. Matkin, President of the Standing Committee

 

FiFNA Bishops Write Primate of Kenya — Forward in Faith North America
The Most Reverend Jackson Ole Sapit
Archbishop and Primate of the Anglican Church of KenyaYour Grace,
We, the bishops and members of Forward in Faith North America, write to express our profound sadness at the decision of the Anglican Church of Kenya to break two thousand years of episcopal principle and practice, the great tradition in Anglicanism since the English Reformation, as well as GAFCON protocol, and consecrate a female bishop.
Your decision to act unilaterally in opposition to the expressed concerns and agreements of the GAFCON Primates Council is a break in the fraternal love and respect that has been a hallmark of GAFCON and witness to orthodox Anglicans worldwide.

Sadly, the actions of your province directly harm Christ’s Church by failing to uphold the “doctrine, sacraments and discipline of Christ, as the Lord has commanded and as this Church has received them.” Specifically, this innovation directly harms the maintenance of the historic episcopate, challenges our missional and ecumenical relationships throughout the world, and opens the door for Satan to divide Christ’s One Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church.

The Historic Episcopate
In a 2017 communique from the Global Anglican Future Conference (GAFCON), the Primates noted: “It is our prime recommendation that the provinces of GAFCON should retain the historic practice of the consecration only of men as bishops until and unless a strong consensus to change emerges after prayer, consultation and continued study of Scripture among the GAFCON fellowship.” The historic male episcopate provides the Church a common assurance of sacramental validity. *

Ecumenical Relationships and Christian Mission
Recently the GAFCON Primates Council has reached out to the Roman Catholic and Orthodox Churches, as well as Protestant denominations such as the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod, in order to further our relationships and further our common mission in fulfillment of our Lord’s prayer in John 17, “I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word, that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me.” (John 17:20-21). Our ability to fulfill this prayer, heal division, and carry out Gospel mission together will only be further impaired by breaking with the holy Biblical tradition given by all male apostles to all male successors.

Doctrine, Discipline and Division
While the Anglican Church in Kenya currently maintains an orthodox understanding of the Gospel, it should be noted that every province that has adopted women into the episcopate has, in time, yielded to the pressures of the culture and left Biblical morality. Listen to the words of Saint Paul to Timothy, “For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths.” (2 Timothy 4:3-4)

Lastly, your Grace, for the sake of the Gospel and our unity in Christ we call upon the Anglican Church in Kenya to refrain from further actions of division and to repent of your actions which have directly harmed your brother and sister Anglican Christians around the world.

Faithfully,

The Rt. Rev. Eric Vawter Menees (Ordinary of San Joaquin and President of Forward in Faith North America)
The Rt. Rev. Richard Lipka (Ordinary of the Missionary Diocese of All Saints and Vice President of Forward in Faith)
The Rt. Rev. Ray Sutton (Ordinary of the Diocese of Mid-America)
The Rt. Rev. Walter Banek (Assisting Bishop of the Diocese of Mid-America)
The Rt. Rev. Clark Lowenfield (Ordinary of the Diocese of the Western Gulf Coast)
The Rt. Rev. Ryan Reed (Ordinary of the Diocese of Fort Worth)
The Rt. Rev. Jack Iker (Bishop Emeritus of the Diocese of Fort Worth)
The Rt. Rev. Bill Wantland (Assisting Bishop of the Diocese of Fort Worth)
The Rt. Rev. Alberto Morales, OSB (Ordinary of the Diocese of Quincy)
The Rt. Rev. Keith Ackerman, SSC (Assisting Bishop of the Diocese of Fort Worth)

COMMENTARY:
(Podcast) A Gentleman’s Agreement: Kenya, GAFCON and the Tenuous Compromise — Matt Kennedy (Stand Firm)
On this 50-minute episode of the Stand Firm podcast, Matt, Jady, and Nick talk about the recent consecration of a woman to the episcopate in Kenya, wonder about its affect on the ACNA’s global relationships, and discuss GAFCON’s middle ground on women’s ordination.
(Podcast) Salvation Issues? Bishops, Discipline and Unity — Matt Kennedy (Stand Firm)
Matt, Jady, and Nick continue to talk about the GAFCON Primates Communique and delve deeper into what makes an Anglican an Anglican. In this 35-minute episode, they discuss what keeps us together, what’s worth splitting over, and consider what “salvation issues” might be.
If Gafcon Is Merely a Conference, What’s the Point? — Phil Ashey (American Anglican)

In his report from the GAFCON Primates meeting, Archbishop Foley Beach declared that “GAFCON is not an ecclesial jurisdiction; it is a conference.”  He commented in response to the deep disappointment that many have been feeling since a GAFCON Province has consecrated two women as bishops of the Church despite a moratorium on such consecrations. Although a spokesperson for GAFCON is reputed to have stated that this moratorium among GAFCON Provinces had expired, this is clearly not the case.

  • The GAFCON Primates authorized a Task Force on Women in the Episcopate in 2015.  That Task Force consisted of 19 Bishops and theologians from Kenya, Nigeria, Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda, Sudan, North America, Chile, Myanmar, Sydney (Australia) and the UK.
  • In 2017, the GAFCON Primates authorized a representative of the Task Force to consult with a “Panel of Advisors”—a bishop, clergy, and lay representative from each Gafcon Province or Branch.  The Rev. Dr. Stephen Noll did so.
  • In 2018, the GAFCON Primates received the Interim Report of the Task Force and approved its primary recommendation:

“that the provinces of GAFCON should retain the historic practice of the consecration only of men as bishops until and unless a strong consensus to change emerges after prayer, consultation and continued study of Scripture among the GAFCON Fellowship.” (emphasis added)

  • The GAFCON Primates reaffirmed this recommendation in their 2019 Communique from Sydney.

So, where is the evidence of “a strong consensus to change” emerging from the GAFCON Fellowship?  In fact, where is there any evidence of prayer, consultation, and continued study of Scripture among the GAFCON Fellowship?  Were there any subsequent meetings of the Task Force in 2019? 2020? 2021? Or of the Panel of Advisors?

If GAFCON were acting in a truly conciliar way, we would expect to find such evidence of a strong consensus to change by a strong majority of the GAFCON fellowship after sustained prayer, consultation, and continued study of the Scriptures together.  This is the nature of conciliar governance as Dr. Steve Noll observes in his essay on Women Bishops and Reception:

“True development of doctrine and practice requires time, careful testing, and consensus at the highest levels, as was the case at the apostolic council in Acts 15. This has not yet happened in the churches of the Anglican Communion and/or among the churches of the GAFCON fellowship. The Primates’ existing moratorium on ordaining a woman bishop recognizes the need for lengthy consideration and the danger of premature and unilateral action by one member church.”

Instead, the only evidence we have is the premature and unilateral consecration of two women bishops by one GAFCON member church, Kenya.

The GAFCON Primates were not able to speak with a united voice on this matter.  So, they conceded the matter as adiaphora.  They did not do the hard, sustained, time intensive and lengthy work that Anglican Conciliarism requires.  Instead, they opted for “open reception” … This seems to fly in the face of GAFCON’s aspirations to be both confessional and conciliar.  

Perhaps GAFCON’s aspiration to be conciliar is a bridge too far.  The Jerusalem Statement (2008) launched the GAFCON movement as a “Fellowship of Confessing Anglicans.”  The Jerusalem Declaration (2008) formed the GAFCON Primates Council “to authenticate and recognize confessing Anglican jurisdictions, clergy and congregations and to encourage all Anglicans to promote the gospel and defend the faith.”

Is it time for GAFCON to return to its roots, to this original charism which authenticated, recognized, and helped birth biblically faithful Anglican Churches in North America, Brazil, and New Zealand?

The majority of the GAFCON Primates and Provinces lie in the Global South.  As I have written extensively elsewhere, the Cairo Covenant of the Global South Anglican Fellowship (October 2019) provides truly conciliar structures for a Global Anglican Communion based upon a biblical and apostolic confession of doctrine, discipline, and worship.  What might happen if GAFCON, true to its calling, focused its efforts on “authenticating and recognizing confessing Anglican jurisdictions” by actively bringing them to the Global South for membership on the terms of the Cairo Covenant?

It would almost be like Paul bringing uncircumcised Gentile Christians to Jerusalem for membership in Christ’s one body, his Church.

Imagine that.

Convenient Forgetting and the Jerusalem Declaration — Lee Nelson (North American Anglican)

“Forgetting pain is convenient, remembering it; agonizing. But uncovering the truth is worth all the suffering.” ~ Lewis Carroll

Convenient forgetting. Over thirteen years have passed since the Jerusalem Declaration was released in 2008. At the time, I was a 28 year old priest, and the recipient of a young leader invitation to this pivotal conference. As I remember it, the attendees of the conference were divided by continent and the Declaration was put up on screens as it was read. Within a few minutes, we could hear African Anglicans singing songs of praise. Shortly thereafter, we heard joy break out among others. Two hours later, we North Americans were still debating basic language.

As I remember it, it was a painful time. We were keenly aware of all that divided us. The prospects of a new province of the communion seemed daunting. And yet, there was hope that the grace of God could break through and bring us to a new future. It is convenient to forget those divisions, especially as they deeply undermine and threaten the future of our global fellowship.

But, I must tell the truth.

The truth is that the GAFCON primates have expressly chosen language that shows they are bent on forgetting that there is still great division, especially on issues of the ordination of women to the episcopate. They have chosen instead to move forward in a way that relegates these very serious issues to secondary, adiaphora, hang-ups. The problem is, if I may be utterly clear, they have even misrepresented the language of the Jerusalem Declaration. This is particularly dangerous.

I don’t mean to cover over my own deep dissatisfaction with this in this essay, only to uncover the truth of what has happened in the remarkable statement of the GAFCON primates coming out of Nairobi this past week.

In that statement, they make the claim:

The Jerusalem Declaration affirms that the Bible makes a distinction between salvation issues and other secondary issues. In our discussion, the Primates acknowledged that while there is disagreement and ongoing discussion on the issues of the ordination of women as deacons or priests, and the consecration of women as Bishops, we are agreed that these are not salvation issues and are not issues that will disrupt our mission: to proclaim Christ faithfully to the nations.

Does it affirm that the bible makes a distinction between salvation issues and other secondary issues?

It does not.

Instead, the Jerusalem Declaration makes clear, following the deep principles of Anglican doctrine that first:

the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments to be the Word of God written and to contain all things necessary for salvation. The Bible is to be translated, read, preached, taught and obeyed in its plain and canonical sense, respectful of the church’s historic and consensual reading.

Second:

We recognise that God has called and gifted bishops, priests and deacons in historic succession to equip all the people of God for their ministry in the world. We uphold the classic Anglican Ordinal as an authoritative standard of clerical orders.

And thirdly:

We celebrate the God-given diversity among us which enriches our global fellowship, and we acknowledge freedom in secondary matters. We pledge to work together to seek the mind of Christ on issues that divide us.

While it is very clear that the various attendees of the Jerusalem conference in 2008 did believe that such secondary issues exist, it was not clear that the ordination of women to the episcopate was one of them. In fact, most would have deeply disputed that claim. The reasoning has been quite clear. First, Holy Scripture is abundantly clear concerning the possibility of women bishops. Second, the Anglican Ordinal is abundantly clear that only men may be ordained to any order in the Church, and thirdly, it simply isn’t true that the issue of Holy Orders does not pertain to salvation. Everyone knew that for a GAFCON province to proceed with the consecration of a woman to the episcopate, our unity and fellowship would be deeply imperiled. In fact, I remember in Nairobi in 2013, there was one lone dissent from the Communique and Commitment: voiced by a woman who did not believe the statement’s content regarding the ministry of women were substantial enough, especially with regard to ordination.

This forgetting was compounded when, in 2018, the first consecration of a woman to the episcopate occurred in South Sudan. This was called “extraordinary” and even more strongly an “anomaly.” Either way, there was a voluntary moratorium in effect since 2014 which had been forgotten, although it had remained in place.

A report to the Primates in 2017 gave this summary judgment:

It is our prime recommendation that the provinces of GAFCON should retain the historic practice of the consecration only of men as bishops until and unless a strong consensus to change emerges after prayer, consultation and continued study of Scripture among the GAFCON fellowship.

Such a consensus has not emerged. And yet, there have been two more such consecrations in Kenya. Now, the GAFCON Primates state boldly that these are not salvation issues. They appear to be committed to a “principle” of dual integrities. We have been down this road before. It is an idea far more Hegelian than Christian. Two contradictory understandings of Holy Scripture and the received faith cannot be simultaneously true. The Primates must understand that the faithful look to them for serious and sober leadership during these times. That in such a short period, they have exchanged pursuit of the truth for convenient forgetting is not only regrettable, it’s deadly.

Salvation Issues From An Anglican Perspective: A Brief Catechism — Lee Nelson (North American Anglican)
https://northamanglican.com/salvation-issues-from-an-anglican-perspective-a-brief-catechesis/

In this article, I thought I would take the prerogative of a catechist for a moment. Even good bishops need to be catechized. After all, they are the chief catechists of the Church. For the past several years, I have served the Anglican Church in North America as the chair of the Committee for Catechesis. Sadly, that role has often meant correcting bishops on occasion. I find it all the more necessary today, especially when it comes to their particular calling as bishops: the diligent preaching of the Word of God, the administration of the Sacraments, and the provision of godly discipline, so that “all may receive the crown of everlasting glory.” (BCP 2019, 500)

My chief concern in this brief catechesis is to address the language of the following resolution by the Primates from their September 2021 meeting:

the Primates acknowledged that while there is disagreement and ongoing discussion on the issues of the ordination of women as deacons or priests, and the consecration of women as Bishops, we are agreed that these are not salvation issues and are not issues that will disrupt our mission: to proclaim Christ faithfully to the nations.

The rhetoric employed is rather simple: nothing to see here, the only real thing we have to consider is salvation issues, right? Can’t we just move on from this horrid albatross?

But, the usage of this term “salvation issue” begs a serious question. What, pray tell, are salvation issues? You’d think we’d want to know what those things are, right? Would the good Primates of GAFCON provide us with a handy list?

But, there is a more serious question I would ask today. Is this true? Do issues of ordination touch on salvation or not? What is salvation?

Let’s start with the basics. What is salvation? Or, perhaps more clearly, how does God save us?

To Be a Christian: An Anglican Catechism answers this question in the very opening section on salvation:

#6 How does God save you?

God forgives my sins and reconciles me to himself through his Son, Jesus Christ, whom he has given to the world as an undeserved gift of love. “God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.”

The Catechism states later (Q 15) that this reconciliation to God in Christ includes forgiveness of sins, union with him in Christ, adoption into his family, citizenship in his Kingdom, and new life in the Holy Spirit. And just how does this happen? Through the Sacrament of Baptism, which is considered in the Articles of Religion (XXV) as “generally necessary for salvation.” In other words, unlike many evangelicals today, for whom salvation is solely about an affirmation of a number of propositions, it is about being joined to Christ by being joined to his death in a sacramental manner. Of course, creedal faith cannot be divorced from this new identity. In fact, it is the identity of the Christian. This is the reason that baptismal rites have always included the Rule of Faith, specifically the Apostles’ Creed.

Another way of putting this is that for Anglicans, salvation is participation in the life of God, granted through the great gift of Jesus Christ. Why do we believe this? Because it is the teaching of Holy Scripture.

Furthermore, the Anglican formularies (Including the Catechism, the Book of Common Prayer, and the Articles) do not stop by saying that Baptism and the living faith of the Christian are the only things necessary for salvation. To these, another is added: the Lord’s Supper. The Articles declare that Baptism and the Eucharist are not merely marks of profession, but “certain sure witnesses, and effectual signs of grace, and God’s good will towards us, by the which he doth work invisibly in us, and doth not only quicken, but also strengthen and confirm our Faith in him.” (Article XXV) This is to say that if it is grace which is given in the Sacraments, it is certainly true that they are generally necessary to salvation. Why? Because it is first and foremost grace that is necessary to salvation.

So, is grace a salvation issue? You bet it is. Is sacramental grace a salvation issue? Of course!

Keep in mind also that the visible Church herself is defined as “a congregation of faithful men, in which the pure Word of God is preached, and the Sacraments be duly ministered according to Christ’s ordinance, in all those things that of necessity are requisite to the same.” (Article XIX) That is, the Church is most herself in the proclamation of the Word and administration of the Sacraments, by which she receives the implanted word and the gift of participation in the person of Jesus. Thus, the article makes clear that there are things which are requisite to these two fundamental actions: not just clarity concerning Holy Scripture and the Gospel, but also Bishops that are real bishops and priests who are real priests.

Thus, neither the ordinal nor the sacramental rites of the Book of Common Prayer allow for monkey business when administering these sacraments. Anglicans are free to charitably hold that other ministers of the Gospel might be equally able to administer the sacraments, but canonically, there is no wiggle room. The Ordinal must be followed. The rites must be observed. Not only does this quell the doubt of the scrupulous, it ensures that the Church is most fully herself.

My point is that none of this is superfluous to salvation. Saint Paul calls the bread which we break and the cup of blessing “a participation” in Christ. While it is emphatically true that participation in the Eucharist does not effect our justification, it is very true that it imparts the grace of sanctification, and this being so is very much a salvation issue.

The problem which is presenting itself in the Primate’s resolution is that such a definition is anything but an Anglican statement. Anglicans are not interested in the lowest common denominator. This is a phenomenon of American revivalism more than anything else, and I suspect, therefore, a phenomenon of the East African Revival all the more. These revivals specifically avoided any sacramental content whatsoever, primarily because they were not the working of one church or another, but an extra-denominational movement. This meant historically that the doctrinal definitions of such movements were, of necessity, sparse.

The Primate’s exaltation of the mission to proclaim Christ faithfully to the nations as some higher-ordered good than sacramental conformity is mystifying. If I can put the issue simply: the sacraments are the mission. The Church is not herself merely because of the faithful proclamation of the Word, but because of the faithful administration of the sacraments as well. Ersatz sacraments at the hands of ersatz bishops simply won’t do, no matter how faithfully the Gospel is preached. In fact, we should be willing to say that a proclamation of the Gospel sans the sacraments is no Gospel at all. It is a disembodied Gospel. It is more gnostic than Christian. And we should say so.

One more thing should be added to this, that the current controversy illumines the manifold difficulties of re-casting Anglicanism as a confessional Church. Even the Jerusalem Declaration does not presume to be a confession. In 2008, confessionalism was not the only solution on offer. Bishop Michael Nazir-Ali and others articulated the need for a renewal of conciliarism. The need is rather acute: bishops need to meet and decide on critical issues. A simple statement is insufficient. They cannot punt the ball downfield. Yet, this is the very thing that happened in Nairobi, introducing a somewhat magisterial statement as to the severity of the issue of women in the episcopate. We were told, let’s just move on. This is unimportant. Get over it.

Trouble is, for those who hold Anglican identity as a thing worth preserving, there is no getting over it. These issues are issues of salvation. And we will continue to say so.

 

The Art of Hypocrisy: A Primer — Lee Nelson (North American Anglican)

“Self-deception is nature; hypocrisy is art.” — Mason Cooley

The most charitable take I can possibly provide for last week’s statement from the GAFCON Primates is that they are merely self-deceived. Such meetings provide ample reason to be charitable towards one’s friends. I can imagine that no one wanted to call his brother an apostate, much less an enemy. I know many of these men personally, and I can say that they are good men, and while I will disagree, and disagree vehemently with their decision to write off the consecration of yet another woman to the episcopate as adiaphora, I will also say that they are not above self-deception. Indeed such is the state of every human being. We like our alliances. We like being liked. And if the cost is unanimous agreement on a statement that one might find partially false, it makes sense that one would live to fight another day while presenting a united front.

All of this would be understandable if this particular statement weren’t so egregiously hypocritical.

By hypocrisy, I mean it in the received sense: the sin of pretending to virtue or goodness. The truth is frightening. The truth demands that we suffer for it because the alternative is the projection of underserved admirability in the sight of others. It’s not a fate that we should wish upon our dearest friends, that they should have to call their other friends deceivers and frauds. But, their integrity depends upon it, and not only their integrity but their own ability to love their neighbor.

Since 2003 at least, it has been the understanding of the Primates who have formed the backbone of GAFCON that same-sex marriage is a hill to die on, worth breaking fellowship over, even against the dictates of the Windsor Report, to commit to so-called “boundary crossings,” even if it meant the ire of Canterbury. And to all of this, we should say: well done! Good for them! I’m thankful for this witness!

But, what was this all about?

Was it not about countering the confusion that comes from the extremely post-modern assertion that gender is a subjective matter, and not one of nature? Was it not about a defense of the biblical doctrine of marriage? Of course it was! But, it was also about the Gospel, that the Gospel demands orthodoxy when it comes to the institution of marriage. What was this at the heart? Was it not an attack on what is at the very least something commonly called a sacrament, and many of us would say – a sacrament indeed?

Now, we come to the question of the episcopate, and is this not at the very least on a similar level with marriage? I would continue to claim that Holy Orders, in general, are on the same level, but with the episcopate, there has been a long-standing assumption that the historic episcopate is essential not only to Anglican unity, but to any ecumenical prospects. According to the Chicago-Lambeth Quadrilateral “The Historic Episcopate, locally adapted in the methods of its administration to the varying needs of the nations and peoples called of God into the unity of His Church” is one of four inherent parts of the sacred deposit “committed by Christ and his Apostles to the Church unto the end of the world, and therefore incapable of compromise or surrender by those who have been ordained to be its stewards and trustees.”

For the Anglican Church in North America, the fourth fundamental declaration of our province is this:

We confess the godly historic Episcopate as an inherent part of the apostolic faith and practice, and therefore as integral to the fullness and unity of the Body of Christ.

Yet, as we see: the former is non-negotiable, but now, all of a sudden, the latter is neither a salvation issue, nor a danger to the GAFCON Fellowship, nor a fundamental declaration in the eyes of our own Archbishop.

Is this self-deception? Or is it hypocrisy?

I can only wish it was mere self-deception, but given the degree, I must say it is rather artful hypocrisy, especially on the part of those bishops who have publicly stated their commitment to the historic episcopate as, well, as it has historically been, an institution for men only. Why? Because of the witness of Holy Scripture. These men know the truth, and yet they have unanimously signed on to a document they know is false. Why? Because, and it hurts me to say this: they are fulfilling the very definition of hypocrisy, pretending to virtue or goodness. In other words, they have chosen pretense over substance.

I must say, especially to Foley Beach, and publicly, that this is a shocking betrayal of our fundamental declarations. While he made it clear that he was disappointed and challenged, he did not defend the fundamental declaration of the province regarding the episcopate. His Pastoral Message was thus artful, but artfully hypocritical. He is not deceived. He wants to be perceived as a conciliatory leader. He clearly does not want to resign as the chair of the Primate’s Council. But, integrity as befits an orthodox bishop must certainly demand it. I say this as one who considers him a friend. But, alas, what kind of friend would I be if I kept the truth to myself?

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