Synod’s GAFCON Gaff

Jul 7, 2018 by

from QuantumLinks:

I was privileged to be present at the third GAFCON conference in Jerusalem this year. The gathering drew bishops, archbishops, clergy and lay folk from many Anglican provinces across the world, though there was a notable paucity of English bishops present (two serving suffragans, two retired bishops and NO diocesans). Many of the provinces represented are among the fastest growing and most heavily persecuted in the communion – the possibility of a connection between these things is moot. GAFCON represented, I am told, something like 70% of the world’s Anglicans and was the largest gathering of Anglicans for over fifty years. More about the conference itself another time. It is impossible to conclude, then, that GAFCON 3 is anything other than massively significant for the Anglican communion and that the GAFCON movement, growing as it is, is also a very significant innovation with potentially incalculable future implications.

Now, any reasonable person would surely expect General Synod at least to recognise GAFCON wouldn’t they? Wouldn’t it be reasonable to have the GAFCON 3 communique read to synod by way of greeting? Of course, it is unreasonable to expect synod time to be made available at such short notice for a full debate, just check the synod papers available on the C of E website to see all the really important debates we have this weekend! Time could easily have been made, though, for a presentation and a ‘take note’ motion. But there is nothing. No presentation. No reading of the letter. No mention of GAFCON, except by a few members from the floor, and in the submitted questions to synod. This landslide movement is totally ignored.

Successful strategy or faux pas? Be in no doubt, it is a strategy. A strategy emanating from the very top. Keep quiet and hope it will go away. The Archbishop of Canterbury has made no comment about GAFCON 3. And remember, he is head not only of the church of England, but of the Anglican communion, 70% of which, remember, was represented at GAFCON 3. How does this make the archbishop look? Does he care about the Anglican communion? Does he care about those persecuted Christians numbered within it? Is he encouraged, or not, by the massive growth among Anglican Churches in Nigera, Uganda, Kenya, ACNA in the USA? Is he concerned about the persecution by TEC and ACOC of their own orthodox ministers? We will never know. And that leaves open the only option, we can only guess!

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