Primates intervene in Canada row

Church of England Newspaper ^ | 26 February 2004 | staff writers

[ahadams2]

Primates intervene in Canada row

Number: 5706 Date: Feb 26,

In a move that has the potential to divide Canadian conservatives, four Primates along with the Anglican Mission in America have stepped into the fray over alternative Episcopal oversight in the diocese of New Westminster in support of traditionalists.

Last week in Vancouver the Rev Paul Carter announced that four of the 11 member parishes of the Anglican Communion in New Westminster (ACiNW) had accepted “temporary adequate Episcopal oversight” from the Most Rev Yong Ping Chung of Southeast Asia, the Most Rev Emmanuel Kolini of Rwanda, the Most Rev Fidele Dirokpa of the Congo, and the Most Rev Bernard Malango of Central Africa.

An AMiA bishop, the Rt Rev TJ Johnston will “function as a servant of the four Primates in the practical aspects of this oversight” stated Mr Carter.

“We're extremely grateful to the Primates for this gracious and long-needed offer," stated Mr Carter, as “we have been without a bishop for almost 20 months.” Intervention was necessary as “people of deep religious conscience are so tired and disillusioned with the system that many are leaving Anglicanism altogether” he noted.

However, speaking as Acting Primate of the Anglican Church of Canada, Archbishop Crawley expressed regret at the action of the four primates. He pointed to the 'long tradition' that bishops and primates do not interfere in the life of other provinces, affirmed at the Lambeth Conferences of 1988 and 1998.

That stance was dismissed by Mr Carter, who said that impatience with the slow pace of reform prompted the move allowing “us to have relief and move forward in mission while the wider Anglican Communion works out how to deal with false teaching in its midst, and the impending re-alignment.”

Neale Adams, press officer of the Diocese of New Westminster, told the Church of England Newspaper “the diocese believes the proper person to ask for comment about this matter is the Acting Primate, David Crawley.” Archbishop Crawley told us this week that a task force established by the Canadian House of Bishops is due to report in April. "In light of this pending report, Archbishop Crawley feels that the intervention by the four primates is particularly inappropriate and unwelcome," said his spokesman.

Lesley Bentley, a spokesman for the ACiNW, noted that the conservatives in New Westminster were not of one mind. “We had hoped everyone would be able to stay on board through to the end of the Eames Report and its outcome next year. Unfortunately, individual parishes here are having some difficulty” in waiting for alternative Episcopal oversight.

At a meeting of the Canadian House of Bishops in Mississauga, Ontario, last October a deal was brokered to keep the Church together. A taskforce was created to study the situation and to report to General Synod in June of 2004.

The four parishes that have accepted the Primates offer “will still remain within the ACiNW,” Mrs Bentley told us.

Conservative critics of the intervention note that one of the four Primates, Archbishop Bernard Malango of Central Africa, is a member of the Primates’ Commission. His participation in Vancouver, they claim, lessens his influence upon the Commission. An unconfirmed report from the Primates’ Commission meeting held at St George’s, Windsor, last week noted that Commission members had chastised Archbishop Malango for his role in the New Westminster affair.

[ahadams2]

Ping.

[RonF]

However, speaking as Acting Primate of the Anglican Church of Canada, Archbishop Crawley expressed regret at the action of the four primates. He pointed to the 'long tradition' that bishops and primates do not interfere in the life of other provinces, affirmed at the Lambeth Conferences of 1988 and 1998.

It's an even longer tradition, butressed by the words of Jesus, that marriage is solely between man and woman. So, then, so much for long tradition, eh?

[LadyDoc]

I really appreciate keeping up with my brother Anglican/episcopalian problems.

But every time I see a headline "primates" do this or "primates" do that, I think it's about baboons or monkeys...which is the definition of primate in science/biology ;-)

[ahadams2]

oh that's okay - when I was a small child - growing up as the son of a Lutheran pastor (this was back in the days where Lutherans and Catholics were invisible to each other on Sundays) - I once saw a picture of someone who was called 'Cardinal'...this was right after I began to read, anyway I was left wondering how that old man could play baseball at all, much less dressed like that...:-)