11/18/2005

Things Take Shape.

The announcement by the Global South Anglicans posted November 18 (EST), November 19 at place of origin, stated the following, “We elected a leadership team consisting of the Most Rev’d Peter J. Akinola, Primate of All Nigeria as President, the Rt. Rev’d John Chew, Bishop of Singapore as General Secretary, assisted by the Venerable Oluranti Odubogun and Canon Martyn Minns, and the Rt. Rev’d Mouneer Anis as Treasurer.” The only Episcopal Church presence on the leadership team, Canon Martyn Minns, stands out as rector of a large parish in Virginia, a large diocese of the Episcopal Church. Two things are interesting to note here:

(i) A news item on the Church of Nigeria pages, July 26, 2004, notes this:

“The Primate’s particular interest in acknowledging the presence of Canon Martyn Minns, Vicar Truro Church, Fairfax Virginia and a leading cleric opposed to same sex union in the United States, affirmed the campaign of the Church in providing spiritual alternatives to Anglican faithfuls abroad.

Canon Minns was described as a major catalyst in the formation of churches styled under the regulations and canons of the Church Of Nigeria.”

http://www.anglican-nig.org/consecration-2004.htm


Canon Minns has been in the mix from the beginning and his presence in Egypt and his being brought into the core group of this new organization will be central to the communications between this group and the Network, of which Canon Minns is a part.

(2) I stated in a previous posting, early EST November 18, that “something more is afoot here, I believe. This new title, ‘Global South Anglican,’ with accompanying ‘administrator,’ publishing communiqués, letters to the Archbishop of Canterbury, and other materials, may be the beginnings of a secretariat for an organizing of Anglicans centered somewhere in the ‘South,’ (Egypt?) and connected with the Networks in the US and Canada, the Nigerian effort in the US (CANA) and emerging “Common Cause” partners.” I did not realize how quickly my words would be confirmed.

It leads me to wonder if Canon Minns is in fact the voice of the Global Anglican South Administration (or Administrator).

The idea of an alternative to the Anglican Communion as currently constituted being formed out of the Egypt meeting was played down by the Archbishop of Nigeria and others, but the facts seem otherwise. Clearly there was no declaration of a separate new Anglican order of things, but there are the beginnings of a bodily presence.

Stay tuned.

8 comments:

  1. The Global South calims they represent two-thirds of the Anglican Communion. My estimate is that represents approximately 52,000,000 members.

    52,000,000 and they still have to reach into ECUSA for leadership? Could it be Minns+ is there for, let me think, umm, American money?

    I think Minns+ is only a temporary place-holder for +Duncan. Like the illegal ordinations in Pittsburgh, +Duncan is keeping just far enough away from activities that either are presentable or could be mitigating factors in a presentment.

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  2. The Global South claims they represent two-thirds of the Anglican Communion. My estimate is that is approximately 52,000,000 members.

    52,000,000 and they still have to reach into ECUSA for leadership? Could it be Minns+ is there for, let me think, umm, American money?

    I do believe Minns+ is only a temporary place-holder for +Duncan. Like the illegal ordinations in Pittsburgh, +Duncan is keeping just far enough away from activities that either are presentable or could be mitigating factors in a presentment.

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  3. Ruth Gledhill of the Times has an interesting analysis of the Global South's manovering on her new blog. She addresses the sense of disappointment among liberal anglicans that the global south conference has not seen the declaration of a separate structure or communion.
    I always wondered if this idea was born more of frustration than actual evidence. Certainly Conservative leaders in my part of the world have been insistent that the conservatives are not leaving the communion. (And don't want to expell ECUSA either). On some liberal blogs (not this one) there was a real sense that the conservatives had let them down by NOT leaving. Some posters seemed very upset that schism had not happened in Egypt.

    Here is what Ruth had to say:
    The Gobal South primates have turned the screws of the rack on which they have stretched the Archbishop of Canterbury a little tighter. But they do not want schism.
    So says a well-informed source from the conservative evangelical groupings that are driving the “orthodox” anti-gay agenda of the primates of the developing world.
    In fact so far are they from seeking schism, they are already planning their tactics for the crucial 2008 Lambeth Conference. The latest developments can be read on the Cartoon Blog, on its Crazy Anglicans thread, and on the authoritative Thinking Anglicans site.

    The letter has prompted fury among liberals, particularly in the US. Some had seen Nigeria's deletion of Canterbury from its constitution as an indication that the divorce was happening at last. Nigeria's covenant with the Reformed Episcopal Church and the Anglican Province of America, neither of which are in communion with Canterbury, added to these, dare I call them, 'hopes'. However, Nigeria has no intention of leaving the communion. As its mandate for the covenant, the Nigerians take a recent statement by Rowan Williams which they understood to mean that he would like to see some of the departed traditionalist groupings brought back into the fold.

    You can read more of Ruth's comments at
    http://timescolumns.typepad.com/gledhill/2005/11/the_global_sout.html

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  4. The Global South website names its administrators, and the list does not include Martyn Minns: Revd Terry Wong, Diocese of Singapore, Province of Southeast Asia; Revd Canon AkinTunde Popoola, Church Of Nigeria Communications Department. So this website really is a "global south" endeavor. We should know, of course, that there are capable people in Africa and Southeast Asia who can put together and run a website without American assistance.

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  5. RB,

    I cannot imagine how you would join movement leadership with web adminestrators. Who runs the web site has little or nothing to do with who runs the group.

    FWIW
    jimB

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  6. First, to respond to RB...yes, of course, if the GSA Admin refers to the administrators of the web pages, that's one thing. If it is a reference to an administrator or administration for the GSA, it is another.

    Not only do I understand completely that people all over the world can run web pages, I presume the same can be said for administering the GSA... my real question had to do with the role Minns was taking in all this.

    He and the Ven. O. Odubogun were named as assisting the General Secretary in the statement of November 19th.

    Obadiahslope...thanks for the Ruth Ghedhill reference. And thanks too for realizing that I do not wish that this thing would blow up quickly. I am working on a short essay in response to Gledhill's article. I think she is on to something, but off on others. (Just like us all.)

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  7. I look forward to reading your essay!

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  8. So the Global South(tm) doesn't want "schism"? Like they could/would tell us if they did?

    As ever, it's all about defining the terms (i.e., the power to do so).

    If things go as they plan, the ABC will disinvite ECUSA/AngChCan/+Gene-consecrating episcopal allies: why have a schism when you can have an excommunication? Bingo!

    But if +++Rowan refuses to play ball (by inviting the infidels to the Lambeth Ball), then they're all set up to say that the ABC doesn't define Anglicanism (per the CofN's new constitution), the "historic faith" does!

    It's a Win/Win Religion! (nothing like the one Christ preached, but you can't have everything)

    It's ironic: a "Southern Anglican" religion, aggressively poised to sheep-steal . . . born in EXACTLY the same "We are Victimized Saints!" spirit as the Southern Baptist one was (though not the same color, obviously ;-/).

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