10/16/2006

And then there were the Kigali Seventeen.

The Kigali Communique included the following statement: “At the next meeting of the Primates in February 2007 some of us will not be able to recognize Katharine Jefferts Schori as a Primate at the table with us. Others will be in impaired communion with her as a representative of The Episcopal Church.”

The question of just who signed off on the Kigali Communiqué and what precisely was meant in doing so continues. We know that Archbishop Ndungane of Southern Africa and the Prime Bishop of the Episcopal Church in the Philippines have stepped away from some of the language of the Communiqué. They have both affirmed that their churches continue to be in communion with the Episcopal Church and that they welcome the election of Bishop Jefferts Schori as Presiding Bishop. The constant concerns for economic and social justice continue as part of the ministry of both these Primates, and we can assume that the Kigali concerns for Darfur and other refugees, political stability and various peace processes, upcoming elections, concerns for the spread of AIDS and other diseases, and general economic
development met with their support.

Now the Anglican Church of Burundi has posted comments on the Kigali meeting as well: The summary of the Kigali meeting included the following: “Among the issues discussed were the conflict in Sudan, the current situation in the Anglican Communion, the responses to the Windsor Report by The Episcopal Church at their General Convention, along with on-going challenges such as poverty eradication, HIV/AIDS, peace building, church planting, and theological education.” There was no editorial comment on the content of discussions.

The Most Reverend Bernard Ntahoturi is the Archbishop of the Anglican Church of Burundi. He was at the Global South Primates meeting in Kigali, and he had this to say: “While there are differences among us that we must address, it is important that we find ways to move forward together in the work of the Gospel exercising God’s grace and love." The “among us” may mean the Global South Primates themselves or it may mean the “us” of the Anglican Communion. Either way it is a conciliatory phrase which deserves to be noted. In pursuit of that work,

Archbishop Ntahoturi came to the United States for the Summit on Africa, meant to address many of the justice concerns raised in the Kigali and other Communiqués. While here for the Summit, The Archbishop met in New York with both Bishop Griswold and Jefferts Schori on July 17th. That meeting was reported HERE.


So it would appear that the Archbishop of Burundi visited the Church Center, is in conversation with the Presiding Bishop and the Presiding Bishop Elect and has not taken the opportune moment to speak about the Kigali Communiqué’s comments on Anglican Communion issues on his own Provincial website except to note the need to find ways to move forward together.

“Clarifying” comments by Archbishop John Chew on the way in which the Communiqué was drafted were posted on the Global South website. There he simply reported,Furthermore, a Communique drafting committee chaired by the Archbishop Bernard Ntahoturi of Burundi was unanimously appointed.” Nothing was said about the role of that drafting committee. If they were appointed at this meeting they were working with a draft already in process.

It may well be that the Archbishop is appropriately sensitive to his role as the Communiqué drafting committee and does not feel the need for further comment. On the other hand, if his comment that “there are differences among us that we must address” applied to the Global South Primates, this may signal that there was not the universal agreement claimed by the Kigali Communiqué.
It appears from Archbishop Chew’s comments that a draft was presented by a pre-meeting group, went through several versions and the final version was published without signatures or formal vote but rather issued as a communiqué of the 20 Provinces represented at the meeting.

The Archbishop of Burundi’s comments on the Communiqué, given to his own Province, are so bland as to signal a considerable distance from the strident voice of the Communiqué as published, and his presence with the PB and PB elect signal continued good relations with the Episcopal Church.

And then there is this: ENS reported that “Ntahoturi expressed gratitude to the Episcopal Church for the assistance Burundi is receiving from Episcopal Relief and Development (ERD) to fight the spread of Malaria and HIV/AIDS and the part Peace and Justice Ministries played in the building of the peace center in the capital city of Bujumbura.” The Provincial website confirmed this practical ministry done in conjunction with the Episcopal Church,
“The Province has gratefully received 16,500 mosquito nets from ERD. They will be distributed in the dioceses of Makamba, Buye, and Muyinga as part of a programme to educate people about malaria and its prevention. Malaria still causes more deaths in Burundi than HIV/AIDS.”

I think the number of Provinces in agreement with the Kigali Communiqué’s comments on the Episcopal Church is less than previously supposed, and perhaps even less than the now remaining seventeen. Now we know that at least three of the Primates do not hold this miserable statement on the Primatial leadership of the Episcopal Church.

But even if the number were one, the fact remains, The Rt. Rev. Katharine Jefferts Schori is going to be the Primate of this Church and the remaining Primates who have a problem with that are simply going to have to live into an Anglican Communion that includes her, and us.

7 comments:

  1. Amen! Thanks for "preaching it," brother -- and for keeping us up to date on the latest developments in "As The Anglican World Turns" ... Blessings!

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  2. I have been getting the sense lately that Archbishop Akinola is becoming more and more problematical to Canterbury, much more so than TEC or the Church of Canada ever was. I sense that if Akinola doesn’t get his way with Canterbury, he may form his own “Anglican like” communion made up of parts of the global south. Now if the “network bishops” align themselves with Akinola, they may just find themselves in an “Anglican like” communion. I don’t think that is where they really want to find themselves. Interesting…

    -frank

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  3. I always suspected the so called alliance in the 'Global South' was weak when it came to TEC.
    I don't think the parishes requesting alternative oversight here in the US will like being the smallest, most insignificant diocese in the Church of Nigeria.

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  4. friends: whoever pinkyroses is, forget it. Sorry it got on. It either got through the filter or the person actually found their way on the page. Either way ignore it. Blogger can either require I moderate all comments or none. So I choose none. The need to go through the screening for blog comments gets rid of most blog spam. Sorry about this.

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  5. Mark,
    you will have noticed a fuller treatment of these topic in a recent statement by Burundi.
    http://www.anglicancommunion.org/acns/articles/42/00/acns4202.cfm
    It states
    "The Anglican Church of Burundi remains committed to the Anglican Communion and to endeavouring to work with all the Primates who have been entrusted with leadership of its Provinces. We are committed to the Gospel imperative to maintain unity and communion that is rooted in truth and love. We are called to be a "one, holy, catholic and apostolic" church and to affirm loyalty to the authority of Scripture and the traditional teachings of the Church. Though we recognise the principle of unity in diversity, Scripture should remain our guide in all matters of doctrine, ethics and decision-making. As has become apparent, we ignore Biblical teaching, the Apostolic Faith, and Church practice at our peril, and compromise our unity, fellowship, and communion. We must pray that we shall find ways to move forward with renewed commitment to “keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace” (Eph.4v3)

    We recognise the interdependence of Provinces and the responsibilities that we have towards one another. We regret, however, that decisions taken by some Provinces have led to a fracturing of the unity of the Church to such an extent that it has threatened the future of the Anglican Communion as a communion.

    It is regrettable that these decisions also threaten our relationships with other denominations, and the mission and witness of the Church in a world that is already confused in areas of sexuality, morality and theology.

    We recommend therefore that our relationships should be guided by the decisions of the 1998 Lambeth Conference Resolution I. 10 and Resolution III. 2(e), the Windsor Report recommendations, and the Dromantine requests.

    As those called to fulfill the Great Commission of Christ, we need to find ways to join together under God’s grace and, with repentance and faith, encourage one another in the work of the Kingdom. We need to continue to prayerfully encourage understanding and dialogue and re-assess structures and ways of drawing closer to each other rather than walking apart. Such should be the spirit of our communion.

    We support the idea of an Anglican Covenant and trust that it will, as the recent Kigali Communiqué states, “demonstrate to the world that it is possible to be a truly global communion where differences are not affirmed at the expense of faith and truth but within the framework of a common confession of faith and mutual accountability”.

    Finally, we believe that hope for the Anglican Communion is dependent on the Church worldwide earnestly seeking a deep work of the Holy Spirit that will lead to repentance, forgiveness, revival, and healing. We should work for a Church characterised by justice and compassion that strives to be a sanctuary of care where the truth can be told with love. Only then will we be able to meet the challenge to walk together in a way that honours the name of Christ whom we seek to serve, and witness to his reconciling love in a hurting and fragmented world.

    Issued: Bujumbura October 2006
    The Most Rev. Bernard NTAHOTURI
    Archbishop of Burundi

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  6. We recommend therefore that our relationships should be guided by the decisions of the 1998 Lambeth Conference Resolution I. 10 and Resolution III. 2(e), the Windsor Report recommendations, and the Dromantine requests.

    Doh!

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  7. Well, after reading all of that I'd say ++Burundi is not happy with TEC but he's also someone committed to unity provided we work on trying to comply with the primates request or at least look like we're attempting. We can also see that not all of the global south is on board with ++Akinola.

    Frank: You may be on to something with ++Akinola possing more problems than ACofC and TEC for +++ABC. I wonder though if he's not surrounded by problems. It is my understanding that evangelicals make up a little over half of the CofE, with 1/3 going to the liberals and the rest Anglo-Catholics. +Durham and +Rochester at home, my good bishop Bob Duncan and his minions over here and the Akinola's and Orombi's in the global south. There's a lot of pressure.

    Ps. Mark+ I worshipped at St. Pete's this summer. I went to the Wednesday Healing mass. I really found the whole experience to be really special. Kudos to both you and Jeff+.

    Peace,
    Bob in Wash, PA

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