We traditionalists within the Episcopal Church, USA, have noticed an outstanding propensity of African bishops to champion our faith. Recently I have been increasingly contemplative of the fortuitous circumstances surrounding the history of Anglicanism in the third world, which I believe will presently redeem the carcass of first world Anglicanism through evangelism and faithful confession of the unadulterated Christianity which we, the first world, previously delivered to them, the third world, as part of what we must admit was at times an otherwise less than benevolent programme of social development.
Our own bishop, here in the Diocese of New Jersey, Bp. Councell, remarked upon receiving Bp. Tutu at his Cathedral in Trenton, "While no Anglican is average, the average Anglican is African."
For this reason I am joyous and hopeful that the influence of such faithful apostles as Bp. Akinola and his type will penetrate the demonic web of deception which is increasingly threatening ECUSA and the C of E. I also feel the passing of our common cultural prejudices has been occuring at just the right time to allow African Bishops to exercise the spiritual authority they warrant as bishops. In yet another irony so called enlightened bishops, advocates of "gay rights" and debasers of the faith of our fathers, of the western cultures are today exercising an unparalleled model of white supremacy. Bp. Spong remarked that the african bishops had in general "moved out of animism into a very superstitious form of Christianity". And a liberal Anglican dismissed the place of the worldwide majority of third world bishops to me personally by saying that ( colored people ) were incapable of understanding what Christianity was all about. To hear a prelate of Anglicanism speak in such terms opened my eyes to the fact that racism has seemingly come full circle and now will enjoy its day within the libertine sexual revolution in ECUSA.
But I for one will thank God for raising up a generation of African Christians who may very well save the relavency of the Anglican Communion.
See my link @ #5.
I have been wondering what the future holds for Anglicanism in Africa once it either straightens out ECUSA and its hierarchal fellow travelers or ditches them. Orthodoxy? When I read +Akinola's writings, he sounds like one of the Desert Fathers come to town to clean out the pest hole, or a fiery hierarch like +Athanasius thundering at heretics.
I heard that too in catechism class, some 40+ years ago. "The average Anglican is an African woman."
But I for one will thank God for raising up a generation of African Christians who may very well save the relavency of the Anglican Communion.
And I do too.