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"I'm repeating myself for the n-teenth time here, but Anglicanism lacks the strong mechanisms for self-correction within the body that the Orthodox have."

They are not really "mechanisms" as such. What keeps us on the straight and narrow, so to speak, is the mindset, sionnsar. Its all about how we view and live the Faith. We all have a place within the Church. Each of us, hierarchs, clergy and laity have a role to play. None can exist and be Orthodox without the others. Excesses are avoided and heresies recognized and dealt with because all three parts of the Church act in a sort of partnership, in a "syndeesmos". But it also presupposes a total commitment to the Faith and the Church by all, a true commitment to live in the world but not be of the world. As I said before, it is rather the ultimate counter cultural way to live, at least here in the West.

It may be that when viewed from the outside, our hierarchs and their synods and our lower clergy appear very powerful. And within their roles in the Church they are, probably more so than the same Anglican orders, but that said the commitment of those men and of all the laity to preserve inviolate the Truths once revealed and the liturgical practices, monasticism and prayer life which both protect and inculcate those Truths is really the key. That means living life and viewing the world in a way which the West hasn't seen, at least not in any great way, for 1000 years.

Your idea of writing again to ++Akinola is a good one. As I have commented before, Africans seem to have an incredible innate Orthodoxy about them, which leads me to believe that the problems of the AC lie squarely in the Western mindset of some of the Churches in the AC. ++Akinola has more than once impressed me with his likeness to +Athanasius. Do write to him. Tell him the Orthodox think its time for an Anglican Athanasius. It is highly appropriate that that Athanasius be an African like the original.

What keeps us on the straight and narrow, so to speak, is the mindset, sionnsar. Its all about how we view and live the Faith.

IMHO, that viewpoint is humility and love. If we assume that we bring something personally new to the world, then we are in St. John's aim: the truth is not in us.

I'm not sure that I think that the actual Orthodox revival is going to come via Africa. I know that there is a strong charismatic element to African worship, stemming from their Animist past, and that this will hardly be intuitive or generate respect when prosletizing those of European or Asian descent. But then the issue might well be that it won't be just one Athanasius. We need to pray that prophets arise in all lands and that the Holy Spirit calls men to His work. The issue seems to require that men stand wherever they are and declaim God's Word loudly and unambiguously. I know that most ears will be deaf to the message, but those who would seek the Light of Christ cannot know where it is kindled unless someone stands up and holds it aloft.

In Christ,
Deacon Paul+