Posted on 06/30/2008 8:37:59 AM PDT by tcg
Believing that God has called them to a "new work", Primates at the Global Anglican Future Conference (GAFCON) announced tonight that they have launched a movement of Confessing Anglicans that will, in effect, be a rival Anglican Communion.
Tomorrow, when orthodox Anglicans meet for their final day of pilgrimage, 1,200 representatives including 303 bishops of the Anglican Communion representing more than 70% of the Communion, will announce the formation of a new Anglican body that will affirm "'the faith once for all delivered to the saints"' as a bulwark against the growing and rampant liberalism in the mostly Western church.
While the word "schism" is not found in the text, it is, to all intents and purposes, a formal split from the Archbishop of Canterbury and the four Instruments of Unity.
The new global Anglican fellowship will act, for a time, within the present organization, but many see fragmenting synodical boundaries of the Church of England. In North America, a new North American Anglican Province will be set up to draw together members of Common Cause Partnership and various Anglican evangelical and Anglo-Catholics jurisdictions, setting it on a collision course with the liberal (some believe revisionist) Episcopal Church and the Anglican Church in Canada.
(Excerpt) Read more at catholic.org ...
And a good thing. My grandfather was an Episcopal priest back in the 20’s and 30’s - I suspect he has been rolling in his grave over things like G. Vern Robinson.
Good grief, I have been hearing talk of split for years now.
The righteous remnant stands before the Judgment Seat of Christ proclaimed throughout eternity as clean in the Holy Spirit.
The apostate suffer the fate of the “spew them out of My mouth.”
The new organization should start formally referring to the liberal church they are leaving as “the fallen Aglicans”. Words and phrases frame a debate, this description if used enough, will begin to taint the Anglican church. The same tactic can be used on the Episcipalians.
Yes, and that would be because for years they have been marching steadily toward a split. Something like this does not happen in a year or two. For many years, these Episcopalians have been trying to reconcile with the extreme members of their church who have been taking their church in a direction that is very troubling.
This conference is the result of not being able to reconcile, and so the next step is to begin forming a new and separate church.
The results of the lawsuit by the Virginia Episcopal Church that they may keep their property after a split from the Church of England, will probably speed this process along for other churches that wish to do the same.
That Virginia situation falling in favor of biblical believers and their properties is exceptionally encouraging. Yes, I think that will be a domino process, thank God.
“Dr Jensen said, “American revisionists committed an extraordinary strategic blunder in 2003. They did not think that there would be any consequences.”
I thought it all began at the Lambeth Council in the 70’s when they actually opened it up for discussion. Why on earth would one put something so un-Biblical on the table in the first place? I wonder who did it...
If you really want to get technical, it’s been all downhill since the 1930 Lambeth Conference that approved the use of contraception....
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christian_views_on_contraception#Background_2
Background
The 1978 Lambeth Conference recognised “the need for deep and dispassionate study of the question of homosexuality, which would take seriously both the teaching of Scripture and the results of scientific and medical research.” It also said that “While we reaffirm heterosexuality as the scriptural norm, we recognise The Church, recognising the need for pastoral concern for those who are homosexual, encourages dialogue with them.”
In 1988 the Conference reaffirmed these calls and urged “that such study and reflection to take account of biological, genetic and psychological research being undertaken by other agencies, and the socio-cultural factors that lead to the different attitudes in the provinces of our Communion” and called “each province to reassess, in the light of such study and because of our concern for human rights, its care for and attitude towards persons of homosexual orientation.”
The 1998 Conference recognised “that there are among us persons who experience themselves as having a homosexual orientation. Many of these are members of the Church and are seeking the pastoral care, moral direction of the Church, and God’s transforming power for the living of their lives and the ordering of relationships. We commit ourselves to listen to the experience of homosexual persons and we wish to assure them that they are loved by God and that all baptised, believing and faithful persons, regardless of sexual orientation, are full members of the Body of Christ.”
“In the 1970’s the Anglican Church in Canada and the Episcopal Church in the USA studied homosexuality, entered into dialogue with homosexuals. The Canadian Bishops in 1997 said “We are thankful to see a new sensitivity emerging towards gay and lesbian persons in the Church. No longer can we talk in the abstract. We are experiencing a growing awareness that the persons of whom we speak are among us. They are our sons and daughters. They are our friends and relatives.”
Looks like it was N America. I haven’t followed this too closely - anyone know who was behind all this initally, aside from the usual ‘liberals’?
Ahhhh, thanks Eepsy - I’ve got a few minutes so manybe I’ll scan it now.
I forgot the link on my previous post:
http://www.anglicancommunion.org/listening/reports/index.cfm
I would be interested to know what sorts of arguments are being raised by Anglo-Catholics who accept the Jerusalem Declaration in defense of its position on the 39 articles.
In some ways, this is a split, but in many other ways, it’s a major Christian denomination dumping those who refuse to stick with the Gospel. The Anglicans gave those who have erred every opportunity to repent. The Anglicans gave the “official” leadership every opportunity to exercise godly leadership and discipline. Neither of these things happened. Now the Anglicans are removing those who have erred and those leaders who coddle them from the Anglican fold. V Gene Robinson happened five years ago. As far as Church history is concerned, the Anglicans have acted with lightning speed.
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