24 September 2015 A.D. Misunderstanding GAFCON
24 September 2015
A.D. Misunderstanding
GAFCON
In light of Mr. Welby’s call to 37 or 38 Primates for a
meeting in Jan 2016, some context to the American and Canadian problems.
Morgan, Timothy C.
“Misunderstanding GAFCON.” Christianity
Today. 26 Jun 2008. http://www.christianitytoday.com/gleanings/2008/june/misunderstanding-gafcon.html. Accessed 24 Sept 2015.
Some 1100 Anglicans from around the world are meeting
this week at the Renaissance hotel in West Jerusalem in hopes of steering the
Anglican Communion back to the center of Christian Orthodoxy.
But this conference, now entering its fifth day, is in
many respects becoming more difficult to understand and thus easier to
misinterpret.
If I were writing purely a critique of the mainstream
media coverage, my central criticism would be that US and UK media outlets keep
driving the political side of the story (Will there or won't there be a
schism?). But they are by and large missing the faith side of the story.
It's easy to do. The folks attending the worship events
of GAFCON are telling me that these are high water marks in their own spiritual
development. Most worship events are well attended and the plenary sessions are
standing room only.
I am told the worship service on Wednesday evening at
Ophel Gardens, along the southern steps of the Temple, was a stunning display
of contemporary Christian worship in an ancient context. Most media skipped
that event (myself included) due to scheduling conflicts.
But the media are not the only ones who are
misunderstanding GAFCON. Among conservatives, no surprise, I am coming across
three different kinds of Anglicans here who often don't understand each other
very well. Let me describe them this way:
* The separationists. These individuals wish to create a
new Anglican Communion that is global, not centered in Canterbury.
* The reformers. These folks are not yet ready to give up
on the existing Anglican Communion and have a movement strategy for redeeming
and restoring the Communion.
* The new paradigm. This is the trickiest one to
understand. Under a new paradigm, Anglicanism becomes a global network, locally
distinctive, church or community-based, and centered on the biblical mission of
evangelism and discipleship.
One new reality of GAFCON is that the discussions here
across the Anglican food chain from the Primates to the small groups of lay and
parish clergy have moved beyond "The American Problem," which is The
Episcopal Church, its bitterly hostile actions against conservatives, and the
advent of homosexual clergy and same-sex unions. Bishop Bob Duncan, the American
conservative leader from Pittsburgh, isn't even here.
Last night, scholar Lamin Sanneh, Palestinian Christian
Salim Munayer, and Messianic pastor Evan Thomas pointed GAFCON Anglicans toward
a future that was global, reconciling, and biblical.
Years from now, we might find that the only English
element left in 21st century Anglicanism is the English language itself.
In my mind, the questions of the hour before the
committee drafting a GAFCON statement are these:
What will the drafting committee emphasize? Will they lay
the groundwork for a new communion? Will they map out a process of Anglican
Communion reform? Or, will they envision a new kind of Anglicanism that is
post-colonial, not nationalistic, but conciliar, global, and networked?
Tomorrow, GAFCON small groups are due to evaluate the
statement in draft form.
Comments
Post a Comment