Anglican Church 'in chaos' say rebel leaders
Pastor Dale Morgan
Anglican Church 'in chaos' say rebel leaders*
By John Bingham
Last Updated: 6:51PM BST 01/07/2008
The Anglican church is in "chaos" with the "moral authority" of the
Archbishop of Canterbury lying in tatters amid growing splits over
homosexuality and women bishops, rebel leaders claim.
In a direct challenge to the leadership of Dr Rowan Williams, three
leading Archbishops said they had decided to "take things in hand".
Leaders of the Fellowship of Confessing Anglicans (Foca), a newly formed
network for millions of Anglicans angered by the rise of liberal
theology, denied that they planned to "seize power" within the church.
But Most Rev Henry Orombi, the Archbishop of Uganda, Archbishop Peter
Jensen of Sydney, Australia, and Archbishop Greg Venables, Primate of
South America's Southern Cone, said they planned to "reassert the
authority of the Bible".
Dr Williams is facing a crisis on two fronts with traditionalists
flexing their muscles over the issue of gay clergy within the 77
million-strong Anglican communion at the same time as threats of splits
at home over the ordination of women bishops.
The three bishops made their comments after addressing hundreds of
Church of England clergy in London about the formation of the new group
at the Global Anglican Future Conference (Gafcon) in Jerusalem at the
weekend.
In a sign of the strong emotions aroused, gay rights activist Peter
Tatchell attempted to storm the meeting before being repelled by security.
Aides to Dr Williams privately accuse the traditionalists of becoming a
"Protestant sect" and forming a "church within a church".
The group, which has its own alternative council of primates, was formed
in response to the ordination of the openly homosexual Bishop of New
Hampshire, Gene Robinson.
In unusually strident language Dr Williams warned them on Monday to
"think very carefully about the risks" of setting up the structure.
He also questioned the legitimacy of the group's "self selected" leadership.
But, in a move likely to widen the split further, Archbishop Jensen hit
back publicly saying he was "surprised" that Dr Williams was not more
receptive to the group's efforts to "bring order".
"There are moments in the church where authority has to be taken and
this is one of those moments where the most senior people available have
decided to come together to take their authority to do certain things
which they have the capacity to do," he said.
"I was a little surprised by the Archbishop's remarks, I was hoping he
would be very joyfully receptive to what he saw as a development of
quite legitimate authority to help bring order to the chaos of the
Anglican communion within the last five years."
Attacking the "mythological idea" that the Archbishop of Canterbury
exercised legal or judicial power over the Anglican communion, he said
Dr Williams's authority was largely "moral".
But he went on: "I would have to say that the last five years have seen
a diminution of the moral authority that he is able to bring to this role."
He added that the loss of moral authority would have happened "whoever
had been the Archbishop".
Fellow rebel Archbishop Venables insisted the group was not creating a
schism.
"It is not a seizing of power, it is the exercise of legitimate
authority for the sake of the Anglican communion, a group of leadership
(correct) has got to take things in hand to move forward."
Archbishop Orombi added that he had travelled to Britain to help restore
traditional theology to the "mother church".
Dr Williams faces a separate crisis at home after it emerged that
hundreds of traditionalist clergy within the Church of England are
threatening to defect over the issue of women bishops.
The issue is due to come to a head this weekend when the General Synod
meets in York to make a decision.
More than 1,300 clerics, including three bishops, have written to the
Archbishops of Canterbury and York suggesting they may leave the
Anglican church if they are not given special legal safeguards.
They want to set up networks of parishes which would remain under male
leadership.
But any attempt to give such "havens" legal force would spark further
conflict with liberals who believe that doing so would enshrine
discrimination.