Updated Tuesday morning
A report from the Anglican Journal in Canada says Burundi archbishop supports Canadian church in opposing cross-border interventions, and there is also ‘Stay the course’ in Burundi, UN envoy advises Canadian Anglican delegation.
Archbishop Fred Hiltz, primate of the Anglican Church of Canada, has thanked his Burundian counterpart, Archbishop Bernard Ntahoturi, for the Anglican Church of Burundi’s stance against cross-border interventions, notwithstanding its opposition to more liberal views on homosexuality in some churches in Canada.
Meanwhile, there is an announcement from Lambeth Palace about the Pastoral Visitors, which says:
Pastoral Visitors Briefing Seminar
Following the Report of the Windsor Continuation Group to the Archbishop of Canterbury (which was published at the Primates Meeting in Alexandria, Egypt, in February 2009) the initial group of Pastoral Visitors called for by the Windsor Continuation Group in their Report and commended by the Primates Meeting in their Communiqué (para 15) met for a briefing session at Virginia Theological Seminary from 25-28 February.
Those appointed by the Archbishop of Canterbury to the Pastoral Visitors team are: the Rt Rev’d Santosh Marray, the Rt Rev’d Colin Bennetts, the Rt Rev’d Simon Chiwanga, Maj Gen (ret’d) Tim Cross, Canon Dr Chad Gandiya, who all participated in the briefing seminar, and the Very Rev’d Justin Welby, who was unable to attend.
The meeting was facilitated by the Rt Rev’d Peter Price, Bishop of Bath and Wells, England, and received briefings from the Rev’d Dr Ephraim Radner (Wycliffe Theological Seminary, Toronto) the Rt Rev’d Gary Lillibridge (Bishop of West Texas, TEC and member of the Windsor Continuation Group), The Rev’d Canon Dr Chuck Robertson (Canon to the Presiding Bishop, The Episcopal Church), the Rt Rev’d Herbert Donovan (Deputy to the Presiding Bishop for Anglican Communion Relations, TEC) and the Ven Paul Fehely (Principal Secretary to the Primate, the Anglican Church of Canada) and members of the Faculty at VTS.
The Pastoral Visitors team will now report to the Archbishop of Canterbury.
Update Tuesday
More details about these individuals are contained in the report by Matthew Davies at ENS Pastoral visitors appointed by Archbishop of Canterbury:
And there is slightly more information in this Living Church article, by George Conger Pastoral Visitors Hold Inaugural Meeting:
For the background, see this excerpt from the Alexandria primates meeting communiqué:
15. The Archbishop of Canterbury reported to us on the development of a scheme for a Pastoral Council, consistent with the proposal of the Windsor Continuation Group, and the Pastoral Visitors, whom he is appointing as a starting point for this idea, in line with the opinions expressed at the Lambeth Conference. The intention is that the Pastoral Visitors will be commissioned by him to conduct personal and face to face conversations in order to assist in the clearest discernment of the ways forward in any given situation of tension. We affirm the Archbishop of Canterbury in this initiative.
They were also commended by the Windsor Continuation Group, which said:
87. However, the need for such a ministry of reconciliation is urgent in the life of the Communion. The WCG welcomes the fact that the Archbishop of Canterbury intends to move ahead with the appointment of a small number of “Pastoral Visitors” as proposed by the bishops at the Lambeth Conference (see above), and who could be called upon “in any dispute” or situation of tension between now and next May, as the proposal for a full Pastoral Forum is taken forward.
88. These Pastoral Visitors could be be:
- Appointed by the Archbishop of Canterbury for the limited period of twelve months in the first instance.
- Drawn from senior leaders of the Communion, present or retired, or other notable individuals with specific skills in mediation and arbitration.
- Available to the Archbishop to be commissioned as his emissary for specific work to assist in maintaining the highest degree of Communion possible in situations of disagreement or tension.
- Available as well to the Primates of the Anglican Communion to act on their behalf in situations of disagreement or tension as go-betweens, arbitrators or conciliators, as deemed appropriate by those primates.
- Available for appointment to particular positions or roles within the Anglican Communion which would be consistent with their work and the constitutional requirements or conventions of the body for which they are nominated.
- Required to act in a manner consistent with the Constitutions and Canons of those Provinces with which they relate in the pursuance of any matter referred to them.
89. The WCG affirms the decision of the Archbishop that it is an integral element in their ministry that Pastoral Visitors would not have any authority to make dispositions or proposals for structural solutions to any situation, unless expressly authorised to do so by the Primate or other lawful authority of the particular Provinces with which they have been asked to work.
90. The scope of the activity that the Pastoral Visitors will be able to undertake will depend on the availability of funding. In all matters referred to the Pastoral Visitors, it will be helpful if the Provinces concerned would be willing to nominate a colleague who would be committed to working alongside them.
I’m concerned that there are no women included.
Columba Gilliss
Okay, let’s fund this and see what happens. I, too, pray for “the highest degree of communion possible;” and if Pastoral Visitors can contribute to that, well and good. I’m not terribly hopeful at this point just how high the “highest degree” might be, now and for some time to come. Still, I think we should work, pray, and give for what we can get. If these folks can help people communicate better, we’ll all benefit. That is, to the extent folks want to communicate. I expect those most committed to restructuring the Communion to be disappointed with Visitors who… Read more »
Who is paying for this outlandish outreach for the part of those who would exclude (even in the composition of the membership of such a ¨reconcilliation¨ group) LGBT Episcopalians/Anglicans at The Anglican Communion? I certainly hope the ABC pays for all his grandiose and ongoing diversions he imagines will ¨heal¨ while simultaneously issuing a ¨payback in a, no doubt, proper, yet snide, anti-American way.¨ Is the ABC coming to the GENERAL CONVENTION of TEC to wag his finger in our faces instead of whispering his ¨concerns¨ to a female American bishop on a private celphone? TEC, pays our own way… Read more »
Nor, apparently, were any women consulted.
It gives the appearance of a closed door selection from the old boys’ network, rather than a transparent process of open communication to build trust.
BOCICBW
“Those appointed by the Archbishop of Canterbury to the Pastoral Visitors team are: the Rt Rev’d Santosh Marray, the Rt Rev’d Colin Bennetts, the Rt Rev’d Simon Chiwanga, Maj Gen (ret’d) Tim Cross, Canon Dr Chad Gandiya, … and the Very Rev’d Justin Welby”
OK, can anybody tell me if even ONE of these *men* [i.e., “What Columba Said”] forthrightly supports SSB/SSM, and/or supports ordaining bishops who are in an SSB/SSM? [Thinking of the WCG, I’m getting really tired of *stacked decks*!]
Today, being a Commemoration day for Charles and John Wesley; one cannot but reflect on the course of their separation from the Church of England. On that occasion, though, the separatists were not so much the brothers, but their enthusiastic followers – who formed the Methodist Church. While one may judge that the Church of England did little to accommodate the pietistic reforms that the Wesleys introduced – and if they had, then the history of the Church may have been rather different – the fact remains that the *puritans* elected to separate out from the main body, forming their… Read more »
“A report from the Anglican Journal in Canada says Burundi’s archbishop supports Canadian church in opposing cross-border interventions” – Canadian Anglican Journal – It’s a pity, from the above information, that the Archbishop of Burundi has not been appointed one of the official ‘Pastoral Visitors Team’ to talk with the Leaders of sides in the present dispute. At least, he seems to treasure the unity of the Anglican Communion – even though he may not, at this point in time, agree with the prospect of SSBs being continued in North America. He is not about to break fellowship with the… Read more »
I wish that KJS would tell RW that we will have absolutely nothing to do with any project that involves Ephraim Radner. The man served on the board of directors of the Institute on Religion and Democracy, a right wing extremist organization dedicated to undermining and silencing the mainline churches in the United States. This group is funded by a man who advocates the replacement of the U.S. government with a theocracy and the imposition of Old Testament law, including stoning. Radner is a partisan of the most extreme sort and TEC should refuse to have any dealings with any… Read more »
I have a great deal of respect for the Reconciliation program at Coventry Cathedral, and I think that respect is widely shared throughout the Communion. In that respect, Bishop Bennetts and Dean Welby seem good choices. Beyond that? Well, a former member of ACC should know the limitations of the Instruments of Communion. A priest who served in the United States before election to the episcopate elsewhere might have a decent understanding of the social context, at any rate. I think many of us have despaired maintaining communion in the Communion. I think we can at least see what “highest… Read more »
With the serious divisions in his own church the AB of C should be sending the visitors to England. Physician heal thyself.
That’s right, JPM, TEC should have nothing to do with any project that involves ER and especially since there is no other member to balance him out.
RW’s actions continue to appear quite partisan at every turn. If TEC can’t get a fair shake, maybe we should refuse to have anything to do with a Communion that has anything to do with him. I’m serious and bet that others on this side of the pond are getting tired of this kind of *#&* too.
“The man served on the board of directors of the Institute on Religion and Democracy”
Nuff said!
To my mind, TEC’s patience and generosity are awesome.
I view this step as a mixed deal at best. After trying to give Windsor a shot, I have slowly come to the conclusion that it is a stacked deck deal, and cannot serve as a foundation or guide for real communion reconciliation. The signs are all around us – RW is treating progressive believers pretty much as the USA Democratic party liked to treat queer folks during, say, the major portion of the Clinton administration – i.e., where else are they going to go? The distancing of progressive believers is a good reminder of the burdens that queer folks… Read more »
It’s true, Brant. Williams keeps creating these ideologically unbalanced committees, whose members range all the way from the far right to the extreme right, from fundamentalists who speak in tongues to fundamentalists who do not speak in tongues, from those who think that homosexuals should be shot to those who think that imprisonment is sufficient.
Rowan’s game has been obvious for a while, and the best way to deal with those who play abusive, manipulative games is to refuse to participate.
Unlike many of his realignment friends, Ephraim Radner repudiated efforts to establish a separate province as a step too far. What I find appalling about the comments so far is that, for all the talk of inclusiveness being spouted by liberal supporters on this site, they choose to exclude people who represent views they do not agree with without listening to what they have to say. Please don’t start about how the other camp isn’t listening. If you think Archbishop Williams is being too biased, look at the log in your own eye. The trouble is, the feeling of victimhood… Read more »
Radner is not as toxic as some of his associates and past associates, but surely the ABC could have chosen someone else. That said, I’m trying to imagine KJS choosing a team to assess gender issues – or anything else – that was all women or all men. I’m trying to imagine any president of the US assembling an all male cabinet. I’m trying to imagine the president of my former university picking a team to investigate or assess anything that was all male – or all female, for that matter. Is the rest of public life in England so… Read more »
Ah yes, Ren, now we have the tired right wing cliché about how liberals fail to be inclusive when they do not submit to those who seek to destroy them. Is that really the best you can do? The problem with Radner is not his beliefs but his association with a right wing extremist organization dedicated to undermining and silencing the mainline churches. This is an organization that has blood on its hands, having succeeded in getting Central American missionaries murdered back in the 80s by accusing them–falsely–of being communists. Bringing in an IRD apparatchik to “reconcile” a church that… Read more »
I am delighted that Chad Gandiya, USPG’s desk officer for Africa, is one of these Pastoral Visitors, but not so pleased that you have mis-reported the Living Church article by describing us as the United Society for the PRESERVATION of the Gospel! We are the U.S. for the PROPAGATION of the G !! That title is bad enough, which is why we now also call ourselves “Anglicans in World Mission”. The Gospel does not need preserving, but our partners all around the Anglican Communion are propagating it in all kinds of ways. Just look at our website: uspg.org.uk Michael Doe… Read more »
The error lay in the Living Church article, as originally published by them, but now with corrected text. I have made the same correction here.
I’m sure the USPG is a nice body and very well-meaning (groan)- these anglican bishops and bodies are always so well meaning -but you could do more to REALLY propagate gospel by embracing gays and lesbians with open arms, instead of the
1) well meaning but useless response of so many or
2) the snide and dishonest response of many more.