The Church of Uganda has attempted to seat the Rev. J. Philip Ashey, Chief Operating Officer of the American Anglican Council, as its clerical representative to the Anglican Consultative Council Meeting in Jamaica.
The Joint Standing Committee of the Primates Meeting and the ACC has refused the request.
Read more details of the story at Episcopal Café.
The Living Church has a report, ACC Meeting Starts with Credentials Flap
The Anglican Consultative Council (ACC) meeting in Jamaica began May 2 under protest when the credentials of the Rev. Philip Ashey, the clergy representative designated by the Church of Uganda, were rejected by the Joint Standing Committee (JSC) of the primates and the ACC.
“The Joint Standing Committee has discussed this at length,” wrote the Rev. Canon Kenneth Kearon, secretary general of the ACC in a letter dated April 30 and sent to the Most Rev. Henry Orombi, Archbishop of Uganda. “We understand that the Rev. Philip Ashey’s relationship with the Church of the Province of Uganda is as a result of a cross-provincial intervention, and note that such interventions are contrary to the Windsor Report and other reports accepted by successive meetings of the Instruments of Communion, including Primates’ Meetings you have attended.” Canon Kearon was to offer a statement on the credentials situation at the conclusion of a May 4 press briefing.
More links soon.
The AAC is being cheeky: In their eyes, and the eyes of their supporters, the Windsor Report is binding on TEC in terms of not consecrating GLBT bishops, but is not binding on Uganda, and other provinces, in terms of diocese poaching or cross-border interventions.
Hardly Imagio Dei, more like imagio homo devius
Contrary to peterpi’s observation, I believe that the ACC (sic) has acted perfectly in accordance with its brief, which is to convene as members in good standing in the Anglican Communion. As an enlisted deputy to such a person in the Province of Uganda, while at the same time a member of a contravening sodality in the united States, the Revd. Philip Ashley has never been elected a member ‘in good standing’ of the Anglican Consultative Council. Why should he be accorded accreditation? The Standing Committe of ACC is to be commended on its action on this important matter of… Read more »
Maybe the Rev. J. Philip Ashey ought to represent a synogogue, because that’s textbook CHUTZPAH!
Sorry, peterpi, I misread your comment earlier as referring to ACC. I see now that you were referring to the American Anglican Council – which would appear to be a group of dissident anglicans in North America. Mea Culpa!
However, I still stand by my remarks about the ACC, which has taken this brave, but perfectly understandable step, in refusing to bow to the demands of Abp. Orombi to accept his American priest colleague as the Nigerian representative at ACC. As a ‘cross-borders’ official, he cannot be considered as a bona fide delegate from any province of the Communion.
Fr. Smith, thank you for your clarifying post. All these groups with similar initials and disimilar purposes makes for confusion. I agree with you about the ACC. I think it’s great they saw through the Ugandan delegation’s efforts.