Draft constitution for North American Anglicans to be released on Dec. 3.
A new alliance for North American Anglicans will have an important benchmark event in Wheaton, Illinois, on Wed., Dec. 3.
See below for the full press statement.
It's fascinating to see that both the Billy Graham Center and Wheaton's Evangelical Free church will both serve as venues for this meeting of the Common Cause Partnership, the organization that has pooled resources for conservatives, who report 100,000 Anglicans as participants in their movement.
I will update this entry with reactions in a day or two.
ANGLICAN LEADERS SEEK TO UNITE NORTH AMERICAN CHURCHES:
Draft Constitution to be Unveiled, Jerusalem Declaration Signed at Dec. 3 Chicago Gathering
WHEATON, IL, Nov. 14 -- Leaders of the Common Cause Partnership, a federation of more than 100,000 Anglican Christians in North America, will release to the public on the evening of Dec. 3 the draft constitution of an emerging Anglican C?hurch in North America, formally subscribe to the Jerusalem Declaration of the Global Anglican Future Conference (GAFCON) and affirm the GAFCON Statement on the Global Anglican Future at an evening worship celebration in suburban Chicago.
This historic event comes in the wake of GAFCON held in Israel last June with leaders from more than one-half of the world's 77 million Anglicans. At the close of that gathering, Anglican leaders released the Jerusalem Declaration and the GAFCON Statement on the Global Anglican Future, which outlined their Christian beliefs and goals to reform, heal and revitalize the Anglican Communion worldwide.
"One conclusion of the Global Anglican Future Conference held in Jerusalem last June was that the time for the recognition of a new Anglican body in North America had arrived," observed Bishop Robert Duncan of Pittsburgh, moderator of Common Cause Partnership. "The public release of our draft constitution is an important concrete step toward the goal of a biblical, missionary and united Anglican Church in North America."
Provinces, dioceses and parishes around the world have been making formal decisions to support the Jerusalem Declaration and the GAFCON Statement on the Global Anglican Future since its release this summer. Leading bishops and representatives of the North American Common Cause Partnership will officially subscribe to the Declaration and affirm the Statement at the public worship service at Wheaton Evangelical Free Church in Wheaton, IL at 7:30 p.m. CST on December 3. All Anglicans in attendance will also be given an opportunity to individually subscribe to the Declaration and affirm the Statement.
"We enthusiastically issue a public invitation to all fellow Christians in hopes that they will witness, participate in and celebrate our unity and common mission," Bishop Duncan added.
Prior to the evening service, at 2 p.m. CST earlier on Dec. 3, a reception will be held at the Billy Graham Center in Wheaton to give thanks and learn about the mission of Christ Awakening. Rooted among Anglicans, Christ Awakenings are quickly spreading to the larger Christian community. The first Christ Awakening was held in September 2007 in Chicago. Since then, the grassroots movement of Christ Awakenings has held events in Vancouver, Ohio and New England to call Christians to work together, in unity, partnering for mission worldwide. After the reception, a media briefing with Common Cause leaders will follow at 5:30 p.m. CST, addressing the significance of the historic worship celebration that evening.
The Common Cause Partnership is a federation of Anglican Christians that links together eight Anglican jurisdictions and organizations in North America, including the American Anglican Council, the Anglican Coalition in Canada, the Anglican Communion Network, the Anglican Mission in the Americas, the Anglican Network in Canada, the Convocation of Anglicans in North America, Forward in Faith North America, the Reformed Episcopal Church, and the bishops and congregations linked with Kenya, Uganda, and South America's Southern Cone. Together they represent more than 100,000 Anglican Christians worshiping each Sunday in the United States and Canada.
Posted by Tim Morgan on November 17, 2008 9:46AM
Comments
This is sad indeed. This is something that is not being done to the Glory of God. The people that are involved in this are mere pawns in the hands of either those African bishops who are lusting for the American sources or money, or the same can be said for the South Americans. How can anyone expect a blessing from division, especially one born out of fear, not out of a sense of sacrifice. It is also sad that the hosting agencies are siding with a group of people who believe that God's grace and Christ's blood are free to give to those chosen by them as worthy. They have rendered the blood of our Lord and Savior as worthless. So sad.
Posted by: Brad Ryden at November 17, 2008
Evangelical Churches can help conservative Anglicans as we move out of historical buildings into church planting. Could you lend a space for a Sunday morning or afternoon worship service?
As evangelical Anglicans get reestablished in North America we could do with such help form our brothers.
Robin Adams
Posted by: Robin Adams at November 17, 2008
It is a new day for christians and churches seeking to be faithful to the scriptures and two millennia of church tradition. Even though Brad calls the North American Anglicans aligned with Anglican churches in Africa and S. America as dupes of those bishops, I welcome these brothers and sisters who have taken such a bold step of separating themselves from gross immorality and compromising of sacred truths. It is a bold step. Even though I am a great grandson of an Anglican mission worker(1850's) I have hesitated, in the last 35 years,attending worship service in Episcopal churches. Now I wouldn't have to be embarrassed about my Anglican heritage. I am impressed with the high quality of godly leadership American Anglicans already have in bishop like Rt. Rev. Robert Duncan. Every blessing on your endeavor!
Posted by: Parel Mathai at November 17, 2008
When the leaders of a widespread church use the organization to deny that a sin is a sin, and that consequently repentance is not necessary,those leaders can no longer be considered as leaders of a Christian church. They not only love the sinner, but they show their love for the sin as well. Scripture demands that we draw apart and be separate from these people. If that damages the organization, it cannot be helped, no matter how much it is regretted.
Posted by: Eugene M. Wiese at November 18, 2008
I am surprised that Wheaton College and the Billy Graham Center would want to be associated with the unfolding schism in the Anglican Communion.
Posted by: Steve Carlsen, Wheaton "88 at November 18, 2008
I have just learned from someone at Wheaton's PR ofice that as this event has changed from its original focus, they have found a new venue.
Posted by: Steve Carlsen, Wheaton "88 at November 18, 2008
I've searched. Nowhere does scripture mention conservatives or liberals.
It does delineate people who will enter the Kingdom. Those who believe get in and those who don't are out of luck. Very narrow-minded and intolerant.
Across the broad spectrum of Christianity, there has been a growing movement among 'smarties' who disavow the creation, virgin birth, resurrection, homosex sin, the return of the Lord Jesus...and so on.
In the midst of this apostasy, believers seeing their worship institutions hi-jacked are leaving in droves.
Believers are simply unwilling to let non-believers impose their intolerant views of traditional Christian beliefs on those who accept the Gospel truths.
Posted by: Rich Fallis at November 18, 2008
Brother Ryden, the whole point of this action is quite the opposite of your accusation of the African and South American bishops. They are, in fact, giving up thousands and thousands of dollars as they see churches they have received as refugees now form a new and faithful regional church of their own.
Support for the mission of the churches in the global south will continue. But at least some money that has been given over the past five years by American churches as support for their adoptive dioceses and provinces will once again be channeled to local needs.
These bishops from the 2/3rds world took in refugees from the Episcopal Church, a one-time Christian denomination which has since 2003 (at least) actively and institutionally promoted a faith contrary to God's word. They did so with no demand for “American [re]sources or money”, but because it was in support of the Gospel. Many in fact refused or returned money from the Episcopal Church because it rendered the blood of our Lord and Savior as worthless by denying His word. Likewise now, they are not demanding American resources or money, but rather encouraging them to form their own local body. Where is the fear?
Posted by: Don White at November 18, 2008
Mr Ryden,
What planet are you on? "Lusting for the American sources [of] money"? It's the libs in the ECUSA who have threatened to withhold money from the Africans if they don't get on board, and the Africans have responded with incredulity. I remember hearing an African bishop interviewed on the BBC some months back in response to this, and he said, "Money? Money? They think it is a matter of money?"
I would agree that division is ugly, but any division is the fault of heresiarchs like Schori. The ECUSA is as non-Christian as any historic Christian body has ever been. So it's funny you bring Christ's "body and blood" into it, when the people opposing CANA and GAFCON and Anglican conservatives in general couldn't give a fig about Christ's body and blood.
Posted by: Irenaeus at November 18, 2008
As an eastern orthodox christian, I admire these christians. Sometimes we have to take a stand; light and darkness do not mix. love the sinner and hate the sin.
Posted by: Michael at November 18, 2008
To you liberal Anglican/Episcopalians: You deliberately discount thousands of years of clear biblical teaching on homosexuality, ordain practicing homosexuals, cram your homosexual agenda in the faces of conservative Anglican Christians, force conservative parishes to accept pro-homosexual bishops, take away parishes of those who seek to leave, and accuse those who are conservative and leave of being schismatic. This is clearly a case of the pot calling the kettle black.
To those conservative Anglicans/Episcopal who are leaving the liberal Anglican church - what took you so long? God bless you.
Posted by: Dan at November 19, 2008
For all hands, the essential sense of these dissenters comes from the "Anglo-Catholic" wing of American-Episcopalianism, a breed with anti-Reformational, anti-Confessional and anti-Protestant credentials (contra: the 1662 BCP, 1661 Ordinal and XXXIX Articles). For all hands, caveat emptor and proceed thoughtfully and deliberatively (the presumption being that thought matters).
There is internal division within the bodies noted above that are being papered over. Astute observers of the scene are commenting on it.
Veitch
Posted by: pveitch at November 21, 2008
This is the next logical step in the global realignment along theological lines that is cutting across all denominations, including Roman Catholics. So far as the first world Episcopalians have run ahead of others in jettisoning orthodox Christian beliefs (viz James Pike, Jack Spong, the seminaries, and most sitting bishops), the orthodox believers among them have likewise gone ahead in responding with faithfulness to biblical principles of distinguishing truth from evil. It is gratifying to see Wheaton College, where a substantial proportion of the student body now reportedly attends Anglican churches, supporting their liturgical brothers reaching out from Africa, Latin America, and Asia. It is important not to trivialize this movement by simple-mindedly pigeon-holing it as "schism." We are seeing the early stages of a worldwide second Reformation take shape. We must all use godly discernment in determining where we will stand in relation to that reformation.
Posted by: Chris Morris at November 22, 2008
Thank God for Jesus, this is a reawakening for America. For taking a positive stand on immoral issues, the best is yet to come for America especially at this time of CHANGE in all facets of life.
Long live the Anglican Communion in the world.
Posted by: Florence Olutayo at November 23, 2008
I am not sure what you all are fighting about, except it seems to be the American Way. Anglicans/Episcopalians, Catholics all the same. However are we not all members of the Church of Our Lord. I guess in Canada we see things differently. We do not have such schisims as you do in the US. Thanks to Our Lord we are not the fighters you are. Conservatives, well you elected Bush and as a (so called Christian) damaged the US, you followed him just like the Germans followed Hitler. You guys need to read the BIBLE. Stop the political games if you really care about Christ, then open the Bible and start at Gen 1:1 and READ if you can. Most Americans can not even read. Stop your bickering as we are sick of people bickering over Church and Politics, You ALL should be VERY Ashamed of your selves. I for one am Proud to be a Christian...Not living in the United (divided)States.
Get out your Bible and READ and Pray like 1Thess tells you to and them maybe, just maybe you will have a chance of survival. At this rate you are all going to well Hell and most of you all belong their for this nonsense. Stop, Jesus My Saviour cares and Loves me for all that I do, for the good for the Glory and for praying and not fighting, he raised me with the proper manners I am not sure what happend to you, but check in with the Lord again he will fix you up.
Posted by: Jan Hebert at November 23, 2008
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