Yesterday’s pastoral letter from the Primate and Metropolitans of the Anglican Church of Canada is cause for further disappointment. Rather than honestly acknowledging the irreconcilable differences and seeking to find amicable solutions, the Primate and Metropolitans have chosen to issue a statement that will only further confuse the Canadian church.
The Pastoral Statement fails to acknowledge the true cause of the crisis identified by the Windsor Report and the unanimous Communiqués of the Primates (including the Archbishop of Canterbury) from 2003 (Lambeth), 2005 (Dromantine) and 2007 (Dar es Salaam). These documents affirmed the Anglican Communion’s doctrinal position on human sexuality as articulated in the 1998 Lambeth Resolution 1.10 and appealed to the ACC and the US Episcopal Church (TEC) to not further “tear the fabric of the Communion at its deepest level”, and to not “walk apart” from the Communion by violating the Communion’s doctrinal standard.
The Pastoral Statement also fails to mention that those Communion documents clearly identified the actions of the ACC (and TEC) and the diocese of New Westminster as the real cause of the divisions in the church. The Windsor Report and the Primates’ Communiqués warned that these actions would lead to further division in the church. Unfortunately, rather than heeding the Primates warnings, the dioceses of Ottawa, Montreal and Niagara have followed New Westminster’s lead.
Rather than being the cause of broken fellowship, the provision of Primatial oversight from Archbishop Venables is, in fact, a response to the existing broken fellowship – both within Canada and between Canada and much of the rest of the Communion.
Amen brother! Let your big jib draw!