A new church representing almost half of the world’s 80 million Anglicans has been officially formed, posing a serious challenge to the Archbishop of Canterbury.
The organisation created by traditionalists – called the Gafcon movement after the Global Anglican Future Conference which led to its creation – will retain ties with Dr Rowan Williams and will technically remain within the global Anglican Communion.
But it is also likely to lead to orthodox Anglicans severing all links with the main churches in America and Canada, whose liberal leaders are blamed for sparking the current crisis by breaking with the Bible’s teaching and by consecrating openly gay clergy and blessing gay “marriages”.
The movement’s leaders will include at least two Church of England bishops as well as the heads of leading African, South American and Australian churches, and it is said to represent 35 million worshippers worldwide and so spell an end to the “colonial” domination of Canterbury.