I want to commend the statement issued by Archbishop Mouneer Anis, Presiding Bishop of Jerusalem and the Middle East, \u201cDoes the Primates meeting have any authority?\u201d\u009d. Archbishop Mouneer issues a robust defense of the authority of the Primates\u2019 meeting to oversee the relationships between Anglican provinces with regards to doctrinal, moral and pastoral issues.
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\nThe Communion\u2019s Primates are NOT impotent when the Archbishop of Canterbury fails to respond publicly to the Anglican Consultative Council\u2019s public repudiation of Primatial authority. What do the Primates do when the Archbishop of Canterbury remains silent in the face of such a public repudiation of their \u201cenhanced responsibility\u201d\u009d? Do they simply wring their hands? Must they remain silent until he speaks\u201d\u201dIF he ever decides to speak? Of course not. That is why the Primates of the three largest Churches in the Anglican Communion\u201d\u201cNigeria, Kenya and Uganda\u201d\u201dhave spoken so clearly. They understand that their Primatial authority or \u201cenhanced responsibility\u201d\u009d to guard the faith and order of the Churches of the Anglican Communion derives from their office as \u201cPrincipal Bishops\u201d\u009d of their Churches, and not from Canterbury. Primates can and do act whether the Archbishop of Canterbury calls them together or not, whether he speaks up for them and their collegial mind and decision making\u201d\u201dor not, as Archbishop Welby has chosen to do.<\/p>\n
The enhanced responsibility of the Primates to guard the faith and order of the Churches of the Anglican Communion is more than moral and persuasive. It is an ancient principle in Church law..<\/p>\n