A couple of weeks ago, I received an email asking me whether I would like to join with others to form an international campaign to oppose the Covenant. I said yes, and life has definitely not been the same since! I have had the privilege of working alongside godly, passionate, creative, knowledgeable and wise people from across the globe. We are united by one goal - to oppose the Anglican Covenant. Today, we are announcing our intention to start a wide ranging debate as we feel the Covenant is very bad news indeed. Here is the statement that has gone out to the Press, please check out our website and join us:
INTERNATIONAL CAMPAIGN SEEKS TO STOP ANGLICAN COVENANT
LONDON – An internationalcoalition of Anglicans has been created to campaign against the proposedAnglican Covenant. Campaigners believethe proposed Covenant constitutes unwarranted interference in the internal lifeof the member churches of the Anglican Communion, would narrow the acceptablerange of belief and practice within Anglicanism, and would prevent furtherdevelopment of Anglican thought.
“We believe that themajority of the clergy and laity in the Anglican Communion would not wish tosign this document,” according to the Coalition’s Moderator, the Revd. Dr.Lesley Fellows, who is also the Coalition’s Convenor for the Church ofEngland. “Apart from church bureaucrats,very few people are aware of the Covenant. We want to encourage a widerdiscussion and to highlight the problems the Covenant will cause.”
The idea of an AnglicanCovenant was first proposed in 2004 as a means to address divisions between themember churches of the Anglican Communion on matters ranging from humansexuality to the role of women. Thecurrent draft of the Covenant, which has been unilaterally designated as the“final” draft, has been referred to the member churches of the Communion. The draft includes a series of structures andprocesses which would have the effect of forcing member churches to conform tothe demands and expectations of other member churches or risk exclusion fromthe Communion.
Critics of the proposedAnglican Covenant, including members of the new Coalition, believe that it willfundamentally alter the nature of historic Anglicanism in several ways,including the narrowing of theological views deemed acceptable, the erosion ofthe freedom of the member churches to govern themselves, and the concentrationof authority in the hands of a small number of bishops. Two English groups, Inclusive Church andModern Church, ran anti-Covenant advertisements in last week’s Church Times aiming to make more membersof the Church of England aware of the dangers of the proposed AnglicanCovenant.
"If theAnglican Communion has a problem, this is not the solution,” according toformer Bishop of Worcester Peter Selby. “Whether those who originated the Covenant intended it or not, it isalready, and will become even more, a basis for a litigious Communion fromwhich some will seek to exclude others."
The No Anglican CovenantCoalition is being launched today, when the Anglican Communion commemorates thesixteenth century theologian Richard Hooker. “Hooker taught us that God’s gifts of scripture, tradition and reasonwill guide us to new insights in every age,” according to the Canadian priestand canon law expert, the Revd. Canon Alan Perry. “The proposed Anglican Covenant would freezeAnglican theology and Anglican polity at a particular moment. Anglican polity rejected control by foreignbishops nearly 500 years ago. Theproposed Anglican Covenant reinstates it.”
The No Anglican CovenantCoalition began in late October with a series of informal email conversationsamong several international Anglican bloggers concerned that the Covenant wasbeing rushed through the approval process before most Anglicans had anyopportunity to learn how the proposed new structures would affect them.
Revd. Dr Lesley Fellows (England)
Dr. Lionel Deimel (USA)
Revd. Lawrence Kimberley (New Zealand)