5 primates respond to letter

(Staff) Recently 21 English evangelical bishops wrote to orthodox Anglican bishops around the world urging them to attend the Lambeth Conference in July. Five Primates from Africa and South America replied, saying that to attend Lambeth, the decennial global gathering of Anglican bishops, would be an “assault on our consciences and our hearts.” Here is an excerpt from their letter dated Feb. 15:

“First, the Lambeth Conference is not a two-hour seminar discussing a contentious issue. It is three weeks in which we bishops and our wives are called to share together our lives, our prayer, our Bible study, our meals, our worship and the Lord's Supper, to be a family together.

“You will know that some of us have not been able to take communion with the Presiding Bishop of The Episcopal Church since February 2005 -- a period of about three years. The reason is that TEC took an action to consecrate Gene Robinson as Bishop in 2003 contrary to the resolution of the Lambeth Conference, an action of which they have not repented. The consecrators of Gene Robinson have all been invited to Lambeth, contrary to the statement of the Windsor Report (para 134) that members of the Episcopal Church should ‘consider in all conscience whether they should withdraw themselves from representative functions in the Anglican Communion.

“You will know that some of those who objected to this consecration in the United States and have made arrangements for orthodox oversight from other provinces including ours have been charged with abandonment of communion. Their congregations have either forfeited or are being sued for their properties by the very bishops with whom you wish us to share Christian family fellowship for three weeks.

“To do this is an assault on our consciences and our hearts. Further, how can we explain to our church members, that while we and they are formally out of communion with TEC, and provide oversight to these orthodox colleagues, we at the same time live with them at the Lambeth Conference as though nothing had happened? This would be hypocrisy.

“We are also concerned that the invitation list reflects a great imbalance. It fails to address fundamental departures from historic faith that have triggered this crisis and yet excludes bishops of our own provinces of Rwanda, Nigeria, Kenya and Uganda who teach and practice Biblical faith. As constituted, the invitations suggest that institutional structures are superior to the content of the faith itself.

“All of us have attended Lambeth before. As far as we are aware, only a few of you have been to a Lambeth Conference. In 1998, we had great difficulty in making our case heard in the face of the process of the conference. At that conference we were blessed with the leadership of Archbishop George Carey who has always been a champion of orthodox biblical teaching on sexuality. We have come to the conclusion, from the failure of the instruments of the Communion to take action either to discipline the Episcopal Church or to protect those who have asked the Communion for protection, that there is no serious space for those of an orthodox persuasion in the councils of the Communion to be themselves or to be taken seriously.”

The letter was signed by Archbishops Peter Akinola (Nigeria), Emmanuel Kolini (Rwanda), Benjamin Nzimbi (Kenya), Henry Orombi (Uganda) and Gregory Venables (Southern Cone).