We are grateful for the general direction and careful recommendations offered by the Primates in their Dar es Salaam Communiqué. With them, we share the "belief that it would be a tragedy if the Episcopal Church was to fracture", and with them "we are committed to doing what we can to preserve and uphold its life". But the Primates are right in noting that, whatever their particular recommendations may be for The Episcopal Church, they are only recommendations: "such change and development which is required must be generated within [TEC's] own life" (28).
The House of Bishops is about to meet, and much of their meeting will be given over to Communion-related matters emerging from the Primates' Meeting. What kind of "change and development" are they capable of "generating" in the face of the threat of their church's fracture and demise?
At present three groups are emerging in the Episcopal Church. The Dar es Salaam Communiqué has focused the way in which lines are now being drawn.
1. 'Windsor Bishops' – With two Camp Allen meetings now past, and especially with the 'Camp Allen Principles' identified as relevant at Dar es Salaam, this group is relatively stable and capable of clear definition. No fewer than twenty-five or so Bishops have signed statements identifying with the Windsor Report in specific terms. Other Bishops may view the 'Camp Allen Principles' as requiring subscription given other options only now becoming clearer. The number could rise to as high as 35, depending on the evolution of the other two groups.
2. 'TEC alone Bishops' – After Dar es Salaam, public statements have been issued by a high number of Bishops, and standing committees, firmly rejecting the Communiqué and its recommendations. The grounds are various: (1) the Primates have no standing, or ought not to have any; (2) there is a special polity in TEC that has not been understood or has been ignored; (3) TEC has a special mission of advocacy for human rights, etc. The number of Bishops and Standing Committees espousing this view can be calculated easily enough, but it is about the same or slightly higher than the Windsor Bishops group.
What demands further clarification is just what holding this position means in practical fact. Does this position require an amended Constitution or new canons, stating the irrelevance of the Anglican Communion and claims of Anglican catholicity? If in addition, invitations are not issued for this group to the upcoming Lambeth Conference, or Bishops in this group choose not to attend, it will become manifest that two groups of Bishops at least within the Episcopal Church are separated empirically. Will this constitute a final "fracture" such as the Primates described? It would be helpful if the Bishops holding this view spelled out what the new denomination is meant to look like and how it is to relate to other Anglican Communion bodies.
3. 'All Other Bishops' – This category is simply an acknowledgement that some Bishops have made more cautious statements about the Dar es Salaam Communiqué; have said nothing; have not chosen to be Windsor Bishops according to Camp Allen Principles, or have abstained from deciding; have said various things about B033 and human sexuality and the affairs of TEC from 2003 until now.
This group may decide to wait to see what happens with the umbrage and commitments of the 'TEC alone' Bishops. It is possible to conjecture that many in this group wish to remain in the Anglican Communion, wish to attend Lambeth Conference, and wish they had some way to do that without having to identify with 'Windsor Bishops' in terms of Camp Allen Principles. Others have simply decided to wait and see what the larger Communion voices would say. Dar es Salaam will have provided new and vital information, impossible to ignore or temporize.
Finally, it should also be noted that 'Network Bishops' face their own specific challenge, independent of involvement in group 1 above. The 'Common Cause' movement includes among others both AMiA and CANA, and these groups rely on a primatial oversight scheme that has been asked by the Primates to "negotiate" with the Pastoral Council in order to "find a place within these [recommended pastoral] provisions",. Initially, AMiA indicated that they were still 'under' Rwanda and had no intention of being included in a Primatial Vicar scheme. At issue here are matters of substance and timing, but as with many matters now facing Anglicanism in the USA, it will require the passing of time and fresh judgments about realities that are only slowly becoming clear.
We realize that this is a crucial week for the Episcopal Church, with the House of Bishops meeting at Camp Allen over several days. How the various groups mentioned above will conduct themselves, as they meet and discuss what has happened at Dar es Salaam, will say a lot about what kind of options must now be faced. The Archbishop of Canterbury has asked the Primates to provide the names of the representatives and chair of the Pastoral Council by 16 March. Things are clearly in motion.
We commit ourselves to pray for the House of Bishops meeting and especially for clarity and charitable decisions. We look forward to the meeting of Windsor Bishops later in April and pledge our support and our own prayers. We hope to provide suggestions soon about how the Windsor Bishops in accordance with the 'Camp Allen Principles' might think about their future in the light of the proposed Pastoral Council.
Anglican Communion Institute
15 March 2007
The House of Bishops is about to meet, and much of their meeting will be given over to Communion-related matters emerging from the Primates' Meeting. What kind of "change and development" are they capable of "generating" in the face of the threat of their church's fracture and demise?
At present three groups are emerging in the Episcopal Church. The Dar es Salaam Communiqué has focused the way in which lines are now being drawn.
1. 'Windsor Bishops' – With two Camp Allen meetings now past, and especially with the 'Camp Allen Principles' identified as relevant at Dar es Salaam, this group is relatively stable and capable of clear definition. No fewer than twenty-five or so Bishops have signed statements identifying with the Windsor Report in specific terms. Other Bishops may view the 'Camp Allen Principles' as requiring subscription given other options only now becoming clearer. The number could rise to as high as 35, depending on the evolution of the other two groups.
2. 'TEC alone Bishops' – After Dar es Salaam, public statements have been issued by a high number of Bishops, and standing committees, firmly rejecting the Communiqué and its recommendations. The grounds are various: (1) the Primates have no standing, or ought not to have any; (2) there is a special polity in TEC that has not been understood or has been ignored; (3) TEC has a special mission of advocacy for human rights, etc. The number of Bishops and Standing Committees espousing this view can be calculated easily enough, but it is about the same or slightly higher than the Windsor Bishops group.
What demands further clarification is just what holding this position means in practical fact. Does this position require an amended Constitution or new canons, stating the irrelevance of the Anglican Communion and claims of Anglican catholicity? If in addition, invitations are not issued for this group to the upcoming Lambeth Conference, or Bishops in this group choose not to attend, it will become manifest that two groups of Bishops at least within the Episcopal Church are separated empirically. Will this constitute a final "fracture" such as the Primates described? It would be helpful if the Bishops holding this view spelled out what the new denomination is meant to look like and how it is to relate to other Anglican Communion bodies.
3. 'All Other Bishops' – This category is simply an acknowledgement that some Bishops have made more cautious statements about the Dar es Salaam Communiqué; have said nothing; have not chosen to be Windsor Bishops according to Camp Allen Principles, or have abstained from deciding; have said various things about B033 and human sexuality and the affairs of TEC from 2003 until now.
This group may decide to wait to see what happens with the umbrage and commitments of the 'TEC alone' Bishops. It is possible to conjecture that many in this group wish to remain in the Anglican Communion, wish to attend Lambeth Conference, and wish they had some way to do that without having to identify with 'Windsor Bishops' in terms of Camp Allen Principles. Others have simply decided to wait and see what the larger Communion voices would say. Dar es Salaam will have provided new and vital information, impossible to ignore or temporize.
Finally, it should also be noted that 'Network Bishops' face their own specific challenge, independent of involvement in group 1 above. The 'Common Cause' movement includes among others both AMiA and CANA, and these groups rely on a primatial oversight scheme that has been asked by the Primates to "negotiate" with the Pastoral Council in order to "find a place within these [recommended pastoral] provisions",. Initially, AMiA indicated that they were still 'under' Rwanda and had no intention of being included in a Primatial Vicar scheme. At issue here are matters of substance and timing, but as with many matters now facing Anglicanism in the USA, it will require the passing of time and fresh judgments about realities that are only slowly becoming clear.
We realize that this is a crucial week for the Episcopal Church, with the House of Bishops meeting at Camp Allen over several days. How the various groups mentioned above will conduct themselves, as they meet and discuss what has happened at Dar es Salaam, will say a lot about what kind of options must now be faced. The Archbishop of Canterbury has asked the Primates to provide the names of the representatives and chair of the Pastoral Council by 16 March. Things are clearly in motion.
We commit ourselves to pray for the House of Bishops meeting and especially for clarity and charitable decisions. We look forward to the meeting of Windsor Bishops later in April and pledge our support and our own prayers. We hope to provide suggestions soon about how the Windsor Bishops in accordance with the 'Camp Allen Principles' might think about their future in the light of the proposed Pastoral Council.
Anglican Communion Institute
15 March 2007
