Provinces 'unlikely' to add primates to Anglican council.Mississauga, Ont. Member provinces and churches of the Anglican Communion Anglican Communion, the body of churches in all parts of the world that are in communion with the Church of England (see England, Church of). The communion is composed of regional churches, provinces, and separate dioceses bound together by mutual loyalty as are not likely to approve a motion that would allow 38 primates around the world to become members of the Anglican Consultative Council The Anglican Consultative Council or ACC is one of the four "Instruments of Communion" of the Anglican Communion. It was created by a resolution of the 1968 Lambeth Conference. (ACC See adaptive cruise control. ), according to according to prep. 1. As stated or indicated by; on the authority of: according to historians. 2. In keeping with: according to instructions. 3. Bishop John Paterson John Paterson may refer to:
Speaking to members of the Council of General Synod (COGS These are all the Cogs found in Disney's Toontown Online. Names that are moved forward are leaders of the HQ of that specific Cog type. Bossbots
"What happened in Nottingham was that there was deep-seated anger from some members of the ACC of primates acting on their own towards ACC," said the bishop. "The primates decided on an action against two churches who are members of a body (ACC) mandated by the constitution to be consultative. How can it be consultative if two important churches are not able to take part?" He added that among ACC members "there's a feeling that perhaps we shouldn't allow the primates to meet alone ever again." His remark drew laughter from CoGS members. The primates, during their meeting in February 2005, had requested that the Canadian and American churches "voluntarily withdraw" from the ACC meeting in Nottingham, England, last June as a step towards restoring unity within the Anglican Communion fractured by the issue of same-sex blessings in New Westminster and the ordination of a gay bishop in New Hampshire New Hampshire, one of the New England states of the NE United States. It is bordered by Massachusetts (S), Vermont, with the Connecticut R. forming the boundary (W), the Canadian province of Quebec (NW), and Maine and a short strip of the Atlantic Ocean (E). . "There was a measure of resentment that the primates had acted precipitately and punitively to the ACC by saying that Canada and ECUSA ECUSA Episcopal Church in the United States of America (Episcopal Church in the United States of America This article is about the Episcopal Church in the United States. For other uses, see Episcopal Church. The Episcopal Church is the official name of the Province of the Anglican Communion in the United States. ) could not be members of the ACC," said Bishop Paterson in an interview. Bishop Paterson, who is a former primate of New Zealand New Zealand (zē`lənd), island country (2005 est. pop. 4,035,000), 104,454 sq mi (270,534 sq km), in the S Pacific Ocean, over 1,000 mi (1,600 km) SE of Australia. The capital is Wellington; the largest city and leading port is Auckland. , said that it would take about two to three years to complete the ratification process regarding the inclusion of primates to the ACC. The motion, passed during the ACC .meeting in Nottingham, requires a two-thirds majority vote from member churches of the Anglican Communion. "I don't think it will be approved," he said, noting he was basing his assumption on "unease" that he has picked up from a number of churches. "It will take a full two-to-three-year period for all the member churches to meet and engage in a process to find the answer. In that space of time the word will move around as to why people don't agree with it. I think that will gain momentum." He said there are two views regarding the inclusion of primates. "The feeling was that if we brought them into the body where there is ... the only option for lay voice to be heard, that that would be better than allowing them to continue to act independently meeting on their own," he said. "The other view, which is gaining ascendancy, is the fear that clergy and lay people in the ACC would look to the primate to given them a lead as to how to decide to vote on any particular issue and that that would therefore destroy the importance of the ACC as a really consultative body, where the voices of those other than bishops are valued, followed and listened to." In his speech, Bishop Paterson underscored that "the Communion needs Canada and I think Canada needs the Communion." Bishop Paterson was invited to attend the CoGS meeting, held Nov. 17-20, by Archbishop Andrew Hutchison, primate of the Anglican Church of Canada The Primate of the Anglican Church of Canada (referred to in older documents as the Primate of All Canada) is elected by the General Synod of the Church from among a list of five bishops nominated by the House of Bishops. . He said that both the Canadian and American churches have been "exemplary" in adhering to the recommendations of the Windsor Report, which had recommended, among others, moratoria on same-sex blessings and the ordination of gay bishops. He also apologized for the way Canadians were treated at the ACC. Both Canadian and American churches had sent their ACC members to "attend but not participate" in the June 18-29 meeting. While there, the Canadian and American delegation said they had felt "exclusion" and "alienation." "I've been to six ACC meetings for a period of 15 years and I really enjoyed and appreciated the chance to meet wonderful people around the Communion," he said. "But this last year, I cannot say all of those things. I did not enjoy this recent meeting." MARITES N. SISON STAFF WRITER |
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