Skip to main content

Chairman’s July-August Pastoral Letter 2015


To the Faithful of the Global Fellowship of Confessing Anglicans and friends
from Archbishop Eliud Wabukala, Primate of Kenya
and Chairman of the GAFCON Primates’ Council

‘When they became fully awake they saw his glory.’ Luke 9: 32
My dear brothers and sisters,

Grace and peace to you in the name of our only Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ.
I am writing to you on the day when the Church has traditionally celebrated the Transfiguration. The veil that covered Jesus’ glory in his earthly ministry is briefly drawn aside before he begins his journey to Jerusalem and death upon the cross. While Jesus prayed, Peter, James and John slept, but 

we must not judge them harshly. Climbing mountains is hard work! In fact, they were so deeply asleep that the reality being revealed was not immediately clear to them, yet the impact was lasting. 
Years later, Peter recalls this moment on the mountain as he writes to spiritually sleepy Christians who are in danger of forgetting the truth of the gospel and have become complacent about false teachers.
 He reminds them that ‘we did not follow cleverly devised myths when we made to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty’ (2 Peter 1:16).
Peter’s apostolic challenge needs to come to the Church in every generation and this is what GAFCON exists for. We are not a movement that finds its energy in division and controversy, but in the desire that all should be fully awake to the majesty and power of the Lord Jesus Christ. If the radiance of his glory has truly imprinted itself on our hearts and minds, then we will find ourselves longing for fellowship with others who share that vision and being much more alert to the tragic confusions and divisions which false teaching brings. 

How is it that the glory of Jesus is recognised in the Church today? As Peter was speaking out of his ignorance about making shelters for Moses, Elijah and Jesus, the voice of God the Father interrupts him saying “This is my Son, my Chosen One, listen to him”. The same is true today. We must listen to him. But we can be much more interested in our ideas than God’s Word. We must listen to the voice of Jesus as it comes to us through the whole of the Scriptures, but the recent decisions of the Scottish Episcopal Church (SEC) and the Episcopal Church of the United States (TEC) to amend their marriage canons to accommodate so called ‘gay marriage’ remind us that parts of the Church are becoming increasingly bold in speaking what they have learned from listening to the world rather than listening to the Scriptures and the witness of the Church through two millennia. 

The problem TEC in particular continues to pose for the rest of the Communion was highlighted by another but less reported resolution from its 2015 General Convention, A051, ‘Support LGBT African Advocacy’ which mandates that Church to spread its ideas to Africa. In the light of this resolution it is increasingly difficult to see what purpose the dialogue of Continuing Indaba and associated projects such as Bishop Graham Kings’ ‘Mission Theology in the Anglican Communion’ project can serve except as a means, even if unintentional, by which TEC can promote further confusion and division around the Communion.

But there is better news from North America and I continue to give thanks to God for the Anglican Church in North America which continues to grow as a church that is committed to listening first and foremost to the Word of God. The bishops have announced a ‘Matthew 25’ initiative to increase funding for ministry to the poor and have appointed a theological Task Force under the leadership of the Rev Dr Stephen Noll on Marriage, Family, and the Single Life to enable the authentic voice of the Scriptures to be heard clearly on these vital subjects.

Let us pray that whatever our situation, we shall be fully awake to the glory of the Lord Jesus. On the Mount of Transfiguration we see the one who is truly the Son of God, who is to fulfil the Law and the Prophets by his offering of himself for our sins, who will be raised gloriously from the dead and is yet to return in awesome majesty as Lord and Judge of all. May this vision capture our hearts and inspire our labour.

The Feast of the Transfiguration, 6th August 2015
Posted August 6, 2015 
http://gafcon.org/images/logo.png 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Most. Rev. Professor Adebayo Dada Akinde is a good example of the truism that God

The spiritual head of the Diocese of Lagos Mainland, Church of Nigeria (Anglican Communion), the Most. Rev. Professor Adebayo Dada Akinde is a good example of the truism that God invariably has His way in the affairs of men. What God ordains for each of his children ultimately supersedes all human calculations and disposition. In time, each man and woman whom God created for a specific role must succumb to that, willy-nilly. God rules in the affairs of men and those who understand this truism are the happier for it. Bishop Akinde evidently is. For a man who had distinguished himself so eminently in academics, not many had imagined for him a full time commitment to the service of God. If anyone had told him some 35 years ago that he would some day be the pioneer bishop of the Diocese of Lagos Mainland, he would probably have dismissed it as an empty joke. Having pioneered many projects in the academia, he thought he had had enough of pioneering work. Born in Kaduna, northwest of N...
Post a Comment
Read more

COMMENDATION SERVICE FOR SIR PAULINUS UMEOKORO AT ST BARNABAS CHURCH OMAGBA, PH 2 ONITSHA, PONTIFICATED BY RT REV DR OWEN C. NWOKOLO...

"...he fought a good fight & finished his race...timely, not untimely...." Rest in peace, "daddy d daddy"!!! Tribute1 From Canon Izu Obiekwe ~ The Only Sir Paulinus of St Barnabas! For the first time and incidentally at the occurrence of Sir Umeokoro's death, we thought of the literal meaning of "Umeokoro" as implying "strength, stamina, vigor, vitality of the youth", and he hailed from "Obodoukwu" which literally implies "the land of the great". Obviously, for those who knew Sir Paulinus closely, these names played out in his life and character .  On our arrival at St Barnabas Parish Omagba Ph 2, Onitsha, as the Vicar in 2008, we met the handsome Sir Paulinus and beautiful Lady Patricia Umeokoro, and both were looking fair in complexion, always walking along and seating down conferring together, in perfect love and unity. Before and as at early 2008, Sir Paulinus was used to seating at the back pews/seats ...
Post a Comment
Read more

ANGLICAN BISHOP OF THE DIOCESE OF EVO CONDEMNS SAME-SEX MARRIAGE

Bishop of the Diocese of Evo, Church of Nigeria (Anglican Communion), Rt. Rev. Innocent Ordu. The Bishop of the Diocese of Evo, Church of Nigeria (Anglican Communion), Rt. Rev. Innocent Ord u, has restated that the Church of Nigeria condemns same sex marriage, homosexuality and lesbianism. He also said the Church of Nigeria has an “impaired relationship” with churches in Western countries that have lent their support to same sex marriage and other vices condemned by the bible. Ordu spoke in Port Harcourt yesterday at a press briefing to herald the third session of the third synod of the diocese scheduled for July 29 to August 2 at the Chapel of Grace and Knowledge, Archdeacon Crowther Memorial Girls’ School (ACMGS), Elelenwo. He noted that while the Church of Nigeria was part of the global Anglican community, it would not have communion with other churches in the community that take steps that were contrary to the provisions of the Bible. His words: “We truly are stil...
Post a Comment
Read more