Afro-Anglican Conference Closes as New Accord Tackles Major Church Issues

The third Afro-Anglican Conference has come to a close on 26 July 2005, with a heart-lifting worship service that encapsulated the conference’s main theme of “Celebrating the Gifts of Afro-Anglicanism”.

The conference took place over eight days and was held in Toronto, Canada. The Anglican Communion leaders in attendance were urged by Archbishop Ndungane of Cape Town, South Africa, to share and live out the Southern African concept of ‘ubuntu’, which means ‘I am, because we are.’

In his opening sermon at the gathering, Archbishop Ndungane said, “We will share ubuntu this week. We must share ubuntu with the Anglican Communion. Ubuntu means to live and care for others; to act kindly to one another; to be kind, just, fair, compassionate, trustworthy, honest; to assist those in need; and to uphold good morals,” he said. “Ubuntu can only be experienced in richly varied community.”

The conference successfully drew more than 270 visitors from across the globe, from Africa, the Caribbean, UK, Canada, as well as the USA among others.

Much of the focus of the event was placed on the issues and topics that directly affected the lives of Afro-Anglicans. For example, challenges to their human rights, new democracies, the Anglican Communion acting as a “global village”, in addition to young adults and the life of the church, family challenges, and HIV/AIDS.

Youth played a vital role in the conferences, and they challenged participants by stating firmly that “we are not leaders of tomorrow, but also of today.”

On youth attending from Barbados said, “God speaks to everyone and that includes the youth...we need to learn to do ministry together both the young and the old.”

A South African delegate said, “I feel the conference lived out ubuntu. We managed to come out with one statement that represents all the differing views.”

It will be ten years until the next meeting in 2015, and so from this gathering the delegates agreed on a six-part statement and resolutions, entitled the ‘Toronto Accord’. The statement summarised the major concerns and give direction for Afro-Anglicans for the next decade.

“Afro-Anglican identity means that we share common human concerns...the HIV/AIDS pandemic is a matter of concern for all of us, whether we live in Africa, in the UK, in the Caribbean, or in North America,” the accord stated.

The Millennium Development Goals, which were issued by the United Nations and has been signed up to by 191 countries, were spoken about by the accord. It encouraged to halve world poverty, and ensure that all children complete primary schooling, in addition to fighting HIV/AIDS.

Once again youth was a major focal-point for the delegates, and the accord specifically asked the churches to “fully incorporate the participation of young people within the total life of the church.”

With regards to the Anglican Church of Canada, and the Episcopal Church in the United States of America (ECUSA) being suspended from fully participating in the recent Anglican Consultative Council (ACC) in Nottingham, UK, the delegates spoke about their regret and sadness that such a situation has been able to arise within the worldwide body.

Earlier this year primates requested that the North American Churches voluntarily withdraw from the ACC meeting, after they were found to have gone against traditional Church doctrine on the matters of homosexuality within the Church.