The conservative Anglican GAFCON grouping will consecrate its new 'Missionary Bishop for Europe' at Wheaton College at the end of this month.
In a move that further strains the unity of the Anglican Communion, Rev Canon Andy Lines will be consecrated in the college's Edman Chapel on June 30.
GAFCON said: 'This consecration comes in the context of a global reformation that is happening in the Anglican Communion. While Anglican provinces such as The Episcopal Church (USA), Anglican Church of Canada, and Scottish Episcopal Church are rejecting the authority of the Bible, faithful Anglicans are uniting through Gafcon to proclaim and defend the unchanging truth in a changing world.'
GAFCON – the Global Anglican Future Conference – announced the appointment following the Scottish Episcopal Church's decision to allow same-sex weddings in its churches. The Archbishop of Canterbury wrote to the heads of other Anglican Churches sharply criticising Lines' appointment and saying it would 'carry no weight' in the Church of England.
The consecration is taking place at Wheaton because GAFCON primates will be gathered there for the Mission on our Doorstep conference. The Provincial Assembly of the Anglican Church in North America will draw together more than 20 Primates, Archbishops, and bishops from around the Anglican Communion and 1,400 North American Anglican leaders.
Wheaton College is a conservative institution that requires its teaching staff to affirm a belief in a historical Adam and Eve, though they can teach animal evolution. Wheaton made unwanted headlines in 2015 when it moved to discipline Larycia Hawkins, a professor who said Christians and Muslims worship the same God; the backlash saw Hawkins leave her position there. It is also the home of the Billy Graham Centre, which works to 'train Christians in Christ-centered evangelism'.
Wheaton is highly regarded for its academic excellence and has an international reputation among conservative evangelicals, attracting many overseas students. The consecration of a missionary bishop to Europe there symbolises not just GAFCON's conservative theological position but also its evangelistic intentions, as well as its determination to operate without reference to traditional Anglican boundaries.
