Anglican Panel of Reference to Review Canadian Diocese Divisions

The Archbishop of Canterbury’s Panel of Reference is due to meet next week on 9th May, and it has been reported that the panel will review the ever-widening divisions within the Diocese of Westminster in Canada, according to the Church of England newspaper.

|PIC1|The Executive Director of the Anglican Network in Canada, Cheryl Chang, has stated that it had been told by Panel representatives “that our application has been sent to the Panel members and is currently under consideration,” report the Church of England Newspaper.

The Panel was given the commission by Dr Williams to offer mediation and guidance following the February 2005 Primates’ Meeting that took place in Northern Ireland. However, since that time much criticism has been given to the Panel due to its apparent slowness in reaching decisions and conclusions.

|TOP|Towards the end of 2005, the West Indian Archbishop, Drexel Gomez, publicly rebuked the Panel, explaining that it had been created to urgently address the issues that were causing divisions in the worldwide Anglican Communion.

The separation within the Communion has become more and more apparent over the past year, with the Church of Nigeria, led by outspoken Archbishop Akinola, forming a Convocation of Anglicans in North America to offer refuge for Episcopalians that disagreed with the actions of the national Anglican Church.

Sources among the Global South primates coalition stated that several Primates approached Dr Williams sharing concerns over the timeliness of the process and the fairness of the staff summary of the New Westminster division, report the Church of England Newspaper.

|AD|However, Canon Cameron stated that the New Westminster case had been handled strictly according to the guidelines laid down for the Panel.

Just last week, the executive secretary of Anglican Mainstream UK has warned the Church of England that it cannot remain neutral on the issue of homosexuality. The warning comes as the Anglican Communion approaches another tense time in the run-up to the election of the new Bishop of California.

Canon Dr Chris Sugden told Christian Today that a fudge from the Episcopal Church in the US on the position of homosexuality will “not be acceptable” for most people in the Anglican Communion.

Canon Sugden urged that only a full admission of “We did something wrong and we repent” would be acceptable.

“Anything less than that would be a fudge,” he said.