Anglican Communion Institute Releases "Claiming our Anglican Identity"

[David Virtue]

Anglican Communion Institute Releases "Claiming our Anglican Identity"

Over the past months the Anglican Communion Institute has been working
closely with the Primates of the Global South, producing the booklet
"Claiming Our Anglican Identity" for Archbishops Venables, Akinola and
Gomez. This booklet was distributed to all the Primates for the
emergency meeting at Lambeth, just completed. Representatives of the
ACI were also on hand in London to work on final proposals for
discipline earlier this week.

We commend the Statement of the Primates of the Anglican Communion,
issued 16 October 2003. First, the declaration that the official
teaching of the Anglican Communion is to be found in Lambeth 1.10
firmly rules out the innovations voted on by the 74th General Convention
(C-015 and the consent to the consecration of V Gene Robinson). We now
call on those Bishops who voted against Lambeth 1.10 to repudiate their
votes. Second, in the firm language of the Primates' Statement, we
submit that the consecration of Gene Robinson would place the Communion
in jeopardy and therefore call on him to stand down. Bishops who choose
to participate in a consecration, should such take place, will be
recognized as in formal breach of Lambeth 1.10, and in suspended
Communion status. Third, we call on the Provinces of the Communion to
assert their full Communion status with those who did not vote for
consent to Gene Robinson nor C-015, and to declare those who pursued
these innovation as in a state of Communion observers, and without
license to function sacramentally in their regions. We call on the
Primates of these regions to participate in Communion meetings only
with members of the Communion who are prepared to uphold the teaching
of Lambeth 1.10 as reaffirmed in the Statement.

We strongly urge the Bishops of the Episcopal Church (USA) to examine
the documents produced by the Institute and prepared for the Primates
in "Claiming Our Anglican Identity." We call on these Bishops to bring
their thinking and their conduct into line with the larger Communion's
identity and purpose and to resist innovations contrary to the mind of
Communion and without consultation with the Archbishop of Canterbury
and the Primates.

The Rev. Dr. Christopher Seitz, President
The Very Rev. Dr. Philip Turner, Vice President
The Rev. Dr. Ephraim Radner, Senior Fellow
The Rev. Donald Armstrong. Executive Director