Praying for GAFCON

April 20, 2023 Tom Creedy

Chris Green is in Kigali, for a significant Anglican event. He's shared some prayer points.

I’m siting in a major conference centre in Kigali, Rwanda, with around 1300 fellow Christians from 50 plus countries.  More importantly, there are many hundreds of bishops and archbishops present in that number. This is a meeting of global orthodox senior leadership for Anglicans like me, praying and planning together. And I know nothing like it.

I’m not just here as a punter (no-one present is, really). I agreed to become a trustee of this movement a number of years ago, so for me this is not just a conference - this is home.

A quick sketch. Back in 2003 an American was made a bishop, who was in an active same-sex relationship. A number of  international conferences and statements had identified this as wrong, pleaded with the Episcopal church not to do it, identified the issue as one of sin and disobedience to clear Scripture, and warned of consequences - but the US church went ahead anyway. That practice has continued in the US, Canada, and elsewhere, with increasing normalisation, and the rift has widened and worsened.

That act, among others, led to a significant number of bishops and archbishops refusing to attend the once-in-a-decade Lambeth Conference in England, to be hosted by the Archbishop of Canterbury in 2008, if the US (with the others) was also present, unrebuked and undisciplined.

The first GAFCON (Global Anglican Futures Conference) was therefore held as a spiritual home for those unable to attend Lambeth. It was held in Jerusalem, also in 2008.  It has since met three more times: in Nairobi (2013), again in Jerusalem (2018), and today in Rwanda.

Estimates vary, but it seems that a majority of the Anglican Communion is represented here (and it might be 85%, according to some), with a shared high value of Scripture, passion for evangelism and discipleship, and concern for orthodox fellowship. Daily bible readings from Colossians, worship, testimonies, smaller meetings, strategy sessions and planning for a proper conference statement make for a busy, multilingual day. And then the singing gets spontaneous, and the timetable goes out the window, and it is wonderful.

And I love being involved in something where people who look and sound like me are not in charge.

I’m English, and so issues in the Church of England at the front of my mind, but it is humbling to realise how they affect the rest of the world.  The ongoing debate about whether to bless same-sex unions in church, and the General Synod decision to develop prayers for individuals who might be in such relationships, is watched with a great sense of shock, and of betrayal of the biblical gospel. 

In part that’s for reasons of history and affection, because the Church of England had planted gospel work around the world.  But much more seriously, many parts of the Anglican family are constituted, legally, by their relationship to the Church of England, or to the Archbishop of Canterbury - provided that those don’t change doctrine. So if the Church of England departs from biblical orthodoxy it has global ramifications which don’t apply if it were any other province.

Hence the wonderful, providential timing of this conference, years in the planning, but shortly after a momentous General Synod debate and proposals. Most provinces are now actively considering their relationship to the Archbishop of Canterbury, to the Anglican Communion, and wondering whether something new might emerge.

Here are seven things to pray for this Conference, and a thanks.

Pray for Rt. Revd. Laurent Mbanda, who is the Primate (leading archbishop) for Rwanda and is therefore hosting the conference in Kigali. He is also very important in the structures of GAFCON.  He heard yesterday (Tuesday) that his adult son, living in the US, had died suddenly in his sleep.  The archbishop, his wife, and close family have flown to the States.

Pray that we might delight in Christ.  Our daily sessions in Colossians are making us aware of his stunning loveliness and his truth-forming authority.  Our conference theme is the question, ‘To whom shall we go?’, which has a double answer.  We go to Christ, and we go to a lost and hurting world.

Pray for our delegates who have come from dangerous and closed countries.  We’ve been asked not to share details, but if you read the news you’ll guess the kind of place s we are talking about - heartbreaking and uplifting stories of courage, faithfulness, and God at work in converting people in the most remarkable of places.

Pray especially for our delegates from South Sudan. We had the minor inconvenience of being re-routed because the Sudanese coup broke out mid-flight  One flight returned to the UK.  Another had unexpected stops for fuel.  But those are trivial when you hear from people who live there, are extremely troubled and fearful about what is happening right at this moment,  and would love our prayer support for peace. The same applies to people from a number of war-zones and tense countries - again, I can’t be specific but we had one bishop called into his president’s office, and had it explained that things would not go well for churches if he travelled. He went home.

Pray for clarity.  Those of you who are Anglicans will know that even the General Synod motion and the proposed prayers contain confusion, and a legal minefield.  The accompanying press conferences and statements from individual bishops have added to that.  Is the C of E about to bless same-sex unions?  According to General Synod, no - but according to many bishops, they would wish it to be understood that way. Weird and opaque language games are being played (what is this new distinction between marriage and holy matrimony? What’s the difference between blessing individuals in a relationship, and blessing the relationship itself?). And here we are, discussing  that in a conference where most people do not have English as their first language, and although they are stunningly fluent in it, many of these subtleties do not translate, or even make sense.

By the same token, though, that’s a gift.  Someone speaking another language will tend to be blunter and clearer, and our talks and bible readings can be refreshingly unambiguous. ‘They are asking the church to apologise to sinners.’  Ouch.  But indeed.

Pray for unity.  In one sense, it is an obvious, visible presence here - the global fellowship is of a kind and scale I never experience anywhere else.  But hugs and hymns aside, there are hard decisions being made, where genuinely gospel-hearted people take different view on the paths forward.  Some tasks will take years achieve. We need to be honest, and kind, and one.

Pray for the Conference Statement. I’m not leaking any content here, but the collaboration is awesome. It’s being written simultaneously in three languages (English, Spanish and Swahili) to give maximum access to careful wording. Each delegate has a chance to feed back on it section by section, online, and then the regional groups were working together on the next draft earlier  this afternoon. The co-ordinating committee is heroic in its work, and it will be a clear expression of the reaction of the majority of the world Anglicans to what is happening in England.

And finally, give thanks for a taste of heaven.  Ever been in a room of 50 nations, with everyone standing to sing the Hallelujah Chorus?  I have.  And that’s where we are heading.

IVP isn't an Anglican Publisher - though we are a confessional one - and so it's our delight to pray for brothers and sisters in a range of contexts. Please do pray for the GAFCON IV meeting, and all it's delegates. If you'd like to find out more about the Anglican context (With some free ebooks!) do check out this blog post.

Chris Green is the Vicar of St James, Muswell Hill in North London, a former Vice Principal of Oak Hill Theological College, and a Trustee of GAFCON. He's also the author of a number of IVP books, including 'The Gift', 'The Message of the Church' and 'Cutting to the Heart'. You can use the search function on our website to find more of his books!