Anglican Communion News Service

Sydney Standing Committee calls on the Primates of the Anglican Communion to affirm traditional Christian theology and practice

The Standing Committee of the Diocese of Sydney, when it met in the last week of February, passed a motion in support of the initiatives of Archbishop Harry Goodhew within the worldwide Anglican Communion.

The motion respectfully requests the Primates of the Communion to recognise the extreme frustration of orthodox and faithful Anglicans in ECUSA and in the world wide Communion, that finds expression in the recent consecration of the Right Reverends John L Rodgers and Chuck Murphy in Singapore.

While recognising the disparity between heretical and immoral actions on the one hand and irregular actions on the other, the Standing Committee calls on the Primates to affirm, in the face of current denials, the traditional teaching of the Church on both foundational doctrines and moral teaching. The motion specifies, among other things, teaching on the resurrection, Jesus Christ as the unique way of salvation, the authority of Scripture, heterosexual immorality and homosexual practice.

The motion includes a call to the Primates that they ensure that all members of the Anglican Communion have available to them episcopal ministry in accordance with the principles set out in the form of consecrating of a Bishop set out in the Book of Common Prayer of 1662.

It finally calls for Primatial attention to these matters rather than to the development of further legislative authority and juridically binding structures at the various levels of the Communion. This latter matter relates to the growing lack of support in the Diocese of Sydney to the proposals of the Virginia Report, a document presently in circulation within the Anglican Communion.

The full text of the motion passed by the Standing Committee follows:

"Standing Committee, supporting Archbishop Goodhew's initiatives, respectfully requests that the Primates in Lisbon take note of the recent consecrations of the Right Reverends John L Rodgers and Chuck Murphy as an expression of the extreme frustration of orthodox and faithful Anglicans in ECUSA and in the worldwide Communion and, recognising the disparity between heretical and immoral actions on the one hand and irregular actions on the other, calls on the Primates -

1. to affirm in the face of current denials -
   1. the uniqueness of Jesus as the only name for obtaining salvation;
   2. our redemption through his full, perfect, and sufficient sacrifice, oblation and satisfaction for the sins of the whole world whereby he reconciled his Father to us;
   3. the resurrection of Jesus in which he took again his body with flesh, bones and all things appertaining to the perfection of man's nature; and
   4. the sufficiency and authority of Scripture; and

    

2. to reject current advocacy of -
   1. heterosexual immorality; and
   2. homosexual practice; and

    

3. to take all necessary and possible steps to ensure that all members of the Communion have available to them episcopal ministry in accordance with the principles set out in the form of consecrating of a Bishop found in the Book of Common Prayer (1662); and

    

4. to take the steps outlined above, rather than pursuing the development of further legislative authority and juridically binding structures at various levels of the Communion".