Anglican Communion News Service

The Third Afro-Anglicanism Conference ended July 26 with a rousing worship service relating to the conference's theme Celebrating the Gifts of Afro-Anglicanism.

The eight-day meeting, held in Toronto, got off to an inspiring start, when Archbishop Njongonkulu Ndungane of Cape Town, South Africa urged black Anglicans to share and live out the Southern African concept of ubuntu (I am, because we are) with the wider Anglican Communion.

We will share ubuntu this week. We must share ubuntu with the Anglican Communion, said Archbishop Ndungane in his opening sermon at St. James' Cathedral.

Ubuntu means to live and care for others; to act kindly to one another; to be kind, just, fair, compassionate, trustworthy, honest; to assist those in need; and to uphold good morals, he said. Ubuntu can only be experienced in richly varied community.

Over 270 participants and visitors from Africa, the Caribbean, United Kingdom, Canada, and the United States attended the conference, which focused on issues and topics that affect the lives of Afro-Anglicans. These include the challenges of human rights, new democracies, the Anglican Communion as our global village, young adults and the life of the church, challenges being faced by families, and HIV/AIDS.

Delegates also reflected on the Codrington Consensus statement that the Anglican family mosaic consists of many strands and cultural shapes, among which Afro-Anglicanism takes its rightful place. (The Codrington Consensus is a statement that was adopted by the First International Conference on Afro-Anglicanism held in Barbados in 1985.)

One of the major highlights of the meeting was the participation of youth, who challenged participants that we are not leaders of tomorrow, but also of today.

Sadie Goddard, a youth from Barbados, said, God speaks to everyone and that includes the youth&we need to learn to do ministry together both the young and the old.

Bola Famuyibo, a student from Nigeria at the Luther College, University of Regina in Sask., said he felt that coming together and listening to the different views on what spirituality means for the youth of today was very encouraging. He added: Before I came here I was wondering where the Anglican church is today in regards to youth, but this conference made me realise there is a future for us.

I feel the conference lived out ubuntu, said Kebalepile Matlhako from South Africa, in refrence to the final statement issued by the delegates. We managed to come out with one statement that represents all the differing views.

The six-part statement and resolutions, called the Toronto Accord, summarised major areas of concern and provides direction for Afro-Anglicans for the next 10 years until the next conference in 2015.

The accord acknowledged that, Afro-Anglican identity means that we share common human concerns&the HIV/AIDS pandemic is a matter of concern for all of us, whether we live in Africa, in the UK, in the Caribbean, or in North America.

It also urged all members of the Anglican Communion to adopt the Millennium Development Goals issued by the United Nations and signed by 191 countries, which pledged among others, to reduce the incidence of poverty around the world by one-half, ensure that all children complete a full course of primary schooling, combat HIV/AIDS and other major diseases by 2015.

The accord also committed delegates and asked churches to fully incorporate the participation of young people within the total life to the church.

In a resolution, delegates also noted with regret the exclusion of the Anglican Church of Canada and the Episcopal Church in the United States of America (ECUSA) from full participation in the recent meeting of the Anglican Consultative Council held in Nottingham. We decry this act of marginalization and request that the provinces have full access and participation in this forum,said the accord. The North American churches were asked to voluntarily withdraw from the meeting at the request of primates opposed to more liberal attitudes towards homosexuality among clergy.

The delegates urged all bishops who believe it is their duty to interfere in provinces, diocese and parishes other than their own to stop such disruptive action and urged them to respect the territorial borders of such provinces, diocese and parishes.

The full text of the 'Toronto Accord' reads as follows:

The Toronto Accord
3rd Internartional Conference on Afro-Anglicanism
July 20-27, 2005
Toronto Canada

Introduction
For eight days of prayer, listening, reflection and fellowship, over 275 Afro-Anglicans gathered in Toronto, Ontario, to give support, among other things, to a conference objective of providing increased visibility to people of the African Diaspora in Canada. The gathering represented ten provinces of the Anglican Communion  the Anglican Church of Canada, the Church of England, the Provinces of Central America, Kenya, Nigeria, Tanzania, Uganda, Southern Africa, West Africa, West Indies, and the Episcopal Church in the United States. The conference welcomed non-Afro-Anglicans who came to share our faith journey.

As we gathered to explore our current realities, our theme  Celebrating the Gifts of Afro-Anglicanism, helped us to explore current issues while charting a course for the future.

We reflected that each time we have gathered, Barbados in 1985 and Cape Town in 1995, we have made a fresh connection to our African roots. The vision, of the two in whose names we come together, Robert Spencer Chester Powell and Walter Decoster Dennis, has remained a vital and important historical legacy.

We were blessed by the contribution of great insight from our keynoters, plenary speakers, panelists, preachers, reflectors and the generous number of younger members of the community. We have been blessed by the warmth and hospitality extended by all, and have valued and appreciated the work of the International Planning Committee, Program Committee and Local Host Committee and the many contributors and financial benefactors.

We cannot help but note that similar to our past two gatherings, we met at a time of great turmoil and unrest in civil society, and in the Anglican Communion.

Our Common Heritage
In the city of Toronto, we appreciated the historical fact that Anglicanism, in the form of a European subculture, has communicated with a variety African cultures on the continent of Africa and in the Diaspora. Out of that, Afro-Anglicanism was born. At the dawn of this third millennium, where the world is aggressively becoming a global village, and where there is a risk of losing our God-given diversity through globalization, we felt the need to reflect on the virtues, vibrancy and vitality of our common heritage.

Afro-Anglican identity may not mean that we all have a set of shared values; but it definitely means that we share common human concerns. The HIV/AIDS pandemic is a matter of concern for all of us, whether we live in Africa, in the UK, in the Caribbean, or in North America. People in our communities who are infected, do not have access to adequate health care, and those who are affected are getting poorer. Our children have less access to good schools. All of us are struggling with the integration of our young people into the current structures of the church. The vast majority of our people live in abject poverty. Today, experiences of marginalization and exclusion are yet not unknown to all of us.

Afro-Anglicanism is an ideal context not only for cultural interaction, but also for profound discussion and discernment on how to make our world a better place in which to live. We should continue to value and celebrate our differences, and avoid temptations of divisiveness by enforcing patterns of uniformity. Our Anglican Communion needs to be a listening church based on the solidarity of compassionate love.

Afro-Anglican Spirituality
We have been richly blessed by the celebration of the Word of God through the corporate study of Holy Scripture. We have realized in our time together the wealth of common experiences and the depth of spiritual fervor and inspiration which this common sharing has afforded us. Our commitment to read, hear, and share has been reinforced. We wish to commend the regular weekly practice of Bible Study in every Afro-Anglican congregation.

Our young people in attendance have expressed their yearning for the church to more boldly proclaim the good news of Jesus Christ. They long to be part of a church that seeks the truth of Christ and proclaims it to a world that is filled with deceit, hypocrisy, and ambiguity. They long to be part of a church that does good by being just in a world full of injustice. They long to be part of a church that witnesses to the world the beauty of God.

We have taken careful note of the many calls from our young people for a clearer, more consistent and exemplary pattern of moral, spiritual and relational guidance. We call on all to listen and to re-double every effort in the careful nurture of our younger ones in the paths of Christian maturity and human dignity.

Ours is the task to leave no stone unturned in ensuring that the highest levels of mutual respect and acceptance are fostered and strengthened in our relationships, whether among generations, or provinces, or congregations, or individuals. We deem this commitment to be of the utmost importance, especially at such time as this, when tensions and stresses within the Anglican Communion are at a high level. We trust that our efforts to build stronger and more effective bridges of communication, understanding and inter-dependence will be enhanced. This should be undergirded by that unity of spirit and bond of peace that has already been won for us in Jesus Christ.

Human Sexuality
We have wrestled with deep sincerity with the complex issues of human sexuality. We have sought to explore very faithfully all the moral and spiritual imperatives which are before us as Christians. The vast differences of approach have been evident in our dialogue. Nevertheless, we have not departed from the sacred truths of our common humanity. We have all been created in Gods image. Gods compassion and love is equally extended to all whom God has created. The mysteries enshrined in the nature of human life are transcended only by the mystery of Gods Incarnation in Jesus of Nazareth. We hold tenaciously to the supremacy of the love of God made known to us in the Man from Galilee (John 3:16).

We will endeavor to work patiently and compassionately for a fuller understanding of II Cor. 5:19 God was in Christ, reconciling the world to himself, not counting their imperfections against them, but offering to us the ministry of reconciliation.

We yearn together for the day when the human body will become the symbol, and source, and sacrament of unity among us and no longer a cause of division or an instrument of strife.

Social Engagement
We were made aware of life and death issues related to socio-economic justice. We were urged to adopt the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), which are understood as gospel imperatives, as a plan of action by which these issues are addressed.

The Millennium Development Goals, which can also be seen as missional development goals, provide a concrete plan as they are:

The Millennium Development Goals, as espoused by the United Nations, have the critical capacity to address some of the gender issues which the conference considered. They create an enabling environment to empower all the vulnerable but most especially women. They also seek to alleviate and eradicate poverty and hunger, child mortality and diseases such as HIV/AIDS, malaria, while promoting gender equality, maternal health, education and environmental sustainability.

Therefore, we recommend that all the structures of the Anglican Communion adopt and implement them in partnership with governmental agencies and Non-Governmental and Faith Based Organizations.

We also stand in support of the joint WHO (World Health Organization)/UNICEF (United Nation's International Children's Education Fund)/UNFPA (United Nation's Family Planning Association) statement of 1997 against Female Genital Mutilation and we urge that this issue be considered at the proposed Anglican Congress in 2007, and at the Lambeth Conference of Bishops in 2008.

We were also reminded of the need to be stewards over God's creation and the need to honor the call to protect the created heaven and earth for future generations. We stand in support of the Kyoto Protocol and we urge all nations on God's earth to sign and implement the Protocol.

Anglican Concerns
As a conference, we explored the layers of dispersed authority, the Instruments of Unity, the bonds of affection, the issues impacting autonomy within the Communion and explored, yet again, what it means to be Anglican at the present time.

Long before the Report of the Lambeth Commission on Communion, as Afro-Anglicans we have sought to live, work and meet following the principle of adiaphora - as it has been an important working principle of our conferences since the beginning. We again lived in the tension of agreeing to disagree respectfully and in a non-harmful and non-destructive manner. Because we genuinely value the bonds of filial affection as Afros within our Anglican differences, we believe that we can offer a model of a way of being to the entire Anglican Communion.

Mission for the Future
As we go forward from Toronto, we leave with a strong sense of renewal and refreshment to continue in the struggle for justice, peace, and love. We have heard afresh the Good News of the Saving Word of God in Christ, and we have been made aware of the many bridges of reconciliation and wholeness that already exist among us. We pledge ourselves to strengthen and offer those bridges to the wider Anglican Communion.

Conscious as we are that we are part of an Unfinished Church, we call on all our brothers and sisters, especially our younger ones, to work with vigor, candor and constancy to continue in the building up of the Body of Christ. We give thanks to Almighty God for the inestimable blessings we have received.

We make a special call to our African brothers and sisters to do all in their power to strengthen the Communion and we pray that, with God's enlivening and empowering grace, we will go forward with courage and mutual upliftment into the glorious future of the sons and daughters of the Living God, who is also Lord of the Church.

After spending this time together we are more convinced that God has called us to face the challenges of the future assured of God's continuing support and encouragement.

Therefore with courage, we accept this challenge based on our recognition that God has been with us through this pilgrimage of life as an African people. We celebrate the many blessings that have been bestowed and give thanks for the strength of our ancestors who have brought us thus far on the way.

Resolutions

1. Resolution On Millennium Development Goals
   This conference calls upon all Churches in the Anglican Communion to adopt the Millennium Development Goals as issued by the United Nations to:
   • Eradicate extreme poverty and hunger
   • Achieve universal primary education
   • Promote gender equality and empower women
   • Reduce child mortality
   • Improve maternal health
   • Combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases
   • Ensure environmental sustainability
   • Develop a global partnership for development

    

2. Resolution on Young Adults
   This conference affirms the ministry of Afro-Anglican young people and young adults and encourages their full participation in the life of the Church and calls upon the Church to more fully incorporate their participation within the total life of the Church.
3. Resolution on Peace with Justice
   This conference calls upon all people of good will and the Churches of the Anglican Communion to exercise their influence to bring peace with justice in the troubled areas of the world such as Zimbabwe, the Darfur Region of the Sudan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Niger, Northern Uganda, Palestine, and Haiti.
4. Resolution on the Appointement of the Archbishop of York
   This conference celebrates the historic appointment of the Right Reverend Dr. John Sentamu as Archbishop of York and offers him our love, prayers and solidarity; and Thanks Bishop Sentamu for his support and patronage of our 1995 Conference and this 2005 Toronto gathering of Afro-Anglicans.
5. Resloution on Anglican Congress
   This conference endorses the request of the Archbishop of Cape Town that an Anglican Congress be held in Cape Town, South Africa in 2007; and This conference further requests members of its Executive Committee to make themselves available to assist in the planning of the Anglican Congress, if requested to do so by the Archbishop.
6. Resolution on the 4th International Conference on Afro-Anglicanism This conference recognizes the value of continuing dialogue and endorses the convening of a 4th International Conference no later than 2015 and suggests its first priority location should be the United Kingdom; and
   Further, the conference recommends the convening of a Pre-Lambeth Conference of Afro-Anglican Bishops in 2008.
7. Resolution on an Instrument of Unity
   This conference regrets that two provinces of the Anglican Communion, the Anglican Church of Canada and the Episcopal Church in the USA, were excluded from full participation in the recent Anglican Consultative Conference (ACC) meeting in Nottingham at the request of the Primates. We further believe that the ACC is too important an Instrument of Unity - reflective as it is of all orders of ministry in the church - to be hampered in its work of sustaining unity and total dialogue in the Communion.
   
   We therefore decry this act of marginalization and request that the provinces have full access and participation in this forum.
8. Resolution on Jurisdictional Respect
   This conference supports the call of the Lambeth Commission on Communion upon those bishops who believe it is their duty to interfere in provinces, dioceses and parishes other than their own to stop such disruptive action; and Further urges all bishops of the Anglican Communion to respect the territorial borders of such provinces, dioceses and parishes.
9. Resolution on Extending Fellowship to all Provinces
   This conference affirms that we belong to one another and, therefore, we regret the absence of some of our brothers and sisters, particularly from Africa. In the spirit of reconciliation, we extend our love and desire to be in fellowship with all members of our Anglican Communion.

The 2005 Toronto Accord Committee
The Very Reverend Oge' Beauvoir
The Reverend Walter Brownridge
The Reverend Dr. Kortright Davis
Canon Diane M. Porter
Timeya Seoka, Ph.D.
END

For further information please contact:
Rev. Canon Stephen Fields, Chair of the local planning committee
2259 Jane Street
Toronto, ON M3M 1A6
Tel:(416) 241-4639
Fax: (416) 248-5415
Email: afroanglicans2005@saintstephenstoronto.com
http://www.afroanglican.com