New Anglican Province: utter nonsense

Barry Morgan, Archbishop of Wales

If I was a person who had heroes, and if being a Primate in the Anglican Communion didn't rule a person out ex officio, then Barry Morgan might just be my hero.

From the Living Church

The Primate of the Church in Wales will oppose any attempt to form a parallel Anglican jurisdiction when the primates of the Anglican Communion meet next week in Alexandria, Egypt. Leaders of the GAFCON movement, however, have pledged not to back down from their support of Bishop Robert Duncan and the Anglican Church in North America (ACNA), setting up the potential for a clash of views when the primates meet.

On Jan. 24, Archbishop Barry Morgan of Wales told delegates attending the annual council meeting of the Diocese of Virginia he would oppose the creation of the ACNA with “every fiber of his body.” Another North American province was “total nonsense,” he said, according to a report by Anglican blogger Mary Ailes, but the archbishop conceded that his views were in the minority among primates.

He may well be in a minority. However by expressing himself publicly before the meeting I think he will encourage those who share his views. I suspect he is speaking out now because of a well-founded anticipation that the ACNA and GAFCON crew will try to pull a stunt in Egypt, whether or not a new North American province is formally debated by the Primates.

From The Times:

The Archbishop of Wales, Dr Barry Morgan, said he would oppose a new province “with every fibre of my being.”

He warned that if the Archbishop of Canterbury and the Anglican Communion allow traditionalists to set up a new province to exist as a parallel jurisdiction to the US Episcopal Church, no province would be safe and the worldwide Anglican Church would splinter into many fragments.

...

In an interview with The Times, Dr Morgan said the concept of a new province in the US “makes no ecclesiological or theological sense.”

New provinces are usually set up for demographic or missionary reasons.

Dr Morgan said: “It makes no sense for a province to be founded on doctrinal grounds.”

...

Dr Morgan said: “I hope we will see the same spirit of generosity and openness that we had at the Lambeth Conference last summer. There was then an overwhelming desire to stay together, and I hope that will be the same for the Primates’ meeting.”

On my very brief contact with with him I found Barry Morgan to be gentle, thoughtful, listening and immensely able. Even if plucky little Wales isn't politically strong in the Primates' councils, let's hope the obvious logic of his position is.


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