Senior archbishops of the worldwide Anglican Communion began their 2017 Primates’ Meeting on Monday with a retreat at Canterbury Cathedral ahead of the start of their week-long encounter.
The Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, who convenes the meeting as primus inter pares, had consulted the primates over recent months about what they would like to discuss.
Three primates – from Nigeria, Rwanda and Uganda – made it clear in advance that they would not be attending; they refuse to continue to engage with the US Episcopal Church, which was sanctioned at last year’s meeting of primates for deciding to allow gay marriage. Since then, the Scottish Episcopal Church has also voted to amend its canon law on marriage, removing the stipulation that it is between a man and a woman.
The 2016 Primates’ Meeting agreed that US Episcopalians should not take part in decision making on doctrine in the Communion for three years. They were also prohibited from representing the Anglican Communion at ecumenical and interfaith talks.
Responding to June’s Scottish vote the secretary general of the Anglican Communion promised it would be “prayerfully discussed” in Canterbury. Archbishop Josiah Idowu-Fearon described the move as “a departure from the faith and teaching upheld by the overwhelming majority of Anglican provinces on the doctrine of marriage”.
The first two days of the Canterbury meeting were expected to be dominated by scrutiny of possible sanctions for the Scottish Episcopal Church as well as discussion about the next Lambeth Conference in 2020. The next three days were planned with a more outward focus, concentrating on challenges facing the Church, such as climate change, religious persecution, conflict, and refugee issues.
Ahead of this week’s meeting, the Archbishop of Canterbury said those who stayed away would be missed very much. “It’s an extraordinary feeling to have the leaders of all the provinces gathering together to pray, to encourage one another, to weep with one another, to celebrate with one another,” he said.
The Canterbury meeting began with the primates sending a message and letter of condolence to the Bishop and people of Nevada following the mass shooting in Las Vegas in which at least 59 people died, with prayers for the victims at the start of evensong at Canterbury Cathedral.
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