Anguilla’s top Clergyman, the Rt. Reverend Errol Brooks, returned to the island this week from the ancient Egyptian city of Alexandria, where he attended a meeting of Primates and Moderators of the Churches of the world’s Anglican Communion. The gathering was called at the invitation of the Archbishop of Canterbury, the Most Reverend Dr. Rowan Williams.

Bishop Brooks (extreme right) with other Anglican Primates (BBC photo)

It was one of the highest forums of the Anglican Communion attended by Bishop Brooks so far in his 35 years in the Ministry, giving tiny Anguilla the honour and opportunity to be represented among such an august body of the Church. The Rt. Reverend Brooks is Bishop of the Diocese of the Northeastern Caribbean and Aruba and Acting Archbishop of the Province of the West Indies as well as Priest-in-Charge in Anguilla. The meeting he attended in Alexandria, which has a population of six million, was hosted by the Most Reverend Mouncer Anis, President of the Church of Jerusalem and the Middle East.

Following the meeting, the Primates and Moderators issued “A Letter from Alexandria to the Churches of the Anglican Communion, which stated that the meeting was called by the Archbishop of Canterbury “for leisurely thought, prayer and deep consultation.”
The letter states in part: “As we met, we shared a common concern for the Anglican Communion and a strong desire to see our Christian World Communion flourish and remain united. At the beginning of the meeting, the Archbishop of Canterbury invited five of us to speak about how the current situation in the Communion affected mission in our own contexts. We were able to talk honestly and openly about our experiences and perceptions. We were reminded powerfully of the sense of alienation and pain felt in many parts of the Communion, as many are tested by difficult theological tensions. Nevertheless, there was a discernable mood of graciousness among us in our engagements: a mood which assisted and sustained our conversation.”

Another section of the letter stated: “There are continuing deep differences especially over the issues of the election of Bishops in same-gender unions, Rites of Blessing for same-sex unions, and on cross-border interventions…If a away forward is to be found and mutual trust to be re-established, it is imperative that further aggravation and acts which cause offence, misunderstanding or hostility cease. While we are aware of the depth of conscientious conviction involved, the position of the Communion defined by the Lambeth 1998 Resolution 1.10 in its entirety remains, and gracious restraint on all three fronts is urgently needed to open the way for transforming conversation.”

The letter acknowledged the receipt of a report on the ongoing work of the Theological Education in the Anglican Communion; a presentation on global warming and climate change which showed there was a real problem “and one in which humanity has a crucial responsibility”; a presentation and analysis of the current global financial situation and explored Christian responses to it; and an extensive briefing on the proposed establishment of an Anglican Relief and Development Alliance.

One other statement of general interest in the letter, reads as follows: “We were moved while we listened to some of our members speaking first hand of the situation in Zimbabwe, of the oppressive partisanship of the former Bishop of Harare, Nolbert Kunonga, and of the violence and persecution exercised against the Anglicans of Zimbabwe. We adopted a statement on Zimbabwe which has been released separately. We also heard from the Primate of the Sudan about the violence experienced by the people of the Sudan which we adopted and to which we urgently draw attention. The Primate of Jerusalem and the Middle East also drew attention to the ongoing crisis in Gaza. We append a statement on this tragic situation.”

The Primates and Moderators said they were conscious that they were meeting in a country which the population was predominantly Muslim, but in which there was a strong Christian heritage and presence.

| Printer-friendly page | Send this article to a friend |

World News