wfn.org | Episcopalians: News Briefs

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March 4, 2003

2003-048

Episcopalians: News Briefs

Pancakes flip for fair trade at Canterbury Cathedral on Shrove 
Tuesday 

(ENI) Frying pans were flying at Canterbury Cathedral as a 
pancake race with a purpose was held in the cloisters, with 
Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams, holding one end of the 
winning tape. The purpose of the Shrove Tuesday event was to 
mark the start of Fairtrade Fortnight, an annual event in the 
United Kingdom to publicize the fair-trade movement, designed to 
ensure farmers in developing countries a fair price for their 
crops.

The archbishop was making his first public appearance, apart 
from church services, since his enthronement on February 27.

Pancakes are traditionally eaten in England on Shrove Tuesday, 
the day before the start of Lent, the six-week season many 
Christians use for self-reflection, sacrifice and fasting in 
commemoration of time spent by Jesus in the wilderness. In 
pancake races, the participants hold frying pans and must flip 
their pancakes while they run. The race around the Canterbury 
cloisters was contested by 11 clergy, including a bishop. 

"It's fun, and imaginative events like this ensure that more and 
more people hear about the Fairtrade Mark," said Harriet Lamb, 
director of the Fairtrade Foundation. The Fairtrade label, which 
certifies that a product has been fairly traded between farmer 
and consumer, appears on more than 100 products in Britain, 
including coffee, tea, bananas, cocoa, chocolate, biscuits, 
honey, sugar, fruit juice and fresh fruit.

More than half a million farmers in 25 countries benefit 
directly from Fairtrade. The first Fairtrade label was created 
in the Netherlands in 1988. There are now 17 national labeling 
organizations around the world.

Sudanese warring parties accelerating mobilization warn 
churches

(ENI) Sudanese church leaders warned of accelerated military 
mobilization and that parishes all over Sudan were reporting 
forced recruitment by warring parties in the country's civil 
war, despite continuing peace negotiations. The church leaders 
were speaking at the Sudan Ecumenical Forum which assembled more 
than 60 Sudanese church leaders and their international church 
partners at Bronkhorstspruit, near Pretoria in South Africa, to 
lend weight to Sudanese peace efforts.

The clerics acknowledged the "significant progress" made in 
peace talks between the government of Sudan and the Sudan 
People's Liberation Movement seeking to end one of the world's 
longest and most bitter civil wars. But they also drew attention 
to several obstacles. "We strongly commend the cessation of 
hostilities achieved in most parts of the south and urge that it 
be fully respected and continued while the parties strive to 
achieve a successful conclusion to the peace talks," they said 
in a statement adopted at the end of the meeting.

The clerics expressed concern about recent violations of the 
cessation of hostilities otherwise in place since October 2002, 
and warned that parishes all over Sudan were reporting 
accelerated military mobilization and forced recruitment of 
soldiers by the warring parties. They committed themselves to 
actively supporting the peace process, but complained it lacked 
transparency and recommended that it be opened up to wider 
sections of Sudanese society. They also called for international 
guarantees for a future peace agreement, unimpeded humanitarian 
access to all areas and the protection of civilians. 

The church leaders said oil production and exploration in Sudan 
had caused human suffering and destruction. They called for a 
halt to oil operations until a comprehensive peace agreement had 
been reached. The division of the country's oil revenues between 
the north and the south is a major outstanding issue in the 
peace talks, which are to resume on March 19 in Nairobi. The 
other key subject is the division of power between the 
government and the rebels in the south. 

Indian church leaders disappointed by ruling party victory in 
Tamil Nadu

(ENI) Christian leaders in Tamil Nadu expressed disappointment 
after the governing party of the southern Indian state won a 
district election, widely seen as a referendum on a 
controversial state law banning forced religious conversions.

The opposition Congress Party had hoped to capitalize on 
Christian discontent about the law which, churches said, was 
directed against religious minorities and could put at risk 
Christian relief work. Christians account for more than 35 per 
cent of the 100,000 voters in the Satankulam constituency where 
the poll took place on February 26.

But the candidate of the governing All India Anna Dravida 
Munnetra Kazhagam party won by 15,000 votes, the result showed 
after votes were counted on March 1. "We are disappointed and 
this result was quite unexpected," said Church of South India 
Bishop Jeyapaul David, whose Tirunelveli diocese includes the 
constituency of Satankulam.

The chief minister of Tamil Nadu, J. Jayalalithaa, had spent 
more than a week campaigning in the constituency, apparently out 
of concern that many Christians might support the opposition.

The United News of India reported that the governing party's 
"sensational victory" in the election appeared to show voters 
had been impressed by the chief minister's statements that the 
anti-conversion legislation would not be misused. 

Liberian inter-faith body promotes peace deal to end civil 
war

(ENI) Liberia's Inter-Religious Council, an inter-faith group, 
is trying to broker a peace deal for the war-torn country by 
promoting dialogue between Liberian rebels and parliamentarians 
from West Africa. The council helped organize a meeting in 
Sierra Leone in early February between representatives of the 
rebel Liberians United for Reconciliation and Democracy (LURD) 
and members of the Parliament of the Economic Community of West 
African States (ECOWAS).

"LURD has agreed to commit itself to a peaceful resolution of 
the crisis within this year--2003," said ECOWAS, whose 
secretariat is in Abuja, in a statement after the meeting.

The LURD rebels in the West African state are fighting to oust 
the Liberian president, Charles Taylor, whose government is 
currently the target of United Nations sanctions for its 
perceived support of former rebels in neighboring Sierra Leone. 
The statement by the West African parliamentary group said that 
LURD had agreed to a dialogue with the government of Liberia at 
a place and time to be arranged and facilitated by the 
inter-religious council, the ECOWAS parliament, and other 
agencies.

It noted that the rebels, the Liberian government, and the 
ECOWAS legislative body had agreed that negotiations on the 
peace process should continue in Liberia and Guinea. ECOWAS 
officials in Abuja told ENI that Taylor had agreed to meet with 
the rebels. 

New Westminster bishop accuses Yukon bishop of issuing 
'ultimatums and threats'

(ACC) The bishop of New Westminster is trying to head off 
efforts of diocesan dissidents to find themselves a new bishop 
and has asked other bishops in Canada--and one in particular--to 
keep their noses out of the fray.

In separate moves, Bishop Michael Ingham made efforts to assert 
his authority as diocesan bishop and stave off the arrival of an 
outside, or "flying bishop," to minister to eight unhappy 
parishes. Ingham wrote last week to Bishop Terry Buckle of the 
Yukon, advising that he was barred from ministering within the 
Diocese of New Westminster. A copy of the letter was also 
released to all clergy in the diocese.

In the letter, dated February 24, Ingham accuses Buckle of 
issuing "ultimatums and threats against the bishop and the synod 
of the Diocese of New Westminster." Ingham's letter said he was 
imposing inhibition against Buckle, thereby preventing him from 
exercising any ministry within the boundaries of the diocese.

Ingham referred to two letters written by Buckle, one of them 
co-signed by Bishop William Anderson of the Diocese of Caledonia 
and addressed to the metropolitan (senior bishop) of the 
church's Province of British Columbia, Archbishop David Crawley, 
on February 11 and 17.

"Taken together, it is clear from both these letters that you 
intend to commit an ecclesiastical offence by asserting 
'pastoral responsibility' and 'episcopal jurisdiction' with the 
Diocese of New Westminster without my permission and contrary to 
the canons of General Synod, the Province of British Columbia 
and Yukon, and the Diocese of New Westminster," Ingham wrote. 
Failure to abide by the inhibition of ministry, the letter 
added, would result in referral of the matter to Crawley for 
disciplinary action.

Members of the parishes, which call themselves the Anglican 
Communion in New Westminster, were until recently engaged in 
reconciliation talks with Ingham and diocesan representatives. 
They have made very public their ongoing efforts to find 
themselves another bishop either from within the Canadian house 
of bishops or from outside the country. The ACiNW formed over 
its disagreement with the June 2002 decision of the diocesan 
synod to allow same-sex blessings. Members of the eight churches 
walked out of the synod and the ensuing months have seen bitter 
fighting and a failed attempt to reconcile, despite efforts by 
an outside facilitator. Reconciliation talks broke off in early 
February.

Announcing the break-off of talks earlier this month, Ingham 
said the ACiNW representatives only wanted to talk about 
separation, which the ACiNW later denied, saying members wanted 
more time. The bishop maintained that he was still willing to 
talk to anyone who wanted to come to the table. 

Even before the diocese voted in favor of same-sex blessings, 
Ingham maintained that clergy would not be obligated to bless 
homosexual couples. He has also offered an "episcopal visitor," 
a visiting bishop without authority, to provide pastoral care to 
clergy and parishes that do not support the blessings. To date 
there have been no blessings of homosexual couples in the 
diocese, although several priests and parishes have asked the 
bishop for permission to perform such a ceremony.

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