Episcopal News Service January 3, 2007
Second meeting of self-styled 'Windsor Bishops' begins
West Indian and Tanzanian primates join discussion
By Mary Frances Schjonberg
[ENS] A group of Episcopal Church bishops gathered beginning January 3 at Camp Allen Conference and Retreat Center, northwest of Houston, Texas, for a three-day meeting to continue discussing the church's relationship with the rest of the Anglican Communion's provinces.
According to a story in the January edition of the diocese's newspaper, Texas Bishop Don Wimberly sent a letter to the clergy of the diocese saying that his correspondence with Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams, following the first meeting of self-styled "Windsor Bishops" in September, "encouraged" him to hold the second gathering.
The "Windsor Bishops" are a group of bishops who have said they agree that the terms of the Windsor Report (http://www.anglicancommunion.org/windsor2004) provide a roadmap for a way forward in the midst of disagreements among the 38 provinces of the Anglican Communion. They say they have come together in conversation about the church's future.
Wimberly is quoted in the newspaper as saying "the purpose of the gathering is not to form another 'group' or to issue proclamations, but to continue the conversation as requested in the Windsor Report.
Bishop Jack Iker of the Diocese of Fort Worth wrote in a statement (http://www.fwepiscopal.org/bishop/bishop.html) on the diocesan website that the meeting will include presentations on next month's Primates Meeting (http://www.aco.org/primates/index.cfm) and on the work of the Anglican Covenant Design Group.
"We also will be discussing the current situation in The Episcopal Church, the concern for representation of the Windsor Bishops at meetings of the Instruments of Unity, and responses to parishes and dioceses who are seeking alternative oversight," Iker wrote.
What Iker called the Instruments of Unity are referred to on the Anglican Communion's website (http://www.anglicancommunion.org/index.cfm) as the Instruments of Communion. They are the Primates Meeting, the Anglican Consultative Council and the Lambeth Conferences. The Archbishop of Canterbury is referred to as the Focus of Unity on the website.
Iker noted that Wimberly's invitation to the January meeting said that "We are approaching a critical junction in the life of our church and the life of our Communion. Our discussions are both timely and of extraordinary importance."
Full story: http://www.episcopalchurch.org/3577_80903_ENG_HTM.htm
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