Anglican Primates not attending Dublin meeting ?have reiterated their commitment to the Communion"

[Worldwide Faith News <wfn@igc.org>]

From: Anglican Communion News Service <acnslist@anglicancommunion.org
Subject: ACNS4769 Primates not attending Dublin
meeting "have reiterated their commitment to the Communion"

Posted On : January 22, 2011 3:00 PM | Posted By : Admin ACO
ACNS: http://www.aco.org/acns/news.cfm/2011/1/22/ACNS4769
Related Categories: ACO

Primates not attending Dublin meeting ?have
reiterated their commitment to the Communion

> By ACNS staff

The Primates who have turned down the invitation
to this week?s Primates? Meeting because of
developments in The Episcopal Church are still
committed to the Anglican Communion.

In an interview today with BBC Radio Ulster?s
Sunday Sequence programme, Anglican Communion
Secretary General Canon Kenneth Kearon told
presenter William Crawley that at Communion
meetings there are always a number of
participants who cannot come for a variety of
reasons including health or diary commitments.

Canon Kearon gave as an example of those who
would likely leave their decision to attend until
the last minute the Primates of Sudan and
Australia whose countries are dealing with major
issues including a referendum and flooding respectively.

He added that on this occasion some Primates had
written to say they would not be attending the
Dublin meeting because of the presence of the
Primate of The Episcopal Church and recent
developments in The Episcopal Church.

?About seven or possibly eight have written to me
directly to say that?s the reason why they cannot
come," he said. "About two can?t come because of
health reasons and there are a few we are not yet
sure whether they are coming or not.

?Those Primates who said they?re not coming as
part of an objection to the Episcopal Church and
other developments have reiterated their
commitment to the Communion and the Archbishop of
Canterbury in their writing to me."
When asked about the agenda of the meeting, Canon
Kearon explained that this was ?in the hands of the Primates? themselve s.?

?They?ve been asked to examine the big issues
facing the Communion and that in itself follows a
request from a number of them after the last
Primates? Meeting that we actually devote a
meeting [to] what the big issues are.

"I think there will be a variety of answers to
that question: ?What is the big issue facing the
communion?? Some will of course say it is the
same sex issue?I think other people will  answer
in terms of mission, the church?s response to
relief and development issues; still others will
talk about human rights being the issue facing the Communion and Church tod 
ay.?

In response to a question about what would be the
outcome of the meeting, Canon Kearon said that
that was in the hands of the Primates. ?It [the
Primates' Meeting] is not a decision-making body
in that sense. It is a body which issues guidance
and indicates direction. It has a lot of moral
authority based on the fact that it is composed
of Primates but it isn?t a body that votes on
resolutions, it doesn?t have that kind of procedural or constitutional na 
ture.?

> ENDS

Notes to Editors

The Primates' Meeting was established in 1978 by
Archbishop Donald Coggan (101st Archbishop of
Canterbury) as an opportunity for ?leisurely
thought, prayer and deep consultation? and has
met regularly since. The web site contains all
the statements and communiqués from the 2003 2005
meetings, from the meeting held in Dar Es Salaam,
Tanzania 2007, and from the current meeting which
took place between 1st-5th February 2009 in
Alexandria, Egypt. The next meeting is in Dublin,
Ireland from 25-30 January, 2011The next meeting
is in Dublin, Ireland from 25-30 January.
The Anglican Communion Office serves the Anglican
Communion, comprising around 80 million members
in 44 regional and national member churches
around the globe in more than 160 countries. http://www.anglicancommunion.o 
rg/