Launch of the Fellowship of Confession Anglicans (UK)

The launch of the Fellowship of Confessing Anglicans (UK) will take place on Monday 6th July at Westminster Central Hall.

The Fellowship of Confessing Anglicans is a global movement that came about following the Global Anglican Future Conference (GAFCON) in Jerusalem last July.  The aim of FCA is to promote Biblical faith and mission and to defend orthodox Anglicans who are facing mal-treatment by their Bishops and Archbishops.  The FCA is a spiritual movement within the Anglican Communion for the renewal and re-energising of gospel mission and ministry across the globe.  It is not an attempt either to split the Anglican Communion or to cede from it.  (Since it represents 40 of the 55 million Anglicans world-wide it would be quite hard for FCA to be a ‘splinter group’!).

Why is it needed?
Historically Anglicans have been defined credally or confessionally.  We have been committed to ‘the faith uniquely revealed in the Holy Scriptures and set forth in the catholic creeds and witnessed to in, the Thirty-nine Articles of Religion, the Book of Common Prayer and the Ordering of Bishops, Priests and Deacons.’ More recently, however, and particularly in the West, commitment to confessional or credal Anglican belief has diminished.  In practice many parts of the Anglican Communion in the West are today united purely organisationally rather than by what we believe. 

You will have read of some of the abuses being suffered by brothers and sisters in the United States and Canada.  I met one bishop last summer who, in his 60s, had been stripped both of his diocese and of all his pension rights.  David Short is currently engaged in legal battle to keep the buildings in which St John’s Shaunessy meet as the Diocese seek to strip them from the congregation.

This alone gives good cause for the formation of FCA (UK): namely to stand alongside brothers and sisters across the world and to support them as they stand for gospel truth.  It is easy to underestimate the impact of us, in the United Kingdom, being prepared to stand up for others around the globe in this way. 

However, there is real need in the United Kingdom for a body of Confessional Anglicans to stand together to bring spiritual renewal to the Church of England, and in Scotland, Ireland and Wales.  Not only is there the on-going confusion regarding gender and sexuality issues, there is also a renewed battle over women bishops and on the horizon matters such as the uniqueness of Christ and the place of Scripture.  All of these things need to be defended or contended for within the Church of England.

What will happen on 6th July?
The morning sessions on the 6th of July will include contributions from Archbishop Peter Jensen and Dr Jim Packer (by video) on doctrinal basis of Anglicanism.  A global perspective will be provided by two of the American Bishops (who have been oppressed by the Episcopal Church in the USA), and Primates from the Global South (some by video).

In the afternoon we shall focus on the United Kingdom and outline the Biblically-based mission-minded ministry that FCA (UK) will insist on promoting.

I am still persuaded that (humanly speaking) the Church of England has a key role to play in the evangelisation of our nation.  The spiritual health and vitality of the Church of England requires that we ‘contend for the faith once delivered to the saints’.  I know that meeting on a Monday creates real problems for most.  However, if you are to attend even for part of the day it would be a great thing to be there to stand alongside our brothers and sisters from overseas and to demonstrate our commitment to stand for a credally orthodox  Church of England.

You can book upvia www.anglican-mainstream.net, or by contacting Anglican Mainstream, 21 HighStreet, Eynsham OX29 4HE.

William Taylor
St. Helen’s, Bishopsgate.

 

 

To win London for Christ through the Church of England we will

Educate ourselves about the issues at stake in the Church today

Build effective partnerships between churches at the local level

Act together in the Diocese to achieve real reform