Primates Meeting Communiqué

ACNS 4253 | ACO | 19 FEBRUARY 2007

The Communiqué
Of the Primates' Meeting in Dar es Salaam
19th February 2007

1. We, the Primates and Moderators of the Anglican Communion, gathered for
mutual consultation and prayer at Dar es Salaam between 15th and 19th
February 2007 at the invitation of the Archbishop of Canterbury and as
guests of the Primate of Tanzania, Archbishop Donald Leo Mtetemela. The
meeting convened in an atmosphere of mutual graciousness as the Primates
sought together to seek the will of God for the future life of the
Communion. We are grateful for the warm hospitality and generosity of
Archbishop Donald and his Church members, many of whom have worked hard to
ensure that our visit has been pleasant and comfortable, including our
travel to Zanzibar on the Sunday.

2. The Archbishop of Canterbury welcomed to our number fourteen new
primates, and on the Wednesday before our meeting started, he led the new
primates in an afternoon of discussion about their role. We give thanks for
the ministry of those primates who have completed their term of office.

3. Over these days, we have also spent time in prayer and Bible Study, and
reflected upon the wide range of mission and service undertaken across the
Communion. While the tensions that we face as a Communion commanded our
attention, the extensive discipleship of Anglicans across the world reminds
us of our first task to respond to God's call in Christ. We are grateful for
the sustaining prayer which has been offered across the Communion as we
meet.

4. On Sunday 18th February, we travelled to the island of Zanzibar, where we
joined a celebration of the Holy Eucharist at Christ Church Cathedral, built
on the site of the old slave market. The Archbishop of Canterbury preached,
and commemorated the 200th anniversary of the abolition of the slave trade
in the United Kingdom, which had begun a process that led to the abolition
of the slave market in Zanzibar ninety years later. At that service, the
Archbishop of Canterbury admitted Mrs Hellen Wangusa as the new Anglican
Observer at the United Nations. We warmly welcome Hellen to her post.

5. We welcomed the presence of the President of Zanzibar at lunch on Sunday,
and the opportunity for the Archbishop of Canterbury to meet with the
President of Tanzania in the course of the meeting.

The Millennium Development Goals

6. We were delighted to hear from Mrs Wangusa about her vision for her post
of Anglican Observer at the United Nations. She also spoke to us about the
World Millennium Development Goals, while Archbishop Ndungane also spoke to
us as Chair of the Task Team on Poverty and Trade, and the forthcoming
conference on Towards Effective Anglican Mission in South Africa next month.
We were inspired and challenged by these presentations. Theological Education in the Anglican Communion

7. We also heard a report from Presiding Bishop Gregory Venables and Mrs
Clare Amos on the work of the Primates' Working Party on Theological
Education in the Anglican Communion. The group has focussed on developing
"grids" which set out the appropriate educational and developmental targets
which can be applied in the education of those in ministry in the life of
the Church. We warmly commend the work which the group is doing, especially
on the work which reminds us that the role of the bishop is to enable the
theological education of the clergy and laity of the diocese. We also
welcome the scheme that the group has developed for the distribution of
basic theological texts to our theological colleges across the world, the
preparations for the Anglican Way Consultation in Singapore in May this
year, and the appointment of three Regional Associates to work with the
group. The primates affirmed the work of the Group, and urged study and
reception of its work in the life of the Communion.

The Hermeneutics Project

8. We agreed to proceed with a worldwide study of hermeneutics (the methods
of interpreting scripture). The primates have joined the Joint Standing
Committee in asking the Anglican Communion Office to develop options for
carrying the study forward following the Lambeth Conference in 2008. A
report will be presented to the Joint Standing Committee next year.

Following through the Windsor Report

9. Since the controversial events of 2003, we have faced the reality of
increased tension in the life of the Anglican Communion - tension so deep
that the fabric of our common life together has been torn. The Windsor
Report of 2004 described the Communion as suffering from an "illness". This
"illness" arises from a breakdown in the trust and mutual recognition of one
another as faithful disciples of Christ, which should be among the first
fruits of our Communion in Christ with one another.

10. The Windsor Report identified two threats to our common life: first,
certain developments in the life and ministry of the Episcopal Church and
the Anglican Church of Canada which challenged the standard of teaching on
human sexuality articulated in the 1998 Lambeth Resolution 1.10; and second,
interventions in the life of those Provinces which arose as reactions to the
urgent pastoral needs that certain primates perceived. The Windsor Report
did not see a "moral equivalence" between these events, since the
cross-boundary interventions arose from a deep concern for the welfare of
Anglicans in the face of innovation. Nevertheless both innovation and
intervention are central factors placing strains on our common life. The
Windsor Report recognised this (TWR Section D) and invited the Instruments
of Communion [1] to call for a moratorium of such actions [2] .

11. What has been quite clear throughout this period is that the 1998
Lambeth Resolution 1.10 is the standard of teaching which is presupposed in
the Windsor Report and from which the primates have worked. This restates
the traditional teaching of the Christian Church that "in view of the
teaching of Scripture, [the Conference] upholds faithfulness in marriage
between a man and a woman in lifelong union, and believes that abstinence is
right for those who are not called to marriage", and applies this to several
areas which are discussed further below. The Primates have reaffirmed this
teaching in all their recent meetings [3], and indicated how a change in the
formal teaching of any one Province would indicate a departure from the
standard upheld by the Communion as a whole.

12. At our last meeting in Dromantine, the primates called for certain
actions to address the situation in our common life, and to address those
challenges to the teaching of the Lambeth Resolution which had been raised
by recent developments. Now in Dar es Salaam, we have had to give attention
to the progress that has been made.

The Listening Process

13. The 1998 Lambeth Resolution 1.10, committed the Provinces "to listen to
the experience of homosexual persons" and called "all our people to minister
pastorally and sensitively to all irrespective of sexual orientation and to
condemn irrational fear of homosexuals". The initiation of this process of
listening was requested formally by the Primates at Dromantine and
commissioned by ACC-13. We received a report from Canon Philip Groves, the
Facilitator of the Listening Process, on the progress of his work. We wish
to affirm this work in collating various research studies, statements and
other material from the Provinces. We look forward to this material being
made more fully available across the Communion for study and reflection, and
to the preparation of material to assist the bishops at 2008 Lambeth
Conference.

The Panel of Reference

14. We are grateful to the retired Primate of Australia, Archbishop Peter
Carnley for being with us to update us on the work of the Archbishop of
Canterbury's Panel of Reference. This was established by the Archbishop in
response to the request of the Primates at Dromantine "to supervise the
adequacy of pastoral provisions made by any churches" for "groups in serious
theological dispute with their diocesan bishop, or dioceses in dispute with
their Provinces" [4] . Archbishop Peter informed us of the careful work
which this Panel undertakes on our behalf, although he pointed to the
difficulty of the work with which it has been charged arising from the
conflicted and polarised situations which the Panel must address on the
basis of the slender resources which can be given to the work. We were
grateful for his report, and for the work so far undertaken by the Panel.

The Anglican Covenant

15. Archbishop Drexel Gomez reported to us on the work of the Covenant
Design Group. The Group met in Nassau last month, and has made substantial
progress. We commend the Report of the Covenant Design Group for study and
urge the Provinces to submit an initial response to the draft through the
Anglican Communion Office by the end of 2007. In the meantime, we hope that
the Anglican Communion Office will move in the near future to the
publication of the minutes of the discussion that we have had, together with
the minutes of the Joint Standing Committee's discussion, so that some of
the ideas and reflection that have already begun to emerge might assist and
stimulate reflection throughout the Communion.

16. The proposal is that a revised draft will be discussed at the Lambeth
Conference, so that the bishops may offer further reflections and
contributions. Following a further round of consultation, a final text will
be presented to ACC-14, and then, if adopted as definitive, offered to the
Provinces for ratification. The covenant process will conclude when any
definitive text is adopted or rejected finally through the synodical
processes of the Provinces.

The Episcopal Church

17. At the heart of our tensions is the belief that The Episcopal Church [5]
has departed from the standard of teaching on human sexuality accepted by
the Communion in the 1998 Lambeth Resolution 1.10 by consenting to the
episcopal election of a candidate living in a committed same-sex
relationship, and by permitting Rites of Blessing for same-sex unions. The
episcopal ministry of a person living in a same-sex relationship is not
acceptable to the majority of the Communion.

18. In 2005 the Primates asked The Episcopal Church to consider specific
requests made by the Windsor Report [6]. On the first day of our meeting, we
were joined by the members of the Standing Committee of the Anglican
Consultative Council as we considered the responses of the 75th General
Convention. This is the first time that we have been joined by the Standing
Committee at a Primates' Meeting, and we welcome and commend the spirit of
closer co-operation between the Instruments of Communion.


19. We are grateful for the comprehensive and clear report commissioned by
the Joint Standing Committee. We heard from the Presiding Bishop and three
other bishops [7] representing different perspectives within The Episcopal
Church. Each spoke passionately about their understanding of the problems
which The Episcopal Church faces, and possible ways forward. Each of the
four, in their own way, looked to the Primates to assist The Episcopal
Church. We are grateful to the Archbishop of Canterbury for enabling us on
this occasion to hear directly this range of views.

20. We believe several factors must be faced together. First, the Episcopal
Church has taken seriously the recommendations of the Windsor Report, and we
express our gratitude for the consideration by the 75th General Convention.

21. However, secondly, we believe that there remains a lack of clarity about
the stance of The Episcopal Church, especially its position on the
authorisation of Rites of Blessing for persons living in same-sex unions.
There appears to us to be an inconsistency between the position of General
Convention and local pastoral provision. We recognise that the General
Convention made no explicit resolution about such Rites and in fact declined
to pursue resolutions which, if passed, could have led to the development
and authorisation of them. However, we understand that local pastoral
provision is made in some places for such blessings. It is the ambiguous
stance of The Episcopal Church which causes concern among us.

22. The standard of teaching stated in Resolution 1.10 of the Lambeth
Conference 1998 asserted that the Conference "cannot advise the legitimising
or blessing of same sex unions". The primates stated in their pastoral
letter of May 2003,

"The Archbishop of Canterbury spoke for us all when he said that it is
through liturgy that we express what we believe, and that there is no
theological consensus about same sex unions. Therefore, we as a body cannot
support the authorisation of such rites.".

23. Further, some of us believe that Resolution B033 of the 75th General
Convention [8] does not in fact give the assurances requested in the Windsor
Report.

24. The response of The Episcopal Church to the requests made at Dromantine
has not persuaded this meeting that we are yet in a position to recognise
that The Episcopal Church has mended its broken relationships.

25. It is also clear that a significant number of bishops, clergy and lay
people in The Episcopal Church are committed to the proposals of the Windsor
Report and the standard of teaching presupposed in it (cf paragraph 11).
These faithful people feel great pain at what they perceive to be the
failure of The Episcopal Church to adopt the Windsor proposals in full. They
desire to find a way to remain in faithful fellowship with the Anglican
Communion. They believe that they should have the liberty to practice and
live by that expression of Anglican faith which they believe to be true. We
are deeply concerned that so great has been the estrangement between some of
the faithful and The Episcopal Church that this has led to recrimination,
hostility and even to disputes in the civil courts.

26. The interventions by some of our number and by bishops of some
Provinces, against the explicit recommendations of the Windsor Report,
however well-intentioned, have exacerbated this situation. Furthermore,
those Primates who have undertaken interventions do not feel that it is
right to end those interventions until it becomes clear that sufficient
provision has been made for the life of those persons.

27. A further complication is that a number of dioceses or their bishops
have indicated, for a variety of reasons, that they are unable in conscience
to accept the primacy of the Presiding Bishop in The Episcopal Church, and
have requested the Archbishop of Canterbury and the Primates to consider
making provision for some sort of alternative primatial ministry. At the
same time we recognise that the Presiding Bishop has been duly elected in
accordance with the Constitution and Canons of The Episcopal Church, which
must be respected.

28. These pastoral needs, together with the requests from those making
presentations to this meeting, have moved us to consider how the primates
might contribute to healing and reconciliation within The Episcopal Church
and more broadly. We believe that it would be a tragedy if The Episcopal
Church was to fracture, and we are committed to doing what we can to
preserve and uphold its life. While we may support such processes, such
change and development which is required must be generated within its own
life.

The Future

29. We believe that the establishment of a Covenant for the Churches of the
Anglican Communion in the longer term may lead to the trust required to
re-establish our interdependent life. By making explicit what Anglicans mean
by the "bonds of affection" and securing the commitment of each Province to
those bonds, the structures of our common life can be articulated and
enhanced.

30. However, an interim response is required in the period until the
Covenant is secured. For there to be healing in the life of the Communion in
the interim, it seems that the recommendations of the Windsor Report, as
interpreted by the Primates' Statement at Dromantine, are the most clear and
comprehensive principles on which our common life may be re-established.

31. Three urgent needs exist. First, those of us who have lost trust in The
Episcopal Church need to be re-assured that there is a genuine readiness in
The Episcopal Church to embrace fully the recommendations of the Windsor
Report.

32. Second, those of us who have intervened in other jurisdictions believe
that we cannot abandon those who have appealed to us for pastoral care in
situations in which they find themselves at odds with the normal
jurisdiction. For interventions to cease, what is required in their view is
a robust scheme of pastoral oversight to provide individuals and
congregations alienated from The Episcopal Church with adequate space to
flourish within the life of that church in the period leading up to the
conclusion of the Covenant Process.

33. Third, the Presiding Bishop has reminded us that in The Episcopal Church
there are those who have lost trust in the Primates and bishops of certain
of our Provinces because they fear that they are all too ready to undermine
or subvert the polity of The Episcopal Church. In their view, there is an
urgent need to embrace the recommendations of the Windsor Report and to
bring an end to all interventions.

34. Those who have intervened believe it would be inappropriate to bring an
end to interventions until there is change in The Episcopal Church. Many in
the House of Bishops are unlikely to commit themselves to further requests
for clarity from the Primates unless they believe that actions that they
perceive to undermine the polity of The Episcopal Church will be brought to
an end. Through our discussions, the primates have become convinced that
pastoral strategies are required to address these three urgent needs
simultaneously.

35. Our discussions have drawn us into a much more detailed response than we
would have thought necessary at the beginning of our meeting. But such is
the imperative laid on us to seek reconciliation in the Church of Christ,
that we have been emboldened to offer a number of recommendations. We have
set these out in a Schedule to this statement. We offer them to the wider
Communion, and in particular to the House of Bishops of The Episcopal Church
in the hope that they will enable us to find a way forward together for the
period leading up to the conclusion of the Covenant Process. We also hope
that the provisions of this pastoral scheme will mean that no further
interventions will be necessary since bishops within The Episcopal Church
will themselves provide the extended episcopal ministry required.

Wider Application

36. The primates recognise that such pastoral needs as those considered here
are not limited to The Episcopal Church alone. Nor do such pastoral needs
arise only in relation to issues of human sexuality. The primates believe
that until a covenant for the Anglican Communion is secured, it may be
appropriate for the Instruments of Communion to request the use of this or a
similar scheme in other contexts should urgent pastoral needs arise.

Conclusion

37. Throughout this meeting, the primates have worked and prayed for the
healing and unity of the Anglican Communion. We also pray that the Anglican
Communion may be renewed in its discipleship and mission in proclaiming the
Gospel. We recognise that we have been wrestling with demanding and
difficult issues and we commend the results of our deliberations to the
prayers of the people. We do not underestimate the difficulties and
heart-searching that our proposals will cause, but we believe that
commitment to the ways forward which we propose can bring healing and
reconciliation across the Communion.

Notes

1. Namely, the Archbishop of Canterbury, the Lambeth Conference, the
Anglican Consultative Council and the Primates' Meeting.
2. Cf The Windsor Report and the Statement of the Primates at Dromantine.

3. Gramado, May 2003; Lambeth, October 2003; Dromantine, February 2005. 4. Dromantine Statement, paragraph 15.

5. The Episcopal Church is the name adopted by the Church formerly known as
The Episcopal Church (USA). The Province operates across a number of
nations, and decided that it was more true to its international nature not
to use thedesignation USA. It should not be confused with those other
Provinces and Churches of the Anglican Communion which share the name
"Episcopal Church".
6. (1) the Episcopal Church (USA) be invited to express its regret that the
proper constraints of the bonds of affection were breached in the events
surrounding the election and consecration of a bishop for the See of New
Hampshire, and for the consequences which followed, and that such an
expression of regret would represent the desire of the Episcopal Church
(USA) to remain within the Communion (2) the Episcopal Church (USA) be
invited to effect a moratorium on the election and consent to the
consecration of any candidate to the episcopate who is living in a same
gender union until some new consensus in the Anglican Communion emerges.
(TWR §134)
(3) we call for a moratorium on all such public Rites, and recommend that
bishops who have authorised such rites in the United States and Canada be
invited to express regret that the proper constraints of the bonds of
affection were breached by such authorisation. (TWR §144)
A fourth request (TWR §135) was discharged by the presentation of The
Episcopal Church made at ACC-13 in Nottingham, UK, in 2005.

6. Bishop Robert Duncan, Bishop of Pittsburgh and Moderator of the Network
of Anglican Communion Dioceses and Parishes; Bishop Christopher Epting,
Deputy for Ecumenical Affairs in The Episcopal Church; Bishop Bruce
McPherson, Bishop of Western Louisiana, President of the Presiding Bishop's
Council of Advice, and a member of the "Camp Allen" bishops.

7. Set out and discussed in the Report of the Communion Sub-Group presented
at the Meeting.

The Key Recommendations of the Primates

Foundations

The Primates recognise the urgency of the current situation and therefore
emphasise the need to:

a.. affirm the Windsor Report (TWR) and the standard of teaching
commanding respect across the Communion (most recently expressed in
Resolution 1.10 of the 1998 Lambeth Conference);
b.. set in place a Covenant for the Anglican Communion;
c.. encourage healing and reconciliation within The Episcopal Church,
between The Episcopal Church and congregations alienated from it, and
between The Episcopal Church and the rest of the Anglican Communion;
d.. respect the proper constitutional autonomy of all of the Churches of
the Anglican Communion, while upholding the interdependent life and mutual
responsibility of the Churches, and the responsibility of each to the
Communion as a whole;
e.. respond pastorally and provide for those groups alienated by recent
developments in the Episcopal Church.
In order to address these foundations and apply them in the difficult
situation which arises at present in The Episcopal Church, we recommend the
following actions. The scheme proposed and the undertakings requested are
intended to have force until the conclusion of the Covenant Process and a
definitive statement of the position of The Episcopal Church with respect to
the Covenant and its place within the life of the Communion, when some new
provision may be required.

A Pastoral Council

a.. The Primates will establish a Pastoral Council to act on behalf of the
Primates in consultation with The Episcopal Church. This Council shall
consist of up to five members: two nominated by the Primates, two by the
Presiding Bishop, and a Primate of a Province of the Anglican Communion
nominated by the Archbishop of Canterbury to chair the Council.
b.. The Council will work in co-operation with The Episcopal Church, the
Presiding Bishop and the leadership of the bishops participating in the
scheme proposed below to
a.. negotiate the necessary structures for pastoral care which would
meet the requests of the Windsor Report (TWR, §147-155) and the Primates'
requests in the Lambeth Statement of October 2003 [1];
b.. authorise protocols for the functioning of such a scheme, including
the criteria for participation of bishops, dioceses and congregations in the
scheme;
c.. assure the effectiveness of the structures for pastoral care;
o liaise with those other primates of the Anglican Communion who
currently have care of parishes to seek a secure way forward for those
parishes within the scheme;
d.. facilitate and encourage healing and reconciliation within The
Episcopal Church, between The Episcopal Church and congregations alienated
from it, and between The Episcopal Church and the rest of the Anglican
Communion (TWR, §156);
e.. advise the Presiding Bishop and the Instruments of Communion;
f.. monitor the response of The Episcopal Church to the Windsor Report;
g.. consider whether any of the courses of action contemplated by the
Windsor Report §157 should be applied to the life of The Episcopal Church or
its bishops, and, if appropriate, to recommend such action to The Episcopal
Church and its institutions and to the Instruments of Communion;
h.. take whatever reasonable action is needed to give effect to this
scheme
and report to the Primates.
A Pastoral Scheme

a.. We recognise that there are individuals, congregations and clergy, who
in the current situation, feel unable to accept the direct ministry of their
bishop or of the Presiding Bishop, and some of whom have sought the
oversight of other jurisdictions.
b.. We have received representations from a number of bishops of The
Episcopal Church who have expressed a commitment to a number of principles
set out in two recent letters[2] . We recognise that these bishops are
taking those actions which they believe necessary to sustain full communion
with the Anglican Communion.
c.. We acknowledge and welcome the initiative of the Presiding Bishop to
consent to appoint a Primatial Vicar.
On this basis, the Primates recommend that structures for pastoral care be
established in conjunction with the Pastoral Council, to enable such
individuals, congregations and clergy to exercise their ministries and
congregational life within The Episcopal Church, and that

a.. the Pastoral Council and the Presiding Bishop invite the bishops
expressing a commitment to "the Camp Allen principles" [3], or as otherwise
determined by the Pastoral Council, to participate in the pastoral scheme ;
b.. in consultation with the Council and with the consent of the Presiding
Bishop, those bishops who are part of the scheme will nominate a Primatial
Vicar, who shall be responsible to the Council;
c.. the Presiding Bishop in consultation with the Pastoral Council will
delegate specific powers and duties to the Primatial Vicar. Once this scheme of pastoral care is recognised to be fully operational, the
Primates undertake to end all interventions. Congregations or parishes in
current arrangements will negotiate their place within the structures of
pastoral oversight set out above.

We believe that such a scheme is robust enough to function and provide
sufficient space for those who are unable to accept the direct ministry of
their bishop or the Presiding Bishop to have a secure place within The
Episcopal Church and the Anglican Communion until such time as the Covenant
Process is complete. At that time, other provisions may become necessary.

Although there are particular difficulties associated with AMiA and CANA,
the Pastoral Council should negotiate with them and the Primates currently
ministering to them to find a place for them within these provisions. We
believe that with goodwill this may be possible.

On Clarifying the Response to Windsor

The Primates recognise the seriousness with which The Episcopal Church
addressed the requests of the Windsor Report put to it by the Primates at
their Dromantine Meeting. They value and accept the apology and the request
for forgiveness made [4]. While they appreciate the actions of the 75th
General Convention which offer some affirmation of the Windsor Report and
its recommendations, they deeply regret a lack of clarity about certain of
those responses.

In particular, the Primates request, through the Presiding Bishop, that the
House of Bishops of The Episcopal Church
1. make an unequivocal common covenant that the bishops will not authorise
any Rite of Blessing for same-sex unions in their dioceses or through
General Convention (cf TWR, §143, 144); and
2. confirm that the passing of Resolution B033 of the 75th General
Convention means that a candidate for episcopal orders living in a same-sex
union shall not receive the necessary consent (cf TWR, §134); unless some new consensus on these matters emerges across the Communion (cf
TWR, §134).

The Primates request that the answer of the House of Bishops is conveyed to
the Primates by the Presiding Bishop by 30th September 2007.
If the reassurances requested of the House of Bishops cannot in good
conscience be given, the relationship between The Episcopal Church and the
Anglican Communion as a whole remains damaged at best, and this has
consequences for the full participation of the Church in the life of the
Communion.

On property disputes

The Primates urge the representatives of The Episcopal Church and of those
congregations in property disputes with it to suspend all actions in law
arising in this situation. We also urge both parties to give assurances that
no steps will be taken to alienate property from The Episcopal Church
without its consent or to deny the use of that property to those
congregations.

Appendix One

"The Camp Allen Principles"

The commitments expressed in the letter of 22nd September 2006 were:

a.. an acceptance of Lambeth 1998 Res. I.10 as expressing, on its given
topic, the mind of the Communion to which we subject our own teaching and
discipline;
b.. an acceptance of the Windsor Report, as interpreted by the Primates at
Dromantine, as outlining the Communion's "way forward" for our own church's
reconciliation and witness within the Communion;
c.. a personal acceptance by each of us of the particular recommendations
made by the Windsor Report to ECUSA, and a pledge to comply with them;
d.. a clear sense that General Convention 2006 did not adequately respond
to the requests made of ECUSA by the Communion through the Windsor Report;
e.. a clear belief that we faithfully represent ECUSA in accordance with
this church's Constitution and Canons, as properly interpreted by the
Scripture and our historic faith and discipline;
f.. a desire to provide a common witness through which faithful Anglican
Episcopalians committed to our Communion life might join together for the
renewal of our church and the furtherance of the mission of Christ Jesus. The principles expressed in the letter of 11th January 2007 were:

1. It is our hope that you will explicitly recognize that we are in full
communion with you in order to maintain the integrity of our ministries
within our dioceses and the larger Church.
2. We are prepared, among other things, to work with the Primates and with
others in our American context to make provision for the varying needs of
individuals, congregations, dioceses and clergy to continue to exercise
their ministries as the Covenant process unfolds. This includes the needs of
those seeking primatial ministry from outside the United States, those
dioceses and parishes unable to accept the ordination of women, and
congregations which sense they can no longer be inside the Episcopal Church. 3. We are prepared to offer oversight, with the agreement of the local
bishop, of congregations in dioceses whose bishops are not fully supportive
of Communion teaching and discipline.
4. We are prepared to offer oversight to congregations who are currently
under foreign jurisdictions in consultation with the bishops and Primates
involved.
5. Finally, we respectfully request that the Primates address the issue of
congregations within our dioceses seeking oversight in foreign
jurisdictions. We are Communion-committed bishops and find the option of
turning to foreign oversight presents anomalies which weaken our own
diocesan familieis and places strains on the Communion as a whole.

Notes:

1. Whilst we reaffirm the teaching of successive Lambeth Conferences that
bishops must respect the autonomy and territorial integrity of dioceses and
provinces other than their own, we call on the provinces concerned to make
adequate provision for episcopal oversight of dissenting minorities within
their own area of pastoral care in consultation with the Archbishop of
Canterbury on behalf of the Primates (Lambeth, October 2003)

2. Namely, a letter of 22nd September 2006 to the Archbishop of Canterbury
and a further letter of 11th 2007 to the Primates setting out a number of
commitments and proposals. These commitments and principles are colloquially
known as "the Camp Allen principles". (see Appendix One)
3. As set out in Appendix One.

4. Resolved, That the 75th General Convention of The Episcopal Church,
mindful of "the repentance, forgiveness, and reconciliation enjoined on us
by Christ" (Windsor Report, paragraph 134), express its regret for straining
the bonds of affection in the events surrounding the General Convention of
2003 and the consequences which followed; offer its sincerest apology to
those within our Anglican Communion who are offended by our failure to
accord sufficient importance to the impact of our actions on our church and
other parts of the Communion; and ask forgiveness as we seek to live into
deeper levels of communion one with another. The Communion Sub-Group added
the comment: "These words were not lightly offered, and should not be
lighted received."

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