An Introduction to the Draft Text of the Anglican Covenant by a
Working Group of the Faith and
Order Board
The draft Report of the Covenant Design Group
has been commended by the Primates and Moderators of the Anglican Communion to
Provinces for study. Each Province is being asked to make an initial response by
the end of the year to allow for the preparation of a revised draft for
discussion at the Lambeth Conference in 2008. Following this and further
consultation a final text will be presented to the Anglican Consultative Council
for its approval. If accepted, a definitive text will be passed to Provinces for
ratification, or otherwise, by their respective Synods in
2009/2010.
The Faith and Order Board
received this draft Covenant at its Residential Meeting in March. It noted the
immense amount of work that had gone into the preparation of this document and
welcomed its simplicity. The Board appointed a small Working Group to prepare a
series of questions as a basis for discussion at General Synod and to collate a
Provincial response.
It is notable that this proposed Covenant is
very different to that envisaged by the Windsor Report, about which many within
our Church were very uneasy. Indeed, it was generally felt that a Covenant that
sought to establish and enforce an agreed orthodoxy was at odds with our ethos.
A Covenant that seeks to manage diversity, however, is something to which many
in our Church might be far more open.
Some key questions as we
reflect upon the text of this draft Covenant -
Background Issues
- Do the Provinces of the
Anglican Communion share a common origin? Are there common documents to which we
can all appeal?
- Will this proposed
Covenant re-establish trust within the Communion and restore order?
- What is for the common
good - truth or unity?
Practical Issues
- Should an Anglican
Covenant facilitate, above all, our continuing conversations over contentious
issues or respond to particular crises?
- Who decides that a particular issue is an
essential matter of common concern?
- If decisions are to be
made in areas of disagreement who is to make them? Should they be made by those
concerned primarily with the needs of a particular province or by those
concerned primarily with the unity of the Communion?
The Future of the
Covenant
- Should this proposed
Covenant be dynamic or static? Will it be reviewed as we change and
develop?
- Would we wish this proposed Covenant to
allow us to be doctrinally permissive, pragmatic and
inclusive?
These are important questions that we should
take the time to consider. In reflecting upon this proposed Covenant it is not
enough simply to express unease. “If not this, then what else?” is a question we
must be prepared to answer as we study this text.
Rt Rev D
Chillingworth
Rev Canon Dr M
Fuller
Rev James Milne
April
2007
The Report
of
The Covenant
Design Group
meeting in
Nassau,
15th
–18th January,
2007
under the
chairmanship of
the
Most Revd
Dr Drexel Gomez
Archbishop
of the West
Indies
Contents
Report of the
Design Group
Introduction to
the Draft Text of the Covenant
A Proposal for a
Text of the Anglican Covenant
The Status of
this Document
This document is the Report of the Covenant Design Group and
includes a draft text for a possible Covenant proposed by the Design Group for
discussion. It has not yet been officially adopted by any of the Instruments of
communion and is not offered for approval or authorisation but released for
wider consultation and debate. It was received and debated by the Joint Standing
Committee and the Primates and changes are
already proposed.
Report of the
Covenant Design Group
The
Covenant Design Group, appointed by the Archbishop of Canterbury on behalf of
the Primates of the Anglican Communion, held its first meeting in Nassau, the
Bahamas, between Monday, 15th and Thursday, 18th January, 2007. The
Archbishop of the West Indies, the Most Revd
Drexel Gomez, chaired the group.
The meeting discussed four
major areas of work related to the development of an Anglican Covenant: its
content, the process by which it would be received into the life of the
Communion, the foundations on which a covenant might be built, and its own
methods of working.
The JSC paper, Towards an Anglican Covenant, was one
of the initial papers tabled at the meeting, together with a wide range of
responses to it from both individuals and from churches and other alliances
within the Communion. In addition, a number of correspondents had been invited
to submit reflections to the group. The group noted that there was a wide range
of support for the concept of covenant in the life of the Communion, and
although in the papers submitted there was a great deal of concern about the
nature of any covenant that might be put forward for adoption, very few of the
respondents objected to the concept of covenant per
se, but rather saw the covenant as a moment of
opportunity within the life of the Communion.
In their
discussion, all the members of the group spoke of the value and importance of
the continued life of the Anglican Communion as an instrument through which the
Gospel could be proclaimed and God’s mission carried forward. There was a real
desire to see the interdependent life of the Communion strengthened by a
covenant which would articulate our common foundations, and set out principles
by which our life of Communion in Christ could be strengthened and
nurtured.
It was also
recognised, however, that the proposal for a covenant was born out of a specific
context in which the Communion’s life was under severe strain. While the group
felt that it was important that the strength of a covenant would be greater if
it addressed broad principles, and did not focus on particular issues, the need
for its introduction into the life of the Communion in order to restore trust
was urgent.
There were
therefore two particular factors which would need to be borne in
mind:
1. Content
The text of the Covenant would
need to hold together and strengthen the life of the Communion. To do so, it
need not introduce some new development into the life of the Communion but
rather be the clarification of a process of discernment which was embodied in
the Windsor Report and in the recent reality of the life of the Instruments of
communion, and which was founded in and built upon the elements traditionally
articulated in association with Anglicanism and the life of the Anglican
Churches.
2. Urgency
While a definitive text which held all such elements in balance
might take time to develop in the life of the Communion, there was also an
urgent need to re-establish trust between the churches of the Communion. The
faithfulness of patterns of obedience to Christ were no longer recognised across
the Communion, despite Paul’s call to another way of life (Romans 14.15), and
its life would suffer irreparably if some measure of mutual and common
commitment to the Gospel was not reasserted in a short time frame. We were
mindful also of the words of the Primates at Oporto, “We are conscious that we all stand
together at the foot of the Cross of Jesus Christ, so we know that to turn away
from each other would be to turn away from the
Cross”.
Bearing this in mind, the CDG recommends a dual track approach.
The definitive text of any proposed Covenant
which could command the long term confidence of the Communion would need
extensive consultation and refining. Although several possible texts have
already been developed, a text for adoption would need to be debated and
accepted in the Provinces through their own appropriate processes before formal
synodical processes of adoption, if the Covenant was to be received and have any
strength or reality.
At the same time, there needed
to be a commitment now to the fundamental shape of the covenant in order to
address the concerns of those who feared that the very credibility of the
commitment of the Anglican Churches to one another and to the Gospel itself was
in doubt.
The CDG
therefore proposes that the Primates give consideration to a preliminary draft
text for a covenant which has been developed from existing models, that they
commend this text to the Provinces for study and response, and that they express
an appropriate measure of consent to this text and express the intention to
pursue its finetuning and adoption through the consultative and constitutional
processes of the Provinces.
The Primates
are not being asked to commit their churches at this stage, since they are all
bound by their own Provincial constitutions to observe due process. What they
are being asked to do is to recognise in the general substance of the
preliminary draft set forth by the CDG a concise expression of what may be
considered as authentic Anglicanism. Primates are also asked to request a
response from their Provinces on the draft text to the Covenant Design Group in
time for there to be the preparation of a revised draft which could receive
initial consideration at the Lambeth Conference.
The text offered is meant to
be robust enough to express clear commitment in those areas of Anglican faith
about which there has been the most underlying concern in recent events, while
at the same time being faithful and consistent with the declarations,
formularies and commitments of Anglicanism as they have been received by our
Churches. In this way, nothing which is commended in the draft text of the
Covenant can be said to be “new”; it is rather an assertion of that
understanding of true Christian faith as it has been received in the Anglican
Churches.
What is to be offered in the
Covenant is not the invention of a new way of being Anglican, but a fresh
restatement and assertion of the faith which we as Anglicans have received, and
a commitment to inter-dependent life such as always in theory at least been
given recognition.
An Introduction to a Draft
Text for an Anglican Covenant
God has called us into
communion in Jesus Christ (1 Cor. 1:9; 1 Jn. 1:3). This call is established in
God’s purposes for creation (Eph. 1:10; 3:9ff.), which have been furthered in God’s
covenants with Israel and its representatives such
as Abraham and most fully in the life, death, and resurrection of Christ Jesus.
We humbly recognize that this calling and gift of communion grants us
responsibilities for our common life before God.
Through God’s
grace we have been given the Communion of Anglican churches through which to
respond to God’s larger calling in Christ (Acts 2:42). This Communion provides
us with a special charism and identity among the many followers and servants of
Jesus. Recognizing the wonder, beauty and challenge of maintaining communion in
this family of churches, and the need for mutual commitment and discipline as a
witness to God’s promise in a world and time of instability, conflict, and
fragmentation, we covenant together as churches of this Anglican Communion to be
faithful to God’s promises through the historic faith we confess, the way we
live together and the focus of our mission.
Our faith
embodies a coherent testimony to what we have received from God’s Word and the
Church’s long-standing witness; our life together reflects the blessings of God
in growing our Communion into a truly global body; and the mission we pursue
aims at serving the great promises of God in Christ that embrace the world and
its peoples, carried out in shared responsibility and stewardship of resources,
and in interdependence among ourselves and with the wider Church.
Our prayer is
that God will redeem our struggles and weakness, and renew and enrich our common
life so that the Anglican Communion may be used to witness effectively in all
the world to the new life and hope found in Christ.
An Anglican
Covenant
Draft prepared by the Anglican
Communion Covenant Design Group,
January
2007
1
Preamble
(Psalm
127.1-2, Ezekiel 37.1-14, Mark 1.1, John 10.10; Romans 5.1-5, Ephesians 4:1-16,
Revelation 2-3)
We, the
Churches of the Anglican Communion, under the Lordship of Jesus Christ, solemnly
covenant together in these articles, in order to proclaim more effectively in
our different contexts the Grace of God revealed in the Gospel, to offer God’s
love in responding to the needs of the world, to maintain the unity in the
Spirit in the bond of peace, and to grow up together as a worldwide Communion to
the full stature of Christ.
2
The Life We Share:
Common Catholicity, Apostolicity and Confession
of Faith
(Deuteronomy
6.4-7, Leviticus 19.9-10, Amos 5.14-15, 24; Matthew 25, 28.16-20,
1
Corinthians 15.3-11,
Philippians 2.1-11, 1 Timothy 3:15-16, Hebrews 13.1-17)
Each member Church, and the
Communion as a whole, affirms:
(1) that it
is part of the one, holy, catholic, and apostolic Church, worshipping the one
true God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit;
2) that it
professes the faith which is uniquely revealed in the Holy Scriptures as
containing all things necessary for salvation and as being the rule and ultimate
standard of faith, and which is set forth in the catholic creeds, which faith
the Church is called upon to proclaim afresh in each generation;
(3) that it
holds and duly administers the two sacraments ordained by Christ himself –
Baptism and the Supper of the Lord – ministered with the unfailing use of
Christ’s words of institution, and of the elements ordained by
him;
(4) that it
participates in the apostolic mission of the whole people of God;
(5) that, led by the Holy
Spirit, it has borne witness to Christian truth in its historic formularies, the
Thirty-nine Articles of Religion, the 1662 Book of Common Prayer, and the
Ordering of Bishops, Priests, and Deacons[1];
(6) our
loyalty to this inheritance of faith as our inspiration and guidance under God
in bringing the grace and truth of Christ to this generation and making Him
known to our societies and nations.
3
Our Commitment to Confession of the
Faith
(Deuteronomy
30.11-14, Psalm 126, Mark 10.26-27, Luke 1.37, 46-55, John 8: 32, 14:15-17, 1
Corinthians 11.23-26, 2 Timothy 3:10-4:5;)
In seeking to be faithful to
God in their various contexts, each Church commits itself to:
(1) uphold and act in
continuity and consistency with the catholic and apostolic faith, order and
tradition, biblically derived moral values and the vision of humanity received
by and developed in the communion of member Churches;
(2) seek in
all things to uphold the solemn obligation to sustain Eucharistic communion,
welcoming members of all other member churches to join in its own celebration,
and encouraging its members to participate in the Eucharist in a member church
in accordance with the canonical discipline of that host church;
(3) ensure
that biblical texts are handled faithfully, respectfully, comprehensively and
coherently, primarily through the teaching and initiative of bishops and synods,
and building on our best scholarship, believing that scriptural revelation must
continue to illuminate, challenge and transform cultures, structures and ways of
thinking;
(4) nurture
and respond to prophetic and faithful leadership and ministry to assist our
Churches as courageous witnesses to the transformative power of the Gospel in
the world.
(5) pursue a common pilgrimage
with other members of the Communion to discern truth, that peoples from all
nations may truly be free and receive the new and abundant life in the Lord
Jesus Christ.
4
The Life We Share with
Others:
Our Anglican Vocation
(Jeremiah 31.31-34, Ezekiel.
36.22-28, Matthew 28.16-20, John 17.20-24, 2 Corinthians 8-9, Ephesians
2:11-3:21, James 1.22-27)
We affirm that Communion is a gift of
God: that His people from east and west, north and south, may together declare
his glory and be a sign of God’s Kingdom. We gratefully acknowledge God’s
gracious providence extended to us down the ages, our origins in the undivided
Church, the rich history of the Church in the British
Isles shaped particularly by the Reformation, and our growth into a
global communion through the various mission
initiatives.
As the
Communion continues to develop into a worldwide family of interdependent
churches, we also face challenges and opportunities for mission at local,
regional, and international levels. We cherish our faith and mission heritage as
offering us unique opportunities for mission collaboration, for discovery of the
life of the whole gospel and for reconciliation and shared mission with the
Church throughout the world.
The member
Churches acknowledge that their common mission is a mission shared with other
churches and traditions not party to this covenant. It is with all the saints
that we will comprehend the fuller dimensions of Christ’s redemptive and
immeasurable love.
We commit ourselves to answering God’s call
to share in his healing and reconciling mission for our blessed but broken and
hurting world, and, with mutual accountability, to share our God-given spiritual
and material resources in this task.
In this mission, which is
the Mission of Christ, we commit
ourselves
- to proclaim the Good News of the Kingdom of God
- to
teach, baptize and nurture new believers;
- to
respond to human need by loving service;
- to
seek to transform unjust structures of society; and
- to
strive to safeguard the integrity of creation and to sustain and renew the
life of the earth.
5
Our Unity and Common
Life
(Numbers 11.16-20, Luke
22.14-27, Acts 2.43-47, 4.32-35, 1 Corinthians 11.23-26, 1 Peter 4:7-11,
5:1-11)
We affirm the historic episcopate,
locally adapted in the methods of its administration to the varying needs of the
nations and peoples called of God into the unity of his Church and the central
role of bishops as custodians of faith, leaders in mission, and as visible sign of unity.
We affirm the place of four Instruments of
Communion which serve to discern our common mind in communion issues, and to
foster our interdependence and mutual accountability in Christ. While each
member Church orders and regulates its own affairs through its own system of
government and law and is therefore described as autonomous, each church
recognises that the member churches of the Anglican Communion are bound
together, not juridically by a central legislative or executive authority, but
by the Holy Spirit who calls and enables us to live in mutual loyalty and
service.
Of
these four Instruments of Communion, the Archbishop of Canterbury, with whose
See Anglicans have historically been in communion, is accorded a primacy of
honour and respect as first amongst equals (primus
inter pares). He calls the Lambeth Conference, and
Primates’ Meeting, and is President of the Anglican Consultative
Council.
The Lambeth
Conference, under the presidency of the Archbishop of Canterbury, expressing
episcopal collegiality worldwide, gathers the bishops for common counsel,
consultation and encouragement and serves as an instrument in guarding the faith
and unity of the Communion.
The Primates’ Meeting,
presided over by the Archbishop of Canterbury, assembles for mutual support and
counsel, monitors global developments and works in full collaboration in
doctrinal, moral and pastoral matters that have Communion-wide
implications.
The Anglican Consultative
Council is a body representative of bishops, clergy and laity of the churches,
which co-ordinates aspects of international Anglican ecumenical and mission
work.
6
Unity of the
Communion
(Nehemiah 2.17,18, Mt.
18.15-18, 1 Corinthians 12, 2 Corinthians 4.1-18, 13: 5-10, Galatians
6.1-10)
Each Church commits
itself
(1) in
essential matters of common concern, to have regard to the common good of the
Communion in the exercise of its autonomy, and to support the work of the
Instruments of Communion with the spiritual and material resources available to
it.
(2) to spend time with
openness and patience in matters of theological debate and discernment to listen
and to study with one another in order to comprehend the will of God. Such study
and debate is an essential feature of the life of the Church as its seeks to be
led by the Spirit into all truth and to proclaim the Gospel afresh in each
generation. Some issues, which are perceived as controversial or new when they
arise, may well evoke a deeper understanding of the implications of God’s
revelation to us; others may prove to be distractions or even obstacles to the
faith: all therefore need to be tested by shared discernment in the life of the
Church.
(3) to seek
with other members, through the Church’s shared councils, a common mind about
matters of essential concern, consistent with the Scriptures, common standards
of faith, and the canon law of our churches.
(4) to heed
the counsel of our Instruments of Communion in matters which threaten the unity
of the Communion and the effectiveness of our mission. While the Instruments of
Communion have no juridical or executive authority in our Provinces, we
recognize them as those bodies by which our common life in Christ is articulated
and sustained, and which therefore carry a moral authority which commands our
respect.
(5) to seek
the guidance of the Instruments of Communion, where there are matters in serious
dispute among churches that cannot be resolved by mutual admonition and
counsel:
1. by submitting the matter to
the Primates Meeting
2. if the Primates believe
that the matter is not one for which a common mind has been articulated, they
will seek it with the other instruments and their councils
3. finally, on this basis, the
Primates will offer guidance and direction.
(6) We
acknowledge that in the most extreme circumstances, where member churches choose
not to fulfil the substance of the covenant as understood by the Councils of the
Instruments of Communion, we will consider that such churches will have
relinquished for themselves the force and meaning of the covenant’s purpose, and
a process of restoration and renewal will be required to re-establish their
covenant relationship with other member churches.
7
Our Declaration
(Psalms 46,
72.18,19, 150, Acts10.34-44, 2 Corinthians 13.13, Jude 24-25)
With joy and
with firm resolve, we declare our Churches to be partners in this Anglican
Covenant, releasing ourselves for fruitful service and binding ourselves more
closely in the truth and love of Christ, to whom with the Father and the Holy
Spirit be glory for ever. Amen.
[1] This is not meant to exclude
other Books of Common Prayer and Ordinals duly authorised for
use
throughout the Anglican
Communion, but acknowledges the foundational nature of the Book
of
Common Prayer 1662 in the life
of the Communion.
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