Celebrating unity at an interfaith peace consultation, Henry Martyn Institute, Hyderabad, India—a partner of the Anglican Church of Canada. Photo contributed.
Part of my work involves meeting with church leaders in the Anglican Communion in Asia, the South Pacific, Africa, Latin America, the Caribbean, and the Middle East. Together, we attempt to discern opportunities for relationship in God’s mission, not only for programs of the General Synod but for the whole church.
For decades, the General Synod has carried within its mandate the commitment of Canadian Anglicans to proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ in words and action, through prayer, song, and solidarity, alongside Anglicans, Episcopalians, and other Christians everywhere.
We have nurtured the faith of new and lifelong believers through partnership with many provinces of the Anglican Communion. We have sought to transform unjust systems and structures, provided resources to those in greatest need, and strived to safeguard the integrity of creation and to sustain and renew the life of the earth.
Indeed, since 1984 these marks of mission have guided our Partners in Mission and Ecojustice programs.
Our church today
A new day is dawning. Parishes and dioceses are seeking fresh ways of being church, with each other and the General Synod, and with local civil society and social service partners. Together, as if for the first time, we are exploring mission paths and wondering, Who are we as church in the 21st century in Canada? How will we continue to be faithful witnesses to God’s call to prophesy, reconcile, and heal?
Some also wonder: Where in our pews and programs are there spaces and energy for continued companionship with provinces and Anglicans around the world? In what ways will those relationships be supported? How can Canadian Anglicans become more outward-looking beyond the demands of local and national issues?
Together
Global church partners remind us these are not our questions alone; they personify the mutual need to become one in Christ, to see in each other the image of God, and to act as if we believe it.
Gone are the days of “shopping” tables between the churches of the global South and North, wherein projects and programs of importance to southern provinces were funded by northern church mission grants. Certainly some funds still flow in this way, especially—and importantly—in response to humanitarian and environmental crises. Yet high-level project lists have all but disappeared at the insistence of partners that many, and more meaningful, alternatives in relationship are possible.
As two Anglican Communion partners in the Philippines recently urged: “Involve us in what you are doing. We will do the same.
“You have much to teach, as we do, about Indigenous Peoples and the Anglican Communion. You have much to teach about open dialogue on human sexuality, which we too now need to begin. We offer you lessons learned in our struggle toward self-reliance and financial autonomy; lessons in patience, resilience, assertiveness, optimism. Let’s continue working together on issues that connect us as disciples of Christ.”
“Do not hold back”
I am humbled by the witness of Anglicans and people of all faiths throughout the world, knowing that God has travelled ahead of me, continues to do so, and works in others who are differently alive and situated.
I am inspired by the resilience and grace of women and men struggling to survive catastrophic loss, and by the courage of those willing to speak truth to power; in the streets of Port au Prince and Cotabato City, Mindinao, in the Vanni and the Irrawaddy Delta, in Beit Sahour, Harare, and Juba.
Such is my privilege, to carry in small and imperfect ways the promise of partnership into the wider Anglican family, and to be welcomed and thanked for this, and to seek with others more meaningful relationship between the peoples, structures, and systems of our churches for God’s mission in the world.
It is Partnerships’ prayer that we continue to hear and respond to the invitation of Anglicans and others worldwide to venture forth from the familiarity of our perspectives, to be reminded of our common humanity and reawaken to the cross and resurrection at the centre of Christian life. We are invited into journeys of prophesy, reconciliation, and healing to share what we know as a light to others, to listen and be amazed.
May we embrace the magnanimity spoken by the prophet Isaiah (54:2): “Enlarge the site of your tent, and let the curtains of your habitations be stretched out; do not hold back; lengthen your cords.”
