Perhaps the most important proposal within the Windsor Report
is the creation of a new Anglican Covenant. Currently in draft form, this document is designed to make explicit
the terms of inter-Anglican relations.
A new development on the Covenant was announced on May 22nd. One of the central bodies of the
world-wide Anglican Church (Joint Standing Committee of the Anglican Consultative Council and of the Primates’ Meeting) announced the start of
work on revising the Anglican Covenant and the process of getting it adopted. A paper was prepared - "Towards an Anglican
Covenant" - and comments to it are invited. A Task Force, appointed by the Archbishop of Canterbury, is expected
to be announced shortly.
Process
The drafters of the Windsor Report, and of this Covenant, appeared to envisage a process something like:
· The draft Covenant would be reworked into a final form. This would most likely be done by
a group commissioned by the Archbishop of Canterbury.
· It would be adopted at one of the forums of the world-wide Anglican Church--perhaps an Anglican Consultative Council meeting,
perhaps a Lambeth conference.
· The other world-wide Anglican Church institutions--like the Primates' Meeting--would endorse it.
· Each "province" within the world-wide Anglican Church would adopt it. (An Anglican "province" usually
covers a country. The Anglican Church of Canada, for example, is a province within the world-wide Anglican Church.)
How the adoption process would occur would depend on the official decision-making process within each country. In some cases,
the Primate of that province could sign it on behalf of that province. In others, it would be endorsed by
a motion of the national governing body (usually called a "National Synod").
· The Covenant would be written into that province's Canon Laws (these are like the charter of an
organization; they are binding on its members. In adopting the Covenant, the province would be committing to
adhere to the decisions of the world-wide Anglican Church.
· Once this was done, the all the diocese and churches within that province would be
recognized as part of the world-wide Anglican Church.
In effect, what is being proposed is a new way of saying a particular church is part of the world-wide Anglican Church.
If a church's governing body has adopted the Covenant into their Canon laws, they would be considered part
of that world-wide Anglican Church. This would replace the current "system" where membership in the world-wide Anglican Church
is vague and informal.
Content
The language of the draft Covenant's Preamble is both succinct and legalistic:
· We, the churches of the Anglican Communion, in order to foster greater unity and to consolidate our
understandings of communion, solemnly establish this Covenant, entered on our behalf by designated signatories and to which we
shall adhere as authorised by laws enacted by each of our churches for these purposes, so that our communion may be made
more visible and committed, and agree as follows as to our:
This style--what might be called "legal clarity"--continues through the five parts of the Covenant:
Summary
This section outlines the core ideas of the Covenant. It locates the world-wide Anglican Church within the larger Catholic church. It restates some of the founding ideas
of Anglicanism, including the authority of scripture, and the sacraments Anglicanism has held as central--baptism and eucharist.
If a member church (usually a "province" or country) adopted this Covenant, this section would commit them treating other
member churches with respect and "forebearance", especially when disagreements occur.
Under this Covenant, each member church would be "autonomous, episcopally led and synodically governed". What that means is outlined in the sections
that follow.
This section outlines what is intended by saying member churches of the world-wide Anglican Church are in "communion" with each other. It outlines a sacred view of
communion, as coming from and being commanded by God.
Adopting this Covenant would constrain member churches from unilaterally declaring a "irreversible broken communion" with
other another member church.
This is the longest section of the draft Covenant.
It requires each member church to accept the individuals of other members as part of their church. It also requires a member church to recognize
the bishops, priests, and deacons of other member churches. It especially requires bishops to act in a way that promotes unity within the world-wide Anglican Church.
Crucially, it would require each member church to "accept the counsels" of the "Instruments of Unity"--which are Archbishop of Canterbury, the Anglican Consultative
Council, the Primates' Meetings, and the Lambeth Conference.
A member church would, in effect, agree to accept the decisions of the world-wide Anglican Church.
This section outlines what the Covenant means by the member churches being "autonomous".
Under this Covenant, member churches would be free to organize their own affairs, within the constraint that what "touches all should be approved by all". How
it is decided that an issue "touches all" is outlined in the next section.
Under this Covenant, an issue would be considered to touch all--and therefore need to be decided by all--if the Instruments of Unity decided it was.
A process is outlined of how this would be decided. The Archbishop of Cantebury would play the leading role in moving a decision through the decision-making bodies.
Brief Assessment
Bruce Duggan
This draft is a remarkable document. There is nothing in it that should cause either conservatives or liberals to reject it.
Yet, at the same time, it manages to avoid being vague or vacuous.
It has been mischaracterized as proposing a centralized "papal" system. This is an exaggeration. The Archbishop of Canterbury's main role would not be to make decisions,
but to manage the decision-making process.
In governance terms, the Covenant proposes a legal framework for fairly loose and decentralized federation.
It will, however, require a clarification of the decision-making roles of the Instruments of Unity.
If the world-wide Anglican Church were not so polarized, agreeing to and adopting this draft Covenant would probably be fairly straightforward.
Given the current strains on the world-wide Anglican Church, it is unclear yet whether this will happen.
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