A group of conservative Anglicans on Friday, March 6, urged its members to boycott meetings convened by the Archbishop of Canterbury and halt any financial contributions to the current leadership, escalating a long‑running rift within the church.
The declaration by the Global Anglican Future Conference (GAFCON), a group of conservatives mainly from African and Asian churches that claims to represent a majority of the world’s Anglican followership, made a decision to establish a new council rivalling the current leadership.
Three days of meetings of GAFCON members in Nigeria have underscored the deep rifts within the Anglican Communion over theological and social issues, including the ordination of women and the inclusion of LGBTQ+ members.
They come just weeks before the Communion is due to enthrone Sarah Mullally as its Archbishop of Canterbury, until now spiritual leader of the world’s 85 million Anglicans spread across 165 countries.
Laurent Mbanda, installed on Thursday as chairman of the new rival council, read a statement saying the Global Anglican Communion required “a principled disengagement” from structures associated with the Church of England.
“Leaders who hold office in the Global Anglican Communion must not attend future Primates’ meetings called by the Archbishop of Canterbury, nor attend the Lambeth Conference, nor attend ACC meetings or participate in Commissions of the ACC,” the statement said.
It added that leaders “should not personally approve financial contributions to the ACC. It is also expected that they will not receive financial assistance from compromised sources.”
It was not immediately clear how much money was at stake. The Church of England did not immediately comment.
