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Excerpts: Bishop Jubal Neves: "Abp Akinola has written to our Primate forbiding my participation at the Global South Anglican Meeting in Egypt next October." Primate PETER J. AKINOLA: "These circumstances demonstrate such a dramatic divergence from the theological commitments of the Anglican Communion and others in the Global South, that the presence of your Province at the conference in Egypt would be counter productive." "Until we hear from you and your church your clear decision to correct these actions and statements, the organizing committee has agreed unanimously to withdraw the invitation for your province to be represented in Egypt." Primate Orlando Santos de Oliveira: "It was with surprise that I read your letter regarding the non
acceptance of subscriptions from the representatives of the Anglican
Province of Brazil to participate in the the III Global South
Encounter. This attitude astounded me really." Date: Mon, 5 Sep 2005 17:53:41 -0300 My dear Louie,
This is the truth. As "the fish dies by its mouth" (a brazilian
popular saying) the Abp Akinola has written to our Primate forbiding
my participation at the Global South Anglican Meeting in Egypt next
October. I would appreciate you could send this letter to all the
anglican bishops so that they may insight the mind of our Nigerian
brother and his followers. It is not Anglican Church! What a mistake!
And you see, Louie, the south to south meeting was a wish of the
Brisbane Mission Conference (1986) after a proposal of my group! And I
was member of the design group and coordination of the first South to
South Anglican Meeting, in Limuru, Kenya, with the Most Revd Orlando.
I am sending the letter of Acb Akinola to Brazilian Primate Orlando
end the answer from my primate to Acb Akinola. My thanks and my hug,
waiting for your comments about that,
+Jubal Neves
[from] July 18, 2005
[to] Dear Archbishop Orlando,
This comes with my greetings in the name of Jesus Crhst. My greetings
are joined with those of the members of the planning committee for the
3rd South-South Encounter planned in Egypt.
We have received with grave concern the news of the precipitous action
of your provinves to depose The Rt. Revd Robinson Cavalcanti. While
that action in itself creates a crisis concerning our relations, we
are doubly troubled with the presentation of The Rt. Revd Jubal Neves
who recently wrote and broadly published a paper as an authoritative
voice from Brazil. His assertion that the Windsor Report and the
agreed theological position of the Communion represent "a pretentious
majority wishing to assume control and power" is shocking, damaging,
and false. These circumstances demonstrate such a dramatic divergence
from the theological commitments of the Anglican Communion and others
in the Global South, that the presence of your Province at the
conference in Egypt would be counter productive.
The situation in the Communion is grave. We are seeking to speak with
integrity and love. The actions and statements of your province are
only adding to the tensions. Until we hear from you and your church
your clear decision to correct these actions and statements, the
organizing committee has agreed unanimously to withdraw the invitation
for your province to be represented in Egypt.
Sincerely,
[signed +Peter J. Akinoa, abp] The Most Reverend Peter Akinola Porto Alegre ,20th, August, 2005
Dear Archbishop Peter:
This comes with my greetings in the Name of Our Lord Jesus Christ.
It was with surprise that I read your letter regarding the non
acceptance of subscriptions from the representatives of the Anglican
Province of Brazil to participate in the the III Global South
Encounter. This attitude astounded me really. I have already been a
member of the Planning Committee of the first meeting that took place
in Limuro, Kenia, and we never blocked the participation of any
province, for whatever reason, to participate in the meeting. It seems
that we are facing judgment and discrimination within the South of the
Anglican Communion. This leads me to wonder, because your grace has
been emphatic to affirm, at the ACC Meeting in Notingham, that we were
listen to the Churches of USA and Canada, but they have not listened
to us. Now, it seems that it is the organising Committee of Global
South meeting that does not want to listen to us; it seems that they
want to listen only to one way of thinking. It seems that the
participants and the theological content of the Meeting will have only
one theological perspective, and not pastorally and theologically open
to the diversity, which is basis of the Anglican Communion. The church
in Brazil has never broken communion with any of the provinces of the
Anglican Communion, although it never agrees with all positions and
attitudes.
Regarding your observations about the deposition of Bishop Robinson
Cavalcanti, which you qualified as precipitated action, I believe that
it is not due to any bishop, clergy, or lay person of the Anglican
Communion to make judgement about IEAB. It is because they do not know
the real situation of something that is an internal matter of the
Brazilian church. Bishop Cavalcanti was deposed due to disciplinary,
ethical, and moral measures. He was the one that broke communion with
the Brazilian Church, as he offended and disrespected the Primate, the
Bishops' Chamber, the clergy and the people of the whole province. He
affirmed to be the only true Anglican and the only bearer of the
reformation principles, although his attitudes towards his diocese and
people were the ones that the Church at reformation contested:
authoritarianism, centrality and inerrancy of Rome in the XVI Century.
Also, regarding your information about Dom Jubal Neves's writings, I
have to affirm to you that it is unknown to me any thing regarding
that matter. It is because each diocesan bishop has the freedom to
express themselves, however their views will not necessarily be, all
the time, the official views of the province. It does not necessarily
represents, as you yourself would say, "an authoritative voice from
Brazil". Regardless of any affirmation, Bishop Jubal Neves is a senior
bishop of our Bishops' Chamber, and deserves our consideration and
respect, whether we agree or not with his pronouncements. What we
cannot accept is the appliance of this as an excuse to eliminate us
from the Global South Meeting, because our intention has always to
clearly show that we never ended the dialogue with any part of the
Anglican Communion, and always we have respected all in their way of
being, acting and thinking. Now, if the meeting is supposed to be a
place for only one way of thinking and reflecting about the truth of
the Gospel, then it should have been clarified in the invitation and
in the subscription forms.
We manifest our sadness and shock that an official meeting of the
Anglican Communion, for the first time is set up in a way that is
authoritarian and discriminatory, without any possible ways to revert
this situation.
We all understand that the situation is our communion in very serious.
And, from our part, we have searched deeply for ways to maintain us
united despite of our diversity. In spite of your affirmation that you
have tried to speak with integrity and love, we have received
statements and news from some parts of the Global South that manifests
quite the opposite, and, applying again your own words, "this actions
and statements are only adding to the tensions".
The Province of Brazil has not to correct its actions and official
statements, in view that in all our manifestation we have searched to
be respectful towards our brothers and sisters in Christ. Now, this
does not means that we have to either agree of accept the way it has
been conducted the selection of participants for the Global South
Meeting, because the organising committee in its own time has acted in
authoritative way that is incontestable. We have never even seen an
archbishop of Canterbury acting in such way.
Dear brother Peter, may the peace of the Lord be upon you. From our
part, we continue to work and pray for the unity of our Anglican
Communion.
Sincerely in Christ
The Most Revd. Orlando Santos de Oliveira CC. Archbishop of Cantebury |