Can there be true communion between revisionists and orthodox Christians?

Commentary by Robin G. Jordan

Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers. For what partnership has righteousness with lawlessness? Or what fellowship has light with darkness? What accord has Christ with Belial? Or what portion does a believer share with an unbeliever? What agreement has the temple of God with idols? For we are the temple of the living God…. (2 Corinthians 6:1-16, ESV)


The Lambeth Commission on Communion was appointed to explore the extent to which there can be communion between revisionists and orthodox Christians in the Anglican Communion. Events subsequent to the appointment of the Lambeth Commission and the issuance of its report and the heretical nature of revisionist ideas and teachings point to one conclusion: there can be no real fellowship between us. We deceive ourselves if we believe that revisionists and orthodox Christians can walk together, unbelievers with believers. The divisions that separate revisionists from orthodox Christians are too deep. Our differences are too great. The revisionists and the orthodox Christians in the Episcopal Church and other Anglican provinces may be part of the same province but little else unites them. The closest that there can be communion between these two groups is as close as there can be communion between heretics and orthodox believers.

While the revisionists are often the first to raise the panic cry of schism, they are in actuality themselves in schism from the orthodox Christian body of the Anglican Communion and of the larger one holy, catholic and apostolic Church. They have created the divisions with their heretical ideas and teachings, ideas and teachings that are at odds with the Bible and with "the faith once delivered to the apostles."

If we examine Jesus’ High Priestly Prayer, we discover that Jesus prayed for unity among those who believe in Him through the word of the apostles. "I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word, that they all may be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you sent me" (John 17:20-21, ESV). Those who reject the "faith once delivered to the apostles" are not among those who believe in Jesus through the apostles’ word. Jesus’ prayer is not a prayer for unity between unbelievers and believers. In their teaching it is self-evident that the revisionists in the Anglican Communion have departed from classical orthodox Christianity. We are misapplying John 17:20-21 if we view it as a warrant for unity between them and orthodox Christians. Jesus is praying for unity among those who believe in Him through the apostolic witness. The revisionists reject that witness.

In 1 Corinthians 1:10 and 3:1-9 the apostle Paul is primarily referring to the divisions in the local church. Different groups in the Corinthian Church were quarreling over which leader the local church should follow. The present divisions in the Anglican Communion go beyond quarrels over leadership at the local level. They relate to such matters as the place of the Holy Scriptures in the Christian Church, the character of God, the divinity and exclusive claims of Jesus Christ, the nature of discipleship, and the need for personal holiness. They even include the nature of communion itself. The revisionists, when they talk about "communion," are referring to a kind of loose association that would impose no restraints upon them. It would not require even self-restraint on their part. On the other hand, orthodox Christians view true communion as involving a common faith and mutual accountability. Whether what Paul says in 1 Corinthians 1:10 and 3:1-9 is applicable to these divisions is debatable. They are deep divisions not only in the fabric of the Anglican Communion but of its member churches. Paul calls for believers to be unified with each other. The divisions that the Anglican Communion and its member churches are experiencing are divisions between unbelievers often holding positions of influence and leadership in a province, diocese, or congregation and believers. Rather Romans 16:17-18 is more applicable: "I appeal to you, brothers, to watch out for those who cause divisions and create obstacles contrary to the doctrine that you have been taught; avoid them. For such persons do not serve our Lord Jesus Christ, but their own appetites, and by smooth talk and flattery they deceive the hearts of the naïve." And Titus 3:10-11: "As for a person who stirs up division, after warning him once and then twice, have nothing more to do with him, knowing that such a person is warped and sinful; he is self-condemned."

The New Testament (Matthew 18:15-20, 1 Corinthians 5:9-13, Ephesians 5: 3-17, 2 Thessalonians 3:14-15, 1 Timothy 5:20, 2 Timothy 3:1-9, James 5:19-20, 1 John 3:4-10, 1 John 5:18-19, 2 John 9-11) tells us that if a brother falls into sin, the church must first seek to call him to repentance. If, however, he is obdurate and refuses to repent, the church must then shun him until he repents. We are not to keep company with the unrepentant brother who persists in sin. The sin of the revisionists in the Anglican Communion is that of unbelief. They deny the inspiration and authority of the Bible and reject its teachings. They have on a number of occasions been asked to repent. They have declined to do so. The primates of the Anglican Communion if they are themselves to be faithful to the Bible and Christian teaching have no choice but to ban the revisionists in the Anglican Communion from the councils and offices of that body and to withdraw recognition of their ministries. This entails collectively affirming that only orthodox provinces, dioceses, clergy and congregations enjoy good standing in the Anglican Communion and publicly acknowledging that there can be no communion between revisionists and orthodox Christians as long as the revisionists cling to their heretical ideas and teachings and refuse to turn away from them. This includes those who, while claiming to hold orthodox beliefs, give their support to the revisionist leaders of their province or diocese, turning a blind eye to the heretical views of these leaders. It means recognizing only the ministries of orthodox Christians in the provinces and dioceses of the Anglican Communion. Revisionist bishops like Michael Ingham of the Anglican Church of Canada, John Saxbee of the Church of England, and Frank Griswold of the Episcopal Church USA should have no standing in the Anglican Communion. From a Communion perspective their offices or sees should be viewed as vacant. They should not be seated in the councils of the Anglican Communion or given a voice. Clergy ordained by them should not be recognized outside of their jurisdiction and should not be licensed to minister in an orthodox province or diocese.

The question now is how long will it take for the primates of the Anglican Communion to recognize that there can be no communion between revisionists and orthodox Christians.