Anglican Essentials Federation in Call to Action

http://www.virtueonline.org/portal/modules/news/article.php?storyid=8036

[Virtue Online] 8 Apr 2008--As leaders of Anglican Essentials Federation, we understand that a majority of our constituency are moderate in their views and, like us, have been praying for an amicable way through the present crisis in our Church. Together we have been praying fervently that God would turn the tide and that He would cause repentance, revival and renewal. We all long for the Anglican Church of Canada to, once again, become the church envisioned when the Solemn Declaration of 1893 was penned.

Our approach, within Federation, to effecting this change has been to quietly, faithfully, persistently work within our congregations, dioceses and synods to build God's Kingdom. As your leadership, however, we sense that the time has come to change our approach. The "quiet" approach has simply not been working. The "faith once received" has been so altered as to be unrecognizable in many parts of our Church.

While same sex blessings are only one barometer of this fundamental shift in Church teaching, it is the most visible indication of a Church that is abandoning Biblical Christian doctrine and historic Anglican practice. In 2003, the Diocese of New Westminster forged ahead with same sex blessings, disregarding the repeated admonitions of the global Anglican Communion leaders and propelling our Communion into our current crisis. Now, despite years of the Windsor process and continued appeals from global Primates, last fall, three more dioceses - Ottawa, Montreal and Niagara - voted to approve same sex blessings. Not only did these diocesan votes demonstrate disdain for the unity for our Communion, but also for the decision of the 2007 General Synod of our Church which voted to not authorize such blessings at this time. In other dioceses, we have seen bishops using "strong arm" tactics to ensure loyalty or to force faithful Anglicans out of their church buildings.

Our "quiet", non-confrontational approach has simply not stemmed the tide.