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CENTRAL AFRICA: Anglican Province Rejects Women Priests at Recent Synod

CENTRAL AFRICA: Anglican Province Rejects Women Priests at Recent Synod
They also turned down measures to reduce five year term for Archbishop and allowing each nation to becoming its own province

By David W. Virtue
www.virtueonline.org
December 5, 2013

The Provincial Synod of the Anglican Province of Central Africa, meeting this week, turned down a measure to allow any diocese to ordain women priests, and dropped a measure to reduce the term of office of the Archbishop to five years. They also turned down a move to allow each nation in the Province to become its own Province. The Central Africa Province consists of Zimbabwe, Botswana, Malawi and Zambia.

The Rt. Rev. Fanuel Emmanuel Magangani, Anglican Diocese of Northern Malawi, wrote to say that he was pleased that the measure for the ordination of women was turned down through a vote. "We also dropped the measure to reduce the term of office of the Archbishop to five years. We have also dropped the measure for the desolation of the Province to the National Provinces."

A report from the Anglican Communion News Service on the Central Africa vote produced passionate appeals by those dioceses ready to ordain women but the motion failed. They described the debate as "heated" on a motion seeking to allow individual dioceses ready to ordain women within the Province to go ahead.

The vote, which was carried out by the three Houses of Bishops, Clergy and Laity was only successful in the House of Laity where 14 delegates voted in favor of the motion as opposed to 10 that voted against.

Bishop Chad from the Diocese of Harare commented, "This matter has been discussed over the years at both Provincial and Diocesan levels," and proposed that "Synod resolves that women be allowed into ordained ministry".

However, the Rt. Rev. Fanuel Magangani Bishop of Northern Malawi argued, "One person ordained in one diocese may get rejected in another thereby compromising the collegiality of the Province." He added, "The ordination of women is not biblically backed and has also not proved to help the Church since inception in the 70s."

However, during the debate session, Provincial Youth Co-ordinator for CPCA, Fr Robert Sihubwa reminded the house that the Church of the Province of Central Africa is informed by tradition, scripture and reason and that the issue of women ordination should be addressed using reason.

"Women are the biggest evangelists in the Province," he pointed out. "Women are a big resource to CPCA. When we talk about unity in the Province, it should be considered in terms of unity in diversity."

A lay member from Harare, Patrick Mahari wondered why mothers and women in general are being discarded today despite having been the "first point of contact for the word of God for most the delegates present."

"There is a lack of love for women in this room," complained Doreen Nteta from Botswana. "People don't want change and this issue is not about whether women are ready or not because in Botswana, we have been ready since the '80s."

Bishop Fanuel wrote VOL saying the matter was discussed in chambers and was not supposed to be produced outside the house without an actual interview. "Nevertheless I take responsibility for my stand to oppose the change of our Canon not because I hate women but I think it is not appropriate for women to be ordained to the priesthood. We cannot change the ethos of what it is to be a priest for I believe in a high Christology and [I see] Ordination as a Sacrament of ministry from the apostles.

"The motion was not about women ordination as such but that a single diocese could proceed in the Province and should be allowed to go ahead ordaining women a change that would result in one of our Canons having to being changed about ministry. That was not acceptable."

On hearing the news, The Rt. Rev. Jack Iker, Bishop of the Anglican Diocese of Ft. Worth, and an Anglo-Catholic said of the province's decision, "One cannot help but be struck by the vivid contrast between the Church of England and the Church in the Province of Central Africa at this time: The first is rushing to conform to the expectations of the current culture while the second is standing firm for the faith once delivered to the saints."

END

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