ANiC reaches out to orthodox Anglicans in the Anglican Church of Canada who may be less than sanguine about the ACoC’s pushing ahead with same-sex marriage.

Bishop Charlie writes orthodox Anglicans

My dear fellow orthodox Anglican friends,

I am writing to you in response to a growing number of calls and requests that have come from Anglican believers, both clergy and laity, who find themselves very distressed as they ponder the most recent developments in the Anglican Church of Canada at its General Synod last July and since.

We have actually never experienced this number of inquiries. Some have come directly to our Diocesan office but many have been made to the local ANiC clergy in their respective communities. Either way, the distress is real and the concern about what these developments may mean for orthodox Anglicans in the future seems to be growing.

Accordingly, I am writing to assure you again of our sadness at these developments and the challenge they present to ordinary Anglicans – both clergy and laity – in living out the gospel and making disciples as Anglicans.
We pray much for you and feel that perhaps we understand something of how difficult it is for you now because of what we ourselves went through just a few years ago.

Beyond praying, we are willing and eager to stand with you in any way we can.

To that end, one thing we thought might be encouraging to some would be to attend our Diocesan Synod which is happening very soon at the end of October (October 26-28), with Clergy Day October 25, in Vancouver, British Columbia.

Our hope and prayer would be that the worship, teaching and fellowship with fellow Anglicans most of whom are members of ANiC would be helpful to you at this time and perhaps refreshing. Certainly it would be our joy to have fellowship with you.

I am writing therefore to invite you to consider coming to our Synod at Good Shepherd Anglican Church in Vancouver, British Columbia. On our website you can get all the information you need concerning the dates and everything else:
www.anglicannetwork.ca. Although registration officially closes today, October 7, we will try very hard to get you in – but please register as soon as possible by calling Jessica at 1-866-351-2642 extension 4015 or emailing admin@anglicannetwork.ca.

For any ordained Anglican (non-ANiC) clergy who may like to attend, we will waive your registration fees. Clergy would also be welcome to come to our Clergy Day on the Tuesday (October 25) and if any would like to robe and process in the Wednesday evening service they would be welcome to take part in that procession along with other clergy. (The colour will be red for that service.)

I am aware that some perhaps might prefer quietly to attend. We understand that too and will respect your desire to attend discreetly.

We would hope that all laity and clergy will attend our workshop day, all day Wednesday and then, of course, Synod on Thursday and Friday. At some point in the Synod there will be a separate special session specifically for those who are orthodox Anglicans, but not members of ANiC, and who would like information about the Anglican Church in North America and ANiC as a diocese.

We do understand that this is a very big country and Vancouver may be very far from where you live. It is also true that the time is short between now and when Synod begins. Please know that most of our Synod will be live-streamed thanks to Anglican TV. Also we anticipate there will be information meetings across the country at various times and places which we will post on our website. If you wish to stay informed and connected, please sign up for our email communication and “like” our Facebook page.

So dear friends, we pray for you especially in these days. Would you also pray for us of the Anglican Network in Canada, as well as for the ACNA as a Province?

We want to bless and encourage you and would be delighted if many of you were able to accept our invitation and join us for our Clergy Day, workshops and Synod, October 25-28, 2016.

Every Blessing!

+Charlie

I attended the first ANiC Synod and I remember overhearing one priest say to another, as if in a state of shock: “It’s Christian!”