ANGLICANISM

Lecture notes by Venerable (Dr) IFECHUKWU. U. IBEME

at the Anglican Training Institute (ATI), Maiduguri.
websites: http://priscaquila.6te.net ; http://www.scribd.com/ifeogo

CONTENTS
A. What is Anglicanism and Anglican Communion?
B. Historical Background
C. Anglican Traditions or Churchmanship
D. GAFCON Final Statement on The Global Anglican Future
E. Legacies of Anglicanism
F. Anglicanism in Nigeria
G. The 39 Article of Religion
H. The Liturgy of The Book Common Prayer
I. Anglican Structure and Polity

Flag of the Anglican Communion, with Greek "The truth will set you free" quote.
The golden compass rose, mitre and Greek inscription with the red shield in the centre are set on a
blue background.

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A. WHAT IS ANGLICANISM AND ANGLICAN COMMUNION?
Anglicanism is the form and pattern of Reformed Christianity as it is expressed in the
Anglican Communion. Anglicanism is a term used to describe the Reformed arm of the
worldwide Catholic Christianity that descended from the Church of England.
It is important to note that the peculiar 16 th century Reformation in England (which gave
rise to what later came to be described as Anglicanism in the 19th century) was not the origin of
Christianity in England or Britain. Even the Roman Missionary See of Canterbury planted by
Saint Agustine (who was made the first Archbishop of Canterbury in 597 AD by Pope Gregory
the Great) was not the origin of the Church in England, nor was it the first Episcopal See in
Britain! Everyone knows that Saint Patrick of Ireland (386 – 461 AD) was an English-born
missionary Bishop who evangelised Ireland and England a century before the missionary
episcopacy of Saint Augustine of Canterbury (579 – 605 AD).
After the Edict of Milan (313), the first representative meeting of Christian bishops in
the Western Roman Empire was convened at Arles in southern Gaul in August 314 by Emperor
Constantine I, primarily to deal with the problem of the Donatists, a schismatic Christian group
in North Africa. By this time, the Church in Britain had developed in security and organisation
to have sent three bishops to the Council of Arles (314). The three English Bishops at Arles
were Restitutus of London, Eborius (probably quite simply his title) of York (Eboracum),
Adelphius (of Lincoln or Caerleon). The conciliar decisions that bishops were not to invade
dioceses other than their own and that ordinations were to be performed by a minimum of three
bishops indicate that the British Church, like all those represented at Arles, was by this time had
full-fledged episcopal dioceses.
Anglicanism is a form of Christianity Committed to the supremacy of Scriptures and
importance of worship, mission and revival, evangelism and ecumenism.
The Anglican Communion is the international descendant of the Church of England,
which together with the Lutheran church and the Reformed church, separated from the doctrinal
and jurisdictional control of the Roman Papacy during the 16th Century Reformation.
Its fundamental declaration is that:
It is a part of the one holy, catholic and apostolic Church worshiping the one true God,
Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
It professes the faith uniquely revealed in the Holy Scriptures and set forth in the
Catholic Creeds which faith the Church is called upon to proclaim afresh in each generation.
Led by the Holy Spirit, it has born witness to Christian truth in the historic formularies,
the Thirty-nine Articles of Religion, the Book of Common Prayer and the ordering of Bishops,
Priests and Deacons.
The 1930 Lambeth conference describes the Anglican Communion as:-
“A fellowship within the one holy Catholic and apostolic Church of those duly
constituted dioceses, provinces or regional Churches in Communion with the see
of Canterbury”
which have the following characteristics in common
They uphold and propagate the Catholic and apostolic faith and order as they are
generally set forth in the Book of Common Prayer as authorized in their several Churches.
They are particular or national Churches, and as such promote within each of their
territories a national expression of Christian faith, life and worship.
They are bound together not by a central legislative and executive authority, but by
mutual loyalty sustained through common council of Bishops in conference”.

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<<Table of Contents>>

B. HISTORICAL BACKGROUND
During the 16th century Reformation, there were both political and religious upheavals
in Europe. The then King of England, Henry VIII on disagreeing with the Pope concerning his
marriage was moved to separate his sovereign from the political jurisdiction of the Pope. This
then made way for the Church of England under the leadership of Thomas Cranmer, the then
Archbishop of Canterbury to begin the Anglican Reformation.
The Anglican Communion is essentially a worshiping community. Her history is
embedded in the history of a liturgy. Her doctrine is embedded in the liturgical worship set
forth in the Book of Common Prayer. Her Reformation is the Reformation of the liturgy. The
fifth century church had proclaimed “Lex orandi, lex credendi” (the law of praying is the law of
believing), or more commonly put, “as we pray, so we believe”. To know what the Anglican
Church believes and teaches, you must join her in worship.
We shall therefore follow the Prayer Book history for the historical background of
Anglicanism. But first what was English Reformation all about? It was a move to have a
Reformed Catholic Church. Under Henry VIII, Archbishop Cranmer led the Church in a reform
which:
► Retained things agreeable to scriptures.
► Retained things agreeable to the practices of the early church.
► Removed all things unscriptural.
► Made Scripture and Worship available in the mother tongue in accordance with the
Pentecostal event.
► Promoted the reading and exposition of the Scriptures of OT and NT.
► Started a liturgical reform of Church liturgy aimed at, as Crammer put in 1543,
getting liturgical documents of the middle ages to be:
“.....newly examined, corrected, reformed, and castigated from all manner of mention of
Bishop of Rome’s name, from all apocrypha, feigned legends, superstitions, orations
(i.e. prayers), collects, versicles and responses, and that the names and memories of all
saints which be not mentioned in Scripture, or authentical doctors, should be
abolished”.
► Formulated the 39 Articles of Religion as the doctrinal stand of the Anglican Church
(complementing the doctrinal content of the liturgies of the Book of Common Prayer).
Anglicanism is therefore founded on:-
- The Scriptures
- The Apostolic traditions
- Expression of doctrine and faith in worship.
This is best evident in the 1888 Lambeth Quadrilateral which gave as common grounds
for Christian unity the following:
► The Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testament as ‘Containing all things
necessary for salvation’, and as being the rule and ultimate standard of faith.
► The Apostles’ Creed, as the Baptismal Symbol: and the Nicene Creed, as the
sufficient statement of the Christian faith.
► The two Sacraments ordained by Christ Himself - Baptism and the Supper of the
Lord - ministered with unfailing use of Christ’s words of Institution, and of the elements
ordained by Him.

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 ► The Historic Episcopate locally adapted in the methods of its administration to the
varying needs of the nations and peoples called of God into the Unity of His Church.”
The historical development of what is known today as Anglicanism is best evident from
the following time line history of the prayer book and liturgical reforms.
1534 - Henry VIII broke with Rome.
1543 - Cranmer announced the Prayer Book Reforms and put the Great Bible to liturgical use.
1545 - Published the Primer of the King and Clergy which omitted Marian Worship and all
processionals except a New Litany.
1546 - Henry VIII authorized the change of mass to Holy Communion and stopped the
veneration of the Cross.
1547 - Edward VI came to the throne and:
Book of Homilies published and read weekly;
Scriptures to be read in vernacular (English);
Litany no longer as procession, but in the Church, kneeling;
Vernacular services started.
1547 - Invocation of the saints removed from the new litany.
1548/49 - Influx of reformers from the continent.
1548 - (Sept 9) A panel of Bishops, Church deans and Bible scholars mainly reformers (New
learning) and a few others (of old learning and moderates) was constituted to write a Divine Service
book for UNIFORM, QUIET AND GODLY ORDER” of Service, which was to be based on “MOST
SINCERE AND PURE CHRISTIAN RELIGION TAUGHT BY THE SCRIPTURES, AS TO THE
USAGE IN THE PRIMITIVE CHURCH”. This led to the BCP. This panel was led by Crammer who
was of the “New learning”.
1549 - (21 Jan) - BCP passed by Parliament.
(7 March) - Copies put on sale.
(10 March) - 1st Sunday in Lent, BCP put on preliminary use.
(9 June) - Whitsun. BCP put on general use.
The BCP Morning Prayer (Matins) was formulated by merging the medieval offices of Matins,
Lauds and Prime.
The BCP Evening Prayer (Evensong) was formulated by a fusion of elements from the
medieval offices of Vespers and Compline. The other Little Hours of Tierce, Sext and None were
discarded altogether.
1550 - Order of making Archbishops, Bishops, Priests and Deacons published. All other orders
(e.g. porters, lectors, exorcists, acolytes, and subdeacons) discarded.
1552 - BCP revision which removed the Mass and Altars from being mentioned replacing them
with the Lord’s Supper and the Lord’s Table.
- Ash Wednesday rite removed and discarded.
- Penitential introduction added to the Divine Services.
1553 - Cranmer, under the King, published the 42 Articles of Religion.
1553 - Mary Tudor came to the throne and banned the BCP, restoring Roman Catholicism.
Reformers were burned alive on the stakes (including Cranmer, the then Archbishop of Canterbury).
1558 - Elizabeth I came to the throne and began the Elizabethan settlement which set the pace
for the Anglicanism of “Middle Way Christianity”.
1559 - 1552 BCP restored by the Act of Uniformity with some minor alteration. e.g. The ten
Commandments not pictures nor the Cross to be hung at the Lord’s table.
1562 - (Two candles retained on the Lord’s Table).

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 - 39 Articles of religion published.
1567 - Many unofficial counter reforms at various churches e.g. restoration of the Cross at the
Holy Table.
- Restoration of the Little Hours etc.
1571 - 39 Articles signed and ratified into law.
1603 - James I came to the throne.
1604 - Jacobean settlement revised the Canons and the Prayer Book.
1611 - King James Bible published excluding the Apocrypha.
1634 - Another unofficial Prayer Book revision which gave birth to the Scotch Prayer Book in
1637 and later the American Prayer Book followed its example.
1661 - Savoy Conference aimed at further purifying the Prayer Book. Involved were
Presbyterians, Puritans, Moderates and Laudians (High Churchmen).
1662 - King Charles II famous Prayer Book.
1790/92 - American Prayer Book.
1927/28 - Revised Prayer Book rejected by Parliament on two attempts.
1929 - The 1928 proposed Prayer Book permitted for use by the College of Bishops.
1930 onwards - Other communions produce their BCP.
1980 - The alternative Services Book Published (ASB).
- The Nigerian Prayer Book based on ASB and American Prayer Books.
<<Table of Contents>>

C. ANGLICAN TRADITIONS OR CHURCHMANSHIP

The Anglican Church has traditionally sought according to the preface of 1662 Book of
Common Prayer, “to maintain a balance between the old and the new” and “to keep the mean
between the two extremes of to much stiffness in refusing and of too much easiness in admitting
any variations” from her original liturgical and doctrinal stand.
CANON A5 STATES
“The doctrine of the Church of England is grounded in the holy scriptures, and in
such teachings of the ancient Fathers and Councils of the Church as are agreeable to the
said Scriptures. In particular such doctrine is to be found in the Thirty-nine Articles of
Religion, The Book of Common Prayer and the Ordinal.”
The Anglican Church is thus a comprehensive Church which has given her both
weakness and strength. She has played the role of the “Via Media” of Christianity due to her
historical position in the universal Church. Political and ecclesiastical independence from Rome
provided conducive environment for the Anglican Protestant Reformers to take their time (over
a century till 1662) to gradually seek out Scriptural Truth for Church Unity – “to keep all
Englishmen in the same church, free from the extremes of Roman Catholicism and the Radical
Reformation.”
The Anglican Church is a spiritual and scriptural Church but inevitably shaped by its
long history - just like all Churches are. It started as a grassroots Church which was
indigenously planted some 2700 years ago and came under Roman influence 300 years later and
underwent Evangelical Reformation 1500 years ago. Now that is heavy history! As archbishop
William Temple put it, in the 19th century, the special characteristics of Anglicanism is that
“...owing to historic circumstances, we have been enabled to combine in our fellowship,
the traditional faith and order of the Catholic Church with that immediacy of approach
to God through Christ to which the Evangelical Churches especially bear witness, and

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 freedom of intellectual inquiry, whereby the correlation of the Christian revelation and
advancing knowledge is constantly effected.”
Jeremy Taylor also of the 17th century expressed the Anglican mind when he said,
“ I affirm nothing but upon grounds of Scripture or universal tradition or right reason
discernable by every disinterested person”
One of the earliest understandings of the concept of integrating Scripture, reason, and
tradition comes from Richard Hooker, an English theologian (1554-1600)). In his classic book
Laws of Ecclesiastical Polity, Book V, Hooker wrote:
“Be it in matter of the one kind or of the other, what Scripture doth plainly deliver, to
that the first place both of credit and obedience is due; the next where-unto is
whatsoever any man can necessarily conclude by force of reason; after these the voice
of the Church [tradition] succeedeth. That which the Church by her ecclesiastical
authority [tradition] shall probably think and define to be true or good, must in
congruity of reason overrule all other inferior judgments whatsoever.” — Laws of
Ecclesiastical Polity, book V, 8:2
Hence Scripture, Tradition and Reason represent the Hooker Tripod of the Anglican Church,
though these three legs of the “Tripod” are not to be perceived as being equal in measure and
authority. The TRIPOD is inevitable balance of how the saving Truth and Church order and
doctrine should be ensured.
Main Tripod - SCRIPTURE i.e. The only Divine Authoritative Truth.
Second Tripod - TRADITION i.e. The Church's past Spirit-led understanding of the Scripture
during the time of the Apostolic Fathers and Councils of the First four centuries, who compiled
and canonized the true Apostolic Scripture and expounded the true Creed.
Third Tripod - REASON i.e. Our present Spirit-led understanding of the Scripture.
From these statements we can see the tripartite comprehensiveness in the Anglican
theology. This triangular tension within the Anglican Church has led to both negative and
positive views of Anglicanism and has resulted in both strength and weakness of the Anglican
Communion. This triangular attitude has resulted in the three churchmanship or the three
traditions within Anglicanism. Let us briefly look at these traditions or churchmanship of
Anglicanism.
1. Anglican Evangelicalism: This tradition emphasizes the protestant heritage
rather than the Catholic heritage of Anglicanism as well as lays emphasis on biblical
faith, personal conversion and piety. They are the out growth of the Clapham sect of the
18th century. Their fore-runners were the Low Church men (Puritans) of the 16th
century. Extreme Evangelicals give the episcopacy, sacraments and liturgy a low place
of importance while prominence is given exclusively to the Word of God. The
Evangelical Anglicans believe in Christ in as much as he is the Christ of the Gospel
(Evangel). THEY BELIEVE BECAUSE IT IS WRITTEN IN THE WORD OF GOD.
2. Anglo-Catholicism: This tradition emphasizes the catholic rather than the
protestant heritage of Anglicanism. They are the outgrowth of the 19th century Oxford
movement. Their fore-runners are the High Churchmen (Laudians) of the 16th century.
Extreme Anglo-Catholics give high regard to the episcopacy, sacraments and liturgy
with a little regard to the word of God. These catholic Anglicans believe in Christ in as
much as he is the Christ portrayed in Church formal traditions and former teachings.
THEY BELIEVE BECAUSE IT IS TRADITIONAL.

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 3. Anglican Liberal Traditions: The Liberal Tradition upholds a Man-centred
rather than a God-centred religion Man’s reason or experience is held in conflict to
Scripture and Tradition.
a. Latitudinarianism: These rational liberal emphasizes the place of rational
consideration and scientific research in the interpretation of Christian or
biblical faith. They are the product of the Renaissance of the 16th century,
the 18th century Enlightenment and 19th century Modernism. This tendency
to buy new ideas as long as they appeal to reason, experience or scientific
intellectualism has become the mark of the Liberal tradition. They have come
to be designated the Broad Churchmanship since the 19th Century. They
believe in Christ in as much as He is the Christ understandable through
science and common sense. THEY BELIEVE BECAUSE IT IS RATIONAL
TO THE NATURAL MIND. Today, the latitudinarians and revisionist
liberals accommodate and advocate for homosexual priests and same-sex
partnership unions in the Church.
b. Charismatism: These mystical liberals emphasizes the place of leadings of
the Holy Spirit as more important than Scripture, also emphasize the
importance of emotional experience and certain manifestations of the Holy
Spirit such as prophesyings, revelations, speaking in tongues, warming of the
heart, shocking waves, falling slain, ecstasies and other phenomena
attributable to the Holy Spirit’s move or power. Many Charismatics are
however of the Evangelical tradition. THEY BELIEVE IN THE PRIMACY
OF EXTRAORDINARY EXPERIENCES AND MANIFESTATIONS.
NOTE: In practice, many Anglicans have a touch of all the Churchmanship varieties to varying
degrees. For instance Evangelicals are first Scriptural, then traditional and then rational. Anglo-
Catholics are first traditional, then Scriptural and then rational, etc.
Anglicanism has been able to see these three attitudes to Christianity coexist in the Church
taking the best of each, especially the non-conflicting aspects, to weave out a model of
Christianity which has continued to grow despite the three tensions (Scripture, Tradition and
Reason) within it. Bishop Paget puts it this way,
“Anglicanism has the distinctive strength and hope which rests on equal loyalty to the
unconflicting rights of reason, Scripture and tradition”.
Bye and large the final authority in the Anglican Church still remains the Holy
Scriptures. Tradition, Reason and Experience are only Anglican if they are agreeable to the
Holy Scriptures. This position has never changed since the Reformation. This is evident from
Canon A5, the Declarations, the 39 Articles, and other official approved formularies of the
Anglican Church world-wide.
Recent attempt to violate this tenet of Anglican foundation in dealing with the issue of
human sexuality has led to the split that gave birth to The Global Anglican Future Conference
(GAFCON) held in Jerusalem in June 2008, at which the Church of Nigeria played a very
prominent role, together with about 300 Anglican Bishops and diocese world-wide. The 2008
Lambeth Conference was attended by about 670 out of invited 880 Anglican Bishops.
Hitherto, the global Anglican Communion has had her symbols of unity called the four
Instruments of Communion which are:
1. The Archbishop of Canterbury,
2. The Lambeth Conference first held in 1867 to meet every ten years,

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 3. The Anglican Consultative Council constituted during Lambeth 1968 to meet every three
years, and
4. The Primates’ Meeting convened since 1978 to meet every two years (not always so).

<<Table of Contents>>

D. GAFCON FINAL STATEMENT ON THE GLOBAL ANGLICAN FUTURE

Praise the LORD!

It is good to sing praises to our God; for he is gracious, and a song of praise is fitting.
The LORD builds up Jerusalem; he gathers the outcasts of Israel. (Psalm 147:1-2)

Brothers and Sisters in Christ: We, the participants in the Global Anglican Future Conference (GAFCON), send you
greetings from Jerusalem!

GAFCON Logo.
GAFCON moto: “guarding and proclaiming the unchanging truth in a changing world”

Introduction

The Global Anglican Future Conference (GAFCON), which was held in Jerusalem from 22-29 June 2008, is a spiritual
movement to preserve and promote the truth and power of the gospel of salvation in Jesus Christ as we Anglicans have
received it. The movement is global: it has mobilised Anglicans from around the world. We are Anglican: 1148 lay and
clergy participants, including 291 bishops representing millions of faithful Anglican Christians. We cherish our Anglican
heritage and the Anglican Communion and have no intention of departing from it. And we believe that, in God’s
providence, Anglicanism has a bright future in obedience to our Lord’s Great Commission to make disciples of all nations
and to build up the church on the foundation of biblical truth (Matthew 28:18-20; Ephesians 2:20).

GAFCON is not just a moment in time, but a movement in the Spirit, and we hereby:

 launch the GAFCON movement as a fellowship of confessing Anglicans

 publish the Jerusalem Declaration as the basis of the fellowship

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 encourage GAFCON Primates to form a Council.

The Global Anglican Context

The future of the Anglican Communion is but a piece of the wider scenario of opportunities and challenges for the gospel in
21st century global culture. We rejoice in the way God has opened doors for gospel mission among many peoples, but we
grieve for the spiritual decline in the most economically developed nations, where the forces of militant secularism and
pluralism are eating away the fabric of society and churches are compromised and enfeebled in their witness. The vacuum
left by them is readily filled by other faiths and deceptive cults. To meet these challenges will require Christians to work
together to understand and oppose these forces and to liberate those under their sway. It will entail the planting of new
churches among unreached peoples and also committed action to restore authentic Christianity to compromised churches.

The Anglican Communion, present in six continents, is well positioned to address this challenge, but currently it is divided
and distracted. The Global Anglican Future Conference emerged in response to a crisis within the Anglican Communion, a
crisis involving three undeniable facts concerning world Anglicanism.

The first fact is the acceptance and promotion within the provinces of the Anglican Communion of a different ‘gospel’ (cf.
Galatians 1:6-8) which is contrary to the apostolic gospel. This false gospel undermines the authority of God’s Word
written and the uniqueness of Jesus Christ as the author of salvation from sin, death and judgement. Many of its proponents
claim that all religions offer equal access to God and that Jesus is only a way, not the way, the truth and the life. It promotes
a variety of sexual preferences and immoral behaviour as a universal human right. It claims God’s blessing for same-sex
unions over against the biblical teaching on holy matrimony. In 2003 this false gospel led to the consecration of a bishop
living in a homosexual relationship.

The second fact is the declaration by provincial bodies in the Global South that they are out of communion with bishops and
churches that promote this false gospel. These declarations have resulted in a realignment whereby faithful Anglican
Christians have left existing territorial parishes, dioceses and provinces in certain Western churches and become members
of other dioceses and provinces, all within the Anglican Communion. These actions have also led to the appointment of new
Anglican bishops set over geographic areas already occupied by other Anglican bishops. A major realignment has occurred
and will continue to unfold.

The third fact is the manifest failure of the Communion Instruments to exercise discipline in the face of overt heterodoxy.
The Episcopal Church USA and the Anglican Church of Canada, in proclaiming this false gospel, have consistently defied
the 1998 Lambeth statement of biblical moral principle (Resolution 1.10). Despite numerous meetings and reports to and
from the ‘Instruments of Unity,’ no effective action has been taken, and the bishops of these unrepentant churches are
welcomed to Lambeth 2008. To make matters worse, there has been a failure to honour promises of discipline, the authority
of the Primates’ Meeting has been undermined and the Lambeth Conference has been structured so as to avoid any hard
decisions. We can only come to the devastating conclusion that ‘we are a global Communion with a colonial structure’.

Sadly, this crisis has torn the fabric of the Communion in such a way that it cannot simply be patched back together. At the
same time, it has brought together many Anglicans across the globe into personal and pastoral relationships in a fellowship
which is faithful to biblical teaching, more representative of the demographic distribution of global Anglicanism today and
stronger as an instrument of effective mission, ministry and social involvement.

A Fellowship of Confessing Anglicans

We, the participants in the Global Anglican Future Conference, are a fellowship of confessing Anglicans for the benefit of
the Church and the furtherance of its mission. We are a fellowship of people united in the communion (koinonia) of the one
Spirit and committed to work and pray together in the common mission of Christ. It is a confessing fellowship in that its
members confess the faith of Christ crucified, stand firm for the gospel in the global and Anglican context, and affirm a
contemporary rule, the Jerusalem Declaration, to guide the movement for the future. We are a fellowship of Anglicans,
including provinces, dioceses, churches, missionary jurisdictions, para-church organisations and individual Anglican
Christians whose goal is to reform, heal and revitalise the Anglican Communion and expand its mission to the world.

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Our fellowship is not breaking away from the Anglican Communion. We, together with many other faithful Anglicans
throughout the world, believe the doctrinal foundation of Anglicanism, which defines our core identity as Anglicans, is
expressed in these words: The doctrine of the Church is grounded in the Holy Scriptures and in such teachings of the
ancient Fathers and Councils of the Church as are agreeable to the said Scriptures. In particular, such doctrine is to be
found in the Thirty-nine Articles of Religion, the Book of Common Prayer and the Ordinal. We intend to remain faithful to
this standard, and we call on others in the Communion to reaffirm and return to it. While acknowledging the nature of
Canterbury as an historic see, we do not accept that Anglican identity is determined necessarily through recognition by the
Archbishop of Canterbury. Building on the above doctrinal foundation of Anglican identity, we hereby publish the
Jerusalem Declaration as the basis of our fellowship.

The Jerusalem Declaration

In the name of God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit:
We, the participants in the Global Anglican Future Conference, have met in the land of Jesus’ birth. We express our
loyalty as disciples to the King of kings, the Lord Jesus. We joyfully embrace his command to proclaim the reality of
his kingdom which he first announced in this land. The gospel of the kingdom is the good news of salvation,
liberation and transformation for all. In light of the above, we agree to chart a way forward together that promotes
and protects the biblical gospel and mission to the world, solemnly declaring the following tenets of orthodoxy which
underpin our Anglican identity.
1. We rejoice in the gospel of God through which we have been saved by grace through faith in Jesus Christ by
the power of the Holy Spirit. Because God first loved us, we love him and as believers bring forth fruits of
love, ongoing repentance, lively hope and thanksgiving to God in all things.
2. We believe the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments to be the Word of God written and to
contain all things necessary for salvation. The Bible is to be translated, read, preached, taught and obeyed in
its plain and canonical sense, respectful of the church’s historic and consensual reading.
3. We uphold the four Ecumenical Councils and the three historic Creeds as expressing the rule of faith of the
one holy catholic and apostolic Church.
4. We uphold the Thirty-nine Articles as containing the true doctrine of the Church agreeing with God’s Word
and as authoritative for Anglicans today.
5. We gladly proclaim and submit to the unique and universal Lordship of Jesus Christ, the Son of God,
humanity’s only Saviour from sin, judgement and hell, who lived the life we could not live and died the
death that we deserve. By his atoning death and glorious resurrection, he secured the redemption of all who
come to him in repentance and faith.
6. We rejoice in our Anglican sacramental and liturgical heritage as an expression of the gospel, and we
uphold the 1662 Book of Common Prayer as a true and authoritative standard of worship and prayer, to be
translated and locally adapted for each culture.
7. We recognise that God has called and gifted bishops, priests and deacons in historic succession to equip all
the people of God for their ministry in the world. We uphold the classic Anglican Ordinal as an
authoritative standard of clerical orders.
8. We acknowledge God’s creation of humankind as male and female and the unchangeable standard of
Christian marriage between one man and one woman as the proper place for sexual intimacy and the basis
of the family. We repent of our failures to maintain this standard and call for a renewed commitment to
lifelong fidelity in marriage and abstinence for those who are not married.
9. We gladly accept the Great Commission of the risen Lord to make disciples of all nations, to seek those who
do not know Christ and to baptise, teach and bring new believers to maturity.
10. We are mindful of our responsibility to be good stewards of God’s creation, to uphold and advocate justice
in society, and to seek relief and empowerment of the poor and needy.
11. We are committed to the unity of all those who know and love Christ and to building authentic ecumenical
relationships. We recognise the orders and jurisdiction of those Anglicans who uphold orthodox faith and
practice, and we encourage them to join us in this declaration.
12. We celebrate the God-given diversity among us which enriches our global fellowship, and we acknowledge
freedom in secondary matters. We pledge to work together to seek the mind of Christ on issues that divide
us.
13. We reject the authority of those churches and leaders who have denied the orthodox faith in word or deed.
We pray for them and call on them to repent and return to the Lord.

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 14. We rejoice at the prospect of Jesus’ coming again in glory, and while we await this final event of history, we
praise him for the way he builds up his church through his Spirit by miraculously changing lives.

The Road Ahead

We believe the Holy Spirit has led us during this week in Jerusalem to begin a new work. There are many important
decisions for the development of this fellowship which will take more time, prayer and deliberation. Among other matters,
we shall seek to expand participation in this fellowship beyond those who have come to Jerusalem, including cooperation
with the Global South and the Council of Anglican Provinces in Africa. We can, however, discern certain milestones on the
road ahead.

Primates’ Council

We, the participants in the Global Anglican Future Conference, do hereby acknowledge the participating Primates of
GAFCON who have called us together, and encourage them to form the initial Council of the GAFCON movement. We
look forward to the enlargement of the Council and entreat the Primates to organise and expand the fellowship of confessing
Anglicans.

We urge the Primates’ Council to authenticate and recognise confessing Anglican jurisdictions, clergy and congregations
and to encourage all Anglicans to promote the gospel and defend the faith.

We recognise the desirability of territorial jurisdiction for provinces and dioceses of the Anglican Communion, except in
those areas where churches and leaders are denying the orthodox faith or are preventing its spread, and in a few areas for
which overlapping jurisdictions are beneficial for historical or cultural reasons.

We thank God for the courageous actions of those Primates and provinces who have offered orthodox oversight to churches
under false leadership, especially in North and South America. The actions of these Primates have been a positive response
to pastoral necessities and mission opportunities. We believe that such actions will continue to be necessary and we support
them in offering help around the world.

We believe this is a critical moment when the Primates’ Council will need to put in place structures to lead and support the
church. In particular, we believe the time is now ripe for the formation of a province in North America for the federation
currently known as Common Cause Partnership to be recognised by the Primates’ Council.

Conclusion: Message from Jerusalem

We, the participants in the Global Anglican Future Conference, were summoned by the Primates’ leadership team to
Jerusalem in June 2008 to deliberate on the crisis that has divided the Anglican Communion for the past decade and to seek
direction for the future. We have visited holy sites, prayed together, listened to God’s Word preached and expounded,
learned from various speakers and teachers, and shared our thoughts and hopes with each other.

The meeting in Jerusalem this week was called in a sense of urgency that a false gospel has so paralysed the Anglican
Communion that this crisis must be addressed. The chief threat of this dispute involves the compromising of the integrity of
the church’s worldwide mission. The primary reason we have come to Jerusalem and issued this declaration is to free our
churches to give clear and certain witness to Jesus Christ.

It is our hope that this Statement on the Global Anglican Future will be received with comfort and joy by many Anglicans
around the world who have been distressed about the direction of the Communion. We believe the Anglican Communion
should and will be reformed around the biblical gospel and mandate to go into all the world and present Christ to the
nations.

Jerusalem
Feast of St Peter and St Paul, 29 June 2008

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E. LEGACIES OF ANGLICANISM
1. Whatever the Churchmanship, Anglicanism holds to the Supremacy of the Scriptures. The
Apocrypha is only accepted for moral rather than doctrinal purposes.
2. Anglicanism has upheld the importance and centrality of liturgical worship in the Church.
3. Anglicanism holds to the twofold ministry of the Word and the Sacraments.
4. As Anglicans, we are committed to the three-fold Orders of the ministry- the orders of
Deacon, Priest and Bishop. Other offices are considered lay and not ordained clergy.
5. The Anglican Church holds to the supremacy and centrality of Jesus and the Trinity
concerning the knowledge of God.
6. Anglicanism also holds that the whole Church (Bishop, Clergy and Laity) participate in
matters of worship, doctrine, and practices of the Church (Best seen at Synods).
7. Anglicanism has upheld a characteristically open church, adaptable and accommodating, with
a strong commitment to Evangelism and Ecumenism.
8. Anglicanism has upheld a standard for Christianity which is “universal unity in diversity”.
Bishop William Wand described main features of Anglicanism as “tolerance, restraint, and
learning”.
These are the unique legacies of Anglicanism to the Church and the society.
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F. ANGLICANISM IN NIGERIA
Together with the expansion of the British Empire came the evangelistic zeal of the
Church of England. This began to take definite form in he 18 th Century when the Anglo-
Catholics formed their Society for the Propagation of the Gospel (SPG) in 1701 while the
Anglican Evangelicals formed their Church Missionary Society (CMS) in 1799. Other
missionary bodies were also formed apart from these. The Clapham Sect (Evangelicals) under
the leadership of William Wilberforce began to campaign against slavery within the context of
the full Gospel responsibility of the Church – a mission that combines evangelisation with
philanthropy and social action. For Christ came not only to proclaim the Gospel but also to
promote goodwill, do good to all and give help to those in distress. Besides, slavery was a
hindrance to the spread of the Gospel, unlike colonisation which actually facilitated missionary
work. This is not to overlook abuses of colonialism against natives on one hand and
missionaries on the other.
The Evangelicals were able to get the British Empire to abolish slavery. Many slaves
returned to Africa (Sierra Leone) and so became the Christian nucleus and base for missionary
work to West Africa and the Sudan. In 1842, CMS missionaries operating from their Sierra
Leonean base, landed at Badagry, and so began the Anglican Church in Nigeria. Today the
Anglican Church of the province of Nigeria has grown into a nationwide, self – governing and
self propagating Church still committed to the Evangelical zeal of mission and evangelism.
Being founded by the CMS, the Nigeria Anglican Church is fundamentally Evangelical
in persuasion and form. She belongs to the Low Church tradition, however through the years,
she been able to accommodate and blend together, the other different traditions of the Anglican
Church, in a very unique way. In addition she has become influenced by African tradition both
positively and negatively.

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G. THE 39 ARTICLE OF RELIGION

Although the English Reformation was mainly liturgical, it was not without
complementary attempt to clearly define and state doctrines as in the great historic confessions
of the reformed and Lutheran Churches of the continent.
As early as 1536 before the prayer Book reforms took any definite shape the Bishop of
the Church of England published the Book of Ten Articles which spoke on the sacramental
doctrines and church ceremonies, rejecting the papacy and embracing the supremacy of the
Scripture. The following year the Bishops again published another Book of VI Articles which
expounded the creeds and their grounds. Parts of this still appear in the Anglican Catechism of
today. In 1553, Archbishop Crammer wrote a more extensive XLII Articles of religion which
was published by then king Edward VI. After the havoc of Queen Mary, by 1558 queen
Elizabeth I came to power and the Bishops and Clergy met in convocation to remove any trace
of romish and unscriptural elements. By 1571 the thirty nine Articles of religion was ratified
into law by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth I that every cleric or master within the Church of
England shall subscribe to them.

PURPOSE OF THE ARTICLES

(1) To set forth the Church’s true doctrine of God.
(2) To get away from all “carnal and prudential” teachings contrary to that of the Apostolic
Church.
(3) Transmit to posterity a true and explicit from of doctrine which accords to the
Scriptures.
(4) To promote legal and authorized statement on and taste of the doctrine of the Church of
England on the issues treated.
(5) “For the avoiding of diversity of opinions and for the establishment of consent touching
true religion.”

BROAD ANALYSIS OF THE 39 ARTICLES

(a) The God of our faith (Art 1-5)
(b) The rule of our faith (Art 6-8)
(c) The limitations of our human nature (Art 9-10)
(d) Our Salvation in Christ (Art 11-18)
(e) The Household of faith (Art 19-39)

(i) The scope of the Church (Art 19-22)

(ii) The Ministry in the Church (Art 23, 24)
(iii) The sacraments of the Church (Art 25-31)
(iv) The Discipline in the Church (Art 32-36)
(v) The Church and the state (Art 37-39)
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H. THE LITURGY OF THE BOOK OF COMMON PRAYER

The BCP is one of the greatest legacies of the historic reformation. It is a very good
example of an order of worship that agrees entirely with the scriptures. If followed in the power

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of the Holy Spirit, it becomes full of life culminating in true worship (in spirit and truth).
However, if followed in the flesh or ignorantly, it becomes empty and cold, resulting in rigid
formalism without life.
The first BCP was launched into use on Whitsun, 9 th June. 1549, after being passed by
the parliament of England under King Edward VI. For the daily offices it had only the morning
and evening prayers. The Morning Prayer was formulated by shortening and combining the old
martins, laud and prime together. The Evening Prayer was formulated likewise from the old
Vespers and Compline. The other office hours – Tierce, Sext and None were discarded entirely.
In order to make the BCP as agreeable as possible to the scriptures and to the practice of
the apostolic and sub-apostolic Church, the book has seen various revisions to accommodate all
bible-based criticism. The most important revisions which passed through the parliament of
England were those of 1559 (Queen Elizabeth I) and 1662 (King Charles II).
The 1928 proposal was rejected by the parliament, but passed by the College of Bishops.
The BCP contains many books in one volume.
Book 1 (The two daily offices, penitentials and prayers)
Book 2 (Holy Communion for the whole liturgical year)
Book 3 (Rites and ceremonies from birth to death)
Book 4 (Psalms or the psalter for liturgical singing)
Book 5 (The Bishops’ book called the ordinal)
Book 6 (The Lectionary for the whole year)
Today’s Daily offices of the Morning and Evening Prayers which replaced the medieval
Office Hours are ordered as follows.
a. Penitential (ending with the absolution),
b. Praises/Songs (Canticles),
c. Ministration of the Word (including the Creed),
d. Prayers and Thanksgivings.

NOTES:
1. Great care was taken to ensure that, the prayers are straight to the point, short
(as the Lord’s Prayer) and in agreement with sound biblical doctrine. We should
therefore learn from this in our extemporaneous prayers.
2. We must lead or participate in the worship services in Spirit (under the
inspiration and power of the Holy Spirit), and in Truth (with sincerity that
agrees with true knowledge of the Truth about the God who is Spirit).
3. Only the Priests have authority to declare and pronounce the Absolution. The
Priest has no power to forgive sins but has power to prophetically pronounce the
absolution, which God confirms for the penitent.
4. Sunday worship services in the Anglican Communion should always follow the
BCP or any other order of service approved by the Diocesan Bishop.

Liturgy in the Anglican Communion has annual cycle of feasts and seasons which make
up the Church Year Calendar as well as liturgical colours of Church hangings and Priestly
vestments (usually Black, Ash and White, there are also variably Gold, Red, Green, Purple)
specific for the appropriate mood of each Church Liturgical Season. Each Church Liturgical
Colours convey specific mood as follows:

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 1. WHITE or GOLD – purity, light, glory and joy (For • Season of Christmas •
Season of Easter • Feasts of the Lord, other than of His passion • Feasts of Mary,
the angels, and saints who were not martyrs • All Saints (1 November) • Feasts
of the Apostles • Nuptial Services • Burial for baptized dead child).
2. PURPLE – penitence, humility and solemnity (For • Season of Advent • Season
of Septuagesima • Season of Lent • Rogation Days • Ember Days (except for
Pentecost Ember Days) • Vigils except for Ascension and Pentecost • Good
Friday • Burial for the dead could also be done with BLACK).
3. RED – blood, shed in love and faith (For • Feasts of the Lord’s passion, Blood,
and Cross • Feasts of the martyrs • Palm Sunday • Pentecost).
4. GREEN – growth in faith and hope of eternal life (For • Time After Epiphany •
Time After Pentecost).

These diagrams illustrate the officiating vestments for Priests and Bishops in the Anglican Communion

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 The Church of all ages in all the world have from beginning planned their programme to
annually revolve around marking the Feasts that celebrate great Gospel saving events
(Christmas, Easter and Pentecost for teaching of Gospel saving mysteries) and the Seasons that
connect these (Advent, Christmas, Epiphany and Lent), while Pentecost or Trinity is for
Ordinary practical discipleship teaching for half of the Church Year.

In this way no aspects of the Christian faith and life of the believer are neglected in the
Church’s activities annually. The first half of the year (beginning with December to May) is
devoted to teaching and celebration on the life of Christ for our redemption, while the other half
(beginning from June till November) is dedicated to discipleship teachings on our life in Christ
and for Christ. The Church Year Liturgical Cycle and liturgical colours are best represented
diagrammatically.

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I. ANGLICAN STRUCTURE AND POLITY

Anglican Churches are local Parish congregations grouped into Archdeaconries which
are constituted into Dioceses with geographical delimitation of jurisdiction. A Diocese is under
the jurisdiction of a Bishop as its ordinary ruling by constitutional episcopal authority with the
help of the Diocesan Synod of Clergy and Laity. Bishops in a nation or region constitute the
Provincial collegial authority for such territory or nation. Such college of Bishops is presided by
a primus inter pares Archbishop.
There are three main forms of Church governments or administrative forms adopted by
Church denominations and somewhat or partially derivable from the Scriptures, viz: (1)
Monarchical Episcopacy, (2) Circuitry Presbyterianism, and (3) Congregational
Independency.
1. EPISCOPACY is the Early Church form of Church government by hierarchy of ordained clerical
deacons and priests under a Bishop (These have introduced synods involving the laity since the synodical
movement). Seen in older Greek, Roman, Anglican, Lutheran, and Methodist Churches, as well as modern
President-Founder/General-Overseer Pentecostal Churches.

Before the Apostles passed away, they had started delegating Ordinaries to order the Churches and
ORDAIN (approve, train and authorise 1Tim 3; 4:1-2) and discipline Presbyters/Bishops and Deacons
(1Tim 5:1, 17-22; Tit 1:5), a function the Apostles had hitherto performed by themselves (Acts 6:6;
14:23). Such Monarchical Ordinaries like Timothy and Titus who were apostolically delegated, became
the diocesan Bishops that succeeded the Apostles and preserved the Apostolic Testimony and Tradition

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 (paradosis) about the Kingdom Gospel of Christ (kerygma), the Christian Scriptures and Teachings
(didache) and the Church Practices (praxis) as they received them (1Cor 11:2, 23; 15:3; 1Thes 2:15).
These Bishops met for the Ecumenical Councils that formulated the catholic Creeds of Christian
orthodoxy in the Early Church.

2. PRESBYTERIANISM is the form of Church government from the magisterial Reformation in which
there are representative lay (ruling) and ordained (teaching) presbyters under a hierarchical system of
circuit boards/courts of Presbyters. Seen in Reformed (Helvetic and Belgic), and Presbyterian (Scottish
and Westminster) Churches.

Each congregation founded by the Apostles had Bishops-Presbyters ordained and instituted to lead the
Churches in ministry of the Word and Prayers and Deacons constituted and appointed to serve tables and
care for the needy (Act 6:1-4; 14:23; Php 1:1) in the Churches. Presbyters of Churches were meant by
entrustment to shepherd (Pastor) and oversee (Bishop) the Churches under Christ as their Chief Pastor and
Chief Bishop (Acts 20:17, 28; 1Pet 5:3-4). The Apostles, though they were specially entrusted with the
Gospel as the Witnesses of Christ, saw themselves as belonging to the Eldership or Presbytery in
conference but as also being the Ordinaries over the Presbytery (Gal 2:7-8; 1Pet 5:1-5).

3. CONGREGATIONAL INDEPENDENCY is the form of Church government from the radical or

sectarian Reformation where all canonical and judicial authority is vested in the independent
congregational congresses, which also decide on ordination of Pastors and Deacon(esse)s (These have
tried to unite as regional, national and international conventions). Seen in Baptist, Congregational, free
Pentecostal and Independent Churches.

In the New Testament times, while the Apostles and their delegated Ordinaries trained and ordained
Presbyters/Bishops as clergy for the custody of the Apostolic tradition (2Tim 2:1-2) and to lead in the
ministry of the Word and prayers, the congregations elected their Deacons as council for custody of their
treasuries and to serve their tables. Paul distinguished a Reputable Class of Pillars (Apostles and the
Lord’s brethren) and other Presbyters in the Jerusalem Church (Acts 15:4-6, 22-25; Gal 1:1-10) who
specifically participated in the First Ecumenical Council (Act 15; Gal 2:1-10) presided over by James the
Lord’s brother as the primus inter pares. They did not take directives from the congregation but spoke by
the Holy Spirit on behalf of the whole congregation of the Church and also gave circular directive to all
other Churches (Acts 15:22-33). The writer of Hebrews also identified leaders who bore rule over the
congregation not by lording it over the congregation but by being examples who use their authority to
offer responsible service and be honoured, obeyed and submitted to by the congregation, yet NOT leaders
ruled by congregation (Matt 20:25-28; 1Pet 5:1-3; Heb 13:7, 17).

There is a worldwide decennial Lambeth Conference of all Anglican Bishops. However

since the sexuality neo-cultural compromises by the liberal Lambeth leadership, the Bishops
who seek to remain Scriptural now hold their Global Anglican Future Conference (GAFCON)
pentennial conference first held in Jerusalem 2008 and then in Kenya 2013.
<<Table of Contents>>

Venerable (Dr) I. U. IBEME

November 20. 2009 (Revised December 2017)
website: http://www.scribd.com/ifeogo
e-mail: ifeogo@yahoo.com

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