The Fourth Anglican Global South to South Encounter in Singapore has called on Anglican provinces to "reconsider their communion relationships" with the Anglican Church of Canada and the Episcopal Church.

A communiqué issued at the end of the encounter on April 23 said the two provinces must show "genuine repentance" for actions that show they "continue in their defiance as they set themselves on a course that contradicts the plain teaching of the Holy Scriptures on matters so fundamental that they affect the very salvation of those involved."

The statement contrasted the work of two Nepalese Anglicans, whom the communiqué said were bringing the gospel to that "principally Hindu and Buddhist nation," with the Episcopal Church, the Anglican Church of Canada "and all those churches that have rejected the way of the Lord as expressed in Holy Scripture."

The only action specially mentioned in connection with such rejection is the Episcopal Church's recent consent to the ordination and consecration of Diocese of Los Angeles Bishop-elect Mary Glasspool, a partnered lesbian, which the communiqué said "has demonstrated, yet again, a total disregard for the mind of the Communion."

Some 130 delegates from 20 Anglican provinces in Africa, West Indies, Asia and South America attended, according to the communiqué, along with what it called a number of "our partners in the Gospel" from Australia, New Zealand, and the United States. The Bishop of Nelson, Richard Ellena, and the Rev Dr Tim Harris attended from New Zealand.

'Rugged individualism'

According to anglicansunited.com, Bishop Ellena prayed in Maori and then deplored the slide of New Zealand into "rugged individualism and rampant consumerism."

"New Zealand and the Polynesia Islands of the South Pacific gather this Sunday to elect a new archbishop," said Bishop Ellena. "They are at a crossroads and it seems they may join the downward slide of the Episcopal Church (TEC).

"We’re the southernmost part of the world, except the very most southern part of South America. Some of our bishops have already moved in line with TEC. The Diocese of Nelson is the only one with an evangelical bishop in New Zealand. Abp. Chew and Diocese of Singapore, and the Global South Primates steering committee, thank you. We needed to live with you and gain strength from you.

"New Zealand is embracing rugged individualism and rampant consumerism. 'My needs, what I can get out of church,' that’s what people are interested in today. They say, 'I want a sermon that doesn’t challenge me too much'; music that is entertainment. They want a first-class children’s programme that doesn’t make them religious or Christian. It's all about my needs; no heart, no sacrificial need. That’s what we struggle with.

"This is the result of 40 years of rubbish taught at our one theological college in New Zealand. Pray for us. One phrase sticks with me and it is a judgment: 'He saw, he wanted and he went down.' Please pray for us. Thank you for the joy of your invitation."

• For other comments from participants, click here.

Partners welcomed

The statement welcomed two Communion Partners bishops from the Episcopal Church and "acknowledge[d] that with them there are many within TEC who do not accept their church’s innovations. We assure them of our loving and prayerful support."

The organizers have not released a list of participants and the communiqué was unsigned. Cherie Wetzel of Anglicans United posted a roster on April 19 in which she listed Diocese of Central Florida Bishop John Howe and Diocese of South Carolina Mark Lawrence.

The Communion Partners organization of bishops and priests describes itself as providing a "visible link to the Anglican Communion" to those who need assurance of that connection, as well as "fidelity to the canonical realities, integrities and structures of the Episcopal Church."

The Global South statement also commended the decisions of archbishops Mouneer Anis (Jerusalem and the Middle East), Henry Orombi (Uganda) and Ian Ernest (Indian Ocean) to refuse to participate in meetings of the various Instruments of Communion at which Episcopal Church and Anglican Church of Canada representatives are present.

It also urged Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams to take action against the two provinces, as suggested in the Windsor Report, the 2005 Primates Meeting Communiqué from Dromantine, and apparently in the so-called "Schedule" appended to the 2007 Primates Meeting Communiqué from Dar es Salaam.

Dr Williams' message

In an earlier video message, Dr Williams had told the gathering that "there are no quick solutions for the wounds of the body of Christ," and that he was "in discussion with a number of people around the world about what consequences might follow from that decision, and how we express the sense that most Anglicans will want to express, that this decision cannot speak for our common mind.

In a related concern, the communiqué said that the Primates' Meeting -- not the Standing Committee of the Anglican Communion made of members of the Anglican Consultative Council -- should oversee the eventual implementation of the Anglican Covenant.

In other matters, the communiqué noted "the global shift in Christian demography brings with it new opportunities for evangelistic outreach" and called for a fresh understanding of "the challenges that are confronting the Church and the wider society."

"We also need to pay particular attention to the pastoral needs of the laity, especially women and young people, who are witnessing to their faith at the cutting edges of mission," the statement said.

The communiqué noted that some potential participants were unable to attend because of the disruption in air travel after a volcanic eruption in Iceland. "We were reminded yet again of the fragility of our earthly existence and our utter dependence upon the grace of God for life itself," the communiqué said, also noting the challenges of natural disasters, political instability and "the ever-present challenge of living in a world of multiple religions and competing truth claims."

The complete text of the communiqué is available here.

-- The Rev. Mary Frances Schjonberg is a national correspondent for the Episcopal News Service and Episcopal News Monthly editor.