GAFCON photos

You can now access over 500 photographs of the GAFCON pilgrimage to Jerusalem from Flickr here

http://www.flickr.com/photos/stephensizer/collections/72157606087222564

Photos courtesy of Stephen Sizer.

EFAC International endorses GAFCON

Richard Trist and I are nearly on our way home after the EFAC International Pre-Lambeth Conference at Trinity College, Bristol. It has been a privilege to be here and meet with the likes of Archbishop Mouneer Anis, Primate of Egypt, with North Africa and the Horn of Africa.

There's lots that could be said about the conference, but what's relevant for this blog is that the delegates have issued a Commitment in which we heartily endorse the Jerusalem Declaration and invite others to join us.

You can signal your support of the Jerusalem Declaration here:
http://www.anglican-mainstream.net/

Again, please see the blog below for details of a public session on GAFCON this Sunday in Melbourne where Jenny George and I will speak and take questions.

Grace and peace in Christ,

A Personal Reflection on GAFCON

A Personal Reflection on GAFCON – Richard Condie (St Jude’s Carlton)

(Written for the North West Region of the Diocese)

I was one of the seven Melbourne Anglicans present at GAFCON in Jerusalem last month. I have to say it was one of the most profound, challenging, and moving conferences I have ever been a part of. And I am sad that the message that has been told to Melbourne Anglicans has come through the secular press and not from those who were there. I met with Bishop Philip yesterday and he asked me to write my reflections for the North West.

GAFCON was a deeply spiritual experience. The majority of the conference time was spent in worship, prayer and pilgrimage to the places which have been the historic foundations of our faith.

On the first morning all 1200 delegates met on the slopes of the Mt of Olives overlooking the city of Jerusalem. We were led in singing by an African Youth Choir, and then into a liturgy recalling Jesus weeping over the city of Jerusalem. As we read from Matt 23, we were asked to call out the names of the cities from which we had come, over which Jesus still weeps. Then recalling Jesus’ prayer from Unity from John 17, we were asked to name the Provinces, Dioceses and Parishes from which we came, over which Jesus still weeps. Then after reading the Luke 4 “Nazareth Manifesto”, we were asked to name the individuals we knew who did not know Christ, over whom Jesus wept. All of this with the backdrop of the city of Jerusalem, where the dome of the Rock, and the Al Aqsa Mosque sit where the temple once stood, where the Jews continue to pray at the Western wall, and where Christians have been dwindling in numbers for centuries. We then made our way to Gethsemane.

On the Wednesday we gathered for worship on the southern steps of the temple, where our Lord would have trod on many occasions, and where Peter preached his Pentecost sermon. Although we were not 3000, we were from 35 nations of the world. The sign of God’s blessing, reflected in the accents and colourful national dress of the delegates was a sign of God’s faithfulness to his promise.

Gathering each day for worship, and then in small groups for prayer was a delight. A joy to sing (and some to dance!) with the Nigerian Mothers’ Union Choir, to sing in Spanish with the Latin American Bishops, to pray with brothers and sisters in my small group from Malaysia, Nigeria, Ghana, and the US, to hear a sermon from John 5 when the day before my wife and I had stood at the excavated pools of Bethesda.

Bishop Philip reminded us the other day of the Church stories he would be taking to Lambeth. One of the things that struck me at GAFCON is how sheltered we are here in Australia, from the stories of ordinary believers in churches in North America.

Patience and Felix (born in Nigeria now living and working in Washington DC) spoke of their bewilderment in the leadership of the church in the US where Bishops tell the people that you can find your own way to God and that you don’t need to trust in Jesus.

Ryan who told us of one US Cathedral with a Muslim Imam on the staff, and another cathedral with a Bhuddist monk as part of the leadership team. He then went on to tell how the theological colleges in his region actively promoted sexual activity as a way to experience the divine.

The congregation leader who will be charged with trespass this Sunday if he enters the church building, simply because he clings to the doctrine of the BCP and 39 Articles, and has sought out oversight of a Bishop in another Diocese, because his own Bishop has long since abandoned these basic tenets of Anglican faith.

The Bishop who told me that the Episcopal Church (TEC) has spent $35 million prosecuting its own clergy and parishes who are seeking to be classical creedal Anglicans.

If you only had the secular media to listen to, you would be forgiven for thinking that GAFCON was about homosexuality. In fact this was not the case. Sure the trigger point for calling the conference was the intractable situation in the US where the TEC has consistently rejected the direction of the 1998 Lambeth Conference and thus one of the instruments of Unity in the Communion over this issue. But the conference was less about this, than about contending for classical Anglican doctrine and identity. The workshop I was in, spent a lot of time exploring the foundations of Anglican identity in the BCP, Homilies, Articles and Creeds. Sounds like fun? Absolutely vital if others are telling you that the Anglican church means something very different from what we have affirmed for 400 years.

The process whereby the GAFCON statement and Jerusalem declaration were formulated was nothing short of miraculous. Rather than being presented with a fait d’accompli from the leadership, this document was a grass roots statement by the 1200 delegates themselves. A statement working group was formed, and on day 1 they invited individuals to answer 4 questions to guide them in preparing the conference statement. Then our (cross national) small groups were invited to answer the same questions and submit them. We then met in Provincial groups to provide input. On Thursday, the statement group who had worked night and day, presented a draft which was then discussed in provincial groups. Many of the comments made by Melbourne delegates were reflected in the final outcome. The final product released last Sunday was met with great joy and a united affirmation from the delegates as expressing the mind of this group. Not a communiqué from Jensen and Akinola, but the statement from the delegates at the conference.

I don’t imagine these steps will make much difference for us here in Melbourne. I imagine that the vast majority of Melbourne Anglicans would like to be known as confessing Anglicans, confessing the 14 points of the Jerusalem Declaration. That is because we have not strayed so far from classical Anglican faith and teaching as some parts of the world. Where this document has real teeth is in providing rescue for those faithful Anglicans who cannot in good conscience follow the leadership of their Bishops who have given away Anglican faith for something quite alien. For them, this is hope for a future in the Anglican communion.

It might appear to the outsider that the GAFCON is triumphant and some have said bullying in its demands. I only wish you could have seen the humility and pain and sadness with which these steps were taken. The Anglican communion has been on a downhill slide since 1998 as Bp Philip has rightly noted. What transpired in Jerusalem last week was a pathway to stand alongside those who have clung to traditional Anglican faith in the midst of that slide. Sadly the instruments of Unity: Lambeth, the ABp of Canterbury, the Primates Meeting and the Anglican Consultative Council, have done little to stem the decline and provide the support that is needed. GAFCON has simply tried to provide this.

My clergy sisters and brothers have taken an oath that we believe the marks of classical Anglican faith as expressed in the Anglican formularies now re-expressed in the Jerusalem declaration. Imagine the horror of being told by your Bishop that you are now in error for defending this faith – that is the situation GAFCON is trying to redeem.

I am sad that I went to GAFCON, in that it was called to address a tragedy that should never have occurred, and I pray will never touch the Australian Anglican Church. But I am so blessed to have been part of this remarkable meeting in Jerusalem. I am spiritually enriched, challenged by the church in Africa which is so vital, moved by the suffering pain of sisters and brothers around the world, stunned by the diversity of the Communion represented at the Conference, and overall thankful to God for this experience.

I would be happy to talk about GAFCON and its implications for Melbourne with anyone in the Region. Please let me know if you have concerns or questions, as I would be more than happy to discuss them with you. Bp Huggins has suggested that post-Lambeth, the Bishops meet with GAFCON delegates privately, and then together talk about the implications of both for our church. I welcome this opportunity.

Richard Condie

Church of England GAFCON briefing

Today Richard Trist and I attended a GAFCON briefing for incumbents, that is vicars and rectors, of the Church of England. The invitation came from a group of nearly 50 incumbents from across a range of churchmanship styles. There were just under 800 attenders, packing out All Souls' Langham Place for the day.

Speakers for the day were Archbishops Henry Orombi of Uganda, Greg Venables of the Southern Cone and Peter Jensen of Sydney, and Dr J. I. Packer - formerly of New Westminster, now a priest of the Southern Cone and Argentina. Each spoke about Anglican Orthodoxy and various aspects of the GAFCON experience.

It was a power-packed day! I had not worshipped at All Souls' before, but it was quite an experience to be in close proximity with 800 believers, all singing with gusto 'In Christ Alone' and 'Lord of the Church'. I prayed at several times in the day with a Ugandan vicar in exile and an elderly ex-missionary to Africa and the Middle East lady who were sitting next to me. As the speakers presented their talks, each was greeted and then thanked with incredible wholehearted sustained applause. Jim Packer got an extended standing ovation.

What really struck me was the range of people there, how wide a representation there was in the group, and how thoughtful and concerned they were about what is unfolding in the Anglican Communion. Richard and I, debriefing later, considered that it was so different to the Melbourne scene where many orthodox believers are apathetic towards our corporate life.

The final talk, by Peter Jensen, was insightful, passionate and prophetic. It is perhaps the best I've heard from him as a leader of orthodox faith and practice. It was not without great emotion and crystal clear thinking.

The good news is that all the talks and sessions will be available on the GAFCON.org site in due course. It may also be put up on the AllSouls.org site so check there as well. Check them out!

There will be an opportunity to hear a report from Jenny George and I at St Alfred's Anglican Church, Blackburn North (worshipping in Old Orchard Primary School, Koonung Road) on 13 July at the 6pm service. Q&A and extended prayer to follow after the service and a short break. An EFAC briefing is also planned for a few weeks later. Please do come along to hear our first hand account, pray and think together about what this means for the Diocese of Melbourne and our ministries.

Grace and peace in Christ,

Post-GAFCON

GAFCON the conference is over, but GAFCON the movement has only just begun! That's the clear message of the Jerusalem Declaration and Statement, assented to by the 1200 pilgrims and signed off by the attending Primates of the Anglican Communion. I flew out of Jerusalem today to London, from where I'm writing.

On Tuesday at All Souls' Langham Place, there will be a special briefing for the Church of England by various GAFCON delegates and leaders. These include Henry Orombi, Peter Jensen and J. I. Packer. It has been organised by a coalition of nearly 50 vicars and leaders who represent a wide spectrum of orthodox believers within the C of E. As of yesterday morning they had 750 registered attenders! Interest in GAFCON and what it means for the future shape of Anglicanism is, to put it mildly, intense.

Richard Trist and I will be attending the meeting here and would love to have your prayers for us, as we keep learning and thinking through what all this means for us back in Melbourne and Australia.

I also want to offer my reflections on GAFCON at this stage. I'm exhausted! It was an intense 8 days of meeting lots of sisters and brothers in Christ and hearing lots of stories - good and bad - of ministry and life as an orthodox believer in Jesus Christ.

Our corporate worship was a wonderful wonderful experience, a real foretaste of heaven. I have video of Richard Trist doing the Nigerian 'shaky shaky' song and dance: just him and his 1200 new best friends!!! We are first hand witnesses of South American worship led by Bishop Tito and the 3 Amigos (including Greg Venables) - Alabare!!! We even saw Peter Jensen break into song, African-style, mid-way through announcements!

Our discussions were serious, thoughtful, passionate, and tinged with a sadness that we have come to this point in Anglican history when heterodoxy must be called out for what it is, and no longer condoned. It is one thing to be Anglican and comprehensive, another to close our eyes when so-called Anglican leaders are actively persecuting faithful sisters and brothers in their own church as they clearly have and are in North America. Some of those stories of persecution are genuinely disgusting, distasteful and devillish. I had not appreciated the intensity of the situation there as clearly before. It was one thing to read about it on the web, another to hear them first-hand.

Many encouragements were shared: the way the Gospel is moving forward in parts of Nigeria and Uganda is amazing! There's great ministry happening in the UK, in the US, in South America, in Asia, in NZ, in Australia. Many challenges were identified: I have a notebook full of 'Big Important Ideas' for the future, for a global future in Gospel ministry! So beware, if you're going to catch up with me when I get back!

But for now, please do pray for us: that we would travel home safely; that we would not fall ill (post-conference let-down); that we would be protected from evil and sin; and that we would discharge our ministry faithfully and well, by the grace and power of God.

in Christ Jesus our Lord,

Gafcon statement

By now, you will be able to read the Gafcon statement on the official Gafcon website. See the links on the side of this page.

I'm really happy with the Jerusalem Declaration. As a statement of orthodox Anglican belief I think it is great and should be helpful. The rest of the statement is good. I'm sure that it will be possible for people to disagree about some of the specifics set out in the "Road Ahead" - we probably all have a different ideas about how we would deal tactically with the current situation! However I'm pleased that it does not split the church. It's very good that the Australian church will not be asked to take sides. And yet it does make quite definite advances in bringing order to the relatively chaotic situation in North America. All the delegates I talked to from parishes in the USA and Canada were happy with the outcome. Actually they were mostly quite overcome.

I'll be checking the discussion forum every day or so, happy to talk about this more there with anyone who's interested.

Summary on Friday

For the next couple of days you may not hear as much from us because we've seen a draft statement from the conference but we need to keep "radio silence" until Sunday when it is released to the media.

However I thought it might still be interesting to talk about some other aspects of the conference, and being in Jerusalem, so far. Today Shabbat started at 4pm. The Sabbath is taken really seriously in Israel and it has challenged me about how well I implement this in my own life. Right now families are gathered on a large lawn outside the window, enjoying each other's company, picnicking and swimming. It's easy for us to pay lip service to the idea of a day of rest and yet let other things creep in and take away the time to worship and re-create.

Evangelism at GAFCON

Lots of things today that I could talk about, but let me tell you a few things about evangelism that I was struck by today.

One of my study group members is a bishop from Northern Nigeria, who was consecrated into a missionary region a year ago. When I say a 'missionary diocese', I mean that there were no churches in his region a year ago, and he has been establishing churches and ordaining ministers as he goes. Today, there are 52 churches in his region (!), mostly based in small towns of 300-1000 people. He showed me pictures of his churches, which are mainly thatched buildings and semi-temporary structures that they build wherever needed. Their growth is phenomenal, and one of the challenges it has brought up is the desperate need to train enough ministers to look after all these new churches - at the moment, many ordained ministers in this areas are quite new Christians, with little or no theological training, and there is a big need for materials and training to give them the skills they need for ministry.

I spoke with Rico Tice this morning, about Christianity Explored and plans to roll it out in an African context. The English version has been used in Uganda for a few years now, and has had an 'informal' translation into local languages. Rico told me that they are planning to re-write an 'international' version that can be translated into a variety of languages. It was interesting to realise that the African churches don't need CE for evangelism - they clearly have a local flavour to evangelism already which is bearing lots of fruit. The place that CE might be most helpful for them is it discipleship and as an introductory catechism. It was interesting to reflect on how existing tools might be used in a different way in a different contexts; I'm hopeful that international connections through meetings like GAFCON can provide lots of people like Rico with the opportunity to see where these sorts of cross-overs could be realised.

While we're on the theme of evangelism, we heard a great story today from one of the Nigerian bishops, who was delayed for several hours at an airport while coming to the meeting. He spoke with a German tourist, and in true African style, opened his Bible and read John 3:16 with him, telling him that he needed to know Jesus. This tourist, who was a Buddhist, listened and prayed with him, and before they went their separate ways, had accepted Christ and handed over his statue of Buddha. I was really inspired by this story - my own hesitation and nervousness about evangelism is constantly being challenged by the simple gospel message that the African clergy here are so quick to talk about.

Looking forward to what tomorrow brings...

Meeting lots of people here!

GAFCON is an amazing event, and it's such an amazing experience to be here as a pilgrim or delegate. More than ever, I'm convinced that the true value of such events is the opportunity it gives us to have our vision of what God is doing all over the world enlarged. I've met so many top-value sisters and brothers in Christ. Let me give you a quick snapshot:

I'm in the Theological Education workshop stream. In my small group are Mike Ovey, principal of Oak Hill (UK) and Cezar Guzman, director of Centro de Estudios Pastorales (Chile). Also in the stream is Tim Wambunya, principal of Carlile College (Nairobi). These three lead the workshop and it's been tremendously stimulating and challenging. I can't tell you anything else about the stream because there is media embargo! But suffice to say that I'm getting to know and discuss meaty issues with many others involved in theolgical formation of future leaders from all over the world. It's great stuff!

Delegates are spread all over the city in several hotels, for reasons of security and space - apparently GAFCON is taking up 20% of the hotel rooms in Jerusalem this week. I'm in a hotel 30 minutes from the conference venue with maybe 50 others from various countries, including the US, Nigeria, UK, NZ, Canada. I've met five people here who regard Alf Stanway as a 'saint' because of his work in establishing the Trinity School for Ministry in Ambridge, Pittsburgh. That Ridley connection has been a fantastic springboard into conversations about their ministries and training for ministry.

Please pray for delegates - that we will continue to meet and make connections with the people that the Lord wants us to.

Ophel Gardens

Yesterday the whole conference met and worshipped sitting on the temple steps at the Ophel Gardens. What an incredible privilege to bewhere Jesus preached, Peter preached, and the first 3000 converts were made at Pentecost. This is a picture of the Melbourne delegation on
the steps

(L to R): Jenny, Matt, Richard C, Helen, Wei-Han, Richard T and Justin.

Update from GAFCON from Richard Trist

What a fascinating and powerful exerience the past 4 days have been -
powerful talks and Bible studies reminding us all of the centrality of
Gods Word in our lives and of the Lordship of Christ, opportunities to
meet believers from all around the globe many of whom are facing great
difficulties as orthodox believing Anglicans, and fantastic times of
praise and worship - a true foretaste of heaven.

The Conference has been extremely busy with barely a spare moment to
think and process all that is being presented, but here are some
initial observations:

1. It is vital that one outcome will be a united vision for action and
support for Anglicans in North America currently disenfranchised from
their national churches. It is a miracle that amidst all the diversity
and past fractures in the USA, all the various denominations and
Anglican groupings are actually here - seeking to put aside previous
disputes and seeking a new future. One delegate I spoke to said he
never expected to see this to occur in his lifetime. We need to pray
that this will occur.

2. I am also seeing amongst us all a renewed confidence that a return
to historic Anglican orthodoxy is the only hope for our denomination.
It is only in those places where the gospel is faithfully preached and
the new gospel of "inclusiveness" is rejected, that men and women are
coming to Christ - in every nation and in every culture. Let us be
confident to go where the Spirit is moving.

Point for prayer - that the final conference statement being currently
hammered out will reflect the diverse opinions of the conference and
will be more than just words but be a powerful statement of intent and
commitment of this new renewal movement within our Anglican Communion.

Richard

Observations at the halfway point

One of the things that I've been very interested in this week, is the question of "What does it mean to be Anglican?"

This has come up throughout the week in one way or another in many fora. There are quite a few ways to answer it:
- Anglican means people in fellowship with Canterbury
- Anglican means people who use the prayer book as the basis for worship
- Anglican means people who have a particular system of episcopal government
- Anglican means people who subscribe to the historic creeds and documents of Anglicanism such as the 39 articles
- Anglican means people who see the vernacular word and sacraments as central to their life together

Probably we can all relate to at some bits of all those definitions. The more time I've spent here the more I think that it is important to use the historical bases of Anglicanism to guide our Anglican identity. I hope that this will be reflected in the statement that eventually comes out of GAFCON. I think we need to see this meeting as the start of a movement to reclaim and revive the understandings of the gospel and the church that motivated the founders of the Anglican church.

HIV in Uganda

In the midst of all our hard-core theological reflection, the session on HIV this afternoon was a good change of pace for me! Two speakers from Uganda and Nigeria presented about the ways in which the Anglican church in their countries has been active in HIV-related areas, and gave a wonderful overview about the impact that well-organised churches can have. For the international HIV community, Uganda is regarded as one of the major success stories, having managed to decrease the prevalence of HIV from around 27% in the early 1990’s to 6.7% in 2005 – a phenomenal result not paralleled in any other country. Churches in Uganda have promoted abstinence and faithful marriages as their major platform, and supported this with youth groups, HIV support programs, AIDS palliative care and HIV treatment programs in conjunction with UNAIDS - a program from a church that is much more impressive effort than most countries, I must say!

Alongside the stories of these programs was a strong feeling that GAFCON needs to be about more than just doctrine, as important as that is. If we are to be a global, renewed communion, we also need to be serious about how we transform our communities and look for healing and justice for those around us. Uganda's example was a powerful reminder of just how big an impact churches can have in major social issues, and one that I think we can learn a lot from as we share our stories here.

Some photos

I'll be posting more during the week, but here are two photos. The first is from the welcome by Archbishop Peter Akinola (Nigeria). The second is a view of Jerusalem from the Mount of Olives, taken this morning.

Reflections on Day 2

It was very moving today to stand on the Mount of Olives and read of Jesus weeping over the lack of faith of the city of Jerusalem. We read this with the background of the city in view with the temple mount Al Aqsa Mosque and the Dome of the Rock. This city still needs faith in Jesus. We prayed for the peace of Jerusalem (Ps 122:6) We then reflected on the areas of our own cities, lives and ministries over which Jesus must still weep for lack of faith.

 

This evening we were stimulated by Os Guinness on the challenges of secularism. I resonated with each point. He spoke (among many things) of how the secular world leads to a corruption of faith – fragmentation (where people’s lives are less and less integrated with faith), preference (where people’s faith is more to do with personal preference rather than authority or conviction) and Syncretism (where the secular smorgasbord allows people to pick and choose their faith constructs).

 

He made a great observation about how people try to deal with secularism. Some stand in defiance of the secular culture around us. This leads in the end to an unhelpful fundamentalism, where faith is set up in opposition to culture. Others surrender to the culture, and allow secular culture to lead the church ultimately to apostasy and immorality. Neither of these approaches are good enough. Better is  the approach of Discernment, where fully engaged with the faith once delivered, we act in discernment with the culture in which we live. This is the hardest but the most fruitful of all, preventing us from being either fundamentalist or apostate, and helping us make a Gospel difference in the world.

 

I have been stimulated and encouraged in faith today. Singing with our African brothers and sisters is a real treat. Being in Jerusalem and reading the scriptures (John 5 today) after having visited the sites (the Pools of Bethesda on Saturday) is something quite special.

 

Please pray for the conference that its outcomes honour the Lord Jesus Christ.

Update on Monday

This morning we set off early to the Mount of Olives. We began with a short morning liturgy overlooking the city of Jerusalem. The Kidron Valley, between the Mount of Olives and the old city, is full of tombs because it is believed that the God's day of judgement (and resurrection) will begin there. After taking a large group photo, we made our way slowly down the hill to the Garden of Gethsemane. The hills are amazingly steep on both sides of the valley. I can see why the Bible always talks about going "up" to Jerusalem. And the passage in Isaiah 40 that talks about every hill and every valley being made into a plain (it was read later in the afternoon) became much more real. If you had to walk up and down those things on a regular basis you'd look forward to them being flattened.

The communion service this afternoon was excellent. We used a liturgy from Kenya that was innovative and orthodox with thought-provoking ideas. Archbishop Henry Orombe of Uganda preached on the passage about the paralysed man at the Pool who was healed by Jesus. He talked about the need for us individually and collectively to be healed by Jesus. That we need to know our healer and testify to him. I thought his talk was very balanced. I especially appreciated the fact that he talked about the possibility for people at GAFCON to be sinful in pride and judgement of others. This was a helpful reminder early in the week.

There has been no real discussion yet of what practical things might come out of GAFCON, except amongst individuals.

More later.

First impressions

I haven't slept for about 30 hours and tomorrow starts at 6.30, just 7 short hours from now, so this will be very brief.

Gafcon started with a brilliant time of worship. There were not a few tears around the room. In my case it was a surprising combination of the 1000 people there all praising God, along with the "Jerusalem factor". It's quite intense just being here in a place with so much history.

Archbishop Akinola of Nigeria gave the opening address. More on that tomorrow. I would think the speech will likely be published on the official website.

Some logistical issues to be ironed out...

Every morning's program starts at 6.30am (good grief!)...

Lots of journalists around the conference...

Signing off from Jerusalem, Jenny

St John's Shaughnessy

GAFCON doesn't start for a few weeks yet, but I thought I'd update you all after my visit to St John's Shaughnessy yesterday.

St John's has a lovely church building on the edge of the CBD. We visited with a small child, and found that they had great space for ministry, with a creche and Sunday School, offices and a library, as well as seating for perhaps 300. Those of you who know me might be wondering why I'm talking about their buildings rather than about the people I met or the service. Normally, I wouldn't have commented; I probably wouldn't have noticed. On Monday, though, the church received a letter from the Diocese of New Westminster ordering them to cease all ministry activity and vacate the building.

In this context, to hear David Short preach on the Church as God's dwelling place (Ephesians 2:11-22)was incredibly powerful. This has obviously been a long time in coming, and I know that they have done an immense amount of work to find alternative solutions over the last decade, but I was struck by how ready they are to walk away from the physical buildings and continue in ministry. Please pray for them as they make very difficult decisions, particularly that they will be able to continue in effective ministry whatever happens.

I was able to speak with several of St John's GAFCON delegates while I was visiting, and will look forward to meeting with them again in Jerusalem. Thinking about the awful experience that this group of faithful believers is going through now, I find my own approach to the questions facing the worldwide church being formed. Our worldwide church needs to be able to support faithful believers and correct wrong teaching, and we need to think seriously about the structures that can best ensure this.

Whatever GAFCON accomplishes, we are gathering to declare our solidarity and unity in the faith with churches like St John's, and support them and other like them in their persecution.

introducing wei-han

Hello! My name is Wei-Han and I'm also going to GAFCON. I blame my mother for giving me too many names, so some of you also know me as Jonathan (that's okay, that's what my wife Valerie calls me). I'm a research student at Ridley Melbourne writing a history of evangelicalism in the Anglican Diocese of Melbourne and a very part-time curate at St Alfred's Blackburn North. I also do a bit of teaching at Ridley and around the place.

After GAFCON I'm going on to England where I will attend the EFAC International pre-Lambeth conference. I'm doing this in my capacity as editor of Essentials, the quarterly journal of EFAC Australia.

I think both conferences will be opportunities to meet with others who are committed to the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ and the Anglican Church's part in that mission. Like the other Melbourne delegates, I'm nervous about the impression that GAFCON is schismatic or anti-Lambeth.

I'm hoping to hear lots of great stories about people coming to know and serve Christ, lots of helpful ideas for evangelism and church planting, and lots of encouraging stories about ongoing church reform. I especially want to meet and get to know younger leaders who will be serving the Anglican Church over the next few decades.

I don't really like travel or being away from family - so please pray for me! This will be my first time to those parts of the world, and I'm grateful to the Lord for my supporters who have encouraged me, and are paying for me, to go.

Introducing Justin

Yes, GAFCON is seeming a lot closer than when we signed up for this!

By way of introduction, I am Justin Denholm. Like Jenny, I'm also a lay delegate. During the week, I work as a doctor in a public hospital, and I'm also involved in various ethics-related activities. I'm a member of St Jude's Anglican Church in Carlton, where I am also part of the Vestry.

Before travelling to GAFCON, my wife and I will be in Vancouver for a few weeks. We will be visiting some family, but I'm also hoping to stop in at St John's Shaughnessy to worship with them before heading off to Jerusalem. The circumstances that surround GAFCON have put many faithful Anglicans around the world in a difficult position, and I want to have their situation high on my own agenda as I talk with people about the future of the church.

We are all getting ready to go in different ways, but I know all of the delegates are talking with people around them to make sure people understand what GAFCON is and why we are going. I'm going to be speaking to a few congregations on Sunday to discuss this. We are very keen for people to be well-informed about this, and particularly to make sure that many people are praying for us while we are away. I also want to encourage people to pray for wisdom and clarity for those meeting in Jordan ahead of GAFCON.

I'll look forward to keeping you all up to date through this blog!

From Richard Trist

I am attending GAFCON in my capacity as Training Officer for EFAC Victoria and through the generosity of a number of EFAC Supporters.

Like the other Melbourne delegates I am looking forward to meeting people from around the globe and hearing of what God is doing amongst them. I hope that we will be able to bring back to our own Diocese some significant reflections to assist us in our own mission as well as perspectives on the current issues facing us as the Anglican Communion.

Post GAFCON I will be travelling to London with Wei-Han where I hope to catch up with friends from All Souls Langham Place, and then attend the EFAC International Conference in Bristol from July 8-10.

I hope our combined blogs will be useful to in keeping others in Melbourne in touch with what is occurring at GAFCON and help us all to respond thoughtfully to our future as Anglicans committed to global mission.

We are planning a gathering in Melbourne in August to report back to EFAC members and any others on the Conference and will post the details soon.

Introductions: Jenny and Matt

The Melbourne GAFCON delegates are writing this blog to keep (mostly Melbourne) people updated on what happens at the conference. Please feel free to comment on what we write: the discussion forum on the MASG site is a great place to do that (there's a link on the right hand side of this page). We hope to respond to questions and discussions there during
the conference (internet access permitting) and certainly afterwards.

To begin with, we'd like to introduce ourselves. I'm Jenny George. I am a member of St James' Old Cathedral in West Melbourne and a lay delegate to GAFCON. I am a member of the Board of Nominators for Melbourne diocese and on the Board of Ridley Melbourne, Mission and Ministry College. During the week I'm a faculty member at the University of Melbourne. My husband, Matt Williams, is also attending and I'm hoping that he'll do quite a bit of blogging while we're there.

GAFCON starts on June 22nd in Jerusalem. When we signed up in April it seemed quite a long way away but now we have less than six weeks left. The plane tickets are bought and travel plans are made. I haven't been to Jerusalem before so I'm gathering info about what to see and do.

I am looking forward to meeting people from around the world at GAFCON and finding out what life is like for them. I'm excited at the fantastic ministry going on in Africa, where the church is growing tremendously. I hope we get the chance to talk with people from there and ask them about what God is doing in their countries. GAFCON will also be an opportunity to meet people from churches in North America who are finding ministry difficult. Most of all, I hope GAFCON is a time when we talk and pray about unity and not division.