Conservative Anglican leaders have announced the creation of a new global leadership body, a move that signals a further split within the worldwide Anglican Communion.
The decision was announced on Thursday at a gathering of the Global Anglican Future Conference (GAFCON) in Abuja. The group said the new structure, known as the Global Anglican Council, will guide churches aligned with its conservative position across several regions.
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GAFCON, a network of mainly African and Asian Anglican churches, says it represents a large share of Anglicans worldwide. Its leaders have for years criticised what they describe as liberal changes within parts of the Anglican Communion, particularly on the ordination of women and the inclusion of LGBTQ members.
Speaking at the conference, the secretary-general of the new council, Bishop Paul Donison, said the existing structures of the Anglican Communion no longer reflected the views of many member churches.
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“Believing the current instruments of communion no longer meet the needs of the majority of Anglicans around the world, the global Anglican Communion is to be led by a conciliar structure,” Mr Donison said.
He said the council will include bishops, priests and lay members, all of whom will have voting rights, the BBC reported.
Mbanda to head council
Participants at the meeting elected Rwanda’s Archbishop Laurent Mbanda as chairman of the new body.
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According to GAFCON, Mr Mbanda will not hold the title “primus inter pares”, a Latin phrase meaning “first among equals,” traditionally used to describe the position of the Archbishop of Canterbury within the Anglican Communion, but will instead lead the council alongside other members.
When asked whether GAFCON still recognises the authority of the Archbishop of Canterbury, the group’s spokesperson, Venerable Canon Justin Murff, said the council only knows Mr Mbanda as its leader.
“The Global Anglican Council recognises Archbishop Laurent Mbanda as its leader,” Mr Murff said.
“Sarah Mullally is the Archbishop of Canterbury,” he added.
Disagreement over church leadership
The development comes ahead of the formal installation of Sarah Mullally as Archbishop of Canterbury, later this month. The role is widely regarded as the spiritual leadership position of the Anglican Communion, which has tens of millions of members in more than 160 countries.
Her appointment by the Church of England has drawn criticism from some conservative Anglicans who argue that the Bible supports male-only leadership in the episcopacy.
However, GAFCON leaders said their disagreement with the Church of England goes beyond questions about gender.
“The issue is not same-sex marriage, nor is it about the female Archbishop. It is whether scripture or contemporary culture governs the life of this church,” Mr Murff told journalists at the conference.
He also said Ms Mullally had repeatedly promoted unbiblical and revisionist teachings regarding marriage and sexual morality, citing her support for same-sex unions.
According to him, the majority of the Anglican Communion still believes that the Bible requires a male-only episcopalism.
Nigeria at the heart of the Anglican divide
Nigeria has emerged as a key player in the ongoing disputes within the Anglican Communion. The Church of Nigeria, one of the world’s largest Anglican provinces, has consistently taken conservative stances on issues such as the ordination of women and same-sex unions, positions that often clash with policies in Western provinces like the Church of England.
Nigerian leaders have been prominent supporters of GAFCON, which was formed in 2008 as a response to what its members describe as liberal shifts in parts of the Communion. With millions of members across the country, the Church of Nigeria’s influence strengthens GAFCON’s voice in global debates, particularly on doctrine and leadership.
Communion office reacts
Responding to the development, a spokesperson for the Anglican Communion Office in London said the announcement did not reflect years of consultations within the global church on its structure and leadership, the BBC reported.
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Those discussions produced ideas known as the Nairobi-Cairo Proposals, which explore more collegial, diverse approaches to shared leadership in the Anglican Communion, the spokesperson said.
“We encourage Anglican member churches and Anglican groups to engage with this conversation about the Nairobi-Cairo Proposals,” the spokesperson added.
The disagreement reflects tensions that have been building within the Anglican Communion for decades, particularly over questions relating to same-sex unions, LGBTQ clergy and other doctrinal issues.
GAFCON was formed in 2008 by conservative church leaders who accused the Church of England of departing from biblical teachings and aligning the church with modern cultural trends.
Two-thirds of Anglicans live in Africa, although opinion within the continent is not uniform. Several female bishops currently serve in African Anglican provinces.
Archbishop Mbanda himself has lived and worked in several countries. As a child he fled Rwanda and spent part of his early life as a refugee in Burundi before later studying theology in the United States.
Despite the decision not to appoint a direct rival to the Archbishop of Canterbury, the creation of a separate council signals a further strain in the Church’s harmony, with GAFCON and the Church of England drifting towards opposite poles.
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