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“But thanks be to God, that you who were once slaves of sin have become obedient from the heart to the standard of teaching to which you were committed.” Romans 6:17
Dear GSFA Family and Friends,
To be a disciple of Jesus Christ is to be set free, but we are not free just to believe and act as we please. We are freed from the power of sin to serve God ‘whose service is perfect freedom’ and, according to St Paul, this service includes commitment to a doctrinal standard.
He gives thanks because the Christians in Rome not only obey this teaching but do so from the heart. This means we should never think of orthodoxy as just to do with the legal status of a Church’s doctrinal statements isolated from personal and heartfelt trust in Jesus as Lord and Saviour.
Any call for unity which sets aside a commitment to a doctrinal standard is therefore a false unity, but those of us who wish to see the Communion restored on a sound doctrinal basis need also to recognise that the teaching we hold to is not just a matter of formal assent. It is to be embraced in our hearts and bear fruit in changed lives.
The GSFA is a family and fellowship of Churches through which we can encourage each other as servants of Jesus Christ, not only to stand firm in maintaining ‘the standard of teaching to which you were committed’ but also to be growing disciples of Jesus Christ who are ‘obedient from the heart’.
Disciples make disciples and last month the Mission Partnerships Track met in Cairo, kindly hosted by Archbishop Samy Shehata and the Diocese of Egypt, to work out a strategy through which the Churches of the Global South can take practical steps to encourage one another in mission. Led by Track Chairman the Rev Dr Timothy Chong from Singapore, representatives from a wide range of Global South Provinces shared not only needs but also resources for South-to-South mission, and even South to North.
Out of this consultation, a strategic blueprint has emerged which will be the basis for a wider consultation with our GSFA Mission Partner organizations to be held in Uganda in October 2025 and this gathering has already had a practical impact with the provision by the Diocese of Singapore of 40 community water filters to support mission in three dioceses of South Sudan.
GSFA recognises the special responsibility which has been entrusted to bishops for the faithfulness of the Church with plans well under way for another Bishops Formation Retreat in October. We congratulate those newly appointed to this office and assure them of our prayers; Bishop-elect of The Seychelles, Danny Elizabeth; Bishop Ashley Null, consecrated last month as Bishop of North Africa, and two new bishops consecrated on Pentecost Sunday in South Sudan, Bishop Isaac Matur Bol, as the second Bishop of the Diocese of Pacong, and Bishop Emmanuel William, Suffragan in the Diocese of Yambio.
We have also been active in seeking to defend ‘the standard of teaching’. Firstly, our Open Letter to Lord Evans, Chairman of the Crown Nominations Commission selecting the next Archbishop of Canterbury, lamented the way that the concerns of the Global South have been too often set aside and called for the appointment of an orthodox candidate who could command the trust of the Global South and all faithful Anglicans.
Secondly, significant progress has been made in responding to the IASCUFO (the Inter Anglican Standing Committee for Unity Faith Order) proposals for the future shape of the Anglican Communion. Following consultation with the GSFA’s Faith & Order Commission, a Working Group has been appointed to shape a response, and its work will include consultation with Gafcon.
Sadly, the most pressing challenge to historic Anglican teaching now comes from the ‘Mother’ Church of England itself. But we will do our best to stand with those who remain faithful, and I shall be attending a special event in London on 18th July organized by The Alliance, representing a wide range of orthodox groups within the Church of England. I am delighted that two of my brother GSFA Primates, Archbishop Samy Shehata of Alexandria and Archbishop Titus Chung of South East Asia, will be joining me for this time of fellowship and encouragement.
The recent escalation of fighting in the Middle East is yet another example of the turn to violent conflict which afflicts so many of our brothers and sisters. Please pray for the restraint of evil and for those who continue to endure civil war in DRC, Myanmar and Sudan. All of us as disciples of Christ will face adversity in some way, so let us remain united in a confident and humble trust in God’s Word and take heart as we wait upon him.
The Most Rev Dr Justin Badi Arama
Primate of the Episcopal Church of South Sudan and Chairman of GSFA
