Excuse me for just pinching other people's blogs in lieu of writing anything of my own, but Peter Comont, my Pastor at Magdalen Road Church, has some very useful comments about GAFCON from the point of view of a non-conformist, with which I find myself in pretty much complete agreement. Have a read.
P.S. These links won't work anymore as Peter's blog isn't archived...
No comment facility on Peter's blog, so: "I simply do not see in scripture a system of bishops who rule multiple churches."
ReplyDeleteWhat about Timothy in Ephesus? It seems to me that a bishop can be responsible for churches in a particular town. I have just come back from West Africa where I've seen this model work well.
I'm not saying at all that the Anglican church fits this model, and it does open a whole swathe of questions about who it should be etc. Maybe systems like "Churches Together" aren't quite as bad as we think they are?
Hi Greg,
ReplyDeleteCan't speak for Peter, obviously, but my own take on the issue would be that Timothy is essentially part of Paul's church-planting team, and that his role is not to be a permanent one in the church.
Certainly there is a place for associations of local churches - I would be in favour of CT if they were confessionally based and didn't let in any old Tom, Dick and Harry. But I do think local congregations should retain the power of governance. For one reason why, see my quote from Barth.