| I expect that the bishops who are coming to the Lambeth Conference are coming with their dioceses in mind. It is an opportunity to look at issues in an open way, with a sense that they are there for their flock, as opposed to driving personal agendas.
The main focus, I hope, will be on discussing matters that will build our Communion for the good of every person who confesses that Jesus Christ is the saviour of the world, and that he came for sinners, and to set the captives free.
It is my sincere hope that an opportunity will emerge in which we as bishops will be thinking and becoming more equipped to build the body of Christ, so that it will be better able to meet the challenges of our mission in the world today. This may come through the issues surrounding theological education in the Communion, poverty in developing countries, disease, the environment, and the questions of justice in our varying jurisdictions where we lead God’s people.
The vision should be to carry out holistic ministry, so that every person may have life, and have it abundantly. Doing so will enable the concerns of the flock to be met — particularly in the areas of unemployment, governance, and the lack of accessibility to proper health care and education, all of which affect us particularly in developing countries.
Most people are worried about good governance, in which democracy should be the order of the day, and respect for the rule of law — especially those in situations where human rights are being abused, and people have no say in matters that affect them.
Many people, especially in the developing world, are concerned with the high prices and the lack of availability of food on their tables, and not having enough drugs in hospitals. So I would expect that the bishops will spend a great deal of their time and energy discussing the best way of meeting such needs in the lives of our people.
We have some situations in the diocese where I serve as a bishop, where people have only one meal a day — and most affected are our children, who are the future of every society. In our home-based care outreach programmes as a diocese we have been coming across people who are without hope because they are bed-ridden from the HIV/AIDS virus. Yet, by being with them, and extending the hand of love through food supplements, we can enable them to live longer, and see their children grow.
The bishops are people called to bring hope to the helpless, and my expectation is that those of us at Lambeth will have time to share experiences in our episcopal ministries from different parts of the world, and commit ourselves to work in order to bring sustainable results.
At the level of the Lambeth Conference, one would hope that there will be an opportunity to strengthen partnerships at every level of our church structures, and to commit to increase our capacities to answer God’s call to serve his people. We need to speak for the millions of people whose voices have been silenced by death-threats or the barrel of the gun.
This is in no way to suggest that the issue of human sexuality which has triggered such controversy should be underplayed. There is an expectation that people will engage with each other on questions of sexuality and the blessing of same-sex partnerships.
There is nothing new in the Lambeth Conference’s meeting in the climate of controversy, as this was the case in the formative years of the Church on particular theological questions. But what matters is the manner in which the controversial issues will be handled and discussed.
Lastly, but not least, we should find a way that will make all of us Anglicans around the world act responsibly towards each other, and stay faithful to the common biblical teaching, and that which keeps us together as a Church in the Anglican Communion.
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