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AMiA bishops quit Rwanda: The Church of England Newspaper, December 16, 2011 p 6. December 20, 2011

First printed in The Church of England Newspaper.

The American bishops of the Anglican Mission in America (AMiA) have quit the Church of the Anglican Province of Rwanda (PEAR), rejecting its discipline and oversight.

In a letter dated 5 Dec 2011, Bishop Chuck Murphy announced that the Lord “is now doing” a “new thing” and that he and all but two of the AMiA’s bishops were withdrawing from PEAR.

It is unlikely the bulk of the AMiA’s 152 congregations and its clergy will follow the bishops out of the church.  On 9 Dec Archbishop Onesphore Rwaje appointed the two loyal American bishops, the Rt. Rev. Thad Barnum and the Rt. Rev. Terrell Glenn, to oversee those who wish to remain within the Anglican Communion.

In letter dated 30 Nov Archbishop Rwaje chastised Bishop Murphy for disobedience, writing: “you have constantly disregarded the decisions and counsels of the House of Bishops” and have “misused the authority given to you by the Archbishop in advancing your new missionary society interests.”

At the Sept House of Bishops meeting, Bishop Murphy proposed changing the oversight of the AMiA from PEAR to a council of three archbishops that he would select.  The Rwandans objected to this plan and directed him to halt work until the bishops were of one mind.  However, Bishop Murphy carried on with the work announcing that the proposal would be presented to the 21 Dec meeting of the PEAR bishops for approval.

The PEAR bishops also requested a detailed accounting of funds sent to Rwanda as a tithe of the AMiA’s income after reports reached them that portions of the tithe were being spent on Rwandan related projects that had not been approved by the province.

The AMiA has responded that those portions of the funds not contributed directly to the PEAR central fund had been spent on projects authorized by Archbishop Emmanuel Kolini.   A summary was provided by the AMiA after the split, but no formal accounting of the funds has yet appeared.

However, the PEAR canons do not allow the archbishop to approve off the books transactions.  Title IV Article 17 vests control of “all accounts” of the province with three commissioners elected by the synod.”

Title I.6.10 of the Rwandan canons further obligates Bishop Murphy to “make a report” to the primate on the AMiA’s status “according to the manner established by the House of Bishops or Provincial Synod of the Province.”  His failure to comply violated the canons and was an act of disobedience the Rwandan bishops argued.

In his letter of resignation, Bishop Murphy said the AMiA was under no obligation to PEAR as there was “no covenant from the Anglican Mission to the Province.” He enumerated several areas of displeasure with the conduct of the archbishop, and added that he had come to the belief that it was God’s plan for the AMiA to quit the Anglican Communion and venture out on its own.

“I now see a parallel between the Exodus story and the present situation” with Rwanda and the AMiA.

“Things have now been made very clear to me, and I am thankful for the clarity that I now have,” he wrote, adding that “we actually see the Lord’s hand in all of this, and we are, therefore, at peace with this change and with this new reality.”

According to a statement released on behalf of the faction allied with Rwanda, the resignation will not affect the AMiA’s churches or clergy.

It is “neither an ordaining body nor a place of canonical residence. The orders of AMiA clergy are held in Rwanda. Likewise, all congregations affiliated with AMiA are resident in Rwanda.”

“The bishops who resigned from Rwandan oversight no longer have any authority over churches and clergy which are canonically resident in Rwanda. Clergy and churches may choose to disaffiliate with the Church of Rwanda, just as the resigning bishops did. But unless they do so, they remain under the oversight and spiritual care of Archbishop Onesphore Rwaje,” the statement said.

Bishop Murphy under threat of discipline: The Church of England Newspaper, December 9, 2011 p 7. December 12, 2011

Bishop Chuck Murphy - Photo: AMiA

First printed in The Church of England Newspaper.

The head of the Anglican Mission in America has been threatened with ecclesiastical discipline for contumacy.

In letter to Bishop Chuck Murphy dated 30 November 2011 under the signature of all of the members of the Rwandan House of Bishops, the AMiA leader was chastised for disobedience.

“You have constantly disregarded the decisions and counsels of the House of Bishops” and have “misused the authority given to you by the Archbishop in advancing your new missionary society interests,” the Rwandan bishops said.

At a September meeting of the Rwandan House of Bishops, Bishop Murphy proposed reorganising the AMiA – a mission outreach of the Rwandan Church to the US. Bishop Murphy proposed keeping the AMiA part of the Rwandan Church, but moving the oversight of the Pawleys Island, South Carolina, group from the archbishop to a three-man college of consultors. Bishop Murphy proposed retired archbishops Emmanuel Kolini, Moses Tay and Yong Ping Church as the first college of consultors.

The Rwandan bishops objected to the reorganization and asked Bishop Murphy to halt work on the new structure until the bishops were of one mind on the topic. However, in meetings with AMiA clergy in October, Bishop Murphy said the project was four-fifths complete, and would be presented to the 21 December 2011 meeting of the Rwandan bishops for approval.

The Rwandan bishops repeated their request to halt work on the project, and in the 30 November letter gave the US bishop an ultimatum — repent of your disobedience or go.

The letter stated Bishop Murphy had ignored two requests to halt the reorganization of the AMiA into a missionary society, and had “insulted” members of the House of Bishops “using abusive language.”

He had also “dogged questions of financial transparency” and had not yet complied with a commitment given to the Rwandan bishops in September to provide an accounting of the group’s finances.

The Rwandan bishops asked Bishop Murphy to apologize for his actions, end his moves to re-organize the AMiA, and confirm his “commitment to refocus on AMiA.”

Unless he complied with this request within seven days, the Rwanda House of Bishops would assume that he had “made a ‘de facto’ choice to withdraw as primatial vicar” of the AMiA.

A spokesman for Bishop Murphy told The Church of England Newspaper, the American leader would honour the Rwandan request.

The reorganization debate “required the [AMiA] and the Province of Rwanda to engage in substantive dialogues, and we seek to ensure that our unique cultures are in clear communication with each other,” the spokesman said.

“It has required that we listen carefully to one another in our attempts to fully understand all of the issues involved from one another’s cultural perspectives,” she noted, adding the 30 November letter was “part of that yet unfinished dialogue and it will be addressed as our Archbishop has required.”

AMiA denies resignation rumours: The Church of England Newspaper, December 2, 2011, p 6. December 2, 2011

Bishop Chuck Murphy : Photo - AMiA

First printed in The Church of England Newspaper.

The Anglican Mission in America (AMiA) has denied speculation that its chairman, Bishop Chuck Murphy, has offered to step down in the wake its dispute with its parent church, the Province of Rwanda.

On 28 November 2011, a spokesman for the AMiA told The Church of England Newspaper that a report in the Christian Post that stated Bishop Murphy was going to retire was incomplete.

The resignation of AMiA Bishop Terrell Glenn coupled with a show of no confidence in Bishop Murphy over the planned reorganisation of the American church group by the Rwandan Church had led to speculation the American leader would step down. Sources in the AMiA told CEN they also had been briefed by senior leaders that Bishop Murphy was going to retire, however, the AMiA’s spokesman stated this was incorrect.

“While Bishop Murphy has indicated for quite some time that he plans to step down as Chairman of the Anglican Mission sometime around December 2013, he has not made any ‘formal announcement’ either internally or externally,” spokesman Cynthia Brust said.

At a 27 September 2011 meeting, Bishop Murphy unveiled the reorganisation strategy to the Rwandan bishops. The new arrangement would provide stability and continuity for the Pawleys Island, South Carolina-based organisation by moving oversight from the Archbishop of Rwanda to a self-perpetuating college of consultors, led by Archbishops Emmanuel Kolini, Moses Tay and Yong Ping Chung.

Rwandan leaders told CEN that they understood that Bishop Murphy had been asked at the September meeting to halt the implementation of the planned change. However, a series of meetings was subsequently held in Pawley’s Island discussing the status of the transformation. On 31 October 2011, Archbishop Rwaje wrote to Bishop Murphy “requesting that all procedures toward the formation of the new missionary society be halted until we go through the Jerusalem moment (are of common mind).”

The Archbishop’s letter also contained a strong word of rebuke, asking Bishop Murphy to reflect on “the spirit of rebellion and lawlessness.”

Last week Bishop Murphy met with Archbishop Onesphore Rwaje of Rwanda in Washington to discuss the AMiA’s reorganisation proposal. Details of the meeting have not been released, while a January meeting has been set for the bishops to discuss the future of the AMiA.