The House of Bishops of the Episcopal Church of South Sudan and the Sudan have voted to sever ties with the Episcopal Church of the USA and have asked their primate to recognize in its place the Anglican Church in North America

The House of Bishops of the Episcopal Church of South Sudan and the Sudan have voted to sever ties with the Episcopal Church of the USA and have asked their primate, the Most Rev. Daniel Deng Bul to recognize in its place the Anglican Church in North America. In a communique released at the close of their 25-28 Nov 2015 meeting in Juba, the Sudanese bishops said the June decision by the General Convention of the Episcopal Church to authorize rites for the blessing of same-sex marriages placed the Episcopal Church beyond the boundaries of fellowship. “In our view such innovations are not in conformity with the Scriptures,” the bishops wrote. The break with the Episcopal Church is not complete, however, as the Sudanese church continued to recognize and support those dioceses in the Episcopal Church that had rejected the innovation. The November vote by the Sudanese House of Bishops follows a decision taken earlier this year by the Kenyan General Synod to break with the Episcopal Church over the issue of same-sex marriage. In their communique, the bishops encouraged Sudanese Anglicans living in the United States to leave congregations affiliated with the Episcopal Church in liberal dioceses and join the Anglican Church in North America. The Primate of the ACNA, the Most Rev. Foley Beach, thanked the Sudanese church for its mark of confidence. “Despite the ravages of war and the suffering of their people, they are courageously committed to standing on the historic teachings of the Bible and Anglican Church. I look forward to deepening our partnership for the cause of Jesus Christ.”