Miguel Uchoa presents the credentials of the ACB
OFFICIAL ANNOUNCEMENT: ANGLICAN CHURCH IN BRAZIL
Who we are, with whom we share, what we believe
Yesterday was an infamous day for the history of biblical and historical Christianity in Brazil. And precisely on the day we celebrated the arrival and establishment of Anglicanism in our country, which arrived here on June 1, 1890 in the bags of two young American missionaries, Lucien Lee Kinsolving and James Watson Morris: young people full of dreams and faithful to Anglican evangelism, missionary and confessional.
On that same date, 128 years later, the Anglican Episcopal Church of Brazil changed its liturgical and canonical formulas to affirm that the marriage, in this denomination, is not only between a man and a woman, but between any two people, regardless of the sex of each of them. In a nutshell, the Anglican Episcopal Church of Brazil declared its approval for homosexual marriage.
As Archbishop of the Province of the Anglican Church in Brazil and in the face of this regrettable fact, it weighs on me, and on the other bishops of our church, to avoid any misunderstanding. I have the responsibility and the need to make clear our position in opposition to this decision, as well as to clarify who we are, with whom we share our faith and in what we believe.
Who we are?
The Anglican Church in Brazil is a church of Anglican tradition, born of communities and pastors who were excommunicated from the Anglican Episcopal Church of Brazil in 2005, because they disagree with the denomination’s normalization of homosexual practice and the ordination of such people to the sacred pastoral ministry. At the time, the Diocesan Bishop Robinson Cavalcanti led his diocese in the direction of consciously agreeing to abide by Resolution 1.10 of the 1998 Lambeth Conference (a conference of all the Anglican bishops of the globe that takes place every ten years) :
RESOLUTION 1.10 – Human Sexuality This Conference:
a) recommends to the church the report of the subsection on human sexuality;
d) while rejecting homosexual practice as incompatible with the Scriptures, calls on all persons to help, in a sensitive and pastoral way, all persons, irrespective of their sexual orientation, hide irrational fear of homosexuals, violence in marriage and all banalization and commercialization of sex;
e) can not recommend the legitimacy or blessing of same-sex unions, or ordain those who are involved in same-sex unions;
f) calls on the Primates, Bishops and the Anglican Consultative Council to establish means to monitor the work done on human sexuality in the Anglican Communion and to share reports and resources among us;
We embrace this resolution in its entirety, and break relations with all Provinces, dioceses, parishes, clergy, and institutions that have decided to go the opposite way.
After that, for 14 years the Anglican Diocese of Recife functioned as a diocese without a Province to join. In 2008, hundreds of evangelical Anglican bishops and believers in the Scriptures refused to go to the Lambeth Conference because the Archbishop of Canterbury took no action on the consecration of a practicing homosexual American bishop (Gene Robinson) then living maritally with a partner. Instead, it was decided to organize the 1st Global Conference on the Future of Anglicanism (GAFCON), which later became a movement that today involves the major provinces of the Anglican Communion. Today, GAFCON is the Fraternity of Confessing Anglicans and encompasses 10 Anglican Provinces around the world. Still as a diocese, we were recognized as a legitimate Anglican church by the majority of the membership of the Anglican Communion.
On May 12, 2018, due to the growth of our Church in Brazil, we had the privilege of forming the Province of the Anglican Church in Brazil, with 3 dioceses, 74 clerics and 54 communities. Immediately, we were recognized and received in the Global South Movement, also part of the Anglican Communion.
The Anglican Church in Brazil is not recognized by the See of Canterbury as part of the “official” Anglican Communion. There are different ecclesiastical bodies of Anglican tradition and we understand that to be Anglican does not require such affiliation. For the truth, and according to the theological tendency of Canterbury, we will have to discuss a possible future affiliation with the whole church. In any case, we are now an Anglican Province recognized by the majority of the Anglican Communion.
With whom are we in comunion?
We are in communion with the Anglican world with Provinces, Dioceses, Parishes and clergy around the world. We are related, recognized, and on the same side as historic Anglicans. We are heirs to Anglicans like John Wesley, CS Lewis, J. Stott. We are partners in the mission of such men as Michael Green, JA Packer, Alister McGrath, NT Wright, Christopher Wright and others.
We maintain close relationships with ministries and evangelical leaders around the globe. In Brazil, we are also part of the Inspire Network, which involves approximately 400 churches of different denominations, in addition to maintaining a close relationship with the main evangelical churches in the country. We join with any church that believes in the New and Old Testament Scriptures as being the living Word of God.
What do we believe?
The Anglican Church in Brazil believes in the New Testament and the Old Testament as the inspired Word of God, and we have it as a rule of faith and practice, according to Article VI of the 39 articles of the Declaration of Faith of the English Reformation .
We believe that the Scriptures contain all things necessary for salvation, so that whatever is not read, nor proven by it, should not be required of any person who is believed to be an article of Faith or judged as required or necessary for salvation. And by Holy Scriptures we understand the canonical Books of the Old and New Testaments, from whose authority there was never any doubt in the Ch
We note the 39 articles of religion, mainspring of the English Reformation
We believe in personal salvation by grace and through faith, mediated exclusively by Jesus Christ as the only and sufficient savior.
We believe in the Resurrection of the body and in eternal life
We believe in the need of personal conversion for the attainment of eternal life with God
We believe in a historic, missionary and contemporary church
We believe that marriage is a sacred state, lived necessarily between a man and a woman, and what goes further we consider “anathema”
Relationship with the Episcopal Anglican Church of Brazil
Since 2005, we have no relationship with this religious institution for the above reasons and we understand that it has moved away from both the Holy Scriptures and the forms and decisions of the Anglican Communion.
For those who wish to know more about our Church and our relationships, follow links that can further clarify this reality.
Finally, we mean that we are Anglicans, we are evangelical, we are biblical, we are conservative, we are all that the Word of God, the Holy Bible, directs us to be.
Recife, June 2, 2018
Miguel Uchôa Cavalcanti
Prime Bishop of the Anglican Church in Brazil
Diocesan of Recife
Márcio Simões
Bishop of the Diocese of Vitória PE
Márcio Meira
Bishop of the Diocese of João Pessoa PB
Flavio Adair
Auxiliary Bishop of Recife
Evilásio Tenório
Auxiliary Bishop of Recife
