Dear brothers and sisters in Christ,

Greetings to you in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord.

Today we mark the first anniversary of the historic Martyrs’ Day Statement, issued by the Gafcon Primates Council when we met in Sydney, Australia, on 16 October last year.

On that day we announced that “the future has arrived,” and that “we have not left the Anglican Communion; we are the Anglican Communion.”

I give thanks to God for all that has happened in the year since. 

At our G26 Conference in Abuja in March, we gave further shape to the Global Anglican Communion and established our new conciliar leadership.

Some have accused us of schism, but we reject that charge. The English Reformers did not see themselves as leaving the Church, but reforming it through a return to the Scriptures.

Today, on Martyrs’ Day, we especially remember Hugh Latimer and Nicholas Ridley, who gave their lives for that Reformation. 

Their courage reminds us that faithfulness to Jesus Christ and his Word can come at great cost.

True Christian unity can never be separated from truth. Jesus prayed that his people might be one, but also prayed, “Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth” (John 17:17).

We have not chosen truth instead of unity. We seek unity in Christ and in his truth.

This is why the Abuja Affirmation calls our leaders to “principled disengagement” from Canterbury-led structures which have turned away from the clear teaching of Scripture.

The time for institutional negotiations with the Canterbury-led structures has passed. Our task now is to build for the future God has given us.

I call on faithful Anglicans around the world to join us in the Global Anglican Communion, so that together we may give visible expression to our unity in Jesus Christ and his Word.

Next week, the Global Anglican Council will meet in Kigali, Rwanda, to continue building the structures needed to support our Global Anglican Communion. 

I ask you to pray for us in this important work.

Please also pray for a significant increase in financial support, so that we can build the infrastructure needed to serve our growing Communion.

As we mark this anniversary, would you consider becoming a regular financial partner in this ministry, or making a special one-off gift to mark this historic occasion? 

I’d like to give a special gift to the Global Anglican Communion

Your support will help us serve churches across the world as we work together to build Christ’s Church as we proclaim the gospel to the nations.

Yours in Christ,

The Most Revd Dr Laurent Mbanda
Chairman of the Global Anglican Council
Friday 16 October 2026