Rev. Xu Xiaohong, chairman of the National Committee of TSPM, led a Chinese delegation to attend the first assembly of the Global South Fellowship of Anglican Churches (GSFA) in Egypt.
The first assembly of GSFA was held in Egypt from June 11 to 15, with the participation of 200 Anglican leaders from 40 countries, including 13 current provincial leaders, 44 bishops, 46 clergy, and 36 lay leaders. The conference, themed “I Will Make You As A Light To The Nations,” aimed to inspire Christians in varied countries to more firmly undertake the mission of spreading the gospel, uphold the orthodox doctrine, defend the pure gospel, and adhere to traditional Christian values.
Rev. Xu Xiaohong, as a special guest, delivered a speech at the opening ceremony, praising the assembly for its theme, “I Will Make You As A Light To The Nations,” said CCC&TSPM. Xu appreciated the longstanding friendly and close interactions between the Church in China and the Global South Anglicans, sharing the experiences of promoting Christianity in the Chinese context and adhering to the “three-self” course of self-preaching, self-governing, and self-supporting. He also mentioned that the common Christian faith worldwide takes root in their respective national cultures and social contexts, drawing nourishment from local cultures and constantly rejuvenating.
During the conference, the delegation from CCC&TSPM was received by several leaders of the Global South Anglicans, including Justin Badi Arama, primate of South Sudan and chair of GSFA; Samy Shehata, primate of Alexandria and deputy chair of GSFA; Mouneer Anis, former hair of GSFA and former bishop of Egypt; and Titus Chung, primate of South East Asia and Honorary Secretary General of GSFA.
Later, they exchanged views with church leaders from many African countries.
Besides Rev. Xu Xiaohong, the Chinese delegation included Deputy President Geng Weizhong of CCC, Chairman Li Yungen of Jiangxi TSPM, and Deputy General Secretary of Guangzhou CC. They visited the Bible Society of Egypt, which expressed admiration and appreciation for the development achievements of the Chinese church under the religious freedom policy, with hope for to further promote cultural exchange and cooperation between the two countries in the future.
“Through this visit and exchange, the delegation witnessed the achievements of the GSFA in realizing church autonomy through localization and self-reliance principles. It further strengthened their determination to build independent and self-reliant churches in China and adhere to the direction of the sinicization of Christianity,” said CCC&TSPM.
