The CAPA Primates at their meeting in Nairobi

We, at the CAPA Primates meeting in Nairobi on 14 April, had a very constructive discussion of the issues that concern our church in Africa. We are encouraged by the outcome of the meeting in which we affirmed the importance of the ownership of CAPA and furthering its development. We therefore recommended the following steps:

To work hard to develop our economic and organisational resources. To increase the financial contribution to CAPA. To develop our African theological training programme that would equip our ministers with the African spirituality that is based on the scripture.

In regard to the sexuality issues:

We continue to affirm Lambeth resolution 1.10 of 1998 and our statement of the last CAPA meeting as well as the Primates statement of October 2003.

We are committed to prayerful support for the Archbishop of Canterbury the Most Revd Dr Rowan Williams and his leadership to the Communion in this very difficult time. We also pray and support the Lambeth Commission set by him to study the appropriate actions towards those in ECUSA who ignored the Primates' warnings and violated the historical faith and order of the Church by consecrating a non-celibate openly homosexual priest as Bishop.

We appeal to the Commission to consider the serious implications of not taking strong disciplinary action against ECUSA, which will definitely tear the Communion apart and will badly affect our ecumenical and interfaith relations as a Communion.

The Primates of CAPA reaffirm the statement that was issued in September last year.

We note that some Provinces have already taken action in declaring broken Communion with ECUSA as an institution, while maintaining communion with individuals who have stayed away from the official position of ECUSA.

Some Provinces have impaired communion with ECUSA.

The Commission is requested to call ECUSA to repentance giving it a three-month period to show signs of such repentance. Failing that, discipline should be applied.

As CAPA Primates we stand firm to what we have decided that if there is no sign of repentance on the part of ECUSA, the consequences will determine the next line of action.

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