The Future of the Australian Anglican Church - with Kanishka Raffel, Richard Condie and Jennifer Hercott

The unity of the Australian Anglican Church is hanging by a thread.

Bishop of Tasmania Richard Condie, Dean of Sydney, Kanishka Raffel, and Jennifer Hercott from St Lukes Church in Emerald in Queensland all serve on the Board of GAFCON Australia, a group within the Anglican denomination - who are committed to upholding biblical and historic Christian faith, within Anglicanism

In 2019 the Wangaratta Diocese in Victoria voted to go ahead with blessing same sex unions. That decision was followed by a vote in the Diocese of Newcastle in New South Wales.

The issue was expected to come to a head at the Australian General Synod in June 2020. But COVID put everything on hold, delaying the gathering till June this year.

In the meantime different groups have offered opinions. On the one hand, the Australian Anglican Church’s House of Bishops and Board of Assessors have affirmed the historic and biblical teaching that marriage is between a man and a woman.

Whereas what’s called the Appellate Tribunal has given a majority opinion is that blessing same sex unions are acceptable.

Now, Wangaratta has moved forward. Their former bishop John Parkes has officiated at the blessing of a same sex relationship.

This issue that has previously split the Anglican Church in the United States, in Canada and in New Zealand, with whole new denominations being formed.

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