Anglicans have a good reputation for ecumenical dialogue, but this year they might find themselves participating in the events of the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity with greater interest than usual.

The Biblical theme of the week is from 1Corinthians 3.1-23: Christians in conflict ...and Christ our unique foundation ? In passage of his letter, Paul berates the Corinthians for their spiritual immaturity because they don’t know how to handle the differences which they have amongst themselves. Their church is growing, and there are many exciting developments, but they are in conflict on very many issues, and so Paul calls on them to find their unity in Christ, and to build on this unique foundation.

Although this might sound as simple and inoffensive as motherhood and apple-pie, in fact, in the context of the Corinth of the time, it was a real challenge. In the face of schools of ancient Greek philosophy and Jewish-Christian legalism, as well as a flourishing ideology of sexual permissiveness Paul set Jesus Christ as the unique foundation of the church’s life and unity. As he develops his theme Paul offers us the wonderful passages on love and on the resurrection which are amongst the most frequently quoted religious texts.

What gives all this a cutting edge for Anglicans is the dispute which has been running through the Anglican Communion since the consecration of Gene Robinson as a bishop, in the diocese of New Hampshire in the United States, followed by the Anglican Church of Canada’s decision to authorise a public rite of blessing for same sex unions. The fallout of these actions has uncovered major divisions throughout the Anglican Communion, not only between “conservatives” and “liberals”, but also between “the west” and “the global south” as well as within provinces, diocese and parishes.

Although within each province and diocese there a clear canonical mechanism for maintaining and re-inforcing unity, Anglicanism has no formal means for maintaining unity between provinces (countries), but has until now relied upon the famous “bonds of affection” and a process of regular meetings and consultations, especially the 10-yearly Lambeth Conferences of bishops. Without any means of compulsion (there is no Anglican Vatican) these processes enabled the Communion to survive the considerable tensions generated by the ordination of women as priests, and in some provinces, as bishops.

Now the Anglican Communion is digesting a 93 page report, “The Windsor Report”, from the Lambeth Commission on Communion which suggests some practical ways in which the Anglican Communion can overcome the present crisis. The report has strong theological and Biblical foundations, including 1 Corinthians, and breathes a wisdom born of long experience of tension and conflict. The Commission’s chairman is Archbishop Robin Eames of Armagh in Northern Ireland, a veteran of thirty years peacemaking. He makes no definitive judgement about the grounds of the conflict, but he does find that throughout the dispute bishops have not paid sufficient attention to the need to maintain the unity of the church, and he suggests some ways in which that could be remedied. His report points a way towards spiritual maturity for a whole Communion, so, in this Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, Anglicans have both a lot to offer others, and much which they could learn for themselves.

Chris Lyon

The Rev’d Chris Lyon is Anglican Chaplain to the English Speaking Church Community in Luxembourg.