 Kairos Journal honors primates of the Global South By Parker T. Williamson The Layman Online Wednesday, September 14, 2005 NEW YORK – Kairos Journal, an online resource for pastors and church leaders that is received by readers in more than 80 countries, named four Anglican archbishops as recipients of its prestigious Kairos Journal Award. The award, presented on Sept. 8, gives international recognition to persons who demonstrate "exemplary fidelity to the authority of Scripture and exceptional pastoral courage in their efforts to restore the prophetic voice of the Church as the moral conscience of culture." The four recipients of Kairos Journal's award are: Henry Luke Orombi, archbishop of the Province of Uganda; Datuk Young Ping Chung, archbishop of the Province of South East Asia; Gregory Venables, archbishop of the Southern Cone of America; and Peter Jasper Akinola, archbishop of the Province of All Nigeria. The Kairos vision
The four archbishops represent Anglicans in the "Global South," countries in Africa, Asia and South America where the church is growing exponentially. These areas were once missionary territory for churches of the "Global North," primarily the United States and Great Britain. Although having been known as mission churches in the South, they are now vigorous missionary churches, spearheading a powerful evangelistic thrust into their respective regions. Often, they face entrenched resistance and persecution from those who do not know Jesus Christ. Yet, their suffering has only made their convictions stronger. 'Uppity archbishops' Ironically, at the same time that these young churches express such passion for the gospel, the denominations that introduced them to the gospel seem no longer certain about it. Increasingly, denominations in the North have become institutions of their cultures, living off enormous endowments that were created by faithful forebears, and changing their mindset from mission to maintenance. Denominations in the North are funding their Global South progeny with increasing reluctance because of what they regard as uppity "adolescence" from recipients of their largesse. Criticized by the archbishops of Nigeria, Uganda, Southeast Asia and South America for its departure from Scripture and its accommodation to the decadence of its culture, the Episcopal Church (USA) is asking, "Just who do they think they are to bite the hand that feeds them?" Kairos Journal apparently thinks that these "uppity archbishops" are very special indeed. Assaulted by Islamic extremists in Africa, militant opponents in South East Asia, and culturally entrenched establishments in South America, these church leaders are standing firm for the gospel, wondering as they face vitriolic opposition why those who brought the gospel to them are flagging in the faith. Heroes of the Faith: Henry Luke Orombi
In 2004, Orombi faced a crisis on a different front, as the Episcopal Church (USA) defied Biblical faith by enthroning as bishop a man who had left his wife and children to enter a homosexual partnership. Orombi publicly opposed this action, severed relations with the "apostate" Episcopal Church, refused to take communion with Episcopal President Frank Griswold, and declined to accept any mission money from the U.S. denomination. Later, when the pastors of three Episcopal churches in California were disciplined for refusing to obey their liberal bishop, Orombi asked one of his bishops to give oversight to the California priests. This "invasion" provoked an uproar from the Episcopal establishment. Orombi responded, "We are committed to those of the Episcopal Church (USA) who are committed to Scripture and love Jesus Christ as Lord. For us in Uganda, we say this without fear." In his acceptance speech at the Kairos Journal award ceremony, Orombi said, "The church of Uganda will not say yes to sin, even if we are persecuted for it. We understand persecution because our church is the product of fire. On the shores of Lake Victoria, a tribal king fed our young men to the fire because they would not succumb to his sexual advances. These men believed King Jesus is more powerful than the king of Uganda. Every June, we remember them for standing firm in the gospel." Orombi said his people remember another fire, in 1935, when the fires of revival swept across their country. "At first, the revival fire was resisted by leaders with collars, but the lay people would not be stopped and the clergy finally succumbed. Last month, we commemorated that revival." "Then," continued Orombi, "we faced persecution under Idi Amin from 1971 to 1979. We preached the gospel, and we were not afraid … You also must not be afraid when voices of your culture go against you. We encourage you to be faithful. Together, we know the way of the cross. Jesus Christ died, but he also lives, and we are duty bound to remain faithful to that living Lord. To God be the glory." Heroes of the Faith: Datuk Yong Ping Chung
Yong received his B.A. degree from Memorial University of Newfoundland and his L.Th. from Queen's College. He is a principal figure in worldwide Anglicanism and the ecumenical movement, and is featured in Michael Green's book about the phenomenal growth in the Province of South East Asia, Asian Tigers for Christ. In his Kairos Journal award acceptance speech, Yong said his province encompasses nine nations and 450 million people of whom Christians comprise a small minority. In his country of residence, Malaysia, only eight percent are Christian. "We have faced war, pestilence, and natural destruction," he said, remembering most recently the deadly tsunami that devastated his people. "Many struggle to be set free from the bondage of fear caused by these things, but we know that they cannot truly be free without Jesus. He frees us from the fear of death." "There are many pressures from our culture that tell our people not to accept Jesus. If you accept Jesus, you are regarded as a traitor. You are disowned by your family and ostracized by your community. We have to pay a price to be Christian, so we do not take the faith lightly. It is very important for us to know what we believe and whom we are following. To be a Christian is a matter of life or death – eternal life or death. We see many people die without Jesus Christ, and they go to Hell. It is not easy in our land, but we have a great urgency to share the gospel with them. We cannot let them die without Christ." "We have many stumbling blocks to prevent us from sharing the gospel," continued Yong, "but the greatest stumbling block does not come from our land. The problem for us is that the very church that brought us the gospel is now telling us that Jesus is not the only way, the only truth and the only life. Sin is out of fashion in your church. You say 'only fundamentalists insist on that.' You say there is no such thing as sin because 'God so loved the world,' and if God loves you, you can do whatever makes you happy … " "This makes our witness very difficult," said Yong, "and many people in our land are confused. The gospel that you brought to us so long ago set us free from our sin. But what you are telling us now enslaves us to sin. You cannot interpret the Word of God by the things of this world. We must take the things of this world and make them conform to the Word of God." Looking out over his New York audience, Yong said, "I know that you are here because you are contending for the faith in your own land. You came here to honor us, but I believe you are the real heroes. You are standing for God in your difficult culture. I want to encourage you with the words of Isaiah that encourage my people: 'Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine. When you pass through the waters I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through fire, you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you. For I am the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior'" (Isaiah 43:1-3). Heroes of the Faith: Gregory James Venables
Highly respected by other primates, Venables has been at the forefront of the stand for Biblical Christianity in modern Anglicanism. He serves on the Ekklesia Primates Council, and has demonstrated an insightful grasp of the impact of postmodernism on the church and how the power of the gospel remains undiminished. In his introduction of Venables, theologian Os Guinness made note of the fact that Venables had taken Rev. Frank Griswold to task publicly for his participation in the enthronement of Bishop V. Eugene Robinson. Guinness quoted Venables' letter to Griswold: "You have done what you had no right to do …" Venables reflected and expanded on that statement during his acceptance speech, saying that Griswold had not only offended the worldwide Anglican Communion, but the very gospel itself. Venables said, "During a visit to northern Argentina recently, I met with Indian leaders who were troubled about these things that were happening in the Episcopal Church (USA) and Canada. One of them asked, 'When did these people stop following Jesus?' I thought it was a very good question to ask. I had to tell them that many in the North have abandoned the gospel." "This abandonment was a long time coming," continued Venables. "At the end of the 19th century, church leaders began to turn away from the Word of God. They believed that man had come of age and could rely on his own experience. This is a trick of the devil. Man has always believed that he is "modern," but Hebrews 2:1 warns us to pay attention to what we have heard, so we will not drift away into what we feel." Human experience, he said, is a blind guide: "Without the Bible, we cannot hope to know the Word of God." Venables also issued a warning to Christians who have maintained their belief in Biblical truth: "What has gone wrong with the orthodox, conservative, Biblical church of our time?" he asked. "Feeling threatened by liberalism, it has turned inward, consolidated, closed the doors and windows, stopped doing mission. The church cannot be just a club whose task is to keep doctrine pure. It is that, but it must be much more. It must go out." Venables recognized that going out into the world is a risky business, but that is what the gospel is all about. "It is only when you go out that you have no option but to trust in the Lord Jesus Christ," he said. "The major work of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost was driving the people out of that building and into the streets to tell others about Jesus. Then the Lord sent persecution, and that drove them further out. You cannot sit comfortably in your North American homes while people are dying without Jesus. Until you've got nothing to rely on but Jesus, you will never know his power." Venables said that his people in the Global South are committed to going out with the gospel, and that includes bringing the gospel to the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom where it has been abandoned. "That is our going out," he said, "but you must go out as well." Heroes of the Faith: Peter Jasper Akinola
Returning to Nigeria in 1989, he was consecrated a bishop and proceeded to build his Abuja Diocese into prosperous self-reliance with investments in the hospitality industry and in the Nigerian money market. Within his diocese, he established twelve nursery/primary schools and two secondary schools. He was elected primate and metropolitan of All Nigeria in the year 2000, and began immediately moving the church toward self-reliance. In his introduction of Archbishop Akinola, theologian J. I. Packer said: "Islam is on the march in Africa today. It is penetrating Christian communities in the South, determined to claim them as Muslim territories. Under Archbishop Akinola's strong leadership, the Province of All Nigeria has proven itself determined to meet this threat to the gospel. This man is a man of unqualified courage, standing firm for our Lord Jesus Christ." Appointed in 2002 as the chairman of the Global South (Anglican Communion) and chairman of the Conference of Anglican Provinces in Africa (CAPA) in 2003, Akinola has emerged as a leading spokesman for Biblical orthodoxy in the midst of the Anglican Communion's theological crises. He has been fearless in contending with Griswold and Archbishop of Canterbury, Rowan Williams, over their failure to uphold the Church's historic stand on sexual morality. In his remarks upon receiving the Kairos Journal award, Akinola said, "We are offered many choices in this life. Just this morning, a waitress asked me, 'How do you want your egg?' I thought, an egg is an egg. We are grateful just to have an egg. We have too many choices to make." Akinola then reflected on the fact that some choices are more serious than others. In fact, he said, some choices are "deadly choices." One of those deadly choices, he said, is between the call of Christ and the call of culture. "God has called us to preach Christ, and Christ alone," he said. "We must repent of our choosing to follow the world, and we must ask God to give us the grace to obey him in every aspect of our life." Following a standing ovation and receipt of the award that included a $25,000 gift to each of their ministries, Archbishop Orombi told the audience that while he was waiting in the Lagos Airport in Nigeria for his flight to New York, a fellow traveler inquired as to the purpose of his trip. "I'm going to New York for dinner," he replied. "It was a long flight for dinner," Orombi said, "but I am very glad that we made it." Kampouris expressed his thanks to God for the witness of the four men and the intention of the Kairos Journal to lift them up before the worldwide church as models of Christian discipleship. |
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