Statement from the Diocese of Recife Standing Committee
In light of a systematic campaign of misinformation by the Brazilian Province (IEAB) at international level, and facing civil lawsuits posing a direct threat to its mission and property, following a meeting on 30th October the Diocese of Recife’s Standing Committee unanimously approved the following Document concerning its identity, dignity and rights:
“The Diocese of Recife, in its 32 year history, in spite of obstacles and adversity, has remained faithful to the Word of God and its teaching, honoring the memory and missionary vision of the pioneers of Anglicanism in Brazil. The diocese is a legitimate legal entity, registered according to Brazilian law and governed by our Social Statutes and Diocesan Canons, in a permanent participatory process involving our parishes, church plants, social projects, clergy and people (around 5,000 members).
We are recognized and respected by the State, by Civil Society and by other Christian Churches on account of our doctrine, ethics and labor, and also on account of the lifestyle of our ministers and church members. The marks of our life are honesty and transparency, (we possess no supposed “hidden agenda”).
Three years ago we came under the primatial authority of the Anglican Church of the Southern Cone of America, by the Most Reverend Gregory J. Venables, having suffered illegal acts and persecutions at the hands of the Brazilian Province. These actions culminated in the deposition of our diocesan bishop, in a politically motivated process marked by irregularities, in the ex-communication of 32 clergy by way of a summary rite with no right to defense, and by the exclusion of 95% of our members from a “Synod” irregularly convened by the Brazilian Province. The differences between the Diocese of Recife and the Episcopal Anglican Church of Brazil are very grave, being doctrinal and ethical in nature, and never limited to merely personal questions.
While we were still linked to the Brazilian Province (IEAB) we approved in our Diocesan Canons a veto on the ordination of practicing homosexuals, and heterosexuals who affirm the normality of homosexual practice, while simultaneously condemning homophobia. We also resolved to forge relationships and links exclusively with those Provinces, Dioceses, Parishes and Institutions of the Anglican Communion which uphold biblical teaching, the apostolic tradition and the resolutions of the Lambeth Conferences. The Standing Committee and bishops undersigned the “Declaration of Recife”, a document of protest against the consecration of Gene Robinson. At Lambeth 1998, of the Brazilian delegation, only Bishop Cavalcanti (Diocese of Recife) voted in favor of Resolution 1.10 on Human Sexuality, and in 2004, participated in a Confirmation Rite in Akkron, Ohio. On both these occasions the diocesan bishop received ample support from the wider diocesan leadership.
During the most difficult moments of our crisis with the Brazilian Province, in opposition to false teaching, the Diocese of Recife remained committed to firm debate in the sphere of ideas, principles and practice, never lowering the tone, and never indulging in personal attacks. However, the Brazilian Province (a direct ally of TEC ) insisted on attacks at a personal level, a diversionary tactic intended to dislocate the focus of the real issues which divide us, so as to weaken international support for us and our just cause. In Brazil and in the UK we had to hire lawyers who could file criminal charges against our defamers - those that shy away from ecclesiastical and civil courts but not from the dark terrain of malign, using to aid their cause, the institution and the visibility of their leaders. Given the historical context, the bishop of the Diocese of Recife would have come under personal attack from adversaries, regardless of who he was.
The biography of our diocesan bishop, the Right Reverend Robinson Cavalcanti is characterized by over three decades of teaching in the State university, by his numerous books, articles and lectures, and by his intense participation in the ABU (Brazilian equivalent of IFES), in the Latin American Theological Fraternity (FTL), in the Lausanne Movement, in the World Evangelical Alliance (WEF) and in EFAC. After 11 years in the episcopate, he has the right to require the appointment of Suffragon bishops to consolidate the missionary work in North East Brazil, or beyond – when special conditions and missionary necessities so demand – just as, at the right time and according to the canons and free expression of the consensus of members, there must be an election for Bishop Coadjutor.
As a diocese, we have never surrendered to the option of unlimited comprehensiveness, nor capitulated to the absolute relativism that marks the post-modern liberal revisionism of the Brazilian Province, currently in decline (with whom we have nothing in common). Neither have we accepted the attempt to force us into “continuing church” status. We are part of the Anglican Communion, part of the Global> South, partners of the Networks of the Anglican Communion in the US and Canada, partners of the Common Cause Movement, of GAFCON, signing on to the Jerusalem Declaration and the Fellowship of Confessing Anglicans, in permanent dialogue with all the orthodox expressions of Anglicanism, seeking to hear the voice of the Holy Spirit in this slow, difficult, but inevitable realignment.
Geographical and cultural distances often cause us to feel isolated and make it difficult for us to be heard and understood. We hope that Anglican leaders, and the GAFCON Primate’s Council, to whom we appeal, and particularly those who share with us the same principles, sincerity and transparency, may exercise discernment with regard to reports concerning us, so that justice may be done to our identity and dignity as we seek a stable institutional future for our diocese within the Anglican Communion.
We are now experiencing serious difficulties, given that the Brazilian Province, following the example of their allies in the USA and Canada, (though living under different juridical norms) have filed a suit against the Diocese of Recife in Pernambuco’s State court (nº.001.2008.037586-4) www.tjpe.jus.br seeking to annul our juridical identity intent on the seizure of certain key properties (including the Cathedral and the Diocesan Central Office), in which for so long we have carried out the tasks of evangelism, thus posing a direct threat to our mission and social outreach, causing consternation among our people and bringing us strife and high legal costs. We appeal, therefore, to our brothers and sisters around the globe, to our orthodox friends, for spiritual, moral and financial aid to fight this new battle, a new chapter in our suffering, in order that we might not fail in our responsibility trusted to us by the Lord of the Church in His Mystical Body”.
Recife (Brazil), October 30th, 2008
Rev. Mauricio Manoel Amazonas dos Santos, ose – President of Diocesan Standing Committee
Rev. Geison Sávio de Holanda Vasconcellos
Rev. Cláudio Luiz Figueiredo de Brito
Mr. José Luiz Clementino de Santana
Mr. Eurípedes Paus de Souza
Donations for the legal expenses for Recife, estimated initially at $20,000 may be sent to Anglican Mainstream, 21 High Street, Eynsham, OX29 4HE, UK, or by Paypal, located by clicking on the Click to Donate Button on the right hand side of the website www.anglican-mainstream.net
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