Anglican Church splits into two over disagreements, conservatives inaugurate new governing council in Abuja

Global Orthodox Anglican leaders have formally announced a major restructuring within the Anglican Communion, signalling a decisive split from the leadership of the Archbishop of Canterbury and the UK-based “Instruments of Communion”.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the development marks the culmination of long-standing disagreements over doctrinal matters, including same-sex relationships and the ordination of women as bishops.
Conservative churches from Africa, Asia and South America are now taking steps to reclaim what they describe as the original structure and biblical doctrine of Anglicanism.
The decision was contained in a resolution issued on Friday in Abuja at the end of the Global Anglican Council meeting held between March 3 and March 6.
The historic gathering brought together 347 bishops alongside 121 lay and clerical leaders representing 27 provinces from different parts of the world.
According to the statement, the meeting formally inaugurated the Global Anglican Communion as a confessional body that is separate from the institutional structures headed by Canterbury.
The council, now led by newly elected Chair Archbishop Laurent Mbanda, stated that the “Canterbury Instruments” had failed to uphold essential biblical discipline.
Specifically, the leaders said the Archbishop of Canterbury and the Lambeth Conference could no longer be regarded as the spiritual anchors of the global Anglican faith.
The statement also accused the leadership of the Church of England of “cultural capitulation” and of promoting teachings that contradict the authority of Holy Scripture.
“The moral and spiritual authority of the Seat of Augustine has been severely compromised,” the council said in the resolution made available to NAN.
The leaders further argued that continuing to attend Canterbury-led meetings would give legitimacy to what they described as the “lie” that unity can exist with those who have abandoned biblical teaching.
As part of the resolutions, officials of the new Global Anglican Communion are now strictly prohibited from attending any future Primates’ Meetings convened by the United Kingdom.
The restriction also covers participation in the Lambeth Conference and the Anglican Consultative Council (ACC), which have traditionally served as key pillars of the denomination.
Member provinces have also been instructed to halt all financial contributions to the ACC and to reject financial assistance from what the council described as “compromised sources.”
The statement added that, in order to ensure legal autonomy, provinces were encouraged to amend their individual constitutions to remove references indicating they are “in communion with the See of Canterbury”.
“The council affirmed the Jerusalem Declaration as the only confession of faith required for membership, effectively shifting the definition of Anglicanism from institutional to confessional.
“A major administrative change was also announced as the ‘Gafcon Primates Council’ was officially replaced by the Global Anglican Council.
“This new body will now serve as the main authority responsible for authenticating new provinces and safeguarding the theological integrity of Global Anglicans worldwide.”
The council also unveiled its inaugural executive team, with Archbishop Laurent Mbanda serving as Chair, supported by Deputy Chair Archbishop Miguel Uchôa and General Secretary Bishop Paul Donison.
Despite the major shift, the council insisted that the move should not be seen as the formation of a breakaway group but rather as the “historic Anglican Communion reordered from within”.
The statement nevertheless called on faithful Anglicans around the world to align with the new structure, stressing that Christian unity must be grounded in truth rather than institutional coexistence.
NAN also reports that the Church of Nigeria, led by Archbishop Henry Ndukuba, has already formally cut ties with the Church of England, describing the current direction of its leadership as “insensitive and devastating” to orthodox faith. (NAN, excluding headline)