Alternative See to Canterbury Established in Africa

 

(ZENIT News / London, 09.29.2026).- The Global Anglican Communion was launched in early March 2026, a structure created to «strengthen and support the future life and ministry» of Anglicans in response to the appointment of a woman as Archbishop of Canterbury. Months later, on August 29, the seat of the Global Anglican Communion was established in Abuja, Nigeria.

The statement announced that the decision «was made during our meeting in Recife, Brazil, on Saturday, August 22, 2026.» It notes that «Abuja already holds a significant place in our history: it was there, at the G26 gathering earlier this year, that the Abuja Statement declared that GAFCON (Global Anglican Future Conference) has reordered the Anglican Communion into a truly global Church,” a statement endorsed by the signature of its Chairman, Archbishop Laurent Mbanda.

GAFCON is a global movement of Anglicans seeking to restore the Bible to the heart of the Anglican Communion. Founded in 2008, it represents the majority of the world’s Anglicans, operates independently of the symbolic authority of the British See of Canterbury, and is united by the 2008 Jerusalem Declaration. Its mission is to protect and proclaim the Gospel of Jesus Christ through biblically faithful preaching and teaching. It represents a break with the traditional Anglican Communion, as it rejects the Instruments of Communion that formerly bound Anglican communities worldwide.

The choice of location is not accidental. Abuja is the city where, in March 2026, GAFCON met to respond to the progressive trends within the Anglican community favored by London. The meeting was attended by 347 bishops and 121 lay and clerical representatives from 27 provinces, who decided to break away.

GAFCON challenged the role of Canterbury-linked structures, aiming to represent a continuity of Anglicanism faithful to Scripture and the Reformation tradition. The new headquarters will not be merely an administrative center; the goal is for Abuja to gradually become a hub for the gathering, training, and preparation of Anglican leaders. The choice of Africa confirms the growing demographic and ecclesial weight of Anglican communities in the Global South.

This crisis reveals the tragic consequences of decisions ostensibly aimed at adapting Christian life to the mindset of the modern world; it highlights the effects of straying from the Gospel message and traditional Christian practices, such as the move toward female ordination, the adoption of a secularized lifestyle, and the undermining of the authority of legitimately and validly consecrated ministers.

As early as October 2025, the first rifts emerged following the election of Sarah Mullally, the first woman to become Archbishop of Canterbury. Subsequently, GAFCON replaced the former Council of Primates (chaired by the Archbishop of Canterbury) with a Global Anglican Council comprising primates, bishops, priests, and laity.

Decisions that lacked consensus and deeply divided the faithful have driven a radical transformation within global Anglicanism. More than merely an internal dispute, GAFCON represents a parallel structure that challenges Canterbury from within a significant portion of the Anglican world.