The Anglican Primates’ meeting in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, finished up on Monday night (maybe Tuesday morning local time) and from their final communique it appears that the conservatives of the Global South got some fairly strong wording about the situation in the Episcopal Church. The communique (section 20) does say that the Episcopal Church took the Windsor Report seriously, but still expresses concern (section 21) saying “we believe that there remains a lack of clarity
about the stance of The Episcopal Church, especially its position on the
authorisation of Rites of Blessing for persons living in same-sex unions.”  The communique goes on in sections 23 and 24 to say:

23. Further, some of us believe that Resolution B033 of the 75th General Convention does not in fact give the assurances requested in the Windsor Report.

24. The response of The Episcopal Church to the requests made at Dromantine has not persuaded this meeting that we are yet in a position to recognize that The Episcopal Church has mended its broken relationships.

The primates also recognized that there are churches and groups in the Episcopal Church that would like alternate oversight but upheld the status of the Presiding Bishop.  They did say that they will work with the Episcopal Church to try to lessen the divisions. They also said that an urgent need exists for “those of us who have lost trust in The Episcopal Church need to be re-assured that there is a genuine readiness in The Episcopal Church to embrace fully the recommendations of the Windsor
Report.”

Reaction to the meeting:

From the Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams, excerpts from his comments:

Hence the recommendations of the Primates at the end; a proposal to
establish a pastoral council; a responsibility shared between the Primates’ Meeting and the Presiding Bishop, asking those bishops who have already offered to take up this responsibility to provide pastoral care within The Episcopal Church for the conscientious minority and a challenge to both sides really, a challenge to The Episcopal Church to clarify its position; a challenge also to those who have intervened from elsewhere to see if they can negotiate their way towards an equitable settlement within the life of the North America Church.

You’ll notice that we also suggested, to pick up an unfortunate metaphor that’s been around quite a bit, the kind of ceasefire in terms of litigation. At the very end of the recommendations you’ll see that the very last paragraph that the primates urge representatives of The Episcopal Church and of those congregations in property disputes with it, to suspend all actions in law arising from this situation, None of us; none of us believe that litigation and counter litigation can be a proper way forward and we don’t see that we can move towards sensible balanced reconciliation while that remains a threat in wide use.

From Presiding Bishop Jefferts Schori:

(Anglican Communion Web Site Article)

The next steps are really for the Episcopal Church to receive it, for the House of Bishops to respond in ways that they’ve been asked. The House of Bishops meets in a few weeks and it will be an opportunity for us to begin to engage and discuss the possibilities.

Be of good faith. We’re entering Lent and there’s probably not a better time for us to receive this communiqué from the Primates’ Meeting. It will be hard news for a number of members of this Church; it will be welcome news for other members of this Church. This is a season to remember who is the focus of our faith and it is not we ourselves.

(Episcopal News Service Press Release)

“It is clear that despite the subcommittee report, a number of the Primates were unhappy with General Convention’s response, and clarification of that response is among the Primates’ requests of the Episcopal Church,”

The Primates in their meeting studied a draft of an Anglican Covenant that many in their comments pointed to as a way forward in this controversy providing a common framework of belief.  This document in many ways resembles a set of what the Presbyterians are now calling “essential tenets.”