Bishop of new Orthodox Anglican Church in Nigeria says the name Anglican is for all

Bishops of Orthodox Anglican Church in Nigeria

The Lagos mainland Bishop-elect of a new church, Orthodox Anglican Church in Nigeria which has its root in the US, The Revd. Funso Awe has said the Church of Nigeria, Anglican Communion has no monopoly over the name Anglican..

The Rt. Revd Awe who spoke with Church Times on phone, today April 2 explained that the church which just elected him Missionary Bishop of Diocese of Lagos Mainland has been in Nigeria since August 2011.

The Church of Nigeria, Anglican Communion had in a statement signed by the Primate of the Church, Most. Rev Henry Ndukuba, Registrar of the Church, Abraham Yisa and General Secretary of the Church, Ven. Paul Dajur dismissed the existence of the church stating that it would institute a legal action against it.

The church stated that all the bishops of the Orthodox Anglican Church in Nigeria are not members of the Church of Nigeria Anglican Church.

The statement noted that the Church of Nigeria (Anglican Communion) is registered under the companies and allied matters acts and the Trade Marks Act saying all necessary legal action will be taken against the infringement.

The Revd. Awe however dismissed the press statement saying the Orthodox Anglican Church International started operation in the US in 1964. He said the church broke out of the Episcopal Church of the Anglican Church in the US and has been operating independently since then. The Primate of the Church is Thomas E. Gordon.

Awe who was a priest in the Church of Nigeria, Anglican Communion retired voluntarily from the church in November 2019. He said he had nothing to do with the Church of Nigeria again wondering why the church came up with such statement.

Awe had also vied for the governorship seat in the 2019 elections in Lagos. He said the name Anglican is not a monopoly of the Church of Nigeria because it’s an English word. “If they are going by the use of the name, then the Church of Nigeria should not be bearing the name Anglican, because it also broke away from the Anglican Episcopal Church in the US because of the gay issue.

Awe stated that he had never claimed to be a Bishop in the Church of Nigeria, Anglican Communion since he voluntarily retired last November wondering why the church should put out a disclaimer.

According to him the name Anglican, like the name apostolic is a generic name. There are several Churches with the name Anglican on the global front the same way we have churches with the name Apostolic. So there is no basis for the press statement from the Church of Nigeria. We are not claiming we are Church of Nigeria. The name is distinct. It is Orthodox Anglican Church in Nigeria so I do know how that affects the Church of Nigeria Anglican Communion.

He told our correspondent that the former Primate of the Church of Nigeria Anglican Communion, The Most Rev Nichola Okoh had taken the church to court restraining it from using the name when the church first came to Nigeria. “That was why we first registered as Orthodox Gospel Church. But in court it was discovered that the Anglican Church could not produce its CAC certificate which has Anglican on it. The court even had to fine the Anglican Church N100,000 at the end of the day. So we could not register ours too as Orthodox Anglican Church in Nigeria and had to use Orthodox Gospel Church in Nigeria.  But we have the International registration certificate which we now use. That one has the name Anglican.

Findings on the internet indicates that the Orthodox Anglican Church was established in 1964 in South Carolina, USA, when Bishop Parker Dees and a group of Episcopalian ministers rose against the Episcopal Church USA (ECUSA), leading to the break away from the Canterbury-based church.

Their complaints include ECUSA’s liberalism and secularism; frequent review and watering down of the Book of Common Prayer, remarriage of divorced persons; ordination of women as bishops and priests; amendment of the Scriptures, contrary to Rev. 22: 18-19; tribalism, especially in Africa; worldliness; clericalism-rule by the clergy; and prelacy – emergence of powerful clergy ruling the Church.

In 1967, the church was registered as a world-wide communion. This answers the question frequently asked as to the difference between the OAC and Canterbury based churches. OAC decided to go back to the basics of true Anglicanism.

Apostolic succession

Orthodox Anglican Communion believes in the preservation of the episcopate in apostolic succession as well as the faith, worship, the teaching of traditional Anglicanism and historical Christianity. It is also known as the Anglican Continuum or Traditionalist Anglicanism, i.e. it believes in the traditional forms of Anglican faith and worship from which the Canterbury churches have deviated in recent decades.

The continuing church encompasses a number of Christian churches in various countries that are Anglican in faith, history and practice while remaining outside the Canterbury Anglican Communion. These churches believe that the traditional forms of Anglicanism have been revised or abandoned by some Anglican Communion churches. The continuing churches, therefore, say that they are continuing or representing Anglicanism’s line of apostolic succession, beliefs and practice.

Orthodox Anglican Communion exists in America – USA, Puerto Rico, Brazil, Honduras, Mexico, Venezuela. In Africa, Orthodox Anglican is found in Nigeria, Ghana, Ethiopia, D. R. Congo, South Africa, Kenya, Uganda, Madagascar, Cameroun, Tanzania and Rwanda. It also exists in Asia, Europe and Australia.

Entry into Nigeria

In August 2011, Orthodox Anglican Communion was founded when contact was made with the headquarters by Rt. Rev. C. I. Umane. Eventually, the Diocese of Benin was created during the Synod in Lagos on September 24, 2011. Umane was consecrated as Bishop of Benin Diocese on October 30, 2011.

The Orthodox Gospel Church of Nigeria Int. was registered on September 18, 2012. On January 25, 2015, Umane was presented as Archbishop. At the ceremony, two Dioceses, i.e. Edo North-Central and Diocese of the East, were created.

Doctrine of the church

The Archbishop and Metropolitan, Primate of all Orthodox Anglican Church (OAC) Worldwide and The Archbishop Province of Nigeria

The church claims to “uphold the biblical worldwide thought and practice in the Book of Common Prayer, followed by the historic Creeds and Articles of Religion.

“We are connected to the original vision of the Anglican reformation, a return to the doctrine and practice of the early Christian Church without Roman additions or Protestant subtractions,

“The Orthodox Anglican Communion is both Catholic (universal) and Evangelical, giving rise to the classification of Orthodox Anglicanism as the Via Media i.e. the ‘middle way’ between Catholicism and Protestantism. Catholicism Christianity denotes the entire body of Christians. Evangelical Christianity is based on the gospels; more particularly the gospel which emphasizes personal conversion and faith in the atonement through the death and resurrection of Christ as a means of salvation.

“We also subscribe to the Lambert Quadrilateral of 1830 as the non-reformable points of the doctrine of Orthodox Anglican Communion.

“We accept the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments as the revealed word of God, containing all things necessary for salvation, and being the rule and ultimate standard of faith.

“We accept the Nicene Creed as the ‘Symbol of the faith’ and the Apostles Creed as the baptismal; with the Athanasian Creed as an exposition of the doctrine of Trinity. We accept the two sacraments, Baptism and Holy Communion.

“We accept the Historic Episcopate as essential to the ministry of Christ’s Church, adapted locally to the varying needs of the people of God around the world.

“The Orthodox Anglican Communion is ‘Biblical Catholicism’, meaning that of the three great historic branches of the Church, namely Catholic Anglican, Eastern, and Roman, Orthodox Anglican Communion is the only one based upon the revelation of God in the Holy Scriptures. To the Orthodox Anglican Communion, the Scriptures are inviolate and immutable.

“The Orthodox Anglican Communion is a biblically based faith, adhering to the word of God, thus separating it from the Eastern and Roman Communion which have introduced human-made doctrines into the Church.

“We believe in the genuine spiritual power of the sacraments. We believe in the power of God to heal the sick and broken-hearted. We believe that loyalty to our Lord Jesus Christ is expressed by service to our fellow men and women. We believe in the inward spiritual development and the outward amendment of life of every Christian. We stand by the biblical faith and morality. We believe that marriage is a sacred bond between man and woman, thus rejecting gay practices including same-sex marriage; described as an abomination. We believe seriously in prayers and supplication

“The traditional books of worship are the Book of Common Prayer and King James Authorized Version of the Bible.

“We reject secularism and liberalism which run against the traditional beliefs of the Church, watering down of the essential truths of the gospel, the election of women into the episcopate. Orthodox Anglican Communion is seriously opposed to the appointment of gay priests, gay bishops and same-sex marriage.

“The Orthodox Anglican Communion believes in two sacraments of Baptism and Holy Communion because they were ordained by our Lord Jesus Christ, and are necessary for salvation. Others such as marriage, ordination, confirmation, penance, orders and extreme unction are not counted as sacraments because not everybody is expected to be involved in them, and are not necessary for salvation.

“The Orthodox Anglican Communion does not believe in transubstantiation, that is, the Holy Communion elements of bread and wine actually turned into the real body and blood of Jesus Christ at the consecration.

“The Orthodox Anglican Communion bishops trace their consecration back to the Holy Apostles and thence from our Lord Jesus Christ.

“Finally, OAC has received hostility, the campaign of calumny, pure hatred, court cases (pending) and accusation of gayism (pure lies as can be seen from our belief system etc). OAC does not hate anybody, personalities or organizations. What we ask for from rival churches, especially from the Anglican Church Nigeria, is to join hands with us to evangelize, bring back Anglicans in Diaspora (Anglicans who left Anglican churches). They are in millions. We forgive our detractors in the spirit of Jesus Christ. Let us rise up and built the church of God (Neh.2: 17 – 18).

Story by Gbenga Osinaike