As reported in the Anglican Journal, the Anglican Church of Canada’s Archbishop Fred Hiltz has urged Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby to form an agenda for the upcoming Primates meeting in London that “reflects not only concerns within the domestic life of the church, but around the urgent issues within our common humanity.”
While Hiltz acknowledged that issues around same-sex marriages will be an important topic of conversation at the meeting, he said he has encouraged Welby to make sure that the meeting’s agenda tackles important issues affecting the church and the world.
Earlier, Hiltz identified poverty, the global refugee crisis and climate change as key concerns for churches.
In an interview with the Anglican Journal, Hiltz said he was pleased with how receptive Welby was to this message. “He’s very open to that, and he said that a lot of the primates are calling for an agenda that reflects both.”
Hiltz also said that after his meeting with Welby, he came away “encouraged by his [Welby’s] clarity in terms of what the Primates’ Meeting is and what it’s not.”
The Primates’ Meeting “is not a decision-making body—it’s a body for people that come together to pray and discuss and discern and offer some guidance. We don’t make resolutions,” Hiltz said.