Anglican Church of the Southern Cone of America

Iglesia Anglicana del Cono Sur de America

Primate	Héctor Zavala Muñoz
Territory	Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Paraguay, Peru and Uruguay
Anglicanism Portal

The Anglican Church of the Southern Cone of America (Spanish: Iglesia Anglicana del Cono Sur de América) is the ecclesiastical province of the Anglican Communion that covers the countries of Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Paraguay, Peru and Uruguay.

Formed in 1981, as of 30 November 2007, the province reported 22,000 members. Its members in South America are thinly spread, making it one of the smaller provinces in the Anglican Communion in terms of numbers, although one of the largest in geographical extent.

Background before 1981

During the 19th century, immigrants to South America brought Anglicanism with them(Milmine p.8). In Britain a voluntary Anglican society was formed in 1844 [1] to evangelize the inhabitants of Tierra del Fuego. This later became The South American Mission Society (SAMS) and extended its activities the Araucanian regions of Chile and the Chaco. It still plays an important place in the life of the church. The first Diocese was established in 1869 as the Diocese of the Falkland Islands and the rest of South America excepting British Guyana with its Bishop resident in Buenos Aires.(Milmine p.11) Despite its title, the diocese's effective territory was restricted to the Southern Cone plus Peru and Bolivia; Brasil and the more northern Spanish-speaking countries being effectively under the wing of the Episcopal Church of the USA.(Milmine p.9) As the church and its mission grew, it was divided as the work grew and missionary bishops were appointed to smaller dioceses. Until 1974, these missionary dioceses were under the metropolitical oversight of the Archbishop of Canterbury and then for seven years under an ad hoc Council known by the acronym CASA (Consejo Anglicano de Sud América)(Milmine p.16) which also had Brazilian members.

History

In 1981 the five dioceses of Argentina (including Uruguay), Northern Argentina, Peru & Bolivia, Chile, and Paraguay came together to form the Province of the Southern Cone. Uruguay became an independent diocese in 1988(Milmine p.48) and Bolivia some years later. The province is distinguished by a conservative approach to the interpretation of biblical texts.

In 2003, after the consecration of Gene Robinson, the first openly gay, partnered bishop within the Anglican Communion, as Bishop of New Hampshire in the Episcopal Church in the United States of America, the Province of the Southern Cone severed its relationship with the Episcopal Church in the United States. The Church of the Province of the Southern Cone subsequently, and controversially, extended ecclesiastical jurisdiction to conservatives departing from the Episcopal Church, but living within its geographical authority. This schism remains unresolved.

In November 2010, after the Provincial Synod that took place in Argentina, Bishop Héctor Zavala Muñoz, Diocesan Bishop of Chile, was elected as Primate, making him the first South American Primate of this Province.

Dioceses

Diócesis de Argentina (Diocese of Argentina)

• Diocesan bishop — The Most Reverend Gregory James Venables

appointed 2002, born 1949

• Link dioceses — Diocese of Sheffield and Episcopal Diocese of Virginia

Diócesis de Argentina Norte (Diocese of Northern Argentina)

• Diocesan bishop — vacant at present, under the primate Bishop Gregory James Venables
• Assistant bishop — Reverend Hugo Vergara
• Link dioceses — Episcopal Diocese of Albany, Diocese of Carlisle and Episcopal Diocese of South Carolina

Diócesis de Bolivia (Diocese of Bolivia)

• Diocesan bishop — The Right Reverend Frank Lyons

A 1976 graduate of Wheaton College, Wheaton, Illinois, USA; a conservative evangelical Christian college near Chicago and a 1980 graduate of Nashotah House, a seminary of the Episcopal Church located near Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

• Link dioceses — Sabah and Singapore (Church of the Province of South East Asia)

Diócesis de Chile (Diocese of Chile)

• Diocesan bishop — The Right Reverend Héctor Zavala Muñoz (Presiding Bishop and Primate)
• Assistant bishop — The Right Reverend Abelino Manuel Apeleo
• Link dioceses — Episcopal Diocese of Rio Grande and Episcopal Diocese of Pittsburgh

Diócesis de Paraguay (Diocese of Paraguay)

• Diocesan bishop — The Right Reverend Peter Bartlett
• Auxiliary Bishop - The Right Reverend Andrès Rodriguez
• Link diocese — Diocese of Nelson

Diócesis de Perú (Diocese of Peru)

• Diocesan bishop — The Right Reverend Harold William Godfrey
• Link diocese — Anglican Diocese of Worcester

Diócesis de Uruguay (Diocese of Uruguay)

• Diocesan bishop — The Right Reverend Miguel Tamayo
• Link dioceses — Episcopal Diocese of Virginia and Episcopal Church of Cuba

Extra-provincial jurisdictions

The bishops and a number of communicants of four dioceses in the United States—the Anglican Diocese of San Joaquin, Anglican Diocese of Pittsburgh, the Episcopal Diocese of Fort Worth and the Diocese of Quincy—have voted in their conventions to separate from the Episcopal Church and affiliate "on an emergency and temporary basis" with the Anglican Church of the Southern Cone of America. Those who have chosen to remain in the Episcopal Church in the United States have reformed their dioceses and have elected new leadership; the Episcopal Church is pursuing legal action to try to recover assets held by the dioceses that realigned.

In Canada, 19 parishes in Canada have formed the Anglican Network in Canada and describe themselves as an "ecclesial body under the jurisdiction of the Anglican Province of the Southern Cone".^{[citation needed]} The province also claims one diocese in Brazil, the Diocese of Recife (Dioceso do Recife) under Bishop Cavalcanti. This is not to be confused with the Diocese Anglicana do Recife which is a member of the Anglican Episcopal Church of Brazil.

The status of all the dioceses and ecclesiastical bodies outside Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Paraguay, Peru and Uruguay is disputed by some Anglicans. The arguments against claim that overlapping episcopal jurisdiction goes against Anglican polity and tradition; while those arguing in favor claim that while rare, there exist a number of examples of similar realignments throughout Anglican and Christian history.

Notes and references

Notes

References

Bibliography

Milmine, Obispo Douglas (1993), La Comunion Anglicana en América Latina 

External links

• http://www.anglicanos.net/portal/ (unofficial site approved by the Province of the Southern Cone)(very out of date, under reconstruction)
• http://www.anglicanaargentina.org.ar/ (official website of the Iglesia Anglicana Argentina, Diocese of Argentina)
• Iglesia Anglicana Episcopal de Bolivia (Anglican Episcopal Church in Bolivia)
• South American Missionary Society
• Iglesia Anglicana de Chile (Anglican Church of Chile)
• Iglesia Anglicana del Uruguay (Anglican Church of Uruguay)
• The Anglican Church in Paraguay