The Church in the Province of the West Indies, CPWI, has expressed support for the establishment of the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) in its appellate jurisdiction.
A resolution passed by clergy and lay representatives from the eight Dioceses located around the Caribbean at the just-concluded 39th Meeting of the Provincial Synod held in Barbados, called on Member States of the Caribbean Community who had not yet acceded to the CCJ in its appellate jurisdiction “to urgently initiate positive action.”
A Communique issued at the end of the five-day meeting which took place from November 15-19, reported that the Synod delegates also endorsed the growing lobby by groups and persons in the Caribbean for reparation for the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade and chattel slavery, now recognized as crimes against humanity.
Another highlight of the Meeting, which is held every three years, was a report that the Province had achieved the two-thirds majority of the eight Dioceses in support of the ordination and consecration of women as Bishops. This comes some 20 years after the CPWI approved the ordination of women to the priesthood. The Provincial Canons will now have to be amended to facilitate implementation.
Discussions at the Provincial Synod were held under the theme: “Anglicans: Celebrating and Sharing our Gifts for Mission and Ministry” and were structured around the Five Marks of Mission which are being used to guide strategic planning in the Diocese of Jamaica and The Cayman Islands. They also form the basis for programme implementation across the worldwide Anglican Communion. An Action Plan, based on the recommendations of Cluster Groups which examined the Marks of Mission, was approved for implementation across the Province. (Please click here for the full text of the Synod Communique)
