Resources - Reports
The Official 11th Anglican Indigenous Network Hawai‘i 2009 Report and Statement and Resolutions to Anglican Consultative Council 14th
With the excused absence of two members of the Canadian delegation, this 11th gathering of AIN was fully attended by all its member delegations. The gathering was held at the Kilauea Military Camp Retreat, Volcano National Parks on the island of Hawai‘i, from April 23 to 27, 2009. In attendance were several indigenous theological educators invited by the Secretariat, the Rt. Rev. Robert Fitzpatrick, the Bishop of Hawai‘i and several other guests. The gathering was hosted by Hawaii delegation of the Commission on Native Hawaiian Ministry (CONHM) with arrangements and coordination provided by Mrs. Lousia Aloy and Kalani Holokai. It is customary of the host delegation to provide for ground transportation, accommodations, meals and cultural events during the gathering while the other delegations are responsible for their air transportation. AIN is extremely grateful and appreciative for the cost and arrangements to CONHM.
Letters of greetings were received from Mrs. Bonnie Anderson, President of the House of Bishops of the Episcopal Church, the Rev. Canon Kenneth Kearon, Secretary-General of ACC, Bishop Robert Fitzpatrick and the Most Rev. Sir Paul A. Reeves of Aotearoa. AIN Secretary-General Malcolm Naea Chun presented his address to open the gathering calling upon the members to seriously follow up on AIN resolutions and programmes, to take up the call from Lambeth’s Indaba report to help the communion address the global climate situation and to send meaning resolutions to the 14th ACC meeting in Jamaica in a fortnight’s time.
Much of the discussion focused upon an Aotearoa-Hawaii proposal about structure, organization, management and outcomes. During that discussion the Secretary-General announced his intention to set down from the position at the next gathering in 2011 (Sydney, Australia). The discussion then focused upon his replacement. An executive committee meeting was called to help expedite this discussion on internal governance. The Rev. Richard Mendez was selected by the American delegation to be their representative on the executive. The outcome of that meeting was to keep the executive committee as is with the addition of Mr. Charles Hemana of New Zealand to serve as recording secretary. The committee will meet again in six months time to consider recommendations for a new Secretary General. The remainder of the gathering was devoted to the development of resolutions and a statement to the Anglican Consultative Council’s 14th meeting in Jamaica that the Secretary-General was to attend along with three persons from the Bishopric of Aotearoa: the Ven. Rev. Turi Hollis, Dr. Jenny Te Paa and the Rev. Michael Tamihere.
At the following plenary several of the elders reminded us in these words:
Some of us elders feel compelled our after last night’s deliberation to say that we too feel the gravity and need to find someone for our next Secretary - General. We want to do it in the way our peoples seek a leader among us - by consultation, by prayer, by looking in and our of ourselves, by as Father Darryl has said, guided by the Holy Spirit. We are not to be rushed for expediency as some do at tribal meetings, bully us to silence. We ask that we can reflect upon the good people already mentioned, to talk privately with them, to go back home and to look among our own people deserving of being our Secretary - General. Someone who can and will be able to work with all of us. Who will, as Malcolm has been with us not just here, but when we need him or her standing with us on our land. We believe in the present executives and trust their wisdom and experience and would forward the name or names for them to consider before we need again in Sydney knowing that who or whom have been put forward have been consulted too. We know this to be the ways of our peoples and are determined to keep AIN grounded in our indigenous way.
AIN Statement to ACC
We, the delegates attending the 11th Gathering of the Anglican Indigenous Network (AIN) are indigenous peoples who are minorities living in our own homelands.
We come from Aotearoa, Australia, Canada, Hawai΄i, and the United States of America.
We are committed to the Anglican faith tradition while at the same time we affirm our traditional spiritualities shaped by our understanding of the interdependence of ecology, theology, spirituality and morality.
We share many things in common. We believe that God is leading us to a turning point in our histories, toward full partnership between indigenous minorities living in our respective homelands.
We have pledged to work together to exercise our leadership in contributing our vision and gifts to transform the life of the Anglican Communion.
We celebrate the trajectory of God’s living Word in Creation and we further celebrate the continual incarnation and fulfillment of that Word in the life of our peoples.
As indigenous peoples from countries that have experienced and continue to experience the effects of colonialism, we claim our authority to live into God’s future for us based upon our values, teachings, and communal self-understandings.
As Indigenous minority Anglicans, we believe it is time for national churches whose borders are based upon colonial conquest, to respectfully and formally acknowledge the reality of our existence and its implications for their on-going life and governance.
Pala Statement 2005
We believe that the following will enrich our traditions and relationship with the Trinitarian aspects of a ‘Living God’ who was, and is, always among us:
- The development of a living pedagogical model that will enable indigenous communities to articulate the diverse theologies that are grounded within those communities; develop these tools and or models that enable indigenous communities to create liturgies that express their unique spiritualities; develop a “gospel lens” that is appropriate to each of our indigenous languages, cultures and life experiences; strongly urge the non-indigenous church to also develop a “gospel lens;”
- The development through the text and traditions of the Anglican communion a post-colonial and post-modern critique, that transforms the colonial legacy that has been imposed upon us; to believe that we have a responsibility and obligation to the future, to those generations who are children now and those yet to be born, not to repeat the destruction, damage and cultural genocide of our colonial past;
- The increased sensitivity of the wider church to the pressures upon indigenous leaders, both lay and ordained, who walk the path between the two worlds, i.e. the world of the church and their own respective worlds; to urge the Anglican Church, in all of its Anglican ministry units throughout the world, to establish clearly defined and accessible resource, including finance from national churches, to undertake effective professional and curriculum development and to enable appropriate exchanges of indigenous educators and students within the Anglican Communion, and to urge the Anglican Communion to honestly and seriously engage in cross-cultural exchange with their respective indigenous communities.
Resolutions To ACC 14.
United Nations Declaration on Indigenous Rights
AIN strongly requests those members of ACC whose governments have not yet signed and ratified the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples to take appropriate steps to encourage their governments to become signatories. And request the Secretary-General of ACC to report progress to the next AIN Gathering in 2011.
Theological Education Resolution
AIN strongly requests that each national church make adequate provisions for its indigenous members to have access to all levels of theological education and training, appropriate to their cultural context and traditions, particularly for leadership development in the church. And request the Secretary-General of ACC to report progress to the next AIN Gathering in 2011.
Climate Change Resolution
AIN strongly calls upon each national church to recognize and honour the wisdom of the elders by ensuring they are an integral part of all official climate change planning and development processes. And request the Secretary-General of ACC to report progress to the next AIN Gathering in 2011.
Protection of Our Families Resolution
AIN strongly requests ACC and each national church to recognize the on-going disastrous effects that colonialism has had on our families. And that they take appropriate and necessary steps for the healing of our families towards wholeness and holiness. We call upon them to assist by all means possible with the protection of our women and children from violence and human trafficking. And request the Secretary-General of ACC to report progress to the next AIN Gathering in 2011.
ACC adopts AIN Resolutions. The resolutions passed by the participants were ones to:
- ask member churches to encourage their governments to sign the U.N. Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples; cooperate with indigenous Anglican leaders in providing theological education and ministry training that takes into account indigenous cultural contexts and traditions; "value, honor and incorporate the wisdom of the elders" on the issues of climate change and sustainability of creation; and "recognize the ongoing disastrous effects that colonialism has had on indigenous peoples" while assisting in the healing of indigenous families, including protecting women and children from violence and human trafficking.
http://www.ecusa.anglican.org/79901_107373_ENG_HTM.htm
