ANGLICAN-INFORMATION
‘Speaking up for the people of the Anglican Central African Province’

Malawi - Upper Shire diocese - Court of Confirmation cancelled.
Zimbabwe - consecration of new Bishop of Matabeleland

MALAWI...Diocese of Upper Shire We have consistently reported extreme disquiet over the choice by the Central African Provincial bishops of the next bishop of Upper Shire diocese. There have been worries about their imposed candidate’s (The Rev’d Brighton Malasa) extreme youth. This has been coupled with serious accusations against him from parishes in the diocese regarding morals and embezzlement... ‘drunkenness, sexual immorality and misuse of church funds’.

ANGLICAN-INFORMATION hopes that wiser counsel may have prevailed, at least for the moment. As our correspondent reports:
‘The Court of Confirmation has been cancelled until a later date, not known as yet. The people here (in Upper Shire) are jubilant and praise the Lord for this cancellation. The question people have is why is there still to be another date when what they written is full of truth. They (the bishops) should just cancel the Court indefinitely because the imposed bishop has been rejected by parishes and especially by his home and own Cathedral parish of Mpondasi- Mangochi district. If a wife or own child tell people that dad soils the beddings is it true or not? The appointment was a disgrace to Upper Shire as far as behaviour of the proposed bishop is concerned. The Provincial bishops who made the appointment were and are blind and they need light to see. If they had evaluated Malasa’s term of office as Vicar General for the twelve months he worked they would have seen the problems. What type of leaders are they in this Province? Please remember us.’

ANGLICAN-INFORMATION observes that the attempt to ‘slip in’ the Court of Confirmation far away from the candidate’s diocese under the guise of a gathering in Zimbabwe did not allow the people (who could not possibly travel so far) to be represented. Ever since the disastrous Diocese of Lake Malawi Court of Confirmation in November 2005 (the consequences of which are still ongoing) Provincial Courts of Confirmation in the Central African Province have gained a reputation for ‘fixing’.

ZIMBABWE....Diocese of Matabeleland A welcome exception to the controversies of other episcopal elections in the Province also took place in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe this Sunday, 1st March as the bishops gathered for the consecration and enthronement of The Rev’d Cleophas Lunga. Lunga, a Zimbabwean who has been working in Coventry diocese, UK for the past five years as Team Rector of the Caludon Team Ministry was elected without controversy to the Diocese of Matabeleland last November. The Bishop of Coventry, Dr Christopher Cocksworth has said of Lunga, ‘he is an excellent priest who has given a great deal to the Diocese of Coventry.

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ANGLICAN-INFORMATION
‘Speaking up for the people of the Anglican Central African Province '

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