On the penultimate day of the Anglican Consultative Meeting in Auckland, New Zealand the members of the Council elected six members to serve on the Standing Committee. It is expected that the Standing Committee will hold its first meeting in April or May of 2013.
The council consist of 15 members including:
• President: The Archbishop of Canterbury
• Chair: Bishop James Tengatenga, Central Africa
• Vice Chair: Canon Elizabeth Paver, England
• The Rt Revd Ian T Douglas, a continuing member from The Episcopal Church
There are five Primates elected by the Primates:
• The Most Revd Dr Paul Kwong (Hong Kong)
• The Most Revd Sammuel Azariah (Pakistan)
• The Most Revd David Chillingworth (Scotland)
• The Most Revd Dr Daniel Deng Bul Yak (Sudan)
• The Most Revd Dr Katharine Jefferts Schori (The Episcopal Church)
Thirteen people were nominated and the following six were elected. As part of the nomination process each was asked to share an information paragraph.
1) The Revd Dr Sarah Macneil, Anglican Church of Australia
I am a member of the Standing Committee of the General Synod of the Anglican Church of Australia. I was ordained as a priest in 1994 and have served as a parish priest in rural and urban parishes, as a school chaplain, as Diocesan Archdeacon in Canberra and, most recently, as Dean of St Peter’s cathedral and Vicar-General in the Diocese of Adelaide. On return to Australia after ACC-15, I will be working part-time in a suburban parish and also in the Education Institute of the University of Canberra. I have a longstanding interest in Anglican Communion matters and my doctoral research was on the nexus between Anglican identity and governance. I am married and have two stepchildren, one son and two step granddaughters (aged 5 and 2).
2) Mr Samuel Mukunya, Anglican Church of Kenya
I am 60 years old, married, with five children. I have a master’s degree in Law from the University of South Africa, specialising in Constitutional Law and Human Rights. I am an advocate of the High Court of Kenya and have been so for 34 years. I am Judge of the High Court of Kenya, dealing with Environment and Land. I have been a Chancellor of the Diocese of Mt Kenya West for the last 18 years. I have been a member of the Standing Committee of the Province of Kenya and a member of the Provincial Synod for the last 18 years. I have been a committee member of Justice and Peace for the Province for the last 4 years. This is my first appointment to the ACC.
3) Louisa Mojela, Anglican Church of Southern Africa
I am an active parishioner in the Diocese of Johannesburg. I attend to assignments from the Archbishop from time to time. I play a role in providing advice to the Archbishop and to my parish on matters of women’s economic empowerment and wealth creation for sustainability and youth development. I represent the Province at CAPA meetings and the Global South. I am a member of the Provincial Standing Committee. Apart from my role in church, I am a businesswoman and my role is to foster entrepreneurship among women, support projects partnering women and children, and facilitate cash generating projects in rural communities for sustainable development. I have received awards as: Leading Woman Entrepreneur; Most Influential Woman in Business and Government in South Africa; Builder of the African Economy. I serve on a number of boards.
4) Professor Joanildo Burity, Igreja Episcopal Anglicana do Brasil
I am the lay representative in the ACC of the Brazilian Province and have also been a member of a Special Advisory Committee to the Primate Bishop since 2008. I am a political scientist and currently work as a senior lecturer at Durham University in the UK. I hold a permanent position as Senior Researcher at the Joaquim Nabuco Foundation in Brazil.
I am married to Giovanda and we have two daughters, Tarsila and Rafaela. We have served as a family in both Brazil and the UK. This is my second ACC. In addition to this practical engagement I have also followed developments in the Communion on the research end, particularly in the context of Durham. I have been an active member of the Episcopal Anglican Church in Brazil since 1986.
5) Mrs Helen Biggin, Church in Wales
I was confirmed into the Church in Wales as an adult in 1984. I have been a committed and enthusiastic lay member of the Church in Wales Governing Body since 2003, am a member of the Archiepiscopal See Working Group, and serve on the Church in Wales Governing Body Standing Committee.
I am a worshipper at Llandaff Cathedral (my parish church) in Cardiff and volunteer in various aspects of Church and Community life, including Chair of Governors of the church primary school for nine years. In 2010 I had the honour of representing the Church in Wales at the UN Commission on the Status of Women in New York – a truly inspirational experience. I am privileged to be a member of the ACC, first in Jamaica and now in Auckland.
I am married with four children. I am Director of the Welsh National Health Service (NHS) Confederation, which represents all public health organisations, including hospitals, in Wales. I am a graduate of St Anne’s College, Oxford, in Philosophy, Politics and Economics.
6)The Rt Revd Eraste Bigirimana, Anglican Church of Burundi
Current profession: Bishop of the Diocese of Muyinga since 2005. I was born in 1964 in Burundi. Education: I hold two degrees: one in Human Sciences/African Languages and Literature; second in Divinity (Theology) at Uganda Christian University.
1991-1994: French teacher in Secondary School.
1994-1999: Diocesan Secretary in Gitege Diocese.
2002-2005: Diocesan Secretary and Parish Vicar.
2005 onwards: Bishop of the Diocese of Muyinga.
2010 onwards: National President of the Prison Fellowship.
2010 onwards: Chairman of the Education Committee in the Province of Burundi.
2012: Vice President of Burundi National Council of Churches.
Now: Member of the Anglican Peace and Justice Network.
Languages spoken: Kirundi, Swahili, French and English.