In the Church of England response to the draft Anglican Covenant, it stated in a document that intervention by other Anglican provinces should not occur unless the action was part of a 'properly authorised schemes of pastoral oversight.'
The draft Covenant was drawn up to elicit responses from members of the Communion in order to help resolve the dispute about the issue of homosexual priests.
Disenchanted individual dioceses in the North American provinces of both Canada and the United States, which were the two provinces that allow the ordination of homosexual priests and the blessing of same-sex couples, had left their respective provinces and instead submitted itself to the more conservative Anglican provinces found in the South.
Recently, the San Joaquin diocese in the U.S. had left The Episcopal Church and aligned itself to the Province of the Southern Cone. This was welcomed by 31 bishops, including the Sydney Anglican Archbishop, Dr. Peter Jensen, who saluted this 'courageous' decision taken by the San Joaquin Bishop, John-David.
"We, Episcopal colleagues from across the Anglican Communion and across the world, write to salute you on the courageous decision of the Diocesan Convention of San Joaquin to take leave of The Episcopal Church and to align with the Province of the Southern Cone."
"We know that decision was to a large extent the result of your tenacity and faithful leadership, and for that we give thanks to God…We want you and the world to know that in this decision for the faith once delivered to the saints, we stand with you and beside you."
Meanwhile, the Canadian Anglican Church leaders are appealing to the Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr. Rowan Williams, for actions to be taken against dissenting dioceses leaving its national province to join the Southern Cone Anglican Province.
In a pastoral letter, signed by the Canadian Anglican Primate, Archbishop Fred Hiltz, and four other archbishops, they stated the intervention taken by the Southern Cone province was 'inappropriate' and 'unwelcomed.'
'We wish to make clear that interventions in the life of our church, such as ordinations or other episcopal acts by any other jurisdictions, are inappropriate and unwelcome,' the letter read.
Archbishop Gregory Venables, the Primate of the Southern Cone, in an interview with the Anglican Journal lambasted the Canadian church leaders and said their reaction proved they were 'either in denial or hypocrites.'
"They have broken historic agreements – the Lambeth Conference agreement and the Windsor Report – to go ahead with blessing same-sex relationships. To use that argument against us is a bit odd, to say the least," he said.
He further went on stating, he was offering the Canadian parishes a pathway to remain in the Anglican Communion, given their strong objection on the issue of homosexuality.