Anglican Church of Burundi
| Church family: | Anglican churches |
|---|---|
| Based in: | Burundi |
| Present in: | |
Membership*:About membershipStatistics of church membership, number of churches, congregations, pastors, etc. are those given by the churches and organizations, unless otherwise indicated. WCC member churches have various ways of defining their membership: state churches in which virtually every citizen is baptized and thus counted as a member, churches which include in their membership persons who are baptized but not actively participating, churches in which only adult baptized or communicant members are counted, etc. No attempt has been made to classify the membership figures in such categories, because agreed upon indicators to so do not exist. | 800000 |
| Bishops: | 5 |
| Clergy: | 173 |
| Dioceses: | 6 |
| Parishes: | 113 |
| Member of: | WCC (1961) |
| Associate member of: | |
| Periodicals: | Amakuri (monthly, in Kirundi), EAB Press (bi-monthly, in English) |
| Website: | http://www.anglicanburundi.org |
The Anglican presence in Burundi was established through the work of the Church Missionary Society in the 1930s. It grew rapidly as a result of the East African Revival, and through medical and educational work. The former Rwanda Mission set up its first mission stations at Buhiga and Matana in 1935, and Buye in 1936. The first national bishop was consecrated in 1965 and Buye Diocese was created, covering the whole country. New dioceses came into being in 1975 and 1985. These became part of the Francophone Province of Burundi, Rwanda and Boga-Zaïre. In 1989 the synod of that province decided to divide the province in three: Burundi, Rwanda, and Zaïre (now Democratic Republic of Congo). The dioceses in Burundi affirmed this action and formed the Province of the Episcopal Church of Burundi in 1992. The church has currently five dioceses, and a sixth one is in the process of being created. Since 2005 the official name is Province of the Anglican Church of Burundi.
The Province of the Anglican Church of Burundi accepts and teaches the faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, and the doctrine, sacraments and teaching of the One, Holy, Universal and Apostolic Church. Its purpose is to maintain and to strengthen the vision and mission of the Anglican Church of Burundi, in conformity with the doctrine and faith of the Anglican Communion.
The church is committed to mission and evangelism, and to the support of theological education and training for ministry. Among its main concerns are peace and reconciliation, repatriation of refugees and displaced people, community development, literacy and education, and HIV/AIDS.
