Henri Kahwa Isingoma (born November 24, 1958) is a Democratic Republic of the Congo Anglican bishop. He was the third Primate and Archbishop of the Anglican Church of the Congo since his consecration in August 2009 until March 2016, when he resigned. Isingoma is married to Mugisha and the couple has 6 adult children.

Ecclesiastical career

He studied at the Boga Institute and at the Nyankunde Institute, where he graduated in 1977. He took a degree in Theology and Human Sciences at the Superior Institute of Anglican Theology, in 1984. He also holds a master's degree in Theology at the Evangelical Theology Faculty of

Bangui Bangui () (or Bangî in Sango, formerly written Bangi in English) is the capital and largest city of the Central African Republic. It was established as a French outpost in 1889 and named after its location on the northern bank of the Ubangi ...

Central African Republic The Central African Republic (CAR; ; , RCA; , or , ) is a landlocked country in Central Africa. It is bordered by Chad to the north, Sudan to the northeast, South Sudan to the southeast, the DR Congo to the south, the Republic of th ...

, in 1997. He served first as Bishop of Katanga, from 1997 to 2007, being elected Bishop of Boga in 2007, a position that he held until 2009. He was elected third Primate and Archbishop of the Anglican Church of Congo in a Bishops retreat held in

Goma Goma is the capital of North Kivu province in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. It is located on the northern shore of Lake Kivu, next to the Rwandan city of Gisenyi. The lake and the two cities are in the Albertine Rift, the weste ...

at 28 April 2009. He received four out of seven votes. He also serves as Bishop of Kinshasa. Isingoma is considered a moderate conservative. He is critical of the Episcopal Church of the United States departure of orthodox

Anglicanism Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of the ...

but at the same time he is also supportive of those orthodoxes still remaining in the church. He is a supporter of the

Global South (Anglican) The Global South Fellowship of Anglican Churches, formerly known as Global South (Anglican), is a grouping of 24 Anglican churches, of which 22 are provinces of the Anglican Communion, plus the Anglican Church in North America and the Anglican Ch ...

, the

GAFCON The Global Fellowship of Confessing Anglicans (branded as GAFCON or Gafcon) is a global network of conservative Anglicanism, Anglican churches that formed in 2008 in response to an ongoing theological crisis in the worldwide Anglican Communion. ...

and the

Anglican Church in North America The Anglican Church in North America (ACNA) is a Christian denomination in the Anglican tradition in the United States and Canada. It also includes ten congregations in Mexico, two mission churches in Guatemala, and a missionary diocese in Cuba ...

. He is also a member of the

Anglican Consultative Council The Anglican Consultative Council (ACC) is one of the four "Instruments of Communion" of the Anglican Communion. It was created by a resolution of the 1968 Lambeth Conference. The council, which includes Anglican bishops, other clergy, and laity ...

. In April 2012, Isingoma gave temporary oversight to the

Anglican Mission in the Americas The Anglican Mission in the Americas (AMiA) or The Anglican Mission (AM) is a self-governing church inheriting its doctrine and form of worship from the Episcopal Church in the United States (TEC) and Anglican Church of Canada with members and chu ...

, who had disaffiliated from the

Anglican Church of Rwanda The Anglican Church of Rwanda (French: ''Église anglicane du Rwanda'') is a province of the Anglican Communion, covering 11 dioceses in Rwanda. The primate of the province is Laurent Mbanda, consecrated on 10 June 2018. Official names The Provinc ...

, until the church body had time to decide his future. Isingoma was one of the Primates of the

Anglican Communion The Anglican Communion is the third largest Christian communion after the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches. Founded in 1867 in London, the communion has more than 85 million members within the Church of England and other ...

that attended the meeting of the governing bodies of the ACNA in Ridgecrest,

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...

, in June 2012. He attended GAFCON II, that took place in

Nairobi Nairobi ( ) is the capital and largest city of Kenya. The name is derived from the Maasai phrase ''Enkare Nairobi'', which translates to "place of cool waters", a reference to the Nairobi River which flows through the city. The city proper ha ...

Kenya ) , national_anthem = "Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"() , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Nairobi , coordinates = , largest_city = Nairobi , ...

, from 21 to 26 October 2013. He was reelected for another five years at the meeting of the House of the Bishops of the Province that took place at

Kinshasa Kinshasa (; ; ln, Kinsásá), formerly Léopoldville ( nl, Leopoldstad), is the capital and largest city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Once a site of fishing and trading villages situated along the Congo River, Kinshasa is now one o ...

, on 20 August 2014. He defeat by five votes against four,

Masimango Katanda Zacharie Masimango Katanda () is a Democratic Republic of the Congo Anglican bishop. He was consecrated as the 4th Primate and Archbishop of the Province of the Anglican Church of the Congo on 11 September 2016. He has been bishop of the Diocese of ...

, Bishop of the Diocese of Kindu. He stated after his reelection that the priorities for his new term would include church-planting and addressing his country socio-economical problems. He also admitted the division of his province in two internal provinces due to his size. Isingoma announced that he was leaving office for a health improvement break and to return to theological academia on 11 March 2016. This announcement came three years before the completion of his second five-year term in office and seven years before the age of retirement of 65. He was replaced by

, who was enthroned on 12 September 2016.Archbishop of Congo steps down, Virtue Online, 11 March 2016
/ref>

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Isingoma, Henri 1958 births Living people Democratic Republic of the Congo Anglicans 20th-century Anglican bishops in Africa 21st-century Anglican bishops in Africa 21st-century Anglican archbishops Anglican bishops of Katanga Anglican bishops of Boga Anglican bishops of Kinshasa Anglican archbishops of the Congo