Anglican Church to Reunite Under Pope?
Written by Mark Harris on February 19th, 2007This extraordinary article claims that a document to be released late this year as a joint statement between Anglican high officials and the Vatican will layout a path towards eventual unification of the Anglican Churches and Bishops under the Pope.
It would be a very interesting thing to take place, apparently Catholicism has already passed Anglicanism in Church attendance in England (not that it says much) but the major hurdles would be the likely rejection by both the liberal elements in the Church, [American Churches would be unlikely to give up gay and female ordination] and conservative evangelical elements [I am not sure if places like Truro and the Falls Church are ready to accept Catholic doctrine over their currently decidedly evangelical doctrine].
Either way it is surely a shot heard round the world in the religious community.
What appears likely to be the way forward is that the male Anglican Bishops who chose to come under the Pope would be granted Bishop status in the Catholic Church and all married Anglican Priests would be allowed to remain married. The Anglican Bishops would have full control over the Anglican Churches in the Diocese and the Catholic Bishops who overlaps the Diocese would have control over the original Catholic Churches. It would be likely overtime as Bishops died that combination would occur. All female priests would definitely be forbidden from remaining priests though maybe a path would be opened to being a nun, that much is unclear. It would likely mimic what a similar arrangement with the orthodox would look like with a church within the Church, a church “breathing with two lungs” as theologians have referred to it. It would probably look something like the Oriental Catholic Churches where Priests are allowed to still marry to serve Oriental parishes, and much the same would be the case for Anglicans. Going to an Anglican mass would serve as meeting ones Holy Obligation as going to a mass in an original Catholic church.
Where this is likely to do the most good would be in African and elsewhere where the combined Churches would be in a better position to fight the growing spread of Sharia induced radical Islam
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I believe this is a procedural document that the busy bees in Lambeth and their counterparts across the Tiber river cook up every year, so I wouldn’t put a great deal of weight into it. My own opinion is that this sort of scenario could not play itself out unless someone like Bishop N.T. Wright got behind it, and giving up on female ordination would be a non-starter for him. And he’s a conservative! After all, you say that the evangelicals and liberals would have nothing to do with a merger. Who else is left? The Newmans got out a long time ago, and most contemporary Anglo-Catholics seem to focus on the liturgy for aesthetic reasons rather than anything else.
The big question is how the Catholic Left will react. As the sainted Dewey Wallace related, liberal Catholics feel that Anglicans fleeing liberalism are the last people they want involved in the Roman church.
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My understanding is that while this is certainly not the be all and end all it is a major step from past documents. Moreover, while reunification in our lifetimes is probably questionable it signals good things for the future as part of the document is about combining education curricula etc. The sticking point ultimately will be female ordination and then how to best get the African Anglicans in on the deal. If those two are overcome I think it stands a good chance.
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Another interesting wrinkle is that most Anglican women religious are theologically conservative while the men are very liberal. I understand the opposite true for Rome.
Of course there are currently about a million church-going Anglicans in England and about as many Roman Catholics, and 49 million people who couldn’t give a damn…. To have another Wesley….
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Please read “opposite is true” for “opposite true”. Thanks!
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“I am not afraid that the people called Methodists should ever cease to exist either in Europe or America. But I am afraid lest they should only exist as a dead sect, having the form of religion without the power. And this undoubtedly will be the case unless they hold fast both the doctrine, spirit, and discipline with which they first set out.”
Speaking of Wesley….
Mark, you should post on Areopagus more. Maybe get a crew together? I’d feel more comfortable discussing these sorts of things without getting dirtied with partisan politics.
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I would if people would actually help me in posting to it
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Mark I would post there, how do I do it?
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Archbishop Peter Akinola of Nigeria is the current leader of the conservative wing of the Episcopal church. Many of the conservative or evangelical wings, as you put it, of the American Episcopal church have said they might join Akinola if and when he decides to to break away. Akinola I believe will split the Episcopal/Anglican Church before it has a chance to reconcile with Rome.
Falls Church recently held a vote on this subject. Anyone know how it came down? I can not find any info on it. They must have voted for the status quo, otherwise it would be plastered all over the media.
As for your Areopagus blog I would love to contribute but you would have to lighten up on your orthodox Christian requirement before this evangelical would contribute.
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The Nicene creed is the only required orthodoxy? Most evangelicals I know uphold the Nicene creed, did I miss something?
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The creed is accurate in theology but it is the written work of men and is not inspired or infallible like the words and authorship of the Bible. I believe in the Bible, the inerrant word of God, as the basis for my beliefs, values and worship. Not a creed.
Plus I have issues with “one, holy, catholic and apostolic church”. Whether it be Roman Catholic or the Eastern Orthodox churches, as both claim it is exclusive in nature to their church only and I can not agree with that.
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As for other evangelicals adhering to the Nicene Creed why are they not Catholic? The creed demands their allegiance to the Roman Catholic Church.
I have only doctrinal and worship style issues with the Catholic Church. I believe practicing Catholics are my Christian Brethren. The Catholic church is simply not where my spiritual cup is filled.
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Interesting, though I would caution you that the Catholic in the creed is small ‘c’ catholic meaning universal. I have never heard that criticism before and have some thoughts though it is more appropriate for the other blog.
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I agree. This discussion is better suited for Areopagus.
I understand that catholic with a small “c” can translated as general and universal. As in the universal church. Which can mean lots of things. My last comment was a little strong and I would delete it had it not already have been read. I understand many Protestants interpret it this way or even the universal church as brought forth by Christs return.
I have many more thoughts on this. Open up a post at Areopagus and we can discuss it further.
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Speaking as an “evangelical”, I think that the Nicene creed really ought to be emphasized more in Protestant praxis. After all, the reason we have the Bible is precisely because the canon was set at Nicea. I have known too many fundamentalists who have led themselves into error and heresy simply because they believe the popular notion that anything originating from the church after the death of St. John is nothing but popish idolatry.
See Mark, you need the ‘blog.
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http://www.AreopagusBlog.com check it out again
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Beyond all of the technical questions, it’s probably most important to remember that Jesus prayed for this — that “all may be one.” (John 17: 21-22)
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IT MAY , NO IT WILL PROBABLY SURPRISE THE ILL-INFORMED WRITERS OF THIS BLOG THAT SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA IS FAST BECOMING CHRISTIAN. IT IS THE CATHOLIC CHURCH THAT IS RAPIDLY EXPANDING IN AFRICA. NIGERIA WHICH AT THE BEGINNING OF THE 20TH CENTURY WAS 85% MUSLIM IS NOW APPROX 60/40 CHRISTIAN THE SAME IS OCCURRING THROUGHOUT SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA. MUSLIMS ARE DWINDLING IN KENYA, SOUTHERN SUDAN ,UGANGA SOUTH AFRICA AND EVEN THE FORMERLY MUSLIM PREDOMINATED SMALL WEST AFRICAN STATES, DO YOU GET THE IDEA???????? THE CONFLICK WITH ISLAM’S SH’ARIAN (MOHAMMED’S LAW) IS PRIMARILY OCCURRING IN SUDAN & NORTH NIGERIA. EVEN PROMINENT MUSLIM IMMAMS IN EGYPT, ALGERIA AND SAUDI ARABIA ARE ALARMED AT THE CONVERTION RATE TO CHRISTIANITY IN SOUTHERN AFRICA. AS FOR ANGLICANISM ,THE CAPTURE OF BOTH THE BRITISH , CANADIAN AND U.S. ANGLICAN CHURCHES BY REACTIONARY LIBERALISM HAS CAUSED MAJOR SCHISMS (SOMETHING SELF INDUCED) BY RADICAL LEFTIST LIBERALS DOMINATING THE GOVERNING BODYS AND HIERARCY OF THE ANGLICAN CHURCH. THE AFRICANS AND ASIANS WILL HAVE NONE OF IT AND THE AMERICA CHURCHES WEALTH USED AS A WEAPON IN THE SOUTHERN HEMISPHERE IN THE PAST IS BECOMING IRRELEVANT TO THE MORE ORTHODOX/TRADITIONAL AFRICAN AND ASIAN CHRISTIANS. BEFORE IT DIES A DIRTY & BLOODY DEATH THIS WRITER BELIEVES THE BEAUTIFUL ANGLICAN CHURCH WILL RETURN TO HER ANCIENT AND HONOURABLE ROOTS ,THE CATHOLIC CHURCH AND THE PRIMACY OF PETER IN THE OFFICE OF THE POPE—- THOUSANDS OF ANGLICANS HAVE ALREADY MADE THE JOURNEY HOME SHALOM