catholic and anglican unity, and Reform response to apostolic constitution
Reform has put out a media statement, unsurprisingly less enthusiastic about the Pope's statement earlier today than some anglo-catholic responses.
Reform Initial Response To ‘Apostolic Constitution’ Announcement
Revd
Rod Thomas, chairman of Reform, makes four points as an initial
response to today’s announcement from the Archbishops of Canterbury and
Westminster:
“Anglicans concerned about protecting the basic
Christian faith need not go to Rome, because we now have the Fellowship
of Confessing Anglicans (FCA (UK)) which holds together those who want
to stop the orthodox faith being eroded. We can remain Anglican.
Furthermore, the FCA Primates have recognised that problems with
episcopal oversight are arising here in the UK. They have expressed the
hope that these will be solved locally, but if not, they are willing to
step in.”
“This development highlights the need for robust
legislative provision to cater for those who cannot agree to women
bishops, such as that recently suggested by the Revision Committee.”
“If
priests really are out of sympathy with the C of E’s doctrine (as
opposed to the battles we are having over women’s ministry and
sexuality), then perhaps it is better they make a clean break and go to
Rome. However, when they do, they will have to accommodate themselves
to Rome’s top-down approach to church life, whereas the C of E has
always stressed the importance of decision making at the level of the
local church.”
“It is illusory to pretend that this
development is an outcome of ecumenical dialogue. It illustrates the
difficulties the C of E faces and the need for stronger leadership,
rather than the ‘softly softly’ approach so far taken to those holding
liberal views who are splitting the church.”
4 Responses to “catholic and anglican unity, and Reform response to apostolic constitution”
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Maggi has kept a blog since September 2003, writing about theology and faith, the arts and literature, and a little about life and random nonsense...
This title focuses on the importance of understanding who God is - and who he is not. It explores the core Lenten idea of 'giving up', taking it beyond the traditional idea of simply abstaining from something.
This book compares and contrasts the different Gospel narratives of Christ's coming. It is designed specifically for use in 2007, highlighting links to the Church calendar. It is intended for those wanting daily Bible readings for Advent.
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Thank you Maggi! I needed to her that today
Maggi – sorry to find you unwell at the weekend. Hope you feel much better soon.
Love Helen
OK, I thought I was joking about the church buildings but if what I read in the paper is correct (is it ever?) the buildings may go as well. Where does this leave the parish system which, to an outsider, appears to be one of the strengths of the Anglican Church?
From my perspective it looks a lot like a ‘land grab’ by the Catholic Church which hasn’t been thought through properly. I have no objection to individual Christians moving denomination as part of their journey of faith but for one church to make an opportunistic grab for a part of another church is another matter.
How are (the remaining) Anglicans going to work with Roman Catholics in ecumenical projects in the future? It’s not going to be easy if one of your ‘partners’ has just taken over part of your church.
Hugh
I am in an LEP with Roman Catholics at the moment – I’ve attended services here where people Baptised in the Church of England have been received into the Roman Catholic Church, and in other places where Baptised Roman Catholics have been received into the Church of England.
I don’t think this move will make any significant difference to us here, unless it allows for a greater unity between Anglicans and Methodists in our LEP by accelerating and simplifying the process of allowing for women to be bishops (one of the Methodist sticking points).
But the Church here works on the basic understanding that we are all Christians together, and that the variety in belief and practice has a mission edge in allowing us to meet more people where they are. It is personal relationships built on what we have common in our faith which make the LEP work, not ecclesiological grandstanding (significant though this is in other dimensions).
If the RC bishop were to appoint to the LEP a priest who did not believe in the joint project, that would be a different matter – but that would require a degree of carelessness (or worse) which would be very surprising when relationships are so good.