Bishops from 22 dioceses in the United States and 29 dioceses in Africa joined the congregation of Madrid’s Iglesia Episcopal de España for a Eucharist on July 22. Joining the Rt. Rev. Carlos Lozano Lopez, bishop of the Reformed Episcopal Church of Spain, at the altar were the primates of Burundi, Central Africa, Congo, and Southern Africa, as well as the primate of Brazil.
During the two-hour liturgy, based on the ancient Mozarabic Rite, the bishop welcomed three new honorary canons: Dr. Eliseo Villa and the Rev. Dr. Anthony Ball, International Office, Lambeth Palace, London; and the Rev. Dr. James H. Cooper, rector of Trinity Church Wall Street, New York, were installed by the dean, the Rev. Susan Buell. The service was mainly in Spanish with English translation.
Just for clarification, I think the Reformed Episcopal Church of Spain has few if any ties to the REC of the U.S. and Canada. I’ve never heard of the REC of Spain. And the REC I know and love doesn’t have much in common with Trinity Wall Street, the primate of Brazil, etc. etc.
Obviously the headline is misleading to those of us in the US. The Church in Spain is a province of the Anglican Communion. I was impressed that their Eucharist is based on the Mozarabic Rite of the medieval Spanish Church. A nice returning to the roots.
I hope this meeting between American and African diocesans is successful in strengthening ties in mission and ministry. This meeting and the TEAM meeting in SA earlier this year offer some hope against the verbal warfare and boundary crossings of the past year.
I found a Wikipedia article and AC reference, so yes a very different REC (official) we’re used to hearing about (Wikipedia).
To correct my earlier note, the Reformed Episcopal Church in Spain is an extra-provincial diocese under the Archbishop of Canterbury. For a brief history go to the AC web site at http://www.anglicancommunion.org/tour/province.cfm?ID=Y6.
I can’t tell from the article if the Mozarabic-based liturgy is their common liturgy or if it was specially prepared for this event. Either way, if it exists in writing in English translation, I’d love to have access to it. The only thing on http://justus.anglican.org/resources/bcp/ is their 1954 Spanish BCP (and I cannot read Spanish).
See the OXFORD GUIDE TO THE BOOK OF COMMON PRAYER for a history of the Spanish translations of the BOCP and the rite in question.
The headline seems quite carelessly misleading as many things from this source sometimes seem to me.