[Robert] Duncan made no mention of the primates’ call for mediated talks in his official statement responding to the February 5 communiqué issued after the leaders or primates of the Anglican Communion’s 38 provinces ended their five day meeting in Alexandria, Egypt. Instead, in that statement, he portrayed the members of the proposed new “Anglican Church in North America” as people “who are attempting to remain faithful amidst vast pressures to acquiesce to beliefs and practices far outside of the Christian and Anglican mainstream.”
[Bonnie] Anderson told ENS that “the primates spoke in a new voice in their communiqué.” Anderson, who plans to issue a full statement next week, went on to say that “while I didn’t agree with everything they said, I appreciated their emphasis on relationships and their commitment to mission. The Windsor Continuation Group is another matter. They seem firmly anchored in the past, yearning for a centralized authority that can solve all of our problems. This is troubling, because centralization disenfranchises the laity, and diminishes the importance of the witness of the local church.”
In their communiqué, the primates called for the development of a “pastoral council” and Williams’ ability to appoint of “pastoral visitors” to assist in healing and reconciliation given the current “situation of tension” in the Anglican Communion. They also encouraged all parties in the current controversies to maintain “gracious restraint” with respect to actions that could exacerbate the tensions, such as same-gender blessings, cross-border interventions and the ordination of gay and lesbian people to the episcopate.
[blockquote]Anderson told ENS that “the primates spoke in a new voice in their communiqué.” Anderson, who plans to issue a full statement next week, went on to say that “while I didn’t agree with everything they said, I appreciated their emphasis on relationships and their commitment to mission…. [/blockquote]
I, I, I. Isn’t she supposed to be acting as a spokesperson for the Church? It sounds as if she’s acting as a spokesperson for Bonnie.
Anderson said,
“This is troubling, because centralization disenfranchises the laity….”
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In an episcopally structured and apostolically derived church, the laity should not be “enfranchised” to make decisions in areas requiring the detailed study and analysis of theological issues.
What discernment process have they gone through? What theological education process have they gone through. Have they been ordained and/or consecrated?
This has been especially true in recent ECUSA general conventions which have been focused on highly politicized secular issues being considered by delegates who have been politically non-representaive of rank-and-file Episcopalians.
Furthermore, what theolological qualifications, if any, do most of the lay delegates to ECUSA general conventions actually possess? For most of them, probably little to none.
She seems to be holding a position which is co-terminus and equal with the Presiding Bishop.
Actually, AnglicanFirst, I find it disturbing that [b]I[/b], as a layman, know more theology and church history than many a clergyman I’ve encountered.
But then, did not C. S. Lewis lament the same?
And yes, I did seek to be sent to seminary, but I was too conservative for both our priest’s and our bishop’s liking.
Reply to Libraryjim (#4.).
I agree that many of our clergy are seriously lacking in their theological preparations for the priesthood and for being bishops who are, in true and actual fact, ‘the shepards of the priesthood.’
This is due to the almost5 rampant politicization of the discernment process within dioceses for selecting persons for holy orders and the subversion of the faculty of most of ECUSA’s seminaries by secularly motivated progressive activists over the past fifty years or so.
Most of our seminaries have being political training camps that prepare the students to become secular political activists. Look at Al Gore who couldn’t complete the academic process at an ECUSAn seminary and who is now an extremely active secular propagandist.
Libraryjim, I wouldn’t give up. Become part of CANA and go through their discernment process. You couldn’t ask for more godly bishops than +Martyn Minns and +Dave Bena.