Marcus Lawrence Loane was born in Waratah, Tasmania, on October 14 1911. He left the island to go to the King’s School, Parramatta in New South Wales, then took a degree at Sydney University. There he became caught up in the local form of Anglicanism and entered Moore Theological College, Sydney, where he obtained a First in the Licentiate in Theology.
On his ordination in 1935 he was appointed tutor and chaplain of Moore Theological College, serving also as curate of the parish of Gladesville. Three years later he became vice-principal ”“ a post he held until his appointment as principal in 1953, though he was away between 1942 and 1944 serving as a chaplain in the Australian Army. He became a canon of Sydney Cathedral in 1949.
I believe ++Loane was also a strong supporter of Billy Graham and his evangelistic crusades. It seems that Sydney has been blessed with a series of strong, effective archbishops, including the present one, Peter Jensen, who plays a leading role in the GAFCON/FCA movment. That kind of stability, clarity, and courage at the top any organization is a tremendous strength and advantage.
However, that theological clarity and consistency came with a high price tag attached. Sydney is a very one-sided, one dimensional style of Anglicanism that accents its Protestant side at the expense of its catholic side. Sydney Anglicans see Anglicanism as merely the English form of Protestantism, rather than as a Protestant-Catholic hybrid (as I and most Anglicans in North America would), Of course, they’d say that this ultra low church approach of theirs iisn’t a bug, but a feature.
Personally, as a “3-D” Anglican (evangelical, catholic, and charismatic), I find Sydney’s style FAR too one-sidedly Protestant and almost Puritan for my liking. But I love their zeal for the gospel, for evangelism, and for the Scriptures. I find it MUCH easier to get along with such passionate ultra Protestants and extremely conservative evangelicals than it is for me to get along with my liberal, broad church colleagues and friends, with whom I have even less in common.
Here in Virginia where I live, there is a long, venerable tradition of similarly low church, conservative, mission-minded Anglicanism that goes back to the early 1800s. In the 19th century the Diocese of Virginia was similarly blessed to have two truly outstanding evangelical bishops in a row, Richard Channing Moore and the even greater William Meade. Both had very long and extremely fruitful episcopates, that featured the planting of numerous new churches, the founding of a mission-driven seminary (in Alexandria), the raising up of a small army of evangelical clergy, and not least, the conversion of thousands of unchurched people. Those were the glory days of “the PROTESTANT Episcopal Church” in Virginia.
But the glory has departed. Sydney has remained staunchly faithful to its proudly evangelical heritage; Virginia has not. As all regular T19 readers know all too well, the Diocese of VA has been deeply split by the current Anglican civil war that pits the true successors of +Moore and +Meade against its much respected but brood church bishop Peter James Lee and the center-left majority that has gradually taken over. At least 17 of the 190 congregations that used to make up the largest diocese in the Episcoapl Church have departed, including several of the largest and most influential parishes such as The Falls Church, Truro in Fairfax, and All Saints in Dale City.
The stark contrast could hardly be more striking between the fates of the Diocese of Sydney which remains fervently evangelical (and is thriving), and the formerly evangelical Diocese of Virginia which has abandoned its hardcore conservative and proudly Protestant heritage (and is floundering badly). I hope Sydney reamins more faithful to the legacy of ++Marcus Loane than Virginia has to the equally distinguished legacy of +William Meade.
David Handy+
Oops, that should be: it’s a great blessing to have such stability, clarity, and courage at the top OF any organization, including the church. And Sydney HAS a very one-sided style of Anglicanism.