It’s time for the Anglican Church of Canada to get innovative about the ways in which it engages the rest of the world, says Archbishop Fred Hiltz, primate. Delegates to General Synod 2010 can expect to be “challenged to stop looking inward,” according to Archbishop Hiltz. “We’re focusing on mission,” he told the Anglican Journal.
Archbishop Hiltz explained that the church needs to “start looking out to the world in very courageous ways”¦the Gospel calls us to be the church in the world.” About 500 delegates, international partners, visitors and staff will gather for the triennial meeting of the church’s governing body on June 3 to 11 at St. Mary’s University in Halifax.
The issue of homosexuality and same-sex blessings, a hot-bed of controversy that has dominated synods in the past, has been relegated to the back burner. Instead, delegates to General Synod 2010 will determine a new process for debating the issue. Period. Archbishop Hiltz said that he feels “optimistic that the capacity of our church to live with differences is growing.”
[blockquote]Archbishop Hiltz said that he feels “optimistic that the capacity of our church to live with differences is growing.†[/blockquote]
Of course, however, this is attributable to the fact that the once stalwart Anglican Church of Canada is quickly shrinking down to become just another small, Liberal dominated Church, espousing extreme leftist Liberal ideals.
Heck, it just may be the right time to ONCE AGAIN seek a merger with the United Church of Canada. (That unbelievable amalgam formed from the mergers of Liberal United Methodists, Presbyterians, Congregationalists and other Protestant denominations. They came close to the great merger back in the early to mid-70’s.)
If they could accomplish that now, they, along with their fellow Liberal Protestants of kindred spirit, could lay claim to an even larger but still narrowly focused denomination in search of it’s socialistic soul. They could also advance their joint effort in moving away from “all of that Trinitarian non-sense” as well. (By the way, the U.C.C. currently an ASA of around 100,000 even though they claim to have a membership of over 2.8 million.)
For those who like to read a good tragedy, look up the history of “The United Church of Canada,” and remember that they came unbelievably close to becoming “The Anglican and United Churches of Canada.” That 1970’s effort was stifled by the people in the pews, who didn’t exactly fancy leaving the Anglican Communion to become Congregationalists. Might it be that that sentiment might well have changed?