(Via email):
The Diocese of Quincy, a member of the Anglican Church in North America, has elected The Rt. Rev. Alberto Morales to be the 9th bishop of the diocese. Abbot Morales was elected on the 2nd ballot at a special session diocesan Synod which met Saturday at Grace Anglican Church in Galesburg, Illinois.
Bishop-elect Morales is the Abbot and spiritual leader of St. Benedicts Abbey, an ecumenical abbey in Bartonville, Illinois near Peoria. He was one of three candidates nominated for bishop by a special committee formed in 2009 to guide the selection process.
Abbot Morales founded St. Benedict’s Abbey in 1985 in Puerto Rico and moved the community to Illinois in 1996 after suffering religious persecution in Puerto Rico. Upon arrival in Illinois, the Abbot opened not only a monastery, but also a church for the people of the local community. Additionally, he started the local ministerial association along with other pastors of the Bartonville area and established St. Benedict’s Charities. He has been involved in helping the Church worldwide through his work in missions, spiritual direction, and conducting conferences and clergy retreats.
The other two nominees considered by the Synod were the Very Rev. Canon Edward den Blaauwen, Dean and Rector of Christ Church Cathedral (pro-tem) in Moline, Illinois, and Canon Liturgist of the diocese; and the Rev. Canon Michael Brooks, Rector at St. Peter’s Church in Canton, Illinois, and the administrator and Canon Missioner of the diocese.
AFAIK he’s a former Roman Catholic. I’m not sure what that abbey’s about: my guess is it’s like St Dunstan’s jointly under Bishop Grafton and the Old Catholics 100 years ago, broadly speaking orthodox but disgruntled for some reason or another (see also St Anthony’s, Hackensack’s history).
I’m not at all clear on why on earth these seemingly orthodox puertorriqueños became Episcopalians! Obviously not for the typical reason that Miami’s Padre Alberto did – priests who wanted to get married. The Italians’ reasons at St Anthony’s in the 1920s were understandable if muddled: they wanted a neighbourhood church, the Irish bishop said no, they formed and built their own church and snagged a priest to staff it and were sort of under the Polish National Catholic Church until the priest ran off somewhere and they ran out of money so they became Episcopalians in name.
My guess is these men were earnest charismatic-tinged folk who really thought God and Our Lady wanted them to start a monastery but the local bishop disagreed. So like the Italians in Hackensack they found an accommodating flag of convenience with the Piskies (under which St A’s was a nice free-for-all of Catholic folk religion) until the Piskies took a hard left turn.
Quincy gets the standard line from me that I say about the Piskies: they have the right to govern themselves.
Sour grapes?
RE: “I’m not at all clear on why on earth these seemingly orthodox puertorriqueños became Episcopalians!”
Well — I would guess it is because they do not believe Roman Catholic doctrine or dogma.
???
What an odd unclarity I read here. It’s as if Anglicanism is only about TEC-of-the-past-40-years. Bizarre.
Anyway . . . congratulations to the Anglican Diocese of Quincy! Looks like you got a good man!
If I understand the web sites correctly Bishop Morales is a bishop in the Duarte Costa Independent Catholic Church of Brazil. There are a number of American churches including the Charismatic Episcopal Church whose bishops trace their succession to that church. I wonder what the ACNA will do about Anglicanising Bishop Morales.
Good grief.
Then he *did not* become an Anglican or did not become Episcopalian? And they elected him their bishop?
Uh . . . what are the standards for being a bishop in ACNA? Seriously.
Good question, Sarah.
Sarah, I understand and respect conversions like the late Dr Louis Tarsitano’s: studying at a Roman Catholic minor seminary he became convinced the English ‘Reformation’ was right and Rome wrong so he switched, becoming at first an Episcopal priest in the 1970s before a long and distinguished career as a rather Protestant-minded Continuing one.
But ISTM unlike him this monastery was always very Roman Catholic in its beliefs and practices: again like St Dunstan’s a century ago.
From skimming its site I didn’t read that Morales is a vagante bishop but rather that it’s part of a ecumenical fellowship that includes Lutherans and Duarte Costa’s church, pretty standard high-Episcopal stuff.
And the monks converted not more than 40 years ago but about 25 years ago.
Intriguing personal story. I look forward to hearing more about the new bishop elect in Quincy.
Elves,
You might want to correct the misspelling of bishop in the heading to this thread.
David Handy+
[Thanks – Elf]
I visited St. Benedict’s Abbey nearly six years ago, and the abbey clearly played a substantive role in diocesan life. Bishop and Mrs. Ackerman visited when I was there, and diocesan members sometimes attended abbey prayers. Two or three of the monks worked part-time at the diocesan offices. In fact, Bishop Ackerman had a role in helping the monks come to America. So this is not something out of left field for Quincy, it seems to me.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bartonville_Agreement
It seems that Bp Morales has been linking up with Episcopalians and other Anglican and former Anglican’s for some time now.
So he certainly is not unknown to DoQ, and apparently of orthodox faith and practice.
Not a Buddhist or Moslem, at least.
Rest assured, Abbot Morales has been received (several years ago) into the Anglican Communion. He is a good and holy man – the perfect fit for the faithful in Quincy.
I met Bishop Ackerman for the first time this past Sunday and I was very impressed with this genuinely spirit filled servant of the Lord. If he supports this man, as it seems he has, then surely Bishop Morales a worthy man of God. Anyway, if a man is called to lead as a bishop, isn’t it the Lord doing the calling not some committee? I have always felt that prayer and listening to the whispering of the Spirit should lead to the chosing of the person. My God bless this man in his new calling.