In my opinion, the old way is clearly inadequate. Even apart from the issues that have created the crisis, to try to maintain the old way of doing things is backward thinking ”” basically merely saying “But we’ve never done it that way before.” It is doing business this way that has brought the Anglican Communion to its current crisis. It doesn’t work any more. It hasn’t worked for more than 30 years. I find it more than curious that most of those who claim to be “pushing the envelope forward” in the Anglican world are the “backward thinkers” in the matter of Anglican decision-making.
The first view, proposed by the majority of Anglican leaders, is indeed a way new to Anglicanism. This does not make it automatically wrong. On the contrary, in my opinion it is wise, realistic, and essential. The realignment is moving in the direction of this view ”” creating a worldwide Anglican identity with mutual accountability and effectively recognizing that Anglicanism has become a world family and is no longer a loose confederation.
There are currently four instruments of unity in Anglicanism that define us as a world family: the office of the Archbishop of Canterbury, who is the symbol of unity and has authority to decide who is an Anglican; the Lambeth Conference of all Anglican bishops, which began in 1867 and meets every 10 years to take counsel; the Anglican Consultative Council, a deliberative body that includes clergy and lay people from around the world [TLC, Sept. 16]; and the meeting of primates, or bishops who are leaders of the 38 Anglican provinces. The latter two instruments came into being as recently as the 1970s.
Currently an Anglican Covenant is being devised by which it appears that the provinces will be asked to agree to be a worldwide family with mutual accountability and, when necessary, make binding decisions together on matters that affect everyone. It is a situation similar to the time after the original 13 American colonies had become independent from England and then had to decide whether to form a federal government. It is a rare situation in world history, and people do not easily or gladly cede authority to a larger body.
From where I sit, it looks as though a lot of Anglican provinces see this trend as the answer to a crying need. Whatever lies ahead, Anglicanism is in the throes of change and cannot go back.
Dear me. Common sense? A new view of the way forward? Classifying the giddy left wing as backward looking. Envisioning a world Anglican church? And idea instead of an agenda? This is heady stuff. I shall have to go out in the lingering Maine sun – first hard frost last night – and sit a while until my head stops spinning. LM
In a Covenant, good-faith, trust, integrity, and honesty are key essentials: I see none from the Revisionists.
The situation in the Anglican Communion is further worsened by the fact of the titular head’s irresponsibility (and I don’t use this word loosely).
If the ABC had come out and openly and clearly stated his personal conviction on this matter, as the principal characters/leaders on both sides have done (and are doing), things would have been clearly for the better or for the worse. Handling this eternal-life-and-death issue as simply a matter of debating, politicking, positioning, and let’s-keep-talking game is the height of irresponsibility.
Fr. Kingsley
“It is a situation similar to the time after the original 13 American colonies had become independent from England and then had to decide whether to form a federal government. It is a rare situation in world history, and people do not easily or gladly cede authority to a larger body.”
Hmm, American polity triumphing but not in the way the progressives imagine? God, indeed, has a sense of irony, does HE not? Wonderfully unexpected outcome from American imperialism in the Anglican Communion! Indeed!
But I want to repeat one element which sems to me of real substance, his view that TEC, which touts itself as avant garde, is backward looking. This is an important observation because it should guide our judgments about TEC’s future in the new century. TEC will perish, at last, because it faces into the last quarter of the 20th century. They are looking into the 60’s and 70’s and acting as if this is the future. This confusion is fundamental and irreversible. LM