The Columba Declaration has been discussed for the past 15 years and officially ties the two churches, which have been seperate since the 16th century Reformation. It was passed at the Scottish Church’s general assembly on Wednesday. The CoE’s general synod passed the measure in February.
The Archbishop of Canterbury became the first CoE leader to join a debate at the general assembly and urged support for the report. Justin Welby acknowledged significant differences in the doctrines of the two churches but said the Columba Declaration provided a framework to affirm common ground.
Earlier in the assembly’s five day meeting the CoS agreed to accept ministers who are in same-sex marriages, something the CoE has not done.
“We won’t always necessarily find ourselves walking in step with one another, something I’ve been particularly conscious of, as, like you, we have been considering the issues around same-sex marriages, and following your earlier debate on ministers in same-sex marriages,” Welby said in his address.
“But what we believe we are providing in this report is a sound framework for us to affirm and build on the agreement we have, for the sake of our common witness to Christ.”
These ecumenical agreements are flourishing, but it worries me that they may actually be taken seriously as churches proclaim beliefs that diverge from orthodoxy.
A careful reading of the agreement indicates it is not different from the American COCU (CUiC) agreement. It does not authorize clergy not ordained by a bishop to function as CoE priests. The CofE as a state church has ecumenical relations with other state churches that are different from other Anglican ecumenical relationships. We discovered this in the Episcopal Moravian dialogue. The Episcopal Church and the Moravian Church in the United States were able to come to a full communion agreement with mutual recognition of episcopal ministry. The CofE and British Moravians were not able to do so because the CoFE had the state church mindset.