..As I look at the Anglican Communion, and particularly those largely “Global north” and western churches that align with the values of The Episcopal Church (TEC), and increasingly the leadership of the Church of England, I can’t help but face the conviction of Isaiah 1. The Biblical, apostolic catholic and conciliar values that birthed Anglicanism are given lip service while leaders of the Anglican status quo drift increasingly into heterodoxy and the outright denial of the very essentials of our faith. They justify this with technical and legalistic appeals to the fact that the original values have not been formally or officially repealed. “No one has abandoned the Creeds or the Thirty-Nine Articles,” they will say. But they are said with fingers crossed, and presented as meaninglessly as the offerings of Israel in Isaiah 1.
What if the Archbishop of Canterbury and the Bishops of the Church of England are preparing for an “about face” on their teaching of marriage, as some inside leaders of the Church are suggesting. There seems to be a growing inevitability that the leadership of the Church of England will sooner than later provide liturgical blessings for same-sex partnerships, perhaps even marriages. They may say that they are remaining faithful because they have not officially repealed the Church’s teaching that marriage is a lifetime covenant between one man and one woman. But in blessing same sex unions they will be repudiating the Biblical doctrine of creation, including marriage (see Gen.2:24; Matt. 19:4-6; Eph. 5:31).
” I am reminded by our actual numbers that we can fit every ACNA Anglican that worships on Sunday into a college football stadium.”
Struck me right in my chest, knocking the wind right out of me. I had pictured us as much larger than that, what with the whole dioceses of Quincy, Fort Worth, SC, Christ Church and hundreds of smaller churches that have left TEC. I guess I thought the revolution against TEC was more widespread, larger. I know some clergy left because they wanted to be out from under authority of the Bishop, only to find they were assigned another Bishop to have authority over them. But, those that left because of sincere conviction they could no longer be part of the blasphemous, destructive behavior of TEC seem to have grown, ie. vision = values.
DSC has not yet joined ACNA. There are a number of options for those who leave TEC.
“I guess I thought the revolution against TEC was more widespread, larger.”
In fact its smaller than that, because many in ACNA were never part of TEC in the first place.
But it is what it is. ACNA on its web-site claims that it unites “112,000 Anglicans in nearly 1,000 congregations across the United States, Canada, and Mexico”. In one sense, that is a lot. But if you think about the way TEC and ACoC churches are disappearing, that means whole swathes of North America lack any Anglican witness.
Hence the call for planting viable churches. ACNA will only survive if it conquers. That means not conquering TEC, but rather nurturing many new faithful congregations across the continent.