\u201cThe contumacious actions of the Diocese of New Westminster and ECUSA have and continue to have profoundly divisive consequences within the Anglican Church of Canada, ECUSA, and the Anglican Communion as a whole. Within the Anglican Church of Canada and ECUSA, the \u201cscandal\u201d\u009d caused by the actions of these bodies has caused<\/p>\n
\u201d\u201csome to leave for other churches,
\n\u201d\u201csome to call for more adequate Episcopal oversight,
\n\u201d\u201csome to form ecclesiastical bodies independent of the Anglican Church of
\nCanada and ECUSA (but in communion with one or another province of the
\nAnglican Communion),
\n\u201d\u201csome to withhold money for the support of their parish, diocese, and national
\nchurch.<\/p>\n
Within the larger communion, a number of provinces have declared broken or impaired communion with both ECUSA and the Diocese of New Westminster. Some have even spoken of a break with the See of Canterbury if no action is taken to check the excessive claims to autonomy that lie behind the actions recently taken in Canada and the United States.<\/p>\n
Finally, some of the most important ecumenical partners of Anglicans have issued strong statements about the divisive implications of the actions taken by the Diocese of New Westminster and ECUSA.<\/p>\n
In short, the actions taken in Canada and the U.S. have set off shock waves both locally and internationally. They have produced as well a degree of bitterness and contentiousness throughout the communion that brings shame upon the ame of Christ and weakens the credibility of the witness of Anglican Christians. To ignore by silence and\/or inaction such rending of Christ\u2019s body is to stand idle as fellowship both within and between the provinces of the Anglican Communion disintegrates.\u201d\u009d<\/p>\n
\u201d\u201cCommunion and Discipline, the Anglican Communion Institute submission to the Lambeth Commission, page 38, as posted on the old blog in June 2004<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
\u201cThe contumacious actions of the Diocese of New Westminster and ECUSA have and continue to have profoundly divisive consequences within the Anglican Church of Canada, ECUSA, and the Anglican Communion as a whole. Within the Anglican Church of Canada and…<\/span><\/p>\n