The [ENS article by] Schjonberg… goes on to state that Canterbury never endorsed such a plan leaving the reader with the impression that Bishop Schofield might have released false information in order to influence the delegates\u2019 votes in favor of secession. A closer inspection of the facts, however, does not support such a damning implication and clearly vindicates Bishop Schofield.<\/p>\n
The statement attributed to Bishop Schofield (\u201cAccording to well-informed sources, the Archbishop of Canterbury has been fully informed of the invitation of the Province of the Southern Cone and described it as a \u201d\u02dcsensible way forward\u2019\u201d\u009d) is not something the Bishop invented. Rather it echoes a London Times article of November 9, 2007 by Ruth Gledhill, the Times Religion Correspondent.<\/p>\n
When I asked Canon Jim Rosenthal of the Anglican Communion Press Office about the Times article and about Dr. Williams\u2019 position as laid out in the ENS article, he responded in a tersely worded statement that \u201cThere is no endorsement from Dr Williams on the matter. Bishop Venables is keenly aware of this as well.\u201d\u009d Canon Rosenthal did not, however, respond to the substance of the Times article or address the issue of possible informal discussions having taken place between the Archbishop of Canterbury and Archbishop Venables of the Southern Cone regarding the problems of the Episcopal Church and its dissident orthodox dioceses.<\/p>\n
Archbishop Venables, responding to a question from El Bohemio News as to whether he had discussed the issue of alternative oversight with Dr. Williams, released the following statement through the press office at the Diocese of San Joaquin: \u201cWe neither sought nor claimed the endorsement of the Archbishop of Canterbury. We [Abp Venables] did however share our plans with him and would not have wished to proceed without doing so.\u201d\u009d It would be hard to believe that this \u201csharing\u201d\u009d of plans did not include some attempt on the part of both Dr. Williams and Archbishop Venables to resolve the crisis in the best way possible.<\/p>\n