Last week, it was announced that there will be newly created ecclesiastical structures for those Anglicans wishing to come into communion with the Catholic Church. This is great news and sad news. It's great in that I have always been very supportive of allowing greater diversity in the Church. Although the details of these new structures are forthcoming, it seems that Anglican ways of prayer may be preserved in their "Catholic" liturgy, much like it is allowed in the Eastern Catholic Churches.This is also sad news, because this is another example of posturing to a conservative group of Christians by the Vatican to make them feel more welcome, while the Vatican is incalcitrant to liberals who would like greater diversity in Church liturgy.
This announcement will also create a new dynamic locally between Catholics and Episcopalians and possibly a small exodus of Catholic priests. The Archdiocese of Milwaukee and the Episcopal diocese of Milwaukee have traditionally agreed not to accept each other's priests, meaning that priests who wish to switch denominations would need to relocate and to travel to a different diocese. With this document, all bets are off, so to speak.
A Faithful Catholic
4 comments:
"The Archdiocese of Milwaukee and the Episcopal diocese of Milwaukee have traditionally agreed not to accept each other's priests"
Why cling to old traditions?
Anyway I think decisions such as this will be up to our new Archbishop, not R. Weakland, I am sure whoever the new Bishop may be, he is not going to say no to somone who is following the inviation of the Holy Father to come home to Rome via Milwaukee.
Also most Anglicans who come in will not be comming from the Episcopal diocese but groups that broke off from that into Traditional Anglican/Continuing Anglican/Independant Anglican etc. groups that are sort of a patchwork right now but can all find a home in the new Anglican "Rite" of the Catholic Church.
-Anglocatholic
The Anglican Church has never been anything else but catholicity with English colouring! I must say to my mind our Anglo Catholic colleagues have never done much for the Church, certainly in my life time. There is a difference in teaching within the traditional Anglican Church, where the magisterium is based on Revelation, Scripture and the Fathers!Further, Where formally we had the College of Apostles we now have the College of Bishops working through the Church Councils under the guidance of the Holy Ghost! This is following the tradion of the ancient church!
Most of the Anglo-Catholic bretheren who I have met have little or no idea on the subject. Amongst those who have heard, there has been little or no study on the matter and relying on the Roman Way has been the easy road out. If they are happy, I'm pleased for them, if Rome gets what it wants , we should welcome that as well. To my mind, these people have never committed themselves to the Church, but have been like Lemmings, seeking salvation over a cliffe!
The Catholic Church will never embrace the Modernist Gnostic heresies common to "Liberal Christianity". Rather, the Church sees an opportunity to welcome our separated brethren back to the Barque of Peter who have been distant for so long. As the Episcopal Church in the United States and other Western elements of the Anglican Communion slide further into heresy and apostasy, it only makes sense for the Church to open its arms to those who are willing to accept the primacy of Peter, the Magisterium and come into the Church. Those Anglo-Catholics who accept these teachings will be authentic Catholics in the Anglican Tradition, yet theologically, they will be Roman Catholic. That is far more than can be said for many of the "Liberal" traditions you wish for the Church to endorse.
"...liberals who would like greater diversity in Church liturgy."
At my parish, at least, I haven't noticed that anything's stopping them. One pastor lost track of his ad libs in the Eucharistic Prayer and wound up asking the Lord to intercede for Himself. You can't get much more diverse than that.
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