Over the weekend, I was alerted to a new "Anglican Use" group forming in Springfield, Missouri. While any group seeking to worship both in the Anglican tradition and in the unity of the Catholic Church is a wonderful thing, this group is especially interesting for its diversity. The community includes Episcopalians, former Anglicans already received into the Catholic Church, Baptists, Evangelicals, and ordinary Roman Catholics disillusioned with the typical celebration of the Novus Ordo in their parishes.
Shane Schaetzel, one of the founders of the group, has written the following introduction for our readers. Please pray for the success of this new community!
Something's Brewing In The Ozarks
by Shane Schaetzel
When the Vatican recently announced the reception of Anglican communities into the Catholic Church it was a dream come true not only for Anglo-Catholics seeking their own pastoral provision, but also for many Roman Catholics with Anglican backgrounds. Over the last thirty years there has been a quiet but steady trickle of Anglicans into the Roman Catholic Church. In the American province of the worldwide Anglican Communion, “The Episcopal Church,” it began with alterations to the Book of Common Prayer in 1979 and increased with the ordination of female clergy, along with the widespread acceptance of homosexuality.
Springfield Missouri is home to about four Episcopalian parishes and two continuing Anglican parishes. There was one small Traditional Anglican Communion (TAC) parish about ten years ago, but it was later disbanded and the chapel sold. That being said, there are currently no Anglican parishes within the city that are interested in entering the emerging Anglican ordinariates within the Roman Catholic Church.
However, that does not mean Springfield is lacking individuals with Anglican backgrounds who have taken interest in accepting the pope's offer. That being the case, a few pioneering Christians are starting their own prayer group in Springfield, with the intent of eventually forming an Anglican Use parish under the pastoral care of the soon to be Anglican Use ordinary bishop. They've named their group simply “Anglican-Use Catholics of Springfield Missouri.”
They have made their presence known to the Anglican Use Society, and are seeking direction from officials within that organization. They have also made their presence known to the diocesan bishop of the "Anglican Church in America," the provincial affiliate of the TAC. Likewise, they have notified their local Roman Catholic diocesan bishop of their intent.
The group is small but diverse. Shane, the group's coordinator, simply felt a calling. He and his wife are former Evangelicals, turned Episcopalians, who eventually converted to the Roman Catholic Church about ten years ago. After putting up a group page on Facebook, he immediately received the support of over a dozen friends, many of whom live in or near Springfield. The emerging group has received interest from diverse people. One is a former Episcopalian who is without a church home at this time. An active Episcopalian couple has also expressed interest. The rest of the group consists of Roman Catholics who have become disillusioned with the current vernacular celebration of the contemporary mass, and are now seeking something more traditionally “Catholic” but simultaneously have no interest in the Traditional Latin Mass. The group also has some Baptists who have expressed interest, and even a few Evangelicals.
The initial intent of the group is prayer. The first prayer meeting, using the Anglican Office, will be held in either January or February of 2010. They hope to meet weekly in Springfield, either in a chapel or else a public room set aside at a local library. Once established in a regular prayer setting, they hope to grow significantly with God's blessing. Those within the group who are not currently Catholic will obviously use this time for personal reflection on the prospect of conversion and whether or not that's the right decision for them. All however, are welcome to join in prayer, regardless of where their faith journey eventually leads them.
Already, an Anglican Use Catholic priest in Kansas City has graciously offered to drive one-hundred-sixty miles to celebrate mass with the Springfield group once in a while. The Anglican Use Society has also offered much help in the way of communication and advice.
The group hopes to receive more help as soon as the Anglican ordinariates are established, and an ordinary bishop is assigned to a region that covers them. In the mean time, the group works in cooperation with others. Roman Catholics continue to receive the sacraments in their diocesan parish until such a time that the Springfield group eventually gets their own priest. Non-Catholics within the group might continue to go to their respective churches for Sunday services until ready to convert, or else some might consider the Springfield group their “church” for a time. It is hoped that things will work out in such a way that non-Catholics within the group will be received into the Catholic Church together, under the Anglican Use rite, at such a time when the ordinary bishop is established and can provide the needed pastoral provision.
In some ways the Springfield group is breaking new ground both for the Anglican Use and the Apostolic Constitution. Traditionally, Anglican Use parishes have been created when a group of Episcopalians (Anglicans) decide to convert together, usually with an Episcopalian priest who guides them and is himself ordained as a priest in the Roman Catholic Church. The Springfield group is different in the sense that it's starting from scratch, on it's own, having no more than a few former Episcopalians to get it started, two of which are already members of their local diocese within the Roman Catholic Church. The remaining members are both Catholics and non-Catholics who have no Anglican background, but have expressed interest in the Anglican Use liturgy. What's happening in Springfield demonstrates that one doesn't need to follow the traditional model to start and Anglican Use parish. Where there is a will there is a way. Individuals who desire the Anglican Use in their area, can work toward attaining it, if they are just willing to meet together, seek God's will, and pray.
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Didn't see an email for Mr Campbell. Just to say I have blogged on this news at Standing on My Head and have been in touch with Mr Schaetzel concerning an article on their initiative for National Catholic Register for whom I write regularly. I've also added you to my blogroll. I hope it helps.
Fr. Longenecker:
My email address is ccampbell at threefishgroup dot com. Thanks for the info and I hope that you will frequent the blog. Welcome!
The average Southerner, who is likely to be Evangelical Protestant, generally sees the Roman Catholic Church as either alien or a club for relocated Yankees — however unfair such judgements might be. But the Episcopals — the church of Washington and Lee — have been a part of Dixie since Jamestown.
So I pray therefore that the Anglican Ordinariate will be over the 21st Century the road to Rome for many of the good folk of Dixie.
Sid,
An important observation indeed! For the record, I would like to state that my Southron credentials are unimpeachable. I am a native Virginian, raised in the Anglican Church (my home parish of St. Stephen's situated on a parcel carved from Mr. Jefferson's Poplar Forest estate), and educated at the University of Virginia. I am a loyal son of the Old Dominion and consider any place beyond the borders of the old Confederacy to be a foreign country.
Huzzah, Mr. Campbell! Huzzah!
I thought that membership in the new personal ordinariates is only for baptized Anglicans who have not already converted to Romam Catholicism.
Don't get me wrong, I am all for everyone worshipping Christ together, but I don't think the intent of the A.P. was that there would suddenly be a new branch of the Catholic Church that would be for everyone would isn't happy with their particular chuch. As far as I can understand, the new ordinariates are specifically for Anglicans who are not happy with the disappearance of their church and need a structure that will allow them to convert to Catholicism and retain their Anglican traditions. All Catholics would be welcome to worship in any Ordinariate, as it is part of the Church, but actual membership and the accompanying pastoral supervision would only be for former Anglicans. All other Roman Catholics, regardless of their original faiths, would fall under the supervision of the regular Diocese bishop. Am I mistaken in this? It seems that the wording of A.C. and the intent of the Holy Father would indicate this. I am not trying to exclude anyone from the P.O.'s but are they not initially solely for new Anglican converts? All other converts would have to wait for the new Ordinariate priest and Bishop to convert new Catholics in the regular fashion i.e. RCIA.
Please correct me if I am wrong.