We Anglo-Catholics who seek unity with Rome find ourselves in a tight spot at present. In many ways we are like a tiny community of people huddled on a tiny raft tossed about at sea whilst a turbulent storm rages. And as we desperately try to manoeuvre away from the rocks and into a place of calm and safety so we are buffeted from all angles by various forces which oppose us at every turn.
We set sail on our raft because our sincere Catholic convictions have left us unable to remain Anglican with integrity now that General Synod has made clear its decision to move the national church in a less Catholic direction. Getting on the raft is not easy as it requires leaving much that we love and treasure behind us. And for this reason, amongst others, we are clearly few in number.
The first wave crashes into us from behind. Our yearning for Rome does not win us friends in Canterbury! There are many who want to remain blind to what is being done to us or who want to pretend that actions in Synod need have no consequences.
Women priests were meant to be a sign of unity within the Church of England and our exodus points to a contrary position. This results in bitterness, anger and shame. How dare we abandon the C of E? Why cant we just accept the decisions of Synod?
And so the more we row on towards Rome, the more these feelings gather strength. What does the inability of certain commentators on this blog to even recognise our problem or say anything positive at all about our theology say other than to bare testament to this fact? In many ways our moving brings ancient divisions to the surface. We re-open reformation wounds with every stroke that we take and this in turn leads to the rise in anti-Catholic feeling and polemic that also bashes us at present. Little wonder we get battered for we find ourselves at the very meeting point between protestant and Catholic faith. A fact which only heightens the symbolism and meaning of our departure and further inflames rising passion.
And then we meet waves from the fore! Alas from Rome’s shore there are those who despise our passion for orthodoxy and tradition. Like their Anglican doppelgangers, these liberal products of modern Western culture, do not understand us or want us with our adherence to the faith of the ages and our delight for the reform of the reform! Again our arrival brings with it a symbolism and meaning which many would want to defy. Those seeking to make Rome more like Canterbury are hardly going to roll out the red carpet and we need to be ready for such rejection.
And finally there are holes in our tiny raft which means water assaults us from within. Many Anglo-Catholics do not want the Ordinariate to succeed for a variety of different reasons. It does not suit them and so they rail against it. This little raft puts a focus on people’s faith and integrity and many resent it for that reason. Our departure impacts on their identity and purpose. Oh that it might not be so! But it is and we cannot avoid the pain of an inevitable separation from those who would reject our journey and chosen direction.
And so we are buffeted by many different waves that gather momentum from many different sources. But still we must row on and not take our eyes off our captain. We go because we feel God is calling us to go. We do not wish harm of those who stay and we do not want to insult those who remain, though we might feel hurt by their actions. Please continue to pray for this rag-tag group of pilgrims…God knows, we need it!
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May the Star of the Sea guide and guard the raft.
As we huddled faithful few prayerfully row toward that distant shore a hymn comes to mind to strengthen us in our resolve. It is known to some as the “Navy Hymn” and to some others by its first line, “Eternal Father, strong to save.” It seems to be most appropriate in this period of watchful waiting.
Eternal Father, strong to save,
Whose arm hath bound the restless wave,
Who bidd'st the mighty ocean deep
Its own appointed limits keep;
Oh, hear us when we cry to Thee,
For those in peril on the sea!
O Christ! Whose voice the waters heard
And hushed their raging at Thy word,
Who walkedst on the foaming deep,
And calm amidst its rage didst sleep;
Oh, hear us when we cry to Thee,
For those in peril on the sea!
Most Holy Spirit! Who didst brood
Upon the chaos dark and rude,
And bid its angry tumult cease,
And give, for wild confusion, peace;
Oh, hear us when we cry to Thee,
For those in peril on the sea!
O Trinity of love and power!
Our brethren shield in danger's hour;
From rock and tempest, fire and foe,
Protect them wheresoe'er they go;
Thus evermore shall rise to Thee
Glad hymns of praise from land and sea.
Fr. Tomlinson-
A note of encouragement for those of you in the raft.
Eight years ago the Episcopal Church here in the US left the faith. For the next four years my family did not attend church and all I could do was to pray for a church home. In 2006 I was received into the Catholic Church. My children attend Catholic schools. At age 49 I am completing my MA in Theology and plan on pursuing a PhD in order to serve the church. I can honestly say, I put my hand to the plow and have never looked back. All of us are following the true calling of this faith we call Christian as manifested in the Church Catholic. All of us will leave behind friends. Some will sacrifice property, pay and pension. Friends and relatives think that we are nuts and wonder, why? Most will never understand our conversion, which is what we have done or are in the process of doing. Be faithful to your call and never look back. The spiritual rewards are many, although the trials and tribulations persist (they are merely different trials and tribulations). One of the benefits of leaving the comfort and beauty of our Anglican churches behind is that we focus on our spiritual life. We turn inward and ask ourselves; "what is my faith and how do I live it in the world?" Your life will be vastly different. Your style of worship will be vastly different. The building you worship in will be vastly different. However, the rewards are many.
Press on my brothers and sisters.
Blessings,
Clark S. Olsen
PS-Perhaps they call it swimming the Tiber because each individual is meant to get out of the boat/raft and trust that Jesus will bring them safely to the other side. After all, he did calm the seas and bid his disciples to walk with him on the water. So long as their faith in Jesus remained strong they continued to walk safely. It was only when they began to doubt that they began to drown.
Dear Fr. Ed,
Since, in addition to my Anglican Usage connections, I am a member of the ecclesial movement, Regnum Christi, which, as you may know, has had its own problems of late, your poignant message and the painting accompanying it, reminded me of a very inspiring testimony given by Fr. Evaristo Sada, LC, to a Regnum Christi meeting in Mexico City last February. The pdf version of his talk may be found at the link below, following which I have taken the liberty of including some excerpts:
http://legrc.org/regnum_db/archivosWord_db/revised_fr_evaristo_talk.pdf
“The Rembrandt painting ["Christ in the Storm on the Sea of Galilee"] depicts the calming of the storm on the Sea of Galilee. Look at the people in the painting: one is seasick and is leaning over the side. One is praying. Another two are calling out to Jesus. What is happening? How did he allow this? In front, there is a group giving their all to pull out of it. One is “waiting” and accuses the others of fighting as if nothing were happening. The others ask him what he is waiting for, as if the fight for holiness and the mission could allow for breaks.
Some tell others, “You just don’t understand me.” The ones in front of the boat shout to the nauseated one to come and help them; and he responds, “I just can’t.” Another is watching, demanding, blaming, complaining, and telling the others that they are doing it all wrong. Another is unaware because fear has made him deny the hard reality. There is Peter at the helm, following Christ’s instructions. Maybe one has fallen into the sea, is drowning, and is waiting to be rescued and brought back into the boat.
In our interior process, we have all gone through different attitudes. No one would ever have imagined the storm that has surrounded us. It is terrible. As in any difficult moment, we have to help each other, understand each other, respect each other, be reconciled, stand by those who are most affected, tired, confused, or wounded. We have to carry each other’s burdens (cf. Gal. 6:2). I understand that there is disappointment, sadness, and bewilderment. No wonder.
…
Jesus is in the boat
When you are in the middle of the storm and you can’t see clearly, you need a bit of space and distance to be able to reflect, see your mistakes, understand others better, and begin to recover your strength to rebuild and fulfill your responsibilities without avoiding the problems. We don’t know how long it is going to last. ‘Life’s not about waiting for the storm to pass. It’s about learning to dance in the rain! (Vivian Greene). This is going to take time; we are learning to dance and sing in the rain with faith, trust, and love. And we have seen that with God’s grace, it is possible.
The most important thing is that Jesus is in the boat. He is trying to keep all of us on board, united and trustful. He wants to bring us to the other shore, where God the Father is waiting for us with open arms.
Supernatural trust
After thinking about it for a long time, I came to the conviction that I must have trust, because Jesus was the one who invited me. The boat is God’s own hands. I see the Legion and Regnum Christi in these hands; I see my life there. In his hands, we are secure and in peace. Jesus tells us, “Courage, it is I. Do not be afraid.” It is not about not getting disturbed: Mary was disturbed, Jesus was in anguish in Gethsemane. It is about learning to suffer with Jesus, his way.
I was reading a book that has an example I liked, and which I’d like to apply in our situation. If I throw this racquetball ball, it bounces higher than the point where it was. If I throw a tomato, it stays there, all smashed and paralyzed. If I throw an egg, it breaks. Crisis in our life can cause breakage, paralysis, or it can lead us to overcome our problems.
You can apply this to any circumstance in your life: a sickness, the death of a loved one, an assault or robbery, bankruptcy, the betrayal of your husband or wife, a business associate cheating you, your own sins, or any misfortune you have had in life. When you face trials and misfortunes, you can break or you can grow. With the theological virtues—faith, hope, and charity—the stronger the blow, the more you overcome. If not, the stronger the blow, the more certain that you will break. The theological virtues are the life of God in us. To see as he sees, to feel as he feels. If you let yourself be conquered by mistrust, you will break and sink. If you have only human trust, you will not break, but neither will you grow. If you have supernatural confidence, you will overcome. And if you have broken, don’t feel alone. Jesus is always at your side when all of this happens to you. He will help you to rebuild. He can make all things new.
An old Cherokee Indian told his grandson about a battle that takes place inside people. He told him, “My son, the battle is between two wolves that we carry inside. One wolf is sin: anger, impatience, disappointment, rancor, resentment, hatred, pride, the desire for vengeance, selfishness. The other wolf is goodness: it is forgiveness, mercy, peace, respect, hope, goodness, compassion, trust, humility, love…” The child thought about it for a while and then asked his grandfather, “Grandpa, which wolf wins the battle?” The old man answered, “The one you feed.” Which wolf am I feeding?…”
Thank you so much for your vivid image of the raft, Father.
Two thoughts came to mind which I think help to put our present trials in perspective with those of our great forebears in the Patrimony.
First, the image of John H. Newman who had parted from his friends and was a stranger in the strange land of the English Catholic Church, misunderstood both by the Anglicans he had left and by many of the Catholics he had joined and at times beset on all sides.
The second is of St. Paul, sitting on an island in exile from his home and familiar friends as he expressed the consolation of God it in the great passage from the Second Epistle to the Corinthians (below).
I expect that JHN reflected upon these words many times and so may we:
"In a favorable time I listened to you, and in a day of salvation I have helped you.
Behold, now is the acceptable time; behold, now is the day of salvation. We put no obstacle in anyone’s way, so that no fault may be found with our ministry, but as servants of God we commend ourselves in every way: by great endurance, in afflictions, hardships, calamities,beatings, imprisonments, riots, labours, sleepless nights, hunger; by purity, knowledge, patience, kindness, the Holy Spirit, genuine love; by truthful speech, and the power of God; with the weapons of righteousness for the right hand and for the left; through honour and dishonour, through slander and praise.
We are treated as impostors, and yet are true; as unknown, and yet well known; as dying, and behold, we live; as punished, and yet not killed; as sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich; as having nothing, yet possessing all things."
On this side of the Tiber, Father, in England, I have to say that I haven't heard of much opposition (I suppose the usual suspects might say something when the time comes, but right now they are far too exercised by having a go at the Holy Father). Rather, there is interest and a warm welcome, though curiosity as to what form exactly the Ordinariate might take.
Like St Peter, one sometimes has simply to step out of the boat onto stormy waters, only to find out that the hand held out is our Lord's, to whom a storm is as nothing.
My dear mother, may she rest in peace, used to tell me an old Puerto Rican saying; "One thing is to call upon the Devil. Another thing is to see he arriving." We had a good idea of what was about to happen upon our decision to avail ourselves of the blessed offer found in the AC. Now we are living it. And more is to come. Let us cast our eyes upon the horizon and thus mitigate the nausea caused by the difficulties around us. We shall, Lord willing, soon set foot ashore and send the raft back, again and again, in search of any stragglers. We shall pray for their safe passage as many we are praying for our safe passage as we speak.