We already had an earlier post from our new resident deacon about some of the weekend's developments in the UK as priests in four Church of England parishes announced their intention to enter the Ordinariate of Our Lady of Walsingham.
Here's what they had to say in their own words:
From Fr. Ivan Aquilina of St. John the Baptist, Sevenoaks:
Christ is the human face of God; the fullness of Revelation. He lives in his church and operates through the baptised who are his hands, his feet and his merciful face. What the Church believes across all nations, by everyone and down the centuries is his unmistakable voice.
Christ is the human face of God; the fullness of Revelation. He lives in his church and operates through the baptised who are his hands, his feet and his merciful face. What the Church believes across all nations, by everyone and down the centuries is his unmistakable voice.
With the recent developments in the Church of England and the wider Anglican Communion I have increasingly found myself in a situation where I cannot preach the Gospel of Christ and celebrate his sacraments with any integrity. It is the generous offer of Pope Benedict XVI in the form of the Ordinariate that gives me the joy of continuing this faithfulness to this Gospel. The move to the Ordinariate also gives me the opportunity to offer to you the greatest witness I can possibly give you.
For this reason I have written to the Bishop of Rochester notifying him that I intend to resign from this Parish in order to become a Roman Catholic in the Ordinariate of Our Lady of Walsingham.
Fr James has notified the same bishop that he intends to resign for the same noble reason.
Fr Ed Tomlinson of St. Barnabas, Tunbridge Wells writes:
After consultation with the Bishop of Rochester, and with his blessing, I can now publically announce that it is my intention to resign as vicar of Saint Barnabas in Tunbridge Wells on Palm Sunday and to cease public Anglican ministry from Ash Wednesday.
I will then undertake a period of preparation to enter the Roman Catholic Church as a member of the Ordinariate of Our Lady of Walsingham alongside my family and the majority of my current parishioners.
My intention to resign is made public in the pastoral interests of all, both those remaining Anglican and those seeking a new life within the Catholic church.
Your prayers are encouraged at this time for both groups.
Follow future developments at the Tunbridge Wells Ordinariate Blog.>>>
In Derbyshire, Fr. Simon Ellis of St. Laurence, Long Eaton, and Holy Trinity, Ilkeston wrote in part:
Many have come to see, by contrast, that the Catholic Church in this country has become the main conscience of the nation, able to offer biblical truth and the gospel life of true freedom which people so desperately seek in this age of relativism, despair and fundamentalism. More importantly, the offer from the Catholic Church to Anglicans [Anglicanorum Coetibus, announced November, 2009] to move as groups in to the fullness of communion with Catholicism – whilst maintaining their spiritual patrimony – is something we have prayed for over many years and is, I believe, a prophetic moment for the wider church and the world.
As for the Church of England, I assure all those who continue to serve within it of my prayers and best wishes. Friendships will still remain and I shall continue to attempt to build positive ecumenical relations with all of God’s holy people. God (and you) forgive me for the times of failure which we pastors feel keenly. We are, indeed, earthen vessels.
I am so overwhelmed with thanks for so many blessings and hope that you will hold Kate, Rebecca and Anastasia and I in your prayers as we prepare for this new chapter in our lives and in the life of God’s Church.
Finally, The Northern Echo carries a story about the visits of Fr. Keith Newton to the parish of St. James the Great, Darlington and the announcement of its priest, Father Ian Grieves, that he intends to enter the Ordinariate:
In the 22 years he has been priest, Fr Grieves has increased the size of the followers from just 18 and helped fund hundreds of thousands of pounds worth of improvements to the church which was previously at risk of closure.
However a new Catholic congregation may have to find a new building for worship.
Fr Grieves added: "It is the most monumental decision of my life. We are not afraid because we have been here before. We started with nothing."
Be sure to follow our Moderator at Eccentric Bliss, his personal blog!
Has anyone wondered why The Traditional Anglican Church its priests and people is seemingly being deliberately sidelined by the new Ordinary. You hear of all these C of E priests being welcomed to the Ordinariate, though nothing of the TTAC whose intentions have been known for some two years now in the UK. They are faithful Anglicans and the door has not been opened to them.
I am not sure if the door is shut or not. I hear some good things about the progress of the TAC people. I do know for a fact that none of the TAC people have been accepted by Hopes through the CDF. It may be that the process is at a different stage.
My fear is far greater than that caused by the apparent absence of the TAC people. It seems to me that what the Holy Father set out in Anglicanorum Coetibus as the process by which groups of people and their pastors could enter into full communion with the See of Peter has be hi-jacked by the English Bishops into a glorified version of personal conversion. The complete absence of any Anglican patrimony and lovely phrases such as 'folded in' by the RC bishop of Portsmouth do little to ease the concerns. We must wait and see but the situation does not look good at this time.
At some stage we need to expose the Secrecy agreement that the RC bishops made the participants in the first wave agree to.
I don't know that we can say that TTAC is being sidelined unless and until we hear something official from TTAC to that effect. Archbishop John Hepworth has given details of congregations and priests in England who have submitted information to the CDF, but the only TTAC congregation I know of (a friend of mine knows their priest) has actually voted "no" meaning "not yet".
Particularly at this early stage of the process, if TTAC is being sidelined, it will only take an official complaint to the CDF to put matters right.
Possibly, jm — but, tell me, have any TTAC clergy and parishes made application to the Ordinariat? Has Bishop Mercer taken any actions to follow in the steps of the other bishops? If they expect — and I don't know anything about their expectations — the Ordinariat to come to them, rather than themselves to make haste to the Ordinariat, they may well have a long wait indeed.
Everyone who knows the saintly Bishop Mercer also knows that he does not do computers and he has no access to the internet . It is not nice to challenge people who cannot reply in this field.
I am confident that Bishop Mercer will be following the advice given to him by + Hopes and or the CDF. He is brilliant administrator of the old school.
The difference will become obvious when we discover who is actually accepted by the CDF. If + Hopes and or the CDF start to cherry pick then I suspect the TTAC priests and people will rightly believe that the English RC Bishops are not implementing the Apostolic Constitution in line with the Holy Fathers wishes.
If the Ordinariate in England/UK is purely for former FiF cronies who use the modern Roman Rite then it will indeed be a very small group. There is no evidence as yet that it is for any normal Anglicans who use Anglican liturgy. Our Patrimony must surely consist of both liturgical and pastoral gifts that are not to be found in the Roman tradition. If no Patrimony is obvious then all those so far have simply converted to Rome on a fast track system. That is not what the Holy Father intended. It is just glorified personal conversion.
jm,
You wrote: Has anyone wondered why The Traditional Anglican Church its priests and people is seemingly being deliberately sidelined by the new Ordinary. You hear of all these C of E priests being welcomed to the Ordinariate, though nothing of the TTAC whose intentions have been known for some two years now in the UK. They are faithful Anglicans and .
Do you know, factually, that "the door has not been opened to them" or is this just speculation predicated on the absence of an announced timeline for their reception into the Catholic Church and the Personal Ordinariate of Our Lady of Walsingham?
There are several obvious issues that the Traditional Anglican Church (TTAC) might wish to resolve before actually entering the ordinariate.
>> 1. One of the earlier replies noted that the Forward in Faith (FIF) parishes of the Church of England (CoE) that are on the announced timeline are already using the present form of the Roman Rite within the CoE, and thus probably will continue to do so as Catholics. In an earlier thread, Fr. Christopher Phillips posted that the current Book of Divine Worship authorized nearly three decades ago for the "Anglican Use" parishes here in the States won't be reprinted because the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Sacraments is preparing a more comprehensive Catholic edition of the Anglican liturgy for the use of the ordinariates. Some of the TTAC parishes and clergy may prefer to await the availaiblity of the new Catholic edition of the Anglican liturgy rather than using either the current form of the Roman Rite or the Book of Divine Worship (if they can scrounge a copy of the latter) in the interim.
>> 2. TTAC has four parishes in Scotland that cannot be part of the Ordinariate of Our Lady of Walsingham becasue they are in the territory of a different episocpal conference. The status of these parishes is an obvious potential "sticking point" because they probably don't have "critical mass" to form an ordinariate of their own.
Perhaps there are other issues as well. To accuse Fr. Newton or other members of the Catholic hierarchy of malfeasance or neglect, in the absence of clear knowledge of the situation, is premature at best. When the proverbial dust settles, I'm sure that the situation will be resolved in one way or another.
Norm.
I think you can add Father len Black of Inverness whose Vestry secretary announced last week that he is leaving for the Ordinariate. He takes early retirement as at 06/03/11. I cannot understand why the Ordinariate day held at St Michaels Inverness last Thursday is not on your page or advertsied on the Ordinariet Portal . A wee oversight perhaps ? There also seems to be the absence of a pin in the map of the UK for those in Scotland who are in a group.
Dear Father,
I think that if the ordinariate day at Inverness was not mentioned on the Ordinariate Portal, it is probably that the staff of this site doesn't know about it, as this meeting wasn't very much advertised on the internet.
I'm sure that they would be glad to anounce these wonderful news for Scotland (and add scottish pins!) on their site if you, or anybody send them the information.
+Pax et Bonum
Fr Crosbie said: "I cannot understand why the Ordinariate day held at St Michaels Inverness last Thursday is not on your page or advertsied on the Ordinariet Portal . A wee oversight perhaps?"
The Ordinariate Portal was not made aware of this event and would happily publicise future events. Please do contact us by email if you know of any events that would benefit from further coverage.
> Ordinariate Portal:
Please do contact us by email
It would be very helpful if there were to be an e-mail link placed on the Ordinariate Portal Homepage!
Kind regards,
John U.K.
Speculation about the stage individuals and groups have reached only adds to the pressure on both those people and the Holy See. For the record, all TAC clergy in England who intend to seek ordination in the Ordinariate of Our Lady of Walsingham have long ago submitted dossiers as required. Bishop Hopes and Bishop Mercer have discussed the process for these clergy. Bishop Mercer has submitted a dossier likewise, and there has been a series of discussions concerning his personal preference to be ordained with these clergy, rather than ahead of them. I make this comment simply to discount speculation that may reflect adversely on the CDF, or cause more anxiety to TAC clergy in other countries that have also submitted dossiers. I have given the current numbers on several recent occasions. The process is somewhat different in each country, and those several processes are at different stages in each country. Last week, for instance, I was in Japan with the Secretary to the TAC College of Bishops starting the dossier process for TAC clergy in that country (among other things in a very crowded program). It would be improper for me to comment further.
I do hope Father that my fears are unfounded and that all of the TAC clergy who submit dosiers are processed fairly and openly. There is no avoiding the fact that the process in the UK to date has been secret and that unnecessary secrecy has been unhelpful. There really is no good reason for all this secrecy.
I am glad you have publicly cleared up the situation with regard to the TTAC clergy and people.
Fr. Andrew,
You wrote: I do hope Father that my fears are unfounded and that all of the TAC clergy who submit dosiers are processed fairly and openly.
The dossiers apparently are going directly to the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. I see no reason to expect that they will not receive thorough reviews and fair decisions.
I do think that the Vatican has been quite open about the likely reasons for rejection: (1) those who formerly ministered as Catholic clergy (who may not minister in the ordinarate, but may be reconciled and return to their former dioceses or religious orders apart from the provisions of Anglicanorum coetibus) and (2) those who are in unresolved "irregular" marriage situations.
You wrote: There is no avoiding the fact that the process in the UK to date has been secret and that unnecessary secrecy has been unhelpful. There really is no good reason for all this secrecy.
I cannot agree that the "secrecy" (confidentiality, really) has been unnecessary. A more public process would have (1) forced many of the clergy of the Church of England who intend to enter the ordinariate to resign their current posts prematurely and (2) made it extraordinarily difficult for those individuals to return to their former state if, somewhere in the discernment process, they decided not to continue.
Norm.
Fr Crosbie,
I would imagine the relative secrecy surrounding the process in the UK to date has more to do with protecting Anglican clergy interested in the Ordinariates from the less than sympathetic powers-that-be in the Church of England, and probably Wales and Scotland too.
I think there is a problem of terminology and interpretation in part of this. This fear that 'personal conversion' and 'group' are not connected. Of course individual conversion must be made to be part of the group. What do you want, that a whole group be accepted in and and then find out the some never 'converted'?
From personal experience and observation, when 'groups' or congregations are brought into the various Orthodox Jurisdictions, they are catechized usually together in 1 or more groups and then after this they are asked if they want to continue. Sometimes all or most of the groups will enter, sometimes half, sometimes only a small part and others follow later. They are the received (if Baptized into the Father,Son, and Holy Spirit) or Baptized and then Chrismated (Confirmed), in 1 group. If they have a church or property they may bring that with them if no legal impediment arises. Usually Western Rite groups have property or enough funds to secure worship space. I see this as happening with TTAC and this will be helpful.
No need to over-react or even react until and unless the Catholic Bishops of England and Wales slam the door in TTAC's collective faces. If that should happen I am sure Archbishop Hepworth and Bishop Mercer have a backup plan. Trust in them but GOD first!
Matthew,
You wrote: No need to over-react or even react until and unless the Catholic Bishops of England and Wales slam the door in TTAC's collective faces.
I really don't see how the Catholic bishops of England and Wales have much to say about this. The ordinariate is now officially established, so all further decisions are between the ordinary and the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (CDF). A bishop may be able to raise objections to the canonical erection of a parish of the ordinariate within his diocese, but the CDF undoubtedly will "'splain" the matter to him and approve erection of the parish if his objections are not well founded.
Norm.
Not true. The Ordinary is under the authority of + Hopes for at least one year. +Hopes is running the Ordinariate in England/UK.
I assure you, Fr Keith Newton is very much his own (and the Pope's) man, and Bp Alan Hopes is far too busy with his responsibilities as an Auxiliary Bishop in the Diocese of Westminster to be trying to run the Ordinariate as well.
'It seems to me that what the Holy Father set out in Anglicanorum Coetibus as the process by which groups of people and their pastors could enter into full communion with the See of Peter has be hi-jacked by the English Bishops into a glorified version of personal conversion.'
Father Crosbie, I think you are right on the nail with this and the rest of the world will follow by example.
Again you are over-reacting to what? Nothing. Nothing is not "NO".
The U.K. is a special situation. The rest of the world is totally different especially the USA and Canada. Australia is probably in-between the 2 extremes.
Unless you have solid confirmed facts in writing, I suggest you chill. Your negativity is unwarranted, unnecessary, and unwanted. Please stop.
Different groups have applied using different routes and at different times. There is nothing sinister to be read into this at all. Please remember that this is a very new situation both for those coming in and the different bodies handling the "paperwork". On all sides things are having to be worked through for the first time and inevitably people will be not quite sure of what is expected of them next. It is only natural that people communicate at different speeds and in different ways. I'm sure that dealing with Roman Congregations will be a very new experience for most Anglicans just as dealing with Anglicans will be a very new experience for most Roman Congregations for example.
As Norm indicated above, the suspicions about "secrecy" are really unwarranted. Of course we would all like to know all the details as soon as possible, but there are many very personal situations and data which must be dealt with. We must accept the fact that there will be some things which we will never know because, to be quite frank, it is none of our blasted business!
Does anyone know whether Fr. Newton has contacted or entered into negotiations with any TTAC group or they him? Since the TTAC synod voted to enter the ordinariate almost as soon as the constitution was published, I fail to understand why none of their groups/parishes have yet entered.
Archbishop John Hepworth's statement above suggests that the TTAC clergy dossiers are being processed by the CDF, not by the Ordinary. I don't think there is any need to worry unless we hear firm evidence that the CDF has said "yes" and the Ordinary has said "no". I do not forsee this situation occurring. I'm content with the TAC Primate's words.
Well, no, I'm not. I'm impatient, just like everyone else. But I'm not going to worry until he starts worrying.
All dossiers in the countries that have reached the "dossier stage" are being forwarded to the CDF by the Episcopal Delegates. They follow a standard CDF format. The deacon or priest applying addresses the initial item to Cardinal Levada in person. The competent ecclesiastical authority for that particular clergyman at the time of applying writes in support of the application. So far, there has been an insistence on a letter of "clearance" from the relevant Anglican Communion bishop where the clergyman is from the Anglican Communion. TAC bishops are providing a similar recommendation. This part of the process has been made public several times, and serves two purposes – the requirements of contemporary professional standards and the demands of ecumenical courtesy. There is obviously a very sensitive pastoral process being conducted here, and confidentiality protects the clergymen, their families, their congregations and the Holy See itself. None of this can be done if people are ticking off names and numbers on a list and, even worse, ringing around to quiz likely candidates on their progress, and reporting on what they have managed to find out from others. Very Anglican, but not very Patrimony.
The precise situation in England is evolving as the formal structures of the Ordinariate are put in place.
Once an Ordinariate is fully operational, with a Governing Council in place, General Norm 12.2 applies: "In addition to these responsibilities, the Ordinary needs the consent of the Governing Council to:
i) admit a candidate to Holy Orders."
The CDF will always have a role in approving an application by the Ordinary to present a married man for ordination to the Priesthood (Constitution, VI.2). A celibate candidate will not need to be referred to Rome. Nor will married candidates for the permanent diaconate. The CDF is involved in approving ALL candidates (even the celibate ones) at the present time in part because the Ordinariates do not have the necessary structures in place before and immediately after they are erected, and also because of the fast-track process for clergy coming into the Ordinariates in the first wave – a very generous consideration by the Holy Father to enable the communities coming "corporately" to sustain their communal and sacramental life.
All of this is in the public domain, it just takes a bit of finding. And there is as yet no handbook.
The competent ecclesiastical authority for that particular clergyman at the time of applying writes in support of the application. So far, there has been an insistence on a letter of "clearance" from the relevant Anglican Communion bishop where the clergyman is from the Anglican Communion.
This is news to me and the other Scottish clergy who submitted dosiers. Bishop Tartaglia never mentioned this . In fact he told us that our Anglican bishops would not be contacted. I hold a licence from a bishop I have never met or been in contact with. Our ECRB certificates were not requested. These being the only reliable criminal record checks.
Fr. Andrew,
You wrote: This is news to me and the other Scottish clergy who submitted dosiers. Bishop Tartaglia never mentioned this. In fact he told us that our Anglican bishops would not be contacted.
This is very surprising. I had seen a report indicating that there would not be an ordinariate for Scotland because there was not enough interest, but this implies that there's an apostolic delegate accepting dossiers to forward to the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (CDF) — which is a significant step toward the erection of an ordinariate.
I really do hope that it's possible to establish an ordinariate for Scotland. I realize that it will be quite small, but perhaps four or five Forward in Faith parishes of the Episcopal Church of Scotland and the Sour scottish parishes of The Traditional Anglican Church should be sufficient.
But it could be that the CDF will request the rest of the paperwork if it determines that there's enough interest to proceed.
Norm.
"Very Anglican, but not very Patrimony."
Gracias mil, ++Hepworth. I have been stating the same. We must purge ourselves of those Anglican ways which might/will hinder our living the Patrimony once we arrive Home. Of course, this may take a generation or two (habits are so dog gone hard to relinquish) but begin we must. Also, I learned well while in the military that there are matters dealt with within the organization that are, 'above my pay grade.' And my pay grade was quite high! It becomes a matter of trust in the organization and its skill. Does this mean one is to be quiet? No. Does it mean those questions should be made within the parameters of that trust? Yes, indeed. At many times that trust eliminates the need to ask many questions, too!
Your Grace,
And there is as yet no handbook.
A very good point, indeed!
Norm.
Note also that Archbishop Antonio Mennini, the new apostolic nuncio to Great Britain, had a private audience with Pope Benedict on Monday (14th February) and is being briefed in Rome prior to his arrival in London to present his Letters of Credence to the Court of St James and take up his post. Archbishop Mennini is a very different kettle of fish to his recent predecessors (verb sap).
I see several reasons why the Holy See has decided to erect the world's first Ordinariate in England and Wales. First, England and Wales is the birthplace of the Anglicanism. It is only befitting that the Ordinariate be started from where the English Church split from the Roman Church. Second, the task of establishing an Ordinariate is far more daunting in England and Wales than in Australia, Canada or US. There is the issue of logistics – Anglicans who wish to join the Ordinariate in England and Wales have virtually nothing to hold onto relative to their fellow brethens elsewhere. Then, there is the added animosity from other Anglicans there who frankly have no desire to see the Ordinariate succeed. I know of non-Catholic Christians who detest the idea of the Ordinariate. The successful establishment of an Ordinariate in England and Wales will ensure that the Ordinariate becomes a viable entity of the Latin rite Church.
I understand the many wishes of Anglo Catholics to be part of the universal Church. I urge you to maintain your patience. I will keep you in my prayers that the Ordinariate be established in Australia, Canada and US soon.
I am delighted to hear of the meeting of the TTAC priests with Bishop Hopes and Msgr Newton. I hope this brings some peace to the hearts of those who are so worried. In a year or so, when the Ordinariate is well established in this country, we may well wonder what the worry was all about.