Tag Archives: FiF UK

Resolutions of TTAC Assembly

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An assembly of The Traditional Anglican Church (TTAC), the TAC province in Great Britain, meeting at St. Agatha's Church in Portsmouth, has endorsed the following three resolutions.

1. This assembly endorses the resolution of 2009, that:

This Synod, representing the Traditional Anglican Communion in Great Britain, offers its joyful thanks to Pope Benedict XVI for his forthcoming Apostolic Constitution, allowing corporate reunion with the Holy See, and requests the Primate and College of Bishops of the TAC to take the steps necessary to implement this constitution.

2. This Synod welcomes the fact that some clergy and people in Forward in Faith are preparing to accept Pope Benedict XVI's generous offer of full communion with the See of Peter, as set out in Anglicanorum Coetibus, thus fulfilling the Concordat between the Traditional Anglican Communion and Forward in Faith. We look forward to positive collaboration with all those involved in the establishment of the Ordinariate in England and Wales.

3. We continue in our prayers that all Anglicans may one day find reconciliation with the See of Peter.

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Valedictory

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Assembly10 0122 168x300 Valedictory

Fr Geoffrey Kirk

Fr Geoffrey Kirk has been at the forefront of the battle to save the soul of the Church of England for as long as I can remember.  Until last Saturday he was Secretary of Forward in Faith, UK.  Now he has laid down that burden, for it to be shouldered by Fr Jonathan Baker.  Time is short for all of us, but Fr Kirk's is the one address from last weekend's Assembly which, I believe, we all should listen to with great attention.  It is the last of the speeches, a Keynote Address, recorded on the Forward in Faith website covering the Assembly.  No doubt our Moderator will provide a simple link; I am not adept at these things, so just suggest you go to the Forward in Faith UK site and hear what he had to say to us; a masterly summary of the present situation, and an encouragement to us all to give proper attention to Pope Benedict's offer to Anglicans.

http://www.forwardinfaith.com/news/na2010.html

Update (2:00 PM EDT): The Moderator has obliged.

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More Forward in Faith UK Links

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From St. Barnabas' blog:

Today’s Forward in Faith assembly was a strange day because each of these groups has different needs and our former unity together has shattered. Thus the old order, which took us from 1992 until the present day, is over. Things will not be the same again no matter which group you personally belong to but it did not stop many from hoping and pretending that the status quo could be maintained. No prizes for guessing which gains my vote but, for what it is worth, this is what I make of the emerging groups as they presently stand.

Those wanting to embrace the Ordinariate with joy have the benefit of clarity and are the ones I stand with no matter the cost. It is not surprising that many of the brightest minds (Kirk, Hunwicke et al) look likely to join in this number for the Ordinariate brings life, sacramental assurance, unity with Rome, authority and a prophetic fulfilment of the Oxford Movement. It is a path that is challenging and far from certain but it nevertheless leads people to safety. To my mind it is the only option remaining that can hope to deliver a genuinely Catholic future.

Damian Thompson:

For God’s sake, Bishop Broadhurst, will you put a sock in it? It’s good news that the Bishop of Fulham is joining the Pope’s Ordinariate, and he’s right to says that its impact will be greater than its critics imagine. But he’s always had a habit of shooting off at the mouth, and his ranting description of the Church of England as “fascist” in its treatment of traditionalists is a prime example.

The General Synod doesn’t want to expel Anglo-Catholics from the C of E. But nor is it prepared to accommodate their view that women cannot be bishops or priests. It was obvious to many of us that the promises of permanent safeguards for opponents of women’s ordination were empty when they were first made in 1993. The Act of Synod and other measures offered a decompression chamber, not a Church within a Church. The Anglo-Catholics chose to belong to an ecclesial body that (bizarrely) possessed the legal right to introduce female ordination through vote of Synod and Act of Parliament. Once the decision to introduce women priests had been taken, the ordination of women bishops was an inevitability, and so was comprehensive recognition of women’s orders. The notion of “two integrities” invented by Bishop Eric Kemp of Chichester was always theological hogwash.

Some Catholics will feel that Bishop Broadhurst shouldn’t be joining the Catholic Ordinariate at all if he would rather have stayed in an all-male pocket of the Church of England. Pope Benedict takes a more understanding view.

And this rather ignorant article from the BBC:

A traditionalist Anglican group has voiced regret after an Anglo-Catholic bishop said he would convert to Rome.

The Bishop of Fulham, John Broadhurst, has become the fourth Anglican bishop to make the announcement.

He intends joining the Roman Catholic Church because of his opposition to the way the Church of England plans to introduce women bishops.

Meanwhile, a Kent Anglican congregation has become the first to take up the Pope's offer to convert to Catholicism.

The Pope created a special enclave in the Roman Catholic Church for Anglicans unhappy with their church's decision to let women become bishops.

The Catholic Group on the CofE's General Synod said it deeply regretted the decision by Bishop Broadhurst.

The bishop, who is the leader of the traditionalist organisation Forward in Faith, is the most significant Anglican so far to say he will convert to Catholicism.

He is currently the "flying bishop" charged with looking after traditionalist parishes opposed to women priests and bishops in the dioceses of London, Southwark and Rochester.

Personal hardship

The Catholic Group said it was determined to stay in the Church of England and fight for a better deal for Anglicans who did not want to serve under women bishops.

And Father Z:

Pope Benedict is the Pope of Christian Unity.

In the meantime, many disgruntled Catholics are on pins and needles waiting for the Anglican Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams to issue the long-expected Romanorum coetibus, which will give a safe-haven to liberals who want to keep their large puppets and pottery, 60′s music and the ordination of women, prayer to the earthmothergoddess… all without the spirit-repressing domination of masculine Rome!

“But Father! But Father!”, you might be saying with furrowed brow.  “Who, pray tell, should go over to them?  Do you have anyone in mind?”

Since I am in Detroit at the time of this writing, I suggest all the Call To Action types and those associated liberal confab Archbp. Vigneron warned against the other day… and all their speakers… should just go. The folks who are determined to poison reception of the new translation should think over carefully which Church they truly desire to belong to.   99% of the writers of the NCR.   There is hope for some of them, however.  Nearly all the members of the LCWR and CHA could join the wymynpryst types who should immediately get out.  Remember girls! There is a safe haven for all of you! It’s such a small step.   Since I am on it… the dissidents fighting against Archbp. Nienstedt in St. Paul and Minneapolis and against all the Minnesota bishops who are sticking up for true marriage, according to God’s will revealed in nature and in revelation.  Hasta la vista.

This is not an invitation for you to add your own names.  I am ranting.

The Hermeneutic of Continuity:

The Catholic establishment's "party line" on the Ordinariate is that there will only be a few interested, that it will not appeal to many Anglicans, that it is not really needed, that it was basically one of Pope Benedict's well-intentioned mistakes. Well, along with many other Anglican parishes, Bishop Andrew Burnham of Ebbsfleet and Bishop Keith Newton of Richborough are considered likely to join Bishop Broadhurst. It seems that the response of the establishment of the Catholic Church in England and Wales to Anglicanorum Coetibus is going to have to struggle to keep things lukewarm given the way that they are now hotting up.

It is great news to hear that the provisions of Anglicanorum Coetibus are being taken up and I would ask you to keep in your prayers all those Anglicans who are currently undecided, as well as those who have bravely led the way.

Anglican priest Fr. George Pitcher in the Telegraph:

But there is an aspect of all this that receives little attention: These departures for the oversight of the Holy See have been reported throughout this weekend (by the BBC among others) entirely separately from the story of the prospective closure of Ushaw College in County Durham, which is the home of the historic St Cuthbert’s Seminary, which trains young men for the Roman Catholic priesthood. It is to close for lack of seminarians; there are 26 currently at St Cuthbert’s, where once year-groups could be counted in the hundreds. If it closes next June, as is expected, there will be no Roman Catholic seminary north of Birmingham.

We can expect a bounce in vocations to the catholic priesthood after Pope Benedict’s state visit, but there is no denying that there is now a severe crisis in the supply of young men for the Roman Catholic priesthood, in Britain as elsewhere. The Anglican boast can be heard that there are now more ordinands in a single diocese of the Church of England (and, for sure, we have our challenges in this regard) than there are seminarians in the entire country. I have even heard it said that there are fewer training for Roman Catholic priesthood in the whole of northern Europe than there are in the Church of England, though that’s harder to verify.

So it would be entirely wrong to suggest that the Ordinariate is only aimed at offering sanctuary to those Anglicans who are disaffected with plans for women bishops (in any case, the Ordinariate is a worldwide phenomenon, not a solely Church of England issue). It also offers sanctuary for much needed priests and potential seminarians of catholic orthodoxy.

Furthermore, while we might and should mourn the weakening of the catholic tradition in the Church of England, we might take heart that the Roman Catholic Church in these shores is receiving some vital and welcome support to its ministry and mission at a very difficult time for it.

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When 'Tis Done, Then 'Twere Well It Were Done Quickly

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Assembly10 001 1024x576 When Tis Done, Then Twere Well It Were Done Quickly

Emmanuel Centre

Odd, isn't it, that Forward in Faith is compelled to worship in a building belonging to a defunct sect, the Irvingites, and to hold its Assembly in a former Christian Science building, now the home of a group of Evangelical Chinese?  Yet that is how it was these last few days, meeting in the "Emmanuel Centre" in Westminster and celebrating the Eucharist in the Catholic Apostolic Church of Christ the King in Gordon Square.  Perhaps this is how it will always be for us in future, having to beg, borrow or rent buildings from  others.  You might also find it odd that my text — the title at the top of this piece — is not from Holy Writ but from the Scottish Play of Wm Shakespeare.  We performed it at school, and I was Duncan and Noises Off.  Duncan does not last long, so giving me the opportunity for my second role.  I made a great owl.  In the play Lady M is determined to do away with Duncan at the earliest possible moment.  Would that the Church of England were equally expeditious and kind where Anglo-Catholics are concerned.  Instead, it engages in a drawn-out death by a thousand cuts, gradually letting us realise that there is no place for us any longer.

A good Judge too 186x300 When Tis Done, Then Twere Well It Were Done QuicklyThe Assembly occurred just as a sizeable number of us have realised that "the game is up".  The Reverend Judge James Patrick outlined the sort of route which may be available to anyone entering the Ordinariate — it sounded remarkably quick, his draft; something set up soon after Christmas, a short time of preparation, then a joyful Easter and Pentecost.  For those of us who are seriously considering this option it seems incredible that anyone should still think there is anything left to play for.  Yet there are honourable men and women who plainly do think this.  For their sake, we heard the other day about the launch of a new Society, under the patronage of those two incorrigible Romanisers Saints Wifrid and Hilda.

Well, today we heard about this Society (SSWSH as it has become known) once again.  Some of us were looking forward to being able to ask questions of the sponsors of the Society Model.  There is a string of distinguished bishops who have lent their names to this, indeed the Bishop of  Plymouth came all the way to London a fortnight ago to tell a Sacred Synod what was being done.  There was no debate at that time, no room for questions.  But that was all right, for on the agenda for today we saw the name of that same Bishop, and also that of the Bishop of Beverley, the North's own Flying Bishop.  In the event, neither of them found it possible to be present.  Instead it was left to the Bishop of Burnley and Fr David Houlding to do their best to "reflect on developments following the Sacred Synods".  Now I have a great affection for Bishop John Goddard.  His father was Vicar of St Nicolas' Guildford when I was in the next-door parish, and he was my confessor for a time, so I knew Bishop John when he was nobbut a lad.  He did his best with a brief to tell us why things are different up North.  He told us that in the Synod elections there had been some gains by lay catholics especially.  There was no great enthusiasm for the Ordinariate and it had been left to Bishop John himself to put the case for it at that northern Synod.  Now it could be that the two things are not unrelated.  If you have to have as spokesman someone who is not keen on it, small wonder that the laity are seeking to get help from the Synod.  In the South, the PEVs have consistently helped us to understand and appreciate what the Holy Father is offering.  The North has not had, it seems, any similar explanation or  help.

I worked for nearly a decade in the Northern Province.  I believe that priests and people there deserve better than having to rely on a bishop who does not support the Ordinariate telling them about it.  Instead, they are being offered SS Hilda and Wilfrid.  It must be said that Bishop John Goddard did his best with us; but he had to admit that unless the Society could achieve Jurisdiction for reliable bishops, it would have failed.  Well, I was on the General Synod back in the 1980's [representing the Diocese of York, as it happens] and we got nowhere.  Bishop  John's wife pleaded with us today, tearfully, to give it once last chance.  She was elected to General Synod not many years after me, and she has been a doughty fighter for the catholic cause.  And of course we will try to give Synod a chance, those of us who are left.  But no-one should expect us, who have been in the battle for thirty years and more, to put the offer from Pope Benedict on the back burner while we draw one more line in the sand and give Synod one more chance.

After the Bishop of Burnley, Fr David Houlding was given an opportunity to gild the Hilda.  "In July we failed" he told us.  "It was about jurisdiction and alas it is not to be".  So why does he persist in clinging to the wreckage of the General Synod?  The Society Model was floated in the Revision Committee, the details all worked out by Fr Houlding, and it was turned down flat.  Now Fr David finds merit in having  it rejected by a committee but not put to the vote in General Synod.  He believes it may yet succeed second time round where all else has failed.  But again, he says "it will be useless unless it has jurisdiction", and asks "Will the House of Bishops recognise such a grouping?"  Well, I am ready to bet my zuchetta against a burst balloon that it will not.  Still Fr David persisted, and laid out five requirements of the Society.  Mission, our Catholic Identity being honoured, the ARCIC vision, a guaranteed sacramental life and being seen as a Gift to the Church of England.  In speaking of the guaranteed sacramental life (you can hear the whole of his and other contributions on the Forward in Faith website) he asked "Will those bishops be prepared to break the rules?  We must ask that question now at the beginning".  I wish that question could have been put to the galaxy of SSWSH bishops — Plymouth, Beverley, Horsham, Chichester and the rest.  Unfortunately, there was a question which preceded this: where were they?  None of them but Burnley had found time to come to the Assembly.  They are men who claim to be leaders in the catholic movement.  So where were they when we needed them today?  Indeed where have they ever been?  John Broadhurst, John Richards, Michael Houghton and other PEVs have had to bear the brunt of it, with only sniping from some who reckon themselves catholic bishops.  What is different now?  I hope SSWSH will flourish and achieve what has never been achieved up to now, the things which Fr Houlding listed … but I am not holding my breath.  And even Fr David seems to think it will be short-lived — about up to his date for retirement, I would guess.

Assembly10 012 168x300 When Tis Done, Then Twere Well It Were Done Quickly

Fr Geoffrey Kirk

The Assembly ended with tributes being paid to Fr Geoffrey Kirk, without whom many of us would not have survived these past acrimonious years.  His learning, his wit, his friendship and good humour have sustained us.  John Broadhurst spoke of him with great affection, a presentation was made to him, and if you listen to nothing else from the podcast, do listen to Fr Geoffrey's words of farewell.  He has seen it, and told it, as it is.  We shall still need him, although he has retired as Secretary, to continue to prick the pompous nonsense of any of us when we are tempted to rely on the promises of  the Church of England.

Finally, an unashamed plug: 'Sea Without a Shore', the life and ministry of Michael Houghton, one-time bishop of Ebbsfleet is now out, available from the Additional Curates' Society for £15.99; their website is at:

http://www.additionalcurates.co.uk/

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Bishop Jack Iker on the Ordinariate

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I just listened to Bishop Jack Iker talk at Forward in Faith.  The bulk of his talk concerns the various litigations he and his Fort Worth diocese face for separating from the Episcopal Church.

At the very end though, he mentions the ordinariate.  The ordinariate option is put on hold for us, he said, because there is no way of talking about releasing a property so a priest and church community can join the ordinariate until the litigation is settled concerned who owns the property.  He noted that five of his young priests have told him since the ordinariates were announced that they cannot wait and will be converting with their families to the Roman Catholic faith.

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News from the UK FIF Assembly

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Broadbap 225x300 News from the UK FIF AssemblyYesterday was one of those days we all have from time to time in which every conceivable thing has gone wrong.  It started this morning when I was caring for the children before depositing them with the nursery and child minder.  Unfortunately our stair gate was not quite shut properly and Benedict hoisted it open and launched himself head first down the stairs.  Praise God he only has a bruise over his right eye and emerged unscathed.  It put my heart in my mouth and left me very shaken.

I then walked to the train station and travelled into London for the Forward in Faith Assembly.  Problem was, I anticipated an 11am start and a 5pm finish when in fact it was a 3pm start and a 7pm finish!  A little bit of mental arithmatic made me realise that I would need to abort the whole thing as the children need picking up at 5pm and fed prior to Hayley’s return.  I therefore trudged back to Charing Cross muttering under my breath only to discover… all the trains were cancelled due to a broken down train on the line!  A forty five minute journey then took the best part of two hours door to door.  What a waste of a morning!

Had I have been at the Assembly in person I would have heard +John Broadhurst, Chairman of Forward in Faith and Bishop of Fulham, make an historic resignation speech.  He is pictured above with the family Tomlinson on the occasion of baby Benedict Peter's baptism!  In truth I would not have gasped in surprise as I knew he was planning to do this today.  He thoughtfully steps down in order to allow the Bishop of London to appoint a successor before Synod’s legislation renders that impossible.  The announcement was equally noteworthy because Bishop John informed the gathered people that he will be joining the Ordinariate as soon as possible.  What great news for the Ordinariate!  The Saint Barnabas' Blog wishes him well and the author intends to get to the second day of the assembly in person.  That is unless something else goes wrong.

Things are beginning to move now… might there be more resignations to follow I wonder?  The comments thread over at T19 is well worth reading for some shrewd analysis from those who have experienced all of this already on the other side of the pond.

Although not there in person — I shall be today — a source informs me that the Ordinariate was enthusiastically presented but that the leadership of the new Society of Ss Wilfred and Hilda was largely absent.  Perhaps that will be plugged today although the last word goes to dear Fr. Kirk who is a robust supporter of the Ordinariate, so it should be interesting.  My source also felt that there is an even split amongst clergy of those wanting to go and to stay but I suspect the Ordinariate-bound will grow once others have modelled the path for them.  Inevitably a tension bubbles under the surface so we must all pray for love and grace to be present.  This will be the very last FIF assembly for many and those remaining are going to be smaller than ever as they seek, in vain I suspect, to guarantee a future within the Church of England.  I myself cannot fathom the desire to disregard the papal offer… who chooses to be beaten up and eventually put down when the offer of life exists?!

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News from Forward in Faith Meeting

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I am eager for any news from the Forward and Faith National Assembly.  Here's a link to a piece by Anna Arco on the Catholic Herald, in which Bishop John Broadhurst makes it official.

As was the case last year, FIF/UK is providing audio from the gathering as it becomes available.  You will find the audio files here.

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The English Connection

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The Traditional Anglican Communion’s groundbreaking decision to approach the Holy See has been well-documented and much discussed over the last three years, most recently by our own Fr. Fleming in his new book, Convinced by the Truth: Embracing the Fullness of the Catholic Faith.  Now that the Holy Father has come and gone in the UK and the Sacred Synods there are confirming that some clergy and laity there are ordinariate-bound, mostly from the Province of Canterbury, it seems as if it might be a good time to piece together a bit of the history of how those in the UK also played a key role in the development of Anglicanorum Coetibus.  Most of this has appeared in other scattered sources, but I thought it would be good to at least make a first pass at a more coherent narrative.

When the news of the Apostolic Constitution broke last October, many of us speculated that an important role had been played by elements within the Church of England because of the choice of a press conference in London with the Archbishop of Canterbury and the fact that more than one C of E bishop had a statement ready for synchronized release.  These initial hunches received more support in comments made at FIFUK’s 2009 National Assembly shortly after the announcement of Anglicanorum Coetibus.  Statements made last fall along with information that has trickled into the public record since then have shed light on how the Church of England’s Flying Bishops lived up to their name in moving about to do their part in building the bridge across the Tiber.

It is my understanding that the English approach began almost by chance with a spring holiday.  Bishop Andrew Burnham of the See of Ebbsfleet traveled to Rome in April of 2008 to celebrate his 60th birthday.  While there, he sought meetings with the Pontifical Council for Christian Unity and the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.  Rather than finding himself having an informal chat with the monsignori of the staff, he found himself invited to meet with Cardinals Kasper and Levada.

Pleasantly surprised at the warmth of this reception, Bishop Andrew was able at short notice to arrange for Bishop Keith Newton of Richborough Episcopal Area to hop a plane and join him for the meeting.  In that meeting, these two suffragans of the Archbishop of Canterbury asked whether anything might be done to help English Anglo-Catholics.  They received a warm response and thereafter became aware of some of the details of the TAC approach and that other groups of Anglicans had been knocking at the door as well.

More than 15 years earlier, the then Cardinal Ratzinger had said of Forward in Faith, “If they accept the Magisterium, we have no alternative but to finding a means of admitting them to full communion with the Holy See.”  It was becoming clear that the Vatican would be as good as the now Holy Father’s word.  Subsequent events bore this out.

At this point, we can only speculate about what happened between the General Synod of the Church of England’s vote in July 2008 to move forward with the admission of women to the Episcopate and the present.  Media reports have included sightings of the Bishops of Fulham and Richborough in Vienna, where they met Cardinal Schonborn in January 2009, and of the Bishops of Ebbsfleet, Fulham, and Richborough in Rome in April 2010, where they had meetings in the Vatican. No doubt meetings and regular contacts have continued up to the present in both in England and in Rome.  Now we stand at the threshold of the public phase of the process, which I suppose one might think of as something of an ecclesiastical IPO.  In the words of Fr. Kirk at last year’s FIF Assembly, “Well, you’ve asked for it, now you’ve got it.”

I thought it was useful to fill in a bit of this particular history at the present time to show that the Holy See has dealt faithfully and pastorally with those who have approached it.  Now that the moment approaches when decisions are required or at least possible, the wedding-night jitters are rising among some of those considering taking advantage of the Apostolic Constitution.  Many ask whether the Holy See will treat them fairly.  I tell this story to help assure those of us who have not been in the inner circle of these developments that the process leading up to the publication of Anglicanorum Coetibus and now leading into its implementation, gives us evidence of the care and solicitude of the Holy Father and many in the curia and the various national hierarchies.  The Bishops of Ebbsfleet and Richborough and those who joined them later took a risk, as did the leadership of the TAC, and now that faith is being rewarded.  For many years, Bishop Andrew has been known for saying, “RITA!” for “Rome is the answer.”  Now Rome has given its answer, and the care given in consulting various groups in crafting that answer gives ample evidence of Rome’s solicitude.

However the ball began to roll among the various groups who approached the Holy See, Anglicanorum Coetibus was addressed to GROUPS of Anglicans who formally petitioned or had merely hoped for the full reunion that has been one of Anglo-Catholicism’s most fervently held desires for more than 175 years.  Whether it was TAC greasing the wheels or the English giving things a push, or the additional impetus added by groups and individuals as yet unknown, the train got moving and provision was made for everyone.  As the Bishop of Fulham said last fall, “This is a world approach of which we shall be a part.”

Now we enter a new phase where “coetibus” must become “coetus,” as old identities and acronyms fall away and groups coalesce into ordinariates in communion with the Catholic Church.  The ordinariates will be a home for members of the TAC, traditionalists from within the Church of England, members of other bodies inside and outside of the Anglican Communion, and for many who have already entered the Catholic Church individually and now welcome the opportunity to return to their native patrimony.

Those further back on the caravan road to full communion will be looking ahead to the vanguard, not only to see how it is treated by Rome, but also how those who go first treat one another.  As all of the various groups of Anglicans who will make up the ordinariates coalesce, we will do well to remember the Saviour’s prayer for unity in the Gospel of John:

Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word;  That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me.  And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one:  I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as thou hast loved me.

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What Is the End Game?

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wilfrid2 What Is the End Game? Two days ago we witnessed a divide in the direction in which English Anglo-Catholics are heading.  There are those who will accept the offer of an Ordinariate, a neat ecclesial solution to the thorniest ecclesial problem.  This option has the advantage of being strong in vision, and comes with genuine sacramental assurance via full entry into the Roman Catholic fold.  Then there are those who, for whatever reason, are forming a new society which aims to grab what the hierarchy has thus far refused.  Without clear authority or sacramental assurance, the ‘Society of S. Wilfred and S. Hilda’ is therefore a more rickety option even if it is brave in attempting to provide an ‘in house’ option for those not wanting unity with Rome.  Anyone doubting this uncertainty should note of the manner in which it was presented.  Even its most passionate advocates were speaking of it as being problematic and seemed less than confident of its long term effect.

It is because I am convinced that this society cannot deliver, resulting in further pain and distress for its members, that I was negative about its implementation at the Assembly.  These doubts remain but one sentence in the FIF press release has made me pause and take stock.  Let me quote:

The crucial issue is the ministry of the Pope himself, as the successor of St Peter.  Anglicans who accept that ministry as it is presently exercised will want to respond warmly to the Apostolic Constitution.  Those who do not accept the ministry of the Pope or would want to see that ministry in different ways will not feel able to accept Anglicanorum Coetibus.

Perhaps the venture was not launched with enough clarity?  You see it was presented using quotes from Newman and Pope Benedict alongside firm assurances that this was a move to "shore up the bridge on this side of the Tiber."  And we were led to believe that the society would care for those who want the Ordinariate model (but not yet).  What then do we make of the statement above which speaks of difficulties with the papal office?  It suggests to me that this society is less a holding house for Roman wannabees and more akin to the continuing churches of America.

I would suggest that in the interest of clarity, fairness and honesty the society should be crystal clear about its intended destination and ultimate vision from the outset.  Otherwise it might be claiming to be something it is not and could lead people into blind alleys.  If it really is a holding house for those awaiting the Ordinariate, it should be established in partnership with the bishops entering the Ordinariate and full communication channels should be left open.  Furthermore it should set time scales for its members and regularly meet to discuss how to fulfil its clear ecumenical purpose.

But if the society is intended for those who cannot ultimately accept Papal authority, then this should be stated and a separate loose federation set up for Ordinariate enquirers.  People can always move between the two at any point according to matters of conscience.

How dangerous though for those wanting to be late additions to the Ordinariate if they start looking to those whose real desire is to keep them sitting still!  No society can hold together or deliver if pulling in opposite directions and for that reason any pretence that the society can serve more than one agenda needs quashing.

Furthermore, clarity on behalf of its leadership would allow it to be greeted warmly.  If it is for those remaining Anglican at all costs, then I am certain that no Ordinariate enquirer would want to do anything other than wish it well.  It would also please the House of Bishops and General Synod who would have a clear statement of Anglican allegiance and thus be more sympathetic.  What would be outrageous, and I do not use the word lightly, is for the society to be set up on false promises.  If the use of "we look to Rome" language masks a truly protestant intent what use does it serve?  It will only confuse, hampersand bewilder the laity and clergy alike.  These are serious times and we do not have time for games.  I urge the society to make its destination crystal clear at its meeting in October.  We have been asked to be gracious to those with different conclusions to our own.  I honour that — but we must be allowed to ask questions!

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Prayers for the Sacred Synods

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Church of England clergy have been invited to two Sacred Synods to be held later this week.  The first, for the Province of York, occurs tomorrow, 23 September, at SS. John & Barnabas, Belle Isle, Leeds.  The Province of Canterbury follows suit on Friday, 24 September, at Emmanuel Centre, Marsham St., London SW1.

These Synods, occurring as they will between the recent General Synod of the Church of England and the National Assembly of Forward in Faith are of tremendous importance as our Anglican people consider their possible future in a personal ordinariate in the Catholic Church.  I would ask all of the readers of The Anglo-Catholic to keep the clergy attendees in their prayers!

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UPDATE 2:13 PM EDT 9/22/10:

Would you also all pray for the Ebbsfleet Lay Conference on Saturday 25th September? Representatives of the laity will be meeting to discern the way forward in relation to the Ordinariate proposal. Pray the God the Holy Spirit may move mightily through the Synods and the Ebbsfleet Lay Conference to effect His purposes and to hasten the coming of the Kingdom.

Thank you.

+ Andrew Ebbsfleet

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