[xzins]

Thanks for the ping, Albion.

We Methodists originally were Anglican until the Revolutionary War. We are not, however, covered under the Pope’s ruling about Episcopals. Being honest, I think rightfully so. While there are “High Church Methodists” (as we would call them), even they do not approach the involved liturgy of the Roman Catholic Church.

Besides that, I also have a few doctrinal points of disagreement with the RCC. Far fewer than in the past, but nonetheless, there are still a few there.

[Mrs. Don-o]

This is interesting to me, xzins. Could you tell a alittle mopre about how and why the Methodists split from the Episcopalians?

I've come into contact with some Methodist hymnody via shape note singing. It's musically and spiritually very good stuff, as far as I can see: i gives me a favorable "slant" towards Methodism.

Interested also in what you'd call an "involved" liturgy. At my Catholic parish, our weekday Masses never take more than half an hour. I don't know but that might be just about what y'all have except of course you'd have a LOT more sermon. :o)

[Albion Wilde]

Interesting commentary. I did not know how narrow the Pope’s ordinariate is.

Recently I attended a “traditional Anglican” church. The liturgy reminded me of my youth as a “Methodist Episcopal”, before the UMC merger.

I, too, am having fewer arguments with the RCC as I continue to study the Bible. I still value the freedom of Protestantism; but unfortunately, many of our denominations or congregations have become as corrupted as the church Luther sought to reform.

[Cronos]

If I'm not mistaken, Methodism arose out of the "Low Church" Church of England? Methodism may be attacked by some evangelicals as too liberal, but they have a glorious history --> Methodists in the late 1700s and 1800 were instrumental in not only ending slavery in the British Empire but turning the Brits into violently anti-slavery, such that British ships were ordered to attack slave carrying ships and free them

Mrs. Don-o --> I believe that the originators of Methodism never intended theirs to be a separate church from the broad swathe of Anglicanism but were looking for revival in strict method. however, over time the CoE and the Methodists drifted apart

[Cronos]

Mac -- it's fools like these "bishops" who are demolishing each denomination: "Retired Bishop blames church's decline on not affirming homosexuality" --> don't they read the numbers and see that denominations that "affirm homosexuality" are declining rapidly -- faster than others?

And, looking at the timing from the 60s onwards, I see a broad trend. If I was a conspiracy theorist, I would see a broadbased attack on all Churches starting from the 60s, with deep undercover "agents". Or, it could just be that the churches were lax in the 60s...

[Cronos]

A nice point about this discussion is that we are not in "oh, let's blame group xyz and forget about the problems in our own" -- as a Catholic it would be easy and wrong for me to do this -- as a whole we must recognize the common enemy. We have differences, sometimes severe, but if we allow, say for instance the UMC to go down the way of the ECUSA, we harm ourselves

With the ECUSA for instance, this has legitimised the entire gay marriage, abortion as a right etc. to the point that people ask the others why they are not doing the same as the ECUSA.

Fighting a common enemy is critical at this point.