"The Archbishop of Canterbury will be "forced" to act or risk losing the vast majority of the Anglican Communion. What that looks like is hard to say as he has no papal or legal authority, but he does have veto power over who he can and cannot invite to Lambeth 2008."
It strikes me that the position of the Archbishop of Canterbury is somewhat analogous to that of the Ecumenical Patriarch (EP) in Orthodoxy. Thats not a perfect analogy (before people start jumping on me) but its similar. Essentially it is a position within the Anglican Communion (AC) of primus inter parus (first among equals).
In that sense I don't think he needs to act like a modern pope. He could act like a first millennium pope instead. Stand up for whats right and denounce ECUSA for heresy and apostasy. If he leads from a position of moral rectitude others will follow. He can also break communion with ECUSA which would make it impossible for them to claim they are still part of the AC. There is a widely held view (not universal) within Orthodoxy that the bottom line test for whether or not your jurisdiction is canonical, is are you in communion with the EP? If the answer is no then that means there is a problem. (I just know I am gonna get hit by all the ROCOR people.)
Another possibility is to adopt the conciliar solution. Call a great council of the Anglican Communion to address the current crisis. This could be the modern day Nicea for Anglicanism. But the bottom line is that something has to be done and that requires leadership.
I feel badly for the orthodox (small "o") members of ECUSA. This must be a period of unbelievable pain for them. The heartbreak of deciding to leave a church your family may have been part of for generations. But in the end I think one of my favorite bloggers Al Kimel said what needed to be said best. "Fly you fools!"
http://catholica.pontifications.net/?page_id=851In that sense I don't think he needs to act like a modern pope. He could act like a first millennium pope instead. Stand up for whats right and denounce ECUSA for heresy and apostasy. If he leads from a position of moral rectitude others will follow. He can also break communion with ECUSA which would make it impossible for them to claim they are still part of the AC. There is a widely held view (not universal) within Orthodoxy that the bottom line test for whether or not your jurisdiction is canonical, is are you in communion with the EP? If the answer is no then that means there is a problem. (I just know I am gonna get hit by all the ROCOR people.)
Another possibility is to adopt the conciliar solution. Call a great council of the Anglican Communion to address the current crisis. This could be the modern day Nicea for Anglicanism. But the bottom line is that something has to be done and that requires leadership. You are correct on all counts; if the right man were AoC today, there would not be this mess.
I feel badly for the orthodox (small "o") members of ECUSA. This must be a period of unbelievable pain for them. The heartbreak of deciding to leave a church your family may have been part of for generations. But in the end I think one of my favorite bloggers Al Kimel said what needed to be said best. "Fly you fools!"
It is a heartbreak. But there is life after ECUSA, too, as I've learned in my Continuing church.