Posted on 06/22/2009 1:32:02 PM PDT by bdeaner
Catholics are humbled by the stories of former Anglicans who were faced with a decision and stepped out in faith to join the Catholic Church, said Cardinal Daniel N. DiNardo of Galveston-Houston.
"The Catholic Church understands and appreciates the sacrifices made by former Anglican clergy and laity who have made the journey as individuals or as communities to full communion with the Catholic Church," he said June 12.
"Truly, Rome is home and a place of abiding in our pilgrimage to the father," noted the cardinal in a keynote address at the 2009 Anglican Use Conference in Houston.
The June 11-13 gathering explored the pastoral provision that the Vatican approved in 1980 allowing retention of some elements of Anglican identity in liturgy when a number of Episcopalians from the same congregation or the same area enter full Catholic communion.
That provision was included when the Vatican granted permission for special U.S. procedures to admit into the Catholic priesthood former Episcopal priests who have become Catholic.
In 1976, after the Episcopal Church -- the U.S. member of the Anglican Communion -- decided to ordain women to the priesthood, some former Episcopal priests and laity sought full communion with the Catholic Church. In 2003, the Episcopal Church's decision to ordain an openly gay man prompted other Episcopalians to join the Catholic Church.
In his address Cardinal DiNardo said that the gift of Catholic unity is sometimes taken for granted by those in the Catholic Church, but this cohesiveness is not lost on those seeking communion.
The cardinal observed the eventual reconciliation of church communities was anticipated by the Second Vatican Council, but he acknowledged that Christian unity "may not be realized in our own time." BR> In the meantime, the church is "necessarily dependent on the personal and individual model to further the vision of Catholic unity," he explained.
"The pastoral provision has made it possible for Anglicans to know the blessing of full communion but it is important that you simply do not walk away from your old relationships, especially those that may have been damaged by the tragic conflicts of contemporary Anglicanism," the cardinal said.
The 2009 conference was hosted by Our Lady of Walsingham Catholic Church in Houston, one of only eight Anglican-use communities in the U.S.
Besides Houston there are Anglican-use Catholic parishes in San Antonio and Arlington, Texas, and in Columbia, S.C. In addition, there are Anglican-use congregations sharing the facilities of regular Catholic parishes in Boston, Corpus Christi, Texas, and Scranton, Pa.
About 150 people from 14 states and two foreign countries made the trek to Houston to attend the conference. Activities and lectures were held on the grounds of Our Lady of Walsingham and also at St. Mary Seminary.
In his remarks Father James Ramsey, Our Lady of Walsingham's pastor, talked about the historical and ecumenical significance of the Anglican-use provision.
"It was the first time since the Reformation 500 years ago that the Roman Catholic Church made it possible for a Reformation tradition to return to the Catholic Church and bring its tradition with it," he said.
While traditional Anglicans will find something familiar, Father Ramsey said, Catholics accustomed to the Latin-rite Mass will notice some differences in Mass celebrated in an Anglican-use church.
"I think they would notice a dignity, a reverence, a respect, a certain grace, transcendence, a sense of the holy and of the sacred," he said. "Those would be starters that were always a part of our Anglican tradition."
He said the Anglican-use Mass follows the same order as the Latin-rite Mass. Old English is used throughout, and most of the Mass, including the readings, is sung. In addition, there is a generous amount of incense and use of a communion rail. Also, the priest faces the altar.
Father Eric Bergman, a former Episcopal priest who is pastor at the Anglican-use church in Scranton, joined the Catholic Church in 2005, when it became evident, he said, that he and other conservative Episcopalians were becoming an oddity in his denomination.
He credits the Catholic Church's unwavering stance on the dignity of human life and its view on the sanctity of the marriage bond as major factors in his decision to become a Catholic.
Under the pastoral provision, he and his wife and children and his parishioners all entered the Catholic Church at the same time.
Joe Blake, president of the Anglican Use Society, reported that about 120 Episcopal and Anglican priests have become Catholic priests since 1980. Most are married and working in Latin-rite parishes. Approximately 700 laypeople have made the transition into the Catholic Church with their priests.
To me, the key sentences:
Father Eric Bergman, a former Episcopal priest who is pastor at the Anglican-use church in Scranton, joined the Catholic Church in 2005, when it became evident, he said, that he and other conservative Episcopalians were becoming an oddity in his denomination.
He credits the Catholic Church’s unwavering stance on the dignity of human life and its view on the sanctity of the marriage bond as major factors in his decision to become a Catholic.
The Episcopal Church — Home of the Homosexual Baby Killers for Christ!
I disagree with some aspects of Anglican theology, but I think it in gross poor taste to trash the entire group.
“Old English is used throughout, and most of the Mass...”
No, it isn’t. I wish people would learn the difference between Old English (the language of the Anglo-Saxons) and Olde English (which is really just a silly name for Elizabethan English).
When a lesbian “minister” who thinks that it a ‘blessing’ to kill unborn children is in charge of the Episcopal Divinity School — I stand by my statement.
http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2009/apr/09040205.html
If she doesn’t represent the Episcopal Church of today, who does?
There’s whackadoos in every group.
I see, these “whackadoos” in other groups — are they in charge of Seminary?
And given that the Episcopalian Church ordains those like “Bishop” Spong, is he also just a “whackadoo” that’s out there — or does he have the blessing of the Episcopal Church.
I stand by my first post. The Episcopal Church of America — is infested with Homosexual Baby Killers, who are in teaching and leadership positions.
Please identify your particular denomination, so that we may determine whether it is truly free of whackjobs.
I can assure you that the members of the parish to which I belong in no way fit your description. Don’t overgeneralize or anything.
I don’t belong to a denomination.
But please enlighten me as to the “whackjobs” in the Catholic Church who are allowed to be homosexual teachers who call abortion a blessing.
I said “Home of”, I didn’t say you all are.
That's convenient.
Then pretend I’m Catholic (if that makes your arguments any stronger) and try to answer the second half of my post.
Y’all are welcome to swim the Tiber, if you like. The water’s nice this time of year.
Why? I'm not the one anonymously sniping at fellow Christians. I see entirely too much of that rot on this forum, and I'm quite sick of it.
It does seem that traditional Christians are a shrinking minority in the Episcopal church.
God bless these Anglicans/Episcopalians.
I believe more will follow because of the Catholic Church’s unwavering stands on many issues. But especially on aobrtion.
You can suppose anything you like. You'd be wrong in this instance, though.
I see absolutely no good coming from leveling blanket insults at a Christian community that clearly still contains an identifiable population of actual, Christ-loving Christians.
Hammer on the doctrinal errors all you like ... you'll get not a single objection from me.
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