Posted on 10/20/2009 2:50:22 AM PDT by tgdunbar
from Damian Thompson:
The Vatican has announced that Pope Benedict is setting up special provision for Anglicans, including married clergy, who want to convert to Rome together, preserving aspects of Anglican liturgy. They will be given their own pastoral supervision, according to this press release from the Vatican:“In this Apostolic Constitution the Holy Father has introduced a canonical structure that provides for such corporate reunion by establishing Personal Ordinariates which will allow former Anglicans to enter full communion with the Catholic Church while preserving elements of the distinctive Anglican spiritual and liturgical patrimony.”
(Excerpt) Read more at blogs.telegraph.co.uk ...
Ditto.
WELCOME HOME, WELCOME BACK ANGLICANS!
“My dear chap” he said “why would I want to lower my churchman-ship.”
Ho hum.
It looks as though Pope Benedict gave the Archbishop of Canterbury the courtesy of full advance notice of these plans. That was a classy move.
Yes, there is also a simultaneous news conference by Anglican Archbishop of Cantebury and by Vincent Nichols, the Catholic archbishop of Westminster. News on that should be coming soon.
The original English Reformers, Cranmer, et al, are rolling over in their graves. Disgraceful, imho.
Just so no one is confused, this isn’t the ENTIRE Anglican Church, it’s just a way for huge chunks of it and even splinter groups to become Catholic.
Halleluja....praise God Almighty....and my heartfelt congratulations to all FReepers involved in the Anglican Use.
What about the Queen and Bonnie Prince Charlie?
You wrote:
“The original English Reformers, Cranmer, et al, are rolling over in their graves.”
They also may be rolling over in hell for schism and heresy.
“Disgraceful, imho.”
Reunion? Unity through truth is disgraceful?
>They also may be rolling over in hell for schism and heresy.
You shall know them by their fruits. The “fruits” of the “original English Reformers” (ie, heretics) are literally fruits: gay clergy, gay bishops, gay marriage (inevitably), plus female clergy, divorce (how do you get around Jesus’s teaching on THAT one?) and an entire litany of sins can be laid at their doorstep. The English Reformation was a state-mandated assault on Christianity, imposed by force on a fervently Catholic population. That a strong core of traditional believers and liturgy survived is a testament to the work of the Holy Spirit even in the worst circumstances.
Amen!
JOINT STATEMENT
BY THE ARCHBISHOP OF WESTMINSTER
AND THE ARCHBISHOP OF CANTERBURY
Today’s announcement of the Apostolic Constitution is a response by Pope Benedict XVI to a number of requests over the past few years to the Holy See from groups of Anglicans who wish to enter into full visible communion with the Roman Catholic Church, and are willing to declare that they share a common Catholic faith and accept the Petrine ministry as willed by Christ for his Church.
Pope Benedict XVI has approved, within the Apostolic Constitution, a canonical structure that provides for Personal Ordinariates, which will allow former Anglicans to enter full communion with the Catholic Church while preserving elements of distinctive Anglican spiritual patrimony.
The announcement of this Apostolic Constitution brings to an end a period of uncertainty for such groups who have nurtured hopes of new ways of embracing unity with the Catholic Church. It will now be up to those who have made requests to the Holy See to respond to the Apostolic Constitution.
The Apostolic Constitution is further recognition of the substantial overlap in faith, doctrine and spirituality between the Catholic Church and the Anglican tradition. Without the dialogues of the past forty years, this recognition would not have been possible, nor would hopes for full visible unity have been nurtured. In this sense, this Apostolic Constitution is one consequence of ecumenical dialogue between the Catholic Church and the Anglican Communion.
The on-going official dialogue between the Catholic Church and the Anglican Communion provides the basis for our continuing cooperation. The Anglican Roman Catholic International Commission (ARCIC) and International Anglican Roman Catholic Commission for Unity and Mission (IARCCUM) agreements make clear the path we will follow together.
With God’s grace and prayer we are determined that our on-going mutual commitment and consultation on these and other matters should continue to be strengthened. Locally, in the spirit of IARCCUM, we look forward to building on the pattern of shared meetings between the Catholic Bishops Conference of England and Wales and the Church of England’s House of Bishops with a focus on our common mission. Joint days of reflection and prayer were begun in Leeds in 2006 and continued in Lambeth in 2008, and further meetings are in preparation. This close cooperation will continue as we grow together in unity and mission, in witness to the Gospel in our country, and in the Church at large.
London, 20 October 2009
+ Vincent Gerard Nichols + Rowan Williams
I certainly hope that this rejuvenation is successful for all.
I was disappointed in Pope John Paull II’s effort to usher in joint services between Catholics and some synods of the Lutheran Church about 10 years ago. We had joint services at our little parish, but it was largely ignored elsewhere. And I’ve heard nothing since.
The “heretics” were those Englishmen who chose to remain under the thumb of an alien and corrupt “catholic” Church.
I think this is actually a mechanism. It's the setting up of a structure to accommodate groups of converts, rather than the announcement of specific conversions to Catholicism.
I suppose they were already spinning in light of the Anglicans' embrace of female and homosexual clergy.
Just goin’ a little faster. LOL!
As a member of a formerly-Anglican, now-Catholic parish, I obviously am heartened by this news. Welcome aboard the Barque of Peter!
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