Posted on 06/08/2005 11:51:42 AM PDT by sionnsar
Courtesy of the "Orthodox Anglican Communion," we now have available The Episcopal Church: Its Message for Men of Today by George Parlan Atwater. This appears to be a good introduction to Anglicanism for anyone who may not be familiar with our faith. Note that chapters include such topics as
The Church and Public Worship
The Active Worship of the People
The Prayer Book and Public Worship
Baptism and Church Membership
The Apostles' Creed.
The Holy Communion
The Apostolic Ministry .
The History of the Church.
The Background of Worship
The Christian Year
But it should be noted that this book was first published in 1917 and as the new Foreword by Abp. Scott McLaughlin of the Orthodox Anglican Communion notes, its contents cannot be said to apply to the ECUSA of today. In some churches of ECUSA, it still applies; otherwise one would have to look at its applicability for the REC, the Continuing Anglican churches, and perhaps the AMiA.
Traditional Anglican ping, continued in memory of its founder Arlin Adams. I trust this book hasn't been "edited" to insure "inclusion" of homosexuals.
Not sure who the "Othodox Anglican Communion" are, but probably not...
Just out of curiousity, how many denominations do you think you guys will have a year from now. It seems to be going from bad too worse.
I will note that the two largest North American Anglican groups are 5 or so years into an 8-year integration cycle -- and one is very Evangelical and the other rather Anglo-Catholic. I will also report hearing that the next two largest groups are "in discussion," though the public (this includes me) is not being apprised of the details. And between these groups you have the vast majority of North American non-ECUSA Anglicanism. What does it matter, in the large picture, if we also have (to take it to extremes) three dozen two-person churches who also claim the name?
Question that pops to mind: Are there not some spinoff "Catholic" churches? Isn't there some French priest who's long been quite on the outs with Rome? And (I'm not sure) aren't there some churches advertising their "Orthodox" brand...?
What I see with the Anglican Communion (at least in the US and Canada) is a crisis where it is the Church hierarchy which is moving in a direction that is totally at odds with Christianity as a whole. I know a lot of evangelicals and I used to wonder how their ranks were growing so rapidly, but I am beginning to understand now. In the past decades I think that Catholicism and mainstream Protestantism has moved in the opposite direction of what Christians want. And the only way to correct this is for the traditional denominations to return to traditional values. It seems that the Vatican is doing that and I pray that the Anglicans will also.
"And (I'm not sure) aren't there some churches advertising their "Orthodox" brand...?"
There are a few groups out there, quite tiny and almost invariably made up of former protestants who have gathered around some vagante defrocked priest or bishop. They usually are called something like "The One Really True Honest to Goodness Orthodox Church of North America (Peoria Synod)" or some such thing. There are a few larger Old Calendar groups only in communion with similar groups who think the Pope is the Beast of the Apocalypse and the EP his right hand man but they are mostly located in Europe and really are fringe groups. All in all, they simply are marginal groups who count for little or nothing.
We had a discussion on a thread some time back trying to see how many "Presbyterian" denominations there were in the US. We ended up with over a dozen, but apart from the liberal mainline group, there are only 3 of traditional belief and significant impact, and two of those are in communion. (They each have approved merger with the other at various points in time, but never at the same time, and a formal merger now looks unlikely. There is a high level of cooperation and coordination.) Since all three non - mainline group allow congregations to move to one of the others with property, there is some reduction in internal conflict.
Most Rev Dr. Scott McLaughlin is based here in North Carolina, in Lexington, where he maintains his see and a seminary. He is the Archbishop of the OAC. It is heavily orthodox, though I did find small, but sufficiently significant changes in the Canon of the Mass to be noticed in the midst of an otherwise suitably orthodox liturgy I attended (a friend was being ordained to the priesthood in the OAC).
If push came to shove, I'd expect the OAC on the 'side of the angels', as seems now the way to put affirming orthodoxy in the Communion.
In Christ,
Deacon Paul+
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