When he retired in 2004, Michael Peers (who confirmed and ordained me) was the senior primate of the Anglican Communion. Here is what he had to say in 2000, four years before this Covenant silliness ever raised its head.[W]orldwide Anglicanism is a communion, not a church. The Anglican Church of Canada is a church. The Church in the Province of the West Indies is a church. The Episcopal Church of Sudan is a church. The Anglican Communion is a 'koinonia' of churches.
We have become that for many reasons, among which are the struggles of the sixteenth century and an intuition about the value of inculturation, rooted in the Incarnation, which has led us to locate final authority within local churches.
We are not a papal church and we are not a confessional church. We are autonomous churches held together in a fellowship of common faith dating from the creeds and councils, recognizing the presidency of a primus inter pares (the Archbishop of Canterbury), often struggling with inter-church and intra-church tension, but accepting that as the price of the liberty and autonomy that we cherish.
As I said to the members of the Council of General Synod last month, the price of this includes a certain measure of messiness.'
Read Malcolm's entire commentary. As I said in the comments:
Malcolm, this is gold, pure gold. I think I never saw a better description of the Anglican Communion - what it was, what it is, and what it will not be if the daft Anglican Covenant is put in place.
Does it appear to anybody else that Rowan Who has missed the entire point of Anglicanism?
ReplyDeleteA rhetorical question, I'm sure, Wade.
ReplyDeleteMerci, Grandmére, mais je ne suis pas un evesque.
ReplyDeleteMalcolm avec the plus apres, pas en avant.
I get so disheartened by all of this stuff. Grandmére, I couldn't agree more with what the good bishop Peers writes and I thank you for sharing it. Happy New Year to one and all.
ReplyDeleteMalcolm, I just made you one. It counts. It's official. Nevertheless, until you are confirmed, I corrected my designation. :-)
ReplyDeleteAs I said over at Malcolm's place, I can't agree. The Anglican Church of Canada is no more a church than the Anglican Communion. In the New Testament the word 'ekklesia' is used in only two senses: (1) the one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church, and (2) the local congregation. For anything in between, the word used is in the plural 'churches' (rather as one of the Canadian Pentecostal denominations calls itself the 'Pentecostal Assemblies of Canada' - 'assembly' beings its translation of 'ekklesia'.
ReplyDelete