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Resignations, Dysfunctionality
& the House of Bishops by Church of England Bishop Jayne Ozanne, Member of the General Synod, Director of the Ozanne Foundation and Editor of ViaMedia
Defections to Catholicism
First Anglicans are received into the Roman Catholic Church in historic service. (press)
By Jonathan Wynne-Jones, Telegraph, Religious Affairs Correspondent 01 Jan 2011
Priests and worshippers from around 20 Church of England parishes converted to Catholicism on Saturday at a ceremony in Westminster Cathedral.
Three former bishops were among those confirmed at the service, which saw the first wave of Anglicans defecting to Rome to join the Ordinariate.
Pope Benedict XVI leads the New Year solemn mass in Saint Peter's Basilica at the Vatican.
The Pope introduced the structure in 2009 to welcome disillusioned Anglicans into the Catholic fold after secret meetings were held at the Vatican with Church of England bishops, as The Daily Mail revealed a year earlier (in 2008).
The Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams, admitted the move had put him in “an awkward position”, but more recently he said he respected the decisions of those who decided to leave.
While around 50 clergy are expected to defect to the Catholic Church over the coming months, it has been predicted that thousands of traditionalist worshippers will join the exodus, particularly if they are given no concessions once women are made bishops.
Opposition to women bishops was one of the main reasons for the priests’ resignations from the Church of England, said Bishop Alan Hopes, the Catholic bishop who has overseen their welcome into the Ordinariate.
More importantly, he added, “most of them have been journeying, seeking the fullness of truth, and they found it in the Catholic Church”.
The former bishops of Fulham, Ebbsfleet and Richborough, John Broadhurst, Andrew Burnham and Keith Newton respectively, were applauded after they received holy communion before a packed congregation at the cathedral yesterday.
They have been key to orchestrating the exodus from the Church of England and advocating the Ordinariate, which they described as an “answer to their prayers”.
Fr Broadhurst has been particularly vocal in criticising the Church, accusing it of breaking promises to opponents of women bishops and describing it as “vicious” and “fascist”.
Two of the bishops’ wives were also confirmed as Catholics yesterday, along with three former Anglican nuns who were forced to take refuge in a Catholic convent after being told to leave their house at Walsingham Abbey.
Their departure devastated the community in Walsingham, leaving four older nuns to run the priory while the younger ones faced a period of uncertainty.
One of the nuns, Sister Wendy Renata, said she felt “fantastic” after formally being welcomed into the Catholic Church.
“I’ve wanted to do it for years. I’ve finally done it,” she said.
In the next few weeks, the next groups of clergy and worshippers are set to be received into the Catholic Church, which is due to announce the precise timetable for the launch of the Ordinariate this month.
The confirmations at yesterday’s service were the first step to its establishment in this country. All of the clergy who have resigned from the Church of England now have to be re-ordained as the Catholic Church does not recognise Anglican orders.
It is expected that as many as 50 clergy will be ordained by Easter as the new structure begins to take shape, but there are likely to be many disputes in parishes torn over whether to remain in the Church of England.
The Most Rev Vincent Nichols, the Archbishop of Westminster, said in November that he did not feel “guilty” that some Anglican parishes would be left without vicars.
He said the Catholic Church would provide £250,000 in start-up funding for the Ordinariate and look to raise more money from donations and sponsors to cover running costs.
Archbishop Williams has expressed regret at the resignations of the clergy and warned that there will be challenges as they set up their new churches.
“I think the challenge will come in working out shared use of churches, of how we as Anglicans 'recommend’ people and also of course there will be some parishes without priests - so we have a practical challenge here and there,” he said.
Earlier in the process, the Vatican published its apostolic constitution, Anglicanorum Coetibus, allowing Anglican clergy to enter into full communion with the Catholic Church while maintaining aspects of their spiritual heritage.
While Catholic priests are not permitted to marry, there are a small number of former Anglican bishops with wives, who joined the Catholic clergy post the mid-90s.
“They were given disciplinary sanction from clerical celibacy in order to be ordained as a Catholic priest,” Bishop Hopes said.
Commenting on how the Anglican Archbishop might feel about the arrangement, Bishop Hopes said he understood he would be feeling unhappy.
“But I know too that he understands that we are all on a journey of faith, and sometimes our paths take standard routes.
“And if you truly believe that you have found fullness of truth in the Catholic Church, there is nothing you can do about it.
“You have to become a Catholic.”
A former Anglican convert himself, Bishop Hopes was received into the Catholic Church in 1994.
Url: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/religion/8235349/First-Anglicans-are-received-into-the-Roman-Catholic-Church-in-historic-service.html
Hundreds more Church of England defections expected. (press)
By Martin Beckford and Martinbeckford 28 December 2011
Hundreds more disaffected Anglicans will cross over to the Roman Catholic Church this year as the Church of England prepares to take another important step towards the ordination of women bishops.
At least 20 clergy and several hundred of their parishioners are already lined up to join the
Keith Newton, centre, on the day he was ordained into the Roman Catholic Church at Westminster Cathedral.
Ordinariate, the new structure set up by the Pope a year ago that allows them to remain some of their Anglican heritage while entering into full communion with the Holy See.... (redacted by Telegraph-online, see URL below for full story.)
U.K. Bishops Defect to Catholic Church: A Sign of Crisis? (press)
By Nick Assinder / London Thursday, Nov. 11, 2010
The Achbishop of Canterbury Dr Rowan Williams supports the arm of Pope Benedict XVI as he leaves after addressing a meeting of Anglican and Roman Catholic Diocesan bishops of England, Scotland and Wales at Lambeth Palace on September 17, 2010 in London.
When Pope Benedict XVI made his historic visit to the U.K. back in September, the images and message were all about peace, reconciliation and understanding between churches and faiths. His meeting with the Archbishop of Canterbury, Rowan Williams, on Sept. 17 was particularly seen as part of the long healing process between the Anglican church and the Vatican.
Fast-forward seven weeks, and that process seems to have shuddered to a halt. On Nov. 8, five Church of England bishops announced that they have "defected" and will convert to Catholicism — sparking talk of the biggest crisis to hit the church since 1534, when Henry VIII needed to swap wives without the Vatican's consent and broke away from Rome.
Both the Pope and the Archbishop have been well aware of this simmering split for some time, but chose not to publicly highlight it during the papal visit, which was already being marred by demonstrations over Benedict's attitude to homosexuals and women — two of the very issues that have led to this latest fracture.
Indeed, the Pope had virtually ensured there would be defections by clergy who are steadfastly opposed to the ordination of women bishops, gay priests and gay marriage when, almost a year ago, he made it clear he was ready to offer a deal to allow disaffected Anglicans to convert to Catholicism without being forced to abandon all their traditions. The move was immediately branded as "poaching," with Williams expressing his "concerns" over the way it was handled and the lack of consultation.
But is this the start of an irreparable schism within the church, with large numbers of clergy and worshippers taking up the pope's offer — described by one bishop as an offer they couldn't refuse? Or is it a minor crack that will see only a few hard-line traditionalists breaking away, and perhaps allowing the rest to carry on in a more unified way?
The Archbishop appeared relatively relaxed over the affair when he issued a short, simple statement on Monday noting his "regret" at the bishops' decision. "We wish them well in this next stage of their service to the church," he added. "And I am grateful to them for their faithful and devoted pastoral labors in the Church of England over so many years."
But one of the bishops, John Broadhurst, told the Times of London he believes there will be significant further defections amongst the clergy and perhaps thousands of ordinary churchgoers. "There are lots of people interested," he said. "Some are actively looking at it. A lot of people are saying they will wait and see how it develops." Although it's a tough decision, he said, considering how Rome is not offering to replace the homes or salaries of any defectors, "I suspect thousands, not hundreds, of laity will go."
In the statement announcing their defection, the bishops declare that they feel recent developments in the church are incompatible with traditional Anglicanism. They argue, for example, that Jesus only chose men as his disciples so women should not become bishops. Campaigners such as Women and the Church (WATCH), however, point out that the church has regularly adapted its stance on controversial issues. Spokeswoman Rev Rosie Harper told the BBC: "That has been the story of the church. We worked out eventually that it wasn't God's will we should have slaves, and worked out we shouldn't be racist."
According to Church of England figures, there are 12,894 parishes in the U.K., of which 802 have refused to accept women celebrating holy communion and 966 refuse to accept a woman as a vicar. Two of the men taking up the pope's offer are so-called "flying bishops", so named because they were given the job of looking after those parishes that would not accept the ordination of women.
Rome, however, might prefer to see them as "homing bishops," returning to the Catholic Church and leading a flock of future returnees.
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