What about Lambeth?
I don't usually comment about the institutional Church -- mainly because there are plenty of people who have plenty to say from multiple perspectives concerning "all things Anglican". But I'm going to bend that self-imposed rule for today (and maybe even break the rule altogether by the end of next week!). So...here goes.
The Lambeth Conference (for those readers here who may not have heard of it) is the once-every-decade gathering of bishops from all over the Anglican Communion. The Anglican Communion is comprised of churches that trace their historic roots (for better or worse) to the Church of England. The Episcopal Church is one of the churches of the Anglican Communion. The conference gets its name from "Lambeth Palace", which is the residence of the Archbishop of Canterbury who is that "spiritual leader" of the Communion.
And here's where the whole thing gets interesting, confusing or frustrating, depending upon your perspective. While the Communion is global, it is not monolithic, like the Roman Catholic Church. While the Archbishop of Canterbury is the "spiritual leader", he (to date, the role has always been filled by a male) does not have the power of the Pope. The results of the Conference, such as resolutions, reports and the like, are not (as yet) binding upon any of the member churches. At the last gathering of the Conference in 1998, the presence of so many bishops from the two-thirds world clearly indicated both a shift in the demographics and the varied theological perspectives extant in the Communion.
This year's Conference will be taking up a number of important issues for the Communion. There will be discussions concerning how we are to be "together" as Anglicans when clearly there is such diversity (and divergence) of opinion on a multiplicity of concerns. For some time now, there has been a group at work drafting an "Anglican Covenant". There is work going on in terms of how Anglicans interpret Scripture, the role of Primates (the bishops who are appointed/elected to head the respective churches comprising the Communion), and whether or not there should be some sort of centralized authority. Weighty discussions indeed. We'll have to wait until the end of next week to see what this Conference will produce in terms of either documents and/or fallout.
In the meantime, we can pray for the Church.
I don't usually comment about the institutional Church -- mainly because there are plenty of people who have plenty to say from multiple perspectives concerning "all things Anglican". But I'm going to bend that self-imposed rule for today (and maybe even break the rule altogether by the end of next week!). So...here goes.
The Lambeth Conference (for those readers here who may not have heard of it) is the once-every-decade gathering of bishops from all over the Anglican Communion. The Anglican Communion is comprised of churches that trace their historic roots (for better or worse) to the Church of England. The Episcopal Church is one of the churches of the Anglican Communion. The conference gets its name from "Lambeth Palace", which is the residence of the Archbishop of Canterbury who is that "spiritual leader" of the Communion.
And here's where the whole thing gets interesting, confusing or frustrating, depending upon your perspective. While the Communion is global, it is not monolithic, like the Roman Catholic Church. While the Archbishop of Canterbury is the "spiritual leader", he (to date, the role has always been filled by a male) does not have the power of the Pope. The results of the Conference, such as resolutions, reports and the like, are not (as yet) binding upon any of the member churches. At the last gathering of the Conference in 1998, the presence of so many bishops from the two-thirds world clearly indicated both a shift in the demographics and the varied theological perspectives extant in the Communion.
This year's Conference will be taking up a number of important issues for the Communion. There will be discussions concerning how we are to be "together" as Anglicans when clearly there is such diversity (and divergence) of opinion on a multiplicity of concerns. For some time now, there has been a group at work drafting an "Anglican Covenant". There is work going on in terms of how Anglicans interpret Scripture, the role of Primates (the bishops who are appointed/elected to head the respective churches comprising the Communion), and whether or not there should be some sort of centralized authority. Weighty discussions indeed. We'll have to wait until the end of next week to see what this Conference will produce in terms of either documents and/or fallout.
In the meantime, we can pray for the Church.
posted by FrGaryB | 9:31 AM
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