After an overwhelming vote in favour of women 'bishops' in the church of England, conservative Bishop Burnham of Ebbsfleet has spoken about possible reconciliation with Rome as a way out of the crisis:What we must humbly ask for now is for magnanimous gestures from our Catholic friends, especially from the Holy Father, who well understands our longing for unity, and from the hierarchy of England and Wales. Most of all we ask for ways that allow us to bring our folk with us.
Our thoughts and prayers are with these Anglicans who desperately desire to be close to Apostolic Tradition. May this sad course of events have a silver lining...
Credit to Damian Thompson.
The present is a tragic time for the remaining Anglo-Catholics in the Church of England. But the question of mass reception is extremely difficult and too much optimism will not do them any favours. They will be warmly welcome by many Catholics but, unless the Anglican Church makes financial provision for the clergy, as it did last time, it is doubtful that many will come. The material risks are too great, especially for the married with families. The only reason why so many entered the Church last time was because of this provision. This is not meant to be cynical, but it exposes a harsh reality.
ReplyDeleteThere are many other difficulties as well, not least the vague beliefs of many Anglo-Catholic laity. The majority of the best-instructed left after 1992 and many in present Anglo-Catholic congregations are not so well-instructed, or go to church because they like the vicar. It is unlikely that they will be capable of following the Catholic path. But, if they do, that is why individual instructions is essential in order that they know the teaching of the Church.
Another point is that many do not want to be Catholics but are perfectly content to remain where they are.
There is no easy way round these problems.
Good though many of these people are, they lack the Catholic mind. That is not their fault as they have not been given the opportunity of acquiring it. In essence, nobody can approach reception into the Catholic Church on conditional terms. Reception is essentially unconditional. In the unlikely event of the Church receiving them en masse they will never acquire it because they will continue to have a sectarian mentality encouraged by their separateness.
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