Anglo-Catholicism
Encyclopedia
The terms Anglo-Catholic and Anglo-Catholicism describe people, beliefs and practices within Anglicanism
that affirm the Catholic
, rather than Protestant
, heritage and identity of the Anglican churches.
Many Anglo-Catholics today, especially in England, prefer the terms Anglican Catholic or Catholic Anglican. The term High Church
is also often used to refer to Anglo-Catholicism even though its traditional meaning is not identical. For some, Anglo-Catholicism represents a form of Catholicism without papal control; for others, it represents a form of Protestantism with more elaborate liturgy
and ritual. Still for others it represents a fusion of the two, in the Anglican via media tradition.
, various terms are frequently used – sometimes inconsistently – to denote the three principal forms of Anglican churchmanship
: High Church
, Low Church
and Broad Church
(or Latitudinarian
).
from Rome in the late 6th century to evangelise the Anglo-Saxons, a process largely completed in the 7th century.
When the Protestant Reformation
broke out in Europe, the tide reached England as well. King Henry VIII
took England into schism from Rome when the Pope refused to declare null
his marriage to Catherine of Aragon
, but retained Catholic views in theology and liturgy, while some reformers (such as Bishop John Hooper
) wanted to follow the radical reforms of Geneva. All reforms were reversed, briefly, during the reign of the Roman Catholic Mary I
who resumed communion with Rome as part of a general campaign to end the influence of Reformation ideas in England and Wales. Consequently, when Elizabeth I succeeded to the English throne, she sought to steer a via media (Latin: "middle road") between what her bishops felt were the excesses of both Rome and Geneva. Thus was born the Elizabethan Settlement
and the promulgation of a single Book of Common Prayer
for all theological persuasions in the Church of England. This marks the birth of the Anglican ethos which was championed by the Elizabethan
divine Richard Hooker.
From that time, through Archbishop Laud
and the Caroline Divines
, up to the time of the Oxford Movement Tractarians, the Anglo-Catholic Congresses and the present day, there has always been a theological party within Anglicanism which has sought to stress apostolic continuity all the way back to the Twelve Apostles. In response to Pope Leo XIII
's Apostolicae Curae
(1896), which declared the Anglican apostolic succession invalid from the Holy See
's perspective, the Anglican Archbishops of Canterbury
and York
have claimed, starting with their official response Saepius Officio, that there is an unbroken apostolic succession in the Anglican priesthood and that the historical episcopate
has been in the British Isles from the earliest days of the Church
. Anglo-Catholicism has been weakened at regular intervals by secessions by some of its prominent leaders to the Roman Catholic Church
, or occasionally to the Eastern Orthodox Church
es, among whom was John Henry Newman, who went on to become a Roman Catholic cardinal
and was beatified by Pope Benedict XVI in September 2010. Moments of crisis provoking such defections include the (narrowly avoided) condemnation of Tract 90
in 1841, the ritualistic controversy and the Public Worship Regulation Act 1874
, the Prayer Book controversy of 1927-28 and, more recently, decisions by many Anglican provinces to ordain women
.
of the Victorian era
, sometimes termed Tractarianism.
In the early 19th century, various factors caused misgivings among English churchmen, including the decline of church life and the spread of unorthodox practices in the Church of England. The British government's action in 1833 of beginning a reduction in the number of Church of Ireland
bishoprics and archbishoprics inspired a sermon from John Keble
in the University Church in Oxford on the subject of "National Apostasy". This sermon marked the inception of what became known as the Oxford Movement.
The principal objective of the Oxford Movement was the defence of the Church of England as a divinely-founded institution, of the doctrine of the Apostolic Succession
and of the Book of Common Prayer
as a "rule of faith". The key idea was that Anglicanism was not a Protestant denomination, but rather a branch
of the historic Catholic Church, along with the Roman Catholic Church
and the Eastern Orthodox churches. It was argued that Anglicanism had preserved the historical apostolic succession of priests and bishops and thus the Catholic sacrament
s. These ideas were promoted in a series of ninety Tracts for the Times
.
The principal leaders of the Oxford Movement were John Keble
, John Henry Newman and Edward Bouverie Pusey
. The movement gained influential support, but it was also attacked by the latitudinarian
s within the University of Oxford
and by bishops of the church. Within the movement there gradually arose a much smaller group which tended towards submission to the supremacy of the Roman Catholic Church. In 1845 the university censured the Ideal of a Christian Church, and its author, "Ideal Ward," i.e., the pro-Roman Catholic theologian, W. G. Ward. 1850 saw the victory of the Evangelical clergyman George Cornelius Gorham
in a celebrated legal action against the church authorities. A number of conversions to the Roman Catholic Church followed. The majority of adherents of the movement, however, remained in the Church of England and, despite hostility in the press and in government, the movement spread. Its liturgical practices were influential, as were its social achievements (including its slum settlements) and its revival of male and female monasticism within Anglicanism.
's work in the 19th century.
The Oxford Movement had been inspired in the first place by a rejection of liberalism
and latitudinarianism in favour of the traditional faith of the "Church Catholic", defined by the teachings of the Church Fathers
and the common doctrines of the historical eastern
and western Christian churches
. Until the 1970s, therefore, most Anglo-Catholics rejected liberalising development such as the conferral of holy orders
on women. Present-day "traditionalist" Anglo-Catholics seek to maintain tradition and to keep Anglican doctrine in line with that of the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches. They often ally themselves with Evangelicals to defend traditional teachings on sexual morality. The main organisation in the Church of England that opposes the ordination of women, Forward in Faith
, is largely composed of Anglo-Catholics.
Gore's work, however, bearing the mark of liberal Protestant higher criticism, paved the way for an alternative form of Anglo-Catholicism influenced by liberal theology
. Thus in recent years many Anglo-Catholics have accepted the ordination of women
, the use of inclusive language in Bible translations and the liturgy, and progressive attitudes towards homosexuality. Such Anglicans often refer to themselves as "Liberal Catholics". The more "progressive" or "liberal" style of Anglo-Catholicism is represented by Affirming Catholicism
.
A third strand of Anglican Catholicism criticizes elements of both liberalism and conservatism, drawing instead on the twentieth-century Roman Catholic Nouvelle Théologie
, especially Henri de Lubac
. John Milbank
and others within this strand have been instrumental in the creation of the ecumenical (though predominantly Anglican and Roman Catholic) movement known as Radical Orthodoxy
.
Some traditionalist Anglo-Catholics have left official Anglicanism to form "continuing Anglican churches
" such as the Traditional Anglican Communion
. Others have left Anglicanism altogether for the Roman Catholic or Eastern Orthodox churches, in the belief that liberal doctrinal innovations in the Anglican churches have resulted in Anglicanism no longer being a true branch of the "Church Catholic".
An apostolic constitution
is the highest level of papal legislation and is not time-limited. In other words, groups of Anglicans may apply for reception by the Holy See at any time and enter into what are termed "Anglican ordinariates" i.e. regional groupings of Anglican Catholics which come under the jurisdiction of an "ordinary", i.e. a bishop or priest appointed by Rome to oversee the community, which, while being in a country or region which is part of the Latin Rite of the Roman Catholic Church, retains aspects of the Anglican patrimony, e.g. married priests, traditional English choral music and liturgy.
Some have drawn parallels with the Eastern Catholic churches, but though there are some commonalities, Anglican ordinariates are intended to be part of the Western or Latin Rite of the Roman Catholic Church, as they had been before the breach with Rome following the reign of Mary I of England.
The first Anglican ordinariate, known as the Personal Ordinariate of Our Lady of Walsingham
, was established on 15 January 2011 in the United Kingdom. Other ordinariates are expected to be erected in 2011 in Canada, Australia and the United States. The already existing Anglican Use
parishes in the United States, which have existed since the 1980s, will form a portion of the first American Anglican ordinariate. These parishes are already in communion with Rome and use modified Anglican liturgies approved by the Holy See. It is expected that they will be joined by other groups and parishes of Episcopalians
and other Anglicans and possibly some Lutheran and other groups seeking to share in communities of Anglican tradition in the wider Catholic communion.
The numbers of individuals and groups are expected to be relatively small at first, but over time these may grow, as has been the case in some of the Texas Anglican Use parishes. Traditional Anglo-Catholics are divided on the issue, but a significant number of the Forward in Faith parishes, priests, bishops and laity (numbering about 10,000) in the United Kingdom are expected to enter into full communion with Rome under this provision within the coming decade.
In agreement with the Oriental Orthodox Churches
and Eastern Orthodox Churches, Anglo-Catholics — along with Old-Catholics and Lutherans — generally appeal to the "canon" (or rule) of St Vincent of Lerins
: "What everywhere, what always, and what by all has been believed, that is truly and properly Catholic."
The Anglican Thirty-Nine Articles
make distinctions between Anglican and Roman Catholic understandings of doctrine. As the Articles were intentionally written in such a way as to be open to a range of interpretations, Anglo-Catholics have defended Catholic practices and beliefs as being consistent with them. Because of the Articles' harsh tone, however, they have generally not been held in high regard by most Anglo-Catholics. A recent trend in Anglo-Catholic thought related to the Thirty-Nine Articles has included the New Perspective on Paul
.
Anglo-Catholic priest
s often hear private confession
s and anoint the sick
, regarding these practices, as do Roman Catholics, as sacraments. The classic Anglican aphorism regarding private confession is: "All may, some should, none must."
Anglo-Catholics are more likely to offer prayers for the departed and the intercession of the Saints than low church
Anglicans. C.S. Lewis, often considered an Anglo-Catholic in his theological sensibilities, was once quoted as stating that, "Of course I pray for the dead. The action is so spontaneous, so all but inevitable, that only the most compulsive theological case against it would deter me. And I hardly know how the rest of my prayers would survive if those for the dead were forbidden. At our age, the majority of those we love best are dead. What sort of intercourse with God could I have if what I love best were unmentionable to him?"
Anglo-Catholics share with Roman Catholics a belief in the sacramental nature of the priesthood, the sacrificial character of the Mass
and, in some cases, the doctrine of Transubstantiation
, the Roman Catholic version of the doctrine of the Real Presence
. A minority of Anglo-Catholics also encourage priestly celibacy
. Most Anglo-Catholics encourage devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary, particularly under her title of Our Lady of Walsingham
, but not all Anglo-Catholics adhere to a high doctrine of Mariology
.
A minority of Anglo-Catholics, sometimes called Anglo-Papalists
, consider themselves under papal supremacy even though they are not in communion with the Roman Catholic Church. Such Anglo-Catholics, especially in England, often celebrate Mass according to the contemporary Roman Catholic rite
and are concerned with seeking reunion with the Roman and Eastern Catholic churches.
Many other traditional Catholic practices are observed within Anglo-Catholicism, including eucharistic adoration
. Most of these Anglo-Catholic "innovations" (or, rather, revivals of dormant practices) have since been accepted by mainstream Anglican churches, if not by Evangelical or Low Church
Anglicans.
Various liturgical strands exist within Anglo-Catholicism:
Preferences for Elizabethan English and modern English texts vary within the movement.
In the United States a group of Anglo-Catholics in the Episcopal Church published, under the rubrics of the 1979 Book of Common Prayer, an Anglican Service Book
which is "a traditional language adaptation of the 1979 Book of Common Prayer together with the Psalter or Psalms of David and additional devotions." This book is based on the 1979 Book of Common Prayer but includes offices and devotions in the traditional language of the 1928 Prayer Book that are not in the 1979 edition. The book also draws from sources such as the Anglican Missal
.
Anglicanism
Anglicanism is a tradition within Christianity comprising churches with historical connections to the Church of England or similar beliefs, worship and church structures. The word Anglican originates in ecclesia anglicana, a medieval Latin phrase dating to at least 1246 that means the English...
that affirm the Catholic
Catholic
The word catholic comes from the Greek phrase , meaning "on the whole," "according to the whole" or "in general", and is a combination of the Greek words meaning "about" and meaning "whole"...
, rather than Protestant
Protestantism
Protestantism is one of the three major groupings within Christianity. It is a movement that began in Germany in the early 16th century as a reaction against medieval Roman Catholic doctrines and practices, especially in regards to salvation, justification, and ecclesiology.The doctrines of the...
, heritage and identity of the Anglican churches.
Many Anglo-Catholics today, especially in England, prefer the terms Anglican Catholic or Catholic Anglican. The term High Church
High church
The term "High Church" refers to beliefs and practices of ecclesiology, liturgy and theology, generally with an emphasis on formality, and resistance to "modernization." Although used in connection with various Christian traditions, the term has traditionally been principally associated with the...
is also often used to refer to Anglo-Catholicism even though its traditional meaning is not identical. For some, Anglo-Catholicism represents a form of Catholicism without papal control; for others, it represents a form of Protestantism with more elaborate liturgy
Liturgy
Liturgy is either the customary public worship done by a specific religious group, according to its particular traditions or a more precise term that distinguishes between those religious groups who believe their ritual requires the "people" to do the "work" of responding to the priest, and those...
and ritual. Still for others it represents a fusion of the two, in the Anglican via media tradition.
Churchmanship differences
Within Anglicanism, especially in the Church of EnglandChurch of England
The Church of England is the officially established Christian church in England and the Mother Church of the worldwide Anglican Communion. The church considers itself within the tradition of Western Christianity and dates its formal establishment principally to the mission to England by St...
, various terms are frequently used – sometimes inconsistently – to denote the three principal forms of Anglican churchmanship
Churchmanship
Within Anglicanism the term churchmanship is sometimes used to refer to distinct understandings of church doctrine and liturgical practice by members of the Church of England and other churches of the Anglican communion...
: High Church
High church
The term "High Church" refers to beliefs and practices of ecclesiology, liturgy and theology, generally with an emphasis on formality, and resistance to "modernization." Although used in connection with various Christian traditions, the term has traditionally been principally associated with the...
, Low Church
Low church
Low church is a term of distinction in the Church of England or other Anglican churches initially designed to be pejorative. During the series of doctrinal and ecclesiastic challenges to the established church in the 16th and 17th centuries, commentators and others began to refer to those groups...
and Broad Church
Broad church
Broad church is a term referring to latitudinarian churchmanship in the Church of England, in particular, and Anglicanism, in general. From this, the term is often used to refer to secular political organisations, meaning that they encompass a broad range of opinion.-Usage:After the terms high...
(or Latitudinarian
Latitudinarian
Latitudinarian was initially a pejorative term applied to a group of 17th-century English theologians who believed in conforming to official Church of England practices but who felt that matters of doctrine, liturgical practice, and ecclesiastical organization were of relatively little importance...
).
- High Church is generally used to describe forms of Anglicanism influenced, to a greater or lesser extent, by the Catholic tradition. Anglo-Catholicism is often identified with this variety of churchmanship, although not all "High Church" Anglicans, such as Liberal Anglo-CatholicsLiberal Anglo-CatholicismThe terms liberal Anglo-Catholicism and liberal Anglo-Catholic refer to people, beliefs and practices within Anglicanism that affirm liberal Christian perspectives while maintaining the traditions culturally associated with Anglo-Catholicism...
, would endorse some prominent aspects of Anglo-Catholicism. - Low Church usually refers to Anglicans of a more EvangelicalEvangelicalismEvangelicalism is a Protestant Christian movement which began in Great Britain in the 1730s and gained popularity in the United States during the series of Great Awakenings of the 18th and 19th century.Its key commitments are:...
tradition who, more consistent with the ProtestantProtestantismProtestantism is one of the three major groupings within Christianity. It is a movement that began in Germany in the early 16th century as a reaction against medieval Roman Catholic doctrines and practices, especially in regards to salvation, justification, and ecclesiology.The doctrines of the...
tradition, emphasise the primacy of scriptureSola scripturaSola scriptura is the doctrine that the Bible contains all knowledge necessary for salvation and holiness. Consequently, sola scriptura demands that only those doctrines are to be admitted or confessed that are found directly within or indirectly by using valid logical deduction or valid...
and salvation through faith aloneSola fideSola fide , also historically known as the doctrine of justification by faith alone, is a Christian theological doctrine that distinguishes most Protestant denominations from Catholicism, Eastern Christianity, and some in the Restoration Movement.The doctrine of sola fide or "by faith alone"...
. Low Church Anglicans usually worship according to the official prayer books, but with much less ceremony. - Broad Church generally refers to Anglicans somewhere between the "high" and "low" traditions. The term is sometimes used to denote Anglicans of a more liberal theological perspective.
History
Anglo-Catholicism claims the continuity of the Church of England with the early days of Christianity in Great Britain, even before Pope Gregory the Great sent St Augustine of CanterburyAugustine of Canterbury
Augustine of Canterbury was a Benedictine monk who became the first Archbishop of Canterbury in the year 597...
from Rome in the late 6th century to evangelise the Anglo-Saxons, a process largely completed in the 7th century.
When the Protestant Reformation
Protestant Reformation
The Protestant Reformation was a 16th-century split within Western Christianity initiated by Martin Luther, John Calvin and other early Protestants. The efforts of the self-described "reformers", who objected to the doctrines, rituals and ecclesiastical structure of the Roman Catholic Church, led...
broke out in Europe, the tide reached England as well. King Henry VIII
Henry VIII of England
Henry VIII was King of England from 21 April 1509 until his death. He was Lord, and later King, of Ireland, as well as continuing the nominal claim by the English monarchs to the Kingdom of France...
took England into schism from Rome when the Pope refused to declare null
Annulment (Catholic Church)
In the Roman Catholic Church an annulment is the procedure, governed by the Church's Canon Law and the Catechism, whereby an ecclesial tribunal determines the sacrament of marriage was invalidly entered into. An annulment determines the Catholic marriage to be void at its inception...
his marriage to Catherine of Aragon
Catherine of Aragon
Catherine of Aragon , also known as Katherine or Katharine, was Queen consort of England as the first wife of King Henry VIII of England and Princess of Wales as the wife to Arthur, Prince of Wales...
, but retained Catholic views in theology and liturgy, while some reformers (such as Bishop John Hooper
John Hooper
John Hooper, Johan Hoper, was an English churchman, Anglican Bishop of Gloucester and Worcester. A Protestant Reformer, he was killed during the Marian Persecutions.-Biography:...
) wanted to follow the radical reforms of Geneva. All reforms were reversed, briefly, during the reign of the Roman Catholic Mary I
Mary I of England
Mary I was queen regnant of England and Ireland from July 1553 until her death.She was the only surviving child born of the ill-fated marriage of Henry VIII and his first wife Catherine of Aragon. Her younger half-brother, Edward VI, succeeded Henry in 1547...
who resumed communion with Rome as part of a general campaign to end the influence of Reformation ideas in England and Wales. Consequently, when Elizabeth I succeeded to the English throne, she sought to steer a via media (Latin: "middle road") between what her bishops felt were the excesses of both Rome and Geneva. Thus was born the Elizabethan Settlement
Elizabethan Religious Settlement
The Elizabethan Religious Settlement was Elizabeth I’s response to the religious divisions created over the reigns of Henry VIII, Edward VI and Mary I. This response, described as "The Revolution of 1559", was set out in two Acts of the Parliament of England...
and the promulgation of a single Book of Common Prayer
Book of Common Prayer
The Book of Common Prayer is the short title of a number of related prayer books used in the Anglican Communion, as well as by the Continuing Anglican, "Anglican realignment" and other Anglican churches. The original book, published in 1549 , in the reign of Edward VI, was a product of the English...
for all theological persuasions in the Church of England. This marks the birth of the Anglican ethos which was championed by the Elizabethan
Elizabethan era
The Elizabethan era was the epoch in English history of Queen Elizabeth I's reign . Historians often depict it as the golden age in English history...
divine Richard Hooker.
From that time, through Archbishop Laud
William Laud
William Laud was Archbishop of Canterbury from 1633 to 1645. One of the High Church Caroline divines, he opposed radical forms of Puritanism...
and the Caroline Divines
Caroline Divines
The Caroline Divines were influential theologians and writers in the Anglican Church who lived during the reigns of King Charles I and, after the Restoration, King Charles II . This is commonly considered a golden age of Anglican scholarship...
, up to the time of the Oxford Movement Tractarians, the Anglo-Catholic Congresses and the present day, there has always been a theological party within Anglicanism which has sought to stress apostolic continuity all the way back to the Twelve Apostles. In response to Pope Leo XIII
Pope Leo XIII
Pope Leo XIII , born Vincenzo Gioacchino Raffaele Luigi Pecci to an Italian comital family, was the 256th Pope of the Roman Catholic Church, reigning from 1878 to 1903...
's Apostolicae Curae
Apostolicae Curae
Apostolicae Curae is the title of a papal bull, issued in 1896 by Pope Leo XIII, declaring all Anglican ordinations to be "absolutely null and utterly void"...
(1896), which declared the Anglican apostolic succession invalid from the Holy See
Holy See
The Holy See is the episcopal jurisdiction of the Catholic Church in Rome, in which its Bishop is commonly known as the Pope. It is the preeminent episcopal see of the Catholic Church, forming the central government of the Church. As such, diplomatically, and in other spheres the Holy See acts and...
's perspective, the Anglican Archbishops of Canterbury
Archbishop of Canterbury
The Archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and principal leader of the Church of England, the symbolic head of the worldwide Anglican Communion, and the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Canterbury. In his role as head of the Anglican Communion, the archbishop leads the third largest group...
and York
Archbishop of York
The Archbishop of York is a high-ranking cleric in the Church of England, second only to the Archbishop of Canterbury. He is the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of York and metropolitan of the Province of York, which covers the northern portion of England as well as the Isle of Man...
have claimed, starting with their official response Saepius Officio, that there is an unbroken apostolic succession in the Anglican priesthood and that the historical episcopate
Historical episcopate
The episcopate is the collective body of all bishops of a church. In the Roman Catholic, Anglican, Eastern Orthodox, Eastern Rite Catholic, Oriental Orthodox, Old-Catholic, Moravian Church, and Independent Catholic churches as well as in the Assyrian Church of the East, it is held that only a...
has been in the British Isles from the earliest days of the Church
Early Christianity
Early Christianity is generally considered as Christianity before 325. The New Testament's Book of Acts and Epistle to the Galatians records that the first Christian community was centered in Jerusalem and its leaders included James, Peter and John....
. Anglo-Catholicism has been weakened at regular intervals by secessions by some of its prominent leaders to the Roman Catholic Church
Roman Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...
, or occasionally to the Eastern Orthodox Church
Eastern Orthodox Church
The Orthodox Church, officially called the Orthodox Catholic Church and commonly referred to as the Eastern Orthodox Church, is the second largest Christian denomination in the world, with an estimated 300 million adherents mainly in the countries of Belarus, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Georgia, Greece,...
es, among whom was John Henry Newman, who went on to become a Roman Catholic cardinal
Cardinal (Catholicism)
A cardinal is a senior ecclesiastical official, usually an ordained bishop, and ecclesiastical prince of the Catholic Church. They are collectively known as the College of Cardinals, which as a body elects a new pope. The duties of the cardinals include attending the meetings of the College and...
and was beatified by Pope Benedict XVI in September 2010. Moments of crisis provoking such defections include the (narrowly avoided) condemnation of Tract 90
Tract 90
Remarks on Certain Passages in the Thirty-Nine Articles, better known as Tract 90, was a theological pamphlet written by the English theologian and churchman John Henry Newman and published in 1841...
in 1841, the ritualistic controversy and the Public Worship Regulation Act 1874
Public Worship Regulation Act 1874
The Public Worship Regulation Act 1874 was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, introduced as a Private Member's Bill by Archbishop of Canterbury Archibald Campbell Tait, to limit what he perceived as the growing ritualism of Anglo-Catholicism and the Oxford Movement within the Church...
, the Prayer Book controversy of 1927-28 and, more recently, decisions by many Anglican provinces to ordain women
Ordination of women in the Anglican communion
The ordination of women in the Anglican Communion has become increasingly accepted in recent years.-Introduction:Some provinces within the Anglican Communion, such as the Episcopal Church in the United States of America , the Anglican Church of New Zealand, the Anglican Church of Canada and the...
.
Oxford Movement
The modern Anglo-Catholic movement can be traced to the Oxford MovementOxford Movement
The Oxford Movement was a movement of High Church Anglicans, eventually developing into Anglo-Catholicism. The movement, whose members were often associated with the University of Oxford, argued for the reinstatement of lost Christian traditions of faith and their inclusion into Anglican liturgy...
of the Victorian era
Victorian era
The Victorian era of British history was the period of Queen Victoria's reign from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. It was a long period of peace, prosperity, refined sensibilities and national self-confidence...
, sometimes termed Tractarianism.
In the early 19th century, various factors caused misgivings among English churchmen, including the decline of church life and the spread of unorthodox practices in the Church of England. The British government's action in 1833 of beginning a reduction in the number of Church of Ireland
Church of Ireland
The Church of Ireland is an autonomous province of the Anglican Communion. The church operates in all parts of Ireland and is the second largest religious body on the island after the Roman Catholic Church...
bishoprics and archbishoprics inspired a sermon from John Keble
John Keble
John Keble was an English churchman and poet, one of the leaders of the Oxford Movement, and gave his name to Keble College, Oxford.-Early life:...
in the University Church in Oxford on the subject of "National Apostasy". This sermon marked the inception of what became known as the Oxford Movement.
The principal objective of the Oxford Movement was the defence of the Church of England as a divinely-founded institution, of the doctrine of the Apostolic Succession
Apostolic Succession
Apostolic succession is a doctrine, held by some Christian denominations, which asserts that the chosen successors of the Twelve Apostles, from the first century to the present day, have inherited the spiritual, ecclesiastical and sacramental authority, power, and responsibility that were...
and of the Book of Common Prayer
Book of Common Prayer
The Book of Common Prayer is the short title of a number of related prayer books used in the Anglican Communion, as well as by the Continuing Anglican, "Anglican realignment" and other Anglican churches. The original book, published in 1549 , in the reign of Edward VI, was a product of the English...
as a "rule of faith". The key idea was that Anglicanism was not a Protestant denomination, but rather a branch
Branch theory
The Branch Theory is a theological concept within Anglicanism, holding that the Roman Catholic Church, the Eastern Orthodox Church and the Anglican Communion are the three principal branches of the One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church.-Theory:...
of the historic Catholic Church, along with the Roman Catholic Church
Roman Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...
and the Eastern Orthodox churches. It was argued that Anglicanism had preserved the historical apostolic succession of priests and bishops and thus the Catholic sacrament
Sacrament
A sacrament is a sacred rite recognized as of particular importance and significance. There are various views on the existence and meaning of such rites.-General definitions and terms:...
s. These ideas were promoted in a series of ninety Tracts for the Times
Tracts for the Times
The Tracts for the Times were a series of 90 theological publications, varying in length from a few pages to book-length, produced by members of the English Oxford Movement, an Anglo-Catholic revival group, from 1833 to 1841...
.
The principal leaders of the Oxford Movement were John Keble
John Keble
John Keble was an English churchman and poet, one of the leaders of the Oxford Movement, and gave his name to Keble College, Oxford.-Early life:...
, John Henry Newman and Edward Bouverie Pusey
Edward Bouverie Pusey
Edward Bouverie Pusey was an English churchman and Regius Professor of Hebrew at Christ Church, Oxford. He was one of the leaders of the Oxford Movement.-Early years:...
. The movement gained influential support, but it was also attacked by the latitudinarian
Latitudinarian
Latitudinarian was initially a pejorative term applied to a group of 17th-century English theologians who believed in conforming to official Church of England practices but who felt that matters of doctrine, liturgical practice, and ecclesiastical organization were of relatively little importance...
s within the University of Oxford
University of Oxford
The University of Oxford is a university located in Oxford, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest surviving university in the world and the oldest in the English-speaking world. Although its exact date of foundation is unclear, there is evidence of teaching as far back as 1096...
and by bishops of the church. Within the movement there gradually arose a much smaller group which tended towards submission to the supremacy of the Roman Catholic Church. In 1845 the university censured the Ideal of a Christian Church, and its author, "Ideal Ward," i.e., the pro-Roman Catholic theologian, W. G. Ward. 1850 saw the victory of the Evangelical clergyman George Cornelius Gorham
George Cornelius Gorham
George Cornelius Gorham born in St Neots, Cambridgeshire was a priest in the Church of England. His legal recourse to being denied a certain post, subsequently taken to a secular court, caused great controversy....
in a celebrated legal action against the church authorities. A number of conversions to the Roman Catholic Church followed. The majority of adherents of the movement, however, remained in the Church of England and, despite hostility in the press and in government, the movement spread. Its liturgical practices were influential, as were its social achievements (including its slum settlements) and its revival of male and female monasticism within Anglicanism.
Recent developments
Since at least the 1970s, Anglo-Catholicism has been dividing into two distinct camps, along a fault-line which can perhaps be traced back to Bishop Charles GoreCharles Gore
Charles Gore was a British theologian and Anglican bishop.-Early life and education:Gore was the third son of the Honourable Charles Alexander Gore, and brother of the fourth Earl of Arran...
's work in the 19th century.
The Oxford Movement had been inspired in the first place by a rejection of liberalism
Liberalism
Liberalism is the belief in the importance of liberty and equal rights. Liberals espouse a wide array of views depending on their understanding of these principles, but generally, liberals support ideas such as constitutionalism, liberal democracy, free and fair elections, human rights,...
and latitudinarianism in favour of the traditional faith of the "Church Catholic", defined by the teachings of the Church Fathers
Church Fathers
The Church Fathers, Early Church Fathers, Christian Fathers, or Fathers of the Church were early and influential theologians, eminent Christian teachers and great bishops. Their scholarly works were used as a precedent for centuries to come...
and the common doctrines of the historical eastern
Eastern Christianity
Eastern Christianity comprises the Christian traditions and churches that developed in the Balkans, Eastern Europe, Asia Minor, the Middle East, Northeastern Africa, India and parts of the Far East over several centuries of religious antiquity. The term is generally used in Western Christianity to...
and western Christian churches
Western Christianity
Western Christianity is a term used to include the Latin Rite of the Catholic Church and groups historically derivative thereof, including the churches of the Anglican and Protestant traditions, which share common attributes that can be traced back to their medieval heritage...
. Until the 1970s, therefore, most Anglo-Catholics rejected liberalising development such as the conferral of holy orders
Holy Orders
The term Holy Orders is used by many Christian churches to refer to ordination or to those individuals ordained for a special role or ministry....
on women. Present-day "traditionalist" Anglo-Catholics seek to maintain tradition and to keep Anglican doctrine in line with that of the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches. They often ally themselves with Evangelicals to defend traditional teachings on sexual morality. The main organisation in the Church of England that opposes the ordination of women, Forward in Faith
Forward in Faith
Forward in Faith is a movement operating in a number of provinces of the Anglican Communion. It represents a traditionalist strand of Anglo-Catholicism and is characterised by its opposition to the ordination of women to the priesthood and episcopate and, more recently, to more liberal Anglican...
, is largely composed of Anglo-Catholics.
Gore's work, however, bearing the mark of liberal Protestant higher criticism, paved the way for an alternative form of Anglo-Catholicism influenced by liberal theology
Liberal Christianity
Liberal Christianity, sometimes called liberal theology, is an umbrella term covering diverse, philosophically and biblically informed religious movements and ideas within Christianity from the late 18th century and onward...
. Thus in recent years many Anglo-Catholics have accepted the ordination of women
Ordination of women
Ordination in general religious usage is the process by which a person is consecrated . The ordination of women is a regular practice among some major religious groups, as it was of several religions of antiquity...
, the use of inclusive language in Bible translations and the liturgy, and progressive attitudes towards homosexuality. Such Anglicans often refer to themselves as "Liberal Catholics". The more "progressive" or "liberal" style of Anglo-Catholicism is represented by Affirming Catholicism
Affirming Catholicism
Affirming Catholicism is a movement operating in several provinces of the Anglican Communion, most notably in the UK, Ireland, the United States and Canada...
.
A third strand of Anglican Catholicism criticizes elements of both liberalism and conservatism, drawing instead on the twentieth-century Roman Catholic Nouvelle Théologie
Nouvelle Théologie
Nouvelle Théologie is the name commonly used to refer to a school of thought in Catholic theology that arose in the mid-20th century, most notably among certain circles of French and German theologians...
, especially Henri de Lubac
Henri de Lubac
Henri-Marie de Lubac, SJ was a French Jesuit priest who became a Cardinal of the Catholic Church, and is considered to be one of the most influential theologians of the 20th century...
. John Milbank
John Milbank
Alasdair John Milbank is a Christian theologian and the Professor of Religion, Politics and Ethics at the University of Nottingham where he also directs the Centre of Theology and Philosophy. Milbank previously taught at the University of Virginia and before that at the University of Cambridge...
and others within this strand have been instrumental in the creation of the ecumenical (though predominantly Anglican and Roman Catholic) movement known as Radical Orthodoxy
Radical orthodoxy
Radical Orthodoxy is Christian theological and philosophical school of thought which makes use of postmodern philosophy to reject the paradigm of modernity...
.
Some traditionalist Anglo-Catholics have left official Anglicanism to form "continuing Anglican churches
Continuing Anglican Movement
The term Continuing Anglican movement refers to a number of churches in various countries that have been formed outside of the Anglican Communion. These churches generally believe that "traditional" forms of Anglican faith and worship have been unacceptably revised or abandoned within some...
" such as the Traditional Anglican Communion
Traditional Anglican Communion
The Traditional Anglican Communion is an international communion of churches in the continuing Anglican movement independent of the Anglican Communion and the Archbishop of Canterbury. The TAC upholds the theological doctrines of the Affirmation of St. Louis and an Anglo-Catholic interpretation of...
. Others have left Anglicanism altogether for the Roman Catholic or Eastern Orthodox churches, in the belief that liberal doctrinal innovations in the Anglican churches have resulted in Anglicanism no longer being a true branch of the "Church Catholic".
Anglican ordinariates
In late 2009 with the publication of the apostolic constitution Anglicanorum Coetibus, traditionalist Anglicans were invited into unity with the Holy See. This action was in response to requests from various groups of Anglicans around the world to be received into full communion with the Holy See while retaining liturgical, musical, theological and other aspects of the Anglican patrimony.An apostolic constitution
Apostolic constitution
An apostolic constitution is the highest level of decree issued by the Pope. The use of the term constitution comes from Latin constitutio, which referred to any important law issued by the Roman emperor, and is retained in church documents because of the inheritance that the canon law of the...
is the highest level of papal legislation and is not time-limited. In other words, groups of Anglicans may apply for reception by the Holy See at any time and enter into what are termed "Anglican ordinariates" i.e. regional groupings of Anglican Catholics which come under the jurisdiction of an "ordinary", i.e. a bishop or priest appointed by Rome to oversee the community, which, while being in a country or region which is part of the Latin Rite of the Roman Catholic Church, retains aspects of the Anglican patrimony, e.g. married priests, traditional English choral music and liturgy.
Some have drawn parallels with the Eastern Catholic churches, but though there are some commonalities, Anglican ordinariates are intended to be part of the Western or Latin Rite of the Roman Catholic Church, as they had been before the breach with Rome following the reign of Mary I of England.
The first Anglican ordinariate, known as the Personal Ordinariate of Our Lady of Walsingham
Personal Ordinariate of Our Lady of Walsingham
The Personal Ordinariate of Our Lady of Walsingham is a personal ordinariate of the Roman Catholic Church within the territory of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of England and Wales, but immediately subject to the Holy See in Rome and encompassing Scotland...
, was established on 15 January 2011 in the United Kingdom. Other ordinariates are expected to be erected in 2011 in Canada, Australia and the United States. The already existing Anglican Use
Anglican Use
The term Anglican Use has two meanings. First, it refers to parish churches founded by former Episcopalians, members of the United States' branch of the Anglican Communion, who have joined the Catholic Church...
parishes in the United States, which have existed since the 1980s, will form a portion of the first American Anglican ordinariate. These parishes are already in communion with Rome and use modified Anglican liturgies approved by the Holy See. It is expected that they will be joined by other groups and parishes of Episcopalians
Episcopal Church (United States)
The Episcopal Church is a mainline Anglican Christian church found mainly in the United States , but also in Honduras, Taiwan, Colombia, Ecuador, Haiti, the Dominican Republic, Venezuela, the British Virgin Islands and parts of Europe...
and other Anglicans and possibly some Lutheran and other groups seeking to share in communities of Anglican tradition in the wider Catholic communion.
The numbers of individuals and groups are expected to be relatively small at first, but over time these may grow, as has been the case in some of the Texas Anglican Use parishes. Traditional Anglo-Catholics are divided on the issue, but a significant number of the Forward in Faith parishes, priests, bishops and laity (numbering about 10,000) in the United Kingdom are expected to enter into full communion with Rome under this provision within the coming decade.
Theology
What Anglo-Catholics believe is fiercely debated, sometimes even among Anglo-Catholics themselves.In agreement with the Oriental Orthodox Churches
Oriental Orthodoxy
Oriental Orthodoxy is the faith of those Eastern Christian Churches that recognize only three ecumenical councils — the First Council of Nicaea, the First Council of Constantinople and the First Council of Ephesus. They rejected the dogmatic definitions of the Council of Chalcedon...
and Eastern Orthodox Churches, Anglo-Catholics — along with Old-Catholics and Lutherans — generally appeal to the "canon" (or rule) of St Vincent of Lerins
Vincent of Lérins
Saint Vincent of Lérins was a Gallic author of early Christian writings.In earlier life he had been engaged in secular pursuits, whether civil or military is not clear, though the term he uses, "secularis militia," might possibly imply the latter...
: "What everywhere, what always, and what by all has been believed, that is truly and properly Catholic."
The Anglican Thirty-Nine Articles
Thirty-Nine Articles
The Thirty-Nine Articles of Religion are the historically defining statements of doctrines of the Anglican church with respect to the controversies of the English Reformation. First established in 1563, the articles served to define the doctrine of the nascent Church of England as it related to...
make distinctions between Anglican and Roman Catholic understandings of doctrine. As the Articles were intentionally written in such a way as to be open to a range of interpretations, Anglo-Catholics have defended Catholic practices and beliefs as being consistent with them. Because of the Articles' harsh tone, however, they have generally not been held in high regard by most Anglo-Catholics. A recent trend in Anglo-Catholic thought related to the Thirty-Nine Articles has included the New Perspective on Paul
New Perspective on Paul
The "New Perspective on Paul" is a significant shift in the way some scholars, especially Protestant scholars, interpret the writings of the Apostle Paul.-Description:Since the Protestant Reformation The "New Perspective on Paul" is a significant shift in the way some scholars, especially...
.
Anglo-Catholic priest
Priest
A priest is a person authorized to perform the sacred rites of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particular, rites of sacrifice to, and propitiation of, a deity or deities...
s often hear private confession
Confession
This article is for the religious practice of confessing one's sins.Confession is the acknowledgment of sin or wrongs...
s and anoint the sick
Anointing of the Sick
Anointing of the Sick, known also by other names, is distinguished from other forms of religious anointing or "unction" in that it is intended, as its name indicates, for the benefit of a sick person...
, regarding these practices, as do Roman Catholics, as sacraments. The classic Anglican aphorism regarding private confession is: "All may, some should, none must."
Anglo-Catholics are more likely to offer prayers for the departed and the intercession of the Saints than low church
Low church
Low church is a term of distinction in the Church of England or other Anglican churches initially designed to be pejorative. During the series of doctrinal and ecclesiastic challenges to the established church in the 16th and 17th centuries, commentators and others began to refer to those groups...
Anglicans. C.S. Lewis, often considered an Anglo-Catholic in his theological sensibilities, was once quoted as stating that, "Of course I pray for the dead. The action is so spontaneous, so all but inevitable, that only the most compulsive theological case against it would deter me. And I hardly know how the rest of my prayers would survive if those for the dead were forbidden. At our age, the majority of those we love best are dead. What sort of intercourse with God could I have if what I love best were unmentionable to him?"
Anglo-Catholics share with Roman Catholics a belief in the sacramental nature of the priesthood, the sacrificial character of the Mass
Mass (liturgy)
"Mass" is one of the names by which the sacrament of the Eucharist is called in the Roman Catholic Church: others are "Eucharist", the "Lord's Supper", the "Breaking of Bread", the "Eucharistic assembly ", the "memorial of the Lord's Passion and Resurrection", the "Holy Sacrifice", the "Holy and...
and, in some cases, the doctrine of Transubstantiation
Transubstantiation
In Roman Catholic theology, transubstantiation means the change, in the Eucharist, of the substance of wheat bread and grape wine into the substance of the Body and Blood, respectively, of Jesus, while all that is accessible to the senses remains as before.The Eastern Orthodox...
, the Roman Catholic version of the doctrine of the Real Presence
Real Presence
Real Presence is a term used in various Christian traditions to express belief that in the Eucharist, Jesus Christ is really present in what was previously just bread and wine, and not merely present in symbol, a figure of speech , or by his power .Not all Christian traditions accept this dogma...
. A minority of Anglo-Catholics also encourage priestly celibacy
Clerical celibacy
Clerical celibacy is the discipline by which some or all members of the clergy in certain religions are required to be unmarried. Since these religions consider deliberate sexual thoughts, feelings, and behavior outside of marriage to be sinful, clerical celibacy also requires abstension from these...
. Most Anglo-Catholics encourage devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary, particularly under her title of Our Lady of Walsingham
Our Lady of Walsingham
Our Lady of Walsingham is a title used for Mary, the mother of Jesus. The title derives from the belief that Mary appeared in a vision to Richeldis de Faverches, a devout Saxon noblewoman, in 1061 in the village of Walsingham in Norfolk, England...
, but not all Anglo-Catholics adhere to a high doctrine of Mariology
Mariology
Roman Catholic Mariology is theology concerned with the Virgin Mary, the mother of Jesus Christ as developed by the Catholic Church. Roman Catholic teachings on the subject have been based on the belief that "The Blessed Virgin, because she is the Mother of God, is believed to hold a certain...
.
A minority of Anglo-Catholics, sometimes called Anglo-Papalists
Anglo-Papalism
Anglo-Papalism is a term used to describe a tendency within Anglo-Catholicism whose adherents manifest a particularly high degree of influence from, and even identification with, the Roman Catholic Church....
, consider themselves under papal supremacy even though they are not in communion with the Roman Catholic Church. Such Anglo-Catholics, especially in England, often celebrate Mass according to the contemporary Roman Catholic rite
Mass of Paul VI
The Mass of Pope Paul VI is the liturgy of the Catholic Mass of the Roman Rite promulgated by Paul VI in 1969, after the Second Vatican Council...
and are concerned with seeking reunion with the Roman and Eastern Catholic churches.
Liturgical practices
Anglo-Catholics are usually identified by their liturgical practices and ornaments. These may be characterised by the "six points" of the Oxford Movement's eucharistic practice:- eucharistic vestmentVestmentVestments are liturgical garments and articles associated primarily with the Christian religion, especially among Latin Rite and other Catholics, Eastern Orthodox, Anglicans, and Lutherans...
s - eastward-facing orientation of the priest at the altar (not standing at the north side, the evangelical Anglican practice)
- unleavened bread for the eucharist
- mixing of water with the eucharistic wine
- incense and candles.
Many other traditional Catholic practices are observed within Anglo-Catholicism, including eucharistic adoration
Eucharistic adoration
Eucharistic adoration is a practice in the Roman Catholic Church, and in a few Anglican and Lutheran churches, in which the Blessed Sacrament is exposed to and adored by the faithful....
. Most of these Anglo-Catholic "innovations" (or, rather, revivals of dormant practices) have since been accepted by mainstream Anglican churches, if not by Evangelical or Low Church
Low church
Low church is a term of distinction in the Church of England or other Anglican churches initially designed to be pejorative. During the series of doctrinal and ecclesiastic challenges to the established church in the 16th and 17th centuries, commentators and others began to refer to those groups...
Anglicans.
Various liturgical strands exist within Anglo-Catholicism:
- Some, such as the original members of the Oxford Movement, use official Anglican liturgical texts such as the Book of Common PrayerBook of Common PrayerThe Book of Common Prayer is the short title of a number of related prayer books used in the Anglican Communion, as well as by the Continuing Anglican, "Anglican realignment" and other Anglican churches. The original book, published in 1549 , in the reign of Edward VI, was a product of the English...
. - Some use the modern Roman Catholic rite of MassMass of Paul VIThe Mass of Pope Paul VI is the liturgy of the Catholic Mass of the Roman Rite promulgated by Paul VI in 1969, after the Second Vatican Council...
. - Some use the older "Tridentine"Tridentine MassThe Tridentine Mass is the form of the Roman Rite Mass contained in the typical editions of the Roman Missal that were published from 1570 to 1962. It was the most widely celebrated Mass liturgy in the world until the introduction of the Mass of Paul VI in December 1969...
Catholic rite of Mass, in English or Latin, or liturgies based on it, such as the English MissalEnglish MissalThe English Missal is a translation of the Roman Missal used by some liturgically advanced Anglo-Catholic parish churches. After its publication by W. Knott & Son Limited in 1912, the English Missal was rapidly endorsed by the growing Ritualist movement of Anglo-Catholic clergy, who viewed the...
. - Some occasionally use the mediaeval English Sarum RiteSarum RiteThe Sarum Rite was a variant of the Roman Rite widely used for the ordering of Christian public worship, including the Mass and the Divine Office...
, which is broadly similar to the Tridentine Mass, in English or Latin.
Preferences for Elizabethan English and modern English texts vary within the movement.
In the United States a group of Anglo-Catholics in the Episcopal Church published, under the rubrics of the 1979 Book of Common Prayer, an Anglican Service Book
Anglican Service Book
The Anglican Service Book is an edition in traditional language of the Book of Common Prayer of the Episcopal Church . The book was adapted from the 1979 version as well as other sources such as the Anglican Missal, the Sarum Missal and the Book of Occasional Services. The rubrics of the 1979...
which is "a traditional language adaptation of the 1979 Book of Common Prayer together with the Psalter or Psalms of David and additional devotions." This book is based on the 1979 Book of Common Prayer but includes offices and devotions in the traditional language of the 1928 Prayer Book that are not in the 1979 edition. The book also draws from sources such as the Anglican Missal
Anglican Missal
The Anglican Missal is a liturgical book often used at Mass by Anglo-Catholics and other High Church Anglicans instead of the Book of Common Prayer.-History:...
.
See also
- Anglo-Catholic churches that are part of the Continuing Anglican MovementContinuing Anglican MovementThe term Continuing Anglican movement refers to a number of churches in various countries that have been formed outside of the Anglican Communion. These churches generally believe that "traditional" forms of Anglican faith and worship have been unacceptably revised or abandoned within some...
- Anglican Catholic ChurchAnglican Catholic ChurchThe Anglican Catholic Church is a body of Anglican Christians in the continuing Anglican movement, separate from the Anglican Communion centered on the Archbishop of Canterbury....
- Anglican Catholic Church of CanadaAnglican Catholic Church of CanadaThe Anglican Catholic Church of Canada is an Anglican church that was founded in the 1970s by conservative Anglicans.-Affiliation:With 30 congregations in Canada, the ACCC is the third-largest of the Anglican churches in Canada, after the ACC and the Anglican Church in North America.The Anglican...
, a member of the Traditional Anglican CommunionTraditional Anglican CommunionThe Traditional Anglican Communion is an international communion of churches in the continuing Anglican movement independent of the Anglican Communion and the Archbishop of Canterbury. The TAC upholds the theological doctrines of the Affirmation of St. Louis and an Anglo-Catholic interpretation of... - Anglican Church in America, a member of the Traditional Anglican CommunionTraditional Anglican CommunionThe Traditional Anglican Communion is an international communion of churches in the continuing Anglican movement independent of the Anglican Communion and the Archbishop of Canterbury. The TAC upholds the theological doctrines of the Affirmation of St. Louis and an Anglo-Catholic interpretation of...
- Anglican Province of AmericaAnglican Province of AmericaThe Anglican Province of America is one of a number of "Continuing" Anglican churches in the United States. This church considers the Episcopal Church in the USA to be heretical, thus it maintains a church separate from that body in order to follow what it considers to be a truly Christian and...
- Anglican Province of Christ the KingAnglican Province of Christ the KingThe Anglican Province of Christ the King is a Continuing Anglican church with traditional forms both of doctrine and liturgy. It is considered one of the more Anglo-Catholic jurisdictions among Continuing Anglican church bodies.-History:...
- Anglican Catholic Church
- AnglicanismAnglicanismAnglicanism is a tradition within Christianity comprising churches with historical connections to the Church of England or similar beliefs, worship and church structures. The word Anglican originates in ecclesia anglicana, a medieval Latin phrase dating to at least 1246 that means the English...
- Anglican UseAnglican UseThe term Anglican Use has two meanings. First, it refers to parish churches founded by former Episcopalians, members of the United States' branch of the Anglican Communion, who have joined the Catholic Church...
- Anglican BreviaryAnglican BreviaryThe Anglican Breviary is a privately published Anglo-Catholic edition of the Divine Office translated into English. It is based on the Roman Breviary as it existed prior to both the Second Vatican Council and the 1955 liturgical reforms of Pope Pius XII....
- Anglican CommunionAnglican CommunionThe Anglican Communion is an international association of national and regional Anglican churches in full communion with the Church of England and specifically with its principal primate, the Archbishop of Canterbury...
- Anglican devotional societyAnglican devotional societySince the time of the Oxford Movement in the Church of England, there have been organizations whose purpose is the propagation of the Catholic Faith within the Anglican Communion. Each of these societies champions one aspect of Ritualism and Anglican doctrine which otherwise is not emphasized by...
- Anglican MissalAnglican MissalThe Anglican Missal is a liturgical book often used at Mass by Anglo-Catholics and other High Church Anglicans instead of the Book of Common Prayer.-History:...
- Anglican sacramentsAnglican sacramentsIn keeping with its prevailing self-identity as a via media or "middle path" of Western Christianity, Anglican sacramental theology expresses elements in keeping with its status as a church in the Catholic tradition and a church of the Reformation...
- Anglican Service BookAnglican Service BookThe Anglican Service Book is an edition in traditional language of the Book of Common Prayer of the Episcopal Church . The book was adapted from the 1979 version as well as other sources such as the Anglican Missal, the Sarum Missal and the Book of Occasional Services. The rubrics of the 1979...
- Broad ChurchBroad churchBroad church is a term referring to latitudinarian churchmanship in the Church of England, in particular, and Anglicanism, in general. From this, the term is often used to refer to secular political organisations, meaning that they encompass a broad range of opinion.-Usage:After the terms high...
- CatholicismCatholicismCatholicism is a broad term for the body of the Catholic faith, its theologies and doctrines, its liturgical, ethical, spiritual, and behavioral characteristics, as well as a religious people as a whole....
- Church of EnglandChurch of EnglandThe Church of England is the officially established Christian church in England and the Mother Church of the worldwide Anglican Communion. The church considers itself within the tradition of Western Christianity and dates its formal establishment principally to the mission to England by St...
- English MissalEnglish MissalThe English Missal is a translation of the Roman Missal used by some liturgically advanced Anglo-Catholic parish churches. After its publication by W. Knott & Son Limited in 1912, the English Missal was rapidly endorsed by the growing Ritualist movement of Anglo-Catholic clergy, who viewed the...
- Evangelical Catholic
- High ChurchHigh churchThe term "High Church" refers to beliefs and practices of ecclesiology, liturgy and theology, generally with an emphasis on formality, and resistance to "modernization." Although used in connection with various Christian traditions, the term has traditionally been principally associated with the...
- High Church LutheranismHigh Church Lutheranism"High Church Lutheranism" is the name given in Europe for the 20th century Lutheran movement that emphasizes worship practices and doctrines that are similar to those found within both Roman Catholicism and the Anglo-Catholic wing of Anglicanism...
- Anglo-Lutheran Catholic ChurchAnglo-Lutheran Catholic ChurchThe Anglo-Lutheran Catholic Church , formerly the Evangelical Community Church-Lutheran , is a church in the Lutheran Evangelical Catholic tradition. The ALCC claims to be unique among Lutheran churches in that it is of both Lutheran and Anglo-Catholic heritage and has also been significantly...
- Liturgical MovementLiturgical MovementThe Liturgical Movement began as a movement of scholarship for the reform of worship within the Roman Catholic Church. It has grown over the last century and a half and has affected many other Christian Churches, including the Church of England and other Churches of the Anglican Communion, and some...
- Low ChurchLow churchLow church is a term of distinction in the Church of England or other Anglican churches initially designed to be pejorative. During the series of doctrinal and ecclesiastic challenges to the established church in the 16th and 17th centuries, commentators and others began to refer to those groups...
- Neo-LutheranismNeo-LutheranismNeo-Lutheranism was a 19th century revival movement within Lutheranism which began with the Pietist driven Erweckung, or Awakening, and developed in reaction against theological rationalism and pietism...
- Our Lady of WalsinghamOur Lady of WalsinghamOur Lady of Walsingham is a title used for Mary, the mother of Jesus. The title derives from the belief that Mary appeared in a vision to Richeldis de Faverches, a devout Saxon noblewoman, in 1061 in the village of Walsingham in Norfolk, England...
- Ritualism
External links
- Anglican Catholics in Lincoln Diocese
- Anglican Catholic Christianity Various links and resources
- Society for Sacramental Mission (Anglo-Catholic Mission)
- Anglican texts at Project Canterbury
- Affirming Catholicism website
- Anglican Breviary
- Anglican Religious Communities
- Anglo-Catholic Socialism website
- A Guide to Solemn High Mass
- What is Anglo-Catholicism?
- What is an Anglo-Catholic Parish?
- The Anglo-Catholic Vision
- Forward in Faith website
- Archdiocese of the Southwest - Traditional Old Anglo-Catholic Church