Common Cause Partnership
Encyclopedia
The Anglican Church in North America (ACNA) is a Christian denomination
in the Anglican tradition with 21 dioceses in the United States
and Canada
. The church reports that it has 987 congregations (including ministry partners) serving more than 100,000 Christians in North America. In 2009, the Most Reverend Robert Duncan
was elected its archbishop
and primate. The ACNA's provincial
office is in Ambridge
, Pennsylvania
.
The ACNA is not a member of the Anglican Communion
, but it is in full communion
with the Anglican churches of Nigeria
and Uganda
and is affiliated with the Fellowship of Confessing Anglicans
.
and the Episcopal Church
in the USA in the aftermath of the introduction of more liberal policies on homosexuality and claims that those churches no longer taught that Jesus Christ is the only way to salvation. The new body charges that the two churches "have increasingly accommodated and incorporated un-Biblical, un-Anglican practices and teaching".
Conservative opposition to both the Episcopal Church's liberal-leaning 1979 edition of the Book of Common Prayer
and to the ordination of women priests had led to the founding of an earlier wave of independent Anglican churches, the so-called Continuing Anglican movement
.
, the Reformed Episcopal Church
, the Anglican Mission in America
, Forward in Faith
North America, the Anglican Province of America
, and the American Anglican Council
—sent a public letter to the Archbishop of Canterbury
, pledging "to make common cause for the gospel of Jesus Christ and common cause for a united, missionary and orthodox Anglicanism in North America". They called their alliance the Common Cause Partnership and drafted a theological statement in 2006.
In September 2007, fifty-one bishops met in Pittsburgh
, Pennsylvania
, to discern direction and to bind themselves constitutionally, saying they intended to found an "Anglican union". Some of the bishops present were foreign bishops, including a retired archbishop. Features of note from the result of the initial meeting include a broad sharing of clergy between the varied groups, an intention to be a "missionary" or church-planting entity, and an intention, after a brief time, to seek international organizational recognition.
Key members of the partnership participated in the June 2008 meeting of conservative Anglicans in Jerusalem, the Global Anglican Future Conference
, which in turn prompted the formation of the Fellowship of Confessing Anglicans
. A final statement issued by the conference stated that: "we believe the time is now ripe for the formation of a province in North America for the federation currently known as Common Cause Partnership to be recognised by the Primates’ Council" of the Anglican Communion.
, as a constitutional convention to form a "separate ecclesiastical structure in North America" for Anglican faithful distinct from the Episcopal Church and the Anglican Church of Canada. There the Partnership's executive committee approved a constitution and canons for the new Church which were to be submitted for formal adoption at the new Church's first Provincial Assembly.
The members of the Common Cause Partnership at the founding of the ACNA were:
The Anglican Province of America
participated in the Partnership until July 2008.
for an inaugural Provincial Assembly to ratify its constitution and canon
s. At this meeting a number of major steps were taken to officially establish the new province including the election of Robert Duncan, Bishop of the Anglican Diocese of Pittsburgh, as archbishop.
Rick Warren
, a leading American evangelical, and Metropolitan Jonah, leader of the Orthodox Church in America
, addressed the audience. Nine provinces in the Anglican Communion sent official representatives to the assembly including the Church of the Province of West Africa
, the Church of Nigeria
, the Church of Uganda
, the Anglican Church of Kenya
(Archbishop Benjamin Nzimbi), the Anglican Province of the Southern Cone (including Archbishop Gregory Venables), the Episcopal Church in Jerusalem and the Middle East
, the Church of the Province of Myanmar
, the Church of the Province of South East Asia
and the Church of the Province of Rwanda
.
Other ecumenical observers included Bishop Walter Grundorf of the Anglican Province of America; the Rev Dr Samuel Nafzger of the Lutheran Church, Missouri Synod; and Bishop Kevin Vann of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Fort Worth
.
Leaders from three Anglican provinces (The Most Reverend John Chew of the Anglican Church of the Province of South East Asia, Archbishop Peter Jensen of the Anglican Diocese of Sydney
and the Fellowship of Confessing Anglicans, the Most Reverend Mouneer H. Anis, Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church in Jerusalem and the Middle East) formally announced support for the ACNA. From England
, Bishop Wallace Benn and Archdeacon Michael Lawson sent greetings from the Church of England Evangelical Council.
. Consistent with this, it identifies the following seven elements as characteristic of the "Anglican Way" and essential for membership:
The ACNA has both Anglo-Catholic and evangelical
members and is considered to be more theologically conservative
than the Episcopal Church and the Anglican Church of Canada.
The Church allows dioceses to decide if they will or will not ordain women
as priests, although it does not permit women to become bishops. Concerning marriage, it holds that it is between one man and one woman; therefore, it does not bless same sex unions. Concerning abortion
, the ACNA holds a pro-life
stance, proclaiming "all members and clergy are called to promote and respect the sanctity of every human life from conception to natural death". The ACNA has authorized several different versions of the Book of Common Prayer for use, including the l979 edition produced by the Episcopal Church. It is in the process of creating a prayerbook for ACNA use.
The Provincial Assembly, meeting at least every five years, is a representative body with delegates from each diocese, cluster, and network. Each jurisdiction is represented by its bishop, two clergy delegates, and two lay delegates. In addition, jurisdictions are entitled to one additional clergy and lay delegates for every 1,000 constituents, calculated by average Sunday attendance. The assembly's duties include electing the Provincial Council from among the members of the assembly and ratifying all constitutional amendments and canons adopted by the Provincial Council. Measures not adopted by the Provincial Assembly are returned to the Provincial Council for revision.
The Provincial Council, meeting at least annually, is the governing body of the province. Every jurisdiction is represented on the council by a bishop, a clergy member, and two lay persons; and the council may also appoint up to six other persons as members. The Provincial Council elects 12 of its members, 6 clergy and 6 lay members, to the executive committee of which the archbishop is chairman. The executive committee acts as the board of directors of the Church.
All bishops in active ministry are members of the College of Bishops
. The college elects the archbishop, the presiding officer of the Church, who convenes the Provincial Assembly, the Provincial Council, and the College of Bishops. The college also has authority to approve diocesan elections of bishops, or in some cases actually elect bishops. There are 35 active bishops sitting in the college. The archbishop has a cabinet composed of leading bishops within the church which functions as a council of advice. The Provincial Tribunal is an ecclesiastical court
empowered to rule on constitutional and canonical disputes.
Local congregations hold their own property and the province disavows any claim on the property of local congregations. Existing property-holding arrangements within the founding member entities are not affected by their relation to the province. The province also disavows any authority to control the member entities' policies regarding the question of the ordination of women as deacons or priests.
The constitution and canons specify that other non member groups (such as a seminary, monastic order or ministry organization, or a diocese, congregation or other entity) may be considered for association as ministry partners. Ministry partners may have representation in provincial and sub-provincial bodies as determined by the archbishop or bishop with jurisdiction. Ministry partners may withdraw from affiliation or have their affiliation ended with or without cause. ACNA affiliated ministries include Anglican Global Mission Partners (a missionary organization), Anglican Relief and Development Fund, and Anglican1000 (a church planting
initiative).
The College of Bishops is currently formed by 45 active bishops.
A unique aspect of ACNA polity is the possibility that a diocese or group of dioceses may be under the dual jurisdiction of the ACNA and a province of the Anglican Communion. The Dioceses of Quincy, Pittsburgh, San Joaquin, and Fort Worth were formed when majority factions in the corresponding dioceses of the Episcopal Church voted to secede from that body in order to align themselves with the Anglican Province of the Southern Cone. The Anglican Mission, a founding member of the ACNA but now a ministry partner, during its membership possessed "dual citizenship" with the ACNA and the Church of the Province of Rwanda.
After the decision of the Anglican Mission in the Americas to change from full membership to the status of a "ministry partner":
affirmed "the desire of those who have formed the Anglican Church in North America to remain within the Anglican family" and called upon the Archbishops of Canterbury and York to report back to the synod after further study in 2011. The office of the Archbishop of Canterbury has said it will take years for the ACNA to possibly gain official recognition from the rest of the Anglican Communion.
In March 2009, the Anglican Church of Nigeria
declared itself to be in full communion with the Anglican Church in North America, and the House of Bishops
of the Anglican Church of Uganda
declared full communion with the ACNA in June 2009. Inasmuch as these churches report approximately 26,000,000 members, and the Anglican Communion reports over 80,000,000 members, the ACNA is in communion with churches comprising somewhat less than one-third of the membership of the Anglican Communion.
The Fellowship of Confessing Anglicans primates' council has said that the new church is "fully Anglican" and called for its recognition by existing provinces of the Anglican Communion. A total of nine Anglican provinces sent formal delegations to the inaugural assembly. The Diocese of Sydney
passed on the final day of its 2009 synod a resolution welcoming the creation of the ACNA and expressing a desire to be in full communion. The resolution also called for the diocese's standing committee to seek a general synod motion affirming the Anglican Church of Australia
to be in full communion with the ACNA. In April 2010, Archbishop Duncan presided at the Eucharist with primates and representatives from 20 Anglican provinces at the fourth Anglican Global South to South Encounter in Singapore. The Global South Encounter called for all Anglican provinces to be in "full communion" with the Anglican Church in North America.
and Nashotah House
, an Anglican seminary, to guide ecumenical relationships and "new dialogue" between the two churches. Similarly, in March 2010, the Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod
announced that it and the ACNA would hold discussions to "explore dialogue".
In October 2009, ACNA's leadership reacted to the Roman Catholic Church's proposed creation of personal ordinariate
s for disaffected traditionalist Anglicans by stating that although they believe that this provision will not be utilized by the great majority of its affiliated laity and clergy, they will happily bless those who are drawn to participate in this proposal.
and interfaith
engagement". Regarding the task force, Julian Dobbs, a member of the executive committee and archdeacon
for the Convocation of Anglicans in North America, stated, "we need to undertake a prayerful, sensitive and honest approach to the issues involved".
Christian denomination
A Christian denomination is an identifiable religious body under a common name, structure, and doctrine within Christianity. In the Orthodox tradition, Churches are divided often along ethnic and linguistic lines, into separate churches and traditions. Technically, divisions between one group and...
in the Anglican tradition with 21 dioceses in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. The church reports that it has 987 congregations (including ministry partners) serving more than 100,000 Christians in North America. In 2009, the Most Reverend Robert Duncan
Robert Duncan (bishop)
Robert William Duncan, Jr. is an American bishop. He has been Archbishop of the Anglican Church in North America since June 2009. In 1997, he was elected Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Pittsburgh...
was elected its archbishop
Archbishop
An archbishop is a bishop of higher rank, but not of higher sacramental order above that of the three orders of deacon, priest , and bishop...
and primate. The ACNA's provincial
Ecclesiastical Province
An ecclesiastical province is a large jurisdiction of religious government, so named by analogy with a secular province, existing in certain hierarchical Christian churches, especially in the Catholic Church and Orthodox Churches and in the Anglican Communion...
office is in Ambridge
Ambridge, Pennsylvania
Ambridge is a borough in Beaver County in Western Pennsylvania, incorporated in 1905 and named after the American Bridge Company. Ambridge is located 16 miles northwest of Pittsburgh, alongside the Ohio River. In 1910, 5,205 people lived in Ambridge; in 1920, 12,730 people lived there, and in...
, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
.
The ACNA is not a member of the Anglican Communion
Anglican Communion
The 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...
, but it is in full communion
Full communion
In Christian ecclesiology, full communion is a relationship between church organizations or groups that mutually recognize their sharing the essential doctrines....
with the Anglican churches of Nigeria
Church of Nigeria
The Church of Nigeria is the Anglican church in Nigeria. It is the second-largest province in the Anglican Communion, as measured by baptized membership, after the Church of England. It gives its current membership as "over 18 million", out of a total Nigerian population of 140 million.Since 2002...
and Uganda
Church of Uganda
The Church of the Province of Uganda is a member church of the Anglican Communion. Currently there are 34 dioceses which make up the Church of Uganda, each headed by a bishop....
and is affiliated with the Fellowship of Confessing Anglicans
Fellowship of Confessing Anglicans
The Fellowship of Confessing Anglicans is a global network of traditionalist Anglican Churches which formed in 2008 in response to an ongoing theological crisis in the worldwide Anglican Communion...
.
History
The Anglican Church in North America was founded by Anglicans who had left the Anglican Church of CanadaAnglican Church of Canada
The Anglican Church of Canada is the Province of the Anglican Communion in Canada. The official French name is l'Église Anglicane du Canada. The ACC is the third largest church in Canada after the Roman Catholic Church and the United Church of Canada, consisting of 800,000 registered members...
and the Episcopal Church
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...
in the USA in the aftermath of the introduction of more liberal policies on homosexuality and claims that those churches no longer taught that Jesus Christ is the only way to salvation. The new body charges that the two churches "have increasingly accommodated and incorporated un-Biblical, un-Anglican practices and teaching".
Conservative opposition to both the Episcopal Church's liberal-leaning 1979 edition 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...
and to the ordination of women priests had led to the founding of an earlier wave of independent Anglican churches, the so-called Continuing Anglican movement
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...
.
Common Cause Partnership
In June 2004, the leaders of six conservative Anglican organizations—the Anglican Communion NetworkAnglican Communion Network
The Anglican Communion Network is a theologically conservative network of dioceses and parishes working toward Anglican realignment.-Goals and structure:...
, the Reformed Episcopal Church
Reformed Episcopal Church
The Reformed Episcopal Church is an Anglican church in the United States and Canada and a founding member of the Anglican Church in North America...
, the Anglican Mission in America
Anglican Mission in America
The Anglican Mission in the Americas or The Anglican Mission ; formerly Anglican Mission in America is a Christian missionary organization active in the United States and Canada which emphasizes church planting...
, 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...
North America, the Anglican Province of America
Anglican Province of America
The 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...
, and the American Anglican Council
American Anglican Council
The American Anglican Council is an organization which exists to allow theologically conservative Anglicans to network with one another. It was incorporated in 1996 and is one of several key organizations in the movement for Anglican realignment and is a founding member of the Anglican Church in...
—sent a public letter to the Archbishop 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...
, pledging "to make common cause for the gospel of Jesus Christ and common cause for a united, missionary and orthodox Anglicanism in North America". They called their alliance the Common Cause Partnership and drafted a theological statement in 2006.
In September 2007, fifty-one bishops met in Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh is the second-largest city in the US Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Allegheny County. Regionally, it anchors the largest urban area of Appalachia and the Ohio River Valley, and nationally, it is the 22nd-largest urban area in the United States...
, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
, to discern direction and to bind themselves constitutionally, saying they intended to found an "Anglican union". Some of the bishops present were foreign bishops, including a retired archbishop. Features of note from the result of the initial meeting include a broad sharing of clergy between the varied groups, an intention to be a "missionary" or church-planting entity, and an intention, after a brief time, to seek international organizational recognition.
Key members of the partnership participated in the June 2008 meeting of conservative Anglicans in Jerusalem, the Global Anglican Future Conference
Global Anglican Future Conference
The Global Anglican Future Conference was a seven day conference of conservative Anglican bishops and leaders held in Jerusalem in June 2008 to address the rise of secularism in the Church, HIV/AIDS and poverty. As a result of the Conference, the Jerusalem Declaration was issued, and the...
, which in turn prompted the formation of the Fellowship of Confessing Anglicans
Fellowship of Confessing Anglicans
The Fellowship of Confessing Anglicans is a global network of traditionalist Anglican Churches which formed in 2008 in response to an ongoing theological crisis in the worldwide Anglican Communion...
. A final statement issued by the conference stated that: "we believe the time is now ripe for the formation of a province in North America for the federation currently known as Common Cause Partnership to be recognised by the Primates’ Council" of the Anglican Communion.
Establishing the province
In December 2008, the Partnership met at Wheaton, IllinoisWheaton, Illinois
Wheaton is an affluent community located in DuPage County, Illinois, approximately west of Chicago and Lake Michigan. Wheaton is the county seat of DuPage County...
, as a constitutional convention to form a "separate ecclesiastical structure in North America" for Anglican faithful distinct from the Episcopal Church and the Anglican Church of Canada. There the Partnership's executive committee approved a constitution and canons for the new Church which were to be submitted for formal adoption at the new Church's first Provincial Assembly.
The members of the Common Cause Partnership at the founding of the ACNA were:
- The American Anglican CouncilAmerican Anglican CouncilThe American Anglican Council is an organization which exists to allow theologically conservative Anglicans to network with one another. It was incorporated in 1996 and is one of several key organizations in the movement for Anglican realignment and is a founding member of the Anglican Church in...
- The Anglican Coalition in CanadaAnglican Coalition in CanadaThe Anglican Coalition in Canada is a Canadian Anglican group that is part of the Anglican Mission in the Americas.It is under the jurisdiction of Archbishop Emmanuel Kolini of Rwanda. Many of the 17 congregations used to be in the Diocese of New Westminster; Others are located in Vancouver...
- The Anglican Communion NetworkAnglican Communion NetworkThe Anglican Communion Network is a theologically conservative network of dioceses and parishes working toward Anglican realignment.-Goals and structure:...
- The Anglican Mission in the Americas
- The Anglican Network in CanadaAnglican Network in CanadaThe Anglican Network in Canada is a Canadian church established in 2005 under the jurisdiction of the Anglican Province of the Southern Cone, a province of the Anglican Communion...
- The Convocation of Anglicans in North AmericaConvocation of Anglicans in North AmericaThe Convocation of Anglicans in North America is an Anglican body in the United States primarily comprising Anglican and Episcopal churches that have disaffiliated from the Episcopal Church in the United States of America . CANA was initially a missionary initiative of the Anglican Church of Nigeria...
- Forward in FaithForward in FaithForward 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...
, North America - The Missionary Convocation of Kenya
- The Missionary Convocation of the Southern Cone
- The Missionary Convocation of Uganda
- The Reformed Episcopal ChurchReformed Episcopal ChurchThe Reformed Episcopal Church is an Anglican church in the United States and Canada and a founding member of the Anglican Church in North America...
The Anglican Province of America
Anglican Province of America
The 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...
participated in the Partnership until July 2008.
Inaugural assembly
On June 22, 2009, delegates of the ACNA's founding bodies met at St. Vincent's Cathedral in Bedford, TexasBedford, Texas
Bedford is a suburban city located in northeast Tarrant County, Texas, in the "Mid-Cities" area between Dallas and Fort Worth. It is a suburb of Fort Worth. The population was 46,979 at the 2010 census...
for an inaugural Provincial Assembly to ratify its constitution and canon
Canon law
Canon law is the body of laws & regulations made or adopted by ecclesiastical authority, for the government of the Christian organization and its members. It is the internal ecclesiastical law governing the Catholic Church , the Eastern and Oriental Orthodox churches, and the Anglican Communion of...
s. At this meeting a number of major steps were taken to officially establish the new province including the election of Robert Duncan, Bishop of the Anglican Diocese of Pittsburgh, as archbishop.
Rick Warren
Rick Warren
Richard Duane "Rick" Warren is an American evangelical Christian minister and author. He is the founder and senior pastor of Saddleback Church, an evangelical megachurch located in Lake Forest, California, currently the eighth-largest church in the United States...
, a leading American evangelical, and Metropolitan Jonah, leader of the Orthodox Church in America
Orthodox Church in America
The Orthodox Church in America is an autocephalous Eastern Orthodox church in North America. Its primate is Metropolitan Jonah , who was elected on November 12, 2008, and was formally installed on December 28, 2008...
, addressed the audience. Nine provinces in the Anglican Communion sent official representatives to the assembly including the Church of the Province of West Africa
Church of the Province of West Africa
The Church of the Province of West Africa is a province of the Anglican Communion, covering 15 sees in West Africa, specifically in Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Sierra Leone. The current primate of the province is Archbishop Justice Akrofi.-History:...
, the Church of Nigeria
Church of Nigeria
The Church of Nigeria is the Anglican church in Nigeria. It is the second-largest province in the Anglican Communion, as measured by baptized membership, after the Church of England. It gives its current membership as "over 18 million", out of a total Nigerian population of 140 million.Since 2002...
, the Church of Uganda
Church of Uganda
The Church of the Province of Uganda is a member church of the Anglican Communion. Currently there are 34 dioceses which make up the Church of Uganda, each headed by a bishop....
, the Anglican Church of Kenya
Anglican Church of Kenya
The Anglican Church of Kenya is part of the Anglican Communion, and includes 30 dioceses. The Primate of the Church is the Archbishop of Kenya.-Official name:...
(Archbishop Benjamin Nzimbi), the Anglican Province of the Southern Cone (including Archbishop Gregory Venables), the Episcopal Church in Jerusalem and the Middle East
Episcopal Church in Jerusalem and the Middle East
The Episcopal Church in Jerusalem and the Middle East is a province of the Anglican Communion stretching from Iran in the east to Algeria in the west, and Cyprus in the north to Somalia in the south. It is the largest and the most diverse Anglican province. The church is headed by a President...
, the Church of the Province of Myanmar
Church of the Province of Myanmar
The Church of the Province of Myanmar in Asia is a member church of the Anglican Communion. The province is bordered by China on the north, Laos on the east, Thailand on the southeast, Bangladesh on the west and India on the northwest, with the Andaman Sea to the south and the Bay of Bengal to the...
, the Church of the Province of South East Asia
Church of the Province of South East Asia
The Church of the Province of South East Asia, a member church of the Anglican Communion, was created in 1996, comprising the four dioceses of Kuching, Sabah, Singapore and West Malaysia...
and the Church of the Province of Rwanda
Church of the Province of Rwanda
The Church of the Province of Rwanda is a province of the Anglican Communion, covering 9 sees in East Africa. The current primate of the province is Archbishop Onesphore Rwaje, consecrated Dec. 12, 2010.-Official names:...
.
Other ecumenical observers included Bishop Walter Grundorf of the Anglican Province of America; the Rev Dr Samuel Nafzger of the Lutheran Church, Missouri Synod; and Bishop Kevin Vann of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Fort Worth
Roman Catholic Diocese of Fort Worth
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Fort Worth, USA, was established August 9, 1969, after being part of the Diocese of Dallas for 79 years. At present, the Diocese has more than 560,000 Catholics in 89 parishes and missions, served by 123 priests, 110 deacons, 24 sisters, and 5 brothers...
.
Leaders from three Anglican provinces (The Most Reverend John Chew of the Anglican Church of the Province of South East Asia, Archbishop Peter Jensen of the Anglican Diocese of Sydney
Anglican Diocese of Sydney
The Diocese of Sydney is a diocese within the Anglican Church of Australia. The majority of the diocese is Evangelical and low church in tradition and committed to Reformed and Calvinist theology....
and the Fellowship of Confessing Anglicans, the Most Reverend Mouneer H. Anis, Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church in Jerusalem and the Middle East) formally announced support for the ACNA. From England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, Bishop Wallace Benn and Archdeacon Michael Lawson sent greetings from the Church of England Evangelical Council.
Anglican Mission withdrawal
The Anglican Mission in the Americas was a founding member of the Anglican Church in North America and, at the same time, maintained its status as a mission of the Church of the Province of Rwanda. This "dual citizenship" was defined by protocol between the Province of Rwanda, the Anglican Mission, and the ACNA. However in a May 18, 2010, communiqué, the Anglican Mission announced its decision to transition from full ACNA membership to "ministry partner" status, a designation provided for in the governing structure of the ACNA, and remain a part of the Rwandan province. Reasons cited for the change were that the "dual citizenship" model had caused "significant confusion within the Anglican Mission and the ACNA regarding membership in two provinces, and more importantly, is inconsistent with the Constitution and Canons of the Province of the Anglican Church in Rwanda".Beliefs
In its Fundamental Declarations, the Anglican Church in North America declares itself part of the One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church, confessing Jesus Christ to be the only way to God the FatherGod the Father
God the Father is a gendered title given to God in many monotheistic religions, particularly patriarchal, Abrahamic ones. In Judaism, God is called Father because he is the creator, life-giver, law-giver, and protector...
. Consistent with this, it identifies the following seven elements as characteristic of the "Anglican Way" and essential for membership:
- The BibleBibleThe Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...
is the inspired word of God, containing all things necessary for salvation, and is the final authority and unchangeable standard for Christian faith and life.
- BaptismBaptismIn Christianity, baptism is for the majority the rite of admission , almost invariably with the use of water, into the Christian Church generally and also membership of a particular church tradition...
and the Lord's SupperEucharistThe Eucharist , also called Holy Communion, the Sacrament of the Altar, the Blessed Sacrament, the Lord's Supper, and other names, is a Christian sacrament or ordinance...
are sacraments ordained by Christ and are to be ministered with unfailing use of his words of institution and the elements ordained by him.
- The historic episcopate is an inherent part of the apostolic faith and practice, and therefore integral to the fullness and unity of the Body of ChristBody of ChristIn Christian theology, the term Body of Christ has two separate connotations: it may refer to Jesus's statement about the Eucharist at the Last Supper that "This is my body" in , or the explicit usage of the term by the Apostle Paul in to refer to the Christian Church.Although in general usage the...
.
- The church affirms the historic faith of the undivided church as declared in the three ecumenical (catholic) creedsEcumenical creedsEcumenical creeds is an umbrella term used in the western church to refer to the Nicene Creed, the Apostles' Creed, and the Athanasian Creed. The ecumenical creeds are also known as the universal creeds. These creeds are accepted by almost all mainstream Christian denominations in the western...
: the Apostles'Apostles' CreedThe Apostles' Creed , sometimes titled Symbol of the Apostles, is an early statement of Christian belief, a creed or "symbol"...
, the NiceneNicene CreedThe Nicene Creed is the creed or profession of faith that is most widely used in Christian liturgy. It is called Nicene because, in its original form, it was adopted in the city of Nicaea by the first ecumenical council, which met there in the year 325.The Nicene Creed has been normative to the...
, and the AthanasianAthanasian CreedThe Athanasian Creed is a Christian statement of belief, focusing on Trinitarian doctrine and Christology. The Latin name of the creed, Quicumque vult, is taken from the opening words, "Whosoever wishes." The Athanasian Creed has been used by Christian churches since the sixth century...
.
- Concerning the seven Councils of the undivided church, it affirms the teaching of the first four Ecumenical Councils and the Christological clarifications of the fifth, sixth and seventh councils, in so far as they are agreeable to the Bible.
- 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...
as set forth by the 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...
in 1662, together with the ordinal attached to it, is a standard for Anglican doctrine and discipline and, with the Books which preceded it, is the standard for the Anglican tradition of worship.
- The Thirty-Nine Articles of Religion of 1571, taken in their literal and grammatical sense, express the Anglican response to certain doctrinal issues controverted at that time, and express fundamental principles of authentic Anglican belief.
The ACNA has both Anglo-Catholic and evangelical
Evangelicalism
Evangelicalism 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:...
members and is considered to be more theologically conservative
Conservative Christianity
Conservative Christianity is a term applied to a number of groups or movements seen as giving priority to traditional Christian beliefs and practices...
than the Episcopal Church and the Anglican Church of Canada.
The Church allows dioceses to decide if they will or will not ordain 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...
as priests, although it does not permit women to become bishops. Concerning marriage, it holds that it is between one man and one woman; therefore, it does not bless same sex unions. Concerning abortion
Abortion
Abortion is defined as the termination of pregnancy by the removal or expulsion from the uterus of a fetus or embryo prior to viability. An abortion can occur spontaneously, in which case it is usually called a miscarriage, or it can be purposely induced...
, the ACNA holds a pro-life
Pro-life
Opposition to the legalization of abortion is centered around the pro-life, or anti-abortion, movement, a social and political movement opposing elective abortion on moral grounds and supporting its legal prohibition or restriction...
stance, proclaiming "all members and clergy are called to promote and respect the sanctity of every human life from conception to natural death". The ACNA has authorized several different versions of the Book of Common Prayer for use, including the l979 edition produced by the Episcopal Church. It is in the process of creating a prayerbook for ACNA use.
Structure
According to the constitution, the member entities of the Anglican Church in North America are groups of congregations, each group called a diocese, cluster or network. Dioceses can be organized regionally, whereas clusters and networks are groupings led by a bishop and based on some affinity. A member entity has the authority to leave the province if it so chooses.The Provincial Assembly, meeting at least every five years, is a representative body with delegates from each diocese, cluster, and network. Each jurisdiction is represented by its bishop, two clergy delegates, and two lay delegates. In addition, jurisdictions are entitled to one additional clergy and lay delegates for every 1,000 constituents, calculated by average Sunday attendance. The assembly's duties include electing the Provincial Council from among the members of the assembly and ratifying all constitutional amendments and canons adopted by the Provincial Council. Measures not adopted by the Provincial Assembly are returned to the Provincial Council for revision.
The Provincial Council, meeting at least annually, is the governing body of the province. Every jurisdiction is represented on the council by a bishop, a clergy member, and two lay persons; and the council may also appoint up to six other persons as members. The Provincial Council elects 12 of its members, 6 clergy and 6 lay members, to the executive committee of which the archbishop is chairman. The executive committee acts as the board of directors of the Church.
All bishops in active ministry are members of the College of Bishops
College of Bishops
The term "College of Bishops" is used in Catholic theology to denote the bishops in communion with the Pope as a body, not as individuals...
. The college elects the archbishop, the presiding officer of the Church, who convenes the Provincial Assembly, the Provincial Council, and the College of Bishops. The college also has authority to approve diocesan elections of bishops, or in some cases actually elect bishops. There are 35 active bishops sitting in the college. The archbishop has a cabinet composed of leading bishops within the church which functions as a council of advice. The Provincial Tribunal is an ecclesiastical court
Ecclesiastical court
An ecclesiastical court is any of certain courts having jurisdiction mainly in spiritual or religious matters. In the Middle Ages in many areas of Europe these courts had much wider powers than before the development of nation states...
empowered to rule on constitutional and canonical disputes.
Local congregations hold their own property and the province disavows any claim on the property of local congregations. Existing property-holding arrangements within the founding member entities are not affected by their relation to the province. The province also disavows any authority to control the member entities' policies regarding the question of the ordination of women as deacons or priests.
The constitution and canons specify that other non member groups (such as a seminary, monastic order or ministry organization, or a diocese, congregation or other entity) may be considered for association as ministry partners. Ministry partners may have representation in provincial and sub-provincial bodies as determined by the archbishop or bishop with jurisdiction. Ministry partners may withdraw from affiliation or have their affiliation ended with or without cause. ACNA affiliated ministries include Anglican Global Mission Partners (a missionary organization), Anglican Relief and Development Fund, and Anglican1000 (a church planting
Church planting
Church planting is a process that results in a new Christian church being established. It should be distinguished from church development, where a new service, new worship centre or fresh expression is created that is integrated into an already established congregation...
initiative).
Dioceses
The Anglican Church in North America is organized into the following 21 dioceses:- Diocese of Cascadia
- Diocese of Fort WorthEpiscopal Diocese of Fort Worth (Southern Cone)The Episcopal Diocese of Fort Worth, a diocese of the Anglican Church in North America, is headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas, and comprises 58 congregations. The diocese is led by Bishop Jack Iker, SSC...
- Anglican Diocese of the Great Lakes (Not to be confused with the older Diocese of the Great LakesDiocese of the Great LakesThe Diocese of the Great Lakes is a Continuing Anglican church body in the United States and Canada. Although all of its worship centers and clergy are currently located in the American Great Lakes states and the Canadian Province of Ontario, the diocese is non-geographical in structure and open...
, an autonomous Continuing Anglican jurisdiction.) - Gulf Atlantic Diocese
- The International Diocese
- REC Diocese of Mid-America
- Diocese of the Mid-Atlantic
- Anglican Diocese in New England
- REC Diocese of the Northeast, Mid-Atlantic, and Eastern Canada
- Anglican Diocese of Pittsburgh
- Diocese of Quincy
- Diocese of San JoaquinAnglican Diocese of San JoaquinThis article is about the Anglican Diocese of San Joaquin in the Anglican Church in North America . For the diocese of the Episcopal Church, see Episcopal Diocese of San Joaquin....
- Anglican Diocese of the South
- REC Diocese of the Southeast
- REC Diocese of the West
- Diocese of Western Anglicans
- REC Diocese of Western Canada and Alaska
- Missionary Diocese of All Saints
- REC Missionary Diocese of the Central States
- Anglican Network in CanadaAnglican Network in CanadaThe Anglican Network in Canada is a Canadian church established in 2005 under the jurisdiction of the Anglican Province of the Southern Cone, a province of the Anglican Communion...
- Convocation of Anglicans in North AmericaConvocation of Anglicans in North AmericaThe Convocation of Anglicans in North America is an Anglican body in the United States primarily comprising Anglican and Episcopal churches that have disaffiliated from the Episcopal Church in the United States of America . CANA was initially a missionary initiative of the Anglican Church of Nigeria...
The College of Bishops is currently formed by 45 active bishops.
A unique aspect of ACNA polity is the possibility that a diocese or group of dioceses may be under the dual jurisdiction of the ACNA and a province of the Anglican Communion. The Dioceses of Quincy, Pittsburgh, San Joaquin, and Fort Worth were formed when majority factions in the corresponding dioceses of the Episcopal Church voted to secede from that body in order to align themselves with the Anglican Province of the Southern Cone. The Anglican Mission, a founding member of the ACNA but now a ministry partner, during its membership possessed "dual citizenship" with the ACNA and the Church of the Province of Rwanda.
Statistics
- June 2009: 703 congregations; average Sunday attendance: 69,167
- April 2010: 809 congregations
After the decision of the Anglican Mission in the Americas to change from full membership to the status of a "ministry partner":
- June 2010: 614 congregations
Anglican churches
The ACNA's constitution expresses the goal to seek recognition as a province of the Anglican Communion. The Anglican Church in North America has not yet requested formal recognition by the Anglican Communion office as a province recognized by the instruments of communion. In 2010, the General Synod of the Church of EnglandGeneral Synod of the Church of England
The General Synod is the deliberative and legislative body of the Church of England. The synod was instituted in 1970, replacing the Church Assembly, and is the culmination of a process of rediscovering self-government for the Church of England that had started in the 1850s.- Church Assembly: 1919...
affirmed "the desire of those who have formed the Anglican Church in North America to remain within the Anglican family" and called upon the Archbishops of Canterbury and York to report back to the synod after further study in 2011. The office of the Archbishop of Canterbury has said it will take years for the ACNA to possibly gain official recognition from the rest of the Anglican Communion.
In March 2009, the Anglican Church of Nigeria
Church of Nigeria
The Church of Nigeria is the Anglican church in Nigeria. It is the second-largest province in the Anglican Communion, as measured by baptized membership, after the Church of England. It gives its current membership as "over 18 million", out of a total Nigerian population of 140 million.Since 2002...
declared itself to be in full communion with the Anglican Church in North America, and the House of Bishops
House of Bishops
The House of Bishops is the third House in a General Synod of some Anglican churches and the second house in the General Convention of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America.-Composition of Houses of Bishops:...
of the Anglican Church of Uganda
Church of Uganda
The Church of the Province of Uganda is a member church of the Anglican Communion. Currently there are 34 dioceses which make up the Church of Uganda, each headed by a bishop....
declared full communion with the ACNA in June 2009. Inasmuch as these churches report approximately 26,000,000 members, and the Anglican Communion reports over 80,000,000 members, the ACNA is in communion with churches comprising somewhat less than one-third of the membership of the Anglican Communion.
The Fellowship of Confessing Anglicans primates' council has said that the new church is "fully Anglican" and called for its recognition by existing provinces of the Anglican Communion. A total of nine Anglican provinces sent formal delegations to the inaugural assembly. The Diocese of Sydney
Anglican Diocese of Sydney
The Diocese of Sydney is a diocese within the Anglican Church of Australia. The majority of the diocese is Evangelical and low church in tradition and committed to Reformed and Calvinist theology....
passed on the final day of its 2009 synod a resolution welcoming the creation of the ACNA and expressing a desire to be in full communion. The resolution also called for the diocese's standing committee to seek a general synod motion affirming the Anglican Church of Australia
Anglican Church of Australia
The Anglican Church of Australia is a member church of the Anglican Communion. It was previously officially known as the Church of England in Australia and Tasmania...
to be in full communion with the ACNA. In April 2010, Archbishop Duncan presided at the Eucharist with primates and representatives from 20 Anglican provinces at the fourth Anglican Global South to South Encounter in Singapore. The Global South Encounter called for all Anglican provinces to be in "full communion" with the Anglican Church in North America.
Other churches
At the ACNA's inaugural assembly in June 2009, Metropolitan Jonah of the Orthodox Church in America, while recognizing theological differences, said that he was "seeking an ecumenical restoration". An agreement was announced between Saint Vladimir's Orthodox Theological SeminarySaint Vladimir's Orthodox Theological Seminary
Saint Vladimir's Orthodox Theological Seminary is an Orthodox Christian seminary in Crestwood, New York, in the United States. Although it is under the omophorion of the Metropolitan of the Orthodox Church in America, it is a pan-Orthodox institution, providing theological education to students...
and Nashotah House
Nashotah House
Nashotah House is an Anglo-Catholic seminary of the Episcopal Church located in Nashotah, Wisconsin, approximately 30 miles from Milwaukee, in the Episcopal Diocese of Milwaukee. The seminary opened its doors in 1842 and received its official charter in 1847...
, an Anglican seminary, to guide ecumenical relationships and "new dialogue" between the two churches. Similarly, in March 2010, the Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod
Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod
The Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod is a traditional, confessional Lutheran denomination in the United States. With 2.3 million members, it is both the eighth largest Protestant denomination and the second-largest Lutheran body in the U.S. after the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. The Synod...
announced that it and the ACNA would hold discussions to "explore dialogue".
In October 2009, ACNA's leadership reacted to the Roman Catholic Church's proposed creation of personal ordinariate
Personal Ordinariate
A personal ordinariate is a canonical structure within the Catholic Church enabling former Anglicans to maintain some degree of corporate identity and autonomy with regard to the bishops of the geographical dioceses of the Catholic Church and to preserve elements of their distinctive Anglican...
s for disaffected traditionalist Anglicans by stating that although they believe that this provision will not be utilized by the great majority of its affiliated laity and clergy, they will happily bless those who are drawn to participate in this proposal.
Interfaith
In August 2010, the executive committee approved the creation of a task force on "IslamIslam
Islam . The most common are and . : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...
and interfaith
Interfaith
The term interfaith dialogue refers to cooperative, constructive and positive interaction between people of different religious traditions and/or spiritual or humanistic beliefs, at both the individual and institutional levels...
engagement". Regarding the task force, Julian Dobbs, a member of the executive committee and archdeacon
Archdeacon
An archdeacon is a senior clergy position in Anglicanism, Syrian Malabar Nasrani, Chaldean Catholic, and some other Christian denominations, above that of most clergy and below a bishop. In the High Middle Ages it was the most senior diocesan position below a bishop in the Roman Catholic Church...
for the Convocation of Anglicans in North America, stated, "we need to undertake a prayerful, sensitive and honest approach to the issues involved".