Conversion or change of denomination for Anglican Clerics?

Conversion or change of denomination for Anglican Clerics?

Anglican clerics to become Catholic priests? It has been hailed by some as the most significant development since the Reformation! The Vatican has published details of its plan to ease conversion for Church of England clergy unhappy about the ordination of women bishops. The proposal offers them what amounts to their own dioceses within the Roman Catholic Church.
In the early 2000s dissension over homosexuality threatened to tear apart the Anglican Communion. Fueling the controversy was the 2003 consecration of an openly gay bishop by the Episcopal Church in the United States and the blessing of same-sex unions by Anglican churches in Canada. Some conservative Anglican dioceses in Africa threatened to leave the communion unless these actions were condemned. In 2004 a special commission appointed by the archbishop of Canterbury sought to heal the rift. The commission’s report rebuked the Episcopal Church and called for a moratorium on the ordination of gay clergy and on the blessing of same-sex unions.

Although the presiding bishop of the Episcopal Church urged restraint in the ordination of openly gay clergy and the blessing of homosexual unions, this step was deemed insufficient by more traditional Anglican bishops. At a meeting in Dar es salaam, Tanzania, in February 2007, the Anglican bishops demanded that the Episcopal Church state unequivocally that it would stop consecrating gay bishops and blessing same-sex unions. The Episcopal Church was given until September 2007 to issue the statement.

The Episcopal Church re-affirmed its position in September 2007, again asking for restraint in ordaining gay clergy and blessing same-sex unions but falling short of requesting a moratorium. In December, Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams criticized both sides in the dispute for dividing the communion, and he announced plans to use professional mediators to facilitate communication between the leaders of the Episcopal Church and the Anglican leaders most critical of them.
While the publication of details of Vatican’s plan to ease conversion for Church of England clergy may not be as a emotive issue as the ordination of women and openly gay ministers, it has elicited varied reactions from across the Anglican Communion.
In the new instructions Vatican also said that the Anglicans could continue with their traditions, such as some church services. Anglican clergy claim the rules set out in the document make the offer seem more generous than it first seemed. Fr Geoffrey Kirk, England’s National secretary of Forward in Faith, which represents Anglicans sympathetic to Catholicism, said more clergy around the world would probably convert as a result.
"Of the 450 parishes I knew would take the Pope's invitation seriously, I said between 150 and 200 would convert. Now I think it'll be more than 200." The details confirm that Church of England priests who are married will be allowed on a case-by-case basis - to serve as Roman Catholic priests.
The head of Kenya's Anglican Church, Archbishop Eliud Wabukala, initially rejected the Pope's offer to allow disaffected Anglicans to join the Catholic Church. Bishop Wabukala said it would not be easy for African Anglicans to enter into full communion with Catholics. “The Protestant family understands faith in different ways, for example, the idea of the Eucharist, the Lord's Supper, the interpretation of ministry," he said that may not necessarily open them to join the Roman Catholic church so easily. He said his fellow African Anglican bishops were "deeply evangelical". Among others the Evangelicals are known to reject the Roman Catholic position giving ultimate authority to the pope in matters of faith and morals.

Furthermore, Evangelicals believe that individual judgment should decide all questions of biblical interpretation, while others defer to the confessions formulated by the Roman Catholic Church to guide members in their faith.

The head of the Anglican Church in Kenya seems to subscribe to the Traditional Reformation leaders who reacted against the Catholic institution of the priesthood by affirming the “priesthood of all believers.” They hold to the priesthood of all Christian, by contributing to society and thus serving one’s neighbour, is as fulfilling before God as any specifically religious vocation. Nevertheless, most Protestant denominations have an ordained ministry.

Whereas the Roman Catholic priest is seen as a mediator of God’s grace through his administration of the sacraments, the Protestant minister is regarded as one of the laity who has been trained to perform certain church functions, such as preaching and administering the sacraments. As a result of this belief in the essential equality of all church members, Protestant church government has been democratic in tendency, although there are wide variations.
On his part, Ugandan Archbishop Henry Luke Orombi has also said Pope Benedict's measure was not called for in the African Anglican Church, which he said had successfully resisted liberalism from Western countries.
While the Bishops expressed their reservations on this seemingly emotive subject, it is an open secret that there are splits among Anglicans worldwide over homosexuality and the ordination of women. Causes of discord in the worldwide Anglican Communion have included the election of an openly gay bishop and the blessing of same-sex unions.
“It is very clear that the Western world is bent on pushing their dirty habits from the closets into the public.” One disenchanted Anglican explained in an exclusive interview. They have made up the so called gay rights! In African traditions sexual issues were relegated to the internal forum, and even today sexual matters are personal”
An Anglican cleric who asked not to e named feels that the move from Rome is a good thing to lead to the union of all Christian believers. “Jesus prayed for the unity of all believers during the last supper, who are we to continue splitting his followers? The pope needs our support in this noble move to preserve not just our unity but also maintain dignity” the Kenyan Cleric added.
There is a feeling that the publications by Vatican could lead to an influx of married priests to a church where clergy have traditionally been celibate. The document emphasised that the Vatican had no intention of relaxing the requirement for celibacy for Roman Catholic priests. However, the presence of significant numbers of married priests could present an alternative model of priesthood to Roman Catholics.
The Vatican made clear that Anglicans who were in "irregular marriage situations" would not be eligible to convert. Men intending to become priests inside the new section of the Church could train in seminaries separate from other Catholic priests.
Dr Kirk said this concession, and the creation of multiple "dioceses" for former Anglicans showed that the Vatican intended Anglican traditions to become a permanent part of Catholicism. "This is not terminal care. It's viewed as a permanent thing, and it could actually grow," he said.
However, Anglicans who convert will have to commit to all Roman Catholic beliefs, and that might create conflict for some. They would have to accept that the Pope could on occasion be regarded as "infallible".
They would also have to accept Roman Catholic views on contraception, the way Catholics regard Mary, the mother of Jesus, and that the bread and wine of Holy Communion actually become the body and blood of Jesus.
Clergy wishing to convert will have to be re-ordained as Catholic priests; this may raise the age-old issue of how he Roman Catholic Church looks down on the rites of ordination of the Anglican Church. At the same time some of the would be coverts might face painful choices - having to leave well-placed and historic medieval churches with thriving congregations for more modern churches on the edge of town or even in rural congregations.
In the African context, while the conversions may not be as big as expected in other parts of the world, it is however very clear that the some of the reasons for the split of the Anglican Communion are fast becoming issues of contention in the Continent with the largest Christian following.
Even among Catholic-minded Anglicans, there is continued resistance to transferring to Rome. Many are desperate to maintain the historic composition of the Church of England as including both a Protestant and a Catholic wing.
However English Anglicans are likely to make up only a small proportion of those wishing to find a permanent home in the Roman Catholic Church. The Traditional Anglican Communion - which broke away from the Anglican Communion in 1991 - claims four hundred thousand members around the world, and several hundred are thought likely to convert.
The first English clergy could convert as early as next year. The Vatican insisted that its invitation came only in response to Anglicans who pleaded for a new spiritual home. But it angered some Anglicans because it came at a sensitive time in discussions over how women bishops would be introduced into the Church of England.
As the discussions on the pros and cons of the opening of doors by the Vatican to the Anglican priests continue to draw all types’ reactions and comments, those who have been waiting for the opportunity, have it.