Vicar's
This is an amazing time to be an Anglican! The Lambeth conference is concluding, taking in the impact of the recent Global Anglican Future Conference (GAFCON). Time will tell, but there appears to be a tide of reform beginning within the Anglican Communion. The Anglican Reformation began as a confessional movement, centered on the authority of the Bible, the Thirty Nine Articles of Religion and the Book of Common Prayer, culminating in the 1662 BCP and the King James Bible. Since that time, Anglican faith came to be understood more as a colonial church, recognized in structure more that in doctrine. In other words, Anglicans were known by who their bishop happened to be more than by what they believed. Thus the doctrine of a given diocese would only be as strong as the bishop of that diocese.
This "colonial" Anglicanism set the stage for the troubles facing the Communion today, where more and more dioceses and even entire provinces have abandoned Christian Faith altogether in favor of the spirit of the age. At the close of the Nineteenth Century, the Lambeth Quadrilateral set the authority of Holy Scripture, the Nicene and Apostles' Creeds, the Sacraments and the historic Episcopate (bishops) as the unifying principles of Anglican faith. Today only the historic Episcopate remains broadly recognized, but as more bishops abandon the faith by redefining it, those same bishops cease to be recognized by reform-minded clergy throughout the communion.
Today the current "instruments of unity" are the Archbishop of Canterbury, the Anglican Consultative Council, the Primates who lead each province in the Communion, and the Lambeth Conference. Not one of these are confessional in nature, but GAFCON is changing things. The conference was held in Jerusalem, and introduced a major change the may take hold in the Anglican Communion to bring reform. To help the Church to be confessional once again, GAFCON produced the "Jerusalem Declaration". This declaration laid out fourteen principles of faith that Anglicans could universally embrace before recent generations began to succumb to Western culture. GAFCON also established a "Council of Primates" as a body of leaders for the Anglican Church, consisting of any Primate willing to embrace the Jerusalem Declaration. Those who drafted this declaration represent over 75% of the Anglican Communion, so the Lambeth Conference is forced to address it or become irrelevant.
The Jerusalem Declaration follows, and in place of my usual history article, we are including a special letter from Archbishop Venables to all churches in our diocese.
This "colonial" Anglicanism set the stage for the troubles facing the Communion today, where more and more dioceses and even entire provinces have abandoned Christian Faith altogether in favor of the spirit of the age. At the close of the Nineteenth Century, the Lambeth Quadrilateral set the authority of Holy Scripture, the Nicene and Apostles' Creeds, the Sacraments and the historic Episcopate (bishops) as the unifying principles of Anglican faith. Today only the historic Episcopate remains broadly recognized, but as more bishops abandon the faith by redefining it, those same bishops cease to be recognized by reform-minded clergy throughout the communion.
Today the current "instruments of unity" are the Archbishop of Canterbury, the Anglican Consultative Council, the Primates who lead each province in the Communion, and the Lambeth Conference. Not one of these are confessional in nature, but GAFCON is changing things. The conference was held in Jerusalem, and introduced a major change the may take hold in the Anglican Communion to bring reform. To help the Church to be confessional once again, GAFCON produced the "Jerusalem Declaration". This declaration laid out fourteen principles of faith that Anglicans could universally embrace before recent generations began to succumb to Western culture. GAFCON also established a "Council of Primates" as a body of leaders for the Anglican Church, consisting of any Primate willing to embrace the Jerusalem Declaration. Those who drafted this declaration represent over 75% of the Anglican Communion, so the Lambeth Conference is forced to address it or become irrelevant.
The Jerusalem Declaration follows, and in place of my usual history article, we are including a special letter from Archbishop Venables to all churches in our diocese.
St Jude's In The Mountains Anglican Church - Tehachapi CA
