The St Barnabas Blog: Where do we go from here?

[...] This time last year I was utterly depressed when facing the future. What hope was there? All I could do, not wanting to abandon you, was pray that God would somehow open a door where Synod is busy slamming one in our faces. And in my wildest dreams I was not prepared for what happened next….

Despairing at modern Anglicanism and hearing our cries for help the Roman Catholics have done something historic. They have offered to create a new space for us within their own church. And whilst the Roman church is far from perfect it has retained the faith and it can guarantee sacramental assurance. How amazing this is! The lie is exposed- it is not those who have deliberately labelled us as intolerant bigots who are invited into communion with the largest Church on earth- it is us! The holy father is saying ‘look at those Christians there- the Anglo-Catholics- they are the ones being faithful. They are the ones I am happy to do business with!’

And what business they hope to do! The Catholics are showing incredible generosity allowing us to retain an Anglican patrimony. That is to say we need not be simply be subsumed into the RC church becoming RCs as we understand them today- no we are valuable enough to be left as we are. We will be allowed to live as a distinctly Anglican body with our own space and rules. We will be allowed married clergy, not just now but in the future. We will be allowed to keep our services as they are at the moment. We will be encouraged to carry on as we are just so long as we each agree to teach the Catechism. Which we always done here in any case.

This offer, and we will examine the practicalities and details in our next session, has changed our options forever. We are not being asked to swim the Tiber, instead a bridge has been erected. Rome is sending lifeboats to what it perceives is a sinking ship. Do we quibble about the colour, choose to go down with the vessel or hop on with thanksgiving? Thankful that by joining with Rome we are assured of a future that allows us to retain our history and culture?

Because make no mistake there are only three choices now, and one is a red-herring! Read more