“A schism would not be a disaster – God is bigger than our failures – but it would be a failure. It would not be good if the church is unable to set the example to the world of showing how we can love one another and disagree profoundly, because we are brought together by Jesus Christ, not by our own choice. This isn’t a formal club or a political party. This is something done by God.” So said the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, in a recent BBC interview about the Anglican Primates’ meeting beginning today in Canterbury. Many of us tend not to pay attention to the inside baseball of the Anglican Communion, so this meeting may not seem like a big deal. But it may turn out to be historic, and so it is worth a bit of our attention, and certainly our prayers.

In a Rector’s Rambling first, you’re getting your rambling on Monday, before the weekly parish email. And you’re getting it because I want to invite you to prayer for this meeting of the Primates. The Anglican Communion may look very different at the end of this week, and I for one, am hoping that our fragile Communion is not broken in two. Whether it would be a disaster, it would be deeply saddening, nonetheless. This is the short version. If you want more information, read on.

First, a little background may be helpful. When we mention Primates, we are not talking about monkeys or apes. In the

Anglican Communion, “primate” is the title we give to the bishop who leads one of the thirty-eight provinces (a geographical area, typically a country) of the Anglican Communion. In many cases those bishops are known as archbishops, whereas in the United States we have a Presiding Bishop. From Canterbury’s perspective, whoever the leader is, they are set apart as the primate of that particular province. In recent years our own Presiding Bishop’s office has begun using the title “Presiding Bishop and Primate of the Episcopal Church,” for this reason. Presiding Bishop Michael Curry is our representative to this, his first Primates’ Meeting. The Primates have been gathering every 2-3 years since 1979, meeting more frequently when there have been urgent matter to discuss. They have not met since 2011, the longest span between meetings.

Here’s a little secret that people sometimes forget about the Anglican Communion. It’s not a church – not in the sense that it is hierarchical and defined the way the Catholic Church is, for example. We call it a communion because it is, and has been since the United States became the first independent province after the Revolutionary War, a voluntary association of autonomous provinces with a shared legacy and history. What holds us together is that we want to be a part of the Anglican Communion. As long as the Archbishop of Canterbury recognizes your province, you are Anglican. It’s formally referred to as being in full communion with the See of Canterbury. So, if you’re curious about the “Anglican” churches that you see here and there, ironically they aren’t Anglican at all. Not officially, at least. The only Anglicans recognized on the shores of this country are Episcopal Churches that are a part of the Episcopal Church, USA.

The Archbishop of Canterbury (ABC) is not the only thing that holds us together, although many would agree that the ABC is the central “Instrument of Communion.” The other three Instruments are The Primates’ Meeting, the Lambeth Conference, a meeting of all the bishops in the Anglican Communion, called together by the ABC from time to time, and the Anglican Consultative Council (ACC). The ACC is a made up of bishops, clergy and laity from around the world who meet every three years on average. These four Instruments of Communion help direct the thinking of the Anglican Communion, but they do not hold authority over any of the provinces. It is truly a voluntary association. Two of the instruments are “modern” in that they came into existence since the 1970’s. Lambeth dates to the second half of the 19th Century. Prior to that it was solely the affiliation with and recognition by the ABC.

No province has ever left the Communion, nor has one been asked to leave. There have been fears that it will happen, however, and this may mark the occasion when it does. The Communion has been under a fair amount of tension as Western provinces move forward with progressive theologies, particularly those centered on human sexuality. The most conservative provinces have been expressing their displeasure for some time. Certain African Primates refused to attend the last Primates’ meeting and what should have been the most recent Lambeth gathering. The Archbishop of Canterbury cancelled Lambeth shortly after his appointment because he did not want to hold a meeting geared towards unity if the bishops involved wouldn’t even sit in the same room with one another.

Heading into this meeting, a collection of the conservative bishops from Africa and Asia have discussed walking out of the meeting on its first day if the Archbishop of Canterbury doesn’t discipline the American Church, in particular. And herein lies a bit of the rub. When dealing with autonomous provinces they end up functioning in different ways. For example, African Bishops tend to have a great deal more authority than American ones. African bishops tend to have a greater hierarchical authority and rely on that for the functioning of their provinces and dioceses. It doesn’t always make sense that the General Convention can do things that bishops and our own Presiding Bishop cannot do, nor does it sit well that the ABC cannot discipline a province. He is, rather, in communion with a province or not. At one point there was discussion of a covenant that would provide grounds for “discipline”, as well as an authoritative body like the Catholic College of Cardinals. Neither has been well received across the wide spectrum of the Anglican Communion because such things would forever change the nature of the Communion. It is unique in its ability to stay affiliated despite differences.

Further complicating things for the ABC is that some of the same provinces whose Archbishops are upset have also not acted in accordance with what the Archbishop expects from bishops or the recommendations of the Instruments of Communion. At least one province openly supported death penalties for gay men and women, and several have failed to denounce violence against homosexuals. They have also “crossed” provincial boundaries to set up relationships with breakaway Anglican groups, particularly those in this country. What Archbishop Welby is likely to suggest at this meeting is a new way of affiliating that he once likened to spouses moving into separate bedrooms instead of divorcing. It may be that we could all be Anglicans in communion with the See of Canterbury, but not necessarily with one another. For Example, the Church in Uganda may not recognize the Episcopal Church, but both would still be Anglican.

The option that the majority of the Communion does not want to see is the formation of a parallel church. As an interesting irony, it may be the Anglican Church in North America (ANCA) that provides the strongest case and opportunity for such. When Episcopal congregations began to break away from the Episcopal Church over the last ten or twelve years they initially affiliated themselves with Provinces in Africa as a way to “remain Anglican.” Officially, it hasn’t worked. As an appeasement to some of the dissenting bishops this go around, however, the ABC has invited the Archbishop of the ANCA to the Primates’ meeting to allow for greater dialogue. Several of the African bishops have already claimed an affiliation with the ANCA, which originally grounded its legitimacy as an Anglican institution on their acceptance by African provinces. As you can see, it’s complicated and confusing.

The great reality of the Anglican Communion (and human nature) is that it is hard to stay together when we disagree. The modern era of Christianity is the most fragmented of any time period in Christian History, at least since the historic creeds were established to determine what the core beliefs of the church were. The first great schism was the East – West schism in the 11th century. After that the next greatest was the Reformation in the 16th Century. As the late Church historian Phyllis Tickle pointed out, we seem to have big shakeups every 500 years or so, and we’re likely gearing up for one now. Perhaps we’re seeing that in the number of denominations, churches, and struggles in Christian churches like our own. Maybe the next great schism is a tidal waves of little ones. We’ve seen it in congregations, dioceses and at the national level of our own church. Perhaps this is a moment where we see it on a global scale. It would not be the first time, just the first time in a long time. There is a reason we’ve added Instruments of Communion over the last 50 years. The world, and our ability to be in communion, has gotten more and more complex.

There is also a lot more in the water of our Communion too. The Anglican Communion is perhaps one of the few remaining vestiges of the great colonial worldview. Even with its autonomous provinces we are led by a white, British, male in the Archbishop of Canterbury’s seat. How long until we see an Archbishop of color, or even a female. By the way, female priests and bishops is the second most controversial issue in the Communion. England’s recent inclusion of female bishops was almost as upsetting to some as the actions of the Episcopal Church over the last ten years or so. The African provinces are the largest in the 80 million member strong communion, and continue to grow the fastest. Should leadership be distributed by representation? Does it matter that the Church of England, and the Archbishop of Canterbury still have political ties to Great Britain’s governance structure? All of this is fodder for discussion, debate, and decision as the Church marches further into the 21st Century.

Both Archbishop Welby and Presiding Bishop Curry are calling on individual Anglicans to pray. Particularly for wisdom for the Bishops who are gathering even now. You can see the Archbishop’s appeal here. As he said in the same BBC interview referenced earlier, “Certainly I want reconciliation. Reconciliation doesn’t always mean agreement; in fact it very seldom does. It means finding ways of disagreeing well and that’s what we’ve got to do this week.” It’s a tall order to “disagree profoundly” an stay in communion with one another, and one that stands against the prevailing winds of recent history. But, with God’s help all things are possible. Let’s join with Anglicans from around the world for Communion, which is so fragile and so strong at the same time.

Tom+

For more on this week’s Primates’ meeting, explore the Primates 2016 website linked above and watch for updates from http://episcopaldigitalnetwork.com/ens/.

A daily prayer for the unity of Christians

Lord Jesus,
who prayed that we might all be one,
we pray to you for the unity of Christians,
according to your will,
according to your means.
May your Spirit enable us
to experience the suffering caused by division,
to see our sin,
and to hope beyond all hope.
Amen.

Composed by members of the Chemin Neuf community from the prayer of the abbot Paul Couturier.