From Australia: Traditional Anglicans Reject Vatican Offer to Join Up
March 7, 2012 3 Comments
On National Radio (no less):
In South Africa at the weekend, a group of bishops of the Traditional Anglican Communion (TAC) met. The TAC is made up of Anglicans who have broken away from the mainstream church, largely over the issue of women priests. In mainland Australia, the TAC is small, with about 20 parishes. But its leader, Archbishop John Hepworth, has been in the forefront of a push for traditional Anglicans to become part of the Catholic Church. And the Vatican has, to an extent, obliged, setting up the Anglican Ordinariate. But in Johannesburg on Friday, 12 of the 20 active bishops of the communion voted not only to reject the Vatican’s offer but also to remove Archbishop Hepworth as primate. (He was planning to stand down in May but he has been pushed out early.) David Virtue is a journalist who edits the conservative-leaning website Virtue Online — billed as ‘the voice for global Orthodox Anglicanism’ — and he keeps a close eye on developments within the communion. Meanwhile, not all members of the Traditional Anglican Communion accept the decision of the bishops meeting in Johannesburg, including lay Canon Cheryl Woodman, registrar of the TAC in Australia.
So David Virtue and Cheryl Woodman are interviewed, and what they have to say is very interesting. Listen further here.
Download the clip here (mp3) to spend some more time with it.
I’ll reserve comment.
You just go listen.
UPDATE: And still more bad news.
About Fr Stephen Smuts
Lay Canon Woodman alleges that the TAC College of Bishops is comprised of 31 Bishops. Nothing could be further from the truth. Retired Bishops have no VOICE and/or VOTE within the CoB.
Clause 6.1 of The Concordat of the TAC clearly defines that Bishops actively holding Episcopal Office are eligible for voice and vote within the College of Bishops of the Traditional Anglican Communion. Retired Bishops do not fall into this category. The Concordat is available for verification of the facts on, inter alia, the website of the Anglican Church in America.
Each and every Bishop with jurisdiction within the TAC was invited to attend the meeting. Some chose not to respond.
It is unequivocally stated that the meeting in Johannesburg was held in strict accordance with the provisions as laid down in the Concordat. Care was taken to have interpreters and stenographers present, and in addition voice recordings were kept of the proceedings.
The meeting held in Johannesburg from 28 February to 2 March 2012 was unanimously constituted as a College of Bishops Meeting. The majority of Bishops within the TAC holding voice and vote attended, and proxy votes were obtained from some who were not able to attend. It is also documented that the meeting was concluded in a spirit of prayer and discernment. Votes on all resolutions were overwhelmingly unanimous.The resolutions passed at the meeting are, as a result, legal and binding.
There is also mention by Ms. Woodman of a meeting alleged to have taken place in December. Where was it held, and who attended?
It serves no purpose to endeavour to mislead anyone at this stage.
Now is the time for building, regrouping and encouraging traumatised clergy and laity alike.
Surely though, Bishop, the point is whom decides who has retired? Bishops Wilkinson, Reid, Robarts, Entwistle, Garcia and (dare I say it) Hepworth do not consider themselves retired from the TAC so who retired them? Could I also suggest that you are not reading the concordat correctly as you can be an active bishop without being a diocesan ordinary. If not, why would Archbishop Falk still be president of the ACA House of Bishops after his retirement as Ordinary of his diocese in 2005? He didn’t step down until 2011.
It puts me in mind of the far-left and far-right groups who expel each other and then each claims to be the “official” and “real” group.
I find this whole situation immensely sad and would urge that a peace be quickly sought by all sides.
This isn’t what Christ prayed for in the Kedron Valley.
Fr. Gerard, You are absolutely correct. The Bishops mentioned in your comment above are some of the remaining Bishops with Voice and Vote in the TAC CoB. It needs to be reiterated that all of the above, including Bishop Nona and Bishop Moyer were invited to attend, and chose not to respond to the invitation to the meeting.
It has been common knowledge for a considerable period of time that a large number of the Bishops are retired members of the Episcopate of the TAC by their own choice. The retired Bishops also were not afforded Vote at the previous CoB meeting in Portsmouth. They were given only Voice. For the record, these esteemed pioneers of the TAC were invited to attend the meeting in Johannesburg in the same capacity. Their apologies were duly recorded.
The Bishops who attended the meeting, still constitute the majority of Bishops with Voice as well as Vote.
We were indeed disappointed that the other active members of the CoB did not see their way open to attend.
We also wish to point out that there was no trace of hostility towards members of the TAC seeking to be accepted into the Ordiariate. In fact, we wish them every Blessing.
The meeting in Johannesburg was conducted in the most professional way by the new Acting Primate, Archbishop Samuel Prakash, adhering to the minutest details of the provisions of the Concordat. It was transparent, and open to scrutiny. The agenda was open to all, with invitations for items for discussion to have been received at least 14 days prior to commencement of the meeting.
The TAC could not be allowed to be left in a vacuum come Eastertide when Archbishop Hepworth purportedly would step down.
We are confident that the TAC will continue to rebuild and thrive into the future.