Anglicans talk of unity with Rome

[davidinalameda]

http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5744,12827607%5E2703,00.html

are the Anglicans going to give up their independence and become Catholic? Doubtful

THE Archbishop of Canterbury has signalled that the rift between Anglicans and Catholics stemming from the Reformation could finally be healed, following the reconciliation between the churches during the reign of John Paul II.

As cardinals prepare to elect a new pope, Rowan Williams, the first Archbishop of Canterbury to attend a pope's funeral, said "the roots we have put down in recent years are far too deep to uproot".

Dr Williams, who sat in the front row opposite the papal coffin at last Friday's funeral, said: "It seemed to me absolutely natural that the Archbishop of Canterbury should come to share the prayers, hopes, grief and thanksgiving of our Roman Catholic brothers and sisters."

[Lydia Leftcoast]

1. I don't see any mass movement toward Rome in the Anglican Communion

When women were first ordained, a few parishes and priests petitioned to join the Roman Catholic church, and a few more may do so over gay issues, but that's considered an extremist position.

[Debaser]

2. I would say this is extremely far off.

To be honest, I think Williams' comments principally reflect a desire to pay respect to John Paul II's ecumenical work, rather than any real movement towards unification. At this point, just maintaining the tenuous unity of the world Anglican Communion is giving him enough trouble. And in theological terms, the two churches, in many ways, drifted apart during the late Pope's reign (most prominently with the C of E's ordination of women priests, but also on other issues such as attitudes towards homosexuality and marriage). This situation is further complicated by the fact that, if you look at the two main factions within the C of E, it is generally the High Church Anglo-Catholic wing, which is obviously the faction with the strongest interest in unification with Rome, that tends to be the more liberal of the two. The more evangelical wing of the Church tends to be more conservative, but I can't imagine them having any interest whatsoever in unification.