Anglicanism at Home and Abroad
This chapter explains that the Church is part of the Anglican Communion, a worldwide family of churches in more than 160 different countries. It maps the spread of crunch issues or ‘moral imperatives’ across the Communion, to establish which are singular to the Church. It notes, for example, that th...
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| Format: | Book Chapter |
| Language: | eng |
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| Online Access: | Get full text |
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| Summary: | This chapter explains that the Church is part of the Anglican Communion, a worldwide family of churches in more than 160 different countries. It maps the spread of crunch issues or ‘moral imperatives’ across the Communion, to establish which are singular to the Church. It notes, for example, that the ordination of women has been deeply divisive. The chapter examines the changes to the rules on divorce and family leading to a first wave of about 600 Anglicans officially leaving the Church of England in early 2011 in protest at the move towards the ordination of women as bishops.
It focuses also on the difficulties arising in relation to homosexuality. The Church has had a policy of allowing for the ordination of gay priests as long as they are celibate but the election of an openly gay bishop in America, prompted a national and international examination on the rights of homosexual clergy.
Alongside issues of homosexual clergy, the chapter considers the difficulties facing the wider Anglican Communion as they address the issue of whether to sanction same-sex blessings. These issues, and their potential to cause serious divisions within the Anglican Communion, are assessed. |
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| ISSN: | 1534-6781 2214-9902 |