The Pope and the Anglicans

God is decreeing
to begin some new and great period in His Church,
even to the reforming of
Reformation itself. . . .
--John Milton,
Aereopagitica

If it had happened a few centuries
ago it would have been part of the Counter-Reformation. Occurring now, it was
still pretty significant. It was
the news that Pope Benedict XVI had invited members of the Anglican Communion
to abandon their church and join his. His invitation was addressed to Anglicans
who are uncomfortable with gays and women as clergy.

It was a generous invitation and it
was extended just 10 days before Halloween which is of no particular
significance since that is only one day before All Saints day, a day that,
unlike the Pope's invitation, has nothing to do with spookiness. The invitation was a blanket invitation
to Episcopalians, as they are known in the U.S., to abandon the Episcopal ship
and set sail with one captained by the Pope.

In an October 20^th press
conference at the Vatican, Cardinal William Levada, prefect of the Congregation
for the Doctrine of the Faith, said that something
called an "Apostolic Constitution" had been created that would enable Anglican
faithful and their clergy to enter "into full communion with the Church." He described it as a "single canonical
model for the universal Church which is adaptable to various local situations
and equitable to former Anglicans in its universal application." He explained
that the Pope hopes that the new enrollees can "preserve those Anglican
traditions precious to them and consistent with the Catholic faith. Insofar as these traditions express in
a distinctive way the faith that is held in common, they are a gift to be
shared in the wider Church." (The gift to which he was referring includes
neither women nor gays.)

It is gratifying that those who
have deep-rooted opposition to gays and women in the priesthood have been
welcomed to the company of the faithful who believe as they do and do so in the
name of the Lord. The
invitation is proof to the recipients that what was perceived as bigotry by
those from whom they parted, is not bigotry at all but good sound
theology. Inviting the congregants
to join is not, however, the most amazing thing about the Church's new openness.

For many centuries celibacy has
been the watchword for those entering the Church's priesthood. The reasons for it are diverse and it
has in many cases been more honored in the breach than in the observance as shown
by the hundreds of millions of dollars paid out by the Church in settlement of
claims involving priestly pedophilia.
Notwithstanding those episodes and tales of priests who secretly father
children, the Church remains adamant that priests should live a life of
celibacy. It is also aware,
however, of the economic hardship that will be imposed on a married Anglican
priest whose congregation moves whole cloth over to what was formerly the
opposition, if he cannot join in the exodus. Accordingly, the new plan permits Anglican priests who are
married to be ordained as Roman Catholic priests. They will not, however be eligible for promotion to Bishop
or higher ecclesiastical office such as Cardinal or Pope, a minor drawback
since few priests attain those posts.

The possibility of a married
Anglican priest becoming a member of the clerical opposition came as especially
good news to the Church of the Good Shepherd, a parish in suburban
Philadelphia. The Good Shepherd has been in a state of warfare with the
Episcopal Church for many years. According
to a report in the NYT, for the last 17 years the parish has refused to allow
the local Episcopal bishop to come for a pastoral visit or confirmation.
Because of the tolerance the Church has for Anglican priests (as distinguished
from gays or women) even if married, the Church of the Good Shepherd will be
able to take its priest, with it.
Bishop David Moyer who has led the church is married and father of three
children. Although a Bishop and,
therefore, not authorized even under the new rules to be married, he hopes that
he may be grandfathered in.
(Taking the Bishop along will be easier for the congregation than taking
along its real estate. In 2009, the Episcopal Diocese of Pennsylvania sued to
take over the church building that has an estimated value of $7 million and
only the Lord knows who will win that lawsuit.)

The newfound openness shown by
accepting disaffected Episcopalians into the Roman fold may be just the first
step. If the Pope wants to make a
home for other people who don't much care for gays and believe that women
should be treated differently from men, he may want to reach out to the
Taliban. Their attitudes are not
as dissimilar as one might hope.