14 January 2016, The Tablet

We are not supposed to think of the Church of England as a ‘Church’


 
When our sovereign was crowned, the Scriptures were placed in her hands with an awesome pronouncement: “We present you with this book, the most valuable thing this world affords.” This sentiment always prompts in me the response that the most valuable thing this world affords must rather be the Blessed Sacrament. But I nevertheless find the words moving to the point of tears. They inspire in me a deep wonder, and a gratitude not only for the Queen herself but for her religious office and the Church whose government she was anointed to bear. But we are not supposed, apparently, to think of the Church of England as a “Church”. Just an “ecclesial community”, which has neither apostolic succession nor true sacraments. The declaration that Anglican sacrament
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User Comments (2)

Comment by: jcahill
Posted: 16/01/2016 00:57:14
I couldn't figure out to whom the "they" in the last sentence of the referred.
Comment by: Luis Gutierrez
Posted: 15/01/2016 17:06:21
Agree, the Eucharist is "heaven on earth," but this is to share my concern about the conflation of patriarchal gender ideology with revealed truth about humanity and the sacraments:

Meditations on Man and Woman, Humanity and Nature

These meditations are based on my understanding of St. John Paul II's Theology of the Body and the Catechism of the Catholic Church.

Themes: Patriarchy, Flesh, Sacraments, Church, Solidarity, Sustainability, Mercy

Jesus is the "Son of Man," but was the "Son of God" a male before the incarnation? For the redemption and the sacramental economy, is the human masculinity of Jesus more important than the color of his eyes?

The patriarchal era is passing away as families increasingly evolve from sole male (father) headship toward joint male-female (father-mother) headship. We cannot avoid facing this reality.

The Catechism of the Catholic Church (#1598) plainly states that the male-only priesthood is a choice (first sentence) and who can make the choice (second sentence). It is time to start ordaining some nuns!

For supporting research and links to the meditations, go to:

http://pelicanweb.org/CCC.TOB.html

In Christ,

Luis