The Vatican has issued a crackdown on nuns in the U.S. who go against some of the basic Roman Catholic teachings on sexuality, end of life issues, feminism, and abortion. This has sparked quite a debate on facebook and other forums and news sites. Many Catholics in the U.S. are viewing this as an attack on women in order to take the attention off of bigger issues in the Church. http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Latest...down-hits-US-group-for-radical-feminist-ideas Folks, this is why I don't (and for other theological reasons) and why I caution others to really stop and think before they swim the Tiber to the Roman Catholic Church. The problems of modernism, rejection of tradition, and extreme liberal theology are not something that is only occurring in the Anglican Communion and the Episcopal Church. Yes, the Vatican leadership tends to be much much more committed to tradition and orthodoxy than their Anglican counterparts, but there is a pretty big "disconnect" between the laity and many of the U.S. bishops in the Catholic Church. Anglicans, Episcopalians, in particular, get a lot of grief from Roman Catholics for not jumping ship to Rome, however, the grass is not always greener on the other side...
Lately I have been struggling with justifying my seeking the pastoral office in a church body (ECUSA) that has largely abandoned the faith once delivered to the saints. This story confirms, for me at least, a basic truth about church fellowship: in the end, 'orthodoxy' must be defined as the place where Christians gather around the Word of God rightly preached and the Sacraments of God rightly administered, and not as the place where the correct arrangement of initials decorate the church's entrance. To paraphrase St. Peter: "All man-made church-bodies are like grass. The synod withers, the episcopate fades, but the Word of the Lord abides forever."
Sean, We do get a lot of grief from Catholics. However, I agree that the grass is not always greener on the other side. Catholicism has its own set of issues, as this recent development demonstrates. As for swimming the Tiber, I won't be entering those waters. I think Anglicanism is a beautiful faith--worth fighting for. Peace, Anna
I hope you continue seeking the pastoral office in the ECUSA, we need more orthodox leaders who will uphold the traditional faith. Sometimes God calls us to serve in difficult situations, I never would have thought that i'd have landed in TEC, but that is where i've been called to serve and worship. Discovering Anglicanism has been a blessing and meeting other traditional Anglicans around the world and in TEC has really been a blessing. I can't even imagine prayer life and worship without the prayer book!
No doubt, I know we both post on Catholic Answers forum and they can lay on the grief at times. However, the posters on Catholic Answers, sadly, don't represent the average lay American Catholic. Heck, according to Barna polls Catholics tend to score the lowest (along with Episcopalians and usually Methodists or Lutherans) on traditionally held Christian beliefs. Faithful Catholics (like the ones on Catholic Answers) make Catholicism seem wonderful and amazing and in many ways it is, but they tend to gloss over or ignore the fact that they don't represent a majority of lay American Catholics these days. If you take a look at the comments on facebook and on other news outlets on this story about the nuns, many of the Catholics are very angry at the Vatican and endorse the modernism that the nuns have come to espouse. Alot of faithful Catholics don't understand that these current problems are not something one can just "run away" from, whether it be Rome or to another denomination. http://www.barna.org/barna-update/a...religious-beliefs-vary-widely-by-denomination
Sean, I started a thread on CAF about the issue with the nuns. My thread was merged with another, and the thread was moved from the Non-Catholic Forums to Catholic News with a sticky providing a link to Congregatio Pro Doctrina Fidei, Doctrinal Assessment, of the Leadership Conference of Women Religious: http://www.usccb.org/loader.cfm?csModule=security/getfile&pageid=55544. The thread is up to 354 posts and 8,644 views. I finally just stepped out of the discussion. There are many faithful Catholics on CAF, but I see what you are seeing---a disconnect between the teachings of the Catholic Church, and the actual practice and belief of Catholics. You won't find much of that disconnect on CAF. Any dissent is dealt with swiftly. Catholics who post things outside Catholic teaching are warned or banned. I think we need to realize this infiltration of secular beliefs is a threat to all of Christendom and one we should all take seriously. Peace, Anna