Anglicanism

Anglicanism is one of the major protestant Christian Movement of the West that claim of Apostolic succession or true church continuity in which many millions of people converge within it in search of Yahoshea Meshiyach.

It is a tradition or movement within Christianity that comprise of Church of England and churches that are historically tied to it or have similar beliefs, worship, practices and assembly structure.

Etymology Of The Name

The term “Anglican” originated in 1246 through a mediaval Latin phrase – “Ecclesia Anglicana” which means English Church.  The term “Anglicanism” came into existence in the 19th century as taken from “Anglican” and refers to the teachings and rites of Christians of global setting that are in communion with the See of Canterbury and churches following those traditions.

Anglicanism is understood to be a distinct Christian movement that represent a middle position or ground between the practices of the extreme 16th century Catholicism and the Lutherans and Reformed forms of protestant of that era.  It is often referred as being “a via-media” or “middle way” between both traditions of Christianity.

Origin Of The Group

Historical facts of Christianity in Britain is linked to the works of Joseph of Arimathias according to Anglican legend.  Many of the early church writers kept records of the existence of early church activities in Roman Britain.  Such writers included Tertullian who wrote of some parts of Britain that subjected to the saviour's fold.

The earliest Christians in Britain were Celtics who were the Irish people that developed what was termed as “Celtic Christianity” which was distinct to traditions and practices of Roman Catholic Church.

The Celtic Christianity observed Lent and Easter festivals at their its calendar.  The Celtic church equally operated independently of the Pope's authority.

To reconcile the Celtic Christianity to Roman church and to evangelize the pagan Anglo-Saxons, the Roman Catholic Pope Gregory I sent Augustine of Canterbury to British Isles in 596Ad.

As known by the term – “Gregorian Mission”, Augustine persuaded the Anglo-Saxon King Ethelbert and his people in Kent to accept the Roman model of  Christianity.

Augustine equally met with members of Celtic Christianity in a conference to seek for their merger with other Christians under the See of Rome but such did not yield any positive compromise. With the pressure of either to succumb to Celtic Christianity or Catholic Church of Rome, the Anglo Saxon Christianity convened a synod of Whitby in 663/664 to decide which of the tradition to follow.

A religious historian Christopher I. Webbor wrote that “Although the Roman form of Christianity prevailed and had dominant influence on Britain but it continued to have a distinctive character because of its Celtic heritage.

Another writer Henrich Zimmer wrotes that “just as Britain was a part of Roman Empire, so the British church formed during the fourth century a branch of the Catholic Church of the West and during the whole of that century, from the Council of Arles (316) onward, took part in all proceedings concerning the church.

The Church of England remained under the Roman Catholic Church until the English parliament through the Act of Supremacy declared King Henry VIII to be the supreme head of the church of England.  The parliament concluded that the action was based on the desire of English people to be independent from continental Europe religiously and politically.

The English Reformation was based on King Henry VIII's desire to divorce his wife – Catherine of Aragon which was rejected by Pope.  The issue was initially political but aggrevated down to theology by the intervention of Pope.  This provoked King Henry VIII and the English Parliament to pass a resolution called the “Acts of Supremacy” which empowered the Monarch to be the head of English church which resulted to Anglicanism.

From 1536, about 825 monasteries throughout England, Wales, and Ireland were dissolved and Catholic churches confiscated by British authority. When Queen Mary I came to power, she united the church of England and Roman Catholic and acted against the protestants in what is termed as Miriam persecution.

Queen Elizabeth I on coming to the throne enforced the Acts of supremacy.  She released her venom against Catholicism through high noted persecution upon Catholics.  She prevented Catholics from becoming members of professionals, holding public offices, voting or educating of their children. Executions of Catholics under Elizabeth I surpassed the Marian persecution of the protestants and such treatment prevailed under subsequent English monarchs.

Although, there was enactment of Penal laws in Ireland but such instrument of Law was less affective in Ireland because they asociate Catholicism as part of their national identity and honour. They resisted efforts of English authority to eliminate Catholic Church.

Root, Identity and Honour

As the English church separated from the Catholic Church officially, it was still observing doctrines and tradition of Roman Catholic till the era of King Edward VI when the church of England under-went thorough English Reformation.  The reformation empowered the church of England to acquire some characteristics that will eventually become known as distinctive Anglican identity.

The Church of England began to develop distinctive religions traditions by absorbing some of the thesis or theologies of the Reformed and Lutheran churches to mix with her original Catholic tradition.

The Anglicanism became distinctive Christian theology from 1559 with the historic Episcopacy and the “Book of Common Prayer” that were set as a guiding authority to the institution. This operation was carried out in mid 16th century under the “Elizabethan Religious Settlement” when it finally decleared its independence from the Pope of Roman Catholic Church.

The Anglican Reformation was seen as a navigation in a middle-way between two of the emerging protestant Reformers namely Calvinism and Lutheranism.  With passage of time, it was seen as a navigating in the middle way between Reformed Protestantism and Roman Catholicism which is the real expression of Anglican identity.

In 19th century, following American Revolution, Anglican bodies in United States of America and Canada became autonomous churches.  This model of church autonomy became observed in many newly formed churches in Africa, Australia, Asia and regions of pacific. Those churches with inclusion of Scottish Episcopal churches began to be termed as Anglicanism.

Doctrines and Faiths

The Anglicanism is based on faith of the scriptures and the Gospel, the tradition of the Apostolic church, the historical episcopate, the first seven ecumenical councils and the early church fathers, especially those fathers that were active during the five initial centuries of Christianity.

Anglicans believe the holy Bible of both Old and New Testaments as containing all things necessary for salvation and as being the rule of faith.  The body adopted “Reason” and “Tradition” as worthy means of interpreting the Bible.

The Anglicans believe that the Apostolic Creed is a baptismal symbol, Nicene Creed as the statement of the Christian faith, that Catholic and Apostolic faith is revealed in the Holy Scriptures.

Apart from absorbing thesis or traditions from both Catholic and Protestant churches, the Anglicanism developed a distinctive character through adoption of the Book of Common Prayers which was compiled by Thomas Craminer, the then Archbishop of Canterbury in 1549.

The Book of Common Prayer (BCP) was adopted by the movement as an instrument to unify all churches of England worldwide who were previously following diverse local liturgies.

Presently, the book has undergone many revisions by churches in different countries. Some countries have developed other service books. The book is generally acknowledged as the best  instrument that bind Anglican communion together.

Management and Policy

Administratively, all national or regional churches in Anglican have autonomy but all are linked by attention and common loyalty.  All the regional and national churches are in full communion with the See of Canterbury and thus the Archbishop of Canterbury is the unique force of unity in the general body.

The Archbishop of Canterbury chairs the meetings of primates.  He is equally the president of the Anglican consultation council and vested with the authority of convocating the once a  decade Lambert conference.

Meanwhile, the first Lambert Conference of the Anglican Communion was convened in 1867 by the instigation of Bishops of Canada and South Africa.  The further conferences were held 1878 and 1888 and was kept to be convened in every ten year intervals

The declarations of the Lambert Conferences serve to design the identity of Anglicanism and its relationship with other religious traditions.

Political Influence and Challenges

Issues relating to autonomy of national and regional communion with their relationship to the See of Canterbury, some controversies over lordship or involvement of British Royal family over the body arose after the war of independence that gave to the liberation of United States of America from British rule.

As U.S.A. attained independence, Anglicans in the nation played much role towards the liberation but were uncomfortable by the position of British crown over the religious tradition.

This controversy led to the formation of the Episcopal Church in the United State of America that covers those states that had achieved independence. The Church of England in Canada as well developed model of self-government, self-supported, financing and collective decision making that will be a return to separation of secular and religious identity.

Anglicanism was established and spread through the forces of British Crown in the Model of Roman Catholic Church and Roman Emperors. For example in 1828, the Dissenters and Catholics could be elected in the House of Commons. Before that time, it was filled of people drawn from churches of England, Scotland ad Ireland.

The new face of House of Commons engaged in extensive legislations of reformation on interests of English and Irish churches. The Act of Union of 1800, brought into Existence the United Church of England and Ireland.

Through parliamentary acts, the Church of England began to have an identical face that is recovered from the religious traditions of the Ecumenical councils of the Patristic church. Such new status influenced the Anglican church to engage in massive Christian missions. Such development resulted to location of more than ninety colonial bishoprics which later turned into self governing churches in the model of American and Canadian Churches.

Religiously, Anglicanism is not a tradition of strong differences to Catholicism because both groups shares almost all instruments samely.  They are both founded upon the foundation set by the Christian’s early first to seventh ecumenical councils.  The slight difference between the groups is that the Anglican communion is assumed to be operating in the middle-way between protestant reformers and Catholicism.

Position in Christendom

The position of Anglicanism as via-media between protestant reformation churches and Catholicism was properly presented in the ecclesiological writings of Frederick Denison Maurice. The writer saw the  protestant and Catholic strands within the church of England as contrary but complementary, both maintaining elements of the true church, but completer without the other, such that a true catholic and evangelical church might come into being by a union of opposites.

Contributions in  Christendom

Truly, the Anglican Communion has tried to establish some elements of religious freedom amongst worshippers and their traditions in the Christian contest and such is one of the elements of a true assembly of Yahoshea Meshiyach.

This value was denied to the world by actions or deeds of Roman Catholicism through its effort of internationalizing the community by negative edicts that were tied to the papal authority. But the errors of the Anglican body is its adoption of the six signs of Catholicism, adoption to the doctrines of Roman pagan traditions.

The Anglican communion is equally guilty of adopting some of the principle of faith that were formulated by the evangelical protestants rather than looking back into the history and operations of the true apostles of Yahoshea whose standards remains the only consistent practice that were approved by Yahweh.

Today, many people are asking of the true identity of Anglicanism. Do it belong to Catholicism or to the protestant reformation churches? Yes, the tradition is divided over the practices of both orders.  The Anglican Communion has a Book of common Prayers and equally developed Thirty-Nine Articles of faith. Both instruments were a combination of practices of both Catholicism and Protestantism.

Example can be taken from the doctrine of Justification by Anglican Community.  The Christian body is divided over the doctrine of Justification since the Anglican Communion and Anglo-Catholics believe of justification by faith, goodworks and the sacrament. The Evangelical Anglican on its own believe to the Reformed method of Sola Fide (faith alone) in their same doctrine of justification.

Other Catholics adopt different views of justification from the angles of prescriptions of early church fathers, liberal theology and Latitudinarian thoughts.

Another instance can be seen in the Article VI that treats on the sufficiency of scriptures which submitted that “scripture containeth all things necessary to salvation; so that what ever is not need therein, nor may be proved thereby is not to be required of any man, that should be believed as an article of the faith, or be thought requisite or necessary to salvation”. This articles of faith came to exist in the early 1600s but the same church later adopted scriptures, reasons and traditions as the three-legged stool that Anglicanism rests upon.

The authority of scriptures upon Anglican faith is equally challenged by the adoption of Anglican Divines who were clergy whose theological writings have been considered standards of faith, doctrine, worship and spirituality. The influence of the Divines have been prominent in the Anglican Communion in varying degrees of years.

One of such Anglican Divine is the 16th Century cleric and theologian Richard Hooker who after 1660 was frequently portrayed as the founding father of Anglican Communion. His religious opinion was driven by scriptures, informed by reason, the intellect and experience of Yahweh and tradition (the practice and belief of the historical church).

Future Growth in the Group

In recent days, there have been a growth of charismatic worship and revival among Anglicans as found in the Pentecostal churches. Both Anglo – Catholics and Evangelicals are affected by the movement which are easily identified with charismatic postures and music that are common among Pentecostals.

The diverse method of practices that characterize the Anglicanism is a source of concern to religious observers.  For example, the Evangelical Anglicans belief on the reformation theme of salvation by grace through faith.  They equally believe strongly on the two sacraments of Baptism and Eucharist while adopting other five sacraments as lesser rites.

The other angle, the Anglo-Catholic models are more of implementation of Pre-Votilan II model of worship. Resistance to the growing of those traditional Catholic practices have led to the formation of breakaway churches as Free Church of England in 1844 and the Reformed Episcopal Church in North America in 1873.

For reason of no strong identity of the Christian movement and the autonomy granted to various groups, many churches or communions operate on diverse theological views. For example, a group known as Cambridge Platonism within Anglicanism evolved in 18th century.  This body relied upon mystical understanding of reason as the candle of the saviour.  This group later evolved into a school of thought called the Latitudinarianism.

Another body named Evangelical Revival evolved and lay emphasis on the personal experience of the Holy Spirit.  This group was influenced by John Wesley and Charles Simeon and by their stands on the points raised by Reformers with regard to issues of justification by faith.

John Wesley took the message of the Evangelical Revival to United States where it influenced the First Great Awakening and creating an Anglo-American movement called Methodism which later broke away from Anglicanism after the American Revolution.

Many other Christian movements came out from Anglicanism and some of them began to operate as independent churches. Some took to the way of Oriental Orthodoxy, some took the garb of penticostalism and others took to the way of Roman Church.

Some of such movements include – Oxford Movement, Cambridge Triumvirate, Christian Socialism, Catholic Revival, Anglo-Catholic, etc.

Conclusion

Anglicanism is a Christian movement that lay claim to apostolic succession but going by its historic origin, doctrines and practices have proven it as a continuation or an arm of Roman Catholic Church but not Apostolic assembly that was set by Yahoshea Meshiyach.

Its Catholic connection is not far fetched. It armed and abided by the first seven ecumenical councils that established the catholic church of Rome.  These councils were responsible for the formulated practices of Christianity that removed it form the path of apostolic assembly of Yahoshea Meshiyach.

Among the Councils, the Anglican Communion hold frim to the premier first four of them. It equally accept the works of early church fathers especially those active during the five initial centuries of Christianity.  These church fathers were responsible for changes that transformed early apostolic assembly or Assemblies of Yahoshea Meshiyach to Roman Catholic church.

The Anglican Communion also believes on the historical episcopate. It equally adopt the Catholic Tradition of sacraments and observed them in the model of Catholic churches.

Based on these conditions, the Anglicanism is not fit to be addressed as a continuity assembly to the works and assemblage of early apostles of Yahoshea Meshiyach. It may have contributed positively towards breaking of religious monopoly of the Roman Catholic order and made some minor changes on the way of the Roman Church but it did not re-enact the practices of the early scriptural assembly that was led by Yahoshea Meshiyach.

Traditionally, like its counterpart Roman Church, the Anglicanism was never targeted towards restoration of sacred truths and practices that the early apostles of Yahoshea stood, fought and died for. Rather, it was a political creation to support freedom of Britain and its allys from political and religious enslavement by Roman Empire.

To gain its full independence from Rome, it had to cut from political and religious traditions from Rome. For such ideology to be materialized, a new Christian movement must be constructed to wear an English garb. Such movement must appear differently with the Roman Church but must observe all practices and ordinances of Christianity that were already formulated by the captainship of Roman Empire.

That was indeed the real position of Anglicanism rather than been a movement for salvation of human souls as ordained by Yahosheanism.