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Episcopal Language | |
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England, Reformation, 39 Articles: The earliest written record of Christians in England is in 200 A.D., although tradition tells us there was a church in Glastonbury before that time. Between this time and the Reformation in the 16th century, a considerable Christian community was built. In the second half of the 16th century England settled into decisions made under Edward VI - formation of the Church of England's first Prayer Books and theology, liturgical innovations, Queen Mary's reconciliation with Rome and persecution of Protestants and churchmen (Cranmer, Latimer, and Ridley). Under the reign of Elizabeth I in the late 16th century, the breach with Rome was reopened and she was eventually excommunicated by Rome. The papal bull of 1570 marked the final separation of England from Rome. The Church of England lived for years in a strange mixture of institutional machinations between the government, Roman Catholics, and Puritans - the latter greatly influenced by John Calvin. In the Church of England's 1563 Convocation the previously created 42 Articles, created in response to the confusion and desire for reform by the Continental Reformers, were reduced to 39 Articles. These Articles are still the official platform of the Church of England, but they are not a formulary of the Christian faith. The three Creeds serve that purpose. The Church of England and the Episcopal Church have been shaped by many influences, but neither can be labeled Roman, Lutheran, Calvinistic, Arminian, etc. They are essentially English Catholic by nature having been shaped that way in centuries prior to the Reformation by the Roman Catholic Church and influenced by the Protestant Reformers. So, the 39 Articles were written to clarify the Anglican position between the Roman Catholic Church and the positions of the Reformation Reformers. For that reason, the position and spirituality known as the Via Media (the middle way/road) has been created and is the basic spiritual/theological position of Anglicans/Episcopalians. This means that many things we inherited from Christianity prior to the Reformation are just as important as the influences of the Reformation Reformers. Pre-Reformation Anglican consciousness can best be understood in Julian of Norwich, a 14th century anchorite mystic who lived in a parish church in an East Anglia town. Her spirituality consisted of: 1) Sensibility (taking the whole of an experience to form understanding rather than a part); 2) Love of God in the ordinary rather than the grand; and 3) God having the consciousness of a mother (a comprehensiveness of community & a dialectic quest, rather than a well defined definitive position). This means the heart of Via Media is an ability to live with ambiguity. This expression of spirituality was expanded in the 16th century by Richard Hooker (1554-1600) who defined the authority of the church as the "three-legged stool" of Holy Scripture, tradition, and reason. Hooker was the 'definer' of the principles by which Anglicanism became theologically independent of the Roman Catholic Church. Authority was for Hooker the association of Holy Scripture, tradition, and reason. No one leg of this figurative stool was complete without the other, a teaching consistent with Thomas Aquinas of the 13th century and Augustine of the 4th and 5th centuries. Anglican central doctrine is the Incarnation of Jesus Christ. All Anglican spirituality is examined in light of the Incarnation. Contemporary theologians Holland, Gore, William Temple, and even William Porcher DuBose (American), are examples of thinking that best reflects this theology. Incarnation for Anglicans means: 1) that God created everything there is; 2) that sin cannot be explained by identifying it with matter or the physical world; and 3) it embraces the totality of life - even "the dark night of the soul" and "ambiguity." The 16th century Church of England's 39 Articles and the 19th century 39 Articles established by the Episcopal Church in the infant America of September 12, 1801 are almost identical. The American 39 Articles have the same practical purpose of alleviating confusion about its position at that time. To show how these articles work in relation to the primacy of the Incarnation, one could examine Article XVII on 'Predestination and Election', long a popular subject. The best source of authority on this Article is Dr. E.J. Bicknell, late professor of New Testament exegesis at the University of London. The chief passages on which this Article is based are Romans 8:28-30; 9:31, and Ephesians 1:3-11. Dr. Bicknell teaches that by 'predestination' we mean the purpose of God is the Incarnation of Jesus Christ and that we are drawn by the Holy Spirit into life eternal. Election means chosen for a specific purpose. Properly understood, the word 'foreknew' means 'took note of' or 'fixed His regard on' with a view of selection for some special purpose. A common error is to think of 'predestination' and 'elect' in terms of humanity (ourselves) first, rather than the Incarnation (Jesus). Holy Scripture teaches that 'election' can be rejected (rich young ruler) or lost (Judas Iscariot) - among others. Predestination, then, is not a place or a job. It is a purpose and God's purpose is John 3:16. This is an example of how the Articles 'work'. Anglican spirituality (Julian of Norwich, Hooker, Temple, etc.) would say that God is omniscient. We don't know everything God knows and we know God's ways are not our ways. This creates ambiguity (mystery), a hallmark of Anglican spirituality. Evangelical/Movement/Catholic: Means 'related to the gospel' and refers to those who emphasize the biblical message as found in the gospels. They lay stress on personal conversion and salvation by faith through grace in the atoning sacrifice of Christ. Some of the great leaders of the 1700's in the Anglican Church were the Wesley's and John Newton (Amazing Grace). Outside the Anglican Communion this term is synonymous with the word "Protestant", as Protestants also emphasize the biblical message and conversion. Today, there is general recognition that we should be both Evangelical and Catholic, so many call themselves "Evangelical Catholic." Evolution of Christian Sprirituality: Apostles - Ancient Christian Church, 1st and 2nd centuries Byzantine & Eastern Orthodox - Eastern Europe and Eastern Mediterranean, 4th - 8th centuries Celtic - Ireland, Scotland and Wales, 4th century Benedictine - Italy, 6th century; France, 9th century Cistercian/Trappist - France, late 11th century as Benedictine renewal/France, late 19th century Franciscan - Italy, late 12th century, spreading to France & Germany in the early 13th century Dominican - Spain and France, late 12th century Beguines - Belgium and France, late 12th century Carmelites - Palestine, 12th century; Spain, 16th century Ignatian/Jesuit - Spain, 16th century Anglican - England, 16th century (Cranmer, Hooker, Taylor, Law, and Herbert) Quaker/Religious Society of Friends - England, mid-17th century Wesleyan/Methodist - England, early 18th century |
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| Address: | 202 South Massachusetts
Avenue Lakeland, Florida 33801 |
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