The Anglican Concept of Churchmanship
Chapter 1 The Anglican concept of Churchmanship Prologue A distinguished journalist, John Whale, who died in June 2008, was wont to describe Anglicanism as “the most grown up expression of Christianity”. He knew what he was talking about. What led him to that À attering conclusion was undoubtedly his view from the editorial chair of the Church Times. This gave him a unique insight into the extraordinary breadth, height, depth and maturity of Anglican diversity, comprehensiveness and mutual tolerance, unparalleled in any other branch of the Christian Church. That precious, easygoing tolerance, that civilised agreement to differ on so many vital issues, which so impressed Whale (himself born into a contrasting form of ecclesiastical anarchy, his father’s Congregationalism), has worn extremely thin of late, transforming the Church of EnglandSAMPLE and the Anglican Communion worldwide from the appearance of a (more or less) civilised ecclesiastical debating society, into something more like a theatre of war, leading many staunch Anglicans to, or even over, the brink of despair. That, at any rate, is one way of looking at our present situation. It is not, however, the view taken in this book. Its author claims to be as staunch an Anglican as any, though remaining far from uncritical. Born, baptised, con¿ rmed and brought up in the C. of E., serving in its regular ordained parochial ministry for upwards of sixty years and ¿ rmly expecting to end his days in its communion and fellowship, he offers a broader, longer term and in some ways a more hopeful, positive and optimistic perspective, though only too aware of its limitations.
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