Not even from his comrades at the BBC:
The BBC has come under fire from groups for the hard of hearing for its increasing number of bizarre gaffes, which have included calling the Labour leader Ed Miller Band and the Church of England leader the arch bitch of Canterbury.
Archbishop Rowan understands that which most do not – that the churches, whatever their hue, consist not of institutions, structures, commanders,laws and applications of discipline, but of ordinary decent people in the pews.
The current Anglican distress may be centred in the dispute between liberal and conservative bodies and personalities, but the subject peoples are the same – quietly going about their Christian observance.
What then is Rowan to do? Is he to say to one group that their brand of worship, followed for generations, is invalid and that the truth lies with the other lot?
++Rowan; does he say “the leaders of your brand are apostate, heretic and unChristian”? He is not a chief executive, neither is he a master-at arms – he is a pastor. His role is impossible. He cannot agree/support one side of the argument without condemning the other, and that condemnation will go straight over the heads of the leaders and main players who deserve it, and fall to earth in the distress caused to those ordinary decent people referred to at the beginning of this.
Anglicanism has always been a church of diversity and ++Rowan will have known from the very beginning of his time as archbishop that areas within his purview were poles apart. Can it ever have occurred to him that those poles would go to war with each other?
In any event, it is long past time that the disgraceful level of invective and insult heaped upon Rowan came to an end. The Canterbury throne is the definitive poisoned chalice, which he has bourne with grace, humility and dignity.(not forgetting the current display of simple bravery).
Chris Baker – Durham UK
The ArchBishop of Canterbury is still one fo the Instruments of Communion, and is properly known as the “first among equals”. He does have an important role to fulfill in the Worldwide Anglican Communion.
Admittedly, Anglicanism has traditionally been the Via Media, a balanced position between Catholicism and Prostantism. But it has also been the Faith that was delivered to the Apostles and passed down through the ages and the generations. All Bishops, including the ABC, have a resposibility to preserve this Faith and pass it on unimparred to the next generation.
What we see happening here in Canada is not a conflict between Catholic and Protestant Anglicans. Nor is it a conflict between conservative and liberal Anglicans. What we have are people like Ingham and Bird who have deviated from the Faith altogether, they try to edit the word of God, and where it cannot be edited they ignore it. What they offer is not Anglican, in fact it is not even Christian.
It is exactly this type of thing the the ABC should have taken action against. That he did not is evident, and he thusly deserves the critism that is being expressed against him.
To borrow a phrase, he should “lead, follow, or get out of the way”. That he has done none of these is a great problem for Anglicans everywhere.
My point yet stands, ++Rowan has no role in the governance of the Anglican Christian faith. ‘Action’ is the responsibility of the various and several synods, congresses, convocations, whatever you will, where bishops, clergy and laity have the vote.
There have been allusions to private discussions held at Lambeth between Rowan and sinificant figures in Anglicanism, quite recently with +Bob Duncan for example. This surely is as it should be – outside the environment of resolutions, motions etc.. There HAS to be at least one at the head of the Church who cannot be canvassed for his vote, cannot be used to justify the unjustifiable. but can be approached for counsel, advice or interpretation of the obscure.
Chris Baker – Durham UK
If what you say is true, than the Worldwide Anglican Communion is nothing more than an weak association of independant national churches that share little more than a common origin (that being the Church of England). The four Instruments of Communion (the ArchBishop of Canterbury, the Lambeth Conferences, the Primates Meetings, and the Anglican Consultative Council) amount to nothing more that a bunch of busy bodies with no real authority over anything.
The fact that the Anglican Church of Canada has been able to totally ignore the 1998 Lambeth resolution I.10 and that the ABC has said and done nothing about it is evident of the fact that the ABC is not a leader within our Communion.
If there is to be any hope of the Worldwide Anglican Communion surviving, than the ABC by virtue of him being “the first among equals” must go public and make definate statements and be a leader. He is the one and only person who can do this. He does not, but instead allows the schism to continue. Consequently, when the WAC falls apart the blame will be mostly his.