Anglican Catholic Church of Canada
Encyclopedia
The Anglican Catholic Church of Canada (ACCC) is an Anglican church that was founded in the 1970s by conservative
Anglicans.
, after the ACC and the Anglican Church in North America.
The Anglican Catholic Church of Canada is a product of the Congress of St. Louis
which created the Continuing Anglican Movement
with the signing of the Affirmation of St. Louis
. It is a founding member of the Traditional Anglican Communion
(TAC), represented in the United States by the Anglican Church in America.
(ACC) to confer priestly ordination upon women and to make liturgical reforms that would evolve into the Book of Alternative Services
.
The ACCC continues to maintain an all-male clergy and recently has criticised what it considers to be the parent church's increasing acceptance of homosexuality
. The Church uses exclusively the 1962 Book of Common Prayer
and rejects the possibility of remarriage after divorce.
throughout Canada. Although most ACCC congregations are small, the church had experienced steady growth until 2008, especially in Alberta
and the Atlantic provinces . The current bishop of the Anglican Catholic Church of Canada is the Right Reverend Peter Wilkinson of Victoria, British Columbia
.
, assisted by the Diocesan and Metropolitan, Bishop Peter Wilkinson and retired Bishop Robert Mercer
, CR.
and states that it has no doctrinal differences with Rome sufficient to prevent the success of this proposal. In October 2009, the ACCC welcomed an initiative from Pope Benedict XVI to create personal ordinariate
s for disaffected traditionalist Anglicans. On March 12, 2010, the ACCC formally requested the erection of an ordinariate in Canada. As listed on the church's official website, the number of parishes belonging to the ACCC fell from 42 to 30 in the six months following the request for an ordinariate in Canada.
Conservatism
Conservatism is a political and social philosophy that promotes the maintenance of traditional institutions and supports, at the most, minimal and gradual change in society. Some conservatives seek to preserve things as they are, emphasizing stability and continuity, while others oppose modernism...
Anglicans.
Affiliation
With 30 congregations in Canada, the ACCC is the third-largest of the Anglican churches in CanadaCanada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, after the ACC and the Anglican Church in North America.
The Anglican Catholic Church of Canada is a product of the Congress of St. Louis
Congress of St. Louis
The 1977 Congress of St. Louis was an international gathering of nearly 2,000 Anglicans united in their rejection of theological changes introduced by the Anglican Church of Canada and by the Episcopal Church in the United States of America in its General Convention of 1976...
which created the Continuing Anglican Movement
Continuing Anglican Movement
The term Continuing Anglican movement refers to a number of churches in various countries that have been formed outside of the Anglican Communion. These churches generally believe that "traditional" forms of Anglican faith and worship have been unacceptably revised or abandoned within some...
with the signing of the Affirmation of St. Louis
Affirmation of St. Louis
The Affirmation of St. Louis is the founding document of the Continuing Anglican Movement churches. It was first presented to the Congress of Saint Louis, the 1977 meeting of former members of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America and the Anglican Church of Canada who approved the...
. It is a founding member of the Traditional Anglican Communion
Traditional Anglican Communion
The Traditional Anglican Communion is an international communion of churches in the continuing Anglican movement independent of the Anglican Communion and the Archbishop of Canterbury. The TAC upholds the theological doctrines of the Affirmation of St. Louis and an Anglo-Catholic interpretation of...
(TAC), represented in the United States by the Anglican Church in America.
Traditional worship and morals
The founding members of the Anglican Catholic Church of Canada were dissatisfied with decisions made by the Anglican Church of CanadaAnglican Church of Canada
The Anglican Church of Canada is the Province of the Anglican Communion in Canada. The official French name is l'Église Anglicane du Canada. The ACC is the third largest church in Canada after the Roman Catholic Church and the United Church of Canada, consisting of 800,000 registered members...
(ACC) to confer priestly ordination upon women and to make liturgical reforms that would evolve into the Book of Alternative Services
Book of Alternative Services
The Book of Alternative Services is the contemporary, inclusive-language liturgical book used alongside the Book of Common Prayer in most parishes of the Anglican Church of Canada...
.
The ACCC continues to maintain an all-male clergy and recently has criticised what it considers to be the parent church's increasing acceptance of homosexuality
Anglican views of homosexuality
Since the 1990s, the Anglican Communion has struggled with controversy regarding homosexuality in the church. In 1998, the 13th Lambeth Conference of Anglican bishops passed a resolution stating that homosexual acts are "incompatible with Scripture". In 2002, the Diocese of New Westminster, in the...
. The Church uses exclusively the 1962 Book of Common Prayer
Book of Common Prayer
The Book of Common Prayer is the short title of a number of related prayer books used in the Anglican Communion, as well as by the Continuing Anglican, "Anglican realignment" and other Anglican churches. The original book, published in 1549 , in the reign of Edward VI, was a product of the English...
and rejects the possibility of remarriage after divorce.
Structure
The ACCC has parishes and missionsMission (station)
A religious mission or mission station is a location for missionary work.While primarily a Christian term, the concept of the religious "mission" is also used prominently by the Church of Scientology and their Scientology Missions International....
throughout Canada. Although most ACCC congregations are small, the church had experienced steady growth until 2008, especially in Alberta
Alberta
Alberta is a province of Canada. It had an estimated population of 3.7 million in 2010 making it the most populous of Canada's three prairie provinces...
and the Atlantic provinces . The current bishop of the Anglican Catholic Church of Canada is the Right Reverend Peter Wilkinson of Victoria, British Columbia
Victoria, British Columbia
Victoria is the capital city of British Columbia, Canada and is located on the southern tip of Vancouver Island off Canada's Pacific coast. The city has a population of about 78,000 within the metropolitan area of Greater Victoria, which has a population of 360,063, the 15th most populous Canadian...
.
2007 consecrations
On January 27, 2007 two suffragan bishops, the Right Reverend Craig Botterill and the Right Reverend Carl Reid, were consecrated by the Primate of the Traditional Anglican Communion, Archbishop John HepworthJohn Hepworth
John Anthony Hepworth is an Australian bishop. He is currently the primate and archbishop of the Traditional Anglican Communion, an international body of continuing Anglican churches. He is also the ordinary of the Anglican Catholic Church in Australia.Hepworth began his seminary studies in 1960...
, assisted by the Diocesan and Metropolitan, Bishop Peter Wilkinson and retired Bishop Robert Mercer
Robert William Stanley Mercer
Robert William Stanley Mercer CR was the fourth Bishop of Matabeleland.Born on 10 January 1935, he was educated at Grey School, Port Elizabeth and St Paul's Theological College, Grahamstown. Ordained as a deacon in 1959 and as a priest a year later, his first post was as a curate at Hillside,...
, CR.
Proposed ordinariate within the Roman Catholic Church
The TAC is currently discussing a form of union with the Roman Catholic ChurchRoman Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...
and states that it has no doctrinal differences with Rome sufficient to prevent the success of this proposal. In October 2009, the ACCC welcomed an initiative from Pope Benedict XVI to create personal ordinariate
Personal Ordinariate
A personal ordinariate is a canonical structure within the Catholic Church enabling former Anglicans to maintain some degree of corporate identity and autonomy with regard to the bishops of the geographical dioceses of the Catholic Church and to preserve elements of their distinctive Anglican...
s for disaffected traditionalist Anglicans. On March 12, 2010, the ACCC formally requested the erection of an ordinariate in Canada. As listed on the church's official website, the number of parishes belonging to the ACCC fell from 42 to 30 in the six months following the request for an ordinariate in Canada.