An Introduction to World Anglicanism
by Bruce Kaye
Paperback
Price: £15.99
Publisher:Cambridge University Press (CUP )
Published:19 June 2008
ISBN:978-0-521-61866-3
GoodBookStall Review:
This is a curious book in which the author appears more like an editor of a collection of articles, some of which are more digestible than others. Apart from a few minor typos, the text is well presented. The historical survey is clear, interesting and comprehensive, beginning with the very dawn of Christianity in these islands rather than the reformation era, thus stressing the catholicity and continuity of Ecclesia Anglicana. Towards the end, however, despite the rather dynamic and exciting image of the front cover, the picture of the modern Church tends to get bogged down in reports and institutional concerns which reflect a top-down, inside-out approach, light years away from where most Anglicans are, even when surveying the current obsession with the Ordination of Women and Homosexuality.
There is a lot of talk about fragmentation within global post-colonial Anglicanism. Variations of practice, and changing ideas of mission, liturgy, ecumenism, organization and ministry. In the area of belief, there are developments about the nature of authority In the Church, and the origins of knowledge. The future is perhaps the least satisfactory section, pessimistic and thin as it is.
The enormous increase in the Global South has brought its own problems since the missions have tended to be Evangelical, Pentecostal and Conservative and sometimes only loosely aware of the character of the Anglican Tradition (e.g. Diocese of Sydney). “Episcopacy locally adapted” can frequently be modelled on Male Tribal Chieftainship. Within the Communion, however, the position of the Laity has dramatically developed. About 50% of Provinces now ordain women but Homosexuality remains a criminal offence in many African countries. Missions from South to North now abound which help neither cause especially when launched acrimoniously. At the time of writing, there seems to be a mutual stand off, but there do not seem to be management structures for conflict resolution. Power can often be used to promote one point of view. But centralised government remains not an Anglican option. The Holy Spirit must always have the freedom to change, and the Church must remain fallible and contingent. Perhaps the Orthodox are a more appropriate model than Rome. If there has to be a way out of our current difficulties then parallel jurisdiction is less of an anomaly than schism, or maybe something of the South African Truth and Reconciliation Commission. Nevertheless, Pilgrims always make mistakes!
Reviewer: John Methuen (08/10/09)
This is a curious book in which the author appears more like an editor of a collection of articles, some of which are more digestible than others. Apart from a few minor typos, the text is well presented. The historical survey is clear, interesting and comprehensive, beginning with the very dawn of Christianity in these islands rather than the reformation era, thus stressing the catholicity and continuity of Ecclesia Anglicana. Towards the end, however, despite the rather dynamic and exciting image of the front cover, the picture of the modern Church tends to get bogged down in reports and institutional concerns which reflect a top-down, inside-out approach, light years away from where most Anglicans are, even when surveying the current obsession with the Ordination of Women and Homosexuality.
There is a lot of talk about fragmentation within global post-colonial Anglicanism. Variations of practice, and changing ideas of mission, liturgy, ecumenism, organization and ministry. In the area of belief, there are developments about the nature of authority In the Church, and the origins of knowledge. The future is perhaps the least satisfactory section, pessimistic and thin as it is.
The enormous increase in the Global South has brought its own problems since the missions have tended to be Evangelical, Pentecostal and Conservative and sometimes only loosely aware of the character of the Anglican Tradition (e.g. Diocese of Sydney). “Episcopacy locally adapted” can frequently be modelled on Male Tribal Chieftainship. Within the Communion, however, the position of the Laity has dramatically developed. About 50% of Provinces now ordain women but Homosexuality remains a criminal offence in many African countries. Missions from South to North now abound which help neither cause especially when launched acrimoniously. At the time of writing, there seems to be a mutual stand off, but there do not seem to be management structures for conflict resolution. Power can often be used to promote one point of view. But centralised government remains not an Anglican option. The Holy Spirit must always have the freedom to change, and the Church must remain fallible and contingent. Perhaps the Orthodox are a more appropriate model than Rome. If there has to be a way out of our current difficulties then parallel jurisdiction is less of an anomaly than schism, or maybe something of the South African Truth and Reconciliation Commission. Nevertheless, Pilgrims always make mistakes!
Reviewer: John Methuen (08/10/09)
