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The
Church of England!!!
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By Ruth Millington
Origins-
History
- The
Split with Rome in 1534 occurred as a result of King Henry VIII's desire to
divorce and remarry.
- Henry
had been married to Catherine of Aragon since 1509 and she had borne Henry
no male heir.
- Henry
was anxious to have a son, who would become King upon his death, so in order
to secure the
succession, Henry wanted to remarry. He had fallen in love with a young
courtier called Anne Boleyn.
- To
remarry Henry would need to get the permission of the pope who was the head
of the catholic church.
- Henry
quarreled with the pope as he was reluctant to allow the divorce.
- He
broke away from the R.C Church and said that he was now the head of the English
church, not the pope.
- He didn't
change any doctrine and so the church can be described as Anglo-Catholic at
this stage in history
- Under
Edward VI's reign, the church became protestant and Catholics were prosecuted.
- Queen
Mary, a devout catholic, made the church Roman Catholic again, with the pope
as its head
- Under
Elizabeth I reign, they church of England was protestant and remained so
with some elements of the R.C church. She called her self the "governor"
rather than head.
Rowan
Williamson
(the head of the church of England)
(Archbishop of
Canterbury)
Organization-
structure of the church
-
 The
clergy of the church are of three ancient orders: deacons, priests, and
bishops.
- Except
for the celebration of the mass and giving absolution, deacons have the same
clerical functions as priests.
- Only the
bishop can ordain, confirm, and consecrate churches. A bishop is given
consecration at the hands of other bishops.
- There are
two archbishoprics, Canterbury and York, with the Archbishop of Canterbury
taking precedence over the Archbishop of York.
- The
church is established, and all Episcopal appointments are still made by the
crown; however, the clergy are not paid by the state.
- Women
have been ordained as deacons since 1987 and as priests since 1994, and in
2005 the church voted to initiate the process that would remove the
obstacles in church law to consecrating women as bishops.
- Homosexuality
is not a bar to ordination, but being in a homosexual relationship is.
Dr
Rowan Williams with Bishop Riah during his visit to Jerusalem
Central Beliefs - Worship
The
beliefs of Anglicans can be considered quite diverse. The official standard is
the Book of Common Prayer
but some parts of that book are more clearly doctrinal than others. The
ecumenical creeds, both Nicene
and Apostles, are
used by the Anglican Communion in its worship day by day and week by week. They
are ancient and universal statements of Christian faith. In addition, many
Anglican churches follow ancient tradition and include the Athanasian
Creed among their statements of faith. In modern Anglican churches, a bay or
corner at the back of the church, near the entrance, is often reserved for
purposes of infant baptism. A font is often used for infant baptism. It symbolizes
a Christian’s entry into the Church. In traditional Roman Catholic and
Anglican churches, the altar will usually be covered with a richly embroidered
cloth . A cross and candlesticks with candles will usually stand on the altar.
The altar is the focal point of the church because it is a table, which
represents the table of the Last Supper. For Roman Catholics and Anglicans the
Mass (Eucharist, Holy Communion), which recalls the Last Supper, is very
important and is central to worship. The crucifix is a cross with the figure of
Jesus on it. The crucifix is usually used to portray the agony Jesus suffered
when he died. Crucifixes are particularly associated with the Roman Catholic
Church, Anglican and the Orthodox churches
Rowan
Williamson
(the head of the Anglican church)
(Archbishop of Canterbury)
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