Report On ACC-4 Released
Episcopal News Service. July 19, 1979 [79234]
London -- The Anglican Church has reached a second and formative stage, according to the Report of the fourth meeting of the Anglican Consultative Council which was released in London on July 2.
The ACC, which represents about 65 million Anglicans in 27 provinces throughout the world, met at Huron College, Ontario, Canada, May 8-18. In the U.S., the three-million member Episcopal Church is one of the 27 autonomous provinces.
The Report, a book of 87 pages, to be distributed worldwide by London Publishers SPCK, says that during the Anglican Church's first stage Anglicanism spread throughout the world principally due to the initiative of the Church of England.
And for the most part Anglicans worldwide looked to the Church of England for leadership. In recent years, however, many "mission fields" have become autonomous provinces with local rather than expatriate leaders. This has led to a second stage where, according to the Report, "daughters have become members in one world family."
"In the past the Church of England has been the norm," ACC Secretary General Bishop John Howe told a press conference. "Today our norm is the universal Church throughout all the ages."
The fourth meeting of the ACC, he said, was universal in tone. "And this is the likely line of future development. "
One of the evidences of growing maturity was that at a Council which brought together people of all kinds and colors "disputes about churchmanship did not at any time arise."
What was evident, he said, was a concern to deal with contemporary issues in a strategic way in the light of the Gospel and the life of the Church as Anglicans understood it.
For example, the Council has asked each province of the Anglican Communion to think through its priorities for mission during the next five years.
In the section on Mission the Report identifies three contemporary challenges for Anglicans: China, the revival of Islam, and Urbanization.
On China the Council noted what appears to be a change in attitude to other nations and religions, but was concerned to warn against "misguided enthusiasm" by Christians in the event of contact with the Church in China being restored. It called for ecumenical consultation on this matter.
On Islam it noted the need to discover in depth "the common theological factors with Islam, recognizing that such factors are basic for responsible dialogue and interaction."
On Urbanization it noted the rapid growth of cities and towns over the past three decades and accompanying problems such as deviant youth culture, unemployment, marriage breakdown and poverty. The Report asserts that "the Church should not only be pre-occupied with alleviating symptoms of spiritual malaise... but should address itself to the basic cause of them."
The Report also gives an account of ecumenical dialogue between Anglicans and other churches, and notes new initiatives between Anglicans and the World Alliance of Reformed Churches.
Asked what he meant in a recent statement that the ecumenical movement had "reached a dangerous stage," the Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr. Donald Coggan, who was also present, said he feared that too many people were content merely with inter-Church cooperation in welfare work with limited forms of ecumenical worship.
"We cannot be content until we enter full intercommunion," he said.
Bishop Howe said that one of the problems facing the Roman Catholic and Anglican Churches is that phenomena such as Agreed Statements represented a new experience for both Churches. "The issue is, where do we go to from here. "
The Archbishop foreshadowed a new Commission whose work would be to build on the achievements of the three Agreed Statements and to undertake discussion on a range of new subjects.