Posted on 03/15/2013 5:43:01 AM PDT by haffast
The new Pope has reportedly said the Church universal needs Anglicans and that the Ordinariate is "quite unnecessary".
In a note released after the election of the first ever pontiff from Latin America, the Anglican Bishop of Argentina and former Primate of the Anglican Church of the Southern Cone, the Rt Revd Greg Venables said Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio was "an inspired choice".
"Many are asking me what is really like. He is much more of a Christian, Christ centered and Spirit filled, than a mere churchman. He believes the Bible as it is written.
"I have been with him on many occasions and he always makes me sit next to him and invariably makes me take part and often do what he as Cardinal should have done. He is consistently humble and wise, outstandingly gifted yet a common man. He is no fool and speaks out very quietly yet clearly when necessary."
Bp Venables added that in a conversation with Cardinal Bergoglio, now Pope Francis, the latter made it clear that he values the place of Anglicans in the Church universal.
"He called me to have breakfast with him one morning and told me very clearly that the Ordinariate was quite unnecessary and that the Church needs us as Anglicans.
The former Primate of the Anglican Communion's Iglesia Anglicana del Cono Sur de America added, "I consider this to be an inspired appointment not because he is a close and personal friend, but because of who he is In Christ. Pray for him."
ENDS
I haven't studied up on it all that much, but as I understand it, the Ordinariate sets up a structure that groups of Anglicans/Episcopalians can join as whole churches or groups of churches rather than as individuals, and appoints bishops to shepherd those churches.
The groupings are not related to geography (other than at the parish level). Several whole parishes with their priests and deacons have joined communion with Rome, and in at least a couple of cases, I think bishops have come in and brought several churches with them.
I'm sure there are a lot of details and bureaucratic stuff that has to happen, but I think that is the general gist of it.
The ordinariate retains a slightly modified "Book of Common Prayer" (doctrinal errors purged) and Anglican hymnody.
Individual Anglicans still have to go the standard RCIA route. I suspect far more convert that way than via the ordinariate.
Thanks Warthog! Much appreciated. I’m weak on the minutia of rulz as a rule so the gist is exactly what I needed.
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