NEWS of the ACA
Archbishop Falk's Christmas Message
25 December 2009 - Friday
“It was a cold, gray day near the end of December. The East Wind
was streaming through the bare branches of the trees, and seething
in the dark pines on the hills. As the cheerless shadows of the
early evening began to fall the Company made ready to set out.”
So wrote J.R.R. Tolkein in The Lord of the Rings as a small band set
off on a rescue mission for their entire world. They knew their task
would cost them dearly, but they had steeled themselves, and were
ready to begin.
Even so does Christmas come as a beginning. The angels’ song gave
glory to God in heaven, but peace on earth (reconciliation with God)
could come only with the completion of the work which he had come
into the world to accomplish. Much remained before that could
happen. Still to come were the long, hidden years of infancy and
youth, the brief tumult of the public proclamation of the Kingdom,
the preparation of the sometimes slow-learning Apostles, and the
agony of Gethsemane and Calvary yet to be endured. It would be a
long, hard road, now only just begun. It was still the “bleak
midwinter,” and not yet spring.
Yet – even in winter’s cold dusk – Christmas is a time of joy: the
“baptismal” kind of joy we feel when a beginning has been made, when
things have finally begun to move. At Christmas the angels appeared
to shepherds and sang the glory of God. They sang their praises of
his plan, made from the day of creation, now beginning to unfold.
The manger at Bethlehem, and our Christmas Communion, place us where
we need to be if we would be a part of that: on our knees in Jesus’
presence amid the humble squalor of his birth. From there he will
take us with him again each year, to walk that road which leads at
its end to his heavenly glory, where death and winter have no place.
The shepherds caught just a glimpse of that when the angels sang.
Perhaps just a glimpse is all that any of us can bear this early in
the healing process. We are not ready; we are only just wayfarers
still. But it was a true glimpse, a jubilant harbinger of the full
joy that will be ours at journey’s end.
A blessed and happy Christmastide to one and all.
+Louis Falk
Archbishop Falk's Letter to All the Faithful
22 November 2009 - Sunday Next Before Advent
To all the Faithful of the Anglican Church in America
Greeting:
The great Orthodox theologian John Meyendorff has been quoted as
remarking that genuine Christian unity would require humility on the
part of many, and charity on the part of all. I suggest that to
those two paramount Christian virtues we must add the more workaday
quality of patience. It took 450 years to raise all the questions
posed by the possibility of real and corporate unity between Roman
Catholics and Anglicans. We will not have all the answers in 450
minutes.
Yet with the publication of Pope Benedict XVI's Apostolic
Constitution, Anglicanorum coetibus
we do now have the possibility of addressing those issues directly
and in cooperation with each other. As most everyone knows by now,
the Bishops of the Traditional Anglican Communion, meeting in
October of 2007 in Portsmouth, England, addressed a petition to the
Holy See seeking to explore what would need to be done to achieve
full, visible unity while maintaining the best characteristics of
our beloved Anglican heritage. The Apostolic Constitution is meant
to provide an approach to just that question. It is an extremely
generous and pastoral document. Indeed, it explicitly addresses the
desirability of preserving our Anglican "...spiritual and liturgical
patrimony ..." intact and undamaged after the ravages of such as Jenkins, Spong, Robinson and Schori.
An initial set of Complementary Norms has been issued by the
Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, which will be discussed
in detail by representatives of that body and of the TAC College of
Bishops within the near future. We are now asking members of the ACA
(and other TAC provinces) to study the Norms and then pose such
question as may occur. (Some already have, such as: Question: Will
we be able to continue to have married priests indefinitely? Answer:
Yes. Question: Will those of us who were formerly Roman Catholics be
excluded from the Anglican Ordinariates? Answer: No. Question: Will
we loose control over our Church finances and property? Answer: No.)
There will be more. These can be sent to your own Bishop, and he
will see that they get to the appropriate TAC representatives. Your
concerns, as well as your thoughts and prayers, are an essential
element and a vital part of this process.
Bishop Langberg has remarked that library shelves around the
world are packed with books and papers on the topic of 'ecumenism.'
Up to now it's all been theory; but with respect to the world's
largest Communion of Christians, there has been no "test case" or
anything like it, trying to work out "how it will work" on the
ground. That opportunity has now been presented to us. In view of
our Lord's prayer (John 17) that all his followers might be one,
that
fact places upon us, and upon our Roman Catholic counterparts, a
very great responsibility along with the opportunity. The real-world
answer to that practical question will be worked out in real life
and in real time as we move forward.
This will require genuine good faith on all sides. That we come
in good faith can be seen from the "Portsmouth Letter." That our
Roman Catholic counterparts come likewise can be seen from Pope Benedict's unprecedented offer of a parallel structure for Anglican
Catholics, a "House of our own" (as it were) within the "compound of
Catholicity." Ecclesiastical life within the colony will evolve over
time as adjustments are made. We trusted each other enough to begin
our ecclesiastical journey together in the ACA with an original
canonical structure based on what we had known in the past. We have
adjusted that structure more than once as circumstances have shown the
wisdom of doing so. Christians of good will can and must continue
that process together in unity as Jesus commanded us to do. He
promised us the guidance of the Holy Spirit, and his promise remains
true.
Yours in Christ Jesus,
+Louis W. Falk
President: House of Bishops.
The Apostolic Constitution Released
Tuesday 10 November 2009
The Apostolic Constitution
Anglicanorum
coetibus providing for Personal
Ordinariates for Anglicans
Entering into Full Communion with the Catholic Church has been
released. Also released was the companion document
Complementary
Norms. Together they explain and define the Vatican
response to Anglican inquiries about communion with the Roman
Catholic Communion. See the links below to the Vatican web site.
Read further responses and news at the official Traditional
Anglican Communion
Journal Messenger including the Primate Archbishop John
Hepworth's comments.
Bishops Respond to Vatican Announcement
Tuesday 20 October 2009 - House of Bishops
The House of Bishops of the Anglican Church in America joins our
Primate, Archbishop John Hepworth, in welcoming with deep joy the
announcement of the preparation of an Apostolic Constitution to
provide for full, visible communion between orthodox Anglicans and
the Holy See. The House of Bishops wishes to express its
appreciation to the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith for
its painstaking work with respect to appropriate ecclesial
structures to enable this historic step towards unity in Christ in
accordance with Our Lord's high priestly prayer. We pledge our most
serious, prayerful reflection upon the cooperation and fervent
prayers in working to bring about this landmark and long-desired
outcome.
The House of Bishops
Anglican Church in America
Traditional Anglican Communion
Web Links to Official Statements
Chaplain Candidate Program
9 September 2009
If you are a ACA seminary student interested in serving your
country as a Military Chaplain, read the Chaplain Candidate Program
article by Bishop David Moyer on the
Military Chaplaincy Page.
Tour of Holy Land � Updated
Departure
DNE − 13 August
2009
Bishop Brian Marsh, the Ordinary of the Diocese
of the Northeast, will be leading a 10 day tour to the Holy
Land in 2010. It will leave
Tuesday, April 20th, 2010.
The basic cost is $2,498 (includes roundtrip airfare from
NYC, first class hotels, guided sightseeing, entrance fees to sites,
and daily breakfast and dinner) plus gratuities, taxes, and
administrative fees. This is a trip of a lifetime and will give
participants opportunities to literally walk where the prophets,
apostles, and Jesus walked.
The coordinator for this tour is Archdeacon Alan Koller,
(845) 496-2804 or akoller@frontiernet.net who has brochures for
distribution. Since final payment is due to the tour operator
(Educational Tours) by December 15th, it is important to register
with a $300 deposit as soon as possible. Small discounts are
available for early registrations. Logos House
credits will be given to postulants who sign up and complete an
academic paper.
Faithfully,
Archdeacon Alan Koller
Departure date updated September 3, 2009
House of Bishops & Executive Council
 The
House of Bishops and the Executive Council
will be meeting at Saint Malo Catholic Retreat,
Conference & Spiritual Center, Allenspark, CO (near Estes
Park) from August 31st through September 3rd.
New IAF Bookstore Address
Rochester, NH - 8 June 2009 - The Rev. Owen Williams
Trinity Anglican Church in Rochester New Hampshire is now hosting the
International Anglican Fellowship Bookstore. There is a new postal and
e-mail address which may be found on the
IAF
Bookstore page. Right now the Bookstore only accepts checks but you may
still use the Conway Anglican Pay-Pal account for on-line payment until Trinity
has set up a Pay-Pal account. If you have question please e-mail
IAFBooks@trinity-anglican.org.
House of Bishop Meeting
The Anglican Church in America House of Bishops meeting at the Monserrat Retreat
in Lake Dallas, Texas, have issued the following
statements concerning
gay marriage and Freedom and
the Freedom of Choice Act.
New DNE Website
April 5, 2009
The Diocese of the Northeast has a new website and webmaster. If you have
bookmarked the DNE website in your browser, you need to update it to read
http://www.acanedio.org.
The Rt. Rev. Brian R Marsh Installed as
Bishop
Ordinary of the Diocese of the Northeast
February 14, 2009 Rochester, NH
 The Right Rev.
Brian R. Marsh, Bishop of the Diocese of the Northeast, Anglican Church in
America, was formally installed as Bishop of the Diocese at a service at Holy
Trinity Anglican Church in Rochester, New Hampshire on February 14, 2009 at
11:00 AM. Bishop Langberg, the former Ordinary, remains Vice President of the
House of Bishops of the National Church and assists Bishop Marsh while he
attends University for an advanced degree. The Diocese encompasses the six New
England States and New York.
Click the
Address link for the text and pictures of the Installation and Enthronment.
Story updated 10 March 2009 at 1415 PDT
ACA Canons
January 13, 2009
After a short delay, the electronic version of the
Anglican Church in America Canons
(2002) are again available. Work is under way to bring them up to date based on
ammendments since the 2002 General Synod.
New Officers
January 1, 2009
Beginning January 1st, The Most Reverend Louis W. Falk assumes the office of The
President, The Right Reverend George Langberg, Vice-President, Mrs.
Judy Creel, Secretary and Ms. Carlotta Monnings, Treasurer of the House of
Bishops. Mr. Jim Elkins remains Chancellor.
Bishop Langberg has returned to University studying for a Master's Degree in
Ecumenical Relations and will retire as Ordinary of the Diocese of the North
East (DNE) on February 14th when The Right Reverend Brian Marsh, currently
Coadjutor, will become the Ordinary.
2009 Traditional Anglican Military Chaplains Conference
February 20, 2009-Daylesfort Abbey, Paoli, PA
The
Traditional Anglican Military Chaplain's Conference was held February 16-20th
at Daylesford Abbbey in Paoli, PA.
- It was a "Denominational Conference" type event that most
Active Duty chaplains attended as a Temporary Duty assignment (at government
expense) as part of their Donominational requirement for ongoing "Continuing
Education/Professional Development," etc.
- FACA (The Federation of Anglican Churches in the Americas) endorsed this
event and traditional Anglican Chaplains of all jurisdictions were invited and
encouraged to attend.
Additional Information
- Facts Regarding TAC's request for unity with Rome
- Marriage
- The ACA Web Pages have been updated so please report any missing or broken links
to the webmaster.
- 2008 Christmas Message
from The Rt. Rev. Daren K. Williams, DOW Ordinary
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The Anglican Church
All of our parishes and missions are orthodox and
sacramental, continuing in the teaching and fellowship of the apostles and in
the breaking of bread, which was established by Christ as the design for the
life of the Church. As faithful stewards of the Catholic Faith in the Anglican
tradition, our teaching and practice is based solely on the Holy Bible as
interpreted by the universally accepted Ecumenical Councils held by the whole
Christian Church before any divisions took place; and the traditional Book of
Common Prayer, which demonstrates both our Catholic Faith and Evangelical
witness.
Indeed the best way to understand our faith and practice is to
take a Bible, a copy of the historic Book of Common Prayer, and come and worship with us. The
center of our worship is the Holy Eucharist, also called Holy Communion, the
Mass, the Lord's Supper, and the Divine Liturgy. It is the only service recorded
in the New Testament as having been given us by Christ himself. You will find
that our liturgical worship involves the whole person - body, mind, and spirit,
allowing us to be active participants rather than mere listeners.
Who We Are
We are a continuing church body in the great Anglican Tradition
and part of the world-wide Traditional Anglican Communion.
continued...
Where We Stand
Follow this link
for more information about what the Anglican Church in America stands on current
issues.
For Inquirers
In the midst of the turbulent sea of the ever-changing world
around us, we stand on the Rock of Jesus Christ as He has been made known to us
in the teaching of the Holy Apostles, the Holy Church and the Holy Bible. We
offer you this firm foundation in order that you may have that peace which the
world cannot give; the peace of God, which passes man's understanding. More
information visit the web page of the Church in the area you live in and contact
by phone or e-mail one of the clergy or visit the Church.
The Churches link will
take you to this information.
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