Breakaway congregation recognition is blow to Canadian Church: CEN 5.09.08 p 6.

The Anglican Church of Canada’s united front against the breakaway congregations and clergy of the Anglican Network in Canada (ANiC) received a major blow last week after a diocesan synod voted to recognize the secessions.

“All of these churches have by their decisions stayed within the Anglican Communion,” the synod of the Diocese of Athabasca said on April 26, disputing assertions made by Bishop Michael Ingham of New Westminster and other Canadian bishops that by quitting the Canadian Church the secessionists were no longer Anglicans.

The Northern Alberta-based diocese adopted a series of resolutions affirming that it was in “full communion” with ANiC and its sponsor, the Province of the Southern Cone.

The diocese also expressed “its dismay” at the attempts by several bishops to respond to the secessions by turning to the civil courts. “By resorting to the civil courts so readily, the bishops of those dioceses where there are dissident parishes and clergy have displayed so visibly that, to them, the issue is power, not the will of God,” synod said, according to a statement posted on the diocesan website.

Archbishop John Clarke, metropolitan archbishop of Rupert’s Land, and Bishop of Athabasca stated the diocese’s intent was to remain “in communion with as wide a range of our brothers and sisters in Christ as is possible.”

The vote was not a step towards quitting the Canadian Church, he noted, writing “be assured that the Diocese of Athabasca is as deeply committed as ever to the Anglican Church of Canada and to the Anglican Communion.”

However, Archbishop Clarke criticized the push towards permitting same-sex blessings in the Canadian Church, expressing his disappointment with dioceses who abused the language of the church’s canons and prayer book to achieve their political ends.

“We believe that we are bound to adhere to the decisions of General Synod, not only in the letter but also in the spirit,” he said. “We understand the decision of General Synod 2007 not to endorse the right of dioceses to bless same-gender unions as meaning that it was the mind of General Synod that we should not proceed at this time.”