Why is there a DUK?

The Anglican Catholic Diocese of the United Kingdom has existed for thirty years now. For such a small church which has seen much upheaval in those thirty years, it is an example of God’s grace that we are still here. But why are we here?

There have been several occasions now in which I have been asked why the Anglican Catholic Church needs a Diocese in the United Kingdom. I am often pointed to the existence of the Free Church of England, the Anglican Ordinariate and the Society of St Wilfred and St Hilda (hereafter known as The Society) within the Church of England.

With the greatest respect to the Free Church of England, their original existence came about as a protest against the growing Ritualism within the Church of England which developed into the Anglo-Catholic Movement. Since the Anglican Catholic Church shares its heritage with the Anglo-Catholics of the nineteenth century to the extent that, through following the Affirmation of St Louis, we hold to the authority of the Early Church of the First Millennium over the Protestant doctrine of the Book of Common Prayer, it would be somewhat of a discourtesy for us Anglican Catholics to insist that the FCE do the same. This obviously does not prevent any respect and openness to discussion between the ACC and the FCE but such a discussion would have to be mindful of the differences between the classical Anglican Formularies and the Affirmation of St Louis.

With the greatest respect to the members of the Anglican Ordinariate, the fact of the matter is that, insofar as they accept the doctrines of the Universal Jurisdiction of the Pope, his infallibility and the invalidity of Anglican Orders, they are de facto Roman Catholics who use a version of the Anglican Liturgy conformed to the Roman Catholic standards. While this may preserve the ethos of being Anglican, we believe that this hides the actual Romanism which, in the same way as the Eastern Orthodox Church, we cannot share. This is not to say that we cannot be congenial and respectful of our brothers and sisters who have taken advantage of the late Pope Benedict’s generous offer.

With the greatest respect to the Society, we simply cannot be in communion with the Church of England. First, in administering the sacraments, every priest must intend to do what the Church has always intended to do. Given that the Society is part of the Church of England and the Church of England intends to equate male and female priests contrary to Catholic teaching, by being in communion with the Church of England, any clergyman is accepting the intention of that Church as his own. Crossing his fingers and saying, “I’m intending to do what the Catholic Church has always done” isn’t enough because by remaining in communion with the CofE is tacitly affirming the CofE’s intention which is not Catholic. While this does not  render all sacraments invalid, it does render the CofE schismatic from the Catholic Church she was part of until she altered the sacraments. Until the Society does indeed leave the communion of the CofE, we cannot be in communion for then we would be suffering from the same defect of intention and acceptance of schismatic theology. Further, it is also important to know that in the recent vote in General Synod to approve the form of blessing of a couple of the same sex, Bishop Warner of Chichester voted for the approval while Bishop North abstained. The Bishops of the Society have issued the statement here. While the Synod stated clearly that marriage is between one man and one woman, the approval of blessing that which cannot be blessed again raises the question of whether the Society intends to do what the Catholic Church has always done or whether it intends to do what the CofE authorises. Of course, we aim to be on good terms with the Society and its members and wish them to have the space to flourish in the direction that the feel called. Given that we have been personae non gratae at the Shrine of Walsingham , it is clear that we need to learn to understand each other better.

Our Diocese has formed, like the rest of the ACC, in response to the alteration to the sacraments by the Church of England. Since then, we have discovered that we do have a robust expression of truly Catholic theology that has come about throughout our history and association with the Orthodox Church, Roman Catholic Church and the Church of England. I hope soon to be publishing further material which demonstrates that theology, why we hold it, and why it is a natural expression of proper Anglican Catholicism in the British Isle. Do please check out The Meaning of Anglican Catholicism in which I begin charting this theology.

Nonetheless, the FCE, the Ordinariate and the Society have my prayers, fraternal greetings and good wishes as they follow the Way, Truth and Life.

Unveiling the Passion

 

Why do we veil the crosses, ikons and statues in Passiontide?

Continuing Levites

Sermon for Passion Sunday

Is the Old Testament priesthood

the same as the New Testament priesthood?

You've probably not even

thought about that.

Why would you?

 It's not exactly something that

crops up in our usual experience

of going to church.

We go to Church 

and worship with our priest

and we assume that

he is part of the New Testament

just like us.

There is a very clear priesthood

in the Old Testament,

indeed the Book of Leviticus

is a book about priesthood.

The tribe of Levi

in the Old Testament

is set apart from the other tribes.

Levites aren’t given

any land when they

cross the Jordan.

The Levites are told

that they are to

live in and amongst

the other tribes of Israel.

Wherever the tribes go,

there is always a presence

of the Levites,

these priests of the Old Testament.

Why was it that

the Levites were not

given any land?

Well you can see the answer.

Practically,

the Levite priests were present

in every community

so that they could offer

the sacrifices on behalf of the people

with whom they were living.

It's no different from

your parish priest

living in a Vicarage

in the local community.

So they could not be given

any land of their own

because they needed to be

in the community of others.

Already we begin to see

that there are some parallels

between Old Testament priesthood

and New Testament priesthood.

Old Testament

and New Testament are united

in Christ,

 and He is the reason

why the priesthoods are

essentially the same

but different in practice.

[PAUSE]

Our Lord Jesus Christ

is the High Priest

of the new covenant.

This doesn't mean

that the old covenant is worthless,

but rather it is fulfilled in Christ.

All covenants are sealed in blood.

While we cannot 

pour out our blood

to seal our covenant with God

and live,

we need another to do it for us.

In the Old Testament,

this is why 

the Israelites sacrifice animals.

The Old Testament priests

sacrifice and pour

the blood of the victim 

upon the altar.

This blood cleanses

the flesh of Israel

but, as our Lord shows us,

this is not enough 

to cleanse our souls.

We need better blood.

That blood is supplied

by Christ Himself 

up on the cross.

Jesus takes away our sins

upon the cross

not by becoming a sinner

in our place,

not by being punished

instead of us,

but by offering up Himself

as a sacrifice 

which takes away our sin.

The blood of bulls and goats

cannot free us from our sin

but the blood of Christ can

because it seals 

the covenant perfectly

So our Lord offers Himself

in that one perfect sacrifice

for all the sins of every human being

who has ever existed.

The blood of the animals

sacrificed upon the altar

in the Old Testament priesthood

is soon identified

with the blood of Christ

so that it can be a sacrifice

for the Israelites

completed upon the Cross.

For us of the New Testament,

we have no need

to slaughter animals any longer

because our Lord Jesus Christ

has given His life for us

and His blood is shed for us,

and is poured out

across time and space

to be available for us all.

This blood is now found

under the appearance of wine

in the Mass.

It is the same blood of eternity

which gives us life,

cleanses us from our sins

and begins to course

through our veins.

This is why

we offer the sacrifice

of the Mass.

It isn't that

we are sacrificing

our Lord Jesus Christ anew

– that would be heresy.

When we offer up

the sacrifice of the Mass,

 it is Christ Himself

through the Church

who unites us to

His one perfect sacrifice.

His sacrifice has a root in time,

namely at his crucifixion,

but it stretches throughout all ages

so that all may have opportunity

to receive the salvation promised.

We are united in Christ

at the Mass from its beginning

to its end.

This is why it is

the great sacrament

because what we see in time

is part of what is in Eternity.

The actions of

the priest in our sight

are fundamentally connected with

the actions of Christ

in His priesthood.

This is the character

of ordination

in which each priest

is given the grace

to be a reflection of Christ

in His priesthood.

[PAUSE]

This should give us

some great comfort.

The New Testament priesthood

is united with the Old Testament priesthood

through Christ,

and we can be assured that

we have communion

with all who receive

the body and blood of Christ

regardless of the century,

regardless of location.

The church is

a continuation

of the chosen people Israel.

We are united

through the blood of Christ.

This is why the priesthood

in the Old Testament

and the priesthood 

in the New Testament

marry up

and why priesthood is vital

for the lifeblood of the Church

to flow throughout all times and all places.

Our Lord Jesus Christ

as both priest and victim

gives us all His blood,

and in His blood,

His life.

We can be assured of this

and that

when we come up to the altar

to receive the Body and Blood of Christ

that is indeed

what we receive.

We are united with him

whether we feel that or not.

[PAUSE]

When we see

the priest of the Old Testament

we should think about

how their ministry continues

into the New

and how Our Lord Jesus Christ

fufills the old and continues it

into the new.

Let us therefore drink deeply

as we enter the last two weeks

of the earthly ministry of our Lord

and see His Eternal priesthood

complete one and begin another.

A reminder of the dangers of Kripkean Dogmatism

An extract from my upcoming text on Anglican Catholic Moral Theology:

"Kripkean Dogmatism is the state in which a dogma is held to be true to the extent that evidence to the contrary is automatically rejected and all evidence to the affirmative is assimilated. Kripkean Dogmatism may be shown to be inherently irrational as follows. Any dogma is founded on a particular body of evidence. If that particular body of evidence is complete, then one may rightly and justifiably hold to that dogma since there is no new evidence that can alter the decision. If, however, the body of evidence is incomplete, then the Kripkean Dogmatist is assuming the dogma to be certainly true based on the incomplete evidence that he has. There is, therefore, an absolute conclusion based upon non-absolute warrant and/or non-absolute data which leads to the acceptance only of evidence for the dogma and that produces an unsound argument. Hence, Kripkean Dogmatism is not a rational position."

This makes it all the more important to understand the reasons why we discard the bodies of evidence that we do. The Revisionist and Biblical Eisegete are prime examples of Kripkean Dogmatists in that they already have agenda external to the authority of the Catholic Principles. Individuals who claim absolute irrefutability thus are not using Reason rightly.

The binding of Benedict

 

How St Benedict and his rule are relevant for us today.

Why I am not a Universalist

I have recently updated and will continue to update my understanding on this issue. I have therefore made this post into a "page" which can be found on the sidebar or here.

Fattening up for a rest

Sermon for the fourth Sunday in Lent

Which day of Creation are we in?

You know 

that first chapter 

of Genesis. 

God creates the world 

in six days 

and rests on the seventh.

So which day are we in?

[PAUSE]

If you believe that 

this first chapter of Genesis 

means that the universe 

really was created 

in six periods of twenty-four hours, 

then the question seems silly 

as there are over a million days 

since the creation.

It's true that the universe 

could have been created in that way, 

but that's not really what 

the Biblical account of Creation is for, 

nor does the Bible say that 

it has to be that way.

Which day are we in?

You might say the seventh.

We don't see God 

active in the world, 

so He must be resting. 

No new animals 

are springing into being 

before our very eyes, 

are they?

In fact, 

we are seeing animals 

change and evolve all the time. 

From this point of view, 

Creation is still happening. 

Are we really in the sixth day?

[PAUSE]

And then there is evidence 

from the Lord Himself. 

Five barley loaves 

and two small fish.

Five thousand men, 

not counting women and children.

Twelve baskets of leftovers.

Do the maths!

We see God Himself 

create Woman from one single rib 

from the side of Man.

This is how we know 

that Jesus is God.

Only God can create, 

and here, in front of our very eyes, 

Our Lord doesn't bake bread -

He creates bread.

It's interesting to note 

that the Hebrew word for creating 

also means to make fat. 

When He creates, 

God makes things substantial. 

Our bodies are fleshed out 

by His act of creation.

You see this happening 

before your eyes 

as five loaves and two fish 

are fleshed out, 

made substantial, 

Forming a banquet 

to fatten the hungry multitude.

God, Our Lord Jesus Christ, 

is creating in front of 

five thousand men. 

This is indeed a miracle, 

but only one that 

can be performed by someone 

with a control over matter 

that is unparalleled.

So we must be in the sixth day.

[PAUSE]

This means that the seventh day i

s yet to come. 

The Eternal rest of God 

when Creation is complete, 

when Creation is perfect. 

Are you perfect? No?

Then you are still being created!

And God, being Love, 

does not insist on His own way. 

This means that 

you have a hand 

in your own creation. 

You can choose how you turn out. 

This is God's gift of free-will to us all!

Do you understand that?

You play an active part in your creation.

 What you choose to do 

will and does 

affect who you become. 

It means that someone 

can reject God's destiny for her 

by preferring her idea of perfection 

instead of His. 

That separates her from God 

because she prefers 

to err from His way.

And God says of those 

who err in their hearts 

and who do not know His ways 

that they shall not enter His rest.

[PAUSE]

In feeding us, 

God is fattening us up for His rest. 

He gives us His substance, 

our daily bread, 

so that when the sixth day is over, 

we are complete perfected in Him, 

and fitted for Heaven to live with Him there. 

Only then can 

we behold the face of God and live, 

truly live.

A little topical reading

I thoroughly recommend this, especially in the light of recent discussions as to what traditional Christianity teaches on this important matter.

Liturgy, St Benedict and Anglican Catholicism

 

Contrary to the thinking of some Anglican priests, Liturgy really does matter.

It's a shame about the light

Sermon for the third Sunday in Lent

From the beginning

there have always been

darkness and light.

Of course,

darkness is the absence of light

and so it really isn't a thing.

We only notice a hole

because there's something missing.

We only notice the dark

because the light is missing.

But nonetheless

darkness and light

have been part of man's existence

from his very beginning.

Even being born

we emerge from darkness into light.

The baby’s little eyes

are dazzled by a new sensation

which it has only been 

very dimly aware of

for the past nine months.

Suddenly that little baby

gets a flood

of dazzling, bewildering

and conflicting information.

No wonder she cries!

So begins her life.

Every day follows every night,

and every night follows every day.

Darkness and light

around us at all times.

So why is there darkness?

[PAUSE]

We see things

because there is a variation

in light, colour and shade.

We understand

the world around us

by the light that gets reflected

from objects into our eyes.

The light that gets reflected

has a lot of different

colours and hues.

So perhaps

there doesn't have

to be darkness at all.

Why is there darkness?

As you can imagine 

it all goes back to the Fall.

We ate the fruit

of the knowledge

of good and evil.

We opened our eyes to darkness,

and so what we see

in the world around us

is a reminder that there we are fallen.

The night is lovely,

but only because

there are the stars shining

and the moon shining

and the little lights

of the houses on 

the opposite side of the valley

shining in the night.

If it were true darkness

there would be nothing to see.

It is the light that

we are drawn to

not darkness

in which we hide

our fallenness

and brokenness

and our failure 

to resist temptation.

[PAUSE]

We see both Saint Paul

and Our Lord urging us 

into the light.

Our Lord does battle with darkness.

First He does battle

with the more obvious 

forces of darkness.

In casting out a demon,

He shows that He has 

complete mastery

over the strong powers 

of the Devil.

He casts out Beelzebub

by pure beams of His light.

But there are other agents of darkness

that are more difficult to get rid of.

This is the darkness 

in the hearts of men.

This is the darkness

that tries to be light

by claiming that 

what we see as light

is true darkness.

They say that 

Our Lord is in darkness

through their own light.

But that is a big problem 

with their thinking.

[PAUSE]

How do we get rid of darkness?

We don't chase the darkness

out of the room

before we turn the light on.

That doesn't make any sense.

In the same way,

we cannot get rid of evil

by chasing it out of a human being

and then putting the good in.

You can only get rid of darkness with light.

You can only get rid of evil with good.

So if Beelzebub is evil

he can only be removed

by what is good.

So to say that Jesus’ power

comes from Beelzebub

doesn't make sense.

How can  Beelzebub cast out by Beelzebub?

How can you chase

the dark out of the room

without turning the light on?

How can you chase 

the dark out of the room

by making it darker?

Of course,

it could be a trick!

Beelzebub could pretend

to cast out Beelzebub couldn't he?

But why?

To deceive more people?

To deceive people

by restoring their sight ,

giving them hope,

even sacrificing his life

in the cruellest,

most painful death on the cross?

It's a funny sort of devil

that wreaks havoc

by forgiving sins,

healing the sick

and offering us salvation.

No!

This is no trick.

Jesus is the purest light from heaven;

He is the True Light;

He is the Light of the World

and by Him

we see the truth

that we do not have

to live in the darkness 

of our fallen nature.

Saint Paul recognises this.

This is why he urges us

to be children of light

and to walk in that light.

He reminds us that

we must not have fellowship

with the unfruitful works of darkness

but rather reprove them.

He says that it should be

shameful for us even to think

about the works of darkness

because we are children of light.

In the light all 

our shameful deeds 

will be revealed.

It is those things that we do

that we want to remain hidden

that form our works of darkness.

St Paul lists some of these:

fornication,

uncleanness,

covetousness,

filthiness,

foolish-talking,

coarse laughter.

These old things which,

if people knew 

we were committing them,

we would blush 

and be ashamed.

But the Lord sees them

because He is the light

and it is revealed to Him:

the Dirty joke,

the snide comment,

the thoughts of anger and malice

which darken our minds.

Anything that we want to hide

will be found out by God.

Adam tries to hide his nakedness 

and God sees.

[PAUSE]

This sounds very unsettling.

Every day

we do something

that we are ashamed of

and would wish to hide

in the darkness in our souls.

Even in Lent,

when we try to be better people,

those darknesses are still there.

We can expose them in Confession

and be assured of God’s forgiveness.

That is a fine way

to get rid of those sins

that lie in the secrets of our hearts.

How to stop doing them?

That is another question.

[PAUSE]

We need not fear.

Saint Paul may urge us

to run for salvation.

However,

he wants us to walk in the light.

This is a marathon not a sprint.

It will take time for us

to throw out the darkness

by letting the light into our souls.

It is hard work

but in a funny way

Shame itself

is on our side here.

It is shame

that helps us see

the darkness that

we are doing

and it is shame

that brings our secret sins to light.

Shame arises not from the evil

but from the good.

The image of God in us

may be distorted

but it has not been rubbed out.

It is the light of God in us

that makes our darkness known

through shame.

So when we feel ashamed,

or we feel that we will 

not do something

for risk of being ashamed,

then that is the moment

to look at our intentions

and to bring them into

the light of Christ ourselves willingly

so that we may be forgiven 

and put right.

[PAUSE]

It is not the light that causes shame.

Our misdeeds cause shame.

We should not allow ourselves

to become confused into

trying to cast out 

darkness with darkness.

Nor should we try 

and shrug it off by saying,

"Everybody does it,

there's nothing to be ashamed of "

That is the Devil’s ploy.

Even if we are ashamed,

let us throw open

the windows of our soul

and let the sunlight of Christ shine in

and make us children of His light.

The soul and body of Aquinas

 

Why the theology of St. Thomas Aquinas is helpful in keeping things real.

Walking to the prison door

Sermon for the second Sunday in Lent

You been taking Lent seriously.

Not only have you been

fasting and praying

and giving alms,

you've also been

examining the way

that you live your life,

looking to conform better

to the way God wants us to live.

This is very commendable,

indeed this is the way

to work out your salvation

with fear and trembling

knowing that it is 

the Spirit of God working in you.

But is it all necessary?

Surely Jesus loves us

for who we are,

doesn't He?

[PAUSE]

We know that Jesus loves us.

The Cross is

by far

the most explicit assurance

we can have of

the love of God for His children.

For God sent not His Son

into the world to condemn the world,

but that the world

through Him

might be saved.

So surely that means

it doesn't matter what we do,

we just have to be ourselves.

We just need to let Jesus save us,

save us as we are.

This might be true

if we are saved by Faith alone.

The act of believing in Jesus

would be enough

to guarantee that

we are put right before God.

If this is true

then it doesn't matter what we do,

whether we sin

or whether we don't,

because at the end of it

just believing in the Lord Jesus Christ

will be enough to justify us before God,

and save us.

This is certainly 

something that we see 

in the modern church.

You've clearly heard that phrase

that Jesus accepts us as we are

for who we are.

Apparently Jesus “gets us.”

[PAUSE]

You can see why this

doesn't quite work

if we listen to 

the words of Saint Paul

to the Christians 

in Thessalonica.

He tells us that we need

to walk and please God.

Of course,

we have to believe God

before we can please God,

but that's not enough.

We do actually

have to please Him.

What does that mean?

[PAUSE]

What pleases God

is love.

God loves us,

so He wants us 

to progress to Him

using the free will

that He gives.

We have to progress in God

for that is what to love God

with all our heart, soul, mind

and strength means.

We have to want

true goodness in our lives.

We know that love is 

an action not a feeling.

It makes sense

therefore

that we do love.

We have to become perfect.

But how are we 

to become perfect in God?

How do we learn to do it?

[PAUSE]

Well, first we look to Christ.

This is where our justification begins.

It begins with faith in Christ

and is life long.

But here we are

2000 years distant

from the time when

Jesus is helping 

the Canaanite woman.

Notice that He is including her

in His offer of salvation

by giving health to her daughter.

Our Lord’s offer of salvation

is inclusive,

it is open to 

every single human being.

It is not enough

to believe the offer,

we need to take up that offer.

We are imprisoned

by Sin,

our own sin

and the sins of others.

Jesus has opened the door 

of Sin’s prison house,

but in order to be free,

we must walk out the door.

This means we have

to learn to walk and to walk

towards the door.

However we are fallen

and this means that

not only do we have to 

learn to walk again,

but we also have to 

learn to see again.

To learn to do these things

requires assistance.

We need the help of those

who are already on their feet

and stumbling towards the door

of the prison house.

The Apostles are the first

to be able to do this

by virtue of their 

eyewitness relationship

with Our Lord.

With the Apostles is built

the hospital in which each one of us

learns to walk and talk and see

and progress towards God.

This means that 

the Church herself

has to show 

every Christian how to live.

Every Christian needs

to live a life of holiness

in order that other people

 may know holiness.

This is exactly what the

Church in Thessalonica is doing

because Saint Paul says that

the Thessalonians 

have received of him

how we ought to walk 

and to please God.

He hopes they would 

abound more and more.

The Church of Thessalonica

is not a church which says

“Jesus accepts you for who you are,”

this is a church that says,

“Jesus offers you salvation:

keep his commandments

and receive it freely.”

[PAUSE]

A big deal is made

these days

about the Church needing

to be “inclusive.”

This is true.

The Church needs

to be able to accommodate

every single human being

no matter where they are

or what they have done

or who they believe themselves to be.

The Church must welcome

with open arms

those who wish to come

through the doors.

But the Church cannot

preach another Gospel

other than the one it has been given.

And this means it must preach

the Gospel that says “if ye love me,

keep my commandments.”

Progress in the Church,

progress in holiness,

is made by keeping

God’s commandments to love.

It means learning

to live a holy life.

It means we have to abstain

from fornication,

we have to possess

our vessel – our bodies –

in sanctification and honour

and not in the lusts of the flesh.

We have to live lives

that are holy

not like the people

who refuse God’s holiness

and live their lives outside the Church.

For God has not called us

unto uncleanness,

but unto holiness.

[PAUSE]

We live lives of holiness

when we seek out

good Christian living.

We begin with our faith

and see where it leads us.

It will lead us into loving God

and seeking our perfection in him.

It will lead us into seeing

our brothers and sisters around us

as people who deserve salvation

because of Christ's love for all of us.

This does not mean

that we browbeat our neighbour

or throw his sins in his face

in an air of

hypocritical moral superiority.

It means encouraging,

being gentle and accepting

the human condition is weak.

We do this best by setting

an example in our own lives

as do the Apostles and Saints.

It means living 

our lives in holiness

as best as we can

in order to show our

brothers and sisters

that it is possible to live

holy lives and live to love God.

It means showing the world

what to do with Sin

when we repent of ours fully

and forgive others freely.

God will always honour

our efforts to come close to Him

for that is what the Sacraments do,

draw us closer through His Grace.

[PAUSE]

Your Lent will always be a struggle.

That's not a bad thing.

Your struggle to be holy

will be strengthened by God’s Grace.

We no longer live

for ourselves in the Church,

we live for other people

and for their good,

and we live for 

the love of God.

Let us therefore walk 

all the more closely

towards the door of the prison

so that we can see 

the shining light of Christ

and be free.

The only way we can do this

is by showing others the way

to the door, too.