Scholars say Anglican tensions raise doubts on church unity

Published: 2004-07-06

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- The ordination of an openly gay bishop in the U.S. Episcopal Church raises serious questions about the limits of legitimate diversity within the church and highlights the need for structures to support unity, said a team of Anglican and Catholic scholars. "Communion is simultaneously both a gift and a calling; it makes demands," calling for respect for differences as well as caution in taking positions that could fracture unity, said the scholars in a report dated June 8 and released publicly in late June. The report was given to Anglican Archbishop Rowan Williams of Canterbury, England, and to Cardinal Walter Kasper, president of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity. The two had asked the scholars to reflect on how the November 2003 ordination of the gay prelate, Episcopal Bishop V. Gene Robinson of New Hampshire, and the ensuing threats to the unity of the Anglican Communion should be seen in light of joint Catholic-Anglican statements on the structure of the church, on authority and ministry within the church and on Christian morality.

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