THE ACNA ASSEMBLY - DAY 3

By Robin G. Jordan

I must confess that writing this commentary has been a struggle. I am a day late in writing it and I left my first draft on the hard drive of my computer at home. The constituting of the Anglican Church in North America was a glorious day for those who attended the gathering, as well as for other clergy and members of the new church. It was for them the realization of a dream. It was a time for jubilation. On the other hand, my own interest in what was happening in Bedford, Texas dropped sharply after the ratification of the constitution and canons with only a few changes. I plan to take a look at these changes in a future article.

I have noted a number of reactions to the news of the ratification of the constitution and canons. One reaction was to see the ease with which the constitution and canons were passed and the lack of pronounced vocal opposition to their provisions as a manifestation of the Holy Spirit. Another reaction was to see the same phenomena as a deliberate effort on the part of the delegates to set aside their reservations in regards to the two documents and to ratify them for the sake of the unity of the new church. I do not know how wide-spread these reactions have been but I expect them to pass into the mythos that will eventually surround the launching of the Anglican Church in North America.

I had anticipated that the two documents would be accepted. The momentum for their ratification was too great. The dynamics present at any gathering like the inaugural Provincial Assembly would work in the favor of their passage. Those like myself who have serious concerns regarding their provisions were not well organized. Leaders who were sympathetic to our concerns were hesitant to aggressively pursue modification of the documents from fear of precipitating a split in the new church. One conservative Anglican website had stopped running my articles, ostensibly because of growing criticism from members of the ACNA leadership. Another conservative Anglican website declined to publish them, citing its support of the ACNA. Few conservative Anglican bloggers posted the articles on their blogs. Criticism of any kind of the new church, even friendly criticism of its foundational documents, had become taboo. Consequently, I was unsuccessful in getting my message to those who needed to hear it. As a lone voice I was easy to dismiss.

Is the struggle for a better constitution and a better set of canons for the Anglican Church in North America over? No. It has just begun, as has the struggle to make the ACNA a truly comprehensive church for all conservative North American Anglicans and to restore and revitalize that part of the North American Anglican heritage that the ACNA has abandoned. However it chooses to present itself, the ACNA will never truly be an Anglican province if it does not successfully rise to these two challenges.