THE PERSONAL ORDINARIATE OF OUR LADY OF WALSINGHAM
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The first punt has crossed the Tiber – a personal ordinariate has been established for England. |
Our Lady of Walsingham |
The customs and liturgy they will be allowed to keep will be those approved by the Holy See, and the reason they are unable to receive communion is, of course, because the Roman Catholic Church does not recognize Anglican sacraments as having any validity. Those joining the ordinariate therefore have to be “re-confirmed” before they can be Roman Catholics and receive their “First Communion”.
It is interesting to note that 16.8% of those entering the Roman Catholic Church in England and Wales are joining the personal ordinariate and that, according to the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales, “the Ordinariate is the second largest source for new Catholics this year”.
The Pope has appointed Keith Newton (formerly the Anglican Bishop of Richborough in the Province of Canterbury) as the Ordinary of the new Ordinariate and it has recently been announced that Fr Newton has been elevated by the Pope to the rank of Protonotary Apostolic; consequently, he is entitled to be addressed as “Monsignor” – how very Anglican! Addressing a clergyman as “Monsignor” is obviously an “Anglican” custom of which we in the Continuing Anglican Church are unaware.
In any event, it seems that the situation in Western Australia is different because, so it is said, those who join an Ordinariate here do not become Roman Catholics – they are simultaneously “Catholic and Anglican”. Because they are “Catholic”, they are entitled to worship at any Roman Catholic Church. However, since they are also “Anglican” (as we are, and we would welcome them to our services), I wonder whether they will be permitted to worship with us? – somehow I doubt it. And what about Lutherans who join an Ordinariate? Will they also be “Catholic and Anglican”?? Probably in Western Australia, but nowhere else!
Fr Brian.
