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Catholic_Herald
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The Pope’s provision for Anglicans will change English Christianity forever, says William Oddie
When Cardinal Hume, in the aftermath of the Church of England’s decision to “ordain” women to its priesthood, asked Pope John Paul for his guidance as to how to make provision for those Catholic-minded Anglicans who wanted a way to come into communion with the Holy See, not alone but bringing their people with them, the Pope replied simply: “Be generous.”
Many Catholic Herald readers will remember the part this paper played in the whole story: it was (at my suggestion) in these columns that the Right Revd Graham Leonard, formerly Bishop of London, made his original appeal to the Catholic Church for some such provision to be made; now, at last, these hopes have been so bounteously fulfilled, the editor might even claim, in the style of the Sun newspaper, that it was “The Herald wot done it”.
As the Pope had asked, Cardinal Hume attempted to be generous: his initial thoughts, after several meetings involving a group of Catholic bishops and of Anglicans led by Bishop Leonard, were that it ought to be possible for parishes to convert as communities rather than as separate individuals: and it is now forgotten that two parishes in his archdiocese actually did so; and until they were abruptly, even brutally, closed down after some years in existence, it was a most happy and problem-free experiment.
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When Cardinal Hume, in the aftermath of the Church of England’s decision to “ordain” women to its priesthood, asked Pope John Paul for his guidance as to how to make provision for those Catholic-minded Anglicans who wanted a way to come into communion with the Holy See, not alone but bringing their people with them, the Pope replied simply: “Be generous.”
Many Catholic Herald readers will remember the part this paper played in the whole story: it was (at my suggestion) in these columns that the Right Revd Graham Leonard, formerly Bishop of London, made his original appeal to the Catholic Church for some such provision to be made; now, at last, these hopes have been so bounteously fulfilled, the editor might even claim, in the style of the Sun newspaper, that it was “The Herald wot done it”.
As the Pope had asked, Cardinal Hume attempted to be generous: his initial thoughts, after several meetings involving a group of Catholic bishops and of Anglicans led by Bishop Leonard, were that it ought to be possible for parishes to convert as communities rather than as separate individuals: and it is now forgotten that two parishes in his archdiocese actually did so; and until they were abruptly, even brutally, closed down after some years in existence, it was a most happy and problem-free experiment.
More…