Remarks of Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams
Let me say first of all how very grateful I am for the opportunity to be with you
this morning to react together to this announcement from Rome. The fact that we’re
able to do this response together as we’ve done this morning in itself tells a story…that
is, that the issues and the questions that face any one Christian Church at the moment
face all of us and we don’t believe that there’s anything to be gained by trying to
score points at each others’ expense or to work separately when we can work together. So
the first thing I’d want to say about this is that, in a very important sense, it
does not disrupt business as usual in the relations between our communions. The
work done by the international commission, the ARCIC commission, over many years and
the work also done more recently in the International Commission on Unity and Mission,
between our churches, that work is, as Cardinal Cormac loves to say, in the bank,
it is solidly there as a basis for our continuing relationships. And as we speak,
the preparations are going forward for the further informal talks around the next
round of ARCIC discussions. So that is if you like a main stream which continues. What
is to me very interesting about the constitution proposed and the ideas behind it
is that it is itself also another kind of product of our years of conversation, prayer
together. The recognition as Archbishop Vincent has already said, that there are elements
of the Anglican heritage that are not at all problematic for the Roman Catholic Church,
there is a recognition there of something profoundly in common and in that sense I
think this is something to be grateful for. So I think it’s very important for
us in the Anglican communion to be grateful for what has been achieved, to recognise
that there is a solid common heritage established, that the willingness to continue
in our relations and negotiations is unchanged and then to admit that, as the Archbishoip
has hinted that we don't know exactly what this is going to look like in any specific
context, least of all in England and Wales. I’ve been aware for a few years that
there have been some groups approaching the Holy See to discuss the possibilities
of what might roughly be called “group reunion”. Prominent among those for example
has been the Traditional Anglican Communion, a network of mostly former Anglicans
holding to a very traditional pattern of Anglican Faith and Worship – I know they’ve
been in contact. I know there have been some groups in the United States of America,
similarly who made contact, and I know of course that there are some within the Anglican
communion, as it now is, who have been – as you might put it – looking at their options
should the Anglican communion take any further steps which they would regard as problematic.
It’s no secret that in this country the ordination of women as bishops is one of those
test issues. However, I don’t think that this constitution should be seen as, in any
sense, a commentary on Anglican problems offered by the Vatican. It is, as has been
said, a response to this range of requests and inquiries from a very very broad variety
of people, either Anglicans or of Anglican heritage, as you might say. And in that
sense it has no negative impact on the relation of the Communion as a whole, to the
Roman Catholic Church as a whole. And, as I’ve said in the letter that I’m sending
to my fellow Bishops and fellow Primates in the Anglican Communion this morning,
naturally we will be praying for strength and discernment for those who want, or might
want, to avail themselves of this offer, and for the outworking of this in peace and
the honour of God. And I think that is the response that we are bound to make as fellow
Christians to those pursuing their journey here. Apart from that, I’d just like
to reiterate that the continuing conversation goes on at the moment. I mentioned the
preparations looking forward to the possible third round of ARCIC. I shall be visiting
Rome before Christmas, and that’s routine annual visit to touch base with a number
of colleagues and friends in Rome and also to take part in a conference on ecumenism,
as it happens. So, in that sense, business as usual is quite an important point to
make this morning.