Watch the Anglicans today, see the Catholics tomorrow

CURRENTS: "Pope's Wooing of Anglicans Challenges Archbishop," by Dave Kansas, Wall Street Journal, 22 October 2009.

Know I've been sounding off on Catholicism lately. Had my Mother here for a week, and she brings it out in me.

The "two tracks" approach currently proposed within the Anglican Communion (which includes the American Anglicans known as Episcopalians) won't work, and Benedict's strategy is one reason why.

But the bigger problem is the harsh conservatism of the African Anglicans, which are the biggest group now by far.

But Benedict, in my mind, is just exacerbating the two schools already evident in the U.S. Catholic Church, and not all of those liberals will--like me--someday migrate to the Episcopalians, so I think we're looking at a preview of coming attractions.

Comments

[Lexington Green]

1. The wooing has been the other way, or mutual. I know people involved in this. The conservative Anglicans have been knocking at the door. You can't say no to people who want to be part of your church forever. For a long time now it has been a question of when and how, not if. The juridical framework is innovative and was the main thing that had to be solved. Anglicans are free to join or not. So, let the religious marketplace work its magic.

2. Benedict has bigger fish to fry. He is working to get the Lefebvrists back in, and that is likely to happen. Now, he has a deal on the Anglicans, which will take a while to play out, but may have large implications. These are both understood by many observers to be live firing exercises for the really big play: Opening up to a reunification with the Orthodox, after almost a thousand years.

The divisions within the US Catholic Church will lead to a schismatic liberal church at some point in my lifetime.