Anglican Churches not in the Communion (Jesus Christ, priests, ritual, rejecting)

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Many anglican churches are not for one reason or another in the anglican communion.But might otherwise be seen as Anglican Churches.

THE CHURCHES LISTED HERE are not 'in the communion'. That means that they are not part of the Anglican Communion. To be part of it, a church must have a formal relation with the See of Canterbury. It is entirely possible for a church to be in full communion with the Anglican Church without being in the Anglican Communion. It is also entirely possible for a church to be completely Anglican in heritage and origin, but for it not to be in communion with the See of Canterbury.

Many of the churches listed below refer to themselves as 'continuing churches'. By this they mean that they are continuing with some characteristic or characteristics that some Canterbury-communion churches have chosen not to continue. You will often see the term 'the continuum' to refer to the collection of churches that have broken away from Canterbury in order to do what they see as continue the old traditions.

In order to have an Anglican church in valid apostolic succession, one needs to have one bishop whose consecration is through an Anglican origin. While that bishop may have been consecrated in the Anglican church, he or she has no obligation to remain administratively part of it. Each of these churches listed on this page has at least one independent bishop, and has a compelling reason for not being part of the Canterbury communion.

Those compelling reasons are all different. In the past we have tried hard to keep, along with the facts below, some explanations of what the churches are and how they relate to one another. We know a lot about the Canterbury "mainstream" portion of the Anglican church, and, more important, we do not have to make judgement calls about what does or does not belong in Canterbury-communion churches, because the church governance structure takes care of that for us. We have stopped maintaining any information that explains these churches, and have reduced this page to being a set of links to them.

Many people have offered us facts and opinions to improve these pages, but the problem is that they disagree with each other, and we have no way to referee disputes between them. The only money that Anglicans Online has ever spent on purposes unrelated to publishing was on legal fees to defend ourselves against a Not in Communion bishop who didn't like what we said about his church here.

One of the least contentious starting points seems to be FICOB: the Federation of Independent Catholic and Orthodox Bishops, though one bishop writes to us that 'you have tainted the entire Not In Communion list by mentioning FICOB'. The most complete list of independent denominations and dioceses used to be at ind-movement.org. For now check the NetMinistries list of denominations.

Do not make the mistake of believing that the churches listed below (in alphabetical order) are similar because we list them together. If they were very similar, they would find a way to unify, and then they wouldn't need to be listed separately.
Churches of Anglican or Episcopal Tradition
(NOTE: Old Catholic churches, the Philippine Independent Church, the Mar Thoma Syrian Church of Malabar, and the Churches of Bangladesh, North India, Pakistan, and South India are in Category 2 and are listed on our In Full Communion page.)
American Anglican Convocation
The American Anglican Convocation is committed to orthodox Anglican faith and worship in a small-church setting. They adhere to the set of beliefs as set forth in the Anglican Church International Communion and the Declaration of Principles.
Anglican Catholic Church
'We affirm that the Church of our fathers, sustained by the most Holy Trinity, lives yet, and that we, being moved by the Holy Spirit to walk only in that way, are determined to continue in the Catholic Faith, Apostolic Order, Orthodox Worship and Evangelical Witness of the traditional Anglican Church, doing all things necessary for the continuance of the same.' (From the Affirmation of St Louis)
Anglican Catholic Church in Australia
Its web site says very little about it; they seem to assume that visitors to it already know who they are. The primate is the Most Revd Louis W Falk.
Anglican Catholic Church of Canada
'We are Anglican in background and tradition. We are Catholic - not in the sense of Roman Catholic, though, no doubt, we have much in common with them. Rather, we accept the whole Christian Faith. We don't want to be 'cafeteria-style' Christians, who pick and choose the parts of the Christian religion that we like, and turn up our noses at the rest. "We therefore accept all that Jesus Christ has taught. He is the eternal Son of God, 'the Way, the Truth, and the Life,' who was born into this world as a human child of the Virgin Mary, lived among us as a perfect human being, died on the Cross, rose from the dead, and lives and reigns for evermore.'
Anglican Church IN America
'The Anglican Church in America is a Province of the Traditional Anglican Communion. The word 'Anglican' refers to our spiritual heritage and roots in the Church of England.'
The Anglican Church International
The ACI is a radically inclusive denomination. Our creator calls every person to turn to God's embrace; to find safety, love, and acceptance. The ACI supports the freedom of every human being to respond to the call of a loving God. We affirm a theology that is life giving and enhancing, rather than one that is shaming, rejecting, or oppressive and punitive
Anglican Church International Communion
Formed 17 November 2001 in Atlanta [Georgia, USA]. 'The new communion is the first step toward bringing greater unity to the much splintered continuing "churches" throughout the world. The guiding principles state "this is a traditional communion dedicated to bring peace and unity to all anglican worshipers," and adhere to the 1928 Book of Common Prayer and the 1962 Canadian Book of Common Prayer. Signatories to this historic document are The Rt. Rev. Larry W. Johnson, Bishop of Virginia; The Rt. Rev. Lafond LaPointe, Bishop of Haiti; The Rt. Rev. Luther Pierre-Toussaint, Bishop of Haiti; The Rt. Rev. Vincent Thakore, Bishop of the South; and The Rt. Rev. Melvin H. Pickering, Bishop of the Diocese of the Holy Sacrament'.
Anglican Church of America
'A radically inclusive dual-denomination: There are many Rites in the one, catholic and apostolic church such as the Anglican Rite, Celtic Rite, Roman Rite or Orthodox Rite (Eastern and Western Rites), Gallican Rite to suggest a few. All are valid expressions of the Orthodoxy of the one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church.'
Anglican Church Worldwide
'Many of the Continuing Churches of the Anglican faith wrestle with whether they are in communion with Canterbury or nay. The ACW is NOT in communion with Canterbury administratively, but we are spiritually'.
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Anglican Diocese of the Great Lakes
'Tracing their origins to the 1930s, Anglican Church parishes and missions of the non-geographical and independent Diocese of the Great Lakes are located in the American Midwest, in several municipalities within the Metropolitan Toronto area, and in other cities in Ontario. The Diocese of the Great Lakes was established in 1998 through the unity proposals of the bishops of the former Independent Anglican Diocese of Ontario and the Independent Anglican Missionary District of the USA. This Diocese works cooperatively with other Episcopalians, including The United Episcopal Church of North America, with which the DGL is in intercommunion, and the Independent Anglican Church (Canada Synod).'

The Anglican Independent Communion in the British Isles and Europe
'In a real sense, we are a "ContinuingChurch", not a new Church. We continue to believe in everything the Church of England accepted and taught before it was swamped and strangled by liberalism. That is why we call ourselves a "TraditionalChurch"'.

Anglican Mission in America
From the web site: 'AMiA is the evolution of the work of First Promise and AACOM, and is dedicated to the creation of a new, orthodox province of the Anglican Communion on American shores'. For our reasoning behind this classification, please see our AMiA-classification report.

Anglican Orthodox Church
'The Anglican Orthodox Church was founded in 1963 in Statesville, North Carolina by Bishop James Parker Dees as a result of the perceived apostasy taking place in the wider Anglican Communion. The AOC was the first group to separate from ECUSA since the Reformed Episcopal Church withdrew in the nineteenth century. The AOC is traditional and conservative & adheres to the 1928 Book of Common Prayer, the Thirty-Nine Articles of Religion, the Apostles and Nicene Creeds and the ancient homilies and reformed principles of the Church of England. The AOC enjoys member churches in South Africa, Kenya, the Central African Republic, Liberia, Malawi, Madagascar, Nigeria, Tanzania, Uganda, Brazil, Haiti, the Philippines, India, the FijiIslands, and Pakistan. The AOC stands upon the same biblical principles and theological doctrines as those espoused by the ancient church and affirmed by our founding Bishop Dees. It has consistently existed as the Anglican Orthodox Church throughout its existence as a Communion. The current Presiding Bishop is the Most Reverend Jerry L. Ogles'.

The Anglican Province of America
This traditional episcopal, evangelical and catholic denomination was established 1970 and uses the American 1928 Book of Common Prayer.

Anglican Province of Christ the King
In 1977, Episcopal clergy and laity gathered in St Louis, Missouri, and set forth a statement of faith called the 'Affirmation of Saint Louis', which expressed their commitment as Episcopalians to orthodox Christianity. The next step was the creation of the Diocese (now Province) of Christ the King in 1978, whose purpose is to put the St Louis statement of faith into action. The Anglican Province of Christ the King uses the 1928 Book of Common Prayer and trains men for the priesthood at its national seminary. The Province has five dioceses which cover the entire United States.

Anglican Rite, Archdiocese of the Americas
'A traditional, liturgical, sacramental, catholic, and orthodox Church. We are traditional in that we keep to the traditions and teachings of the ancient undivided Church founded by the Apostles and strengthened by the early Church Fathers. We are liturgical in that we use the 1928 Book of Common Prayer and the Anglican Missal in our worship'.

Anglican Rite Catholic Church (Archdiocese of Pacific Northwest)
'An Ecumenical Old Catholic group serving the Oregon and WashingtonState area.'

Anglican Rite Old Catholic Church
An Independent Catholic Church made up of several congregations located in Texas. Priests come from various religious backgrounds including the Roman Catholic, Episcopal, and Orthodox Churches. They use the Anglican Rite in worship, which dates back several hundred years, and make use of the ECUSA 1928 Book of Common Prayer.

Anglo-CatholicChurch in the Americas (now the United Anglican Church)

Apostolic Communion of Anglican Churches
'While we are committed to the standards of Anglican Liturgy as found in the 1928 Book of Common Prayer, we hold fast to the doctrines and commandments as contained in the Word of God.'

The Charismatic Episcopal Church
'Established on June 26, 1992, the ICCEC has become one of the fastest growing communions in the world. Beginning with just 3 small parishes that first year, we now have a presence in over 23 countries and approximately 1200 parishes around the world. Founded in 1992 by independent pentecostal-charismatic congregations, the ICCEC combines charismatic ministry, sacramental worship and the celebration of biblical values born of orthodox, evangelical teaching.'

The Christian Episcopal Church
'A traditional continuation of the Anglican Church of Canada, [which] upholds and maintains the doctrine, sacraments, and discipline of Christ which the Lord commanded in His Holy Word and which were ever upheld and maintained by the undivided Primitive Church, and which the Church of England received and set forth in the 1562 Thirty-nine Articles of Religion and the 1662 Book of Common Prayer'.

The Church of England (Continuing)
'We are a Protestant and Reformed Church founded on: The Authorised Version of the Bible The Book of Common Prayer 1662 The 39 Articles of Religion Where are the 39 Articles today in the Church of England? Where is the Prayer Book? Where for that matter is the Bible? You will find all these things in the Church of England (Continuing), so if you love the Church of England, that is where you should be!'

Church of England in South Africa
'Evangelicals who wished to remain true to their heritage adopted a Constitution in 1938. This Constitution enshrines the Reformed, Protestant and Evangelical faith handed down by our forefathers'.

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The Communion of Evangelical Episcopal Churches
We see ourselves as an expression of the ancient-future Church of Jesus Christ, where the streams of Christian tradition and spirituality converge and flow together. Emphasizinßg the interweaving of the charismatic, evangelical and liturgical/sacramental, we identify with and stand in connection with the historic Celtic and Anglican spiritual traditions.

Diocesis Misionara Hispana
A Hispanic outreach diocese.

The Episcopal Missionary Church
The Episcopal Missionary Church is a "missionary" Church in the sense that it is reaching out to traditional-minded Christians from all backgrounds who find that modernist reforms in their churches have left them without a place to practice their faith. Our motto, "Defend the Historic Faith", is descriptive of both the beliefs and practices of the EMC. All of the traditional values and doctrines which have made the Christian Church the great witness of our Lord's teachings are alive and well, and we invite you to join us as we celebrate Jesus Christ in the Sacraments and proclaim His message of salvation.

The Episcopal Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of America
A constituent member of the world-wide Orthodox Anglican Communion, the Episcopal Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of America (the Episcopal Orthodox Church) was established in 1963 as a Western-riteOrthodoxProvince of the Holy Catholic Church.

Evangelical Anglican Church OF America
A traditional conservative denomination based in Brea, California, USA, which uses the 1928 US version of the BCP as its liturgy. It is a totally different jurisdiction than the Evangelical Anglican Church IN America (linked above) and maintains a traditional view of human sexuality.

Evangelical Anglican Church IN America
Based in Washington, DC, the EACA 'holds the sacred validity of orders that have been preserved through the unbroken chain of historically attested and affirmed apostolic succession. Our sacraments are valid and offered to all of the People of God with respect for the diversity of creation as the cornerstone of God's lavish love and welcome for creation.'

FCE (Evangelical Connexion)/A Connexion of Covenanting Churches
Formed in 2004 to adhere to the 1927 union of the Free Church of England (est. 1844), and the Reformed Episcopal Church of Great Britain and Ireland (est. 1876). Unlike the Free Church of England, this group rejects Freemasonry as incompatible with Christianity. Its doctrinal standards are the 39 Articles of Religion (revised) and the 1785 Book of Common Prayer.

Filipino Communion of Evangelical Episcopal Churches
'The FCEEC is in communion with the Communion of Evangelical Episcopal Churches, USA'.

The Free Church of England (see also Reformed Episcopal Church)
'... formed in 1927 by the amalgamation of the Free Church of England (est.1844), and the Reformed Episcopal Church of Great Britain and Ireland (est. 1876). Both the Free Church of England and the Reformed Episcopal Church had been formed to uphold the doctrines of the Anglican Reformation as expressed in the Thirty-Nine Articles of Religion and the Book of Common Prayer, which many Evangelicals felt to be under attack from the Oxford Movement. The two denominations cooperated closely from the foundation of the REC in the mid-1870s until the Union of the two Churches in 1927'.

The Free Episcopal Church
'The Free Episcopal Church stands at the crossroads of all that the Churches have been, and all that the Holy Spirit is inviting the Churches yet to be. We gather as Church to respond to Jesus' request to "feed my sheep". Jesus did not exclude anyone from His Table, and neither do we. We are self-governing local ministries and communities, covenanting together to be Church. In the FEC all people are welcome regardless of the categories that divide us (age, ethnicity, physical ability, gender, social class, sexuality, marital status, and so on). Those fights for a rightful place at the Table, that threaten to tear apart so many faith groups, are not part of our lives together, past or present.'

Free Protestant Episcopal Church
This church was established in England on 2 November 1897 by a union of several small British episcopates that had been established in the 1870s in reaction to the rising Anglo-Catholicism of the mother Church of England. You can find out more at the web site.

Free Protestant Episcopal Church (Saskatchewan)
The mission of this church is to reach out and gather people together in an inclusive church united in the praise and service of God as expressed in traditional Anglican worship. The Book of Common Prayer (1962 Canada) is the only authorised liturgy.

Hawaiian Reformed Catholic Church
The Hawaiian Reformed Catholic Church was established in 1862, the result of written request of King Kamehameha IV (Alexander Liholiho) to Victoria, Queen of England. In 1860, Alexander wrote directly to the Queen of England, asking for a Church of England priest for the HawaiianKingdom. In the early 20th century, it broke communion with Canterbury.

The Holy Catholic Church (Western Rite)
A catholic church that transcends the new divisions of Roman, Protestant and Orthodox churches. 'we find that all Churches have something to offer, but also that they hold to things which are a hindrance. We had to be free to rediscover our true identity — hence our title.'

Holy Cross Anglican Communion
'We are an independent Anglican/Episcopal church, holding fully to the teachings of the church as passed down through scripture and tradition. We are, however, not rigid or strict in our methods. We believe that each parish should not at all times be the same in formality or decorum. Our clergy have the right to exercise great freedom in vestments, style and worship. We affirm the 39 Articles of Religion. We use the 1928 Book of Common Prayer as our liturgy and our rules of order and structure. We affirm the Nicene Creed as a significant statement of our faith'.

Iglesia Anglicana Latina [In Spanish]
La Iglesia Católica Latina Rito Anglicano, in Colombia. Affiliated with the Holy Catholic Church (Anglican Rite).

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La Iglesia Episcopal de Chile
The Episcopal Church of Chile feels deeply united with the other churches that accept the authority of the Bible as the Word of God. What distinguishes the Episcopal Church of Chile from some other Bible churches is its means of administration and its principles of government. We know that each member has the responsibility to look for the will of God in the development of the church. The Diocese of Chile is orgaized by a synod presided over by the Bishop. (Web site is in Spanish only).

Igreja Episcopal Evangélica no Brasil (Evangelical Episcopal Church in Brazil)
'A Comunidade Anglicana Cristo Ressurreto, a Capela Anglicana do Bom Pastor, a Capela Anglicana de São Jorge e a Escola Bíblica Amigos de Deus são instituições filiadas à Igreja Episcopal Evangélica no Brasil, membro da Comunhão das Igrejas Episcopais Evangélicas (Communion of Evangelical Episcopal Churches - CEEC), sob a autoridade do Revmo. Bispo Peter W. Riola, da Diocese of St. Paul the Apostle, em St. Francis, Minnesota (EUA). A CEEC atua em 26 países e é composta por mais de 1300 igrejas anglicanas, totalmente evangélicas, totalmente carismáticas, totalmente litúrgicas e totalmente sacramentais'.

Independent Anglican Church (Canada Synod)
This jurisdiction also goes by the name of "Anglican Church, Canada Synod [Independent]", but the first name is its legally incorporated one obtained in 1988.

Mariners Church of Detroit
An oddity, it is a stand-alone church, not a part of any denomination, with historic ties to the Episcopal Church. Many people will recognise it from the reference in Gordon Lightfoot's popular song about the wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald.

The National Anglican Catholic Church
'We are a church which is American in its founding and liberal in its theology, embracing all our Christian brothers and sisters without judgement of age, race, sexual orientation, ethnicity or disability'.

Old Catholic Church of America
The Old Catholic Church of America traces its apostolic succession back through Gerard Gul, Archbishop of Utrecht, but as far as we can determine from the OCCA documents, the OCCA is not in communion with Utrecht. Currently the Right Revd James Edward Bostwick is Archbishop Metropolitan.

Old Catholic Church of Canada
The Old Catholic Church of Canada supports the ecumenical ideal, co-operates with all Christian denominations, and allows any of its units (e.g. diocesan, parish, mission, etc.) to belong to organisations with ecumenical or peace aims. At the present time (2000), the Old Catholic Church of Canada has missions/parishes at Midland, Toronto, Burlington, and Mississauga in the Civil Province of Ontario, and at L'Acadie in the Civil Province of Quebec.

Orthodox Anglican Communion
'The Orthodox Anglican Communion is a world wide fellowship of national churches (with Apostolic Succession derived through and shared with the Anglican Communion, the Old Catholic Union of Utrecht, and the Orthodox Church) committed to this Biblical world view; it is represented in the United States of America by the Episcopal Orthodox Church. Archbishop Scott E. McLaughlin is Metropolitan of the Orthodox Anglican Communion and Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Orthodox Church.'

Protestant Evangelical Church of England (Note: Online presence vanished as of July 2003)'This jurisdiction was founded in 1922 by those members of the Church of England who desired to maintain the pre-Oxford Movement form of Anglicanism as established in 1559'.

Province of Christ the Good Shepherd
'We are an orthodox Anglo-CatholicProvince. We are all Spirit-filled believers who operate (some of us very powerfully) in the Gifts of the Holy Spirit, and we all stress the Spirit-led preaching of the infallible Word, AND we all believe strongly in the power of the Sacraments, ministered in the tradition of the Church, to form and transform the lives of believers. Thus, we seek to combine the historical "Three Streams" of Christianity in a vibrant and living Church experience.'

Reformed Anglican Catholic Church
'...Outgrowth of the Reformed Catholic Church [it is] an autocephalous church...established to offer an affirming Church in the Anglican Tradition, while maintaining the tenets of the catholic faith.

Reformed Episcopal Church
'The Reformed Episcopal Church, holding "the faith once delivered to the saints", declares its belief in the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testament as the Word of God, and the sole Rule of Faith and Practice; in the Creed commonly called the Apostles' Creed; in the Divine institution of the Sacraments of Baptism and the Lord's Supper; and in the doctrines of grace substantially as they are contained in the Thirty-nine Articles of Religion. This Church recognizes and adheres to Episcopacy, not as of Divine right, but as a very ancient and desirable form of Church polity'.

Saints Cyril and Methodius Church
'We are an independent jurisdiction of the one, holy, catholic and apostolic church with a valid apostolic succession descending from the traditional mainstream churches. Therefore, we have valid sacraments, authentic priestly orders, and keep the age old system of bishop, priest and deacon. We believe in the true presence of Christ in the sacrament of the altar and have a closed communion reserved for parishioners, those who share our same faith or have been approved via a formally negotiated intercommunion agreement with our administrating bishop.'

Southern Episcopal Church
From their web site: 'We are a branch of the One, Holy, Catholic and ApostolicChurch instituted by Jesus Christ faithfully continuing the Anglican tradition. We uphold the historic Catholic Faith, Apostolic Order and Evangelical Witness as set forth in the 1928 American edition of the Book of Common Prayer. We accept as binding and unalterable the received Faith and Traditions of the Church, and its teachings. These include the historic, threefold male ordained ministry of Bishop, Priest, and Deacon, as set forth in the Holy Scriptures; the Apostles', Nicene, and Athanasian Creeds; and the writings of the bishops and doctors of the ancient Church, especially as defined by the Seven Ecumenical Councils of the Undivided Church'.

The Traditional Anglican Communion
This list is maintained by the Anglican Church in America. The Traditional Anglican Communion is a part of the one holy, Catholic, and ApostolicChurch and has maintained the historic Apostolic Succession.

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The Traditional Church of England
The TCE is one of the original 'Continuing' churches in England. It was formed in 1994, but developed from the much-older Movement for a Continuing Church of England. The clergy and lay people of the TCE are all former communicants of the Church of England.

The Traditional Protestant Episcopal Church
'The Traditional Protestant Episcopal Church maintains the heritage of the Protestant Reformation as established in the Church of England, and in the American Church in 1789. We hold the Holy Scriptures to be the Word of God, inerrant and infallible and authoritative for the Church Catholic throughout all generations. We hold the Doctrines of Grace as expressed by the English Reformers in the Thirty-Nine Articles of Religion, adopted by the AmericanChurch in 1801. We worship according to the historic Book of Common Prayer (1928 Revision) respecting that liturgical expression of our Protestant forefathers established by Archbishop Thomas Cranmer in 1549'.

The Uniate Western Orthodox Catholic Church (Note: Online presence vanished as of July 2003)Formerly the Apostolic Episcopal Church, Province of the East 'we are now a Western Rite (1928 BCP) branch of the Byelosrussian Autocephalic National Orthodox Church in Exile. In 1905 the Synod of the Orthodox Church in St. Petersburg granted then Archbishop Tikhon Bellavin of San Francisco the right to receive into the Orthodox Church Anglicans and ordain them priests of the Western Rite BCP(1892), called now the Rite of St Tikhon and used by various Western Rite Orthodox groups in the USA'.

The United Anglican Church
'Dedicated to upholding the Truth of the Lord Jesus Christ as delivered to us in the Holy Scripture and maintained inviolate by the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church of which we are a province. The UAC was established following the merger of the Traditional Episcopal Church (TEC) and the Anglo-CatholicChurch in the Americas (ACTA)'.

The United Episcopal Church of North America
Based in South Carolina. From the web site: 'Many traditional Episcopalians feel that the Episcopal Church in the United States of America has veered far from the path that it was on, the path that we committed ourselves to from the beginnings of our Christianity. Some of us have gathered here, in the United Episcopal Church of North America, to follow Jesus in the way we believe the Episcopal Church should go'.

Terry
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Amen! Truly I say to you: Gather in my name. I am with you.

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The Church of England has further links under the Porvoo Agreement with many North European Churches .
http://www.porvoochurches.org/intro.htm
Extract.......................
The Porvoo Common Statement
with the Porvoo Agreement

This is the name given to a report issued at the conclusion of theological conversations by official representatives of four Anglican Churches and eight Nordic and Baltic Churches in 1989-1992. The Porvoo Common Statement included the text of the Porvoo Declaration, which the participants commended for acceptance to their Churches.

They were the Churches of England and Ireland, the Church in Wales and the Episcopal Church of Scotland, together with the Churches of Denmark, Norway and Sweden, and the Evangelical-Lutheran Churches of Estonia, Finland, Iceland, Latvia and Lithuania. Acceptance by the signatory churches means that for the first time the Anglican Churches in Britain and Ireland have now moved into visible communion with other national Churches in Europe.

Why is it called Porvoo?

The report is named after the Porvoo Cathedral in Finland, where the Eucharist was celebrated on the final Sunday of the Conversations. (Porvoo is pronounced 'Porvoh', with the stress on the first syllable.)

What is the purpose of the Porvoo Common Statement?

To draw the Churches involved into a new and closer relationship for the sake of greater unity and more effective mission.

Which Churches have agreed and when

The Estonian Evangelical-Lutheran Church 19 April 1994 The Church of Sweden 24 August 1994 The Church of Norway 15 November 1994 The Scottish Episcopal Church 9 December 1994 The Church of Ireland 16 May 1995 The Church of England 9 July 1995 The Evangelical-Lutheran Church of Lithuania 29-30 July 1995 The Church in Wales September 1995 The Evangelical-Lutheran of Iceland 17-27 October 1995 The Evangelical-Lutheran Church of Finland 8 November 1995 Why these churches?

The churches covered by this agreement have a great deal in common: their history, liturgy, identity and their understanding of the Church's mission today bear great resemblances. They are all episcopal churches and almost all of them are the national church and the continuing manifestation in its own land of the historic (western) Catholic Church.

Why only these churches?

The Porvoo Communion is not an ecumenical club but an ecumenical venture which in due time may grow in the number of churches involved. Comparative and fact-finding conversations between the Porvoo, Leuenberg (91 Lutheran, Reformed and United churches in Europe) and Meissen churches (Evangelical Church in Germany - EKD) have already taken place.

The bilateral relationships between the individual churches involved are of course also continuously nurtured and furthered.

What is it about?

Chapter I of the Porvoo Common Statement is called 'Setting the Scene', and explains the motivation for the Conversations and for approving the Porvoo Declaration. Section C discusses our churches' common mission in the new Europe - understanding mission in its broadest sense, including what we would call social responsibility issues. One of the important features of Porvoo is the fact that it is in the social and political context of the new Europe.

Chapter II gives the other motivation for the Porvoo - the ecclesiological. The churches are called to overcome what has been 'denominational self-sufficiency'. Porvoo is important as part of the overcoming of the divisions of the Church which resulted from the Reformation. It is part of the restoration of the unity of the Western Church.

Chapter IV deals with the question of the historic episcopate. The situation in the churches involved are different. The Baltic Churches have not always had bishops, but they now not only have bishops, but bishops who stand in the historic succession of the laying on of hands. The churches of Sweden and Finland, like the Anglican churches, have inherited that historic succession. And in Denmark, Norway and Iceland the churches have preserved the continuity in the episcopal office, but at the time of the Reformation did so by an occasion priestly or presbyteral ordination.

The Porvoo Common Statement, para. 52, argues that apostolic succession in the Church is like a rope of several strands. If one strand, such as the personal tactile succession, is broken, other strands, such as for example, the continuity of historic sees, can hold it. According to this understanding, as para. 53 points out, 'the mutual acknowledgement of churches and ministries is theologically prior to the use of the sign', and its resumption ' does not imply an adverse judgement on the ministries of those churches 'which previously did not use it. This has freed churches such as the Church of Norway to embrace the sign, without denying their past apostolic continuity, as para. 52 says.

This clears the way for the Porvoo Declaration in para. 58. Which, as it now has been approved by the greater part of the churches, has established a communion of episcopal, historic national or folk churches, stretching across Northern Europe from Greenland to the Baltic States. This involves commitments para. 58 b. affecting all the members of the signatory churches, as well as ministers and church leaders.