The Christian Century

The archbishop of Canterbury has declared that conservatives’ plans to usurp his leadership in the Anglican Communion are “problematic in all sorts of ways,” saying Anglicans must renew— not dismiss—their now-frayed connections.

Summarizing for a TV reporter the point of a long, technical address to the Royal Courts of Justice on the relationship between religious communities and the British judicial system, the archbishop of Canterbury said that some accommodation with shari‘a law “seems unavoidable, and indeed as a matter of fact certain provisions of shari‘a are already recognized in our society and under our law.” No

Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams triggered a storm of controversy by suggesting that Britain should adopt some aspects of Islam’s tough Shari‘a laws into its legal system. He later apologized for any “misleading choice of words” that caused misunderstanding, and received thunderous applause February 11 when he opened the Church of England’s synod gathering.

The spiritual leader of the worldwide Anglican Communion says it would be “unrealistic and ungrateful” to expect the Episcopal Church to make yet another attempt to explain itself.

Christian Churches Together in the USA has named Richard L. Hamm, a former chief executive for 10 years of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), to become the ecumenical group’s first executive administrator.

Nigerian Archbishop Peter Akinola, who defied the top bishops of the Episcopal Church and the Anglican Communion by installing his own bishop on U.S. soil this month, declared that “insulting and condescending” American bishops are to blame for the controversy.

Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams said that he will visit the United States this September after U.S. Episcopal bishops declared an “urgent need” for a meeting with the spiritual leader of world Anglicanism.

The Roman Catholic Church will investigate a life-saving miracle attributed to the late Pope John Paul I, bringing the pontiff who served only 33 days in 1978 one step closer to possible sainthood. His papacy was one of the briefest in history, ended by an apparent heart attack.

After the evening service on Ash Wednesday, I was led off for coffee and conversation by a group of seminary students who wanted to air their frustrations about the recent meeting of Anglican primates. The primates had issued a call for the Episcopal Church in the U.S. to declare that it will not authorize same-sex blessings and will not elect another openly gay bishop.