www.byzcath.org Forums Faith & Christian Life The Christian East & West was there ever Orthodox intercommunion w/ Anglican?

An Anglican friend today asserted that for some period of history the Orthodox were willing to offer/receive to/from Anglicans. He said it was not a normal, but extraordinary sort of thing. Like a situation where one was unable to get to their regular Church and was in need. I told him that that didn't seem correct to me and that I wanted to find out more about it.

I haven't found much...though these two links were interesting.
One seems to be a document from the Romainian Orthodox in 1936 that seems to recognize that the Anglican Church indeed has valid apostolic succession. The second seems to be a chapter regarding discussions about intercommunion that went on in 1933, but I can't see where it implies that it ever was practiced or officially promoted.

Orthodox Statements on Anglican Orders [docs.google.com]

http://oxford.academia.edu/BrandonG..._intercommunion_Sobornost_24.2_2002_9-28

I am curious what the history is and why Orthodox would have considered this knowing what I know (or think that I know) about their policy on it now even toward the Catholic Church.

SE,

You might also be interested in this book from a couple of years back Eastern Orthodox and Anglicans: Diplomacy, Theology, and the Politics of Interwar Ecumenism [amazon.com]. (You can pick up a new copy for a bit less at abeBooks).

A longer term historical overview, from the Anglican perspective, extending up to about 1920, can be read here [anglicanhistory.org].

And, regarding interaction between the Orthodox Church and the Anglicans' daughter church in the US, the Episcopal Church, there was the attendance of Orthodox hierarchs at the consecration of an Episcopal bishop for the very High Church, very Anglo-Catholic, Episcopal Diocese of Fond-du-Lac, WI.

That occasion resulted in the rather famous or infamous, depending on one's point of view, photograph, which - when seen by Low Church Episcopalians - caused the liturgical event to be dubbed "The Circus at Fond-du-Lac" [flickr.com].

And, lest I forget - a discussion and explanation at the Orthodox Christian Information Center (a site of which I'm not always enamored, but this piece is excellent) of the how and why of the relationship that briefly endured between the Episcopalians and Orthodox in the US during the tenure of St Raphael Hawaweeny - Bishop Raphael Hawaweeny on the Anglicans and Orthodox Baptism [orthodoxinfo.com].

Many years,

Neil

You can find the whole history chronicled here [anglicanhistory.org].

Interestingly, the Nonjurors approached Moscow for recognition, but were rebuffed when their Orthodox correspondent was made aware of their ecclesiastical situation.

One final point worth considering may be the fact that for many years, the Lebanese community in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, attended with all due permission, the Anglican pro-cathedral there, until such time as they got an Antiochene church of their own in 1995 (ish).

St. Tikhon had some interaction with the faculty of Nashotah House, the Anglican Seminary in Wisconsin.

It was from those conversations that a permission was granted for Russian Orthodox faithful to seek out an Episcopal parish for the Sacraments if there was no Russian Orthodox community nearby.

That provision was withdrawn when it became apparent that the Episcopal Church would ordain female Presbyters.

Saint Tikhon was tasked with creating an American Orthodox Church under the Patriarchate of the Russian Orthodox Church

He was aware of the American Culture and wanted to accept them into Orthodoxy knowing full well of the implications of both sides. The new world Americans would not take to an Ethnic approach to the True Faith - and the Ethnic Churches would not like a new liturgical effort under their own Eparchies.

Anglicans approached St. Tikhon with the Book of Common Prayer and he brought the book back to Russia - it was reviewed and returned with the blessing of the Patriarchate of Russia with additions and subtractions to make the Anglican / Episcopal liturgies theologically correct. this was the beginning of the Western Rite of the Orthodox church.

The Antiochians have a Western Rite - Book of Common Prayer modified to be theologically correct with Orthodox.

Bolshevik Revolution and the resulting Chaos in the Orthodox world at that time interfered with all this original work - which was revived later through the Apostolic succession of Bishops consecrated by St Tikhon in America.

There are other Orthodox Churches that have adopted and expanded on the Western Rite of Orthodoxy through this apostolic succession.

Needless to say - there is great controversy about the Western Rite - amongst the Ethnic churches and oddly enough the loudest of all complaintants come from Priests and Bishops who converted Orthodoxy from the protestantism - they are hyper protective of their new faith and very threatened by the Apostolic Succession of Saint Tikhon

polemics is an understatement.

Quite right. Worth noting the 1978 statement of Patriarch Athenagoras: “…the theological dialogue [between the Orthodox and the Anglicans] will continue, although now simply as an academic and informative exercise, and no longer as an ecclesial endeavor aiming at the union of the two churches.”

It is of note that Metropolitan Jonah spoke recently to the Anglican Church in North America's assembly. (he is a former Anglican as am I)

I think, besides woman's ordination, reunion with the Anglicans is impossible until Anglicans figure out just what do Anglicans believe. (the spectrum can run from Calvinist to Anglo-papal or Anglo-Orthodox to classical Anglo-Catholic and includes all sorts of other ways to be Anglican)

Which is one reason why the ACNA is in serious conversation with some Lutherans regarding forming a Lutheran Diocese.

Archbishop Duncan has made it very clear that he regards the Book of Concord as a treasure which they would very much like to receive and embrace. The Lutheran Diocese would have the Unaltered Augsburg Confession and other confessional writings in its statement of faith, along with acknowledgement of the 39 Articles.

You're kidding. Wow, just when you thought you'd heard everything. There is an Antiochian Orthodox church near Niagara Falls that's on my to-do list. So when I go, I can expect to encounter a liturgy with all the trappings of the Orthodox Church, iconostasis and all, while hearing the words of the Episcopalian Holy Communion service chanted? Well...won't that be something.

Not necessarily.

Check here;

Antiochian.org/Western Rite [antiochian.org]

I think you mis-read haydukovich. Note he said that "The Antiochians have a Western Rite".

Before the lifting of the mutual 'anathemas' which painfully separated the Roman Catholic church from the Orthodox in every way, Greek Orthodox faithful (can't speak for other jurisdictions) were told that if there was no Orthodox church around, (and in those days there weren't many at all) that they could worship in the Episcopalian church.

Because the tradition at that time was to partake of the Eucharist rarely, there was no fear of 'intercommunion' taking place.

Is this available online?

Don't know...got it from my mother who grew up in this country at that time and her personal experience and recollections.

So then it is because of how bad relations got between Catholic/Orthodox that this sort of idea was sometimes offered to Anglicans and not with Catholics. I was surprised to hear this since my current understanding is that Orthodox are offered to accept from Catholics by Catholics, but that they will not accept it in most cases and do not reciprocate the offer to Catholics (though I have read a lot on this forum to even confuse my understanding of that). So I was surprised to find that there have been understandings with Anglicans. I would think that an Orthodox Christian would still recognize that the closest expression to their own faith would be Catholicism, therefore if they had no Church in their area I would think that they would consider going to a Catholic service. But it is perhaps political reasons that made this not the case, or perhaps parts of Anglicanism do not have some of the theological issues that the Orthodox tend to object to most (specifically papacy, or using word transubstantiation)
That is the strength (or weakness) or Anglicanism. People have been able to sort of make it be whatever they want it to be. So maybe an Orthodox person can more easily accept it, since they could have believed that their faith is in more harmony with it in some ways?

I know that Catholics do not accept the apostolic succession of Anglicans (possibly because of the way that they continued or changed the rite) so I was surprised to see that Orthodoxy was more willing to consider it.

Also, what I seem to be noticing here: This is something that has happened within some specific Orthodox communities. Not something that one could say was definitive Orthodox practice universally. Another thing that I do not want to sound critical of, but probably do. That first story I read about the Bishop who had to recant his position. It sounds like he may have acted pretty hastily if he was able to so firmly and thoroughly discourage his first decision after studying Anglicanism a little more.