Church in Wales

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The Church in Wales
Llandaff Cathedral situated in the suburb of Llandaff in the city of Cardiff, the capital of Wales.
Primate Barry Morgan
Headquarters 39 Cathedral Road, Cardiff, CF11 9XF
Territory Wales
Members 74,779 communicants as of 2004
Website churchinwales.org
  Anglicanism Portal

The Church in Wales (Welsh: Yr Eglwys yng Nghymru) is a member Church of the Anglican Communion, consisting of six dioceses in Wales. Like all Anglican churches, it recognizes the primacy of the Archbishop of Canterbury, who does not however have any formal authority in Wales (except for residual roles in the case of failure to elect a bishop and in a court set up to try an archbishop, as well as direct authority as metropolitan in a handful of border parishes remaining in the Church of England and exempt from disestablishment). The Archbishop of Wales serves concurrently as one of the church's six diocesan bishops; currently, the Most Rev Dr Barry Morgan is both Archbishop of Wales and Bishop of Llandaff. Once the state Church, disestablishment was effected in 1920. This means that, unlike England, Wales no longer has a state Church.

Contents

[edit] Official name

The Church in Wales (Welsh: Yr Eglwys yng Nghymru) adopted its name rather by accident. The Welsh Church Act 1914 had referred throughout to "the Church in Wales", the phrase being used to indicate the part of the Church of England in Wales. A Convention of the Welsh Church in 1920 considered what name to use, and tended to favour "the Church of Wales", but there were fears that adopting a name different from that given by the Act might cause serious legal problems. Given the situation, it did not seem sensible to invite even more problems at that point, and so "the Church in Wales" was allowed to stand.

[edit] History

Christianity in Wales can be traced back to the Romano-British period. Wales became a refuge for other Brythons following the pagan Anglo-Saxon invasion of what became England, so much so that the Welsh refused to co-operate with Augustine of Canterbury's mission to the Anglo-Saxons. However, a combination of Celtic Christianity's reconciliation with Rome and Medieval English conquest of Wales meant that from the Middle Ages until 1920, the Welsh dioceses were part of the Province of Canterbury -- in communion with the See of Rome until the Reformation, and continuing afterwards as part of the Church of England. From the time of Henry VIII, Wales had been absorbed into England as a legal entity and the Established Church in Wales was the Church of England.

[edit] Disestablishment

During the 19th century nonconformist churches grew rapidly in Wales, so much so that, eventually, the majority of Welsh Christians were nonconformist, although the Church of England remained the largest single religious denomination.

At the beginning of the 20th century, under the influence of nonconformist politicians such as David Lloyd George, the Welsh Church Act 1914 was passed by the Liberal Government 1905–1915 to separate the Anglican Church in Wales from the Church of England. The bill was fiercely resisted by the Conservatives, and blocked in the House of Lords, eventually being passed by the use of the Parliament Act. Welsh disestablishment was also a way of asserting a national identity.

The opposition to disestablishment was led by the Conservative Party politician F.E. Smith, who characterized the effort as "a Bill which has shocked the conscience of every Christian community in Europe." In response to this overwrought description, the writer G. K. Chesterton penned the vicious satirical poem, Antichrist, or the Reunion of Christendom: An Ode.[1]

The Act both disestablished and disendowed the "Church in Wales", the term used to define the part of the Church of England which was to be separated. Disestablishment meant the end of the Church's special legal status and Welsh bishops were no longer entitled to sit in the House of Lords as "Lords Spiritual". Establishment had brought limitations as well as advantages. For example, priests of the Church of England were barred from sitting in the House of Commons, but this no longer applied to priests in Wales. The Church in Wales became independent of the state.

F. E. Smith, 1st Earl of Birkenhead, opposed disestablishment.
F. E. Smith, 1st Earl of Birkenhead, opposed disestablishment.

Disendowment, which was even more controversial, meant that the endowments of the Church in Wales were partially confiscated and redistributed to the University of Wales and local authorities. Endowments before 1662 were to be confiscated; those of later date were to be left. This was justified on the theory that the pre-1662 endowments were to a true National Church of the whole population, and hence belonged to the people as a whole rather than to the Church in Wales. This reasoning was hotly contested. The date 1662 was that of the Act of Uniformity following the Restoration; a case could be made that this was the point at which the Church of England ceased, or began to cease, to be a truly comprehensive national church and nonconformity began to develop.

The coming into effect of the Welsh Church Act 1914 was delayed by the outbreak of the First World War. The Church was split from the Church of England in 1920.

[edit] Since 1920

Parishes overlapping the border were allocated either to the Church in Wales or to the Church of England, with the result that the line of disestablishment is not exactly the same as the England—Wales border. A few districts in Monmouthshire and Radnorshire remain attached to parishes in the diocese of Hereford and consequently established. The Oswestry deanery was detached from the St. Asaph diocese. Today, the Church in Wales is fully independent of both the state and the Church of England, and is an independent member of the Anglican Communion like the Church of Ireland or the Scottish Episcopal Church.

The Church in Wales is currently undergoing numerous changes and debates, particularly in relation to the appointment of women to the episcopate, and the recognition by the province as a whole of the equality between Welsh and English in all parts of Church life.

[edit] Membership

Following disestablishment in 1920, the Church in Wales fared better than the nonconformist churches, which suffered decline in the twentieth century. There were 74,779 communicants on Easter Sunday, 2004.[2]

[edit] Structure

Flag of the Church in Wales.
Flag of the Church in Wales.
Flag of Anglican Communion
Flag of Anglican Communion

The polity of the Church in Wales is Episcopalian church governance, which is the same as other Anglican churches.

There are four Anglican dioceses in Wales which were part of the Province of Canterbury, prior to the creation of the Church in Wales, and each led by its own bishop:

Two further dioceses have been created since the creation of the Church in Wales:

Monmouth was created from the eastern part of Llandaff diocese, largely corresponding to the ancient county of Monmouthshire. Swansea and Brecon was created from the eastern part of the St David's diocese, largely corresponding to what is now the City & County of Swansea and the traditional counties of Breconshire and Radnorshire.

[edit] Diocesan bishops

Unlike bishops in the Church of England, each bishop of the Church in Wales is elected by an 'Electoral College' which consists of representatives of the diocese seeking a new bishop, representatives of the other five dioceses in Wales and all the other Bishops of the Church in Wales. Currently the Church in Wales does not consecrate women as bishops, and this was reconfirmed by a close vote in 2008[3]. The Archbishop of Wales, the head of the Church in Wales, is elected by and from the six diocesan bishops and continues as a diocesan bishop after his election.

Following the resignation of The Right Reverend Carl Cooper, the See of St Davids is vacent until the Electoral College meet to choose a successor. Episcopal acts (such as Ordination, Confirmation etc.) are being carried out by the Archbishop or a Bishop deputised by him.

The Most Reverend and Right Honourable Dr Rowan Williams is the first Welsh-born Archbishop of Canterbury. He was consecrated and enthroned as Bishop of Monmouth in 1992, and Archbishop of Wales in 1999. He was appointed by the Queen (having been proposed by the Crown Appointments Commission) to be Archbishop of Canterbury in July 2002. He was succeeded as Bishop of Monmouth by the former Bishop of Reading, the Right Revd Dr Dominic Walker, and was succeeded as Archbishop of Wales by the Bishop of Llandaff, the Right Revd Dr Barry Morgan.

[edit] Assistant bishops

In addition to the six Diocesan Bishops, there are currently two Assistant Bishops within the Church. In 1996, the Church in Wales approved the ordination of women, and the Provincial Assistant Bishop was appointed to provide pastoral care for those who could not in good conscience accept the ordination of women. As in the Church of England, there are now many female priests and deacons in active ministry in the Church.

  • The Right Revd David Thomas - Provincial Assistant Bishop

Bishop David retires during the Summer of 2008, however the Bench of Bishops have not yet decided whether they will replace him.

It has become customary for the Archbishop to appoint an Assistant Bishop to help within the Archbishop's diocese. On becoming Archbishop, Dr. Barry Morgan appointed The Venerable David Yeoman as his Assistant Bishop.

[edit] Representative Body

The Representative Body is responsible for the care of the Church's property and funding many of the activities of the Church, including support for priests' stipends (like salaries) and pensions. The Governing Body functions as a kind of parliament (similar to the Church of England General Synod) for the Church.

[edit] Worship and liturgy

It has been suggested that the Church in Wales as a whole tends to be predominantly High Church, that is to say that many of the traditions inherited from the Oxford Movement, in more rural dioceses such as St David's and Bangor and the industrial parishes of Llandaff and Monmouth. However, even though the province in terms of theology and liturgy is more liberal and Anglo-Catholic in leaning, there is a tradition of evangelicalism within it, especially in the southern parts of Wales, and the university town of Aberystwyth. Since the 1960s there has been a revival of evangelicalism within the Church in Wales and the Evangelical Fellowship of the Church in Wales exists to support evangelicals.

[edit] The Book of Common Prayer

The publication of the 2004 Holy Eucharist and 2006 Rites of Christian Initiation are the largest reforms in liturgy in nearly forty years. It is hoped that by the end of the decade that the 2004 Eucharist rite will be the sole celebrated rite within the province, leading it to become more a eucharist-centered church than before. At the moment, the Standing Liturgical Commission are preparing resources for Morning, Evening and Daily Prayer.

[edit] Doctrine and practice

See also: Anglicanism and Anglican doctrine

The center of teachings of the Church in Wales is the life and resurrection of Jesus Christ. The basic teachings of the church, or catechism, includes:

The threefold sources of authority in Anglicanism are scripture, tradition, and reason. These three sources uphold and critique each other in a dynamic way.

This balance of scripture, tradition and reason is traced to the work of Richard Hooker, a sixteenth century apologist. In Hooker's model, scripture is the primary means of arriving at doctrine and things stated plainly in scripture are accepted as true. Issues that are ambiguous are determined by tradition, which is checked by reason.[4]

[edit] Social issues

In the previous 30 years, the Church in Wales has taken a stand on various issues including economic justice, ordination of women, and inclusion. In some areas, such as human sexuality, the church has faced a struggle.

[edit] Ecumenical relations

Like many other Anglican churches, the Church in Wales has entered into full communion with the Old Catholics. The Church in Wales is also a member of the Porvoo Communion.

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ Antichrist, or the Reunion of Christendom: An Ode.
  2. ^ www.churchinwales.org.uk
  3. ^ Church in Wales rejects women bishops
  4. ^ Anglican Listening goes into detail on how scripture, tradition, and reason work to "uphold and critique each other in a dynamic way".

[edit] Further reading

  • D T W Price, A History of the Church in Wales in the Twentieth Century (Church in Wales Publications, 1990)

[edit] External links

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