Bishops yes, but only with sound doctrine

In the classic Rite for the ordination and consecration of a bishop, the
Archbishop or Presiding Bishop delivers a Bible to the new bishop and urges
him to pay very careful attention to its content.

"Give heed unto reading, exhortation and doctrine. Think upon the things
contained in this Book, be diligent in them, that the increase coming
thereby may be manifest unto all men. Take heed unto thyself, and to
doctrine, and be diligent in doing them; for by so doing thou shalt both
save thyself and them that hear thee. Be to the flock of Christ a shepherd,
not a wolf; feed them, devour them not…"[Ordinal in the BCP 1662 & 1928
BCP].

Let us focus on the words: “ For by so doing thou shalt both save thyself
and them that hear thee.”

One obvious implication of these words is that a bishop who teaches error
or heresy imperils not only his own soul but the souls of his clergy and his
flock.

Another implication is that modern Anglicanism, which is tending to find its
unity in the person of the bishop, without regard to whether or not he is
teaching sound doctrine, is committing a grave mistake and putting thousands
of souls in possible peril.

Regrettably this mistake is apparently being made not only by all kinds of
clergy, theologians, liturgiologists and members of theological commissions
but also, it would appear, on recent very public evidence, by the Archbishop
of Canterbury.

The Message from Lambeth Palace

The message from Lambeth Palace in the new millennium seems to be either
“unity around the bishop first, and truth will follow after” or just “unity
and more institutional unity around the bishop for unity’s sake.” In his
public Letters concerning the ordination and consecration of bishops for the
Anglican Mission in America, Dr. Carey places great emphasis upon the duty
of the new [irregular] bishops to be reconciled to the Presiding Bishop of
the Episcopal Church. But, as far as we know, Dr. Carey has not also
required that the Presiding Bishop, along with other American bishops,
repent of their errors and heresies as their part of this reconciliation.

Dr Carey’s basis for actually accepting the bishops of the AMiA into the
Anglican episcopate seems to be very lopsided, heavily loaded in favor of
the ECUSA, which is by general consent an erring Church.

[It is well know that there have been several major secessions of clergy and
people from the Episcopal Church, USA, since 1975 because of their
conviction that this Church had departed in certain basic essentials from
the worship, doctrine and discipline of the historic Anglican Way.
Certainly, in the 1970s it is a matter of public record that this Church
actually changed its Formularies, rejecting the classic ones and imposing
new ones. Since then it has made the acceptance of women’s ordination
compulsory for all officers, clerical and lay, has publicly endorsed major
aspects of the lesbigay agenda, has introduced liturgies that deny orthodox
doctrine, and has persecuted those who hold to the traditional Anglican
worship, doctrine and discipline.]