The AAC is wholly liberal and yet also genuinely conservative!

There is no doubt but that the American Anglican Council in terms of what is claims to stand upon in terms of worship, doctrine, order and discipline is LIBERAL - if the standard by which judgment is made is the classic Anglican Way & The Protestant Episcopal Church of the USA of say 1789, 1900, or 1950 or 1960.

There is also no doubt but that the same American Anglican Council is, in terms of what it claims to stand upon in terms of worship, doctrine, order and discipline, CONSERVATIVE - if the standard by which judgment is made is the Episcopal Church of the USA after the General Convention of August 2003.

We need of course to be aware that such words as "liberal", "conservative", "revisionist", "orthodox" and "traditionalist" as used in ordinary circumstances today have their meaning fixed primarily by the present context and not by meanings in and of earlier generations.

So even though the AAC uses modern (inclusive?) language for prayer, reads from modern translations of the Bible containing inclusive language, celebrates the ordination of women, and is probably half-committed to the post 1960s American divorce culture, it can be called "traditionalist" and "orthodox" and "conservative" as well as being said to be against "revisionism" and "liberalism". The reason is, of course, that the modern ECUSA has incorporated so many innovations into its life since World War II and the AAC does not approve of all of them. Therefore, there is a clash amongst the innovators between those favoring the many innovations and those favoring a lesser number. So one set of innovators is deemed liberal for it favors many and the other conservative for it favors less innovations. And right now the AAC opposes the latest and most emotionally charged innovation - blessing gay unions - and thus rejoices in being "orthodox" and "conservative".

However, by the yardstick of the Standards of Faith, Worship, Morality, Discipline & Order of the PECUSA of 1950 or 1960, the AAC is most definitely liberal. This is because the AAC has abandoned as A PLACE TO STAND UPON these historic, basic Standards - or at least does not take them seriously or as binding (I refer of course to the historic PECUSA Formularies -- the classic Prayer Book, the Ordinal and the Articles of Religion in the context of Order, an all male Ministry).

What I believe the American Anglican Council needs to do - and God has kindly and graciously provided right now a window, even a door, of opportunity - is to become orthodox and conservative and traditional (without losing its enthusiasm for evangelism & church planting) by the standards of historical, classic Christianity of the Anglican Way, as that was believed, taught and confessed by the Protestant Episcopal Church before the ravages of the 1960s and 1970s.

Let us dig again the wells of Abraham and drink the pure water! Let us seek the old paths and walk therein.

Merely to return to the pre-General Convention position and be satisfied therein as a conservative stance would be the worse possible thing to do, for it would be to have rejected God's offer of the open door to enter, to clean and to refurnish His American Anglican Household with proper furniture and in renewed commitment and hope.

The Rev'd Dr. Peter Toon M.A., D.Phil. (Oxon.)