The number of congregations in the United States of America that regard themselves as “Anglican” but “outside of ECUSA” is already quite large. Some of these go back to the nineteenth century. There is an interesting map here, which shows a total of 457, although it also says that it is incomplete. These numbers include a few Canadian parishes (see comments).
This total breaks down as follows:
Groups which are directly linked to some other province of the Anglican Communion:
AMiA-113, Southern Cone-26, Uganda-23, Nigeria-15, Kenya-14, Brazil-Recife-6
The AMiA is, according to its own website “a missionary outreach of the Province of the Episcopal Church of Rwanda”.
Other Groups:
APA-71, REC-38, ACA-36, EMC-27, UEC-25, Unknown-18, CEC-17, UAC-12, , ACiC-6, APCK-4, OAC-2, DHC-2, ACCC-1, APCGS-1
More information about these groups can be found in the Anglicans Online list of ‘Not in the Communion’.
AMiA, APA, and REC are Common Cause Partners as is CANA.
Surely any such a total should also include
the 10 diocese in the ACN
the other couple of diocese that are applying for APO
the 250+ parishes that are individual members of the ACN.
So overall there are about 1,000 parishes that are outside ECUSA yet meaningfully Anglican.
Current estimates say that approximately 10% of diocese, 20% of members, and 30% of tithing (not investment) income is now going to the Network rather than ECUSA.
“The number of congregations in the United States of America that regard themselves as ‘Anglican’ but “outside of ECUSA” is already quite large. Some of these go back to the nineteenth century. There is an interesting map here, which shows a total of 457, although it also says that it is incomplete.”
“Quite large,” Simon? I would say the total is “quite small” given the fact that the Episcopal Church has 7, 347 parishes. They may seem larger than they are because of lung power, not people power.
The rate of new parishes being reported is at about 5 now, after being in the dozens per day when I first posted the map, so most of the provinces are getting pretty complete. APCGS and APCK is pretty incomplete compared to their size. Also, I consider ACiC as in-communion to the same degree that AMiA is since there are very similar. Based on the incoming rate, I expect the map to top out at about 500 once all are entered. It will continue to increase as more ECUSA parishes leave and more new plants are started by the various… Read more »
GDAF
Thanks for the additional information.
At 5/day it should “top out” at 500 within the next two weeks.
By ACiC do you mean Anglican Coalition in Canada? If so, then these should not be counted as part of the USA total, but as part of a separate Canadian number.
Kurt
My point was that the number of recent additions (Uganda, Nigeria, Recife, Southern Cone) is small compared to the less new AMiA total and the combined total of the older groups.
>From Sinner on including ACN parishes I’m not making value judgements here, just showing non-ECUSA parishes. The map DOES include ACN affiliated parishes that are under foreign oversight, but does not include ACN parishes and dioceses that are still under ECUSA. I think your count of the later is right at about 1,000. >From Kurt on being “quite small”. It is what it is. The important points are: 1) There are more joining these ranks almost daily through AMiA plants, ecusa parishes leaving, … If you add this 500 to the 1,000 parishes that are currently still under ecusa but… Read more »
Please note that the Anglican Province of America and the Reformed Episcopal Church are officially linked to a province of the Anglican Communion as of 12 November 2005, when a formal Covenant Union was established bewteen the Church of Nigeria (Anglican Communion) and the APA and REC. God bless you!
http://www.anglicanprovince.org/nigeria.html
“There are more joining these ranks almost daily through AMiA plants, ecusa parishes leaving, … If you add this 500 to the 1,000 parishes that are currently still under ecusa but looking for a way out, then you get to 1500 vs 6300 remaining in ecusa. Most important, the 1500 number is increasing weekly while the 6300 is falling fast.”—GDAF Perhaps, but I have followed the developments of non-Episcopal “Anglicans” for more than 30 years and it looks to me like a lot of wishful thinking on your part. One has to remember that in the so-called “orthodox” dioceses there… Read more »
Oh geez, Simon, you might as well list Methodist and Baptist congregations. They are no more (and, in some cases, less) *ex*-Anglican, than are the schismatics listed above! The *True Charisms* of Anglicanism — Cranmer, Hooker, Elizabeth I, the evangelicalism of Wilberforce, the Anglo-Catholicism of Pusey and (early) Newman, the multicultural sanctity of Absalom Jones, David Pendleton Oakerhater (feast day today!) and Jonathan M. Daniels — are (in the USA at least!) “pleased to dwell” IN THE EPISCOPAL CHURCH. Period! Nothing that the schismatics (whether sowing further dissension, or planting churches of their critically-deficient “gospel”) — nor the Big Wigs/mitres… Read more »
Oh, and GDAF: re “the signs are clearly that they are coming together rather than splintering”?
Just one thing: “And Herod and Pilate became friends with each other that very day…” 🙁
>looks to me like a lot of wishful thinking on your part I’m mainly only interested in one parish (mine) and don’t really care about the competition between the various flavors. It could be million to one for all I care. >you might as well list Methodist and Baptist congregations. Very good point. Just the Southern Baptists have 41,000+ congregations and United Methodist have 36,000+ vs. maybe 8000 of all flavors of Anglicanism. This is without counting other flavors of Baptists and Methodists, which are likely larger than all of those that call themselves Anglicans. Yet TEC takes it upon… Read more »
“But even if the number leaving were as high as 10 per cent, it would be worth it, to me anyway, to lose 700 parishes to finally be rid of them once and for all.” I’m not feeling the inclusive love in the comment above, nor any tolerance, nor any appreciation of diversity. “The *True Charisms* of Anglicanism — Cranmer, Hooker, Elizabeth I, the evangelicalism of Wilberforce, the Anglo-Catholicism of Pusey and (early) Newman, the multicultural sanctity of Absalom Jones, David Pendleton Oakerhater (feast day today!) and Jonathan M. Daniels — are (in the USA at least!) “pleased to dwell”… Read more »
According to the article the map shows 38 REC congregations, whereas the REC website lists 137. I would suspect that there are other discrepancies like this from this source.
‘the whole mess’ is on, what I’ll call the historical level. But there is,another dimension, I believe, unspoilt by the whole mess. I think we could use various words for this level. I want to call it the ultimate dimension. There are no 700 ‘there’. Or to put another way, ‘there’ we ourselves ‘are’ the 700…. How shall we, today, on the historical level open to the ultimate dimension ? I believe I have experienced or known something of it in ‘the silence of eternity interpretted by love’ I think the Beatitudes and sermon on the mount can evoke this… Read more »
“Our gospel is the same as has been practiced through the ages.” Obviously, that’s your opinion, GDAF. Though I consider it incorrect, even *with* your version of the gospel, you’d still be welcome — included, even — within the eucharistic fellowship of the Episcopal Church. Doesn’t work the other way around though, does it? (Even though — Lord help me! — I hope and pray I’m being faithful to the Gospel of Christ “through the ages”: the fact that I consider that Gospel to be inclusive of LGBT persons, and their committed relationships, makes me beyond the pale of your… Read more »
Lovely posting Laurence (re Beatitudes). Thanks for this GDAF and Simon. Actually quantifying the beast makes it seem less scary (a bit like a child being too scared to look under the bed, but when they finally do the monster was their teddy bear). There are some souls who will not be tolerant to GLBTs and will feel a need to keep themselves pure. That’s fine. I just pray that God gives them enough sense to not gate-crash or attack those who would be tolerant and inclusive. The AIDS pandemic has made it a necessity to accept that there is… Read more »
>>>I’m not feeling the inclusive love in the comment above, nor any tolerance, nor any appreciation of diversity. No community is obligated to include, love, tolerate, or celebrate that which is openly dedicated to its destruction. I know that it’s become a popular reactionary strategy to appropriate and subvert progressive lingo in this way, but it really doesn’t convince anyone. As for whether all these “Continuing Anglican” groups are going to come together, that’s doubtful. These splinter groups have been around for ages, and still they remain splintered. Shared resentment is not much of a foundation for a church, or… Read more »
GDAF, I do appreciate the map. I do think there are a few small groups not listed on the map that do appear on the Anglicans Online “Not in Communion” page. There are also a couple of groups who use the title Anglican that are more liberal than the Episcopal Church, rather than more conservative. The Evangelical Anglican Church *in* America is a case in point (to be distinguished from the Evangelical Anglican Church *of* America, which is more conservative). But your initial comment does beg a question that is not settled. You speak of congregations that are “meaningfully Anglican.”… Read more »
Equally, if history is any guide, the Episcopal Church–with its precipitously declining membership–will soon enough be joining the rest of the pack as a small, scattered sect, while still claiming to be the “real” Anglicans.
Overall, from all sides of the controversy, a sad end to a great and historic denomination within the U.S.–
Marshall wrote: >>You speak of congregations that are >>”meaningfully Anglican.” That, of course, is >>still a matter of dispute. I don’t disagree with anything that you said. In a nutshell, my criteria for deciding if someone is Anglican is if they say they are and a cursory reading of their provincial website indicates a level of Anglican tradition in their beliefs and practices. I put them on the map and let the reader decide for themselves with no editorializing on my part. That is why I have even limited the subjective material by each parish on the map (i.e. only… Read more »
The initiatives seem clear: oust the queer folks and make new warm overtures to the ultra-conservative believers who left earlier. A healing new conservative religious strategy of sorts. Is all this new puritan vigor going to rest from all its labors, after it has vanquished all remaining strains of progressive inquiry or ideas inside the new, improved communion? Time will tell, maybe. I just hope that this newly realigned communion ceases to delight in all this meanness when it finally arrives at its borders, having successfully welcomed back its most conservative dissenters at the same time it newly escorts any… Read more »