The first “ordinariate” for Anglicans entering the Catholic Church
will be established in England this week, according to Archbishop
Vincent Nichols.
In a January 11 announcement, Archbishop Nichols said that he would
ordain three former Anglican bishops to the Catholic priesthood on
January 15.
“On or before that date,” the archbishop said, “I expect the
Holy See to announce the establishment of the first Ordinariate for
groups of former Anglicans and their clergy who seek full communion in
the Catholic Church. The three men ordained on Saturday will be the
first priests of this Ordinariate.”
The archbishop, who doubles as president of the Catholic Bishops’
Conference of England and Wales, welcomed the three former Anglican
prelates: John Broadhurst, Andrew Burnham and Keith Newton. At the same
time he paid homage to the leaders of the Anglican communion and to the
Archbishop of Canterbury for their “sensitive leadership.”
Archbishop
Nichols said that the strong relationship between the Catholic and
Anglican hierarchies is “the context for Saturday’s important
initiative,” adding that the cooperative sentiment shows “the noble
spirit of true ecumenism.”
The archbishop said that Pope Benedict’s goal for the ordinariate was to
“serve the wider cause of visible unity between our two churches by
demonstrating in practice the extent to which we have so much to give to
each other in our common service of the Lord.”
SIC: CC/INT'L