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Few people today can fail to be aware that there is a crisis of faith in the Church of England and in the Anglican Communion generally. They may however be unclear as to the cause of it, and unsure of what it means. In this book the author lays bare the real causes, which relate not to peripheral matters, but to fundamental matters of faith and practice.
Until fairly recently the Church of England had a definite identity. Its worship was expressed through the liturgy of the Book of Common Prayer (1662); its doctrine was defined by the Thirty-nine Articles of Religion; and its clergy were ordained according to the Ordinal of the Book of Common Prayer (1662). The word of God was read in the congregation from the Authorised Version of the Bible. Little if anything of this now remains. It has been swept away by the changes of recent times. We believe that with it has gone not just the identity of the Church of England, but the message of the Gospel itself, the doctrinal and moral teachings which are essential to the spiritual and moral health and well-being of the nation.
This led, in 1994, to the setting up of the Church of England (Continuing). As the author of this book explains, this was no innovation but a simple adherence to the position of the Church of England, while the church at large seceded from it. “It is better,” as someone has said, “to light a candle, than to curse the darkness.” And a candle, though small, when it is lit is capable of “giving light to all that are in the house.”
We take its tenth Anniversay as an opportunity for making the position of the Church of England (Continuing) better known, and we hope that those who read this book may be persuaded to identify with it. The months and years ahead are times when Christians will be compelled to face the questions discussed in this book and decide where they stand.
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