ACNA Bishops Attend ++Williams' Speech at St. Vladimir's Seminary

On January 30th Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams was granted an honory doctorate at St. Vladimir's Orthodox Theological Seminary. A full story about the events of last weekend may be found on the seminary's website (which may be read by clicking the title of this post).

Noteworthy in particular is the seminary web site's highlighting the presence of several bishops from the Anglican Church in North America, including Archbishop Duncan and Bishop Iker. Here is an excerpt:

Particularly noteworthy among the audience was the attendance by bishops in the Anglican Church of North America (ACNA), a “Province-in-formation” within the global Anglican Communion. Newly formed in June 2008, it represents a traditional, conservative, and “biblically-faithful way of following Jesus,” in opposition to many current practices that members say are “accommodated and incorporated” by the Episcopal Church in the U.S. and the Anglican Church of Canada, according to the group's Websitehttp://anglicanchurch.net.

The Rt. Rev. Ray R. Sutton, the Ecumenical Bishop from the ACNA stated, “With grateful hearts to Metropolitan Jonah, we welcome and rejoice over his vision and commitment to restoring Anglican-Orthodox dialogue. We who are faithful Anglicans thank St. Vladimir’s for its deep commitment to the faith once delivered and its love for others outside Orthodoxy who share likeminded love for the love and truth of Jesus.”

Likewise, The Rt. Rev. Jack Iker, bishop of the Diocese of Fort Worth in the ACNA, said, “The real significance of today’s events goes far beyond the awarding of an honorary degree to Dr. Rowan Williams. By conferring this degree upon the Archbishop of Canterbury, St. Vladimir’s has expressed respect and affection for Anglicanism, as well as a hope for a deeper relationship between Anglican and Orthodox Christians. Metropolitan Jonah has spoken of this new vision in a very inspirational way.”