Updated with Episcopal News Service story.
Do you think that Lambeth Palace has a policy under which it withholds information that would be beneficial to the Episcopal Church until the press is no longer paying attention? The palace was missing in action yesterday when reporters were writing their stories about the gathering of conservative Anglicans in Wheaton yesterday, so papers are full of speculation about whether and when the conservatives’ proposed province will be ratified.
Now, one day late, the palace dumps this pail of cold water on the conservatives’ plans for Communion-wide recognition:
“There are clear guidelines set out in the Anglican Consultative Council Reports, notably ACC 10 in 1996 (resolution 12), detailing the steps necessary for the amendments of existing provincial constitutions and the creation of new provinces. Once begun, any of these processes will take years to complete. In relation to the recent announcement from the meeting of the Common Cause Partnership in Chicago, the process has not yet begun.”
The ACC10 resolution is available here. Read it and recognize how little regard the conservatives have for the rules that the Communion has established to govern itself.
The likelihood of this proposed province will receive any official recognition from the Communion suddenly seems rather dim, primarily because it seems unlikely the conservatives will submit to this process.