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| Anglicanism |
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Here a litle about the history of the Anglicanism, the origin, sacraments and an explanation on the way anglicans see the christianity life. This page has other links to correlate themes, which open in self windows. |
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The Anglicanism
Christianity came to the British Isles at the end of the first century, brought by Christians fleeing from persecution. There the Christian Church was established initially among the Celts who sent three Bishops to the Council of Arles, in 314 AD. In 596 the Pope of Rome, St. Gregory the Great, sent missionaries to evangelise Great Britain. Bishop Augustine led this mission and started working in Kent where the Anglo-Saxons lived. He established in Canterbury the first communities subordinate to Rome.
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From then onward there was a gradual advance of the Church of Rome into Celtic territory until, in 664, the Celtic Church submitted to the government of the Roman Church, partially adopting its rites, but maintaining several Celtic and British traditions. The British people, however, never agreed with the submission to Roman power. So, in 1534, the Anglican Church once more separated from the Roman Church by decision of Parliament following the initiative of King Henry VIII.
Anglicanism was influenced in a positive way by the protestant reformation movement, yet it preserved the purest and healthiest ancient Catholic traditions as expressed in the liturgy contained in the Book of Common Prayer.
Anglicanism came to Brazil in two stages in the 19th Century: through the opening of Chaplaincies for the British engineers who arrived here as from 1810 and through the work of North American missionaries as from 1889. |
A Sacramental Church
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Sacraments are external and visible signs of internal and spiritual grace. Anglicans believe that Holy Baptism and the Eucharist are sacraments indispensable to Christian life.
Holy Baptism: This is the sacrament by which God adopts us and makes us members of the Church and inheritors of the Kingdom of God. A person becomes a Christian through baptism with water in the name of the Holy Trinity. Persons of any age may be baptised if they have not yet been baptised in any other Christian Church. The Anglican Church does not under any circumstances practise "rebaptism". Children may be baptised regardless of the marital status of their parents. Any person, once baptised, has the right to take part in the Holy Eucharist and regularly receive Communion.
Holy Eucharist: Also called "Holy Communion" or "Mass". This is the spiritual food of Christians. Its external and visible signs are the bread and the wine consecrated by a priest who has been ordained under apostolic succession. The spiritual graces received are the forgiveness of our sin and the strengthening of our union with Christ and one another. The Anglican Church proclaims the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist. The consecrated elements are given to anyone who wishes to receive them, provided that the person has been baptised in any branch of the Christian Church. Holy Communion is offered every Sunday. |
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Other Sacramental rites
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Confirmation: This is the sacrament in which one expresses a mature commitment to Christ, and receives strength from the Holy Spirit through prayer and the laying on of hands by a Bishop. At confirmation the person reaffirms the baptismal vows made by his Godparents. In order to be confirmed, the person must be baptised, must have accepted Jesus Christ as his Lord in a personal and conscientious way and have received appropriate instruction.
Matrimony: The Anglican Church celebrates matrimony in accordance with the laws of the country. At least one of the couple must have been baptised in a Christian Church. Those who are divorced may remarry as long as the canonical requirements of the Church are fulfilled.
Unction of the Sick: Also known as the Blessing of Health, this is the sacrament administered through the laying on of hands to all who are in need of physical, mental or spiritual healing.
Penance: This is the sacrament in which those who repent of their sins may confess them to God in the presence of a priest and receive the assurance of God's pardon and absolution.
Ordination: The Church ordains to the Holy Orders persons who have received approved theological training. The orders of Deacon, Priest and Bishop are successive, lifelong and open to men and women, whether single or married. The Anglican Church does not require her ministers to be celibate. |
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The Anglican way of living a Christian life
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The Anglican Church seeks to balance catholic tradition with the beneficial influences of the protestant reformation. For this reason it is both catholic and reformed. The Church's liturgy preserves the ancient structure of the Christian service while placing great emphasis on the proclamation and preaching of the Word of God. The various types of services are found in the Book of Common Prayer (BCP).
The Church places importance on everything that contributes to the glorification of God, such as flowers, the liturgical colours, candles and music. Because of the reverence Anglicans have for the space consecrated for prayer and the worship of God, they are often quiet and reserved in the temples, which may be misinterpreted as a sign of coldness. However Anglicans find much joy in their worship and have a great affection for their Church and its community.
Thanks to the BCP, Anglicans are able to find a familiar form of worship in any part of the world, thus enabling them to feel part of a large Christian family which exists in 165 countries throughout the world. The Anglican Communion, as it is known, has as its centre the See of Canterbury, England, under the leadership of the Archbishop of Canterbury. At present this office is held by Archbishop Rowan Williams who was enthroned in February 2003.
In Brazil the Anglican Church has eight dioceses and approximately 100 thousand members. |
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