An Anglican Church in North America parish announced this week that it is departing the theologically conservative denomination to pursue affiliation with the Episcopal Diocese of Texas, with its priest saying “This journey has brought us immense clarity and conviction.”
Resurrection Anglican Church South Austin is the third parish in two years to depart the Diocese of Churches for the Sake of Others (C4SO), following St. Mary of Bethany Parish Nashville and The Table Indianapolis. The latter also pursued affiliation with the Episcopal Church, while the former remains unaffiliated as “an Ecumenical Eucharistic Community.” [Editor’s note: see comments below]
The Table Indianapolis was the first parish to depart for the Episcopal Church from the ACNA denomination that is largely composed of congregations that themselves either departed the Episcopal Church or were planted in cooperation with those who did so.
In 2022, C4SO was the second largest diocese in the ACNA measured by attendance, membership, and number of congregations. The Episcopal Diocese of Texas is the second largest in the Episcopal Church.
All three departing parishes share emphasis on social justice causes and count a significant percentage of post-Evangelicals as members, rather than former mainline Protestants.
“While this moves us out of affiliation with our friends in the Anglican Church in North America and the Diocese of Churches for the Sake of Others, we appreciate the support and relationships we have enjoyed with so many sisters and brothers in Christ over the years and hope those friendships continue,” Resurrection Rector Shawn McCain Tirres wrote in a Wednesday announcement posted on the church website. McCain Tirres also wrote of gratitude “for our colleagues in C4SO and our beloved bishop, Todd Hunter,” as well as eagerness to get to know Episcopal parish communities in Central Texas.
Resurrection South Austin will soon find itself in the same Episcopal diocese that absorbed north Texas parishes that had litigated against the ACNA’s Diocese of Fort Worth.
As I’ve previously noted, for such a small slice of the American religious pie (approximately 125,000 members), the ACNA sits on a heavily transited parcel of ecclesial real estate. Our denomination is often a waystation for Christians traveling from – and moving on to – a variety of destinations.
Some we meet “on the Canterbury trail” are encountering historic, liturgical Christianity for the first time and may eventually opt to swim the Tiber or Bosphorus on their way to Rome or Constantinople. Still others have departed from an Evangelical or fundamentalist context and will move to progressive Christianity, or out of the faith altogether. It is likely that some of those worshiping at Resurrection South Austin find themselves on one of these paths.
In October 2021, I wrote about the promotion of Liberation Theology within ACNA by McCain Tirres. It was one example of a jarring disconnect between Anglicans who separated from the Episcopal Church’s theological revisionism at great cost, and post-Evangelicals newly weighing such truth claims.
As I wrote last year, The Table Church wasn’t really the first to depart ACNA, and Resurrection South Austin won’t be the last to do so. What those of us within ACNA can do is contend for “the faith once delivered” and share those things that deepened our knowledge and love of the Lord.
McCain Tirres himself was circumspect in the announced change of affiliation.
“Even in our disagreements and concerns, we have walked in love, sought understanding and reconciliation, and entrusted ourselves to God’s unfailing wisdom and mercy.”
UPDATE [7/28/2023]: Several readers inquired about the reason for Resurrection’s change of affiliation, which was unspecified in the parish announcement. The Episcopal Diocese of Texas has been more forthcoming, telling David Paulsen of the Episcopal News Service in a statement that Resurrection had conducted a “thorough examination of its own convictions around a variety of concerns, including [ACNA’s] prohibitions against women in the episcopate and the full inclusion of LGBTQIA+ in the church.”
Comment by David Wilson on July 27, 2023 at 8:08 am
Thanks Jeff for a well researched and written analysis. I hope they find what they’re looking for.
Comment by Beth on July 27, 2023 at 2:03 pm
I’m sorry to hear this about Resurrection Austin. . I have been watching their service online, but won’t continue if they’re joining the Episcopal Church.
Comment by Adam on July 28, 2023 at 11:06 am
A slight correction concerning St. Mary of Bethany Parish. St. Mary’s is part of the Anglican Diocese of Erie which is a missionary diocese of the Anglican Free Communion International.
Comment by Jeffrey Walton on July 28, 2023 at 2:51 pm
This is a helpful update, thank you, Adam!
Comment by Davis on July 28, 2023 at 9:02 pm
Weak! Social justice cannot and does not replace the Gospel or biblical authority. The Episcopagan church attempts to do both.
Comment by Paul on July 31, 2023 at 5:04 pm
They are leaving because of a lack of “women in the episcopate and the full inclusion of LGBTQIA+ in the church.” Interesting how these two issues are often paired.
Comment by Jeffrey Walton on July 31, 2023 at 5:33 pm
Recall that the Church of England only changed its canon law to permit the consecration of female bishops in 2014. It’s a bit odd to reject ACNA as intolerable for its stance on this issue when the vast majority of Anglican Communion provinces don’t have women bishops, and the CoE only began consecrating them in the past decade.
Comment by Thomas on August 1, 2023 at 8:03 pm
This isn’t about women. This is about sexual sin. It’s always about sexual sin. Or being born in the wrong body.