2005 in Review: The Church Begins to Take New Shape
01/01/2006

The often-predicted, much-discussed realignment of the Anglican Communion began to take place during 2005, even though no official division of the opposing factions has been made. As the year drew to a close, various segments of Episcopal churches had separated themselves from the national structure, aligning themselves with Anglicans in other parts of the world.
Former Episcopalians found themselves in the jurisdictions of bishops from such places as Rwanda, Bolivia, Nigeria, Uganda, South East Asia, and elsewhere. Some churches simply declared themselves independent and decided to wait for an official separation to take place. This seemingly unorganized departure highlighted news of the Episcopal Church during 2005.

The majority of disaffected Episcopalians were waiting to see how the 75th General Convention will respond to the recommendations of the Windsor Report when it gathers next June in Columbus, Ohio. They were joined in waiting by Anglicans from the southern hemisphere, who seemed anxious to take the lead in declaring some sort of separation. The action was a follow-up to the 74th General Convention, held in Minneapolis in 2003, which gave consent to the consecration of a non-celibate homosexual person as Bishop Coadjutor of New Hampshire.

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