Breakaway churches begin to organize amid confusion
Effort would unify conservative congregations disaffiliated from the Episcopal Church USA
By Colette M. Jenkins Beacon Journal religion writer
Wednesday, Feb 20, 2008

FAIRLAWN: Bishop Roger Ames is no longer a cleric in the Ohio Diocese of the Episcopal Church USA.

But he is a leader in the global Anglican Communion, which includes the Episcopal Church USA.
Then there's the church that Ames pastors — St. Luke's in Fairlawn. Its incorporation papers list its name as St. Luke's Anglican Church and Ames as pastor. Diocesan records, however, show that it is St. Luke's Episcopal Church and that the pastorate is vacant.

The status of both Ames and the church is an indication of the level of confusion in the denomination and of what might very well be the beginning of a new Anglican province in North America.

Both Ames and Bishop Martyn Minns, the missionary bishop for the Convocation of Anglicans in North America (CANA), say an effort is under way to unify the theologically conservative parishes that have broken away from the Episcopal Church.

''We're trying to hold onto the traditional teachings of the church and stop the fragmentation that is going on across the country by bringing people together,'' Minns said. ''We definitely have some real divisions (in the Episcopal Church) and we are trying to develop tight connections with the international church and the churches in this country.'' the rest