Vatican told Mary document undermines Anglican teaching

The evangelical group Church Society has written to the Vatican rejecting the ARCIC report, Mary: Grace and Hope in Christ, published earlier this year. They feel the work by the Anglican Roman Catholic International Commission undermines the historic Anglican teaching which Church Society seeks to uphold.

Mary: Grace and Hope in Christ attempted to offer a compromise to Anglicans and Catholics over the role of the Virgin Mary.

It stated that Catholic teachings on the Immaculate Conception and the Assumption of Mary into heaven are consistent with Anglican teachings of the Bible. But David Philips, General Secretary of Church Society, disagrees with this claim and says that ARCIC have ‘caved in’ on any Anglican understanding of Mary and ‘backed up’ the Roman Catholic understanding instead.

He said: “Roman Catholic teaching has no warrant in scripture and the Anglican Church’s teaching is that the church is subject to scripture.”

Their discontent lies in how ARCIC has tried to manipulate the ‘symbolic and ecclesial’ meaning of Biblical texts. For example the report called for ‘the Scriptures to lead us together to praise and bless Mary as the handmaid of the Lord’.

Holy Scripture, they argue does not call for us to praise or bless Mary.

Mary: Grace and Hope In Christ also purports: “Our two communions are both heirs to a rich tradition which recognises Mary as ever virgin.” It is widely recognised evangelicals can’t accept this.

The letter to the Vatican says: “The conclusions are entirely inconsistent with the historic formularies of the Church of England (The 39 Articles), which state, inter alia, that Holy Scripture contains all things necessary for salvation with the consequence that whatever is not read in or capable of being proven from Scripture cannot be demanded from any person to be believed as an article of faith.”

In writing to the Vatican Church Society say they are not seeking to whip up controversy but rather recognise that the cause of unity will not be served by ‘misrepresentation’.

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