Anglican and Episcopal churches are closely related and as such they have more similarities than differences. Episcopal can be termed as a division of Anglican.
The Episcopal Church is part of Anglican Communion as its roots have been traced to the English Reformation and the Church of England.
The Anglican Church is mainly centred in the U K and and has the Archbishop of Canterbury as its head. The Episcopal Church is based in the US. Though some of the Episcopal churches in the U.S have taken several names like Anglican Catholic Church and the Anglican Church in America.
The Episcopal Church was established by Samuel Seabury, who is considered its first bishop. On the other hand, the Anglican Church was formed in the 16th century. It was formed at the insistence of King Henry the 8th.
Anglicanism was always considered as a symbol of the British rule and its monarchy. The term Anglican originated from Medieval Latin ecclesia Anglican, which meant The English Church. The Anglican Church has two factions ‘“ High Church (Anglo Catholics) and Low Church (protestant Anglicans). The Episcopalian Church is considered to be somewhat liberal Protestant.
In both the Anglican and Episcopal churches, there is no governing body or central figure, which controls the thousands of diocese.
When comparing the two, Episcopal are more liberal than the Anglican in the sense that they are even termed as a gay friendly church. On the other hand, the Anglican Church is known to be more conservative. But the fact is that there are believers in both Anglican and Episcopal churches who are against wide spread liberal trends.
Summary
- The Anglican Church is mainly centred in the U K and has the Archbishop of Canterbury as its centre.
- The Episcopal Church, based in the US, is part of Anglican Communion as its roots can be traced to the English Reformation and the Church of England.
- The Episcopal Church was established by Samuel Seabury, who is considered its first bishop. On the other hand, the Anglican Church was formed in the 16th century. It was formed at the insistence of King Henry the 8th.
- Anglicanism was always considered as a symbol of the British rule and its monarchy.
- When comparing the two, the Episcopalians are more liberal than the Anglicans in the sense that they are even termed a gay friendly church.
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“Anglican Church was formed in the 16th century. It was formed at the insistence of King Henry the 8th.”
Well then? You pays your money and gets the tune! But in this case we didn’t! I’ve been in the Anglican Church for nearly eighty years and have never been taught that it was formed in the 16th, Cent, or by Henry the 8th.
At school, a state school, we were taught that the Church was in Britain in 37 AD. The Councils of the middle ages gave England precedence because of her early acceptance of the faith, brought by S. Joseph of Arimathea; the date given was 40 AD. The term Anglican was first used by Baeda the Saxon Historian circa, 750, as a title for his History, Ecclesia Anglicana. It surfaces again 1n 1215 at the time of Magna Carta, the Church of the English, I understood! During the middle ages the usage for continental correspondence was ,” Sante d’Angleterre,” which my tutor translated , either, “The Holy Church in England,” or the more commonly known, “The Church of England.”
Henry the 8th, was a Catholic Monarch! Was he a good one? You can judge as well as I can, but he didn’t move away from Catholicism at any time!
Neither did the Anglican Church!
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there is confusion here between the term Anglican and the Church which broke with the Papacy…while the term Anglican may predate the schism between Rome and England there was in fact a schism. While Henry the VIII was for the better part of his life a member in good standing with the Church in Rome he was excommunicated when he divorced his legal wife and married Ann Bolin
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Well stated my fellow orthodox Catholic Anglican Christian let them chew on that nomenclature for a while there are 2 main branches of Christianity Orthodoxy which is expressed in the one holy Catholic apostolic faith and heterodoxy which historically began as Gnosticism Arianism is the original heresy of orthodox carholusicism Lutgernunsm is an intellectual descent of that confession but the lutherans and the Anglicans are in full communion now so they are no longer heretical we also have a in perfect communion with the eastern and oriental orthodox as well the Tge Church of the East we also have significant progresses made with the Roman Church the Calvinist are a 2.0 in large respect of the gnostics the Methodist are separatists Anglican who I pray with Gods grave will come home soon the sectarians are their whole unique religious experience only having nominal connection to traditional Christianity
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Mary, this will give yoy a clearer understanding of our church.
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am so glad to have this short time with u please try let now more about my church
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God help me to do this right. May all who come here to read glorify God in the name of His Son, Christ Jesus.
The two Anglican churches I go to in Huntsville, Alabama do not identify with TEC at all. Though one is a continuing Anglican church and the other is connected to Canterbury both will gently but quickly tell you that they are not part of TEC. The 1928 BCP is still in use, and they do not consider themselves as churches “locked in the past” but congregations that love the liturgical service, and though one is not really a “high” church it is not really a “low” church.
Both churches will immediately tell you that they have nothing but love for all brothers and sisters who feel they any part of the LGBT movement.
It is “the act of homosexuality” they do not believe in. They would not find condemnation from those congregations. They would, however, find loving prayers directed to the Father and Son that they might change.
I know of no one in either church that looks down of TEC, they just do not see them as Anglicans.
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Sorry, some of my spelling was off key. Pilot error and all that, you know.
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Some of the information written is very wrong concerning the history and governing body of both Anglican and Episcopalian Churches. It is almost like a non catholic reviewing the catholic church history and practices, and just hitting the basic outsiders knowledge of that church, without really studying any of it. This article is sadly lacking in any accurate information. In addition there are no references, as there would be none to justify the body of the paper.
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Do Anglicans and/or Episcopalians believe in transubstantiation? I was informed that some do and some do not, it primarily depended on the philosophy of the priest.
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There are three “levels” of Anglicans in terms of liturgical practice.
The “high church” is elaborate in its practices: beautiful chapels, stained glass windows, and decorations within the church, elaborately embroidered robes, crucifixes, great choirs, sung masses, great majesty, lots of candles, etc. The priests tend to be called Father and believe in transubstantiation.
At the other end of the spectrum is the “low church” with plain white walls, a table with a simple white cloth, perhaps a single cross (NOT a crucifix), no more than two candles with a concentration on preaching and congregational singing. The ministers are addressed as Reverend and do not accept transubstantiation but rather the rubric, “ do this in remembrance of me “ which is their belief.
The smallest group is the “broad church”. Accepting both extremes as pleasing to God and a pathway to salvation, all forms of worship are welcome. Here you find ministers/priests who hold both concepts of the Eucharist/Holy Communion.
Queen Elizabeth I, was asked the same question. Her reply: The Word was His and He spoke it. This I do believe and take it”. In other words, embracing all and excluding none.
As a minister in the broad tradition, that is my answer as well.
Blessings
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The Anglican/Episcopal Church believes in the objective Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist. The narrative words our Lord Jesus used at the Last Supper, an Invocation of the Holy Spirit “to bless and consecrate this bread and wine that they may be the Body and Blood of Christ”, and the intention of the presiding priest (or Bishop) in this Sacrament are the chief
elements of the Rite. The RC Church has a need to define with further detail which is what Transubstantiation is. Anglicans and Orthodox (Eastern Rite) Christians are not holden to such need. Rather than define and explain it’s what and how, the words satisfy of St. Thomas Aquinas hymn Adoro devote: “Taste and touch and vision to discern thee fail; faith, that comes by hearing, pierces through the veil. I believe what e’er the Son of God hath told; what the Truth hath spoken, that for truth I hold,”
“This Is My Body. This Is My Blood. Receive and eat. Receive and drink.” God bless you.
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We tend not to use that particulate doctrinal name but we believe in what we call the real prescience it’s the principal act of worship it’s the crown of the sacraments
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It’s too bad that the conservatism of Anglicanism is lost today.
Just like the Roman Catholics’ clergy act more like LIBERAL ANGLICANS AND EPISCOPALIANS.
It doesn’t matter what ones believes, but the Holy Bible is clear in its teachings.
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When will people stop dispensing the lie that Henry 8th founded the Anglican Church? It was in existence centuries before him. Henry was NOT excumunicated from the roman Catholic church, his daughter was!
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First I heard of this
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I guess you guys got to get better with your propaganda, that pesky truth still persists.
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I was baptized @ 16 in an Episcopal church.
I have since became Anglican.
My faith doesn’t agree with the Episcopal decision to have homosexual priests.
I actually left the Episcopal church during communion I kept thinking this is so wrong
I went took my son out of Sunday school.
Found an Anglican Church have been strong in my faith ever since.
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Does it really matter when we love Jesus?
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