Anglican Polity
The
way a denomination is organized and governed is referred to as its polity.
The main polities of American Christian churches are congregational and
episcopal. Interestingly enough, the Episcopal Church is not governed by
episcopal polity. That would be where the bishops run the church, and is much
more typical of the Roman Catholic Church. In episcopal polity, a central
authority decides policy, assigns clergy, and rules on issues such as who may be
married in the church, what sort of services are to be performed, etc. Laity may
have an active role in the work of the church, but not in determining policy.
In
a congregational polity, the congregation is the basic unit of the church. Many
protestant churches are mostly governed by their congregations, with pastors
hired and fired by the congregation and most decisions reached by meetings of
the body. Obviously, the lay leadership is the true basis for any sort of
authority in this setting. I have even noticed around Louisa County that some
churches have chosen pastors from among their own members, with no evidence of
formal seminary training.
The
Episcopal Church usually ends up taking a middle of the road approach, and our
polity is no exception. Our polity, which is referred to as Anglican polity,
provides
for the day-to-day operation of the church by the bishops, but government
ultimately resides in the diocesan council. The basic unit is the diocese, but
in practical matters many decisions are delegated to local clergy and vestries.
Our clergy are formally trained at seminaries owned and operated by the church,
but no one may attend a seminary with a goal of ordination unless sponsored by
the bishop of a diocese, and no clergy may perform the duties of ordained
ministry in a diocese without a license from the diocesan bishop. Lay persons in
formal ministries, such as lay readers and lay Eucharistic ministers, are also
licensed by the bishop.
A
parish vestry may hire a rector with the consent of the bishop. There was a
recent case in the Diocese of Washington where the bishop did not consent to a
vestry's selection. After a lengthy testing in the courts and lots of press
coverage, her authority was upheld.
Our
constitution and canons are a product of the annual diocesan council, and each
year the representatives of all of the churches meet to consider changes. The
council consists of representation from the laity of each church in the diocese
plus all clergy, active and retired, who are licensed in our diocese. Voting is
done as a single body.
Things of church-wide interest, such as the national canons and constitution, or additions/revisions to the hymnal and prayer book, are decided by a national General Convention, which meets every three years, with representation from every diocese. It is bicameral, with the bishops, active and retired, meeting as the House of Bishops, and the elected representatives of each diocese, lay and clergy, meeting as the House of Deputies.
For more information, contact:
Mr. Robert Thomas
