Church of Ireland

Church of Ireland
Eaglais na hÉireann[1]
Kirk o Airlann[2]
Founder Saint Patrick
Independence 1536 (from the Holy See)
Primate Richard Clarke,
Archbishop of Armagh
Polity Episcopal
Headquarters Church of Ireland House
Church Avenue, Rathmines
Dublin 6
Republic of Ireland
Territory Ireland
Language English, Irish
Members 390,000[3]
Website ireland.anglican.org

The Church of Ireland is an autonomous province of the Anglican Communion. The church is organised on an all-Ireland basis and is the second-largest denomination on the island after Roman Catholicism. Like other Anglican churches, it has retained elements of pre-Reformation practice, notably its episcopal polity, while rejecting papal authority. Nevertheless, in theological and liturgical matters, it incorporates many principles of the Reformation, in particular the English Reformation. The church identifies as both Catholic and Reformed.[4] Within the church, differences exist between those members who are more Catholic-leaning (high church) and those who are more Protestant-leaning (low church or evangelical).[5] For historical and cultural reasons, the Church of Ireland is generally identified as a Protestant church.[6] The Church of Ireland is the second-largest Christian tradition in the Republic of Ireland[7] and the third-largest in Northern Ireland.[8]

Overview

The Church of Ireland describes itself as

"that part of the Irish Church which was influenced by the Reformation, and has its origins in the early Celtic Church of St Patrick."[9]

It denies that the church began at the Reformation in Ireland.

The Church of Ireland considers itself Catholic because it is in possession of a continuous tradition of faith and practice, based on scripture and early traditions, enshrined in the Catholic creeds, together with the sacraments and apostolic ministry.[10] However, the Church of Ireland is also Protestant, or Reformed, since it opposes doctrines and ways of worshipping that it considers contrary to scripture and which led to the Reformation.

"The Church of Ireland, as a Reformed and Protestant Church, doth hereby re–affirm its constant witness against all those innovations in doctrine and worship whereby the Primitive faith hath been from time to time defaced or overlaid, and which at the Reformation this Church did disown and reject."[11]

When the Church of England broke communion with the Holy See, all but two of the bishops of the church in Ireland followed the Church of England, although almost no other clergy did so. The church then became the established church of Ireland, assuming possession of most church property (and so retaining a great repository of religious architecture and other items, though some were later destroyed). The church explains its possession of so many of the ancient church buildings of Ireland by reference to the precedent set by Emperor Constantine the Great in the 4th century:

"Since the days of the Emperor Constantine in the 4th century European states saw themselves as having a central role in the government of the Church. This church-state link was vigorously applied when the Normans came to Ireland in the 12th century. Bishops were required to do homage to the king for their lands, just like earls and barons, who were vassals of the crown. It was therefore accepted, both during and after the Reformation, that the crown should continue to exercise that authority over the church, in which it continued to play a central role. In this way, church property that existed at the time of the Reformation, buildings included, was retained by the reformed, established (state) Church of Ireland.

In Ireland, the substantial majority of the population continued to adhere to Roman Catholicism, despite the political and economic advantages of membership in the state church. Despite its numerical minority, however, the Church of Ireland remained the official state church until it was disestablished on 1 January 1871 by the Liberal government under William Ewart Gladstone.

It is the contention of the Church of Ireland that in breaking with Rome, the reformed established church was reverting to a condition that had obtained in the church in Ireland prior to the 12th century - the independent character of Celtic Christianity.

Legitimacy for the Norman invasion of Ireland was derived from a Papal Bull of 1155 - Laudabiliter. The bull gave King Henry II of England authority to invade Ireland ostensibly as a means of reforming the church in Ireland more directly under the control of the Holy See.[12] The authorisation from the Holy See was based upon the Donation of Constantine which made every Christian island in the western Roman Empire the property of the Papacy. By the time of the English Reformation, the Donation had been exposed as a forgery, and Henry VIII sought to undo by enforcing laws regarding praemunire the historic royal homage to the Papacy that was delivered by John, King of England before him.

The Church of Ireland is the second largest church in Ireland and the third largest in Northern Ireland, after the Roman Catholic and Presbyterian churches.

History

16th to 18th centuries

St Patrick's Cathedral, Armagh
Christ Church Cathedral, Dublin
St. Patrick's Cathedral, Dublin

The Church of Ireland began as a reformed church independent of the Roman Catholic Church in 1536 when the Irish Parliament declared Henry VIII to be the Supreme Head of the Church on earth (i.e. Head of the Church in Ireland). He would not legally become King of Ireland until 1541. Henry’s assumption of the title of King of Ireland had great ecclesiastical and political significance since the title Lord of Ireland implied a tacit acceptance of the Pope’s claim, (apparently) first made by Adrian IV in the papal bull Laudabiliter of 1155, that Ireland was a papal fief. Adrian granted Henry II the Lordship of Ireland; thus, Henry’s assumption of the title of King had less to do with dispossessing the native Irish kings than with confronting the Pope. The reformation commenced mainly in Dublin under the auspices of George Browne (Archbishop of Dublin) during Henry's reign. When the Church of England was reformed under King Edward VI of England, so too was the Church of Ireland. All but two of the Irish bishops accepted the Elizabethan Settlement, although the vast majority of priests and the church membership remained Roman Catholic. The Church of Ireland claims Apostolic succession because of the continuity in the hierarchy; however, this is disputed by the Roman Catholic Church.

The project to convert the native Irish met with limited success in the 16th century:

"in order to convert the native Irish, it needed native ministers; but the supply of native ministers was meagre because the native Irish were unconverted"[13]

As a result, a gradualist policy towards ecclesiastical reform was adopted leading to "church papist" clergy and laity. In this way, they were able to nominally "conform to the established church whilst at the same time continuing to worship...in the traditional, pre-Reformation manner". Following the accession of King James I of England, this policy was abandoned.

The lack of success prompted an alternative strategy of importing reformed clergy from England and Scotland. Consequently, the church underwent a period of more radical Calvinist doctrine than occurred in England. In 1615 the Convocation of the Church of Ireland adopted 104 articles known as the Irish Articles. James Ussher (later Archbishop of Armagh) was their main author. Although these articles superficially resemble the Thirty-Nine Articles of the Church of England they are in fact a great deal more detailed and much less ambiguous on many matters; they also represent a more thoroughgoing and explicit Calvinism than the 39 Articles. When the Irish Parliament adopted the 39 Articles in 1634 under pressure from the King and Archbishop Laud, Ussher ensured that the Church of Ireland in the Irish Convocation adopted them in addition to, not instead of, the Irish Articles. After the Restoration of 1660, it seems that the Thirty-Nine Articles took precedence; they remain the official doctrine of the Church of Ireland even after disestablishment.[14]

The Church of Ireland undertook the first publication of Scripture in the Irish language. The first Irish translation of the New Testament was begun by Nicholas Walsh, Bishop of Ossory, who worked on it until his death in 1585. The work was continued by John Kearny, his assistant, and Nehemiah Donnellan, Archbishop of Tuam; it was finally completed by William Daniel (Uilliam Ó Domhnaill), Archbishop of Tuam in succession to Donellan. Their work was printed in 1602. The work of translating the Old Testament was undertaken by William Bedel (1571–1642), Bishop of Kilmore, who completed his translation within the reign of Charles I, although it was not published until 1685 in a revised version by Narcissus Marsh (1638–1713), Archbishop of Dublin.[15][16] William Bedell had undertaken a translation of the Book of Common Prayer in 1606. An Irish translation of the revised prayer book of 1662 was effected by John Richardson (1664–1747) and published in 1712.

Despite these translations, the Church of Ireland largely served The Pale and the plantations such as the Plantation of Ulster and failed to win support from the old Hiberno-Norman aristocracy, still less the native Irish, who saw it as an instrument of English occupation. The English-speaking minority mostly adhered to the Church of Ireland or to Presbyterianism, while the Irish-speaking majority continued to adhere to Roman Catholicism, which remained the majority denomination in Ireland.

19th to 20th centuries

Church of Ireland Parish in Cavan
Church of Ireland Parish in Carnlough

When Ireland was incorporated in 1801 into the new United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, the Church of Ireland was also united with the Church of England to form the United Church of England and Ireland. At the same time, one archbishop and three bishops from Ireland (selected by rotation) were given seats in the House of Lords at Westminster, joining the two archbishops and twenty-four bishops from the Church of England.

In 1833, the British Government introduced the Irish Church Temporalities Bill which proposed the administrative and financial restructuring of the church. The bill sought to reduce the number of both bishoprics and archbishoprics from 22 to 12, to change the structure of the leases of church lands and to apply the revenues saved by these changes for the use of parishes. The bill, not only had implications for the future political trajectory of the Whigs and Tories but also sparked the generation of the Oxford Movement, which was to have wide repercussions for the Anglican Communion.

As the official established church, the Church of Ireland was funded partially by tithes imposed on all Irish subjects of the Crown. Irrespective of the fact that the adherents of the church were never more than a small minority of the populace, the population at large was expected to pay for its upkeep. Following the defeat of Roman Catholic arms in 1691, no armed resistance was to be expected to this discriminatory policy. Nevertheless, peasant resentment of the tithes occasionally boiled over, as in the "Tithe War" of 1831/36. Eventually, the tithes were ended, replaced with a lower levy called the tithe rentcharge. The last remnant of the tithes was not abolished until disestablishment in 1871.

The Irish Church Act 1869 (which took effect on 1 January 1871) finally ended the role of the Church of Ireland as state church. This terminated both state support and parliament's role in its governance, but also took into government ownership much church property. At the establishment of the state church, no compensation had been given to Roman Catholic clergy who suffered loss in the seizure of church property by the state; at its disestablishment, compensation was provided to clergy by the state.[17] On both occasions, parishes faced great difficulty in local financing after the loss of rent-generating lands and buildings. The Church of Ireland made provision in 1870 for its own government, led by a General Synod, and with financial management by a Representative Church Body. With disestablishment, the church's representation in the House of Lords also ceased.

Like other Irish churches, the Church of Ireland did not divide when Ireland was partitioned in the 1920s. It continues to be governed on an all-Ireland basis.

Present

Saul church, a modern replica of an early church with a round tower, is built on the reputed spot of St Patrick's first church in Ireland.

The Churches of the Anglican Communion are linked by affection and common loyalty. They are in full communion with the See of Canterbury and thus the Archbishop of Canterbury, in his person, is a unique focus of Anglican unity. He calls the once-a-decade Lambeth Conference, chairs the meeting of Primates, and is President of the Anglican Consultative Council.[18] The contemporary Church of Ireland, despite having a number of High Church (often described as Anglo-Catholic) parishes, is generally on the Low Church end of the spectrum of world Anglicanism. Historically, it had little of the difference in organisation between parishes characteristic of other Anglican provinces, although a number of markedly liberal, High Church or Evangelical parishes have developed in recent decades. It was the second province of the Anglican Communion after the Anglican Church of New Zealand (1857) to adopt, on its 1871 disestablishment, synodical government. It was also one of the first provinces to begin ordaining women to the priesthood (1991).

The Church of Ireland has two cathedrals in Dublin: within the walls of the old city is Christ Church Cathedral, the seat of the Archbishop of Dublin, and just outside the old walls is St. Patrick's Cathedral, which the church designated as a National Cathedral for Ireland in 1870. Cathedrals also exist in the other dioceses. The church operates a seminary, the Church of Ireland Theological Institute, in Rathgar, in the south inner suburbs of Dublin. The church's central offices are in Rathmines, adjacent to the Church of Ireland College of Education, and the Church's library is in Churchtown.

Parish Church with Union Jack

In 1999, the church voted to prohibit the flying of flags other than St Patrick's flag.[19] However, the Union Flag continues to fly on many churches in Northern Ireland.

St. Patrick's Flag

Membership

The Church of Ireland experienced major decline during the 20th century, both in Northern Ireland, where around 65% of its members live, and in the Republic of Ireland which contains upwards of 35%. However, the Church of Ireland in the Republic has shown substantial growth in the last two national censuses; its membership is now back to the levels of sixty years ago (albeit with fewer churches as many have been closed). Church membership increased by 8.7% in the period 2002–2006, during which the population as a whole increased by only 8.2%.[20] Various reasons for this increase have been proposed. One is the relaxation of the Ne Temere regulations originally issued in 1907 and taking effect in 1908 that stipulated that children of mixed Roman Catholic-Protestant marriages should be brought up as Roman Catholics. It is also partly explained by the number of Anglican immigrants who have moved to Ireland recently (mostly from Great Britain and Nigeria).

The 2006 Census in the Republic of Ireland showed that the numbers of people describing themselves as members of the Church of Ireland increased in every county. The highest percentage growth was in the west (Counties Galway, Mayo, and Roscommon) and the largest numerical growth was in the mid-east region (Counties Wicklow, Kildare, and Meath). County Wicklow is the county with the highest proportion of Church of Ireland members (6.88%); Greystones, County Wicklow, has the highest proportion of any town (9.77%).

Structure

Dioceses of the Church of Ireland
Map of the dioceses of the Church of Ireland
▉▉▉ Province of Armagh
▉▉▉ Province of Dublin

The polity of the Church of Ireland is episcopal church governance, as in other Anglican churches. The church maintains the traditional structure dating to pre-Reformation times, a system of geographical parishes organized into dioceses. There were more than 30 of these historically, grouped into four provinces; today, after consolidation over the centuries, there are 12 Church of Ireland dioceses, each headed by a bishop and belonging to one of the two surviving provinces. The leader of the southern province is the Archbishop of Dublin, at present Michael Jackson; that of the northern province is the Archbishop of Armagh, at present Richard Clarke. These two archbishops are styled Primate of Ireland and Primate of All Ireland respectively, suggesting the ultimate seniority of the latter. Although he has relatively little absolute authority, the Archbishop of Armagh is respected as the church's general leader and spokesman and is elected in a process different from those for all other bishops.

Canon law and church policy are decided by the church's General Synod and changes in policy must be passed by both the House of Bishops and the House of Representatives (clergy and laity). Certain important changes, for example the decision to ordain women as priests, must be passed by a majority of two-thirds of both houses. While the House of Representatives always votes publicly, often by orders, the House of Bishops has tended to vote in private, coming to a decision before matters reach the floor of the synod. This practice has been broken only once when, in 1999, the House of Bishops voted unanimously in public to endorse the efforts of the Archbishop of Armagh, the Diocese of Armagh and the Standing Committee of the General Synod in their attempts to resolve the crisis at the Church of the Ascension at Drumcree near Portadown.[21]

The Church of Ireland embraces three orders of ministry: deacons, priests (or presbyters) and bishops. These orders are distinct from positions such as rector, vicar or canon.

Ecumenical relations

Like many other Anglican churches, the Church of Ireland is a member of many ecumenical bodies, including the World Council of Churches, the Conference of European Churches, Churches Together in Britain and Ireland, and the Irish Council of Churches. It is also a member of the Porvoo Communion.

Doctrine and practice

Interior of Christ Church Cathedral
Lady Chapel, St. Patrick's Dublin

The centre of the Church of Ireland's teaching is the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. The basic teachings of the church include:

The 16th century apologist, Richard Hooker, posits that there are three sources of authority in Anglicanism: scripture, tradition and reason. It is not known how widely accepted this idea is within Anglicanism. It is further posited that the three sources uphold and critique each other in a dynamic way. In Hooker's model, scripture is the primary means of arriving at doctrine; things stated plainly in scripture are accepted as true. Issues that are ambiguous are determined by tradition, which is checked by reason.[22]

Irish language

The first translation of the Book of Common Prayer into Irish was published in 1606. An Irish translation of the revised prayer book of 1662 was published in 1712.

The Church of Ireland has its own Irish language body, Cumann Gaelach na hEaglaise ("Irish Guild of the Church"). This was founded in 1914 to bring together members of the Church of Ireland interested in the Irish language and Gaelic culture and to promote the Irish language within the Church of Ireland. The guild aims to link its programmes with the Irish language initiatives which have been centred round Christ Church Cathedral. It holds services twice a month in Irish.[23]

From 1926 to 1995, the church had its own Irish-language teacher training college, Coláiste Moibhí. Today, there are a number of interdenominational Gaelscoileanna (schools where Irish-medium education is applied).

See also

References

  1. ↑ "APCK Leaflet: An Ghaeilge agus Eaglais na hÉireann". Church of Ireland official website.
  2. ↑ 2001 Northern Irish census leaflet, Ulster-Scots NI Statistics and Research Agency. Retrieved 25 September 2012.
  3. ↑ Church of Ireland
  4. ↑ "About Us", Church of Ireland website
  5. ↑
  6. ↑ Protestant and Catholic, APCK Study Leaflet, 1996
  7. ↑ Republic of Ireland Central Statistics Office, Census 2006: Principal Demographic Results.
  8. ↑ 2011 Census, Key Statistics for Northern Ireland, December 2012, p. 19.
  9. ↑ "What we believe" Church of Ireland official website.
  10. ↑ "Protestant and Catholic" Church of Ireland official website.
  11. ↑ "Preamble and Declaration of the Constitution of the Church of Ireland 1870, 1.3" Church of Ireland official website.
  12. ↑ Austin Lane Poole From Domesday book to Magna Carta, 1087-1216 Oxford University Press, 1993, pp303-304 (readable on Google books)
  13. ↑ Clarke, "Varieties of Uniformity", pg120.
  14. ↑ Creeds of Christendom, with a History and Critical notes. Volume I. The History of Creeds. | Christian Classics Ethereal Library
  15. ↑ "Treasures of the Irish Language: Some early examples from Dublin City Public Libraries". 2006. Retrieved 2012-10-03.
  16. ↑ "Bedell's Irish Old Testament". King's College London. Retrieved 2012-10-03.
  17. ↑ Cross Denominational Mission "The Irish Church Disestablishment Act 1869 came into effect in 1871 and the Church of Ireland ceased to be the state church. This terminated both state support and parliamentary authority over its governance, and took into public ownership much church property. Compensation was provided to clergy, but many parishes faced great difficulty after the loss of rent-generating land, property and buildings."
  18. ↑ Anglican Communion Official Website.
  19. ↑ Flags of the World: St. Patrick's Flag as flag of Church of Ireland: "The General Synod of the Church of Ireland recognises that from time to time confusion and controversy have attended the flying of flags on church buildings or within the grounds of church buildings. This Synod therefore resolves that the only flags specifically authorised to be flown on church buildings or within the church grounds of the Church of Ireland are the cross of St Patrick or, alternatively, the flag of the Anglican Communion bearing the emblem of the Compassrose. Such flags are authorised to be flown only on Holy Days and during the Octaves of Christmas, Easter, the Ascension of Our Lord, Pentecost, and on any other such day as may be recognised locally as the Dedication Day of the particular church building. Any other flag flown at any other time is not specifically authorised by this Church...."
  20. ↑ Republic of Ireland Central Statistics Office, Census 2006: Principal Demographic Results.
  21. ↑ Sectarianism Report Motions. Ireland.anglican.org. Retrieved on 2013-07-23.
  22. ↑ Anglican Listening Detail on how scripture, tradition and reason work to "uphold and critique each other in a dynamic way".
  23. ↑ Church of Ireland Notes, page 2, Irish Times, 10 January 2009
General

Further reading

External links

Wikisource has the text of a 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica article about Church of Ireland.