Anglican Church in Central America

Iglesia Anglicana de la Región Central de América
Primate Sturdie Downs, Bishop of Nicaragua
Territory Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Nicaragua, and Panama
Members 35,000

The Anglican Church in Central America (Spanish: Iglesia Anglicana de la Región Central de América) is a province of the Anglican Communion, covering five sees in Central America.

History

Four of the five dioceses of the Iglesia Anglicana de la Región Central de America were founded by the Episcopal Church in the United States of America. Anglicanism was also introduced by the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel when England administered two colonies in Central America, British Honduras and Miskitia. In later years, immigrants brought the Anglican Church with them.

Bishop William C. Frey was consecrated as the first missionary bishop of the Diocese of Guatemala in 1967.[1]

By 2008, the Anglican Church in Central America had voted to consecrate women bishops although none of have been consecrated as of yet.[2] By 2013, the Diocese of El Salvador, and possibly others, offered ministries on behalf of and in support of LGBT members.[3]

Sturdie Downs, Bishop of Nicaragua was elected in late 2014 to serve a four-year term of office as primate (2015–2019); he succeeded Armando Guerra, Bishop of Guatemala (2011–2015), who in turn succeeded Martin Barahona, Bishop of El Salvador (2003–2011).

Membership

Today, there are over 35,000 Anglicans out of an estimated population of 30.1 million.

Structure

The polity of the Iglesia Anglicana de la Región Central de América is Episcopalian church governance, which is the same as other Anglican churches. The church maintains a system of geographical parishes organized into dioceses. There are 5 of these, each headed by a bishop:

Some countries of Central America are part of other Anglican churches:

Worship and liturgy

The Iglesia Anglicana de la Región Central de América embraces three orders of ministry: deacon, priest, and bishop. The Spanish-language version of the Episcopal Church (USA)'s 1979 Book of Common Prayer is used.

Doctrine and practice

The center of the Iglesia Anglicana de la Región Central de América's teaching is the life and resurrection of Jesus Christ. The basic teachings of the church, or catechism, includes:

Ecumenical relations

Unlike many other Anglican churches, the Iglesia Anglicana de la Región Central de América is not a member of the ecumenical World Council of Churches.[4]

Social issues

Within the province, the dioceses represent a diversity of opinions on social issues. Regarding gender equality, the province has dioceses, including the Episcopal Church of Costa Rica, that recognize women in ordained ministry.[5] On human sexuality, the Diocese of El Salvador formed a ministry for LGBT people in the country.[6] In 2014, the Episcopal Church of Costa Rica, a diocese of the province, has taken steps to welcome LGBT members.[7]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Miller, Duane Alexander (January 2015). "Entrevissta con Bill Frey, primer obispo de la diocesis Episcopal de Guatemala". Misionologia Global: 1. Retrieved 13 February 2015.
  2. ↑ "Five hundred priests threaten to leave Anglican church over female bishops". Catholic News Agency. Retrieved 2016-03-01.
  3. ↑ "La formación de un ministerio para los HBT en El Salvador". Episcopal News Service. Retrieved 2016-03-01.
  4. ↑ http://www.oikoumene.org/?id=3587 World Council of Churches
  5. ↑ "La primada predica en Costa Rica". 2015-04-27. Retrieved 2016-07-06.
  6. ↑ "La formación de un ministerio para los HBT en El Salvador". 2013-03-27. Retrieved 2016-07-06.
  7. ↑ "Iglesia de Costa Rica toma pasos para dar la bienvenida a la comunidad LGBTQ". 2014-03-06. Retrieved 2016-07-06.

Further reading

External links

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