Resources

Church Governance

From its earliest days, the Church has been governed by Canon Law. The Council of Jerusalem (circa AD 50) provided the model for Church legislation in its legal and ethical pronouncements. Later the decisions of the Ecumenical Councils, and of lesser authority, yet still important, decrees of patriarchs and popes, created an extensive legal framework through which the Church could be governed and its doctrine promulgated. In the West, compendiums such as the Decretum Gratiani codified and confirmed catholic belief and practice. In England these compendiums were given structure and practical application in commentaries such as William Lyndwood's (c. 1375-1446) Provinciale.

In the wake of the sixteenth century reformation, the Church of England retained its Canon Law, albeit in a modified form. Later, as Anglicanism spread across the world with the British Empire, the various national churches that arose formulated their own legislation and statements of belief. Though these were often designed to fit the culture and circumstances of England's "daughter churches," they all originated within this ancient tradition of Canon Law.

The Anglican Catholic Church is organized and governed according to the principles and terms laid out in its Constitution and Canons. In the Constitution, the Church receives its name and it ecclesiastical structure. The method for establishing dioceses and provinces is established, and various processes related to the election of bishops and calling synods are laid out.

Perhaps most importantly, the Constitution establishes the Authorized (King James) Version of the Bible, along with the 1928 Book of Common Prayer (American) as the standards for liturgical use. Other historic books, such as the Anglican and English Missals, are designated as conforming to the standard and thus allowable for use in public worship. Since its adoption at the ACC's first Synod in Dallas, TX in 1978, the Constitution has been subject to minimal emendation, with the last occurring as a result of legislation passed by the ACC's Denver Synod of 2001.

The Canons, however, are rather more flexible. They represent an expansion of the principles laid out in the Constitution and provide a detailed legal framework for the governance of the Church. Because the Canons must allow for the Church to respond to new developments in her relations with other ecclesial bodies, as well as the secular world, they are subject to revision and review under the authority of the College of Bishops and Provincial Synod. This last of these revisions occurred in 2007 at the Seventeenth Provincial Synod (Denver, CO).

The Constitution and Canons are available for download below. Bound copies are published every two years (coinciding with legislation passed by Provincial Synods) and are available in print from the Anglican Parishes Association Book Publisher.

The Anglican Parishes Association Book Publisher was founded in 1981 by the Right Reverend William O. Lewis, Bishop of the ACC's Diocese of the South. Its initial purpose was to keep essential liturgical materials from going out of print.

Today, it continues that mission by publishing works such as the 1928 Book of Common Prayer, the Anglican Missal, and the Manual for Priests, but it also supplies calendars, music, and art. Works by ACC authors on such subjects as theology, church history, and apologetics are available as well. Most products are bound and printed, some are also available for digital download.

Today the APA is the official publisher for the Anglican Catholic Church. All proceeds from sales are devoted to the costs of publication, distribution, and charitable giving. It operates out of Athens, Georgia, but ships internationally.

To visit the APA's online store, click the link below.

The Collection

The Provincial Archives are housed at the University of Akron in Akron Ohio. Material stored in the archives includes documents related to the founding of the ACC, financial records of the Province, reports from past synods, and minutes of the College of Bishops. Other items of historical interest include back issues of The Trinitarian, APA publications, collections of official correspondence, and video recordings of significant events and services. For more information, visit the UA Archival Services website: