Bishop responds to Irish Catholic headline article
Ireland's biggest and best-selling Catholic newspaper this week had a front page headline - 'C of I parishes to become Catholic'.
The following is Bishop Harold Miller's response to the article:
"The headline in this week's Irish Catholic, ‘C of I parishes to become Catholic' - is exceptionally misleading. It refers to members of the ‘Traditional Rite', who, although described as being ‘within the Church of Ireland' have no formal relationship with the Church of Ireland whatsoever. They are not under the authority of the bishops of the Church of Ireland, not represented on the Synods of the Church of Ireland and are not part of the structures of the Church of Ireland. This is a group which, for reasons of personal conscience, broke away from the Church of Ireland after the General Synod decision to allow women to be ordained to the priesthood. The ‘Traditional Rite' includes former members of the Church of Ireland, but is a totally separate denomination.
The Churches of the 'Traditional Rite' have every right to decide to be received into full communion with Rome if they desire to do so, and if Rome agrees, but they are not doing so as ‘Church of Ireland parishes', they are a totally separate ecclesial entity."