Holy Angels Anglican Catholic Church
PICAYUNE – The familiar old chant about the gifts a woman should receive before she married included “something old and something new.” That reference describes Holy Angels Anglican Catholic Church, located at 1811 East Canal Street in Picayune to a “T”. Father Larry Wagoner, who leads the local congregation, smiles when asked where the church comes from. “Are you ready for a bit of a history lesson?” The reality is that “Anglican” (pronounced Ang-leh-kehn) means English. Originally, the Anglican Church came from the old Church of England. At one time, the Church of England in the United States was represented by the Episcopal Church, but in the 1970s, events in the United States and in other nations resulted in the Episcopal Church making changes in the traditional liturgy and beliefs of the church that were unacceptable to traditionalists in the faith. In 1977, a group of traditionalist Episcopalians determined to reject the changes being made met in St. Louis, Mo. and founded the Anglican Catholic Church. The authored a document called “The Affirmation Of St. Louis”, which, much like the Declaration of Independence lays out the differences between the English government and the newly-founded States of America, lists in clear contrast the differences between the Orthodox Anglicans and the Episcopal Church. The Church is “Catholic” because it adheres to the three original creeds and seven ecumenical councils of the church at which all the Christian churches of the world were represented. That is – the Anglican Catholic Church represents the faith held by the church at the time when there was but one Christian Church. From the time of Christ’s ascension (around 33 AD) until the division of the church in 1054 into the Eastern and Western churches (the “Great Schism”), there was but one Christian Church. That church was universal – which is the actual meaning of the word catholic. Fifth Century theologian St. Vincent of Lerins said that the Catholic faith is “what has been believed everywhere, always, and by all”. This is the Catholic Faith to which the ACC adheres and is why it claims to be Catholic. The Church has a three-fold ministry to which men may be ordained – Deacons, Priests and Bishops. Ordination is accomplished by the laying on of hands by Bishops who stand in a direct, unbroken line of succession of such laying on of hands stretching back to the original 12 Apostles – who were themselves ordained by Jesus Christ Himself. Ours is a faith that has deep historical and theological foundations. We do not cast loose from those origins, but instead we hold fast to them as sure guideposts. We look to the history of the church as it stretches back to the days when Jesus himself walked the earth. We do not wave back and forth in the winds of popular movements and whim, changing our doctrines and beliefs to match up to the worldly views of the day. Our faith was founded and designed in the days of the Apostles – and we do not change it today. We stress worship – corporate in the Mass and individually in the study and understanding of scripture and in a life of prayer. Our congregation strives to live the life of the Saints of God in communion with His Church. We have a liturgical form of worship established by the ancient church, which includes the ancient sacraments. We recognize that our form of worship may not appeal to everyone. We make no apologies for that, nor do we have any intention of changing the style of worship – which was passed down through almost 2,000 years of the life of the church. It is a sure foundation for a contemplative and meaningful life. We invite anyone with an interest in an orthodox and vital liturgy, who comes to the church to find a theologically sound and scripturally-based worship, to visit us at Holy Angels. For more information, please contact Fr. Wagoner at (601) 590-0553. |