12 Reasons Not to Join the Network

1. The stated aim of the Network is to win recognition as the "authentic" Church, replacing ECUSA.

   Article II of their Organizational Charter declares that the Network will be the "true and legitimate expression of the world-wide Anglican Communion."
   
   

2. Network governance reduces the role of laity in decision-making and is not democratic.

   Article V of their Charter provides for each convocation to have two representatives who may be either lay or clergy. Therefore, it is possible that there will be no lay representation.
   
   

3. It does not promise obedience to the canons of the Episcopal Church, USA.

   Article I of their Charter promises to operate within the Constitution of ECUSA but nothing is said about the canons. And it is the canons which regulate church property.
   
   

4. It encourages those who do not accept women's ordination and gives them a guaranteed voice in Network decision-making.

   Article VIII of their Charter vows to honor the practices of those who oppose women's ordination. This is a violation of Canon III of the Episcopal Church.
   
   

5. It requires people to accept a belief statement beyond the Creeds.

   The preamble of their Charter commits signers to acceptance of a Theological Charter that appears to supplant the historic Creeds. Many in the Via Media feel this is nothing more than a tarted-up version of the mission statement of the Southern Baptist Convention.
   
   

6. It makes church teachings about marriage as important as teachings about God, the Creeds, and Sacraments, and imposes a particular interpretation of marriage.

   Their Theological Charter proposes that if Christ praised one form of relationship (marriage) but said nothing about others, then Christ's silence has condemned these other relationships. One doesn't have to think very hard to see that this is a logical fallacy.
   
   

7. It tries to replace the Episcopal Church, USA, by dealing directly with the Archbishop of Canterbury and with other provinces.

   Article VII of their Charter calls for directly dealing with the Archbishop of Canterbury and the Primates. No other province of the Anglican Communion has this right, why should the Network?
   
   

8. It encourages parishes to have nothing to do with their diocesan bishop and to cut themselves off from the rest of their diocese.

   Their Parish Application process outlines the steps needed to become a member of the Network. Nowhere does it suggest that a parish should consult with their bishop or with anyone else in the Diocese.
   
   

9. The Network advocates a form of episcopal oversight in conflict with ECUSA constitution and canons.

   Article VII of their Charter describes a form of episcopal oversight that bypasses the diocesan bishop. This violates Canon 24 of the Episcopal Church.
   
   

10. It requires signers to submit to the authority of foreign primates, something no participating province (regional or national church) currently does.

    Article IV of their Charter requires members of the Network to submit to the moral and teaching authority of the Lambeth Conference and the Primates Meeting.
    
    

11. It requires submission to the Bible rather than to God.

    The Bible contains all things necessary for salvation and can guide us (with tradition and reason) in discerning God's will - but God is in charge, not the Bible. (This is self-expanatory.) Section 1 of their Theological Charter clearly states that the Old and New Testament are the only things we need to build up the Church in truth and holiness.
    
    

12. Joining the Network would violate Article I of the Constitution of the Diocese of Dallas.

    Article I of the Constitution of the Diocese of Dallas clearly states that this diocese recognizes the authority of the General Convention. The Network is all about disavowing that authority.