Embattled chaplains group forms new denomination named Anglican Reformed Catholic Church
A chaplains group facing a legal battle with the Anglican Church in North America has launched a new denomination known as the Anglican Reformed Catholic Church.
Bishops with the Jurisdiction of the Armed Forces and Chaplaincy recently established the ARCC, with it being officially incorporated in Alabama as a new nonprofit organization.
JAFC Bishop Derek Jones will serve as the leader of the new denomination, according to Virtue Online. The group's leaders are calling ARCC “classic Anglican.”
“We live in the tradition and prayer book expression we have all known and loved in the JAFC for nearly 20 years,” they told Virtue Online.
“It is Reformed and Catholic as Archbishop Thomas Cranmer, Bishop John Jewel, Bishop Lancelot Andrewes, and other Anglican reformers envisioned — ancient in faithfulness to the witness of the Apostles and formulated in the ancient Creeds and Councils.”
According to the ARCC website, which was accessed by The Christian Post on Friday and is still identified as being “under careful construction,” the new denomination “exists to provide a stable ecclesiastical home for those who love Anglican tradition but seek clear accountability, uncompromised doctrinal standards, and a deep connection to the broader catholic Church.”
The ARCC lists three dioceses: The Anglican Diocese of Saint Andrew, which covers the western United States; The Anglican Diocese of Saint Martin Tours, which covers the eastern United States; and the JAFC.
ARCC's launch comes as its leadership is in a legal dispute with the ACNA over which party owns the JAFC, established in 2014 as the endorsing agency for Anglican chaplains.
In September, ACNA Archbishop Steve Wood wrote a letter alleging that, beginning in the summer, the denomination's leadership “received credible complaints regarding Bishop Derek Jones, alleging abuse of ecclesiastical power.”
“These complaints did not involve physical or sexual misconduct, nor did they involve any doctrinal concerns,” wrote Wood. “Nevertheless, they were concerning because abuse of ecclesiastical power violates the trust that is essential for effective ministry.”
JAFC disputed the accusations and the investigation, claiming that Jones was the victim of “a targeted attack” by Wood because he had “been critical of errors, missteps, and mismanagement within the Archbishop's office.”
JAFC Chairman David van Esselstyn sent a letter to Wood in September stating that the chaplains group was terminating its relationship with ACNA and demanding that the denomination quit using its trademark.
ACNA refused to recognize the JAFC disaffiliation, instead appointing new leadership for the group. In response, JAFC filed a complaint in October in district court against ACNA.
The lawsuit claimed ACNA was enacting “a failed corporate takeover” of JAFC when it attempted “to suspend Plaintiff’s corporate president” and assume their responsibilities.
In November, United States District Judge Bruce Hendricks of the District of South Carolina, Charleston Division, issued an order partly granting JAFC’s request for a temporary restraining order against ACNA.
Earlier this month, ACNA Board of Inquiry charged Jones with four alleged violations of canon law: “Refusal to follow a Godly Admonition,” “Disobedience to, or willful contravention of the Canons of the Church,” “conduct giving cause for scandal or offense, including the abuse of ecclesiastical power” and having “promoted and caused schism within this Church.”
The Court for the Trial of a Bishop will determine the next steps, according to Anglican Ink, with the possibility that Jones could be tried in absentia if he refuses to participate in the proceedings.
