One of the bloggers at the Anglo-Catholic, Deborah Gyapong, wrote three comments summing up the program, which I reproduce below.
He said the five bishops who announced they were becoming Catholic have "always been Catholic in their identity." He explained the spectrum in Anglicanism that includes Anglo-Catholics who have, along with others, fostered closer ties with the Anglican Church.
An ordinariate would be similar to a diocese except its boundaries would be those covered by a bishops' conference. Thus an ordinariate in the United States would encompass all 50 states. Presently, they are seeing how much interest there is in joining an ordinariate, then the Vatican will decide if there is enough interest in erecting these structures.
Asked if the pope was right in describing the offer as prophetic, Fr. Hurd said it was certainly "unprecedented"
Raymond Arroyo asked if moral questions around homosexuality and women bishops were the impetus. Fr. Hurd said they were part of the equation in creating an increased distance between the Anglican Communion and the Catholic Church. But he said it was more important to stress that "these folks feel called by the Holy Spirit to make this move." He said it is easy to "label them disaffected people," when instead they would describe themselves has having been on a journey, guided by the Holy Spirit. This is not a poaching exercise, he said, but a response to groups that have been asking for the past 15 years for some sort of provision to allow them to come into the Catholic Church.
Fr. Hurd said he had come in under the pastoral provision and this will continue to allow married priests to come into the Church, but they can choose to become diocesan priests and not be part of the ordinariate, which will differ in that it will preserve Anglican patrimony. He described the Anglican patrimony as having an Anglican liturgical flavor.
The process starts with groups, clergy and individuals contacting Cardinal-designate Archbishop Wuerl's office, expressing their desire to be reconciled. At some point they will take the responses and a decision will be made as to whether to erect an ordinariate in the United States. Property matters will have to be resolved first. He assured one caller that the Anglicans will also believe the same things about abortion and birth control. He said the Anglicans were generally reverential towards tradition and beauty in the liturgy.
He said when groups contact +Wuerl's office, they get a questionaire—who are you, how many, etc. and these are just coming back.
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