I suspect that the crisis will become a pitched battle by the end of this year, and when the smoke clears, there may be no Anglican Communion, or perhaps two fragments. It is obvious that the pieces are being assembled for an American Anglican Church which will, as need, have internationally (but not universally) recognized bishops, seminaries, a primate, pension fund, international aid organization, etc. In something which is nearly unique in church history, AMiA, CANA, FACA, etc, will "sign over" to an American, or North American, body once they are assured it is faithful and viable.

Of course, as you point out, this didn't need to happen. The PB described TEC as being two churches joined like Siamese twins, which could not long survive joined. In medicine, every effort is made to insure that both survive when separation is required. Unfortunately, TEC has decided that one must die. Easily, a gentle separation could have been allowed to occur, with churches free to request, and get, suitable bishops and clergy. Within a few years, given the propensity of Americans to move, the Reappraisers and Reasserters could have been separated, while still keeping such neutral functions as pensions, publishing, etc, in common. Those who by age, family tradition, or other reason, could have stayed where they are. But that is the road not taken.

A beachhead in Blue America for the Africans.

The Kenyans this time -- I guess they wanted some of that crazy traditionalist money they heard the Nigerians were getting.

...meanwhile, these folks are buying a former Catholic church. The Archdiocese in Boston has just finished closing 25% of its parishes, selling off various land holdings, and swapping its HQ for a pile of cash from Boston College. All to pay off legal settlements. LA just paid over $600M, and is closing scores of parishes as well in order to raise the money. Many closed churches had fine attendence; they just had too much money and the diocese needed it.

I was at a church meeting this week, and a deacon from another parish went on a soliloquy that's bottom line was the infallibility of a bishop -- literally, his decisions come about because 'his ears hear it straight from the lips of Christ'. I'm no theologian, but I'm curious where this notion of bishops being infallible came from. Its apparently cropping up hither and yon. Historically, the bishops were the ones pulling back on the notion that the pope is infallible on certain issues. But I do know that I read the papers, and if some holy rollers think they are going to sell we the people on the notion that Bernard Law and his ilk have had their ears pressed up to the lips of Christ then they are astonishingly out of touch. These are men, and men who can and do make mistakes. Whoppers.

Given the disarray in the TEC and other churches, we could have an historic opportunity to reconcile many churches and people right now. But I'm pessimistic, unfortunately. The new pope has been closing doors, not opening them. And too many weak bishops remain, hunkered down playing defense instead of trying to build and grow a church to spread the word of God.

A little ironic and certainly sad -- during what seems to be at least a minor resurgence in faith and a yearning to return to some core values among many of us post-Aquarius folk, we've got simple management problems hobbling the very institutions that could have benefitted and led.

Instead, in the Catholic church lay people have had to step up and run more and more of their church as the church gets spread more and more thinly. Or, in the case of TEC, folks just give up on their bishops and move on. Either way, bishops of all stripes not having the swing they used to have. I'm not sure where it all will go, but it smells like this period of time will be the material for quite a few PhD theses in the decades to come.