How were the Anglican denomination different from other denominations?

Answer 1

The Anglican church consists of several protestant churches all under the umbrella church of 'Anglicanism' including the Church of England, African churches, the Episopalian Church of Scotland, the Church in Wales etc. They are all main-stream Christian churches which accept The Bible as truth. Taking the Church of England as a typical Anglican church, the clergy fall into deacons, priests and bishops (like the Roman Catholic Church) although the supreme governor of the church is the reigning monarch (at the moment HM Queen Elizabeth II) and the Head of the Church is Jesus Christ. The Church of England employs the parochial system - in other words the whole of England is split into areas called parishes which are overseen by a parish priest. Everyone in England, churchgoer or not, has a right to access of pastoral care by the parish priest and therefore the C of E is excellent in pastoral care and evangelism. Doctrine is similar to other protestant churches. The church recognises baptism and Holy Communion as sacraments, and recognises the Bible as the true inspired Word of God. Unlike the Roman Catholic Church, the C of E does not accept the human-manufactured ideas of purgatory, the revering of the Virgin Mary, limbo, praying to saints, adoration of statues, priestly celibacy, and limiting priesthood to men only. In the Cof E women can become priests, and, in some Anglican churches (although the C or E has not adopted this yet), especially in Africa, women can become bishops. The church adheres to the 39 articles of faith which can be found at http://anglicansonline.org/basics/thirty-nine_articles.html

Answer 2

There is only one Church and that is the Catholic Church. Historically, in this country for the best part of two thousand years, the Anglican Church has been that Church!

To be Catholic, you have to be baptised and taught the faith, by a Catholic Bishop or his curate! It is that faith that was revealed by Christ, entered in to Scripture and is , explained and interpreted by the seven Ecumenical Councils. It is the faith passed on by the Apostolic College to the Bishops and Elders.

This is the difference between the Anglican Church and others!

Roman Catholic Answerfrom A Catholic Dictionary, edited by Donald Attwater, Second edition, revised 1957

The Church of Christ

The visible religious society, distinct from the Synagogue, instituted directly by Christ, under one head, St. Peter and his successors, the popes, for the purpose of preserving and propagated his teaching, and of safeguarding and using the same means of salvation (sacrifice and sacraments). It has certain marks (unity, holiness, catholicity, and apostolicity) by which it can be know. It enjoys the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, and Christ has promised to be with it "all days, even to the consummation of the world" (Matt. 28:20), so that it is indefectible. He has commanded all men to join the Church, which is the one ark of salvation for all.

Anglicanism

I. The body of Protestant episcopal churches deriving from and in communion with the Church of England, including the churches of Ireland, Scotland, Wales, the United States, South Africa, etc. with their missions and dependencies.

ii. The system of faith and morals professed by these bodies. These it is impossible to summarize owing to the diversity of belief and (to a lesser degree) of conduct taught, permitted, and tolerated in Anglicanism. From the definite "romanizing" of a section of the high-church party to the extreme liberalism of certain dignitaries and professors, many varieties of Christian thought can be found. They are usually very roughly classified as high-church, broad-church, and low-church; but, as Father Humphry Johnson has justly observed, there exists within the Church of England "a larger and more important party than any of these, though a less articulate one. This party serves as a cement between the others." According to the official Book of Common Prayer the articles of the three creeds are to be believed; the Bible contains all things necessary to salvation; Purgatory, indulgences, veneration of images and relics, and the invocation of saints are "vainly invented" and "repugnant to the word of God"; two sacraments necessary for salvation were ordained by Christ, Baptism and the Supper of the Lord; transubstantiation "is repugnant to the plain words of Scripture"; the "sacrifices of Masses . . . were blasphemous fables and dangerous deceits"; "the Bishop of Rome hath no jurisdiction in this realm of England," etc. These still represent the belief of many Anglicans.