They did it

So I guess some new Catholic parishes will be popping up
Our Lady of the Episcopalian Refugees

Most Christians in the ECUSA are attached to their parishes, their buildings, their pastors and (for the pastors) their pensions. As long as the vice tightens slowly on them they will be content.

Some dioceses and lone parishes will split off and try to establish communion with 3rd world Anglicans. On the whole they are better described as conservative than catholic.

Anglicans with a catholic mindset that extends beyond aestheticism have already left ECUSA for splinter groups, the Orthodox or Catholicism.

I will be very surprised if there is a discernible blip in conversions to Rome.

Then there are the negatives on the Catholic side: ethnicity, social class, the chaos in many dioceses that looks indistinguishable to some from the ECUSA mess and the negative attitude of many Catholics to ECUSA refugees.

Pray for our Episcopalian friends who have wanted to "cross the Channel" for some time, but have been held back by family ties.

"Lord, send forth your light and your truth..."

Apropos of last week's discussion on parish shopping, shouldn't disgusted Episcopalians stay with their "family" parish, where the vagaries of geography and jurisdiction place them, and just offer it up? Do we really want a bunch of converts who are willing to put the Gospel ahead of territorial etiquette?

Some disgruntled Episcopalians will remain in their church with the attitude "The bishop may be gay, but at least the altar rail is still straight."

Numbers, people, numbers!

There are, according to Adherents.com, about 2.7 million Episcopalians.

Don't expect to have to raise money to expand parishes for the often-prophesied-and-never-seen floods of Episcopal refugees. I'd love to see the actual figure for E-to-RC conversions after the ordination of women, 1st woman bishop, etc. I doubt this will produce as many as the first named.