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==Anglican Theology==
Within Anglicanism there is a wide variety of theological thought. Some Anglicans would be comfortable under the general heading of "Protestant" whereas others would shun this title in favor of "Anglo-Catholic." In actuality, Anglicanism has had a remarkable ability to hold together people of varying views on many theological issues, some of them quite major. Bishop [[Kallistos (Ware) of Diokleia]], himself a convert to Orthodoxy from Anglicanism, writes in ''The Orthodox Church'' that "There are individual Anglicans whose faith is virtually indistinguishable from that of an Orthodox; but there are others within the Anglican communion, on the extreme liberal wing, who openly repudiate fundamental elements in the doctrinal and moral teaching of Christianity" (p. 321).
Among the more "orthodox" or conservative Anglican voices have been author and apologist [[C. S. Lewis]] and Archbishop of Canterbury Michael Ramsey. On the other hand, Anglicanism has been the home of such extreme liberal theologians as Bishop John Spong, author of ''Why Christianity Must Change or Die''.
At the time of the first agreed statement, the hope of the Commission had been for the eventual reunion of the Anglican and Orthodox Churches. However, in between the two, a major development in Anglicanism changed the direction of the Commission. In 1978 both the [[Episcopal Church U.S.A.]] and the Lambeth Conference put forth positions accepting the ordination of women. This drastically changed the understanding of the Commission. Following the Lambeth Conference in 1978, it had now come to be seen, in the words of co-chairman Archbishop Athanagoras, "simply as an academic and informative exercise, and no longer as an ecclesial endeavour aiming at the union of the two churches."
As there is much theological variation within Anglicanism, Bishop [[Kallistos (Ware ) of Diokleia]] has explained rightly when he writes, "The Orthodox Church, however deep its longing for reunion, cannot enter into closer relations with the Anglican communion until Anglicans themeselves are clearer about their own beliefs." (Ware, p. 321)
==Current Issues Within Anglicanism==
