Classification Independent Anglican Region Venezuela | Polity Episcopal Origin 2008 | |
Associations Orthodox Anglican Communion | ||
The Reformed Catholic Church of Venezuela (Anglican Rite) (Spanish: Iglesia Católica Reformada de Venezuela) is a member jurisdiction of the Latin-American Anglican Church, a part of the global Orthodox Anglican Communion, and has received recognition from the Conservative Anglican Church of North America, a small United States-based group. It is therefore not a part of the Anglican Communion or the Roman Catholic Church.
History
The jurisdiction was inaugurated in June 2008 by Roman Catholics, Anglicans, and Lutherans who rejected (among other things) the Roman Catholic ban on married priests. News reports claimed church leadership expressed support for some of the policies of President Hugo Chávez.
Not surprisingly, several high-ranking prelates in the Roman Catholic Church have criticized the new jurisdiction for attempting to divide the larger Catholic Church, and asked Roman Catholics to avoid the church.
The church is headed by Mons. Enrique Albornoz, who serves as the Metropolitan Bishop. This church is based in South America and is not connected to any of the North American churches that have used the name "Reformed Catholic Church".