Girish Mahajan (Editor)

Union of Scranton

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Classification
  
Catholic

Governance
  
Episcopal

Headquarters
  
Scranton, Pennsylvania

Theology
  
Ultrajectine

Region
  
North America, Europe

Leader
  
Prime Bishop Anthony Mikovsky

The Union of Scranton is a communion of Old Catholic churches established in 2008 by the Polish National Catholic Church (PNCC) of the United States, after the Union of Utrecht they had been part of began ordaining women and blessing of same-sex unions. Since then, it has expanded to include the Nordic Catholic Church (NCC), begun by people who had separated from the Church of Norway, a Lutheran state church, in opposition to similar practices and has developed a more Catholic theology. The NCC includes the Christ-Catholic Church in Germany as a daughter-church, which traces its history through the Union of Utrecht of the Old Catholic Churches (UU) and the PNCC, as well as St. Severin's Abbey which is the German Province of the Order of Port Royal.

Contents

Beliefs

The beliefs shared by Union of Scranton member churches, distinguished from Roman Catholic and UU churches, are described in the Declaration of Scranton. The Declaration of Scranton expands Declaration of Utrecht principles by adding theologically conservative expressions of faith in the sacraments of marriage and holy orders.

In the Declaration of Scranton, the signatories:

  • reject the dogma of papal infallibility and the universal episcopate of the Bishop of Rome
  • reject the dogmatic pronouncement of the Immaculate Conception, although not the dogma itself
  • reject the dogmatic pronouncement of the Assumption of Mary, although not the dogma itself
  • reject ordination of women to the priesthood, consecration of women to the episcopate, and the blessing of same-sex unions, and
  • affirm a sacrificial understanding of the Eucharist, not as a continual repetition nor a renewal of Jesus' sacrifice, but as a perpetual commemoration of the sacrifice.

    • Members

  • Polish National Catholic Church
  • Polish National Catholic Church Deanery in Italy
  • Polish National Catholic Church in Poland
  • Nordic Catholic Church
  • Nordic Catholic Church mission in Sweden
  • Nordic Catholic Church in France
  • Nordic Catholic Church mission in Hungary
  • Nordic Catholic Church mission in the United Kingdom
  • Old Catholic Church in Italy (Nordic Catholic Church vicariate) (NCC-COI), formerly the Orthodox Church in Italy (Association "Metropolita Antonio")
  • Christ-Catholic Church in Germany (includes St. Severin's Abbey)

    • Relationships

    The Union of Scranton has been in dialogue with the Free Church of England since February 2013.

    References

    Union of Scranton Wikipedia
    (Text) CC BY-SA