This keynote paper was delivered at the Society for the Study of Anglicanism which gathered at the AAR Annual Meeting in Philadelphia in November 2005. On the basis of many years of observation and participation in the life of the Anglican Communion, I attempt to offer in this article a ‘Wisdom for Anglican Life’ — a wisdom which takes seriously the unity and koinonia of the Church as rooted in the cross of Jesus Christ and the love of God. Such wisdom is rooted in the faithful worship of the Church but also engages seriously with the struggles of the world. It counsels gentleness, kindness, forgiveness and above all patience in matters of dispute, and embraces the thoughtful but rigorous communal study of Scripture. This article ultimately suggests that a pressing task facing the Communion today is to learn afresh how to be Anglican Christians in the twenty-first century.

It is argued that the Windsor Report is a new Anglican ecclesiology that attempts to answer problems within more classical and historically induced and offered Anglican ecclesiologies. In order to reflect this new direction, the authors borrowed ideas from several offsetting loci—including Roman Catholic receptio theology of communion and a more classic magisterial Protestant theology of Scripture—and as such has morphed the understanding of how Anglican authority, in all its forms, might look without opting for a Roman or the, as perceived by many as problematic, Protestant Liberal model. It is asked whether there is a polarity in the above theologies and which theme, if any, must assume the central role in articulating Anglican ecclesiology. I offer that it is the tacit theology of Scripture that is the true strength of the Windsor Report and which needs to be clarified in future discussions on Anglican ecclesiology.

The article addresses a number of different themes related to Australian Anglicanism. Underlying this inquiry is a deeper concern to trace the contours of an ecclesiology that is both embedded in a particular context (Australia) and through that points to common ideals that inform the self-understanding of the wider Communion. After an introduction, the remainder of the article is divided into four sections. The first section involves a brief historical perspective to introduce Australian Anglicanism to a wider audience. A second section attends to matters of law and governance; familiar enough but often dry territory, though certainly revealing as to the present state of our Church. From history and law I offer in the third section a reflection of a geographical kind on the idea of place as a formative factor in ecclesiology. In this way I hope to be able to highlight some of the particular challenges for Australian Anglicans and hopefully the wider Communion.

The Church of England remains deeply divided over the ordination of women. The present study charts the debate from the early 1990s and reanalyses centrally collected statistics to identify how the 42 mainland dioceses have responded so differently to the opportunity to ordain women to the priesthood. Then the rate of growth or decline in terms of membership statistics within the dioceses is assessed against their attitude toward the ordination of women. The data demonstrate that dioceses which have apparntly encouraged the ordination of women have overall experienced neither greater nor lesser decline in terms of membership statistics than dioceses which have apparently discouraged the ordination of women.

Richard Hooker's theology of law was rarely far from pragmatic concerns. He wanted to promote a peaceful and prosperous human community before God while holding that moral right consists in conformity to the divine will. In this paper, we tread a narrow path between Hooker as ‘villain’ because of his role in preparing for the modern separation of ethics from metaphysics and as ‘unqualified hero’ whose ethically substantive and teleological theology of law took inspiration from Holy Scripture and the angels' worship of God. The claim is that Hooker's theology of law still provides a fertile environment in which to think practically today about questions such as: What is the nature of divine authority? What is law for? What should characterize the human exercise of authority?

Sixty years after William Temple's death, little in the way of constructive theology has been done with the body of writings he left. Part of this is due to the way in which his legacy has been (mis)appropriated by some of the scholars and church leaders who are seen as his heirs and admirers. An over-emphasis on the ‘middle axioms’ approach exemplified in Christianity and Social Order, and later promoted heavily by Ronald Preston, explains much of this lack. Although the ‘middle axioms’ approach is still applicable, the principles set out in Temple's most famous work need to be re-examined and perhaps expanded in the light of a post-Christian plural society. The purpose of this essay is to examine a broader range of Temple's work than is commonly done. By doing so, I will propose that the virtues of intellectual excellence, graciousness, and the welfare of the wider (non-church) society are guiding principles for ecclesial being, speech and action that are fully present in Temple's writings.