Valid but irregular is a term used in
Christian churches which have a concept of
Holy Orders, such as the
Anglican churches, to sacramental actions by someone who is able, due to their already being ordained to the appropriate orders, to carry out the action but does not have the required authority to do so. The term is analogous to that of "
valid but illicit" used in the
Roman Catholic Church.
Notable examples of acts declared "valid but irregular" include:
The consecration of
William Murdoch and
Bill Atwood in August 2007 at
All Saints' Cathedral,
Nairobi by the then
Archbishop of Kenya,
Benjamin Nzimbi. The two men were from United States and the intention was that they would serve as bishops for conservative Anglicans in the United States who have left the Anglican Communion because of the perceived liberal direction of the Episcopal Church.[4]
The ordination of three men from London in Kenya in May 2011. The men, who have not been named as of 21 July 2011, are part of a
church-planting group led by Richard Coekin (also mentioned above). Again, a rationale for these ordinations being considered irregular was put forward by the current
Bishop of Southwark,
Christopher Chessun who takes a more tolerant view towards homosexuality than that taken by the men at the time of their ordination. The men will be linked with the
Anglican Mission in England, a network of churches that separated from the
Church of England and the Anglican Communion shortly after the ordinations and that seeks to promote traditional Christian doctrine[clarification needed].[5] The events were criticised in a statement by
Lambeth Palace.[6]
Valid but irregular is a term used in
Christian churches which have a concept of
Holy Orders, such as the
Anglican churches, to sacramental actions by someone who is able, due to their already being ordained to the appropriate orders, to carry out the action but does not have the required authority to do so. The term is analogous to that of "
valid but illicit" used in the
Roman Catholic Church.
Notable examples of acts declared "valid but irregular" include:
The consecration of
William Murdoch and
Bill Atwood in August 2007 at
All Saints' Cathedral,
Nairobi by the then
Archbishop of Kenya,
Benjamin Nzimbi. The two men were from United States and the intention was that they would serve as bishops for conservative Anglicans in the United States who have left the Anglican Communion because of the perceived liberal direction of the Episcopal Church.[4]
The ordination of three men from London in Kenya in May 2011. The men, who have not been named as of 21 July 2011, are part of a
church-planting group led by Richard Coekin (also mentioned above). Again, a rationale for these ordinations being considered irregular was put forward by the current
Bishop of Southwark,
Christopher Chessun who takes a more tolerant view towards homosexuality than that taken by the men at the time of their ordination. The men will be linked with the
Anglican Mission in England, a network of churches that separated from the
Church of England and the Anglican Communion shortly after the ordinations and that seeks to promote traditional Christian doctrine[clarification needed].[5] The events were criticised in a statement by
Lambeth Palace.[6]