How is the Anglican denomination different from other Protestant and the Catholic denominations?
The Anglican Church was originally envisioned as basically Catholic in its practices and dogma by its founder, Henry VIII, in the 1530’s. The only substantial difference was that the ruler of England would be the head of the Church. It was not envisioned as “Protestant” in the same way that the development of “Lutheranism” in the rest of Europe was. Henry was protesting the Pope’s control over England, not the tenants of the religion itself. However, over the next hundred years, the Anglican Church developed in a somewhat more Protestant direction, spurred by the publication of the Book of Common Prayer in the reign of Henry’s son Edward VI (a book that has been updated regularly and is still in use in Anglican churches today). Modern Anglicanism has very few differences from Modern Catholicism (although some of the differences, such as married clergy and the ordination of women are substantial).
