Church of England

CoE, Church of England, Anglican, C of E

C — Confessionally mixed

Overview

The Church of England is the established church of England and the historic mother church of the Anglican Communion, reformed under Edward VI, settled under Elizabeth I, and confessed in the Thirty-Nine Articles and the 1662 Book of Common Prayer. The contemporary Church of England ordains women to all three orders, has since 2023 authorized the blessing of same-sex couples under "Prayers of Love and Faith," and encompasses a very wide theological range — from confessional evangelical Reformed parishes to Anglo-Catholic and liberal wings. AskCredo places the Church of England in the C-tier: historically the confessional standard of English Protestantism, now a mixed body in which orthodox witness persists under growing institutional pressure.

Confession / Standard

39 Articles of Religion; Book of Common Prayer

Governance

episcopal

Soteriology

mixed

Key Beliefs

Broad church tradition
Infant baptism
Liturgical worship
Via Media

Distinctives

Extremely broad theological diversity — from Anglo-Catholic to charismatic to liberal
LGBTQ-affirmation debates ongoing — blessings of same-sex unions approved (2023)
Women's ordination to priesthood (1994) and episcopate (2014)
Nominal Christianity prevalent in membership

Background

UK & Ireland · Founded 1534

Official Website

https://churchofengland.org