When did the official Church of England start?

[Paidiske]

I didn't realize this was still the case. Does the monarch genuinely choose, or just rubber-stamp choices made by some sort of gathering/synod/convention of the church?

I imagine that, as with so many things, the genuine involvement of the monarch is limited. That said, in theory at least, the monarch could refuse to appoint any person recommended.

I am reminded of a Yes, Prime Minister sketch (disclaimer: political accuracy may be second to comedy, here).

 

[Arcangl86]

I didn't realize this was still the case. Does the monarch genuinely choose, or just rubber-stamp choices made by some sort of gathering/synod/convention of the church?

If Queen Elizabeth II was the one who chose people like N. T. Wright and Rowan Williams to be bishops, we have much to thank her for.

It's a rubberstamp. Essentially a committee made up of a combination of laity and clergy, plus both Archbishops, submits a list of two names to the PM. The PM picks a name or asks for more names. The PM tells the Crown who they pick, at which point that person is formally nominated by the Crown. The canons of the Cathedral then hold an election, and lo and behold, the result is always the person nominated by the Crown! So it's rather convoluted.

 

[Mockingbird0]

Was it when St. Augustine of Canterbury brought Christianity to England? or when King Henry broke with Rome? Or when Elizabeth I organized the Anglican Church?

I will go with St. Augustine and St. Aidan too, though as others have pointed out there are threads of continuity with the Christianity of Roman Britain, such as devotion to St. Alban.

 

[RileyG]

Thank you everyone for your responses.

 

[Arcangl86]

Re-reading this I just realized there is an important distinction that hasn't been mentioned yet. I do agree with Paidiske that the Clarendon Codes would be the best date for the CoE, however the idea of a "Anglican Communion" took much longer to develop.

 

[Dewi Sant]

I will go with St. Augustine and St. Aidan too, though as others have pointed out there are threads of continuity with the Christianity of Roman Britain, such as devotion to St. Alban.

agreed
It really depends whether one means, the Church of England, the Church in England (Ecclesia Anglicorum), or the English Church.
For the first, the Church of England finds its sovereignty under the Henrican establishment in the 16th century, the liturgies and protestant identity which follows is subsequent to this act of autocephaly.
For the second, the Ecclesia Anglicorum simply refers to the Chrsitian communities in the lands we know today as England since the earliest missions of the first and second centuries.
And for the English Church, well, I would say that depends on when 'England' and the idea of 'English' or Ænglische came to be, typically we think of the union of the heptarchy under Alfred the Great (r.886), the first 'King of the English'...though more popularly William of Normandy (r.1066) is seen as the first King of England (this has always confused me haha)

 

[Christoph Maria]

agreed
It really depends whether one means, the Church of England, the Church in England (Ecclesia Anglicorum), or the English Church.
For the first, the Church of England finds its sovereignty under the Henrican establishment in the 16th century, the liturgies and protestant identity which follows is subsequent to this act of autocephaly.
For the second, the Ecclesia Anglicorum simply refers to the Chrsitian communities in the lands we know today as England since the earliest missions of the first and second centuries.
And for the English Church, well, I would say that depends on when 'England' and the idea of 'English' or Ænglische came to be, typically we think of the union of the heptarchy under Alfred the Great (r.886), the first 'King of the English'...though more popularly William of Normandy (r.1066) is seen as the first King of England (this has always confused me haha)

Excellent! Thank You!