Liberal Catholic Church

History

Foundation of the Liberal Catholic Church

The Liberal Catholic Church was founded by J. I. Wedgwood and Charles Webster Leadbeater, two Theosophists. Wedgwood had been consecrated as a bishop in 1916 in England by Frederick Samuel Willoughby; Willoughby had been consecrated as bishop by Arnold Harris Mathew of the Old Roman Catholic Church in Great Britain, but had later been disowned by Mathew. Wedgwood then travelled to Australia and ordained and consecrated Leadbeater.

Wedgwood established the Liberal Catholic Church in the USA in 1917. Wedgwood says that during the existence of the early unified Liberal Catholic Church, he created the Liberal Rite. Following accusations of sexual misconduct with juveniles, in 1919, Wedgwood resigned from the Theosophical Society and the Liberal Catholic Church.

Liberal Catholic Church International

In 1947, a part of the LCC split due to the controversy over the suspension of an LCC bishop. This independent split is named Liberal Catholic Church International (LCCI), and despite its name it is only present in the USA. The LCCI claims to adhere to Catholicism "with the widest measure of intellectual liberty and respect for the individual conscience."

Both the LCC and the LCCI "describe themselves as the Liberal Catholic Church or the Liberal Catholic Church in the Province of the United States and both claim 'official' status as the true church. Both the LCCI and the LCC have similarities and differences, but the critical distinction lies in the succession of bishops."

Young Rite

In 2006, former LCC Presiding Bishop Johannes van Alphen consecrated Markus van Alphen. Alphen, in turn, established the Young Rite. Bishop Johannes himself eventually joined the Young Rite, serving there until his death. Among the tenets of the Young Rite was the belief that all possessed a path to the priesthood, and anyone requesting ordination should receive it. This practice was abandoned in the United States after Markus van Alphen's retirement and with the establishment of the Community of Saint George, a Young Rite jurisdiction. Young Rite USA now requires a multi-year formation program for its clergy.

References

References

1. "Liberal Catholic Church".
2. [[William J. Whalen. Whalen, William J.]], ''Separated Brethren: A Survey Of Protestant, Anglican, Eastern Orthodox and Other Denominations in the United States'', 1979, p. 153
3. Beauregard, E. E.. (2002). "LIBERAL CATHOLIC CHURCH". Gale.
4. "Liberal Catholic Church".
5. Tillett, Gregory John. "Charles Webster Leadbeater 1854-1934 : a biographical study". University of Sydney.
6. Wedgwood, James Ingall. (1937). "The Beginnings of the Liberal Catholic Church: February 13, 1916". St. Alban Press.
7. Tillett, Gregory. (2016). "The Elder Brother: A Biography of Charles Webster Leadbeater". Routledge.
8. "What is the LCCI?".
9. Bate, Alistair. (2009). "A Strange Vocation: Independent Bishops Tell Their Stories". The Apocryphile Press.
10. (September 2025). "Education (Celebrants)".