Went to a secular wedding this weekend and the ceremony was so banal and devoid of meaning that it actually gave me hope for the future. People simply can't say cringe stuff like "merging of energies" for more than a generation or two. It isn't possible.
Every American denom is like this right now, though. Presbys, Methodists, Lutherans, Anglicans, even RCs, contain a formal wing and a guitars + projectors wing. EOs are the main exception, and it's because they're still ethnic.
It took me a long time to realize that the reason there isn't a strong Protestant school system like the Catholics have is because the American public schools *were* that system.
Reading about the Episcopal Church of just a few decades ago sometimes feels like reading about another planet. A vast institution of seminaries, journals, monasteries, missions orgs, publishing houses...that no longer exists. And the money. So much money.
Alright, we've hit the ACNA hard this week. I want to hear some good things about it. RT with church plants you are excited about right now.
Mine is Christ the King (REC) in Marietta, GA. Fr. Tony there has grown the church to 300 ASA in just a couple of years.
Some thoughts on the ACNA congregational reporting.
First, growth is pretty clear across the board. We’re past pre-Covid numbers. We’re not TEC or another aging “high church” denomination. That’s amazing news.
Conservative Prots, and now conservative RCs, EOs, etc. tend to have a very "us vs. the world" mentality that leads to a lack of participation in civic life.
Mainliners never really had this distinction: American civic life was their purview.
Also, I cannot fathom being a blue-collar Midwestern dad and shelling out $20k for a wedding like this. You've been living together for 7 years; show your parents some respect and go down to the courthouse.
Went to a secular wedding this weekend and the ceremony was so banal and devoid of meaning that it actually gave me hope for the future. People simply can't say cringe stuff like "merging of energies" for more than a generation or two. It isn't possible.
People leave the ACNA because it feels terminally unstable and theologically shallow, and they long for something solid in 2023. It's why they left their TGC church for Anglicanism in the first place.
Mere Anglicanism "controversy" is just another example of how immature of a denom the ACNA continues to be. They should never have invited Calvin, but then decided to freak out when he did the dog and pony show he *always* does.
The UMC is going to be fascinating to watch in the next few years, as it's the first mainline denom to have a conservative majority depart, leaving the unitarian wing of the denom entirely in charge. We haven't seen anything like this yet.
My wife always notices the best stuff in the lectionary, like that on Good Friday the Genesis 22 reading has Isaac carry the wood for his own sacrifice up the mountain.
There seems to be a lot of angst in Christian circles about why young men find the definition of masculinity presented by influencers more appealing than the Church's, but no one floats the simple thesis that influencers are more entertaining and on your phone.
Balaam is such a wild character. How is he a prophet of Yahweh? What does all the symbolism in the story of the donkey mean? And he gets credit for the Heresy of Peor? There needs to be more Balaam discourse.
This is a great model for young churches on a budget. Big white box + high ceilings always looks good, and can be done for cheap. Add more stuff as the parish grows.
Alright, let's see how much scripture a Catholic who went to Mass today would have received. It's the Solemnity of the BVM today.
OT: Num 6:22-27
Psalm: 67:2-3, 5, 6, 8
NT: Gal 4:4-7
Gospel: Luke 2:16-21
That's 21 verses in total.
"Protestants know the bible better than Catholics"
I don't think that's true.
A Catholic who *pays attention* in Mass will hear more of the bible than a Protestant who pays attention during the service
And they figure out pretty quick that all of the "ancient" liturgical practices they love are actually a thin veneer of aesthetics over what really just amounts to a non-denom eva church. So they leave, looking for a Church that takes itself more seriously.
Worth remembering when discussing WO that the ACNA is effectively a micro-denom. We're much smaller than the CRC, the WELS, and even the EPC. If you were to split up the ACNA right now, which is what would happen if you wanted to "resolve" WO, the leftovers would be tiny denoms.
Here’s a wild story from the old Episcopal Church: the history of Church of the Holy Trinity in South Bend, IN.
In 1911, Bp. John White was approached by a group of 84 Hungarian families who didn’t have a Roman Catholic church that was in Magyar, and asked him for a parish.
Nah, I have a ton of sympathy for this young woman. Your first year out of college is brutal and extremely lonely. Your entry level job doesn’t make enough money for you to live the life in the big city that was sold to you as giving you purpose and meaning. It’s pretty awful.
Just spent a blessed morning at the inaugural liturgy at our new church in central London.
St Andrew by the Wardrobe is a 17th century church which was once the parish of William Shakespeare. It is a blessing to be able to attend this wonderful church for our services.
Elsie has gone to be with her Lord and Savior; our love for her is everlasting and our comfort is found in the sure and certain hope of the resurrection. God bless you all for your prayers.
Anti-Cranmer sentiment is always the strongest amongst ACs who have abandoned entirely the Cranmerian liturgies, like in TEC and the CoE. I've been in plenty of Continuing parishes that proudly celebrate "St. Cranmer's" feast day.
If you’re an Anglo-Catholic and think Cranmer was a rank and evil heretic, just swim the Tiber already. It’s amazing what the Oxford Movement has revised historically and pushed. Not all of you are like this, but there’s enough.
But do you know what's actually crazy is the fact that until the mid-20th century your average Prot was probably getting TEN CHAPTERS of scripture read to them every Sunday over 2-3 services. We've completely dropped the bag.
I saw a lot of people react negatively to the idea the ACNA is congregationalist, but this is 100% a by-product of having no coherent definition of what Anglicanism is. Same thing with WO. If you have no agreed upon authorities, then eventually congregations run their own affairs
Many fail to realize that ACNA is functionally a congregationalist denomination where the laity rarely see beyond their local parish, aside from the yearly episcopal visitation. Few are engaged at the diocesan level, and even fewer at the provincial level.
But they get here and they find out that there are 5 dioceses present in their city, that no one actually agrees on a standard of doctrine, and that the Archbishop will use the provincial email to yell "USURPERS" at other bishops, typos included.
Reading through the replies you can see the massive impact Keller had on the Church around the world. People from every denom and background. Keller has brought a lot of people together over the years, and that's going to be missed.
Health Update: Today, Dad is being discharged from the hospital to receive hospice care at home. Over the past few days, he has asked us to pray with him often. He expressed many times through prayer his desire to go home to be with Jesus. His family is very sad because we... 1/3
Second, growth is consistent across both pro-WO and anti-WO dioceses, Anglo-Catholic and Reformed. These issues are not going to be resolved for a long time.
I don't think people realize just how dysfunctional the ACNA has become in the last five years. Twitter likes to focus on doctrinal issues, but as far as admin goes, the province has basically fallen apart. I pray Bp. Wood will work to resolve.
Let's hear about underappreciated ACNA clergy. RT with what you've got.
My submission is Dcn. Phil Shade in ADLW. He's been the bishop's assistant for years, and the diocese couldn't function without him. Not only does he own an amazing coffee shop, he planted a church as well!
The Irish Canons of 1635 refer to private confession as the "special ministry of reconciliation" and require the minister to advertise confession prior to Holy Communion by ringing a bell.
Margaritaville is one of those songs where if you listen to the lyrics it's the opposite of what you think. The protagonist acknowledges that he's a wastrel trapped in a purgatory of his own making.
I hate doomers, and I love America, but our country is going to face grave problems over the next few decades if no one is able to step and answer the question of what it actually means to be an American and how that leads citizens towards lives of dignity.
What's funny about the "Baptist Anglican" thing is that this isn't even a debate: there are already a decent number of ACNA churches who accept the "dual" position he proposes in the article. I even know of a large ACNA church (500+ members) that discourages infant baptism.
Diocese of the Carolinas. Want to know why Steve Wood is archbishop? It’s right there at the top. Wood has built a juggernaut church planting machine that shows no signs of slowing down. This continues to remain top of mind for the bishops, as it has since the beginning.