Christ Our Hope Blog

Advent Letter

2011-11-23T09:03:00.000-08:00

Dear Christ Our Hope Family,

I can hardly believe that Advent is upon us! And yet it is. Sunday, November 27, is the first Sunday of Advent and will mark the start of a new liturgical season as well as a new year in the Church calendar.

Simcha Fisher, writer for the National Catholic Register, wrote recently about her anticipation of Advent. For Simcha and her family, this particular season also marks the anticipation of their ninth child. She says that it hit her just this week in a moment of panic – “where are we going to put a new baby?” She says that the facts are the facts, with everything necessary to run a household of ten people – there is no room. She panicked and she cried. And then she began to think more:

Eventually, through my tears, I figured out that maybe the sock-and-underwear bin could go over the heating vent… The hall chest, which holds broken picture frames, an oddly large collection of grout sealant, and (sigh) the previous baby’s baby clothes, could be emptied and moved into the laundry room…So, there was room. There was room after all. It’s not wonderful, but it works, and it gets the job done.

Fisher concludes that just as a complete remodel of their home to create new space for a new person is not going to happen this season, so too, in Advent a complete overhaul of our spiritual life is neither possible nor necessary.

We will not suddenly become the people we wish we were; we will not give the way we wish we gave and worship the way we wish we worshiped, becoming magically flawless, sinless, and sacrificial. But we can make room.

That is what Advent is truly all about. Just making a little bit of room. Many of you are feeling overloaded, over-programmed, overworked, and sleep-deprived. Life is not going to miraculously change for you overnight just because it’s Advent. But in the midst of the ebb and flow of daily life, we can make room. We are called to. So that is what our season at Christ Our Hope is going to focus on: making room where it seems there really is not room for the coming Christ.

This will be reflected in our corporate worship, of course. First, you can be ready for some changes to our liturgy; how we organize our corporate labor of prayer. Sunday, November 27, we will begin the New Year and the new season by singing/praying together the Great Litany. This is a very old and distinctly Anglican form of corporate confession and intercession. We are using it to mark time and to signal strongly that this is the beginning of something new. The Litany is sometimes called the Anglican Introit or entrance rite. For us it will be a way to mark this time, this season, and this new year as holy, distinct, and set apart for the worship of God.

Continuing throughout the Sundays of Advent, we will use some alternate forms for other prayers: the Confession, the Great Thanksgiving, and the Prayer of Humble Access, for example. I love the liturgy because, through the regular and repeated recitation of these biblically formed prayers and declarations, they work their way downward from our heads into our hearts until they become part of the very fabric of our being. Yet, I also recognize that the danger in repetition is that things can become rote and sadly sometimes even stale, and their deeper meaning gets lost on our hard hearts, our blind eyes, and our deaf ears. So, that is why for this season we will switch things up a bit to draw attention to those all-important words to interpret their deep meaning in a fresh way and to connect with the liturgy on that deeper heart level.

Throughout the season we will also focus on making room for the Christ as He comes to us daily in many ways. We will do this both through the preaching of the Word and through several events that we have designed to facilitate our response to the Word.

We will have the opportunity to make room for Christ as he comes and reveals Himself to us in the form of His persecuted Body, as He shows Himself in the face of the hungry and thirsty, and as He is revealed in His image imprinted upon the unborn, the aged, and the infirm.

Additionally, while we will not formally participate in the Advent Conspiracy campaign this year, we will still have an opportunity to collect money to provide clean water for some brothers and sisters who need it. We will keep this as a focus throughout Advent, but the actual collection will take place on Epiphany Sunday, January 8.

Finally we will make room corporately by making room for more silence. Once again, as you enter the worship space this Advent season you will be invited to enter into prayerful silence. We love our times of fellowship and a lot of Body life happens before, during, and after worship. But in this special season, as we focus on the call to make even just a little room, let’s confine our visiting and our catching up to the spacious lobby that we are blessed with. Let’s make room in our sanctuary for silence, reflection, and prayer.

When Mary and Joseph arrived in Bethlehem, they were told there was no room in the house. There was no malevolence in this statement; it was a simple fact. Yet their hosts made room where there was no room. They found space for them among the animals in the stable. And it was there, in the midst of that humble scene – that room made where there had been no room – that the Word became flesh and dwelt among us.

My prayer for all of us this Advent is that as we seek to make even just a little room in the midst of our crowded lives where it appears there is no room we will see Christ come once again to us and make His dwelling in us.

With prayers and blessings as we prepare to celebrate the Season,

Fr. Steve+

All Saints

2011-10-31T10:28:00.001-07:00

If you are interested in understanding more about the Feast of All Saints (November 1 - but often observed the following Sunday as will be the case at Christ Our Hope), check out this blog post on the Angli-whaat?! site.

Confirmation

2011-09-20T14:09:00.000-07:00

The next opportunity for Confirmation and Reception into the Anglican Church will be Sunday, November 6 when our Bishop, Alexander Green will be with us to celebrate the service. For a brief explanation of what Confirmation is check out this post at the Angli-whaat?! blog.

Podcast

2011-09-06T09:51:00.000-07:00

For those who were traveling over the Holiday Weekend (or those who just want to revisit the sermon) this Sunday's sermon is up on the podcast.

I look at all the lonely people...

2011-08-17T11:19:00.000-07:00

I had a fairly profound experience this morning driving across town and listening to...The Beatles. Strange I know, but true. The song Eleanor Rigby was playing on my radio, "All the lonely people, where do they all come from? All the lonely people, where do they all belong?" And as I was hearing those words I began looking around and thinking and praying. There are so many broken, hurting, lonely people in our town. Where they come from I do not know, but where they belong...

Theologian Simon Chan has argued that it is the mission of the Church to see disconnected individuals brought into relationship with the Trinity through the community of the Church. The word Church itself of course means the gathering, it presumes a corporate relationship. That song, these thoughts; they have fueled my renewed prayer that the Church of Jesus Christ, and specifically our little fellowship at Christ Our Hope will be a home where the disconnected find that they belong, so that wherever they come from, they know that they have a home here with God and with us.

Ordination Pictures

2011-07-18T12:38:00.001-07:00

Here are some photos from Deacon Tom and Fawn's ordination service. Thanks to Christopher McLaughlin for capturing the moment and sharing these.

Congratulations to Our New Deacons

2011-07-13T12:41:00.000-07:00

On Sunday, July 10, 2011, Rt. Rev. Alexander Greene, by the grace of God our bishop in the Anglican Mission in the Americas ordained the Reverends Thomas and Fawn Corbin to the Sacred order of Deacons. We are overjoyed to welcome Deacons Tom and Fawn to the clergy team of Christ our Hope and we pray together with them for the Lord's leading as they help lead us forward in ministry.

For a very helpful online article on the ministry of the deacon (including an excellent biblical defense of the practice of ordaining women to this Office) click here.

Hopefully we will have some pictures to share soon.

Why do you do that?!

2011-04-20T11:03:00.001-07:00

The Color Red.

Or, why my favorite liturgical color is the least used.

For those who were paying attention you may have noticed that this past Sunday, Palm Sunday, the liturgical colors changed from the purple of Lent to the red of Holy Week. I personally love the red hangings, altar frontals and stoles. And as I was thinking about it this week it occurred to me, maybe one of the reasons I like it so much is that red is used less than any of the other liturgical colors. Purple is used for all of Advent and all of Lent, 9 weeks out of the year total. White is used during the 12 days of Christmas, all 7 weeks of Easter season and on other various feast days such as the Epiphany, Transfiguration, Holy Trinity, All Saints and Christ the King. Green is of course the most used color since it covers all of ordinary time, nearly 6 months of green! But red in its glorious humility is used only for Holy Week, Pentecost, ordinations, confirmations and the observance of a martyr's feast day.

Red is used of course on Pentecost and those other episcopal (meaning conducted by an episcopos - ie bishop) services like confirmation, as a symbol of the tongues of holy fire that came down and were visible on the heads of the apostles on that first Pentecost. But during Holy Week red takes on a whole different, and perhaps more obvious symbolic meaning. In some older priestly manuals they distinguished that a darker red, referred to as Ox Blood, should be used during Holy Week. This is of course to remind the worshipper of shed blood.

This week is, as gruesome as it may sound, a celebration of blood. The shed blood that is God's righteous requirement as punishment for sin. The blood of bulls and goats that the ancient Israelites were required to sacrifice to atone for their sins. The blood of the Passover Lamb that was shed to redeem the first born sons of Israel. And supremely the shed blood of our Lord Jesus Christ whose sacrifice upon the cross fulfilled all of these other, prefiguring sacrifices as he atoned once and for all for sin. And all of these we see expressed in the celebration of the Cup which is poured out for us in the institution of the Lord's Supper, the token of a new covenant sealed in His blood.

Red may just be the richest of our liturgical colors.

The Reconciliation of a Penitent

2011-04-05T08:37:00.000-07:00

It may confuse some newcomers and visitors from time to time when they hear me announce that I will be available during lent to hear confessions. "Isn't that Catholic?", tends to be the knee-jerk response of most evangelicals. If you are interested, I recommend checking out my post, here at the Angliwhaat?! blog on private confession for a full explanation of the Anglican approach toward private confession to a priest.

The Heart of Lent

2011-03-09T09:37:00.001-08:00

For those who are new to Christ Our Hope and new to the Anglican Tradition, you may also be new to the observance of Lent. To help you understand more about why we celebrate this holy season you may want to read this essay which I have posted in years past.

Lent and Ash Wednesday

2011-03-08T09:39:00.000-08:00

Ash Wednesday is upon us tomorrow! We will gather for worship twice. Please join us either at 6:30AM for the Imposition of Ashes or 7:00PM for The Imposition of Ashes and Holy Eucharist.

To understand a little more about Ash Wednesday and Lent, you may want to check out my post on the Angliwhaat?! blog site.

March Outreach Prayer Calendar

2011-03-05T18:58:00.000-08:00

Christ Our Hope desires for outreach to be a natural outgrowth of worship. We are working to create more intentional and consistent outreach advocacy, both global and local. As part of this advocacy, we are providing a monthly outreach prayer calendar. This is a new endeavor, so the March calendar is a little late, but better late than never! Please pick one up at our weekly worship service. A background will be provided to mount the calendar on each month that has pictures of those we pray for. The hope is that you will re-use the background each month to minimize printing costs and environmental impact. Thanks for praying!

Women's Retreat - June 24th, 25th

2011-02-25T09:45:00.000-08:00

LADIES!!

In Christ, we are more than conquerors! Come one, come all to a women’s retreat on Jun 24, 25. You will be able to rest, read, pray, walk, listen, discuss, etc. Put the date on your calendars. More information will follow.

Romans 8: 38,39: “For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Contact: Sharon Lance, Fawn Corbin

My bloody valentine

2011-02-15T08:05:00.000-08:00

As I do each year I marvel at how the feast day of a martyr has become synonymous with stuffed teddy bears and chocolates. For those who don't know the real story, St. Valentinus was a priest in the city of Rome in the mid-200s. He was arrested by the officials by officials there because he was illegally aiding Christians who were being persecuted under Emperor Claudius II. Some accounts say that one of his acts of sedition was marrying young Christians who came to him because marriage between Christians had been outlawed as a part of the Emperors program of persecution. Nevertheless, he was arrested and when he refused to recant of his faith he was sentenced to beheading. The execution took place February 14, 270 AD. So there you have it- no teddies, no chocolates. Perhaps some justification for red roses there somewhere but otherwise just a great story of a steadfast hero of the faith.

Angli-whaat?!

2011-01-19T11:00:00.000-08:00

For those readers who are interested in learning more about Anglicanism, you may be interested in checking out a new blog I have just launched, Angli-whaat?! This new blog is dedicated to forwarding an understanding of where Anglicans come from, what we believe and how we worship. Stop by, check it out, leave your questions and interact with the answers.

Advent Confession Redux

2010-12-08T07:34:00.000-08:00

I have noted that one of my most frequently read posts is an older one about the role of confession in the season of Advent. Being that it is Advent again I thought drawing attention to it might be helpful to some. So if you are interested you can check it out here.

A word for this Time of year

2010-12-06T19:47:00.000-08:00

I was reading and came across this excellent quote by Simon Chan in his excellent book, Liturgical Theology. It struck me as timely as we delve deeper into what it means to live a life of witness in the world at this time of year. The timelessness of the liturgy invites us to experience God's eternity in the midst of the press of our worldly times and the pressures and compulsions that accompany it.

"The world may be deeply conscious of time marked by the clock and the movement of the earth (kronos). Within this chronological time frame many people aspire to fulfill their dreams - dreams that are largely fed by the consumerist culture. The people of God, however, live by a different kind of time. Through the liturgy of time, the church deepens its awareness of living in God's kairos. It is this awareness that gives to Christian living its distinctly eschatological orientation."

The Greatest Conspiracy: Contentment

2010-12-06T08:56:00.000-08:00

As you have probably noted from other recent posts, once again this year we are working our way through the Advent Conspiracy and what it means to worship more fully during this holy season rather than bowing the knee to the cultural pressures to spend and consume. Yesterday we looked at the gospel text from Matthew 3 and the example of John the Baptizer. What we see in John is a radical consistency. He had a radical message to repent (meaning to turn or change - to come back to the "straight path" of the Lord). He was calling on his contemporaries to bring their lives into alignment with God's priorities so that they would be purified and ready to receive their Messiah when he came. But what struck me most about the account of John is the consistency between his message and the way he lived his life. He didn't just preach repentance, he lived it. He was of a priestly family. So he could have enjoyed the comforts of Jerusalem and the elite status of being a religious big wig. He could have tried to deliver his message there and sought to affect change from within the religious system. But honestly, that probably wouldn't have worked. Because part of his message was to call out the religious elites for their failures to live consistently with God's agenda (see Matthew 3:7 and following). In order to effectively critique their inconsistency he needed to live consistently himself, or his message would have lacked punch.

Now I can't help but find John's example rather convicting. Because this time of year we as Christians need to face the reality, we are confronted at every turn by our inconsistency. We declare with our lips, and know in our guts that Christmas is all about Jesus; but the story we tell with our lives is very often a different story. It is one thing to get bumper stickers that declare, "Jesus is the reason for the season" and insist on wishing store clerks "Merry Christmas" instead of "Happy Holidays" and all of those things. But at the end of the day, Like John the Baptizer, we have a profound and important prophetic message to share with the world that revolves around the events we celebrate this time of year. And yet, unlike John, we shoot our credibility in the foot year after year when we dive headlong into the feeding frenzy of commercialism and Christmas bargain shopping. Or when we put on our Christmas CD's with songs about decking halls and wassailing and jingling bells; songs that have nothing to do with Jesus whatsoever. Or even when we compromise with the more 'wholesome thought' that "The Holidays are about family." No they aren't! Mother's Day and Father's Day are holidays all about family. Christmas is about Jesus. Period.

This season of Advent and the Christ-mass it prepares us for are all about worship. Worshipping and extending the prophetic call to others to come and worship. And yet we are compromised by our own lifestyle choices and actions. We are like the religious elites in John's day, preaching God's good news for the poor and yet continuing to pad our own pockets as we neglect them. Our mouths and our bumper stickers say one thing. But our actions declare something completely different.

So what can we do? What action can we take, what corrective move can we make to bring our lives back in line with our message. At the end of the day the gospel is about grace. But there can be no grace without repentance – and repentance means change. So what small discipline can we engage in to change the way we engage with this Advent and Christmas season? Well, allow me to offer a simple spiritual discipline that has strong power to remedy the tug of commercialism. It is the discipline of practicing gratitude. Simple gratefulness for what we already have. When everything in our culture and media cries for us to be discontent with what we have in order to create in us a desire for more, one of the most powerful moves a Christian can make is to plant your foot firmly and say, “no, I do not need more.” God has already given me all that I need and more. And when the forces of greed and gluttony come against me, I will choose to focus on those blessings and even enumerate them as a testimony and a reminder. These are the blessings that God has given me – and they are all that I need and more.

I came across another excellent video that really drives all of this home. Take a moment and watch it. It is profound. But in addition to reading the words, take a listen to the words of the song in the background for they too are profound and have meaning. The soundtrack is a 1939 hit song by the late Eddie Cantor. The message is profound when you consider that Cantor was singing in the wake of the Great Depression and on the eve of World War II. Enjoy

Christmas Change from Kujilana on Vimeo.

Clean Water 2010

2010-12-06T08:33:00.001-08:00

This year once again as a part of our Advent Conspiracy participation we will be designating part of our Christmas Eve offering for clean water. Last year we provided $6,000 to the diocese of Kibungo, Rwanda so that they could provide clean water technology to all their diocesan schools and orphanages and through those schools to every village and community in their region. This year we have the opportunity to partner with our missionaries, John and Sheryl Roberts serving with the Mission to Unreached People's and through their local church, Christ Our Peace Anglican Church in Cambodia. With their MUP colleagues and a missionary lay pastor out in the "bush" of Cambodia the Roberts have been actively praying for an opportunity to make relational connections with another village, O'Tmal where there is no Christian witness whatsoever. Recently a village leader contacted the missionaries and asked for their help in his village. One of their greatest needs: clean water! So, we at Christ Our Hope now have the opportunity to dig two clean water wells in O'Tmal, providing clean water to that entire village as well as providing for an avenue to not only better the physical lives of its inhabitants but also begin a relationship that will eventually impact their spiritual lives and their eternity as well! This is a truly exciting experience. Please consider joining us by contributing to this special Christmas Eve offering.

The Conspiracy has begun

2010-11-30T15:13:00.000-08:00

This year we are participating in the Advent Conspiracy again. Check out the video and check out the website.

Eat this scroll

2010-11-15T12:31:00.000-08:00

Early in the book of Ezekiel (3:1) the prophet is told to take the scroll the Lord has given him and he is to eat it. It is a fabulous image and one which the collect (gathering prayer) from yesterday reflects on. At CoH we had confirmations yesterday so the collect we used was specific to that occasion. But it is worth considering the words of this prayer today:

"Blessed Lord, who caused all holy Scriptures to be written for

our learning: Grant us so to hear them, read, mark, learn,

and inwardly digest them, that we may embrace and ever

hold fast the blessed hope of everlasting life, which you have

given us in our Savior Jesus Christ; who lives and reigns with

you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen."

This Sunday will be All Saints Day Observed

2010-11-03T14:29:00.000-07:00

It has come to our attention that many believers who are new to the liturgical traditions of the Church may be unfamiliar with the Feast of All Saints. The tradition of commemorating those who have gone before us extends back to the very early days of the Christian Church. By the early 200’s evidence suggests that it was already common for local churches to celebrate and remember the martyrdoms of their various members, lauding them as examples of following Christ even unto death. It was not long however before there were indeed so many martyrs throughout the universal Church that remembering each separately became impractical (remember that Christianity was illegal for most of the first 400 or so years of the Church’s history), thus the Church began to condense its commemorations. By the early 700’s it would appear that November 1 was selected as a day to remember the examples of all those who have gone before.

In 807 Gregory IV extended the celebration from strictly the example of martyrs to celebrating the example of all the saints that have entered ahead of us into rest and glory. This was indeed fitting since the word that we translate as saints, hagioi, simply means holy or set apart ones. The New Testament applies this word to all of the faithful in Christ. Therefore it is appropriate to celebrate on this day not only those historically significant exemplars of the faith but ALL the saints, the holy ones in Christ who have entered into eternal joy.

The Feast of All Saints is a feast of the Resurrection. Thus the church is decorated in white and gold and baptisms are traditionally performed. As St. Paul notes in 1 Corinthians 15:20-23 “But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. For as by a man came death, by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive. But each in his own order: Christ the firstfruits, then at his coming those who belong to Christ.” At Easter we celebrate the resurrection of Christ, the ‘firstfruits’. On All Saints we celebrate the fact that in Christ we all shall be raised to Life because we belong to Him.

The Church affirms in her ancient Creeds that we believe in the “communion of saints, the resurrection of the dead and the life everlasting.” In the book of Revelation chapter 7 the Apostle John, peering beyond the veil that separates Heaven and Earth, sees a great host of white robed saints from every people group on earth worshipping before the Throne of God. Likewise the author of the book of Hebrews tells us that we are “surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses” who are cheering us on in the race as we carry the baton of faith in our own day. Together, these texts affirm that while the souls of those who have died are awaiting their bodily resurrection upon Christ’s return, they have not ceased to exist but are still very much alive in the Lord, worshipping in His Divine Presence. Hebrews also suggests that they are apparently well aware of the trials and challenges of those of us who are following Christ here upon the earth and are therefore cheering us on. Thus we affirm in one of the prayers from the Burial Rite in the Book of Common Prayer, “For to your faithful people, O Lord, life is changed, not ended; and when our mortal body lies in death, there is prepared for us a dwelling place eternal in the heavens”

So also we pray on All Saints Day, “Almighty God, you have knit together your elect in one communion and fellowship in the mystical body of your Son Christ our Lord: Give us grace so to follow your blessed saints in all virtuous and godly living, that we may come to those ineffable joys that you have prepared for those who truly love you; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who with you and the Holy Spirit lives and reigns, one God, in glory everlasting. Amen.”

This Collect (prayer) for the day perfectly sums up all that we have said. All Saints Day is a celebration of the life beyond the grave that is ours in Christ. As we celebrate we affirm that all those faithful who have died in the Lord are with Him awaiting the consummation of all things at the coming of His Kingdom. It is also a day to recognize, remember and celebrate the example in Christ that these have set for us. With those thoughts in our hearts and minds it is my prayer that we can all enter into the Feast together as we affirm, “O God, in the multitude of your saints you have surrounded us with a great cloud of witnesses, that we might rejoice in their fellowship, and run with endurance the race that is set before us; and, together with them, receive the crown of glory that never fades away.”

Happy All Saints Day!

2010-11-01T12:51:00.000-07:00

For all of you, who like me may be going around whistling or humming this hymn all day - here are the complete words for your edification.

For all the saints, who from their labors rest,
Who Thee by faith before the world confessed,
Thy Name, O Jesus, be forever blessed.
Alleluia, Alleluia!

Thou wast their Rock, their Fortress and their Might;
Thou, Lord, their Captain in the well fought fight;
Thou, in the darkness drear, their one true Light.
Alleluia, Alleluia!

For the Apostles’ glorious company,
Who bearing forth the Cross o’er land and sea,
Shook all the mighty world, we sing to Thee:
Alleluia, Alleluia!

For the Evangelists, by whose blest word,
Like fourfold streams, the garden of the Lord,
Is fair and fruitful, be Thy Name adored.
Alleluia, Alleluia!

For Martyrs, who with rapture kindled eye,
Saw the bright crown descending from the sky,
And seeing, grasped it, Thee we glorify.
Alleluia, Alleluia!

O blest communion, fellowship divine!
We feebly struggle, they in glory shine;
All are one in Thee, for all are Thine.
Alleluia, Alleluia!

O may Thy soldiers, faithful, true and bold,
Fight as the saints who nobly fought of old,
And win with them the victor’s crown of gold.
Alleluia, Alleluia!

And when the strife is fierce, the warfare long,
Steals on the ear the distant triumph song,
And hearts are brave, again, and arms are strong.
Alleluia, Alleluia!

The golden evening brightens in the west;
Soon, soon to faithful warriors comes their rest;
Sweet is the calm of paradise the blessed.
Alleluia, Alleluia!

But lo! there breaks a yet more glorious day;
The saints triumphant rise in bright array;
The King of glory passes on His way.
Alleluia, Alleluia!

From earth’s wide bounds, from ocean’s farthest coast,
Through gates of pearl streams in the countless host,
And singing to Father, Son and Holy Ghost:
Alleluia, Alleluia!

Imitating Christ in Marriage

2010-10-27T09:27:00.000-07:00

This Fall at Christ Our Hope we have been exploring what it means to worship in the midst of the manny facets of our lives. Several weeks ago we explored what it means to worship in the midst of family. This week I came across this outstanding sermon by Fr. Stewart Ruch at Church of the Resurrection in Wheaton, IL. So last night for our weekly date night, my wife and I sat down and listened to it together. It is an outstanding reflection on the high call of marriage, taken from Ephesians 5. I highly recommend it for all married people but for singles as well (there is another sermon on the same site called Imitating Christ in Celibacy that looks good as well).

In such a day as this, Fr. Stewart's wisdom, biblical insight and clear prophetic call to Christian Marriage is powerful and much needed. Listen and enjoy.

For such a time as this...

2010-10-20T13:07:00.000-07:00

This week leaders from the global church are meeting for the third ever Lausanne Conference on World Evangelization. Among those present are a great host of Anglican church leaders. These leaders made a presentation to the whole assembly, Archbishop Robert Duncan of the Anglican Church in North America closed their presentation with an excellent address that is well worth reading.

Abp. Duncan summarizes the history of the recent rise of Anglicanism here in North America as well as articulately and humbly summarizing the lessons we have learned and which we can offer the broader Church. You can find his address here. It would be worth taking the time to read it.

I do want to include one of his points right here because it is most striking. Archbishop Duncan says in his address,

"God “magnifies” the lowly. Global South Anglicanism is now majority Anglicanism. The average Anglican is now a woman, an African, a mother, and under the age of 20. We are not the Church of England anymore. God speaks to us of previously unimaginable possibilities. For us in the Anglican Church in North America we believe God has set us to planting 1000 new churches in our first five years of life. 1 or 2 potential church-planters contacts our office every day! 500 will gather at our Anglican 1000 Summit in January. What is equally astounding is what I call “Anglican fever” on university and seminary campuses. Five weeks ago, Dean Timothy George of Beeson School of Theology in Birmingham, Alabama, a school of Baptist foundation, informed me that “the fastest growing group of students are the Anglicans.” I met with twenty eager Wheaton College students in August. All are part of newly formed Anglican congregations in the Chicago area. None of them were raised as Anglicans. All believe themselves called to some kind of missionary life as committed disciples of Jesus. They want not only to tell about Jesus, but to do what Jesus did. These are by no means isolated North American stories. From the ruins of the heretical and wayward denominations that marginalized, exiled and expelled the faithful of an earlier generation, a new generation is clearly being drawn to believing and serving in the humbled and renewed Anglican Church that is emerging."

What an exciting time to be a part of what God is doing.