Growing up in Northern Ireland, Anglicanism often felt more like a gang than a religion. It wasn’t just about where your family went on Sunday; it was as much a part of your identity as having red hair, an aptitude for maths, or a brother on the rugby team. We had five churches in our…
Saint Thomas Sunday: A Rookie Anglican Guide
The Sunday after Easter is also called “Saint Thomas Sunday.” This Sunday, we read the story of the apostle Thomas, his doubts about the news of the resurrection, and his confession of faith when Jesus showed him his wounds. It is a day to acknowledge skepticism and celebrate belief. Most importantly, Saint Thomas Sunday is…
The Stations of the Cross: A Rookie Anglican Guide
Almighty God, whose most dear Son went not up to joy but first he suffered pain, and entered not into glory before he was crucified: Mercifully grant that we, walking in the way of the cross, may find it none other than the way of life and peace; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives…
George Herbert: A Rookie Anglican Guide to the Priest and Poet
George Herbert, perhaps the greatest devotional poet in the English language, was also a faithful pastor to a small country church. When I was a student, Herbert helped lead the way of my pilgrimage to Christ. As an adult disciple and priest, I have continually refreshed my spirit by dipping back into Herbert’s prose and…
Called By His Grace: 10 Theses on the Conversion of Paul
If we want to understand grace, we should look no further than the conversion of St. Paul the Apostle. This is not because grace is always so dramatic as to convert a murderer on the Damascus Road, but because grace can be so dramatic as to convert a murderer on the Damascus Road. As Paul…
Reclining On Christ: Saint John’s Example of Intimacy with Jesus
Saint John was an apostle, an evangelist, and a bosom friend to Jesus, who set an example of reclining on Christ. John’s feast is December 27th, and we also remember him on Maundy Thursday and any time we read from his Gospel. A Bosom-Friend I call John a bosom friend because it was he, “the…
The History of the Advent Collects
The four Advent collects offer both a concise introduction to the season and a rich overview of the grace God offers to sinners.
The Liturgical Home: The Feast of St. Thomas
On December 21st, as Christmas Day fast approaches, we celebrate one more commemoration of a saint, the Feast of St. Thomas. We often know St. Thomas, one of Jesus’ twelve apostles, as “Doubting Thomas” for questioning Jesus’ resurrection after the other disciples told him about it. Tradition holds that he is the only apostle who…
The True Story of Santa Claus
Is Santa real? Yes, he is, and his true story involves a 4th-century bishop, a 19th-century Anglican, liturgical vestments, and an altercation with a heretic. The true story is so fabulous that only the kids would believe it!
The Feast of St. Francis: A Rookie Anglican Guide
Francis has much to teach us even today from his life of simplicity, care for the poor, and ability to wonder at God through the natural world.
E.B. Pusey: Knowing and Reading Oxford’s Priest-Scholar
The Life of E.B. Pusey Early Life Edward Bouverie Pusey was born in 1800 to a devout aristocratic family. Late in his life, when he was famous (and infamous) as a great theologian, he would often say that all of his theological convictions had their root in the faith that he learned from his mother…
St. Aidan and the Legacy of Lindisfarne
Aidan and his companions knew the value, in imitation of Christ, of recharging our physical and spiritual batteries. It goes against the world’s mindset but is vital to our existence in Christ.
