Editor’s note: As with all of our “Opinion” pieces, the following guest post does not represent an official position of Anglican Compass. With the Thirty-Nine Articles of Religion, Anglican Compass believes that “the Baptism of young Children is in any wise to be retained. in the Church, as most agreeable with the institution of Christ” (Article 27, “On […]
Have you wondered how you can continue to grow in your knowledge of God during this difficult time? Do you want to learn more about the essentials of the Christian faith, but don’t know where to begin? If so, I would like to invite you to listen to the “This We Believe” podcast, which answers these questions by […]
I have a unique position in the church today. I used to be a Rector of a large church in North Dallas. (Christ Church in Plano, TX). But I am no longer a Rector. Instead, I have the good fortune to hang out, teach, coach, and encourage a lot of Rectors. During this challenging year, most of this has been […]
The following is an interview with Anglican Compass author Duane Miller about his new book, I Will Give Them an Everlasting Name: Pastoral Care for Christ’s Converts from Islam.
Anglican churches, schools, […]
Anglicanism taught me that the Church exists.
I once thought that everyone had their own relationship with Jesus and they got together on Sundays to sing and talk about it. I know now that the Church is a ‘she’ not an ‘it,’ a great tradition that spans time and space, and a real spiritual home […]
You’ve probably heard of the Alpha Course. Alpha is a place for seeking, curious, or burned-out people to ask questions and explore the basics of the Christian faith without judgment or expectation to believe. Some people use it to introduce people to the Christian faith, others as […]
As one who thinks and writes a lot about catechesis, I was delighted to read Zachary Jones’ recent article, “Catechesis as a Weapon against Racism.” In it, Jones makes the salient but easily neglected point that racism is a cosmic as well as terrestrial force, a battle over what it means to be human as well as […]
Question: How do you become a Christian?
(Common) Answer: “Say ‘yes’ to Jesus.”
Is this good enough?
I would suggest it isn’t. Is this any different than saying “yes” to a new pair of shoes or the latest Instagram trend? This is not a robust understanding of conversion […]
I have been in writing ministry for over twenty years. I hate to admit it, but I still need a good editor!
The pastors and laypeople who write for us are volunteers. They are busy in their ministry, and yet they take the time to share insights, explanations, and inspirations with us all. Our managing […]
As someone who grew up evangelical Protestant, I always viewed the doctrinal distinctives of the Church of Rome with suspicion. To me, one of the stranger elements of Roman piety and practice was devotion to the Virgin Mary. I always believed Mary was important and special. She miraculously conceived our Lord, after all! However, because of Roman dogmas, […]
On October 31, Protestant churches celebrate Reformation Day, remembering the famous nailing of the 95 theses by Martin Luther to the Wittenburg door in 1517.
Why celebrate this over 500 years later? Well, a Latin phrase that emerged from the Protestant movement is semper reformanda: the Church should be “always reforming.”
When […]
When it comes to learning the essentials of the Christian faith, there’s no need to reinvent the wheel (in fact, please don’t!).
Christians have covered the basics in a process of instruction and learning called “catechesis” for centuries. And documents used for this purposed (called “catechisms”) have frequently focused on the Apostles’ Creed, the […]
One of the first things I knew about my husband was that he had been accepted to two different seminaries. The following conversation was all about how he had spent the past year trying to discern what God was calling him to do. At the time, he thought God was calling him to become a counselor; I wouldn’t […]
Growing up in the Church, Scripture passages that tell me to be perfect, mature, or grow up in Christ gave me both a pit in my stomach and a desire for maturity. I wanted to be mature, but it always felt like an impossible feat. Have you felt that? It kind of feels like the Christian equivalent of […]
What does it mean to have a ‘personal relationship’ with Jesus Christ? One thing it does not mean is ‘customized’. In this excerpt from When the Lord is My Shepherd: Finding Hope in a Hard Time, we go deeper into the pastoral connections that we are promised.
Believing that the Lord is a shepherd is a pastoral […]
Ours is an age of happy-clappy religion in which everyone thinks that true spirituality is marked by Cheshire grins and saccharine clichés. But this isn’t Christianity, it’s a caricature. It is little more than Stoicism with a toothy facade painted onto it.
Christianity grew from the fertile soil of Judaism, with its rich tradition of […]
The following is an excerpt from When the Lord is My Shepherd: Finding Hope in a Hard Time by David Roseberry.
Without any apology or explanation, David says that the Lord is a Shepherd to him. And not just like—God is a Shepherd. David, above anyone else, would know what a shepherd does. David was a shepherd himself. […]
I remember it as clear as yesterday. Ahmet had left Islam and decided to follow Jesus. In the Middle Eastern country where I served, this was not illegal, but it also wasn’t easy. After a few months of walking with Jesus, Ahmet approached me and said, “Chris, now that I’ve become a Christian, tell me what our religious […]
If you’re interested in learning more about the Anglican tradition, Simply Anglican is the clear and charitable guide you’ve been waiting for. Winfield Bevins provides an accessible overview of Anglican history, theology, and […]
The following post is an excerpt (chapter 3) of When the Lord is My Shepherd: Finding Hope in a Hard Time.
I am happy to share one of the 23 daily readings on the 23rd Psalm that I wrote in the early days of the Pandemic. We were all locked down with plenty of time on our hands. […]
“With what shall I come before the Lord, and bow myself before God on high? Shall I come before him with burnt offerings, with calves a year old? …. He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk […]
“When she was in the kitchen, she would hum—not a steady tone, but entire melodies. Her humming was never soft and intimate, but loud and firm, as if she were humming for an audience. As a small child, if I knew the song she was humming, sometimes I would hum along with her, and my body would […]
Early in January of 2020, I began writing a series of devotional readings for an annual program for the Anglican Church in North America. I had a great theme and a catchy working title, but this book is not that.
Why?
Because two weeks after I started outlining the work, I ran into a wall.
COVID-19. The Coronavirus. The Pandemic.
It changed everything. Oh, […]
A letter arrived at our house just before Christmas. It was addressed to our then 4-year-old daughter, Anne Tyler; the envelope had two, silly stickers on the back. The letter itself was a single sheet, simply covered with stickers. It read, “You made a card for me, now I have made a card for you.” It was signed, Jim Packer.
J.I. […]
