Review: Deep Anglicanism by Gerald McDermott
Gerald McDermott, Deep Anglicanism: A Brief Guide. Nashotah House, 2024. 400 pp.
An Accessible Guide with Added Depth
One takes notice when a new introduction to the Anglican Tradition appears, especially when written by a noted theologian within the tradition. Such is the case with Gerald McDermott’s Deep Anglicanism: A Brief Guide. McDermott has proven himself an authority on our tradition time and time again, as well as an accessible and eloquent writer. For that very reason, heโs written many articles for Anglican Compass over the years. If anyone could add anything to the genre of Anglican introductions in recent years, it would be him.
A Richly Anglican Introduction
One of the most striking features of McDermottโs volume is its immense readability. Despite being a primarily theological text, Deep Anglicanism captivates the reader’s attention, making it a page-turner in the truest sense. It also has a devotional quality in its writing, being as much food for the heart as the mind. These aspects of the book will pique and keep the interest of anyone wishing to learn more about our Anglican tradition.
The other striking feature is its depth, which is fitting considering the title. McDermott presents not just the what and how but also the why. Why is it such a big deal that Anglican clergy are ordained by bishops in Apostolic Succession back to the apostles? McDermott has a well-articulated, holistic answer. McDermott richly connects the tradition not just to scripture (which he does abundantly), nor to the Reformation, but to the ancient Church. And while, because there is a great expanse of theological opinion amongst Anglicans even on the nuances of things we have in common (Is Anglicanism Protestant? Catholic? Both? Neither?), and one will undoubtedly disagree with McDermott somewhere, the whole comes across as a useful, orthodox introductory text without reservation.
This mixture of clarity and accessible depth is everything we look for here at Anglican Compass. In many ways, I wish this book were under our label. It makes a perfect โ102โ-level follow-up to our entry-level, โ101โ-level book, Simply Anglican, written by Winfield Bevins.
Editorial Shortcomings
The workโs primary shortcomings stem from its need for more aggressive editing. This issue is twofold.
The first comes from a number of typos and punctuation issues, many of which were remedied in the second edition. A remaining issue is the double-spacing after periods, which is visually jarring at first. This has never been a norm in print publishing and only found its way into any use with the advent of typewriters and fixed-width type. Due to today’s use of variable-width digital type, modern academic and publishing style guides discourage double-spacing. Combined with the publisherโs more standard choice to justify the text block, it creates visual gaps that interrupt the reading flow.
The second, more notable editorial issue is that some of the content needs tightening. McDermott goes on several theological excursions that, while interesting, feel tangential in a concise introduction to the Anglican tradition. He tries too hard to cover all the possible bases. These include a few cases where McDermottโs view lies more on the edge of the Anglican theological mainstream, such as his defense of a form of purgation in the intermediary state. While his view here should be noted when relevant, expounding on it feels better left to other places and times than the context of this โbrief guide.โ
Conclusion
Deep Anglicanism is a truly helpful volume that is a natural follow-up to one of the entry-level overviews of the Anglican traditions. When someone wants to โdig a little deeperโ regarding not just what we believe but why, this is the first book I will recommend. Critiques aside, McDermott has presented an accessible and theologically robust guide that will enrich anyoneโs walk in the Anglican way.