In Scotland, the primary expression of the church—or kirk in the Scottish tongue—is the Church of Scotland, which has long been the epitome (and, in many ways, the founder) of the Presbyterian tradition. And yet, an episcopally-governed, liturgical church has long paralleled the state church with its own unique flavor of the Anglican tradition. This…
A Brief History of Anglicanism, Part 2
With more than fifteen hundred years of rich history, this ancient tradition still has the power to speak to our contemporary world with a faith that is relevant for a new generation.
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…
Anglican Ash Wednesday: Catholic or Reformed?
I want to take you back to the year 1548. It is the year before the very first Book of Common Prayer, and it is Ash Wednesday, the first day of Lent. For many centuries, you and your family came into the church the day before to have your confession heard. On this day, come to receive ashes…
Edward Pusey and the Oxford Movement
Edward Bouverie Pusey (1800-1882) was simultaneously one of the most erudite and most polarizing figures in the Church of England in the nineteenth century. Along with John Henry Newman, Pusey was one of the most important leaders of the Oxford Movement1, a catholicizing reform movement in the Church of England committed to baptismal regeneration, Christ’s…
