Nothing is more essential to the Christian life than what we make of Jesus’ cross. As we grow in Christ, we do not move on to other, higher planes; rather, our perception of the cross deepens. Our fellowship with our crucified Messiah grows more intimate. The cross grows ever more beautiful in our eyes the longer we linger.
The Rev. Justin Clemente serves as the Anglican Antiquities Editor and Ads and Rector Search Coordinator at Anglican Compass and as church planter for Lamb of God Anglican Church in the Diocese of the Southeast (REC). He was ordained as a deacon in December 2015 and as a priest in June 2016. Justin earned his B.A. in Biblical Studies at Trinity College of Florida and earned a Master of Worship Studies from the Robert E. Webber Institute for Worship Studies. He has a supportive, strong homemaking wife of twenty-two years and six beautiful children. They’re the best thing he’s ever done.
At the Cross: Reflections on the Stations of the Cross
A gift to the modern Church to help us recall, revive, and relive the love God has for us in Jesus’ journey to the cross. Archbishop Foley Beach In At the Cross, Justin Clemente offers reflections on the 14 Biblical Stations of the Cross, helping us encounter and relive God’s love through our Lord Jesus’…
Martin Luther and the Christian Life
Luther’s concern didn’t remain in the ivory tower of abstract theology. Indeed, in many ways, Luther’s aim was a robust recovery of the Christian life.
The Presentation of Our Lord: The Message of Candlemas
Why does the Church return to Jesus’ infancy every February 2 for the Feast of the Presentation, also called Candlemas? The reason is both chronological and theological.
Charles Simeon: A Life of Long Obedience
After a long and faithful life of preaching, teaching, and pastoring in Cambridge, England, Charles Simeon died on November 13, 1836. As he lay dying, a friend who visited him asked his thoughts as he lingered between time and eternity. Simeon responded only this: “I don’t think now; I am enjoying.” Though they sound more…
Singing the Faith with Mrs. Alexander
On the surface, there is precious little widely available on the life of Cecil Frances Alexander, a “Hymn-writer and Teacher of the Faith,” as she’s called in the 2019 Prayer Book. I was able to find precisely one biography available online, which, in turn, led me to a smaller one that her husband wrote after…
A Heart at Rest in Christ: Four Lessons from St. Augustine
Augustine is no tin saint… he’s like you and me. As we’ll see, he was a great sinner who was made a great saint by our great Savior.
Standing Firm in God’s Love with Athanasius
“Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love.” – 1 John 4:8 “God is love.” This is a sentiment that we all, well, love. We love to say it, and we love to believe it. But what does it mean? Love implies a relationship between two or more persons. And…
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…
C.S. Lewis and the Fullness of Joy
I cannot imagine a more fitting tribute to the work of Jesus in the life of author, professor, and apologist C.S. Lewis than Psalm 16:12: You shall show me the path of life; in your presence is the fullness of joy, and at your right hand there is pleasure for evermore. Most deeply, this psalm…
5 Takeaways from 7 Years of Bi-vocational Ministry
For you remember, brothers, our labor and toil: we worked night and day, that we might not be a burden to any of you, while we proclaimed to you the gospel of God. —1 Thessalonians 2:8-10 Let the elders who rule well be considered worthy of double honor, especially those who labor in preaching and…
The Long Way Home: Dwelling in the Anglican Way
My “Anglican story” is intimately tied to the desire to be firmly anchored in the tradition it represents and the calling to establish more churches in that same tradition. A few years ago, my wife and I joined the Anglican Church in North America through confirmation. This is intriguing because, at that time, I was…
