laudable Practice

On 28th June this year, as every year, the very fine St. Michael's Church, Charleston , South Carolina, observed ' Carolina Day ', recalling the Battle of Sullivan's Island - fought on the same date in 1776 - which marked the first victory for the forces of the Continental Congress.  The service was Morning Prayer from the BCP 1662, the liturgy which would have been in use in St. Michael's throughout the Revolutionary War - with, of course, the prayers for the monarch removed (as they would have been in this church in 1776, more of which below). The collect of Independence Day was used, giving thanks for the liberty secured by the Revolution: O Lord God Almighty, in whose Name the founders of this country won liberty for themselves and for us, and lit the torch of freedom for nations then unborn:  Grant, we beseech thee, that we and all the people of this land may have grace to maintain these liberties in righteousness and peace; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who ...

The recent announcement of three new ecclesiastical patrons for the Prayer Book Society was a moment of quiet joy and hope amidst, let's be honest, the decidedly grim landscape of North Atlantic Anglicanism. That the three bishops represent various streams of Anglican thought and spirituality is itself a sign of how - amidst much division - the Book of Common Prayer can provide nourishing common ground for different varieties of Anglicans. This, of course, has been part of the historical vocation of the BCP, a shared, common order of prayer, sacrament, and blessing for differing, indeed, even rival, theological tendencies - Laudian and Reformed Conformist, Calvinist and Arminian, Latitudinarian Whig and High Church Tory, John Keble and J.C. Ryle. In addition to this aspect of the announcement, however, the various insights offered by the three bishops on the continued significance and place of the Prayer Book is particularly refreshing and encouraging. Bishop Jane Steen of Lynn po...

Theologian Andrew Davison is one of the very interesting scholarly voices in contemporary Anglicanism. With Alison Milbank, he wrote For the Parish (2010), a key text for those reasserting the centrality of the parish in the face of the insubstantial alternatives proposed by 'fresh expressions' thinking. Why Sacraments? (2013) offered an engaging sacramental theology, rooted in Catholic thought but also open to Reformed insights.  Astrobiology and Christian Doctrine: Exploring the Implications of Life in the Universe (2023) provides a serious Christian approach to the possibilities of life elsewhere in the universe. Participation in God: A Study in Christian Doctrine and Metaphysics (2020) provides one of the most significant contemporary explorations of a theme which has gained renewed attention in both Catholic and Protestant thought.  Davison is, then, a weighty theological voice. He also stands firmly within the Anglo-Catholic tradition. Both of these factors give...

The report that a bishop of the Church of England in South Africa (CESA) ordained seven deacons on 22nd May for ministry in the Church of England has, as we might expect, raised more than a few questions. Let me say at the outset, that I have considerable sympathy for CESA. (I use this title as I think REACH-SA is rather gauche.) In our parish we had a lovely gentleman, recently deceased, who was born in South Africa and had served in the Royal Navy in the Second World War. His father was a clergyman in CESA because, he told me, "the Church of the Province was far too popish". I also have no doubt that for quite a few Irish Anglicans, worship in CESA might seem rather more familiar than in CPSA. So, yes, I do sympathy for CESA and its situation vis-a-vis the Anglican Communion.  This sympathy, however, does not extend to refusing to ask questions about a serious breach of episcopal and canonical order by means of this intervention in the life of the Church of England. The e...