There is an odd rubric at the back of the 2019 Book of Common Prayer: “The last three Sundays before Lent may be observed as Septuagesima, Sexagesima, and Quinquagesima.”[1] When I first encountered this direction, it confused me. Having grown up in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America and then transitioning to the Anglican Church…
For North Americans, an obvious feature of our culture is consumerism. This is equally true of the church world as it participates in the wider culture. Most everyone who attends a church has (or will) attend numerous other churches of various denominations over his or her lifetime, often solely based on personal choice or preference….
Alleluia, song of gladness, Voice of joy that cannot die; Alleluia is the anthem Ever dear to choirs on high; In the house of God abiding Thus they sing eternally. “Life is complicated,” the saying goes, yet our faith is simple. God holds us, Christ keeps us, and the Spirit fills us for all is…
Introduction: Is theological rigorism—insistence on conformity to the Prayer Book, and other traditionally “high church” distinctives—conducive to mission and evangelism? The assumption of many (even many high churchmen themselves) is that in order to do successful evangelism, many of their distinctives have to be downplayed. However, history tells another story. Even here in America, in…
An encouragement to the readers and authors of the North American Anglican Of the Authority of the Church. The Church hath power to decree Rites or Ceremonies, and authority in Controversies of Faith: and yet it is not lawful for the Church to ordain any thing that is contrary to God’s Word written, neither…
O Zion, open wide thy gates, Let symbols disappear; A priest and victim, both in one, The Truth Himself, is here. The Presentation of Christ in the Temple is an oft-neglected feast of the church, despite being a “red-letter day.” Although forgotten or overlooked by busy Anglicans and utterly foreign to non-liturgical Christians, this day…
Introduction There is some confusion today about the place of what can be called the ceremonial commandments of the Law of Moses, regarding circumcision, meats, sacrifices, ritual cleansing, and observance of the Sabbath. Today, millions of people who consider themselves Christians believe that some or all of the ceremonial laws must still be observed in…
Matthew Levering. Why I Am Roman Catholic. Downers Grove, IL: IVP Academic, 2024. 176 pp. $18 (paper). Reviewing a book by a friend and mentor, especially one whose work aligns with many of your own theological sympathies, is a complex task. It requires threading the needle between admiration and constructive critique, especially when the book…
Sing Unto the Lord: A Liturgical Hymnal. Anglican Music Publishing, 2023. 942 pp. $29.95 (hardcover). In my earlier article, I discussed the various criteria for picking an Anglican hymnal.[1] I did so as a starting point for writing a review of Sing Unto the Lord (SUL). As noted in the earlier article, this 2023 hymnal…
Hail to the Lord’s Anointed, great David’s greater Son! Hail, in the time appointed, his reign on earth begun! He comes to break oppression, to set the captive free; to take away transgression, and rule in equity. Oppressed by sin, captive to the devil, and confounded by the world’s deceits is how we are born…