My Journey From Evangelical To Anglican

Some years back a Presbyterian pastor asked me to lunch. Over the course of the meal, he informed me he intended to retire soon and asked if I would be interested in becoming the new pastor of the church.  Seeing my reluctance as it was a Presbyterian church (and I was a non-Denominational Evangelical), he went on to share that he felt God was restoring new life into the older Catholic, Orthodox, and Mainline Protestant denominations and how I could be part of it.  I thanked the man for thinking highly enough of me to ask, but at the time, I couldn’t have disagreed with him more.  In my mind, those crusty, old denominations were relics of a bygone era and the future of Christianity would be networks of independent Evangelical / Charismatic style churches.

Oh, what that Steve then would think of this Steve now.

You see, this week I joined the Anglican Church.

And I’m hardly the first.  Over the last few years many of my Charismatic and / or Evangelical Christian friends, many of them pastors, have been drifting back to the older established denominations.  There are a number of reasons for this but I’ll just speak for myself and the winding journey that led me to my decision for confirmation in the Anglican Communion last Sunday.

For years now we’d been enjoying the Christmas Eve service at St. John’s Cathedral in Hong Kong as a family.  It had become one of our Yuletide traditions. We weren’t Anglican but if there was one thing the traditional denominations did right, it was Christmas.   Anyhow, about four years ago the Christmas message highlighted the plight of Syrian refugees.  I don’t know why but something hit me.  The concern for the tragedy unfolding and the real desire to engage in its relief. 

I made a decision to visit the church more often outside of Christmas. 

Over the course of the next couple years I attended more regularly and came to develop a love for the liturgy, the ritual, the contemplation, and the knowing that I would have the opportunity to take the Eucharist.  The Christian tradition I had grown up with had often regulated Holy Communion to a secondary position which would be done on occasion.  (Since my 2015 pilgrimage on the Camino de Santiago, I had developed a renewed love and appreciation for taking communion.). At St. John’s not only was the Eucharist at pretty much every service, but was the central reason for the gathering to begin with.

In addition, I appreciated the practicality of the messages linked to real life engagement with the world around. The sermons often focused specifically on Jesus’ teaching; such as how to love your enemy.  Too often in the churches I had attended, and admittedly had led myself, such central tenets of the Christian faith were overlooked in favor of sermon series such as 4 Steps to Hearing the Voice of God, 7 Ways to Discern God’s Will for Your Life, or How to Discover Your Spiritual Gifting.

Finally I decided to reach out and so made an appointment with one of the priests at the cathedral.  It was a fruitful conversation and he answered many of the questions I had. The priest then finished by explaining that the Anglican faith can be seen as resting on a stool comprised of three legs.

“The first,” he said, “is scripture, the Bible.  The second is church history and tradition, and the third is reason.”

“My Evangelical side, the faith I grew up with, would have a problem with that,” I responded, “They would have always said it was the Bible alone.  A one-legged stool.”

“Indeed. Sola Scriptura, the Bible alone.  But Anglicans believe the lens we view those scriptures through should include Church history and how certain issues have been addressed for centuries as well as through reason.  What is your thought on that?”

I pondered for a moment and answered, “You know, after 40 years of Sola Scriptura, my faith in Christ could stand to benefit with the addition of a bit more reason.”

I went on to join another 37 people over the next 3 months in taking a Faith Begins course and through the teaching and small group discussions I became even more confident that the Anglican understanding of theology, ecclesiology, and soteriology was the trajectory my walk with Christ was taking.

So last Sunday I attended my confirmation service.  What struck me as I sat there in the pew waiting to go forward was the emphasis was less about me individually, no sinner’s prayer or talk of my personal salvation, but rather on my being brought into a wider communion of Christ and joining with the many Believers who went before me and who would come after me.  Even when I went up to kneel before the Bishop for his blessing I did it side by side with another man.

We are in this together, no one does it alone.

The service ended by all 37 of us receiving a lit candle and proceeding out of the cathedral in a symbolic demonstration of bringing the Light of the Gospel to the world.

I’m grateful to my years as a Charismatic Evangelical Christian.  It gave me an understanding of the Bible, the importance of missional living, and a reliance on the Holy Spirit…
…but now I feel my journey with Christ and his Spirit leading me into the Anglican church.

Peace,

Steve