Anglican Contributions to Global Christianity

Here is an abbreviated response from my question to Anglican Archbishop Henry Orombi from Uganda, ""What would you say is the greatest strength that the Anglican Church can contribute to the world of Christianity?"


1. Hierarchy

The structure of the Anglican church is similar to the better-known Catholic system, with priests, bishops and archbishops, yet there is no one head, like the pope. Instead the Archbishop of Canterbury acts as a "first among equals." This system allows the church to keep itself in check within orthodox Christianity by keeping everyone accountable to someone else.

One could contrast this hierarchical system to a non-denominational church which "picks and chooses" its theological points while members could be completely unaware of a pastor's heretical views that are being passed onto the congregation.

On the other hand, it also has the potential to create problems. For instance, two churches in the Chicago area, both Anglican, are under two different bishops (Uganda and Rwanda). Because of this, they cannot combine to be one church. Silly? Yes. Against Christian beliefs? Probably.


So, while hierarchy and structure has its theological benefits, it has its practical downfalls.


2. Liturgy

The liturgy of the church offers structure and a balance of the Word and Sacrament, of Proclamation and Feast. Within the form of the liturgy there is opportunity to hear a message of God, and to respond to that message. I'm a fan.

Another benefit of Anglican liturgy is that there is room for flexibility in worship. There is an outline for the service, but it can be performed in whatever way suits the personality of the congregation, be it charismatic, contemplative or anywhere in between.

I think the greatest strengths of liturgy are (1) anyone from any Anglican church can follow along because of the familiarity, and (2) participation is a necessity, and I'm a hands-down proponent of participation in church.

3. Global Nature

The Anglican church is connected all over the world. Because they have their heirarchy, they are necessarily united with Anglicans across the world. What I really like about this is that the church, instead of going to a random place and doing a short-term mission, it can connect with another church in order to further a project that will be carried on. Sweet.

4. Openness

Finally, openness. The Archbishop commented on Anglicans not necessarily adhering to all the same specifics about the faith in minutia, but all adhere to the same broad guidelines of Christian orthodoxy. This makes it a much more inclusive denomination than others.


After the event, I had 11 people, including the Archbishop himself, ask if I was Anglican yet. I'm not, and I don't think I will be. But I think they have a lot to offer global Christianity.