Anglicanism

The name “Anglican” is traced back to the ancient Anglo-Saxon tribes of Europe.  The tribal name was spelled “Engles” or “Angles” and the tribe’s speech was the precursor to the English language.  Their island became known as England, and their Christians were known as Anglicans.  The name has nothing to do with “angels.” Today, Anglicanism refers to the Anglican Church as part of the global and historic church. For us, Anglicanism represents one of the finest expressions of Christian prayer and worship—a connection to believers past and present, a commitment to the authority of the Bible, and the call to proclaim the gospel and serve others within a variety of worship styles and ministries.

Christianity—the fullness of the good news about Jesus Christ— goes as far back as the 1st or 2nd century to what would eventually be called Anglia (England). Legend holds that Joseph of Arimathea was among the first of evangelists. The early Christian mission in the British Isles was an encounter with pagan tribes and societies.  But Anglican Christian communities continued to grow, and three bishops attended the Council of Arles in 314. After the Roman legions departed Britain in the early 5^th century, the native British Church developed in isolation from Rome, under the influence of Celtic missionaries centered around monasteries. In 597, Pope Gregory sent a monk named Augustine to England to establish a Roman Catholic mission, with authority to develop liturgy and other practices especially for the English-speaking people. Augustine was consecrated bishop and established his headquarters at Canterbury. Since then, there has been an unbroken succession of archbishops of Canterbury.

The sixteenth century was marked by calls for significant reform of the received tradition. In the English church, the Henry VIII “annulment” was one of several issues over which King Henry challenged the authority of Rome. The Book of Common Prayer, introduced by Archbishop of Canterbury Thomas Cranmer on the Day of Pentecost in 1549, revised traditional forms of worship to incorporate Protestant ideas. Upon Henry’s death, Cranmer continued changes that allied the Church of England with the Reformation. While Queen Mary, 1553-1558, sought to overturn these efforts and restore Roman Catholicism, when Elizabeth I assumed the throne in 1558, the Protestant Reformation in England triumphed and the Anglican church was founded.

The Anglican Communion grew out of the missionary expansion of the Church of England over the past 500 years. It consists of 38 self-governing provinces around the world, in 165 countries, forming the third largest body of Christians in the world, behind the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches.

Anglican worship outside Britain began in 1578 in Canada. The Anglican church in the American colonies became a separate ecclesial body along with the birth of the United States after the Revolutionary War. It was called The Episcopal Church in the United States. The word “episcopal” comes from the Greek word episcopos (overseer) that the New Testament uses for the office of a bishop who oversees a local church or group of churches. The word “church” comes from the Greek word ekklesia (assembly) that the New Testament uses for God’s people gathered into an assembled congregation. So, the term “Episcopal Church” means a church overseen by bishops, according to the New Testament model.

The Anglican Church in North America (ACNA), separate from The Episcopal Church, was founded in 2009, in response to the need for a Gospel-centered, orthodox Anglican Province in North America. It has grown to more than 1,000 congregations and 135,000 members in the United States, Canada and Mexico, and is in communion with Anglican churches globally.

The Anglican Church of the Holy Spirit, Tulsa is affiliated with the Diocese of the Living Word, under the leadership of Bishop Julian Dobbs and Assisting Bishop William Love. The Diocese of the Living Word is affiliated with the Anglican Church in North America (ACNA). The Rector (ordained priest and pastor of the parish) is The Venerable Carl Eyberg. Currently there are two Deacons, (ordained assistants) The Reverends Shane Taylor and Don deWolfe. The Vestry, the ruling board of the church, is made up of 10 members who serve for elected terms.

Anglicanism shapes the way we worship: it’s a tradition we love, one that anchors us and provides many tools that help our faith to develop. Anglican worship is centered around the active participation of hearing and responding to God’s Word through praise, prayer, confession, and fellowship with Jesus Christ in Holy Communion.

Thomas Cranmer, Archbishop of Canterbury, was instrumental in developing the theology, liturgy, prayer book and overall gospel-focus of the Anglican Church.  The Book of Common Prayer, described as ‘the Scriptures arranged for worship’, provides helpful resources for everything from personal daily devotions to large public gatherings of worship.  It includes prayers for every season of life.

Liturgy is the structural form that any church uses to facilitate worship. Anglican liturgy teaches us how to pray the scriptures, using the form first developed in The Book of Common Prayer 1549, and used with some local variation by millions of other Christians from all over the world and throughout time.

We follow The Liturgical Calendar, which divides the year into six major seasons: Advent and Christmas (Preparation and Christ’s Coming), Epiphany (Christ for the whole world), Lent (a time for reflection, repentance and grace in preparation for Easter), Easter (Christ’s resurrection from the dead), Pentecost (the coming of the Holy Spirit and the founding of Christ’s Church on earth) followed by “normal time” (growing together as the Body of Christ and His witnesses in the world).  

The founding theology of the Anglican Church can be found in the Thirty-Nine Articles of Religion, a document which is in line with the Protestant Reformation and with the ancient Creeds of the Church. The Creeds (Apostles, Nicene and Athanasian) and Thirty-Nine Articles are printed in the Book of Common Prayer, or the listed website links.