The Growth of the Anglican Church in North America The Rev. Dr. David Goodhew February 15, 2019 By David Goodhew and Jeremy Bonner Substantial swathes of the Anglican Communion were unaware of the birth of the Anglican Church in North America (ACNA) in 2009 and remain unaware of it to this day. Others may be conscious of ACNA’s existence but, depending on which side of the various theological divides they fall, will question (or exaggerate) its size and significance. This article is an attempt to clarify the nature of ACNA on its 10th birthday. ACNA is reporting growth, but is that growth real? Originating primarily as an exodus of parishes and dioceses unhappy at the theological stance of the Episcopal Church (TEC), does ACNA remain primarily a reaction to TEC, or is it changing into something else as the break from TEC recedes into the past? Put briefly, the data shows that ACNA has been growing and that it has significant reach beyond the usual Anglican enclaves in North America, but it has vulnerabilities, too. Understanding ACNA matters. It matters greatly both for Anglicans in the United States and, as similar divisions spread to other areas, for the Anglican Communion more widely. Click here for the rest of the article: https://livingchurch.org/covenant/2019/02/15/the-growth-of-the-anglican-church-in-north-america/
Yes, thank you for sharing. Reading comments various places, I have seen questions about the ages of people joining ACNA, and that perhaps it has skewed older. Speaking only from my own anecdotes, I have seen a rush of young people. When I attended the Anglican conference in September, and when I interact with many people online, I find over and over, lots of young people. Growing families. The type of situation that says there is a FUTURE. In fact fully 25% of the attenders/members of my own church are CHILDREN. It's a young group. My sister and her family attend Christ Church Plano, which is also a very diverse group with lots of people young and old. (Not to mention just being danged HUGE. On the other hand, Father Paul is wonderful to listen to, in my opinion. I subscribe to the CCP podcast.) Anecdotal evidence is not research, but, there you have it.
Its fascinating that right now the average Sunday attendance for the Episcopal Church is 6.4x the average Sunday attendance for ACNA. At this rate (assuming that TEC's rate of decline remains the same and that ACNA's rate of growth halves, both of which are charitable to TEC) in 20 years, TEC will only have an average Sunday attendance that is 3x of ACNA. Given the demographic collapse in TEC, my guess is this will be even more stark, possibly 2:1 or even 1:1.