Dear Friends, I have been actively seeking help from God for the last year or so. Feel attracted to the Anglican Communion somehow. There are several Episcopal churches around here and I have visited during the day but have not made it to services yet. My wife would be supportive but maybe confused. Was baptized Roman Catholic, never confirmed. Attended a Church of Christ with my parents for some years, was never "believer-baptized". I feel rather overwhelmed by John 16:33 -- "These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world." To me this verse seems hugely important but I cannot say why. I tend to over-intellectualize things and am really trying not to do so here. I know I need help. But at the same time, I do not want to "decide" I am a "sincere Christian" without having any clear idea what that means. Would appreciate hearing from anyone! Peace, thank you all.
Does anyone know of any Anglican congregations in the New York area that they would recommend? Of course I can use google, but that doesn't really say much. There's TEC, of course, but I thought I would ask.
Greetings! When I was in the New York area I dropped in at the First REC church, St. Alban's: http://www.saintalbansnyc.org/ 50th street and 2nd? 3rd? avenue? A very good church, definitely not "TEC" in the modern sense, and very much a prayer-book parish. They are a bit small in numbers, but have a humongous Parish School attached which has hundreds of students, so there's a lot of vitality and potential for anyone looking to get involved.
That looks cool, Stalwart, thank you. I will be out of town this weekend but will try to go to their service the following Sunday.
Also. I do not mean to bring up any sensitive topics, but here we go. I admit that I would personally be considered pretty "liberal" in some ways by many on this forum, judging by the posts I have read. However. I feel like I am looking for a church that is neither wishy-washily "liberal" as a front for lack of faith OR angrily reactionary as a front for what is really racism, sexism, grossly abusive behavior by parents, etc. I have seen all these things in the past, and without naming names, I guess I should be upfront here that I at least think I am looking for an expression of faith that neither bends totally with worldly opinions nor whitewashes sinful behavior under a mask of social conservatism. (What I am thinking of in that last bit is angry men with no inner discipline beating their children bloody for no reason on a regular basis and then hearing at church every week that Scripture commands them to "break the child's will," with full knowledge by the pastor of what is going on and what he is helping to give a "Christian" face to.)
As part of a conservative Anglican movement myself I have never seen any Anglicans that fit your description. Honestly. You're probably thinking of other Christian traditions, because this way of being simply doesn't exist in today's Anglicanism (liberal or conservative). We strike a very generous balance, forbidding passing fashions to influence our doctrine, while implementing and incarnating the charity and amiability that is modeled to us by God. And while I can't speak for St. Alban's, and you will be able to see their school for yourself, what I think you will find is a good, proper 'old-fashioned school' which insists on teaching students timeless values, and does so in a gentle and amiable way. The rector is married and a family man himself, so there are no 'issues' to work out for those in leadership.
I certainly didn't mean I had sen those things among Anglicans. I did mean that I had seen them among other Christian traditions. Sorry for the lack of clarity there. I guess I said that only to make it clear what I was coming from and what I was hoping to avoid. I look forward to meeting the folks at St. Alban's. Thank you again for the reply!