Anglican Sanctifiication The Work We Were Given To Do

To theologians sanctification is the process of becoming holy. In the Orthodox Church it is the process of deification. To those psychologists who also understand the fallen nature of humans, it would be termed the process of becoming whole. Perhaps it is just as well to call it spiritual development. The Methodists have their methods and the Roman Catholics have The Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius.

I am an Anglican who considers Anglican Christianity to be a form of reformed Catholicism. Anglican roots go back to the church fathers and the undivided church before Canterbury. Throughout the history of the church sanctification is that passage between saving relationships with her head Jesus the Christ and an earthly death.

Those who heed Christ’s call to follow him as both savior and Lord are transformed from glory to glory (2 Corinthians 3:18). There are numerous variables that can be applied to spiritual development for Anglicans. I have attempted to speak of my own spiritual journey which is an eclectic combination of methods within Anglicanism. Those include immersion in Holy Scripture, being a part of Christ’s body the church, regular participation in worship, liturgy, prayer and fasting, performing good works for Christ in others and listening to God the Holy Spirit. Exercise, solitude, journaling, family, and friends are something that balances out the Benedictine active and contemplative life.

Finally, some may ask, “But what about the Book Of Common Prayer?" While Holy Scripture is preeminent, certainly the Prayer Book is a central feature and organizing force within Anglican Christian life. I have included portions of the Prayerbook in a number of the elements of this book and want to avoid the temptation to make this an Anglican Catechesis.

As someone who has been a seeker of God most of his seasoned life, I have found a home, a niche.  For those of you who remain thirsty for the living water of Jesus Christ, I believe all of God you seek in this life may be found in the traditional church. Although this has been the age of the non-denominational mega church for Protestants, I believe the traditional churches; Orthodox, Anglican and Roman Catholic provide a deeper seedbed for spiritual growth and pray that someday they would again be the undivided church of Jesus Christ. [The book is currently at the publisher for file review]