July 27, 2010
By the Rev. Canon David Roseberry
Anglican 1000 is an initiative of the Anglican Church in North America to raise up 1,000 new congregations and communities of faith across the United States and Canada. It began with an astonishing call from Archbishop Duncan at his installation. Now, it is firing on all cylinders!
Here are 5 of the most exciting things that are happening by God’s grace:
1) Churches are being planted! Tim Keller says, “The vigorous, continual planting of new congregations is the single most crucial strategy for 1) the numerical growth of the Body of Christ in any city, and 2) the continual corporate renewal and revival of the existing churches in a city.” It is so exciting to see Anglicans planting churches! Check out a few of the latest plants on our website.
2) Speaking of Tim Keller … He will be at the next Anglican 1000 Church Planting Summit! Save these dates: January 25-27, 2011. Our first gathering saw 300+ church planters and leaders come together to share, dream, and pray for this movement. The Summit is a chance for us all to come together in order to worship, to share with one another, and to be further equipped for this work. As Anglicanism is ‘reborn’ here, this summit will be the nursery for dozens and then hundreds of new starts. It is not to be missed!
3) Cooperation and Collaboration – While I was in my former denomination, I spend countless hours and plane rides trying to reform it and encourage new works and new growth. But today, it is so encouraging to be able to channel our energy in a different direction! Furthermore, in an era where splintering has been the norm, it is exciting to see Anglican 1000 be a platform for the dioceses of the ACNA, the constituent jurisdictions within the ACNA, and the Ministry Partners, such as the Anglican Mission in the Americas, to all work together for a common purpose.
4) New Leaders and Leadership Development – New leaders are stepping up to serve. Since the website went ‘live’ in February, I have heard from almost 150 people through our website who want to “Become a Planter.” We are averaging about one a day! Plus, I am seeing creative approaches to leadership development. The seminaries are tailoring new programs around church planting. Churches are starting residency programs and becoming church planting churches! It is happening.
5) Even Bishops are getting in on the act! - It is tremendous to look around and see purple shirts right there with us on the front lines of this new movement. We are seeing missionary bishops leading church planting efforts and even planting new congregations! For example, one of our Canadian bishops, Ron Ferris, is planting a new congregation and just shared with us what he has learned in the first year.
For more information, check us out at http://www.Anglican1000.org.