A phone message from the Diocese of Yukon, answering the question “Where is your church now, and where do you think the Anglican Church of Canada should be in 2019?

I have been watching, reading and reflecting on most of the responses to this all important question, and have noticed many similar hopes for our future.  The desire for more youth, the hope for unity, and the greater acceptance of all people, are all tops on many lists.  There are others but it’s these social agendas which are so prevalent in many ‘visions’, that I wish to address.

As a church what is our mission?  Are we fighting to end the horrors of AIDS?  Are we trying to looking to erase atrocities happening to women in other countries?  Are we hoping to be inclusive of everyone and anyone’s behaviours as long as they are ‘good’ people?  Or is it having lots of potlucks, fundraisers, soup kitchens, or saving the planet?  We in the Anglican Church of Canada have lost focus!  Don’t get me wrong, all these missions are well intentioned and are worthy causes for any Christian…however, where is the Bible…where is Jesus Christ?

The social ills of society, the newest ’cause’, or latest segregation, is always just around the corner; Jesus himself said, “The poor you will always have with you, but you will not always have me.” And it’s not just the poor; all these other concerns will always be there also.  Until Jesus comes again, they will be with us.  Why??  Because we are sinful beings, human brokenness will continue to cause heartache and injustice somewhere.  With our focus increasingly on the poor (and other concerns), we are LOSING JESUS!!

The reality the Anglican Church of Canada is facing is that more of society is finding their spiritual needs met in these ‘good work’ causes.  That means less and less are finding their spiritual needs met by Jesus Christ.  We are becoming merely a social club with a social agenda (or as I previously said multiple agendas).  And I hate to say it, there is already a multitude of organizations with social agendas doing the same thing; and the church is becoming simply one in a crowd.

What makes us unique is what we need to focus on.  Jesus Christ is what makes us unique!  But where is He?  Sure we remember Jesus in our Sunday worship services, but where is Jesus in our communities?  Heaven forbid we mention God or worse, Jesus, outside our church buildings…it’s not politically correct, we may offend somebody!

My vision for the future of the Anglican Church is one where we are not afraid to speak out about being a Christian, where we are not anxious about living out our faith.  My vision is being a church that understands and believes in Biblical truth, and one that teaches others everywhere that same truth.  My vision is being a church who knows it is by the death and resurrection of Jesus that we are saved, not by good works; it is only this knowledge of our salvation, which compels us to doing good works.

My vision is certainly NOT intended to say we forget the concerns of society, but instead to remember we need to address good works proudly in the name of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Saviour.  I believe if we do this, just like the early Christians who were willing to be persecuted for their faith, people will see what makes us unique is what makes us worth following!

In short, any club can feed and cloth the poor, but a Christian church does the same in the name of Jesus Christ.  Is our future as a club or a church?

The Rev. David Pritchard, from Whitehorse, Yukon, and a member of the Board of Directors of the Primate’s World Relief and Development Fund responds to the question: Where is your church now, and where do you want the Anglican Church of Canada to be in 2019?