Anglicanism and the Episcopal Church class

"No man is an island, Entire of itself.

Every man is a piece of the continent, A part of the main."

John Donne, poet and Anglican priest (1572-1631)

Christ Church in Ontario, California, is a parish of the Episcopal Church, a member of the Anglican Communion. The Episcopal Church became independent from the Church of England following the American Revolution of the 18th century. This means that our understanding of Scripture and our parish structure are deeply rooted in the historical tradition of Anglicanism. Our parish, in particular, has been influenced since its inception more than one hundred years ago by the catholic revival within Anglicanism, also known as the Anglo-Catholic movement. While we do not intend to make a fetish either of our Anglicanism or our Anglo-catholicism, these traditions do inform our way of being with each other, i.e. the way we "do church" together.

The Anglicanism and the Episcopal Church class, aka the Inquirers Class, is designed to address the fundamental aspects which distinguish the Anglican and the Anglo-Catholic traditions from other ways of being Christians. Among the topics addressed: the place of the Bible in the life of believers, the ordained and non-ordained ministries, the structure and the meaning of liturgy, the role of sacraments, ecumenism, social activism, and ethics.

The class is convened on a need-basis and lasts five meetings during the Fall, or the Winter, or the Spring seasons. Members and non-members of the parish are welcome to this class, which is tailored not only to the interest of those who seek to be received officially in the Episcopal Church, but also to those who are simply curious and eager to learn, and to those life-long Episcopalians who would like to attend a refresher course.


Next class: TBA



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The frontispiece of the main work by Richard Hooker (1554-1600), which is considered the principal source for the specifics of Anglican theology
The first group of Anglican women bishops participating to the world-wide Lambeth conference for Anglican bishops in 1998.
Pope Francis receives a benediction from Justin Welby, archbishop of Canterbury (2016). The Archbishop of Canterbury is an "instrument of unity" of the Anglican Communion and primate of the Church of England.
The Most Rev. Michael Curry, presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church, preaching at the "Royal Wedding" (2018)