Anglican Ascetic

In the audio provided, both lessons are read, and then followed by a homily by yours truly. A Lesson from the Gospel According to S. Luke, 5.1 While the crowd was pressing in on Jesus to hear the word of God, Jesus was standing by the lake of Gennesaret, and he saw two boats by the lake, but the fishermen had gone out of them and were washing their nets. Getting into one of the boats, which was Si...

Saint Luke tells us that after Saint Peter saw the great catch of fish, he fell down at the knees of Jesus. And in falling down, Peter said, “Depart from me, for I am a sinful man.” Luke tells us that Peter was astonished. And who, brothers and sisters, would not be astonished? Peter was an experienced fisherman, surrounded by many such fishermen. They know the waters; they know when it is time to...

O God, the protector of all that trust in Thee, without Whom nothing is strong, nothing is holy: Increase and multiply upon us Thy mercy; that, Thou being our ruler and guide, we may so pass through things temporal, that we finally lose not the things eternal: Grant this, O heavenly Father, for our Lord Jesus Christ’s sake, Who liveth and reigneth with Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, ever on...

“Judge not, and you will not be judged.” Our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ teaches this to us. In teaching this, Christ gives us a commandment about life in eucharistic community—how to live in community—a community the nature of which is people in prayer and celebrating the Eucharist: that we are not to judge. While it may not seem the case, in fact this is a teaching shrouded in the mystery of G...

I am pleased to report that the 2026 Breck Conference on Martin Thornton was a great success! Attendance was high—the most attendees of any Breck Conference to date. The pre-conference, which I co-led, delved deeply into aspects of Martin Thornton’s life and pastoral and ascetical writing. The conference had superb presentations by the speakers, focusing on matters pertaining to four Thornton text...

On these Sundays after Trinity, I will be reflecting on the Eucharist. We are eucharistic people, we are part of the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church because the Eucharist is necessary to our life in Christ; because the Eucharist is never considered optional, but required of all Christians to receive who are able to do so. Over the Sundays after Trinity I will be looking at the Eucharist f...

This is unedited audio of my parish’s Saturday morning class in which we study Scripture with the help of the Church Fathers. This class is currently reading On the Lord’s Prayer by S. Cyprian of Carthage. In this episode, we look at chapters 15. I take a close-reading approach to the text, and I read aloud every word of the text. It is found in this volume which I suggest you purchase if you want...

Having worshipped through Pentecost, completed on its Octave Day, Trinity Sunday, we have now finished the portion of the liturgical year which celebrates of the events in the life of Our Lord Jesus Christ that make up the greater part of the Creeds: the Apostles’ Creed and the Nicene Creed: these the Liturgy has lived into. For what the Liturgy starting in particularly in Advent sets before us in...

O God, Who in a wonderful Sacrament hast left unto us a memorial of Thy Passion: Grant us, we beseech Thee, so to venerate the sacred mysteries of Thy Body and Blood, that we may ever perceive within ourselves the fruit of Thy redemption. Who livest and reignest with the Father and the Holy Ghost, ever, one God, world without end. Amen. Get full access to Anglican Ascetic Podcast at anglicanasceti...

This is unedited audio of my parish’s Saturday morning class in which we study Scripture with the help of the Church Fathers. This class is currently reading On the Lord’s Prayer by S. Cyprian of Carthage. In this episode, we look at chapters 13-14. I take a close-reading approach to the text, and I read aloud every word of the text. It is found in this volume which I suggest you purchase if you w...

We beseech Thee, O Lord, to grant unto us Thy servants the gift of Thy heavenly grace: that as the Child-bearing of the Blessed Virgin was unto us the beginning of salvation, so the devout observance of her Visitation may avail for the increasing of our peace; through Jesus Christ Thy Son, our Lord, Who liveth and reigneth with Thee and the Holy Ghost, one God, for ever and ever. Amen. Get full ac...

Our Lord Jesus speaks cryptically. And He speaks cryptically to Nicodemus today, saying, “Unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.” Paul said that the Kingdom of God is within us, so unless someone is born again, one cannot see truly within, it seems. But not having that teaching, Nicodemus is confused by this teaching. I think we would have to admit that all of the disciples, be...

This is unedited audio of my parish’s Saturday morning class in which we study Scripture with the help of the Church Fathers. This class is currently reading On the Lord’s Prayer by S. Cyprian of Carthage. In this episode, we look at chapters 10-12. I take a close-reading approach to the text, and I read aloud every word of the text. It is found in this volume which I suggest you purchase if you w...

Almighty and everliving God, Who through the Book of Common Prayer hath restored the language of the people in the prayers of Thy Church: Make us always thankful for this heritage; and help us so to pray in the Spirit and with understanding, that we may worthily magnify Thy holy Name; through Jesus Christ our Lord, Who liveth and reigneth with Thee and the Holy Ghost, one God, for ever and ever. A...

O God, Who by the learning of blessed Bede, Thy Confessor and Doctor, hast made Thy Church illustrious: mercifully grant unto Thy servants, that we may ever be illuminated by his wisdom and aided by his merits; through Jesus Christ Thy Son our Lord, Who liveth and reigneth with Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, one God, world without end. Amen. Get full access to Anglican Ascetic Podcast at an...

The actions of the Holy Spirit are always powerful when He is acting. He is always dwelling in the baptized, but His power may or may not be working. But when He manifests His power, things explode: and so the womb of the Upper Room went boom. To those that believe in Christ, to those who abide in Him, to those who keep His commandments, Jesus said “The Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my...

Father Fraser graced me with the opportunity to preach in this pulpit many times as a seminarian, and I think once or twice as a Deacon before we left for my first parish, downstate in Pekin and Morton. The first homily was for the Baptism of Christ by the hand of S. John the Baptist, aka the Theophany. I believe that morning I said everything that could possibly be said about the momentous event....

Our liturgical celebration today is again a “station liturgy”—the station of the Sunday after the Ascension of Jesus, that is, day three of nine that the 120 apostles were in the Upper Room before Pentecost, we are drawn into the Upper Room, as if were are among the 120 apostles worshiping, as Saint Luke says at the end of his Gospel account, “with great joy, continually in the temple praising and...

Grant, we beseech Thee, Almighty God, that since we do believe Thy only begotten Son our Lord Jesus Christ to have ascended into the heavens; so we may also in heart and mind thither ascend, and with Him continually dwell, Who liveth and reigneth with Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, one God, world without end. Amen. Get full access to Anglican Ascetic Podcast at anglicanascetic.akensideinsti...

This is unedited audio of my Saturday parish class in which we study Scripture with the help of the Church Fathers. This class is reading On the Lord’s Prayer by S. Cyprian of Carthage. I take a close-reading approach to this kind of study, and I read aloud every word of the text. It is found in this volume which I suggest you purchase if you want to follow along in the most effective way. In this...

O Lord, from Whom all good things do come: Grant to us Thy humble servants, that by Thy holy inspiration we may think those things that be good, and by Thy merciful guiding may perform the same; through Jesus Christ Thy Son our Lord, Who liveth and reigneth with Thee and the Holy Ghost, ever one God, world without end. Amen. MARK 11:22-26 Jesus answered them, “Have faith in God. Truly, I say to yo...

Today concludes this sermon series reflecting on Christ’s taking of a Body, that is His “incarnation”: a word that means “becoming bodily.” This past week, this Thursday Scripture Study class completed its study of the First Book of Moses, commonly called Genesis. It was an exhilarating study for many reasons, and the study of this single book of Scripture took us fifteen months. Yes, we proceeded...

I began last Sunday a sermon series on the Incarnation of Christ, which I continue today and will conclude next Sunday. It is a deep dive into the fact, revealed in Genesis 1.27, that humanity is made in the image of Christ, Who Himself is the image of the invisible God, as Saint Paul teaches (Col 1.15); knowing as well that, as Paul taught in Hebrews 13.8, that “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday...

I am going to begin a two sermon series today reflecting on the fact that we are made in the image and according to the likeness of God. It such a rich and profound topic. Firstly I want to bring to our mind one of the characteristics of Jesus Christ that we must always remember is taught to the Church by Saint Paul in his epistle to the Hebrews. It comes in the thirteenth chapter, verse 8: “Jesus...

Our Lord Jesus speaks to us today. He says, “I am the good shepherd.” And it is a message that is particularly suited to Eastertide, and our celebration of Christ’s resurrection; that He has trampled down death by death, and upon those in the tomb, bestowing life. “I am the good shepherd,” He says. This is truly the good news of our religion: that Jesus is our Good Shepherd: that we can know Him,...