New Collaboration with Earth & Altar
We are excited to announce a new collaboration with Earth & Altar magazine to feature the writings of members of Anglican religious orders.
A Silent Rebellion, which will be available on Earth & Altar’s website, draws its title from the work of Church of England priest and theologian A. M. Allchin, who writes that the religious communities emerging in the nineteenth century “made plain the silent rebellion that is at the heart of the vocation of every Christian in baptism.”
“Monks and nuns, brothers and sisters across two millennia have traditionally stood at the margins of culture and society,” notes Br. Lain Wilson, SSJE’s communications brother, “but their witness has been to something profoundly central and fundamental: the loving Christ who dwells in each of us, drawing us forth to realize who and whose we are, and sustaining us in the ministry to which each of us is called. We are excited to bring this witness to new audiences, and can think of no better partner for this collaboration than our friends and colleagues at Earth & Altar.”
Earth & Altar sees this new partnership as not only mutually beneficial for the two organizations, but for the church as a whole. “Our mission from the beginning has been to amplify the church’s softer and silenced voices, particularly those who have not been heard because of race, sexual orientation, gender identity, geography, or youth,” says Chris Corbin, Earth & Altar’s editor-in-chief. “As an even wider circle of people in the church hear from those with a diversity of baptismal vocations, we hope the Spirit can use this not only to raise people’s awareness of religious communities but also to open people to forms of life they previously had not known about or considered. The church as a whole is strengthened when the whole diversity of baptismal callings is elevated and strengthened.”
Br. Keith Nelson, SSJE’s Superior, writes in the series’ inaugural essay: “The profound hope animating this new segment of Earth & Altar . . . is none other than the promise of Jesus Christ and the refrain of this reflection: Those who lose their life for my sake will find it. The reflections, articles, and essays you will encounter here will all, in some way, express facets of the vowed life as it is lived in traditional religious orders of the Episcopal Church.”
Upcoming articles speak to the challenges of community living, the discipline of kindness, the freedom found in limitations, and the experience of commitment. “Although we are coming from a particular, and some might even say niche, perspective,” Wilson says, “the topics themselves are universal, and we hope that all readers might find not only interest but also encouragement and inspiration for navigating the challenges they face, and for following Jesus faithfully in their own lives.”
New contributions will be published biweekly at Earth & Altar. We hope you will join us!