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Anglican-Orthodox Pilgrimage
The stories of several Anglican who have converted to the Holy Orthodox Faith in recent years. The stories are diverse, with some being former Anglican clergy who are now serving Orthodox priests.
- GenresChristianityBiography
71 pages, Paperback
First published September 1, 1993
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
June 20, 2021
A small collection of reflections about former Anglicans converting to Orthodox Christianity. Insightful for those discerning their own spiritual journey. It may also be a source of encouragement too since many of the contributors made their pilgrimage to Orthodoxy early on in the formation of the Western Rite of the Orthodox Church in America.
November 14, 2020
This compilation of personal stories sheds some light on what it is like to convert from Anglican Christianity to Orthodox Christianity. While each story emphasizes different aspects of the Orthodox Church that was found convincing, each come away with the same conclusion: it was the best decision they made. While issues of theology aren't covered deeply in this small book, it does a good job at providing interested members of the Anglican or Episcopal communion examples of former member journeys to Orthodoxy.
May 23, 2025
Decent collection of stories from Anglican to Orthodox American converts. I was hoping for more insight into specific differences between the two churches and why choose orthodoxy over catholicism, but overall it was fine. Very interesting that this was from 1993 when it felt like it could apply to things happening today!
August 13, 2007
ANGLICAN-ORTHODOX PILGRIMAGE is a collection of seven personal testimonials by ten people, some clergy and some lay, who left the Episcopal Church of the United States of America (ECUSA) and its Anglican tradition for the Orthodox Church. The book is quite short, a mere 67 pages. However, it is still interesting and, though published in 1993, quite pertinent to the current situation in ECUSA.
The first essay by Father William Olnhausen talks of the pain of leaving a comfortable position as an Episcopalian priest and the great joy of entering a more satisfying spiritual tradition. Olnhausen's essay is more on the virtues of Orthodoxy and what it has to offer than criticizing Anglicanism, which he is hesitant to do. Olnhausen ends with a note to those who decide to remain Anglicans, explaining that they still have his friendship and love. The following essay by Mary M. Stolzenbach "Taste and See" is the most insubstantial of the writings here, offering little theological argument, but charting her disappointment with modern Anglicanism.
The third essay is a letter from three lay Episcopalians explaining their decision. It is by far the most interesting essay for those considering abandoning ECUSA in these current times. The three laymen, Henry and Leaella Shirley, and William Draper, show specific examples of what they consider apostasy and how it has made Anglicanism cease to be a viable option. These include the unilateral decision to ordain women without the consent of other catholic "branches", the sanctioning of abortion, the condoning of sexual relations outside of marriage, the revision of liturgy and hymnody for the sake of "inclusiveness", and the failure to censure clergy when have denied points of the Nicene Creed. While this letter was written in 1988, it is still quite striking to contemporary conservative Anglicans. The letter reminds us that these current problems are nothing new, that they were already present with Bishop Pike in the 1960s and Bishop Spong in the 1980s. "The more things change..."
Dr. Kent and Dena Berquist's "From Kansas to Constantinople" is another brief essay. Like Stolzenbach before, the couple came to Anglicanism only after exploring other Protestant options, and were similarly disappointed that the dream of Anglicanism does not match the reality. "Finding a Home in the Eastern Rite" by Father David Mustian begins with an apology for his transition from Anglicanism--as experienced in the great changes of the 1970s--to Orthodoxy and then discusses why the author thinks the Eastern Rite the better option for converts.
Father John M. Reeves' "Excess Baggage" is the essay most critical of ECUSA here, and he sees the problems of Anglicanism as deriving from a flawed Western and modernist mindset. The author writes in a rather crotchety style, but does make some good points. Finally, Franklin Billerbeck's "Reluctant Journey" shows how one former Episcopalian swam the Bosphorus and yet maintained good relations with the members and priest of his former parish; it will certainly instill hope in those hesitant about the change.
While the book is very brief and offers little in the way of sophisticated theological argument, I think that ANGLICAN-ORTHODOX PILGRIMAGE is still worth reading for those considering a move from Anglicanism to Orthodoxy. It's a pity an expanded version has not appeared, for this movement has in recent years grown ever larger and many new cases could be examined.
The first essay by Father William Olnhausen talks of the pain of leaving a comfortable position as an Episcopalian priest and the great joy of entering a more satisfying spiritual tradition. Olnhausen's essay is more on the virtues of Orthodoxy and what it has to offer than criticizing Anglicanism, which he is hesitant to do. Olnhausen ends with a note to those who decide to remain Anglicans, explaining that they still have his friendship and love. The following essay by Mary M. Stolzenbach "Taste and See" is the most insubstantial of the writings here, offering little theological argument, but charting her disappointment with modern Anglicanism.
The third essay is a letter from three lay Episcopalians explaining their decision. It is by far the most interesting essay for those considering abandoning ECUSA in these current times. The three laymen, Henry and Leaella Shirley, and William Draper, show specific examples of what they consider apostasy and how it has made Anglicanism cease to be a viable option. These include the unilateral decision to ordain women without the consent of other catholic "branches", the sanctioning of abortion, the condoning of sexual relations outside of marriage, the revision of liturgy and hymnody for the sake of "inclusiveness", and the failure to censure clergy when have denied points of the Nicene Creed. While this letter was written in 1988, it is still quite striking to contemporary conservative Anglicans. The letter reminds us that these current problems are nothing new, that they were already present with Bishop Pike in the 1960s and Bishop Spong in the 1980s. "The more things change..."
Dr. Kent and Dena Berquist's "From Kansas to Constantinople" is another brief essay. Like Stolzenbach before, the couple came to Anglicanism only after exploring other Protestant options, and were similarly disappointed that the dream of Anglicanism does not match the reality. "Finding a Home in the Eastern Rite" by Father David Mustian begins with an apology for his transition from Anglicanism--as experienced in the great changes of the 1970s--to Orthodoxy and then discusses why the author thinks the Eastern Rite the better option for converts.
Father John M. Reeves' "Excess Baggage" is the essay most critical of ECUSA here, and he sees the problems of Anglicanism as deriving from a flawed Western and modernist mindset. The author writes in a rather crotchety style, but does make some good points. Finally, Franklin Billerbeck's "Reluctant Journey" shows how one former Episcopalian swam the Bosphorus and yet maintained good relations with the members and priest of his former parish; it will certainly instill hope in those hesitant about the change.
While the book is very brief and offers little in the way of sophisticated theological argument, I think that ANGLICAN-ORTHODOX PILGRIMAGE is still worth reading for those considering a move from Anglicanism to Orthodoxy. It's a pity an expanded version has not appeared, for this movement has in recent years grown ever larger and many new cases could be examined.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews