Skip to main content

Why Anglican?

 It’s a fair question. 


Why would a tattooed, flannel shirt wearing, Acts 29, non-denominational pastor want to wear a collar… a robe… and go “traditional” on us? I mean, isn’t that like going backwards? I thought we left all that stuff behind in the church growth movement of the 80’s that spawned the church planting movement of the late 90’s? What the heck are you doing Rob?


Again, these are fair questions I can’t fully address this in one newsletter, but here’s a start.


For me the journey begins with the leading of the Holy Spirit. In the fall of 2018 I started noticing that something was off in my soul. Around this time I was invited by Pat and Jenny Tracy to take advantage of a retreat cottage they had set up for pastors from Kitsap County. This began one of the greatest spiritual shifts of my life. 


The practice of taking 3-5 days away to simply be with Jesus changed me. I began scheduling more retreats and over the years I dove deeper into the contemplative side of our faith. It was during this time that I discovered the Book of Common Prayer also known simply as “the Prayer Book.” 


In the Anglican tradition, the Prayer Book was put together by Thomas Cranmer, the English reformer, to help individuals, families, and churches follow a simple method of praying through scripture. The prayer book also contains a collection of prayers which are prayers of the Church going back to the first few hundred years. It’s called the Book of Common Prayer because it’s meant for everyday people like you and me. It’s a discipleship tool that forms us into Christlikeness. 


At the beginning of the Prayer Book you’ll find a guide for morning and evening prayer (as well as noonday and compline). So I decided to practice morning and evening prayer for the next year. While I’ve always enjoyed praying from the heart throughout the day (and still do), I found having a given set of prayers freeing. Following the Prayer Book allowed me to be led and enter into the rich words given to me by Holy Scripture and the saints of old. I think I needed this as a pastor who was always expected to lead. Now I could just sit with the liturgy of morning and evening prayer and draw near to Jesus. This was my entry point into the Anglican way. 


As I learned more, I came across a new movement of Anglicans called the Anglican Church of North America (ACNA). At the time I had been struggling with being a non-denominational church pastor and didn’t know where I fit. I remember reading a great introductory book by Winfield Bevins called, “Simply Anglican,” and sensing the Spirit calling me to become an Anglican priest. I immediately shut the book and freaked out. How could I leave the church I had been pastoring? How could I change Christian traditions at the age of 45? What will my kids and wife think? The good news is the Lord walked me through all those questions and more. 


There are more reasons I became Anglican, but the Anglican practice of prayer is how the Spirit began my journey into Anglicanism. 


Here are some updates on our planting efforts. 

  • I finished my physical therapy a few weeks back (I broke my L2 vertebrae last spring). This was an important moment for me as I now feel more released to begin working harder on the plans for Shalom Anglican. I’m still sore everyday, but things are getting better. Please keep my full recovery in prayer.
  • I’ve been able to continue having conversations with folks interested in being a part of the church plant. We’ve been formulating a plan for some meetings in the fall. If I’m honest, I wanted to start meeting two months ago, but the wisdom of going slow is evident all around. Please pray for continued clarity and the right people to jump in early to help us plant Shalom. 
  • I’m planning on attending the Always Forward Church planting conference at the end of September. This will give me a chance to connect with other church planters in the ACNA and give more shape to our vision here in Kitsap.
  • A few weeks ago Beth and I got to get away to the Southern Oregon Coast and the Redwoods in Northern California to visit some friends. We also got to visit our Oregon kids. We were so grateful for the opportunity to enjoy time together and God’s creation! 




For the Shalom of Kitsap,


Rob and Beth

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

August Newsletter

 Grieving but grateful...  Robert Michael Steinbach Sr. 9/7/1946 - 7/28/2025 This is has been my response to people as they've asked me how I'm doing.  On July 28th my Dad's spirit left his failing body into the presence of the Trinity. My heart is heavy because of the finality of death. I can no longer see him or talk to him. Now I wait to go to him.  But I'm also grateful for his life. He had an amazing testimony which I shared about briefly at his memorial service . He was a gift to all who knew him. He was my Dad and I loved him dearly.  Needless to say July was a blur. I made two trips back to Maryland. The first was to see him and support my mom in his final days. The second was a week long trip after he passed for his memorial and committal service. I'm settling back into work and processing my grief as well as looking forward to the end of summer and some fall planning. Updates: While I was gone our church stepped up and handled the Sunday service. I'm g...
Post a Comment
Read more

December Newsletter - Year End Report and Year End Giving

Friends of Shalom,  As we come to the end of 2025, I am truly amazed and so grateful for all that our Lord has done and continues to do in our church. The best way to describe this year for me would be “holistic growth.” We’ve seen this in terms of new folks checking out Shalom (many new to faith), we’ve grown deeper in Christ as a church, and we’ve grown as a community in our relationships with one another.  Merry Christmas! Here are some highlights from 2025. Three adult baptisms. We regularly have people new to Christianity or who haven't been to church in years join us on Sunday. Two catechism classes with a total of twelve adults. Inside giving growth by almost $2,000 a month. Our average Sunday Attendance has grown from 30 to 45.  We collectively gave $1,500 for our lenten offering to Scarlet Road (a local non-profit that works with survivors of sexual exploitation). And we volunteered to help with several projects as well. Two weddings and Two engagements! W...
Post a Comment
Read more

October Newsletter

 Our First Confirmation! On September 28th we celebrated our first confirmation at Shalom Anglican! We had seventeen folks confirmed by our Bishop, Jake Worley, and celebrated afterwards with a potluck. It was a beautiful liturgy and I think we all sensed the presence of the Spirit and left deeply encouraged!  Confirmation is an ancient liturgical rite where those who have been baptized and catechized publicly affirm their faith through confessing before the church their baptismal vows. Then a bishop of the church confirms and commissions each person through the laying on of hands to be strengthened by the Spirit for ministry in and out of the church. As you can imagine it took a little while to confirm seventeen folks in one service but it was sweet to watch as the church prayed for each confirmand during the Bishop's prayers. This is a HUGE step for us as a new church. When I see this picture I think of how Paul speaks of the church like a body in 1 Corinthians 12. Each...
Post a Comment
Read more