|
 To most
Episcopalians most of the time, the Episcopal Church extends only to
the edge of the parking lot. To be sure, Episcopalians are not a part of a
monolithic hierarchy like that of the Roman Catholic Church, but neither do we
have the Congregationalist independence of the Baptists. The local bishop
matters, and, increasingly, the Presiding Bishop, the Archbishop of Canterbury,
and even primates of other Anglican provinces seem to matter. Certainly what takes place at
the church’s General Convention affects the life of
every local Episcopal church.
The Internet, and particularly the World Wide Web, has made it easier to get
news of the wider church, tap into resources useful at the parish level, and
even participate in the often lively discussion of contemporary issues that will
influence the direction of Anglicanism in America. On the other hand, the
Internet has increased tensions within the Anglican Communion by communicating
news of events quickly and by acting as an echo chamber for the cries of the
dissatisfied.
For the benefit of Episcopalians new to the cyberspace domain of the
Episcopal Church, I have compiled a brief annotated collection of interesting
and useful links. Other valuable sites can be reached from those listed here.
Suggestions for improving this list are invited.
The list is limited to Web sites. Many Anglican organizations also have a
presence on Facebook or Twitter.
— LED, 3/25/2023
Scroll down to a category or click on a category name below.
The Anglican Communion
| The
Anglican Domain |
This unofficial site is operated by The
Society of Archbishop Justus, a group of Internet-era scribes devoted
to advancing the church via electronic communications. The name of the
site comes from the fact that the Society is responsible for the Internet
domain anglican.org, which is used by many Anglican entities. (For
example, the Episcopal Diocese of Pittsburgh can be found at
http://pittsburgh.anglican.org,
although http://episcopalpgh.org is
now the preferred URL)
The site contains information about the Anglican Communion (what it is and
how it developed), a glossary of church terms, and links to sites of
national churches within the Communion. Although the site has not been
updated lately, there is much historical data of interest, including
electronic versions of various prayer books. Resources are listed
here. |
| Anglicans
Online |
This is another source of information about the
Anglican Communion. You can find links to Anglican churches across the
world, as well as dioceses and parishes. For years, the site was a major
source of Anglican-related news, but this function was dropped several years
ago. |
| The
Anglican
Communion |
This is the official Anglican Communion Web
site. There is a good deal of news here, particularly about important
meetings (especially useful if you are a bishop). There is also
information here about individual provinces (national or regional
churches). |
|
Anglican
Communion News Service |
News from throughout the Anglican Communion.
You can sign up here to receive news via e-mail. |
|
Church of England |
It seems proper to single out the Church of England Web site
for special mention. The Church of England is, of course, the mother
church of Anglicanism. This site contains much you would expect, including links
to individual parishes and news items. It also carries a Daily Prayer
service. |
|
World
Council of Churches |
This is not an Anglican site, of course, but Anglicans may
be interested in the activities of this ecumenical body. |
| Worldwide
Faith News |
A service that publishes news from Anglican and
non-Anglican churches. |
|
Religion News Service |
Although RNS is not exclusively a source of
news about the Episcopal Church, it covers important developments in the
Anglican world as well as news of other religions. |
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The Episcopal Church
| The
Episcopal Church |
This is the official site of the Episcopal Church.
I won’t try to list everything you can find her—there’s a lot, including
various liturgical resources. The site includes a church finder to locate am
Episcopal church near you. |
|
Episcopal
News Service |
Episcopal News Service is the official
publicity organ of the
Episcopal Church. The primary commodity here is, of course, news. The site
also hosts press releases and information about events You can
sign up to receive the ENS newsletter.. |
| Archives
of the Episcopal Church |
Historical information about The Episcopal
Church can be found in The Archives of the Episcopal Church, established
in 1845. Available records include acts of General Convention and the
Executive Committee. Also available are Episcopal News Service articles
and issues of The Witness. |
|
Episcopal Cursillo Ministry |
Cursillo is a movement
aimed at developing church leaders by illustrating how to live a Christian
life. |
|
The General
Convention |
This is the home page of the General Convention
of the Episcopal Church, the church’s legislative body. The site provides
information about church governance, church statistics, and other
information. The church’s constitution and canons can be found here. |
| Episcopal
Relief and Development |
This is the site of the Episcopal world relief
agency, formerly known as The Presiding Bishop’s Fund for World Relief. |
|
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Resources for Episcopalians
|
The Book of Common Prayer |
This is a PDF of the 1979 prayer book. |
|
The (Online) Book of
Common Prayer |
This is an HTML version of the prayer book. The
site offers links to individual sections of the BCP. Other useful links are also
provided. |
|
Christian Classics Ethereal Library |
This site
contains a large collection of Christian material from every era and in a
number of formats. This is a good place to find the text of Christian
classics. |
| Church
Publishing Incorporated |
Church Publishing is the current name for the
former Church Hymnal Corporation, publisher of the Book of Common
Prayer, Hymnal 1982, and other worship resources. The site is
an on-line bookstore of church-related materials. |
|
An
Episcopal Dictionary of the Church |
This is a somewhat abbreviated electronic
version of a book of the same title. The Episcopal Church seems to have a
language all its own, and this is a good resource for understanding it. |
|
Cowley
Publications |
Cowley Publications is publishing ministry of
the Society of St. John the Evangelist (SSJE), an Anglican religious
order.Cowley publishes books that reflect the tradition of prayer, spiritual
direction, and intellectual reflection nurtured by SSJE. |
| Forward
Movement Publications |
Forward Movement has an extensive catalog of
pamphlets, booklets, electronic resources, and the devotional publication Forward Day
by Day. |
| LeaderResources |
LeaderResources provides program resources for congregations. This Web site will be of more
interest to parishes than to individuals. |
| The
Online Daily Office |
The Mission of St. Clare has made it easy to
read and sing the daily office right at your computer. This works well for
individuals, though its usefulness for corporate worship may be limited. |
|
The
Lectionary Page |
This site makes it easy to find the lectionary
readings for a particular day. Simply select the day from the calendar. |
|
NetHymnal |
This site used to be called Cyber Hymnal, but
it has been rebranded NetHymnal. It includes many hymns, along with
information about them and their creators. Many hymns from the Episcopal
hymnal are missing, however. |
|
Hymnary.org |
Yet another source of hymn information and
music. Special features include the ability to compare hymn texts across
hymnals and to follow a score while the hymn plays. |
| Oremus
Bible Browser |
This site allows visitors to display Bible
passages or search particular translations for words or phrases. The King
James Version and the New Revised Standard Version (NRSV), which is the version of choice in
many Episcopal churches for public readings, are available here. Several alternative
versions of Psalms are also provided. The NRSV text is complete with
footnotes, implemented in an especially convenient manner. |
| The
Bible Gateway |
This is another Bible Web site with some
interesting features, including the ability to display the same passage from
multiple translations. If desired, passages can heard, as well as read. |
| ECDplus
Online |
This site allows visitors to find information
about Episcopal clergy and Episcopal parishes. |
|
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|
Episcopal Periodicals
| The
Living Church |
The Living Church is a magazine that has
been covering the Episcopal Church since 1878. It is a weekly magazine of
news, resources, and opinion. Although its viewpoint is decidedly right of
center, it is one of the best general news sources about the church. Its
“Reader’s Viewpoint” column gives voice to a variety of views, including, on
at least one occasion, my own. |
|
The
Anglican Digest |
A quarterly publication of general interest to
Episcopalians. Donations are accepted, but a subscription can be had for the
asking. It is now possible to read the entire magazine on-line. |
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Local (Rochester) Interest
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