Say a Sad Farewell to the Anglican Church of Canada
In 1962 the Anglican Church of Canada enjoyed a membership of 1.3 million, 8% of the nation’s population. By 2017 it had 357,123 members, less than 1% of the population.
According to a recently released report:
The average Sunday attendance has dropped to 97,421.
A previous report published in 2006 predicted the last Anglican would leave the church in 2061. Based on current trends, that date has been brought forward to 2040.
The rate of decline is increasing.
New programs adopted by the church have done nothing to reverse the decline.
The Anglican Church of Canada is declining faster than any other Anglican Province other than the US Episcopal church, which has an even greater rate of decline.
Attendance, baptisms, confirmations, marriages, and funerals are all down. The slowest decline is in the number of priests.
This is what happens when a movement loses its Identity in the life and ministry of Jesus — his obedience to the living Word, his dependence on the Holy Spirit and his faithfulness to the Mission understood as the core missionary task of multiplying disciples and churches to the glory of God. The only way back is to return to Identity, but I fear it is too late for the Anglican Church of Canada, just as it is for their cousins in the US — the Episcopalians.
In The Rise and Fall of Movements I call this stage Decay. What is to be done? Not much can be done. Watch and learn. Be sober and alert, praying you would be renewed by his Word and the Holy Spirit and remain faithful to his Mission.
