Everyday Monks

“This Is a Completely Different Thing”: Praying with the Whole Church

Each of the four monks first picked up the Book of Common Prayer on his own and used it like any other devotional book, dipping in for a beautiful prayer now and then. None of them knew how it was meant to work. On this episode, they tell how that changed when they began praying the Offices with other people: at Evensong, at sung Morning Prayer, and in an empty church during COVID, where Fr. Toombs realized, “This isn’t just another devotional tool. This is a completely different thing.”

We talk about the Prayer Book’s threefold rule: daily Morning and Evening Prayer, personal devotion, and Holy Communion on the Lord’s Day. We look at how the Collect ties the week together, why the daily prayers lead toward Sunday’s Eucharist, and how God’s ordering of the days in Genesis shapes the Daily Office. Then we trace the rule from Israel and the apostles through St. Benedict to Thomas Cranmer, who gave the monastery’s prayer to every parish and household. We close with plain advice for anyone starting out: start small, pray often, and pray with others when you can.

This week’s practice: pray one Office each day, Morning Prayer (p. 3) or Evening Prayer (p. 21). If you have a family, try the Family Prayer on p. 587.

Mentioned: F. P. Harton, The Elements of the Spiritual Life; Alan Jacobs, The Book of Common Prayer: A Biography; The Valley of Vision; the Rule of St. Benedict and the Rule of the Master; Jeremy Taylor; the 1928 Book of Common Prayer, Family Prayer, pp. 587–594; Michael Templin and the Lone Star Sound (on Spotify).

Everyday Monks is the parish podcast of St. Benedict’s Anglican Church in Rockwall, Texas: Belong - Believe - Become.

A parishioner posted a photo of Evening Prayer, and a stranger commented: “What’s up with the guy in the outfit? I don’t need a priest. I just need Jesus.” Many evangelicals would say the same, because they hear it as loyalty to Christ alone. This week the Everyday Monks ask what that sentence assumes about the Church, the sacraments, and the spiritual life.

We look at what Jesus actually did: he called disciples, made apostles, sent out the seventy, gave his Church the bread, the cup, and the water of baptism, and commanded his apostles to teach “all things whatsoever I have commanded you.” Even the Bible comes to us through the Church. When grace isn’t mediated, every Christian is left to judge his own heart, and the result is restlessness: congregations reinventing themselves around “what works,” rebaptism and the Donatist impulse, and “always reforming” that never arrives anywhere. We then turn to what the Church has received: a rule of faith that is both right belief and right practice, handed down by our mother the Church. Along the way: why Fr. Vinson’s own rebaptism taught him more than he expected, and why we’ll gladly submit to a CrossFit coach but call a rule of prayer “legalism.”

This week’s practice: pray the Office for Morning Prayer (p. 3) or Evening Prayer (p. 21) from the 1928 Book of Common Prayer once a day for six days. If you miss a day, simply begin again.

Books Mentioned: 1928 Book of Common Prayer; Louis Menand, The Metaphysical Club; Neil Postman, Amusing Ourselves to Death; Hans Boersma, Heavenly Participation; Martin Thornton, English Spirituality; Reformed Catholic Anglicanism, Cranmer Theological House.

Everyday Monks is the parish podcast of St. Benedict’s Anglican Church in Rockwall, Texas: Belong - Believe - Become.

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Sola (Solo) Spirituality

What happens when we begin to build our spiritual lives on our own?

In this episode of Everyday Monks, we explore the rise of “solo spirituality”—the tendency to create our own spiritual practices, choose our own teachers, and develop our own rule of life apart from the life of the Church.

What the Monks Discuss:

Constructing vs. receiving the Christian life.

- Why individualized spirituality can leave us spiritually exhausted

- What we miss when we separate spirituality from the Church and the means of grace

- The importance of Christian community and koinonia

- The relationship between the contemplative and active life

- How the Book of Common Prayer offers a coherent way to pray and live as Christians

Perhaps the better question isn't, “What kind of spiritual life should I create?” but: “What has God already given us?”

This Week's Challenge

- Pray Morning Prayer from beginning to end at least once this week.

- Pay attention to what happens when you pray words that aren't your own.

Next Episode: We begin exploring Prayer Book Spirituality and how the Church's inherited patterns of prayer can shape our everyday lives.

NEW EPISODE: Why the Prayer Book Still Matters

After a busy season of Holy Week, Easter, clergy retreats, church planting, and parish life, the Everyday Monks crew is finally back around the podcast table.

In this episode, Fr. Michael Vinson, Fr. Michael Templin, Fr. Marq Toombs, and Deacon Timothy Wilson catch up on life, ministry, and the recent Anglican Way Institute Conference hosted at the historic Cathedral Church of the Holy Communion (REC) in Dallas. The conference explored the remarkable story of the English and American Prayer Book Tradition, tracing its development from Cranmer’s 1549 Book of Common Prayer to the modern era.

What makes the Prayer Book so enduring? Why are Christians from Anglican, Presbyterian, Pentecostal, and other traditions increasingly discovering its wisdom? And what can the history of the Prayer Book teach us about worship, discipleship, pastoral care, and the life of the Church today?

Along the way, the conversation explores:

* The legacy and influence of the Book of Common Prayer

* Reflections from the Anglican Way Institute conference

* The importance of pastoral care and life in Christian community

* Church planting, ministry, and life in a growing parish

* Why ancient patterns of prayer still speak powerfully to a modern world

Whether you’re a lifelong Anglican, curious about the Prayer Book tradition, or simply interested in thoughtful conversations about faith and ministry, this episode offers a rich and engaging discussion.

What if one of the most practical ways to strengthen a parish—or steady a church plant—is simply this: sing the Prayer Book?

In this special edition of Everyday Monks, we’re joined by our friend Andrew Dittman for a wide-ranging conversation on Anglican worship, parish music, and spiritual formation. Andrew shares how his Kyrial Project (a kyrial—a collection of sung service music and responses) grew out of a pastoral problem many churches recognize: how do you honor a Morning Prayer tradition while moving toward a fuller Prayer Book life—including weekly Eucharist—without creating fear, fatigue, or confusion? Along the way we talk a cappella Communion, chant that ordinary congregations can actually sing (in melody or harmony), and why what you prioritize early tends to “grow fast” in the life of a mission.

If you care about worship that is both reverent and doable—especially for small parishes and planters—this one will feed you.

Listen to Andrew’s work on his YouTube Channel.

Enter the Story: Holy Week

Easter is coming.But first… we must walk the road.

Holy Week is not something we observe from a distance—it is something we enter. From the palms of Sunday to the silence of the tomb, the Church leads us step by step through the Passion of Christ.

In our latest episode of Everyday Monks, we reflect on why this week is the heart of the Christian year—and why rushing to Easter means missing the story that gives it meaning.

This is more than a podcast—it’s an invitation to come and follow Christ through His Passion into Resurrection.

+Listen now to prepare your heart for the passion and joy of this most holy Season.

In the Rockwall area? Find Holy Week & Easter Service Times and more at stbenedictanglican.com

Belong - Believe - Become.

What if salvation begins… not with power, but with a “yes”?

In our newest episode of Everyday Monks, we explore the Feast of the Annunciation in the 1928 Book of Common Prayer—the moment when heaven breaks into earth, and the Virgin Mary receives the message that changes everything.

This is where the Gospel begins:not at Christmas, not at Easter—but at the announcement of grace.

We reflect on:

* The mystery of the Incarnation

* Why this feast may be the true beginning of the Christian story

* The connection between Annunciation, Cross, and Resurrection

* And what Mary’s faithful “be it unto me” means for your life today

From Isaiah’s promise to Gabriel’s message, from grace given to grace received—this episode is a rich, beautiful meditation on the whole Christian life.

Listen now on Everyday Monks, the Parish Podcast of St. Benedict’s Anglican Church (REC) in Rockwall, Texas: Belong - Believe - Become.

A six-week study on ‘Angels, Archangels, and all the Company of Heaven’ led this week by The Rev. Canon Michael D. Vinson, Rector of St. Benedict’s Anglican Church in Rockwall, TX. Belong - Believe - Become.