Today’s Newsdesk episode covers developments in Gafcon’s Global Anglican Communion, a Rwandan bishop jailed for grazing cattle on church property, and a new, and possibly unique, church growth survey looking for “bright spots” in Episcopal ministry.

We also enjoy a bonus segment at the end that includes some Eastertide treats, including book recommendations and recipes.

See below for related articles, essays, and resources, including corresponding goodies from our bonus segment.

Podcast host and Director of Programs Amber Noel is joined by the Rev. Mark Michael, Editor in Chief of The Living Church magazine, and the Rev. Dr. Matthew Olver, Executive Director and Publisher of the Living Church.

For more, consider subscribing to The Living Church magazine, the only independent news voice covering the Episcopal Church and Anglican Communion.

From this episode:

Gafcon, Global Anglican Communion, and Abuja Affirmation:

(Award-winning podcast episode) 

https://livingchurch.org/podcasts/questions-for-gafcon/

(Articles and essays)

https://livingchurch.org/news/news-anglican-communion/heres-who-leads-the-global-anglican-communion/

https://livingchurch.org/covenant/abuja-series-1/

https://livingchurch.org/covenant/a-confessional-solution-but-what-about-the-nairobi-cairo-proposal/

https://livingchurch.org/covenant/the-abuja-affirmation-an-anglican-communion/

https://livingchurch.org/covenant/abuja-series-goddard-responds-to-avis/

https://livingchurch.org/covenant/a-fretful-future-gafcons-reordering-of-the-communion-part-1/

Rwandan bishop and cattle grazing:

https://livingchurch.org/news/news-anglican-communion/jailed-rwandan-bishop-pleads-for-justice/

https://livingchurch.org/news/news-anglican-communion/jailed-rwandan-bishop-released/

New church growth survey:

https://livingchurch.org/news/news-episcopal-church/churchwide-surveys-seeks-bright-spots-for-growt…

Eastertide treats:

Travel books by Patrick Leigh Fermor

Lamb chop “lollipop” recipe

Elderflower gin + tonic (Don’t forget to add lemon!)

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What’s your school of prayer? Where did you learn to pray? How do you continue to deepen your prayer life? Whose prayer life do you want to have when you grow up? How do you want the example of your prayer life, or the fruits of it, to be a gift to others?

Today’s conversation is about how prayer affects our leadership, and how our pastors’ prayer lives affect us. Whether you are the leader of a congregation, staff, or a person in the pew, our show today is a fascinating, and at times moving, analysis of how healthy leadership, staff culture, and church health are deeply intertwined with the prayer lives of the leaders.

Our conversation isn’t based on formal research, but from the lived perspective of one priest and what he’s observed in the different churches and rectors he’s served.

Our guest today is the Rev. John D. Sundara. John is vice rector at St. John the Divine Episcopal Church in Houston, Texas. Previous appointments include St. Martin's, Houston, and Church of the Incarnation, Dallas.

We’ll talk about things like:

• The importance of sharing your prayer life with the people you serve.
• Appropriate vulnerability and rejecting ego.
• How a culture of prayer creates room for discussion, disagreement, and decision-making.
• Ways that prayer nurtures a trusting and confident staff culture.
• The gifts and limitations of the prayer book for carrying us in a life of prayer.

John also shares about his journey, and times when prayer has been agonizingly difficult. How does God show up when praying is the last thing you want to do?

Now whether you are a newbie or long time student in the school of prayer; sailing along or bottomed out; charismatic, Catholic, evangelical, or somewhere else on the map; if you’re interested in what it can mean to lead from a place of prayer, this episode is for you. We hope you enjoy the conversation.

From this episode:

This episode is made possible in part by a special bequest from the Anglican Fellowship of Prayer.

“Prayer Drives Congregational Growth” by John Sundara

With Christ in the School of Prayer by Andrew Murray

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Who is Archbishop Sarah Mullally? And what might we expect from her ministry?

Augustine of Canterbury was sent by Pope Gregory in 597 on mission to re-evangelize Britain and became the first Archbishop of Canterbury. Incase you haven’t heard, Anglicans have made world news for electing as the 106th Archbishop of Canterbury the first woman to serve in the role, former Bishop of London, the Most Rev. Sarah Mullally. 

Archbishop Sarah is coming into the role at a time of many tensions and possible changes within the Anglican Communion, including what the ABC's role should actually be and what shape the church might take under the continued pressures of disagreement over what it means to be faithful to the gospel today.

Our editor in chief, the Rev. Dr. Mark Michael, sat down with Dr. Andrew Atherstone, who has just published the definitive biography of Archbishop Sarah called (very appropriately) Archbishop Sarah Mullally: A Biography.

They talk about:

• Why she was the “dark horse” of the ABC race the bookies didn’t initially bet on.
• Why Andrew calls her a “trailblazer” and a “pioneer.”
• How 20 years in a south-side evangelical church and a 20-year career as a nurse shape her leadership.
• What we learn from a collection of her parish sermons.
• And how we might anticipate her role in the Anglican Communion’s approach to euthanasia, same-sex marriage, and other divisive issues.

Andrew is Professor of Modern Anglicanism at the University of Oxford, and Tutorial Fellow and Latimer Research Fellow at Wycliffe Hall, Oxford. He is a prolific writer and biographer of the former Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby.

We hope you enjoy the conversation.

From this episode:

Archbishop Sarah’s website

Archbishop Sarah Mullally: A Biography by Andrew Atherstone

Archbishop Justin Welby: Risk Taker and Reconciler by Andrew Atherstone

Ecclesiastical History of the English People and other books by the Venerable Bede

Living in Love and Faith process

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How should Anglicans feel about AI? But first: what the heck is it?

Our guests today tackle one of the toughest topics of our time head on, from both a theological and technical perspective.

What is AI? Is it unprecedented? What can AI currently, actually, do? Should Christians accept, or resist? 

As Christians, it’s often hard to know whether to embrace new technology. If we get worked up or freaked out, is it about the right things? Where might we still need to fill in gaps in our knowledge or our discipleship? Are we living in The Matrix? Or can we let the robots help, sometimes, and still insist on fully human lives?

Our guests today are Arlie Coles and the Rt. Rev. Dr. George Sumner.

Arlie is a lay Anglican from the Diocese of Dallas who writes about modern Episcopal history and polity. She is also a machine-learning researcher serving on General Convention’s Task Force on Artificial Intelligence and Intellectual Property and a reporter for the Living Church.

Bishop George is retired Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Dallas and former Principal of Wycliffe Theological Seminary.

The Rev. Dr. Matthew Olver, Executive Director of the Living Church, joins Amber Noel as co-host.

We talk about:

• How AI taps into our instincts for communication, mystery, and relationship.
• How this both increases its usefulness and gives us the creeps.
• What AI is good for and not good for (spoiler, not writing sermons).
• Pastoral concerns about spiritual influence, addiction, and human dignity.
• Whether we need an Anglican “Prayer Before Using AI.”
• Why you might want to go full Star Trek and rename your Alexa “Computer” so you’re less likely to mistake a tool for a person.

The forms and capacities of human tools are not neutral— a steak knife, an AR-15, and a Ouija board do not carry the same potential for moral or immoral use— but, like the idols of old, do AI tools, which have “screens but see not, algorithms but feel not,” receive the power and significance they have only from the power and significance we give them?

One of the biggest dangers of AI comes from one of humanity’s greatest gifts: language and its use in relationships.

We hope you enjoy the conversation.

From this episode:

Living Church articles on AI

“AI as Normal Technology” by Arvind Narayanan and Sayash Kapoor

Against the Machine by Paul Kingsnorth

Interview with Paul Kingsnorth and Ross Douthat about AI

Find Nathan Jennings’ 6-part preaching series on our online journal, Covenant

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In this episode, we learn from neuroscience to explore questions in theology and ministry.

When we talk about the brain, we think of the intellect, private processes, perception—even as the center or source of the self. And the brain is one important place where “self” happens.

But what if all our private, individualized function, in fact our very life, depends much more on exterior factors, like eye contact and physical touch? What if the center of what it means to be human, or even to be yourself, is not in your head but very much outside it?

How can what scientists are learning about the brain open up theological anthropology, pastoral care, and how we read Scripture?

Our guest today is Dr. Rodney Wilson. Rod is associate professor of psychology at Covenant College, Lookout Mountain, GA, with a specialty in clinical neuropsychology. He also works in hospitals and with patients who have dementia syndrome and their families, with one foot in the classroom and one in the clinic.

We talk today about neuroplasticity and the “renewing of the mind”; how we’re never so much “in our heads” as in relationships; how the temperature of your coffee or the smell of a charcoal fire can affect your ability to know truth and build trust; and what the brain teaches us about our limits and the mystery of love.

If this episode piques your interest, and you have further questions about the brain and Christian life or leadership, Rod welcomes you to get in touch with him. Please see the link to his website below.

Now hold on to your hats, and we hope you enjoy this enlightening conversation.

From this episode:

Curt Thompson’s books

Dan Siegel and interpersonal neurobiology

Get in touch with Rod to learn more or with any questions

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How does the 1662 Book of Common Prayer hold Anglicans together today?

What book of common prayer book do you use? And why? Whichever it is, and however you relate to other Anglicans, all of our common prayer books share one ancestor which still binds us together today, more closely than we might realize.

Today we’re going back to the roots of your Anglican prayer book: the great-great-great-great-great-great-great grandaddy of all Anglican prayer books, the 1662 Book of Common Prayer.

The 1662 wasn’t technically the first book of common prayer in England. So why is it the standard by which so many Anglicans today measure and revise their prayer books? Where did it come from? What makes it stand the test of time? How was it controversial, even divisive, in its own day? And how has it helped bring Christians together since?

Our guest is Dr. Drew Nathaniel Keane. Drew is a lecturer in English at Georgia Southern University and managing editor of The Anglican Way. He is the co-author, along with Samuel Bray, of How to Use the Book of Common Prayer and co-editor with the same of the 1662 Book of Common Prayer: International Edition. He’s also currently co-authoring a commentary on the 1662 Book of Common Prayer with IVP Academic.

Now let’s get down the family album, blow off the dust, and hear some tales from a fascinating and crucial chapter in our Anglican story. Family is indeed stranger than fiction. We hope you enjoy the conversation.

This episode is made possible in part by a special bequest from the Anglican Fellowship of Prayer.

From this episode:

More about Drew's work

How to Use the Book of Common Prayer: A Guide to the Anglican Liturgy

1662 Book of Common Prayer: International Edition

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Today, musician Jon Guerra joins us for a conversation about music, theology, and life—and a few live tunes.

We talk about his musical influences and about the formation (and deformation) that happens through Christian music. We talk about creating and speaking in difficult times, working in the shadow of the cross, and, as he puts it, “the dialectic struggle between the call and your ability to meet it.” We also talk about the importance of vulnerability and play, telling your story, and learning to be a Holy Fool.

Our executive director, Matthew Olver, joined us for this chat and mini-concert.

Our set list includes “In the Beginning Was Love,” “Where Your Treasure Is,” “Kingdom of God,” and “I See the Birds,” with great conversation in between.

Jon Guerra is a singer-songwriter who writes devotional music, “music for attending to the soul.” He’s based in Austin, Texas, and his albums include Keeper of Days, Ordinary Ways, and his latest, Jesus, among others. He also composed music for Terrence Malick’s 2019 film, A Hidden Life.

We hope you enjoy the music and the conversation.

From this episode:

Jon’s website, album, merch

Jon’s tour schedule

Poet Robert Lax

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How should ministers of the gospel engage politics from the pulpit? 

Today’s episode is from a panel at the RadVo 2025 conference on politics and preaching: the if, why, and how.

Panelists discuss discernment, formation, and what preaching is for, and give examples of how the gospel of Jesus forms people who can be both responsive and resilient to political challenges and change.

Panelists include:

The Rev. Dr. Annette Brownlee, professor emerita of pastoral theology and the former chaplain at Wycliffe College at the University of Toronto. She has served the life of the church widely in both the academy and in parish ministry, and she's the author of Preaching Jesus Christ Today: Six Questions for Moving from Scripture to Sermon as well as “The Responsibility of the Church to the State in an Era of Mass Migration.”

The Rev. Tish Harrison Warren, writer and priest in the Anglican Church in North America. She's the author of several books, including Liturgy of the Ordinary and Prayer in the Night, which won Christianity Today's book of the year awards (2018 and 2022). She has also been a columnist for the New York Times and Christianity Today, and is a senior fellow at the Trinity Forum.

Dr. Joe Mangina, professor of theology at Wycliff College at the University of Toronto. He is the former editor of Pro Ecclesia, the ecumenical journal of theology, and has served on the Anglican-Roman Catholic Dialogue for Canada. He is the author of several books, including a commentary in the book of Revelation with Brazos Theological Commentary series.

The panel is moderated by the Rev. Dr. Matthew Olver, executive director of The Living Church.

Thanks to RadVo and Church of the Incarnation in Dallas who hosted this panel.

From the Bible, to the ballot box, to meditating come-to-Jesus meetings between parishioners fighting on Facebook, we hope you enjoy the conversation.

--

From this episode:

RadVo 2027

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With love, wit, and a laugh, Jane Austen brought human drama to the drawing room. We love her for it. It also gave her away as a Christian.

On December 16, 1775, the Anglican clergy family of Austens welcomed their youngest daughter, who would grow to become one of the world’s greatest novelists and, as we’ll discuss today, a profound Christian; a loving and lively friend, sister, and aunt; a scholar of human nature; and an expert on how the virtues and vices that make or break us reveal themselves in the everyday. She was also, for the record, hilarious.

Today’s conversation is part of our annual Cozy Christmas Chat series, and our guests are Haley Stewart and the Rev. Dr. David Goodhew.

Haley is a Catholic author and the editor of Word on Fire Votive. She was cohost of the popular Fountains of Carrots podcast, and is the author of Jane Austen's Genius Guide to Life, The Grace of Enough, and The Sister Seraphina Mysteries.

David is Vicar of St Barnabas Church, Middlesbrough, England and Visiting Fellow of St Johns College, Durham University. He is widely published, with five volumes on modern Christianity and church growth. But he has also written several excellent and entertaining essays on Jane Austen’s life and faith that you can read at livingchurch.org/covenant.

Today we encounter Jane Austen via Dante’s Inferno, learn from her on the virtues, unpack the popularity of Bridgerton, critique film adaptations, and learn about the personal practices of prayer that rooted Jane’s genius. And, from Mr. Darcy who can’t bear to be laughed at, to Emma with little to trouble or vex her, we discuss how humor, used with compassion, can be an expression of love.

We hope you enjoy this cozy Christmas conversation!

From this episode:

David’s articles on Jane Austen

Haley’s books on Jane, etc.

Haley’s Sister Seraphina Mysteries

Haley’s podcast

Haley’s Substack

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What do wise and practical partnerships with immigrant communities look like?

Today’s episode is from a conversation we co-hosted with The Episcopal Parish Network to explore how congregations can engage more faithfully and effectively with immigrant and refugee neighbors.

We dip into a bit of theology here. But we concentrate on strategic application, legal context, and pastoral insights for building authentic relationships and deepening mission.

We discuss:

• Legal landscapes around immigration—what’s true, what’s not true, how it affects ministry.
• Pastoral care that is culturally responsive instead of awkward or well-meaningly clueless.
• Cooperating with ethnic leaders to support and empower immigrants and their families.
• Practical tips to try.

This conversation is about bridges across borders: discerning the opportunities God has put in front of you, making a solid plan, and accepting the time and help it takes to build bridges that last.

Our guests today are: 

The Rev. Dr. Samira Izadi Page, founder and executive director of Gateway of Grace, Dallas, Texas.

James Montana, Esq., principal and immigration lawyer at James Montana Law, Falls Church, Virginia.

The Rev. Christian Anderson, vicar at St. Mary’s Episcopal Church, Stuart, Florida.

The Rev. Jaime Briceño, rector at St. Michael and All Angels Episcopal Church, Berwyn, Illinois.

From this episode:

Watch the video

List of recommended legal and ministry resources

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