Evangelicals seeking traditionalist spirituality

Yes, I know I write frequently about the ecumenical/catholic turn that my own spiritual life has taken over the last few years, both in terms of theology (see especially here, the post I am most proud of) and also in practice: I now strive to practice more liturgy, keep the Christian year, observe weekly communion (thankfully, more Methodist churches are doing this), and make relatively regular use of the Anglican/Ecumenical rosary; I also get excited about the little ways our worship that displays historical rootedness - whether that means icons, or incense, or robe-wearing ministers (please don't think that I am advocating organ-only music, I believe the Charismatic movement has taught us alot about worship that can be incorporated without at the same time ditching those displays of historical rootedness - thus ancient/future worship is closer to my ideal). I write about these things so much because I believe I have discovered something important.

And the stories (or observations) of Evangelicals who have made similar moves abound (so we invent phrases like "walk the Canterbury Trail" or "swim the Tiber"). Here are a couple of articles I ran across recently. The first is a shorter one from a Baptist minister-turned Eastern Orthodox priest and the second is an illuminating article from the Internet Monk. This second article is, I would say a must read (especially if what I am saying doesn't resonate with you).

Both express a dissatisfaction with the spirituality of American Evangelicalism. This yearning for a deeper spirituality, one that is not based upon getting one more "mountain top" experience of God (through newer, more annointed, more relevant, music/conferences/7-step plans), but rather a spirituality that has been proved over centuries and capable of seeing me through the dry, dark valleys. This yearning may be one reason why Richard Foster's work has been so popular - which itself is very "catholic" in the broad sense of the word (the way I usually use it and the way my fellow Louisianians rarely do) - Foster listens to voices across the ages and across the divisions of the One Church.

My hope for The United Methodist Church (UMC), now faced with the decision (among several other big decisions regarding "identity" in the coming decades) of whether we will follow many of the free churches into the entertainment buisiness, is that we will instead turn back towards our own very catholic spirituality that we inherited through our Anglican heritage. Lest we forget, the UMC is - as our doctrine, liturgy, and history continuously testify - a Church of the Anglican tradition, and I believe we need deliberately to recover, appropriate, and celebrate that, as many are now seeking to do. So let us whoop out those prayer books, robes, or whatever, and let us get on with the business of dying, with Christ, to the world. Let us learn to do this using liturgy, fasting, vigils, cross-bearing, such spiritual disciplines as chastity and obedience, and other things that are not "relevant" (read: 'entertaining' or 'crowd pleasing') to contemporary society.

O God, make speed to save us.
O Lord, make haste to help us.
Amen.