These same questions frame our American Anglican Council resources that address clergy care and wellness, clergy leadership, and church revitalization in North America. Not much changed since I wrote these words exactly a year ago. One year later, we are still living in a world in which biblical faith and the biblical view of human nature, human community, human origins, and human destiny no longer shape culture, society, and public life in a decisive way-- "a flattened human landscape," writes the Roman Catholic theologian George Weigel, "a world without any transcendent reference points of any sort." It is this darkness into which we, as followers of Jesus Christ, are called to shine the light of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ (John 1: 1-14; 2 Cor. 4).
I continue to circle back to the prophet Daniel, who arguably faced as challenging a culture as you and I face today. Hippolytus' commentary on Daniel is the oldest surviving Christian commentary on scripture. It was composed by Hippolytus of Rome, most likely between 202 and 211 AD at a time of great persecution. The fact that the earliest Christian scholars focused on Daniel in such times may hold clues for us. Daniel exemplifies a servant leader who managed to navigate the political intrigues of his day, threats to his religious freedom, and open hostility to his faith with grace and truth and without compromise. His story is remarkable, and here's what you and I can learn from just the very first chapter of Daniel:
o God is still in control! In fact, he is the very one who has delivered Daniel and us into the circumstances in which we find ourselves. Therefore, we can have confidence in him and his directions to us (Dan. 1:2 cf. Jer. 29:4-7, 11).
o Daniel never let go of his fundamental identity in YHWH as evidenced in his God-given name (Dan. 1:6, 8), despite the efforts of the culture to change his identity.
o He resolved to follow God's word, even if it placed him at odds with the culture and spirit of the age (Dan. 1:8-10).
o He responded to those with whom he disagreed with charity, respect, and reason, rather than attacking them (Dan. 1:11-13).
o He trusted God for the breakthrough and for favor with those above him, and God responded by giving him and his companions "knowledge and understanding" for their witness (Dan. 1:17).
o He and his companions were devoted to excellence in all they did and said, being found "ten times better" than their non-believing peers "in every matter of wisdom and understanding" (Dan. 1:20).

These are the very biblical lessons the American Anglican Council is promoting for Anglicans in North America through our Formed conferences in 2022 and those we are planning in 2023. You can get a taste of how Daniel's faithfulness can shape our Gospel witness and mission in 21st century N. America by checking out our conference page.

But Daniel is not the only example of the kind of Christian that we all need to be for such a time as this. Archbishop Justin Badi, Chairman of the Global South Fellowship of Anglicans, has also given us an example of the kind of Christians we need to be in 2023 in his December 17 Christmas Reflections. He calls Anglicans everywhere to an internal housecleaning of our own churches in a spirit of humility and repentance at every level of the Church:

"In calling for REPENTANCE and RE-SETTING [of the Anglican Communion structures] we do not exempt ourselves. GSFA bishops at L[ambeth] C[onference] 2022 confessed that 'In every province and diocese, there is unfaithfulness to the Lord's way. So we will return to our provinces and dioceses with humility to repent of all our sins, walk in newness of life and pursue holiness.'"

We are still in the season of Advent. It is a penitential season during which we reflect on preparing the way for Christ. It reminds us that if we want to ready ourselves in 2023 for a fresh return of Christ and the power of his Holy Spirit for the sake of mission, we must "acknowledge and lament our many sins we have grievously committed in thought, word and deed" by offense and by omission, against God and our neighbor.

In the Anglican Church in North America, where do we need to "REPENT and RE-SET" our hearts, confessing our sins of offense and omission, repenting at every level of leadership in the whole Church as we live our lives together in Jesus? Where do we need to acknowledge that we have been unfaithful "to the LORD's way" in the decisions we have made? With whom do we need to ask forgiveness, to walk in newness of life and to pursue holiness, together? What will it look like for us to prioritize together our pursuit of holiness in Christ, in 2023, in order to share the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ with a world growing darker by the moment?

There is so much to commend in Archbishop Badi's Christmas Reflections 2022, but there is one more thing he says that challenges us as we look inward at our own hearts and contemplate the need for an "internal housecleaning" of our own hearts and our own Church. He challenges us to embrace an attitude of gracious cooperation with those in the Church with whom we disagree, for the sake of mission.

It's no secret that GAFCON and GSFA have differences in strategy when it comes to engaging the Anglican Communion. Gafcon bishops and churches absented themselves from the Lambeth Conference of Bishops 2022 in conscientious protest of false teaching. Global South bishops and churches chose to go and provide a biblically-faithful witness, and with visible differentiation from that false teaching, especially during Holy Communion.

Note the gracious spirit in which Archbishop Badi acknowledges this: "Not all Global South Provinces went to The Lambeth Conference 2022 (LC22) for reasons of conscience." (Emphasis added). By publicly recognizing Gafcon's absence as a matter of conscience, such grace amid differences opened doors of cooperation. As one senior Gafcon leader expressed to me, "The power of Global South's presence at LC2022 amplifies the power of our [Gafcon's] absence." Such gracious cooperation begets gracious cooperation!

The Global South archbishops and bishops went to Lambeth Conference 2022 to re-affirm Lambeth Resolution 1.10 (1998) as the official Anglican Communion teaching on marriage and human sexuality. They were prevented from doing by the Archbishop of Canterbury and the organizers and structure of this Lambeth Conference. Undeterred, the Global South was able to have a mechanism for bishops at the Conference to voluntarily 'sign up' electronically to a Resolution that re-affirms 'Lambeth 1.10' (found here: GSFA resolution to reaffirm Lambeth 1.10) and have the results professionally validated. So, in the spirit of gracious cooperation, despite differences of strategy among biblically-faithful Anglican leaders, Archbishop Badi extends this gracious invitation to cooperation for the sake of healing the Church and fulfilling Christ's Great Commission:

"The GSFA Steering Committee will follow through this process in 2023 by inviting Primates and bishops who did not attend LC22 to also re-affirm Lambeth 1.10."

In 2023, we need leaders at every level of the Church who will follow the example of the GSFA Steering Committee. We need followers of Jesus Christ at every level of the Church who will walk in the light as Jesus did (I John 1:7-9) and who will seek to work together in every way possible to pursue holiness of life and mission in Christ, together.

May that be our prayer, and the longing of our hearts, for our Church in 2023.