According to Archbishop Foley Beach, the Anglican primate of North America, the Anglican Church of the future must be a repenting church. The Gospel itself begins with repentance: “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Matthew 3:2). In his address at the 2023 Global Anglican Futures Conference, the archbishop highlighted personal repentance, exemplified in confession within the Anglican liturgy. But he also specified the need for ecclesiastical repentance.

Ecclesiastical repentance is scary because it requires admitting that the church, the visible source of authority and truth we look to in this world, has failed. Dying to one’s self, repenting, and seeking forgiveness are the normative patterns of the Christian life, but we often shun this pattern as a church body because of its implications—because of our fear. ….