I know some of my readers are not regular church goers, but I’d encourage you to persevere beyond the first few paragraphs, as there is a key point which needs to be made.
I attend a church which was built at the time of the Normans. In fact, the font is from that period. There have been changes to the building over time, but nearly all of it is prior to the Victorian era.
When I enter this space, I feel like I’m stepping into the past. In some way, I am communing with my ancestors. I feel the ‘chain of being’ pulling me back in time and concurrently, forward into the future. I sense my position in time and space.
When the service starts and the liturgy is spoken, I sense how the words call me back to the beginning of everything and help me look forward to the end, and then the New Heavens and New Earth. At this moment, the Church becomes a nexus point in my mind, where the distant past and the far future meet and have a conversation.
Anglo-Futurism is about learning from the English past, and looking forward to a space age future. Holding both extremes together in an Anglo-Futurist framework means they can have a conversation in the Present. A dialogue can occur.
Currently in the West, there is no dialogue. The Past is assumed to be backward, immoral and oppressive. Progressivism, the leading philosophy of our day, pushes on into the Future, assuming ‘things can only get better’. So in the Progressive mind, there is no need to listen to the wise sages of the Past. They can be wilfully ignored. The Present is untethered from the Past and along with it, the Future.
Without a dialogue with the Past, the Future then becomes chaotic. Without wisdom, the tried and tested ways of existence, then the Future becomes unbounded. This gives an illusion of freedom, but in reality, it allows the Deluge to break across the land and overwhelm the Present. A flood of confusion, meaninglessness and grave delusion.
AngloFuturism provides a framework through which we can have this dialogue. Where we can use the wisdom of the Past to help construct a Future which is safe and secure, a culture filled with hope, adventure and longevity.
Without this dialogue, the West walks into the darkness of the night. Hoping things will improve, though in actuality, this is simply blind faith.
That is so cool about the history of your church! I agree. The future must be rooted in the past because then we can make use of the lessons our predecessors learned and build on that foundation. Otherwise we are starting over from scratch - it would be a huge setback to discard all the wisdom they have garnered.
Thank you,.