The Community of Saint Anselm is an

Anglican religious order Anglican religious orders are communities of men or women (or in some cases mixed communities of both men and women) in the Anglican Communion who live under a common rule of life. The members of religious orders take vows which often include ...

of young people, devoted to prayer, study and service to the poor. It is based at

Lambeth Palace Lambeth Palace is the official London residence of the Archbishop of Canterbury. It is situated in north Lambeth, London, on the south bank of the River Thames, south-east of the Palace of Westminster, which houses Parliament, on the opposite ...

in London, home of the

Archbishop of Canterbury The archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and a principal leader of the Church of England, the ceremonial head of the worldwide Anglican Communion and the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Canterbury. The current archbishop is Justi ...

. It consists of an annually replaced 16 residential members from around the world, and around 20 non-residential members who live and work in the London area. Members may be aged 20–35. The community is dedicated to

Saint Anselm Anselm of Canterbury, OSB (; 1033/4–1109), also called ( it, Anselmo d'Aosta, link=no) after his birthplace and (french: Anselme du Bec, link=no) after his monastery, was an Italian Benedictine monk, abbot, philosopher and theologian of the ...

, and is under the patronage of the current

, the ''

primus inter pares ''Primus inter pares'' is a Latin phrase meaning first among equals. It is typically used as an honorary title for someone who is formally equal to other members of their group but is accorded unofficial respect, traditionally owing to their sen ...

'' of the

Anglican Communion The Anglican Communion is the third largest Christian communion after the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches. Founded in 1867 in London, the communion has more than 85 million members within the Church of England and other ...

. The archbishop serves as the

abbot Abbot is an ecclesiastical title given to the male head of a monastery in various Western religious traditions, including Christianity. The office may also be given as an honorary title to a clergyman who is not the head of a monastery. The fem ...

, assisted by a

prior Prior (or prioress) is an ecclesiastical title for a superior in some religious orders. The word is derived from the Latin for "earlier" or "first". Its earlier generic usage referred to any monastic superior. In abbeys, a prior would be l ...

, and the community abides by a

Benedictine , image = Medalla San Benito.PNG , caption = Design on the obverse side of the Saint Benedict Medal , abbreviation = OSB , formation = , motto = (English: 'Pray and Work') , foun ...

-inspired Rule of Life. The Community of Saint Anselm is of an

ecumenical Ecumenism (), also spelled oecumenism, is the concept and principle that Christians who belong to different Christian denominations should work together to develop closer relationships among their churches and promote Christian unity. The adjec ...

nature; part of its purpose is to bring people from different countries and different denominations together, and four members of the Catholic

Chemin Neuf Community The Chemin Neuf Community (french: Communauté du Chemin Neuf) is a Catholic community with an ecumenical vocation. Formed from a charismatic prayer group in 1973, it has 2,000 permanent members in 30 countries, and 12,000 people serving in the co ...

live with and support the community. The quasi-monastic institute was founded in September 2015 at the initiative of the Archbishop of Canterbury,

Justin Welby Justin Portal Welby (born 6 January 1956) is a British bishop who is the 105th Archbishop of Canterbury. He has served in that role since 2013. Welby was previously the vicar of Southam, Warwickshire, and then Bishop of Durham, serving for jus ...

, who stated his intention "that Lambeth Palace be not so much a historic place of power and authority, but a place from which blessing and service reach to the ends of the earth". Part of the rationale for the new community was a desire to meet the needs of young people considering a monastic path but reluctant to embark upon a potentially lifelong commitment. The American theologian

Stanley Hauerwas Stanley Martin Hauerwas (born July 24, 1940) is an American theologian, ethicist, and public intellectual. Hauerwas was a longtime professor at Duke University, serving as the Gilbert T. Rowe Professor of Theological Ethics at Duke Divinity School ...

was cited as an influence on the new initiative. Comparisons have been drawn to a

gap year A gap year, also known as a sabbatical year, is typically a year-long break before or after college/university during which students engage in various educational and developmental activities, such as travel or some type of regular work. Gap yea ...

, though this analogy was not promoted by the archbishop's chaplain,

Jo Bailey Wells Joanne Caladine Bailey Wells (née Bailey; born 24 June 1965) is a British Anglican bishop, theologian, and academic. Since 29 June 2016, she has been the Bishop of Dorking, a suffragan bishop in the Diocese of Guildford. Previously, she was a ...

, who was instrumental in establishing the community. In 2018 Welby said of the community, "it’s grown: it’s developed, it’s got much deeper roots, it’s wonderful — and we’re seeing other communities growing up in other places".

References

External links

Community of Saint Anselm
official website {{coord, 51.4954, -0.1201, display=title Anglican orders and communities Anglican religious orders established in the 21st century Houses in the London Borough of Lambeth Anglican ecumenism Christian ecumenical organizations

See also

References

External links