The religious life of the country is more shaped by people than we often like to say. The refrain in evangelical circles that only Jesus matters is only true in ecstasy. The reality is people shape our modes and opinions. We use them to help our context.
Former Archbishop Rowan Williams is responsible in part for popularising the notable characters that make English religious practice stronger. He draws on them for our own time because similar virtues are needed as the same vices are around.
The standout characters that shaped early Anglicanism still ring true today, as do a growing number of ‘modern’ saints who writ large our sense of injustice, and exhaustion in the world. They frame our tumultuous times completely.
