Wikipedia co-founder Larry Sanger has announced that he is planning to join the Anglican Church of North America (ACNA).
For many years Sanger was a “sceptic” of religion, but in February announced that he had become a Christian.
In an extensive blog post Sanger said that his objections to Christianity slowly fell away “one by one” and that the personal conduct of Christians, particularly on social media, influenced his view.
In 2019 he began reading the Bible and in 2020 he returned to God “quietly and uncomfortably”.
Now, in yet another lengthy blog post, Sanger has explained his reasons for joining the traditionalist ACNA.
One of the pillars of his decision is his belief in the Protestant idea of Sola Scriptura i.e. that the Bible is our only reliable source of information about matters pertaining to God.
This belief led him to “rule out Catholicism fairly quickly and Orthodoxy a little more slowly” due to their additional emphasis on non-biblical authorities, such as church traditions and councils.
Sanger said, “While I respect and love Catholics as my Christian brothers and sisters, I disagree with them on many other points, and sola scriptura is the fundamental one that ultimately explains the rest.”
On why he had chosen ACNA, Sanger said that “Anglicanism has a distinguished reputation as one of the most theologically serious denominations”.
However, he took aim at what he called the “dumbed-down Church”, saying that it was "widespread in Evangelicals" and "contrasts with Anglican intellectualism".
Liturgy, as well as serious thought about scripture were also a key component of Sanger’s decision: “Anglicans take their liturgy seriously. Defined by the classic Book of Common Prayer, it is—as I have discovered for myself—quite beautiful and inspiring. It ought to be so for any Christian, I think.”
In coming to his decision Sanger said he had examined a whole range of Christian denominations and traditions and considered the trends, strengths and weaknesses of all, before finally settling on ACNA.
“There are no perfect denominations. Yet I have concluded, not reluctantly but enthusiastically and after years of deliberation, that the ACNA is the best place for me," he said.
