Online Anglican Worship Services

 Out of curiosity, I have long had an interest in the liturgical services available online. At times, this general interest has been more personal, such as during an illness, during bad weather, or during the pandemic. More recently, living in the rural Appalachian mountains and advancing in age, it has become harder to drive the long distances required to attend traditional Anglican liturgies. So I continue online explorations. 

Unfortunately, there are often two main difficulties. First, there do not seem to be that many traditional liturgies posted on a regular basis. Some parishes post sporadically, and some parishes that have posted in the past have ceased to post. Some do not post any complete services but only excerpts such as sermons. Secondly, those services that are posted are often problematic. There are often technical issues such as poor connections, poor equipment, or bad camera angles. In particular, sound is a recurring issue. Some churches that I generally admire post streamed services that are hard to listen to. The music may come through but the readings from the steps or lectern do not; some readings may come through while the proclamation of the Gospel from the aisle does not; some parts may be audible while what is said from the pulpit or altar is garbled. In many cases, the audio issues make the effort too frustrating to pursue.

Despite such drawbacks, recently I have heard two traditional examples of the Eucharist that seem worthwhile. One is from St. Matthew's ACC in Newport Beach, CA (https://www.youtube.com/@stmatthewsnewport). Another is St. John's APA in Greensboro, NC (https://www.facebook.com/stjohnsgso), which has recently upgraded its streams. For the traditional Daily Office, I have not come across regular or consistent video examples, but Cradle of Prayer (https://cradleofprayer.org) does have good audio recordings. There are probably other examples that I have yet to discover, but this does seem to be an area where traditional Anglicans could make greater efforts.