Describing the development of Anglican religious life from post-Reformation rejection to nineteenth-century revival and modern renewal, this book argues that monastic communities enrich all churches by their witness to total commitment to God.

A. M. Allchin’s 1971 lecture at the Angelicum in Rome traced the development of Anglican religious life from post-Reformation rejection to nineteenth-century revival and modern renewal. It is as pertinent today as it was in the days following Vatican II. He argued that monastic communities, though not essential, enrich all churches by witnessing to prayer, unity, and total commitment to God. Rooted in Divine calling rather than human effort, they balance tradition and adaptation, serving both church and society while embodying spiritual freedom, communal life, and ecumenical significance.