The Diocese of the Mid-Atlantic is thrilled to congratulate winners of the 2023 Archbishop’s Annual Summer Essay Contest: The Venerable Canon Justin Murff (currently serving as Interim Rector at Incarnation Anglican in Williamsburg, VA) and Todd Milton, parishioner at Church of the Good Shepherd in Lynchburg, VA.

For three consecutive years, the essay winners have hailed from our Diocese. Your writings continue to impress and inspire us. (Read about the 2021 and 2022 winners.)

In May 2023, the Most Reverend Dr. Foley Beach, Archbishop and Primate of the Anglican Church in North America, invited entrants to submit essays for the 2023 Archbishop’s Annual Summer Essay Contest.

THE CHALLENGE

In April 2023, 1,300 Anglicans from around the world gathered in Kigali, Rwanda, at the Global Anglican Future Conference (GAFCON) to chart a new course for Global Anglicanism. The final Conference statement (the Kigali Commitment) calls for “resetting” the Anglican Communion on the foundation of Biblical authority and classic Anglican principles of doctrine, discipline, and worship, as articulated in the Jerusalem Declaration (2008). Read more about the contest here.

The winner in the Clergy Category is: The Venerable Canon Justin Murff
The Venerable Canon Justin Murff serves as the Archdeacon for International Affairs in the Jurisdiction of the Armed Forces and Chaplaincy. He also serves as Canon to the Archbishop for Middle East and North African Affairs and is the Executive Director of the Anglican Office for Government and International Affairs. He is currently the interim rector at Incarnation Anglican Church in Williamsburg, VA.
Read his essay, “What Does It Mean to be a Global Anglican Today?”

The winner in the Lay Category is: Todd Milton
Todd Milton is the owner of Milton Construction Company in Appomattox, Virginia. He is a graduate of Radford University and continues to enjoy learning as an avid reader and reflective observer of life. A rookie Anglican, he is a member of Church of the Good Shepherd in Lynchburg, Virginia.
Read his essay, “An Anglican Walks Into Elevation Church”