Even as the Anglican Mission in The Americas marks its fifth anniversary at midsummer, it announces the affiliation of its 80th congregation—a new church plant in the Chicago area. Church of the Savior is a new and growing group of about 60 worshipers in West Chicago, a suburb about 35 miles west of the city that is itself poised for major growth and development as Chicagoland continues to grow westward.

Church of the Savior was started by some members who were part of another Anglican Mission congregation, Church of the Great Shepherd in Glen Ellyn, an area to the east, when that church was experiencing overcrowding. “We knew we couldn’t go to two services, so we talked about church planting with our Bishop, Sandy Greene, and the Rev. Lyle Dorsett, who was Rector of Great Shepherd at the time,” recalls the Rev. William Richardson, Rector of the new church. “A core of people began to pray about this possibility, and our conversations with about 25 churches in the region, as we were looking to rent facilities, led us to West Chicago.”

Church of the Savior is utilizing worship space at Faith Community Church for their weekly worship gatherings that take place on Saturday evenings. “That Saturday time is actually proving to be a draw for people. We encourage people to worship on Saturdays and observe Sabbath on Sundays” states the Rev. Richardson. “Our church offers an opportunity to resist the noise and busy-ness of our times. Contemplation is very important—but so is celebration.”

Bill Richardson and his wife Linda, a deacon in the Anglican Mission, pastored evangelical churches in the Chicago area over 20 years ago, but found themselves increasingly attracted by the Anglican way of faith. “We were definitely Evangelicals on the Canterbury Trail,” offered Richardson, recalling a popular book of that era by Robert Webber. The Richardsons became a part of Church of the Resurrection in Wheaton, then Church of the Great Shepherd when that launched in the late ‘90s.

The new church now has a great opportunity before it as it reaches out to a community that is dynamic and diverse, with about fifty percent of West Chicago comprised of people of Hispanic origin. The church does count Spanish speakers among its membership and is open to how best serve and reach out to the community.

The Anglican Church of the Savior joins other congregations in the Midwest Network of the Anglican Mission, including those in Chicagoland, Minnesota and Wisconsin that are seeking to plant and strengthen congregations as an inter-related group, drawing on the strengths of each other.

Rector Bill Richardson is pleased to be on this journey. “We’re delighted that God is building this new church, and we’re glad to be a part of the AMiA. We are intentional about the place of joy on this journey of life, and we’re excited to see what God will do through Church of the Savior.”

Anglican Church of the Savior worships Saturday evenings at 5pm at Faith Community Church, 910 Main Street in West Chicago. Bishop Sandy Greene will be worshiping with the new church on August 20th. For more information call 630-346-2668.

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