Here is an article from the Spring edition of European Anglicans, which focused on the theme of Mission and Growth.

It was a bit of a gamble for the Revd David Phillips when he launched a brand-new church near Amsterdam in the Netherlands. 

Would anyone want to come? Would this church be the sort of thing people were looking for? 

It turned out David’s sense that God was leading him to plant a church in a particular area was tapping into something because 18 months on he is leading a growing new congregation and has guided six of them through confirmation. 

David explained; “I had a long-standing wonder in my mind about Amsterdam and setting up a High church, an Anglican High church there, not to compete but to be an addition to what is there, which is more low church.” 

After finishing his time at a church in Utrecht, in August 2021, David paused to reassess where God might be leading him and his family next. 

“I have often done that between posts,” he said. “I had a sense of call to continue to be in the Netherlands, my wife is Dutch and her family are here.” 

David, who trained as a chemical engineer, is originally from Ottawa, Canada. He was ordained in the Anglican Church of Canada in 1995 and has served as a parish priest in the far north of Quebec, as an Archdeacon in Saskatchewan, then as a parish priest in Nova Scotia, Palermo, Sicily, and most recently in Utrecht. 

It was a chance meeting with Bishop David Hamid in Canada that helped connect David with the Diocese of Europe and following a sabbatical he ended up ministering in Sicily and then in the Netherlands where he met Daniëlle, a former missionary in Thailand. Five years ago, Daniëlle and David were married, and they now have a 16-month-old daughter, called Eva. 

While he was still wondering about the idea of a church plant, David was approached by someone who asked him about having a church in the Het Gooi region – to the east of Amsterdam. It is an area between other churches, home to many international people and where there are several schools teaching in English.  

David said that the idea for the new church began to move forward after he had the green light from various people he approached, including the bishop and other local chaplains. He was encouraged when he spoke to the chaplain for All Saints Anglican Church in Amersfoort, the Revd Grant Crowe, to hear he had also been praying about a church plant in that area. 

“We had somebody who offered funding to get it established, so it all came together to allow it to happen and in September 2022 the first services began,” David said. 

The new Church of the Ascension has been set up as a daughter church of All Saints, Amersfoort. David said, “We are offering something very different. We are more traditional in our music, in our theology and in our sacramental life.” 

The church is theologically conservative and liturgically traditional, in the classical Anglican High Church tradition. David said, “We use the Book of Common Prayer (contemporary language) with variations, as allowed in Common Worship.  We place a high value on the Word of God written and the sacramental life in our ongoing conversion to Christ.  Ascension fills a gap in the liturgical and ecclesial diversity of Anglican churches in the Netherlands.”   

“We've been on a pilgrimage as a church,” he said. “We began as a house church in September 2022, and then moved to a community centre in October and November, with Sunday evening services. In December, we moved into St Vitus Old Catholic Church in Hilversum.  In February last year, we moved to the Seventh Day Adventist Church in Hilversum, where we have greater flexibility for worship times, and now have weekly Sunday 10 am services of Sung Holy Communion.” 

David said; “It requires some setup, as we have to lift the altar onto blocks and put on the altar frontals because we have a different tradition. On a good Sunday, we could have 45 if everyone came on the same day – but on average it is close to 30.” 

The congregation is a mix of ages from children to older people, with the majority of them Dutch. 

“What we have found in the Netherlands is that there are people coming to Anglican churches from both the Catholic and Protestant traditions.  

“On the Protestant side, they may have been unchurched for a while, but have been put off by Calvinist and legalistic churches that hindered their connection with God. 

“They come into the Anglican church and can hear words like ‘righteousness’ and ‘judgement’ in English without the baggage. They like being more involved – standing, sitting, singing and praying, rather than a very long sermon with a little bit of music and prayer on either side. 

“People have said they wanted a more sacramental church, that celebrates the eucharist more than four times a year. We provide a reformed catholic “in-between”, which they find good and the musical tradition is also helpful and a draw. 

“Some Roman Catholics come who have been injured in some way by their church and they find it comfortable because they recognise the liturgy. 

“But we are not trying to draw people out of other churches. Our primary aim is those who’ve never heard the gospel, unchurched Christians, and internationals seeking an English-speaking church,” he said. 

David said he had been encouraged by three teenagers who wanted to be baptised and decided to become confirmed last year. 

“I asked if they were interested in baptism, but they weren’t sure, so we went through a catechism together and they were surprised that they were interested and, yes, they would be baptised.” 

David was able to use the full immersion baptism pool in the church for their baptism and they attended confirmation classes with their parents, who were also confirmed. 

“We had six people confirmed in Amsterdam last October,” he said. “I think ultimately it is the Holy Spirit moving people to be baptised and confirmed – the young people said it was through the conversations, questions and engagement during the confirmation classes that convinced them to be baptised. 

“I think there is a desire for something more profound than what they are getting from the culture, a deep understanding of our hope and a pilgrimage they can enter into. Ascension Church is about our ascending into the life of God and I think they are interested in that.” 

Along with services David has run study nights on several topics and included a movie night too.  

He said, “The three young people who were confirmed are now serving at the altar and helping with the setup and taking down for each service. 

“I think the fields are white for the harvest and people cannot continue without some higher perspective on life – the perspective that includes looking to God.” 

David hopes to encourage more local people to the church and hopes to let people know through the local media and social media. Many of his current congregation found the church by searching online. 

“My hope is that I can be more full-time in the future when Eva is a little older and that we can be an independent chaplaincy within five years. Ultimately, we’re looking for a church building that can be a more permanent base and a building with more beauty.