The Rev. Canon Ellis English Brust is Chief Operating Officer and Chaplain to the President of the American Anglican Council (AAC) headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. Canon Brust is committed to proclaiming the Good News of God in Christ; to upholding traditional Christian teaching; and to implementing the apostolic model of equipping the saints for works of ministry through evangelism, discipleship, worship, personal spiritual growth and stewardship. He has a passionate desire to serve Jesus Christ and the church as an effective and visionary leader.

In his current position, Canon Brust oversees the day-to-day operations, strategic planning, resource development and spiritual oversight of the AAC, as well as providing pastoral care to the staff. Canon Brust also represents the AAC in its domestic and international diplomatic ministries. Prior to joining the AAC, he was Canon to the Ordinary for the Episcopal Diocese of Florida, where he assisted Bishop Stephen Jecko in administration, strategic planning and congregational development of the 75 churches in the diocese. Ordained in 1984, he has served parishes in Midland, Crockett, Katy and Longview, Texas, and has been elected and appointed to numerous diocesan and community leadership positions.

Canon Brust holds a master’s in divinity from Virginia Theological Seminary and a bachelor’s degree from Bethany College, Lindsborg, Kansas. He has written devotions for Bible Reading Fellowship and other publications and is a frequent retreat leader and parish consultant. Canon Brust has been a conference speaker in the United States, United Kingdom, Cuba and Nigeria. He is married to Cynthia, a native of Winnsboro, South Carolina; they have two children: Rebecca, 20, a senior at Converse College; and William, 17, a junior in high school. Canon Brust enjoys reading, writing, music, golf, spending time with his family, and relaxing at their cottage in western North Carolina.

I was born June 6, 1958 in Kansas City, Missouri, the younger of two children. Raised in an active Episcopalian home and with grandparents nearby, I had support and encouragement from both family and church. I hold an M.Div. from Virginia Theological Seminary (1984) and a B.A. from Bethany College, Lindsborg, Kansas (1980). My wife, Cynthia and I met in 1983 when she was Press Secretary for then South Carolina Congressman Carroll Campbell. We were married at St. John's Episcopal Church, Winnsboro, SC, on August 4, 1984. We have two children, Rebecca, a senior at Converse College in Spartanburg, SC, and William, a home schooled high school junior. My résumé will detail my professional career, but to summarize, I have been privileged to be serve four congregations, as a diocesan Canon and currently as Chief Operating Officer for a growing international ministry. In addition to my professional responsibilities, I have enjoyed writing devotions for Bible Reading Fellowship and other publications. I have also served frequently as a parish consultant and retreat leader as well as making presentations at conferences in the United States, United Kingdom, Cuba and Nigeria. In addition to writing, I enjoy reading, music, golf, fishing, spending time with my family and relaxing at our cottage in Western North Carolina.

2) Please give your spiritual autobiography. (Answer may be up to four pages)

I was blessed to be raised in a Christian home where worship and activities in our local Episcopal Church were part of the ebb and flow of weekly life. Some of my fondest childhood memories are of Sunday school, the Boys' Choir and being in church with my parents and sister. While I responded to the invitation to a personal faith in Jesus Christ as a young teen, God used those formative years to prepare my heart to respond at the right moment.

Shortly after my eighth birthday, I was hit by a car while riding my bicycle. The injury to my left leg resulted in numerous corrective surgeries over the next six years, and I still wear a corrective "lift" on my left shoe. God used this experience to further form and shape my faith as well as my understanding about the Church. One surgery took place over the Christmas holiday and, for the only time in my life, I missed Christmas Eve services. I insisted that my family attend church even though I was in the hospital. I was awakened very early on Christmas morning by our associate rector who came to visit me. He related that the Church had prayed for me and that the Boys' Choir was not the same without me there. He was with me only a few minutes, offered a brief prayer, and went home to be with his family. As he left my hospital room, I recall thinking that I hoped to be the kind of man who would visit someone in the hospital on Christmas morning - it was the first time I recall thinking about ordained ministry. But I was also to learn something about the priesthood of all believers that same day.

Late in the afternoon I heard the distinctive sound of a Boys Choir singing down the hall and moving closer to my room. Many of the choir members had conspired to surprise me on Christmas day with caroling. I was amazed that my friends and their families would give me this great Christmas present. They actually enlisted me to share the gift with the rest of the hospital as they wheeled me on a gurney, and we caroled on every floor. That Christmas day was one of the most significant discipleship moments in my life, teaching me that a great deal of pastoral care comes from the entire community of the Church. I was confirmed that spring with many of my fellow choir members.

Two years later, I attended a non-denominational Bible study with my sister which met in the basement of a Presbyterian church. That night I witnessed worship, preaching and teaching as I had never experienced in the Episcopal Church. This opened my eyes to a dimension of the church I knew nothing about - where worship, preaching and teaching were outside a formal liturgical setting. There, I witnessed people from all races, ages, and conditions of life worshipping joyfully and exhibiting a passion for telling others about Jesus Christ. It was in this setting that my childhood knowledge about the Lord and His Church was transformed into a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. The evangelical presentation at this weekly Bible study framed much of my commitment to personal evangelism and discipleship.

Throughout my high school years, I was active in both my local Episcopal Church (worship, youth group, missions) and on Sunday evenings with the non-denominational Bible study community. My thoughts about the priesthood on Christmas morning years earlier were always there, but I was not yet ready to express a sense of call to others. It was in each of these two complimentary Christian communities that the roots of my faith grew strong to carry me through the challenges of college.

My college years were not memorable for spiritual growth - I was more attentive to my academic and social life than to spiritual development, but as I have said, the roots of faith were there and strong. While I had wandered from the Lord, He had never wandered from me. A turning point in my growth as a Christian occurred on Easter Sunday my senior year. My roommate and I attended Easter services at the Episcopal Cathedral in Salina, Kansas. No sooner had the organ swelled with the processional hymn then my knees buckled, I knelt on the kneeler, and I wept. It was the joy of God's people singing the miracle of the Resurrection and the majesty of Easter worship through which I knew God was calling to me. Without hearing anything more than "Hail Thee Festival Day," I knew that my heavenly Father had called me back home to Him and His Church. I felt like the Prodigal Son, undeserving, but welcomed home and experiencing God's amazing grace. Even before the celebrant had proclaimed the Easter acclamation, the life, death and resurrection of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ became something which I received afresh at a deeper level then I had ever known. That evening I called my parents to tell them that I would like to talk with our rector and the bishop about a call to ordained ministry. My parents' comment was, "We've been expecting this."

Spring break was the next week, and I was able to meet with both my rector and bishop. I entered the ordination process in the Diocese of Northwest Texas and began Virginia Seminary in 1981 after working a year as a Counselor at St. Francis' Boys' Homes. Seminary was generally a good time for me. The academic work, field work and fellowship were about what I expected they would be, and I was growing in my faith and formation for ordained ministry.

In the fall semester of my senior year, I had a dream and experience which became the touchstone of my Christian life. In the dream, I had died and gone to heaven (which had the odd appearance of a small West Texas town). There I was welcomed by many loved ones, but I did not see the Lord. So vivid was this dream that I awoke to an overwhelming sense of the presence of God in my dorm room. As I reflected on the dream, I realized it was about the death of the young man who entered seminary and the new life of an ordained minister of the Gospel. When this revelation came to me, I felt hands gently resting on my shoulders, comforting and assuring me. I was not frightened, but I was in that moment humbled and in fear of the Lord more than at any moment in my life. The Church would ordain me later that year, but in many ways, it was in this moment that I understood the fullness of God's call on my life.

Twenty-one years of ordained ministry feels as though it has flown by. My growth as a Christian and priest continues to happen daily - through Bible study, prayer, mission and ministry, worship, opportunities to share my faith. Sometime the challenges and my failures have taught me more than the victories or successes. As I husband, I am constantly humbled that God's grace and provision brought Cynthia into my life - a Christian of deep faith and conviction who constantly helps me to grow as a man, husband, father and Christian leader. As a father, I am profoundly thankful to God for the gift of our children as I witness their growing in faith and service to the Kingdom of God in ways that make me thankful and joyful.

My life in Christ has taken me to places I never could have imagined - spiritually, emotionally, relationally as well as geographically. The close relationships developed in fourteen years of parish ministry confirmed what I learned of the Church as a young boy, that it should be a place of extended family, care and personal discipleship. My years as a diocesan canon supported my experience from my teen years that the church should take us beyond our local place of worship, where we experience the depth and breadth of the Kingdom of God which is made up of a variety of people seeking to grow in mission, ministry and service to Jesus Christ. My current ministry has clarified and solidified my conviction that the proclamation of the Gospel of Jesus Christ and the defense of the orthodox Christian faith cannot be separated from one another. The church is truly a world-wide catholic community, bound together by the work of the Holy Spirit across ecclesiastical, geographic, racial and political boundaries. The mission for my life is, I believe, the same as it is for all Christians - to work to fulfill the Great Commandments and Great Commission in the power of the Holy Spirit. To this end, I am committed to growing daily as a Christian and ordained leader in the Kingdom of God and remaining open to the next place this Christian journey takes me.

3) Jesus said, "Who do you say I am?" What does this mean to you?

The 16th Chapter of Matthew records Jesus' most important question to the disciples and to us, "Who do you say I am?" In an attempt to test Jesus, the Pharisees and Sadducees demanded signs from heaven (Mt. 16: 1-4). Jesus then warned the disciples "to beware of the leaven [teaching] of the Pharisees and Sadducees." (Mt. 16: 5-12). Against this backdrop of testing and warning, Jesus asks the disciples, "Who do you say that I am?" Peter's Holy Spirit-inspired response is, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God." Jesus then proclaims that the rock of faith is the confession of His being the Christ, the Messiah.

Christianity is fundamentally the confession and profession of the person and work of Jesus, the Christ, the Son of the living God, and not simply following a set of teachings from a man or prophet. Obedience to the teachings and precepts of Holy Scripture comes from obedience to Jesus the living Word of God. Individually and corporately, Christians must constantly answer and ask this fundamental question of faith, "Who do you say that I am? (He is?)" Our answer is lived out daily, not just on the day we give our life to Jesus. Our response is witnessed in continually submitting to the authority of Holy Scripture, because we know and receive Jesus as the Word of God. Answering the question, "Who do you say that I am?" is for me the starting and ending place to our life and ministry as disciples of Jesus Christ.

4) What is your favorite scripture, and why?

Joshua 1:1-9 is the passage of Scripture which has challenged, guided, comforted and encouraged me more than any other. Joshua is called into the key position of leadership at a significant transitional moment in history. As a young boy, probably no more than 12, he escaped slavery following the mighty hand of God and the charismatic leadership of Moses. For forty years, he and the children of Israel followed the "pillar of fire and cloud" through the desert to the edge of the Promised Land. As a spy and soldier, he proved himself as a leader and knew that the Promised Land was good and could be conquered in the power of the Lord. Upon Moses' death, he is thrust into the head leadership position. At this time of crisis and transition, God speaks to him words of direction, comfort, encouragement and commandment.

I have read this passage seated at my desk on the first morning of every new ministry I have served. I recall in God's words to Joshua that there was someone in this position before me whom God had now called elsewhere, and I give thanks for the person's life and ministry and take comfort in the words, "As I was with Moses, so I will be with you." God's message to Joshua challenges me to remember that the mission is always the Lord's and my call is to be obedient to that mission on a daily basis with strength and courage. Staying daily in God's word will effect where I go, the way I lead, the success of the mission. Finally, I take council in the Lord's word to Joshua, "Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous." Strength and courage are not something we work up on our own, but are qualities of a leader continually and humbly submitted to the will and purpose of God. It is only from time on our knees and in God's word that we will be "prosperous and successful" wherever we go.

5) How do you understand the Bible to be the inspired word of God?

The Bible is the written Word of God; the record of God's revelation to humanity; how He has worked in, through and for His people and intervened in history for our redemption. As 1 Timothy 3: 16-17 tells us, "All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction and for training in righteousness." The Ecumenical Councils were convened to champion the "essentials of faith" outlined in Scripture in light of challenges to orthodoxy. The results of the Councils were expressed in the Nicene and Apostles' creeds, both of which are rooted in Scripture. The Bible itself testifies to its power and authority as God's revelation (Deuteronomy 8:3; II Samuel 22:31; Isaiah 55:11; Matthew 4:4; John 17:17), especially for conversion: "For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart" (Hebrews 4:12). This promise of the inspiration and authority of the Word of God is articulated in Isaiah 55:11, "My word goes out from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it." If we reject any part of the precepts or revelation found in Scripture, we are rejecting the authority of almighty God who caused the word to be written and empowered it for revelation, conviction, exhortation and instruction through His Holy Spirit.

The longer I walk in my Christian faith, the more I trust both the inspiration and authority of the Word of God as enduring, eternal and true. There are those in our day who have said: "We wrote the Bible, we can re-write it." Such statements should be countered with the very words of Revelation 22:18-19 that adding to or taking away from the word of God is sure to bring calamity. A consistent lesson of Holy Scripture and history is that obedience to the Word of God brings great blessing, while disobedience to it brings only sorrow and eventually separation from God. Those called by the church and ordained by God to guard the faith have a responsibility to rebuke and correct any teaching which diminishes the inspiration and authority and teaching of the Word of God in the life of the church. May Joshua's word to the children of Israel be authentically on the lips of every Christian leader, "As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord." (Joshua 24: 15)

6) What is the significance of Jesus' death and resurrection?

The entire march of salvation history, from Creation to our own day, finds its fulcrum in the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Christ's death and resurrection provide the one and only means of salvation for sinful humanity; these events are literal not allegory. Challenges to the reality of Jesus' death and resurrection have existed since the first century and continue to our own day. Orthodoxy has always upheld, and we must continue to teach and proclaim, the historic reality of the physical death and bodily resurrection of Jesus. As Paul wrote in I Corinthians 15:14 "And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith." At the Fall, God began the plan of salvation and restoration for sinful humans which would lead to His only begotten Son's dying and being resurrected to provide redemption and new life for us. "Significance" is a word which cannot fully convey the meaning of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ - rather I would say it is the revelation of Jesus' death and resurrection which brings significance, hope, transformation and salvation to "whoever believes in him" that they "should not perish, but have eternal life." (John 3:16)

The mission and ministry of the Church is centered upon proclamation of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. The unique message of Christianity is God's intervention in human history and specifically in the Incarnation for the salvation of fallen humanity through the Cross and empty tomb. Every other world religion places the onus of redemption on human works in some way - through laws, or gaining wisdom, or by some other "works." The joy and hope of the Gospel is that "God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us." (Romans 5:8). "We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life." (Romans 6:4). As the Church clearly and passionately proclaims this message of salvation to a sinful, broken and hurting world, the full revelation and significance of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ can be known and obeyed.

7) What part does prayer play in your life and that of your family?

Prayer has been part of mine and my family's lives from childhood. I recall my parents and grandparents teaching me to pray at bedtime, meals and in church. When I became a father, one of my personal goals was that Rebecca and William would always know that their earthly father "lifted them up" before our heavenly Father. Cynthia and I have prayed together since our first date, and the first and last thing we do each day is pray together, even when our travels find us in different cities or countries. Even though I try to make the practice of prayer central to my life, I believe that prayer may be the most under-utilized gift God has given to Christians.

Throughout Scripture, we are instructed and given powerful examples of the effectiveness of prayer in the lives of God's people. Whether it was Adam and Eve talking with God in the Garden of Eden, or our Lord praying in the Garden of Gethsemane; Aaron and Hur lifting Moses' hands in prayer to turn the tide of battle, or Paul admonishing us to cloth ourselves in the armor of God in prayer - the witness of Scripture is that mountains are moved, seas are parted, rough places are made smooth, stones are rolled away, the sick are healed and the dead are raised by the power of the Holy Spirit when God's people pray. We may use the Book of Common Prayer or our own words to express it, but prayer is the means of intimate and powerful communication with our Lord.

8) What is your position on the issues currently facing the Episcopal Church and the Anglican Communion?

The crisis in the Episcopal Church and Anglican Communion is part of a larger battle for the very soul of the church, a battle facing every denomination at some level. For my entire ordained ministry, ECUSA has been in a downward spiral, theologically and numerically. The presenting issues, which center on matters of human sexuality, often mask the deeper and more dangerous theological anomalies of the last 30 years which have led ECUSA to easily adopt moral and liturgical practices representing a clear departure from historic Christianity. While the approval to the episcopacy of a non-celibate homosexual and the tacit approval of blessings of same-sex unions at General Convention 2003 were the headline grabbers, the most telling symptom of our corporate departure from established Anglicanism was the failure of the House of Bishops to adopt Resolution B-001. This resolution, which failed by nearly 20 votes, attempted to endorse basic and historic Anglican doctrines such as the authority of Scripture and other precepts of faith as articulated in the 39 Articles of Religion and the Chicago-Lambeth Quadrilateral, as well as upholding the unique work and person of Jesus Christ (transformation and redemption).

In obedience to my ordination vows, I have sought to be faithful in the proclamation of the Gospel of Jesus Christ and to work for the reform and renewal of the Episcopal Church. Tragically, ECUSA has moved progressively further from the "faith once delivered" and seems dedicated to theological innovations contrary to Holy Scripture. The Windsor Report and Primates of the Anglican Communion have called ECUSA leadership to choose to walk together with the Communion or walk apart. I believe that a choice to "walk together" must be evidenced by true repentance as well as affirmation of foundational tenets of Christianity. In addition, the Episcopal Church must conform to the authoritative teaching of Scripture and the Communion on matters of sexuality (Lambeth 1.10) which will entail an absolute moratorium on all ordinations/consecrations of non-celibate homosexuals and blessings of same sex unions. Some bishops have declared that heresy is preferable to "schism." It is critical for us as faithful members of the worldwide Anglican Communion to realize that it is the leadership of ECUSA that has created and supported schism and that by nature of our baptismal covenant, each Christian is called to "...continue in the apostles teaching." I believe it is incumbent upon every individual (clergy and lay), congregation and diocese to "choose this day" whom they will serve. I support the Anglican Communion's moving forward in establishing a core covenant of theology and articulating the nature of "one, holy, catholic and apostolic church" in order to preserve orthodoxy and insure mutual accountability.

9)How do you understand the role of a bishop in the church today?

A dynamic faith in Jesus Christ nurtured through prayer, Bible study, and worship is foundational to the office of bishop. The role of the bishop in the church today is, as it has always been, to be a living example of the power of Jesus Christ to redeem and transform fallen humanity, to uphold and defend the faith once delivered, to cast and articulate a dynamic vision for mission and ministry, and to effectively lead the church to fulfill this vision in our rapidly changing world. A bishop is called to be the chief pastor for clergy and their families and should serve as a resource to laity. In addition, a bishop should be committed to making and forming disciples of Jesus Christ; recruiting, training and deploying Christian leaders (lay and ordained); the expansion of mission and ministry; and excellence in the administration and stewardship of all diocesan resources. Bishops also must be committed to upholding the historic Christian faith within the Anglican Communion, taking their place in the Councils of the Church.