The time has come for another change.

This will be the last regular weekly front page update. The site is not shutting down -- all inside pages will continue to be updated with the latest links and news -- more frequently than ever. And it will continue to cover live events and breaking news... but this will be my last weekly essay on this page. In the fall, this front page will be redesigned to be a more effective menu for the updated inside pages.

There are several reasons for this:

1. I'm completely out of time. My day job is getting very, very busy. You may have noticed that some weeks I wasn't able to find a spare moment to update the front page at all, and I believe that if one is going to do something, one does it right and reliably.

2. The volume of email was just getting entirely out of hand. Last week, I averaged 100 emails EACH DAY from the site, and, if you've ever emailed me, you'll know I'm not one to delete messages without replying, even if it's only a quick hello. Nevertheless, emails were taking me several weeks to respond to. (The dozens of very hateful emails from ultra-conservative groups didn't help, though I found the authors' comments more amusing than troublesome.)

3. When I started Anglicans Online! nearly three years ago (with all of four links!), it was the only online source of news and links from the Anglican community. Now there are more options and sources of more timely news -- though, to brag for a moment, I still believe we have the most comprehensive collection of links, thanks to the continued hard work of the page editors!

You readers have been very, very supportive. For instance, when my friend Skye was gravely ill and I asked for a few postcards from around the world to cheer her up, I received more than a hundred for her -- everything from beautiful long letters to a massive Get Well Soon card from a Sunday School, complete with red shiny angels. (Skye was moved to tears when she received the box of them all, and soon made a recovery nothing short of miraculous. She's travelling to Mexico this week to work on a medical missions team.)

Remember, the site is not closing -- its inside pages are continuing to be updated regularly with new parish and resource listings, and we'll provide coverage of major Anglican events, such as the coming Lambeth conference and Canadian General Synod in 1998, when developments warrant. (That reminds me -- I'm looking for a new page editor to handle the voting booth -- if you have an hour free every week and are interested in volunteering, please let me know!)

I know that with your continued support, this "next phase" in the life of Anglicans Online! will be a positive one!