Church of England cricketers beat a Vatican team on Friday in a historic match in support of a joint initiative to wipe out modern slavery and human trafficking. The Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, congratulated both sides and presented the trophy to winning captain Stephen Gray after the match, played in the shadow of Canterbury Cathedral at Kent County Cricket Ground. The match was organized to raise awareness and funds for the Global Freedom Network, a joint initiative between religious leaders including Pope Francis and the Archbishop of Canterbury which is committed to eliminating modern slavery and human trafficking across the world.
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Senior theologians in the Anglican Communion and Oriental Orthodox churches are to confirm an agreement on their understanding of Christ’s Incarnation.

The co-chairs and co-secretaries of the Anglican-Oriental Orthodox International Commission who met near Beirut, Lebanon last week reviewed responses to the 2002 Agreed Statement on Christology, which had been sent to the churches of the two church families for consideration.

The statement considered the question of how the two natures, human and divine, were united in one human being: Jesus Christ.
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“The biggest benefit of the project was my friendship with Sheikh Afifi. If I don’t see him for a few days, I always call him. I never dreamed that I would ever speak in a mosque, but through this friendship I’ve now shared at mosques in Alexandria and Cairo. “ Father Boutros Boutros, Coptic Priest in Alexandria.

The Imam-Priest exchange initiative for 2014 opened at Al Azhar al Shereef, at the invitation of the Grand Imam. The 30 imams and 30 priests who participated in the initiative in 2013 shared what they learnt and were presented with certificates.
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The Archbishop of Canterbury affirmed his commitment to the reconciliation of Eastern and Western churches during a meeting with His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew yesterday.

The Most Revd Justin Welby was meeting with Patriarch Bartholomew during a two-day visit to Istanbul.

During their meeting Archbishop Justin said that Patriarch Bartholomew had been “an example of peace and reconciliation, politically, with the natural world, and in your historic visit to the installation of His Holiness Pope Francis I.

“Such reconciliation [is] very dear to my heart and is one of my key priorities. It is the call of Christ that all may be one so that the world may see. I will therefore be taking back with me the warmth of your hospitality and also, after our discussions today and tomorrow, a renewed and refreshed focus for greater unity and closer fellowship. We want to carry the cross of our divisions, but be filled with the hope and joy that comes from the grace and the love of Jesus.”
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The Ecumenical Patriarch said today he hoped for a continuing exchange of Orthodox and Anglican students to aid the two Churches’ relationship.

His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, who occupies the First Throne of the Orthodox Christian Church, was speaking today during his welcome of the Anglican Communion’s spiritual head Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby.

He said, “In the past, the rapprochement between our two Churches has been greatly assisted by the exchange of students, and we trust that this will continue. Our Theological School at Halki used to offer scholarships to Anglicans, and when it is reopened – as will happen in the near future (so it may be hoped) – we shall certainly wish to revive this tradition.

“These exchange students have frequently gone on to become leaders in their respective Churches, and their early inter-Church experience has enabled them to further the cause of Christian unity in highly constructive ways.”

Archbishop Welby is on what has been described as an ‘intensive two-day visit’ that will include official reception in the Chamber of the Throne, and a discussion with the Synodical Committee for Inter-Christian Affairs.
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Archbishop David Moxon is now, formally, Archbishop Sir David Moxon – an honour he calls “a complete bolt out of the blue.”

In the New Year’s Honours he’s been appointed a Knight Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit “in recognition of his services to the Anglican Church.”

“I was very, very surprised,” he said today. “I genuinely don’t think of myself in that league at all.”

Archbishop Sir David Moxon – that will become his formal title – is presently in Raglan with his family, on holiday from his job in Rome as the Archbishop of Canterbury’s Representative to the Holy See, and Director of the Anglican Centre in Rome.

Before taking up his Rome appointment Archbishop David, 62, had already had carved out a stellar record in the Anglican Church in these islands.

He’d served as Bishop of Waikato for almost 20 years, and in 2006 he was chosen as the Archbishop of the New Zealand Dioceses – and therefore as one of the three Archbishops heading the Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia.
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The Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, has called for the Church to be ‘holy’ and ‘in unity’ as it proclaims the gospel in challenging circumstances around the world.

Archbishop Justin sent a video greeting to the Second Global Anglican Future (GAFCON) Conference, which is taking place in Nairobi this week. He told them that it was his prayer that they would ‘meet Jesus afresh with elation and joy’.

The Archbishop was unable to attend the GAFCON meeting because of previous commitments, including the baptism of Prince George today.

In his message, Archbishop Justin affirms the recent call by the Archbishop of Kenya, Dr Eliud Wabukala, who chairs the GAFCON Primates Council, for the Church to proclaim the gospel confidently.

To do this, Archbishop Justin says, ‘we need to be a Church that is holy’. That is a ‘massive challenge’ to churches in different contexts around the world, but is ‘absolutely critical to our proclamation of the gospel’.

To proclaim the gospel effectively, the Church must also be ‘in unity’, the Archbishop says. ‘It doesn’t mean being unanimous, all saying exactly the same thing in exactly the same way. It means that, as Jesus prays in John 17, that we demonstrate by our love for one another that Jesus is the Son of God and therefore people are drawn to believe in him. We’ve got to find ways of doing that and I don’t underestimate the challenge that is to all of us.’
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The Anglican-Lutheran International Co-ordinating Committee (ALICC) held its first meeting in the Cultural Centre Sofia, Helsinki, Finland from 19 to 25 September 2013, under the leadership of the Most Reverend Maurício Andrade, Primate of Brazil, and of Bishop Michael Pryse of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada. The meeting was hosted by the Lutheran World Federation with the generous assistance of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland.

The Co-ordinating Committee studied the mandate given by the Lutheran World Federation (LWF) and the Anglican Communion. The focus of this work is to monitor and encourage existing Anglican-Lutheran relations, as well as to advance co-operation between the two Churches in areas where there are not yet any formal agreements. To enable the Committee to function as an encourager as well as a catalyst, the Committee has begun a process of mapping agreements, initiatives and projects in different regions. This mapping project is an ongoing task for the Committee and we urge Churches, in both communions, to provide information to further this task.
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In the name of the Triune God, and with the blessing and guidance of our Churches, the International Commission for Anglican-Orthodox Theological Dialogue (ICAOTD) met in Novi Sad, Serbia during 4-11 September 2013 at the invitation of Patriarch Irinej of the Serbian Orthodox Church. The Commission is grateful for the generous hospitality extended by Bishop Irinej and the Diocese of Backa of which Novi Sad is the see city.

Continuing its focus on Christian anthropology, specifically what it means to be a human person created in the image and likeness of God, the Commission devoted significant efforts to the review of the draft of its joint theological work on the subject. Reflection on the theology of the glory of creation and the uniqueness of humanity in the created order drew the Commission into deep discussion. Further, the Commission worked at length on the specific expression of image and likeness, considering the thematic components of the subject, with particular attention to its scriptural basis. As part of the discussion of human relationships, the Commission observed that it is the teaching of all the Orthodox and Anglican churches that marriage is between a man and a woman. The draft text, which was developed through the studies of previous meetings, was enhanced at this meeting by contributions on the subjects of the human being in society; the human being as a social being; attaining personhood through community from a traditional African perspective; and repentance, transformation and holiness. The Commission agreed that a newly appointed drafting group would work with the existing draft for the next meeting, taking into account the many pertinent comments and theological considerations presented at this meeting.
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The Church of England’s General Synod has reaffirmed its commitment to women bishops and called, less than a year after the previous proposals were rejected, for new draft legislation to be introduced. It will be considered by the Synod in November 2013, with the aim of reaching the stage of Final Approval in July or November 2015.

This was the first time Synod members had met since November 2012, when the previous draft legislation narrowly failed to secure the requisite majority in the House of Laity, despite enjoying the support of 73% of the Synod’s members overall.

The Synod reached its decision at the end of this today’s debate, after its members had devoted much of Saturday to facilitated discussions on the options available. Introducing the debate, the Rt Revd Nigel Stock, Bishop of St Edmundsbury and Ipswich, who chaired the Working Group set up by the House of Bishops to advise on new legislative proposals, said, “I believe that option one, together with a mandatory mediation process and including as it does a declaration or, possibly, Act of Synod deserves to be taken very seriously as a means to provide the basis for securing the necessary majorities in the lifetime of this Synod.”
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Close to 1,000 Anglicans and Lutherans from across Canada will be gathering in Ottawa in July for what the Anglican Primate, Archbishop Fred Hiltz, says is an “historic and exciting moment” in church history.

For the first time since 2001, when they signed a declaration of full communion, the Anglican Church of Canada (ACC) and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada (ELCIC) will be holding a joint assembly from July 3-7 at the Ottawa Convention Centre.

With the theme of “Together for the love of the world,” it will be a meeting quite unlike any other meeting,” say Archbishop Hiltz and Lutheran National Bishop Susan Johnson.

Each church will still hold separate sessions to deal with elections and specific church matters but will join together for worship and issues of common interest.
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The Secretary General today announced the names of Anglican members who have agreed to serve on one of two international co-ordinating bodies.

Both the Anglican-Lutheran International Co-ordinating Committee (ALICC) and the Anglican-Old Catholic International Co-ordinating Council (AOCICC) reported to the Anglican Consultative Council meeting in Auckland, New Zealand in November 2012 and the ACC renewed their mandates.
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The final meeting of the Anglican-Methodist International Commission for Unity in Mission (AMICUM) took place Feb. 22 to March 1, in Ocho Rios, Jamaica, hosted by the Anglican Communion. Members of the Commission worshiped together morning and evening, and the Eucharist was celebrated according to both traditions.
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The future of Anglican-Roman Catholic relations is, in part, down to who will succeed Pope Benedict, according to the archbishop of Canterbury’s representative to the Holy See.

Responding to today’s surprise resignation of Pope Benedict XVI, the Very Rev. David Richardson said the implications for Anglican-Roman Catholic relations in the long term “will depend on who is elected to succeed him.”

However, Richardson, who is also director of the Anglican Centre in Rome, said that other relationships continue despite the change in leadership.
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In his final Thought for the Day this morning on BBC Radio 4, the Archbishop of Canterbury talks about the recent killings in Connecticut and discounts the argument often put forward that “it’s not guns that kill, it’s people” saying: “People use guns. But in a sense guns use people, too. When we have the technology for violence easily to hand, our choices are skewed and we are more vulnerable to being manipulated into violent action.”
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he following is the communiqué from the recent meeting of the Anglican Communion-Al Azhar Al Sherif Interfaith Dialogue. A PDF of the communiqué in English and Arabic is available here

The dialogue committee composed of a delegation from the Anglican Communion and from Al Azhar Al Sherif held its 10th Annual meeting in Cairo on 20 November 2012 corresponding to 6 Moharram 1434. This meeting was held under the auspices of the agreement signed between the Archbishop of Canterbury and the Grand Imam of Al Azhar on 30 January 2002 at Lambeth Palace, London, UK. These annual meetings aimed to promote cooperation and understanding between Christianity and Islam.
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The fourth meeting of the Anglican-Methodist International Commission for Unity in Mission (AMICUM) took place near Baltimore, Maryland, 10-16 February 2012, hosted by the World Methodist Council, at the Bon Secours Spiritual Center. Members of the Commission worshipped together morning and evening, and the Eucharist was celebrated according to both traditions.

The Commission spent time considering the ministry of oversight in a way that honours the traditions of both world families. It paid careful attention to how Anglicans and Methodists have expressed the form and understanding of mission, episcopal ministry, and apostolicity.
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The co-Chairmen and co-secretaries of the new phase of the Anglican-Roman Catholic International Commission (ARCIC III) have drawn up a plan for the first meeting of the Commission. This will be hosted by the Monastery of Bose, northern Italy, from 17 to 27 May 2011. The new phase of ARCIC’s work was mandated by Pope Benedict XVI and the Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams, at their meeting in Rome in November 2009.
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As the Lambeth Conference of 2008 comes to an end, I want to offer some further reflections of my own on what the bishops gathered in Canterbury have learned and experienced. Those of you who have been present here will be able to share your own insights with your people, but it may be useful for me to add my own perspectives as to where we have been led. For the vast majority of bishops, it seems, this has been a time when they have felt God to have been at work. The Conference was not a time for making new laws or for binding decisions; in spite of the way some have expressed their expectations, Lambeth Conferences have never worked straightforwardly in this way. The Conference Design Group believed strongly that the chief need of our Communion at the moment was the rebuilding of relationships – the rebuilding of trust in one another – and of confidence in our Anglican identity. And it was with this in mind that they planned for a very different sort of Conference, determined to allow every bishop’s voice to be heard and to seek for a final outcome for which the bishops were genuinely able to recognize an authentic account of their own work.
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The First General Assembly of the Communion of Churches in India (CCI) held at Santhigiri, Aluva, from March 7-10, was a significant event in the history of ecumenism in India. It marked the beginning of a new development of church relationship and common action among the CNI, the CSI, and the Mar Thoma Church . About seventy representatives from the three Churches including their heads and chief office bearers came together to affirm their preparedness to explore new ways of growing in mutual understanding, and a deepening of their experience of oneness in Christ.
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The Episcopal Church of Burundi wishes to express appreciation for the Windsor Report, and to congratulate the Lambeth Commission that produced it. It is an interesting, coherent, and sensitive report that challenges the Communion to dialogue constructively as a way forward.

The Episcopal Church of Burundi remains totally committed to the Anglican Communion and will continue to endeavour to “keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace” (Ephesians 4:3). We should always be mindful of the Gospel imperative to maintain unity and communion that is rooted in truth and love.
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The Most Revd Peter Kwong, Primate of Hong Kong, today released the first details of the reception process being adopted by the Reception Reference Group appointed by the Archbishop of Canterbury in conjunction with the Primates’ Standing Committee on the 20 October this year, following the publication of the Windsor Report 2004 in London on 18 October.

Full details will be placed on the Anglican Communion web site in the coming week.

“There will be three major threads to the process that the group are adopting”, the Archbishop commented, “First, we shall be using the official channels of the Anglican Communion to undertake consultation with the provinces and churches of the Anglican Communion, its official commissions and networks. This will also include approaches to Anglican mission agencies and ecumenical partners.”
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The Primates’ Standing Committee, meeting in London, between 18 and 20 October, 2004, received the Windsor Report at the same time that copies of the report were circulated to the Primates at 9.00am prior to its publication at 12 noon here in London.

We would like to begin by thanking Archbishop Robin Eames and his Commission, together with the staff who supported them, for the hard work and dedication which is represented by this document. The Commission members came from a wide range of geographical backgrounds, and brought many different perspectives to their work. That they have been able to commend this report unanimously to the members of the Anglican Communion is a sign of hope to our Communion. If there is a real desire to walk together in our discipleship of Christ, then a course can be plotted to maintain the highest degree of Communion possible, in spite of differences about the way in which Christ’s Gospel is to be interpreted in a diverse and troubled world.
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I welcome the sincerity and hard work of those who have prepared ‘The Windsor Report 2004‘. After an initial reading it is clear to me that the report falls far short of the prescription needed for this current crisis. It fails to confront the reality that a small, economically privileged group of people has sought to subvert the Christian faith and impose their new and false doctrine on the wider community of faithful believers. We have watched in sadness as sisters and brothers who have sought to maintain their allegiance to the faith once delivered to the saints have been marginalized and persecuted for their faith. We have been filled with grief as we have witnessed the decline of the North American Church that was once filled with missionary zeal and yet now seems determined to bury itself in a deadly embrace with the spirit of the age. Instead of a clear call for repentance we have been offered warm words of sentimentality for those who have shown no godly sorrow for their actions and harsh words of condemnation for those who have reached out a helping hand to friends in need of pastoral and spiritual care.
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I have the honour to submit to you the Report of the Lambeth Commission on Communion, entitled ‘The Windsor Report 2004′. In the last twelve months, we have laboured hard and prayerfully listened to all shades of opinion across the Anglican Communion, and have been able to come to a common mind on a diagnosis for the current situation in the life of the Communion, and the remedies which could be offered.

We have made a remarkable journey. The Commission members had strongly held and differing opinions on both the presenting issues and their underlying causes, and we have not been afraid to discuss those views openly and honestly in our work. But equal to all of this is our central belief that the forty-four churches of the Anglican Communion belong together in witness and common mission for the sake of the Gospel, and this has helped us to develop a set of unanimous recommendations.
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I welcome the publication of the Windsor Report. I was privileged to be part of the Lambeth Commission, and despite some very honest exchanges, we were able to come together as a Commission to offer what I believe represents a genuine way forward for the future of the Anglican Communion.

The report we have agreed now offers to our brothers and sisters in Christ very real ways in which we could begin to strengthen our common life in the Lord, and to strengthen the workings of the Instruments of Unity so that they will be able to function more effectively in drawing our forty-four churches into greater interdependence and mutual life.
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A response of the House of Bishops of the Episcopal Church to an expressed need of the Church Editor’s note: This is a pastoral letter responding to the need for alternative pastoral oversight in some dioceses of the Episcopal Church USA. Four important points should be noted: 1) the Bishops distinguish between pastoral oversight and
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The meeting of the Anglican-Oriental Orthodox International Commission, which was to have taken place at Walsingham from Tuesday 28 October to Sunday 2 November 2003, has been postponed at the suggestion of the Heads of the Coptic Orthodox Church (His Holiness Pope Shenouda III), the Syrian Orthodox Church (His Holiness Patriarch Zakka I) and the Armenian Orthodox Church, Catholicosate of Cilicia (His Holiness Catholicos Aram I), who met in Antelias, Lebanon, on 17 and 18 October 2003.

The present time is clearly a moment of uncertainty in the life of the Anglican Communion, with the consecration of a homosexual person in a committed, same-sex relationship as a Bishop within the Episcopal Church (USA). The developments facing the Communion were addressed in the Statement of the Primates of the Anglican Communion who met together with the Moderators of the United Churches at Lambeth Palace, London, on 15 and 16 October, to consider their reactions and the way forward for the Communion. In the light of that meeting, the Archbishop of Canterbury has set up a Commission which will look at the future structures of the Communion in the light of decisions taken in the Episcopal Church (USA) and in the Anglican Church of Canada.
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The visit to Ridley Hall Theological College, Cambridge, England by Shaykh Fawzy El-Zafzaf, President of the Committee for Dialogue with the Monotheistic Faiths of Al Azhar, the renowned Islamic university and Centre in Cairo, Egypt, marks a significant new development in the building of relations between the Anglican Communion and Al Azhar.

As part of the agreement signed by Archbishop Carey, then Archbishop of Canterbury, and Shaykh Tantawy, the Grand Shaykh of Al Azhar in January 2002, the two parties committed themselves not only to regular ‘dialogue’ meetings, but also to find other ways in which they might learn more about the faith of each other. It was agreed to seek to establish reciprocal study visits in which staff and students of Al Azhar would spend time at Anglican theological institutions, and Anglican theologians and theological students would similarly visit Al Azhar. Shaykh Fawzy’s visit to Ridley Hall, 5-11 October 2003, during which he was accompanied by Bishop Mouneer Anis, the Anglican Bishop of Egypt and North Africa will, it is hoped, prove to be the first of a number of such exchanges.
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“Now I appeal to you, brothers and sisters, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you be in agreement and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be united in the same mind and the same purpose” (I Cor 1:10)

To the Christians and churches of Eastern Europe,

We, the 25 participants of the Ancient Oriental, Anglican, Baptist, Evangelical, Lutheran, Orthodox, Reformed and Roman Catholic traditions of Eastern Europe have just completed an eight-day “School for Mission: Preaching the Gospel in Eastern Europe” organized by the World Council of Churches and the Conference of European Churches. It was an encouraging time of Christian fellowship and learning, during which we struggled to understand better how to express the missionary nature of the Church by bearing common witness in our home countries.
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A covenant between the Church of England and the Methodist Church of Great Britain was signed on November 1, 2003 at the Methodist Central Hall followed by a Service of Thanksgiving at Westminster Abbey. Dr Williams gave the following address at the signing ceremony.

At his first meeting with leaders of the Jewish community in Rome, Pope John XXIII, it’s said, greeted them with the words, “I am Joseph, your brother”. He was evoking one of the most poignant moments in the Old Testament: Joseph, whose arrogance had provoked the resentment and rejection of his brothers, is carried off into exile and slavery, then rises to great power. He finds that this power is given to him so that he can save the lives of his brothers when they come to him, not knowing him, begging him for help; and at last he reveals who he is: “I am Joseph, your brother”.
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The Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams, has announced the makeup and the terms of reference for a Commission to look at life in the Anglican Communion in the light of recent events. It is to be made up of members appointed by the Archbishop of Canterbury and will be chaired by the Most Revd Robin Eames, Archbishop of Armagh.

The Commission, which is expected to begin its work early in the New Year, was formed as a result of a request from the recent Primates meeting at Lambeth Palace to the Archbishop of Canterbury. It will take particular account of the decision to authorise a service for use in connection with same sex unions in the Diocese of New Westminster, Canada, and the expected Consecration of the Revd Canon V Gene Robinson as Bishop Co-adjutor of New Hampshire in the Episcopal Church (USA) on Sunday, November 2nd.
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The Anglican-Methodist Covenant in England will be signed at a national celebration on Saturday 1 November 2003, at 11:00am, in the presence of Her Majesty the Queen. Earlier this year the Covenant was strongly endorsed by the Methodist Conference of Great Britain and the General Synod of the Church of England. The service of celebration will begin at Methodist Central Hall, Westminster, at 11.00am, in front of an invited assembly from both Churches as well as ecumenical and civic guests. After the historic Covenant is signed at Methodist Central Hall, the ceremony will continue at Westminster Abbey at 11:45am with a short service of thanksgiving and dedication. The Covenant will be signed on behalf of the Church of England by the Archbishop of Canterbury, the Most Reverend Dr Rowan Williams, the Archbishop of York, the Most Reverend Dr David Hope, and the Secretary General of the Archbishops’ Council, Mr William Fittall.
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I returned home from our meeting at Lambeth grateful for the spirit of candor in which we shared our thoughts and feelings. I thank God for the opportunity to come together in Christ’s name and for the strong bonds and mutual affection that exist between us. I pray that our common commitment to mission and God’s ongoing work of reconciliation will continue to bind us together in Christ in the days and years ahead. I remind myself that the church is not our possession but the risen body of Christ of which each one of us is a limb and member in virtue of our baptism.

As I tried to make plain in the course of our meeting, we in the Episcopal Church have been dealing openly with the place of homosexual persons in the life of our church for at least thirty years. Though the question still remains unresolved, the presence among us of deeply faithful men and women whose lives reveal the fruit of the Spirit, and whose primary affections are ordered to persons of the same sex, has brought us to this difficult, and very public, moment. I recognize that while many in our church give thanks for where we have come, many others are deeply pained and distressed. I further recognize how our decisions have also affected you and I hope you know how profoundly I regret the pain our Province’s action has caused many of you.
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he Bishop and Standing Committee of the Episcopal Diocese of New Hampshire met today in response to the London meeting of the Primates from the 38 autonomous Provinces of the worldwide Anglican Communion for prayer, bible study and discussion. We acknowledge and affirm the wisdom of the Primates of the Anglican Communion in their statement. We echo their affirmation that “what we hold in common is much greater than that which divides us in proclaiming Good News to the world.”

We commend their resolve to follow the 1998 Lambeth resolution calling for the Church to “listen to the experience of homosexual persons, and … to assure them that they are loved by God and that all baptised, believing and faithful persons, regardless of sexual orientation, are full members of the Body of Christ.”
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At the final press conference at the end of the Primates’ Meeting yesterday, the Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church, USA, gave the following statement:

“I’d certainly like to underscore the Archbishop’s point about it being a difficult but truthful meeting. I think one thing that became very clear early on is that we seek to embody and proclaim the Gospel in very different contexts and what may, in fact, be good news to a majority in one province may, in fact, be bad news somewhere else in the world. And here I think particularly of my own province, the United States in which a majority, though not the whole province, has wrestled with the whole question of homosexuality for at least the last 30 years and come to a sense that men and women whose affections are ordered to members of the same sex are faithful members of the church; are people with whom we share ministry; are people we in many instances ordain, which of course has led to the confirmation of the election of the Bishop Elect of New Hampshire, which has caused such a division and certainly been one of the major focuses of our meeting here. But I do think what binds us together is deeper than some of the things that divide us and certainly the whole question of human sexuality; more particularly homosexuality; is far from settled and as we continue to struggle together I think it’s also important, as the Archbishop said, that we keep our focus on the mission we share because there is so much in the world that cries out for our attention beyond issues of human sexuality.
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It is with great gratitude to God and appreciation to the people of the Anglican Communion and other churches that we greet you in the name of Jesus Christ.

As we met this week at Lambeth we experienced the power of the Holy Spirit moving among us. We are so grateful to God for hearing the prayers and cries of his praying people to preserve both the truth and the unity of the Anglican Communion. We urge continued prayer that the whole Anglican Communion may continue by God’s power to witness to the transforming love of Jesus for all people.
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Good evening everyone. Thank you very much for joining us. I hope you’ve had a chance, at least, to glance at the statement which has been produced by our meeting which has, in fact, been unanimously agreed by the meeting of the primates. And I’d like to offer a few words of introduction to this before we turn to questions.

It has been a very remarkable couple of days in the life of the Anglican Communion and it has certainly been anything but easy. It has not been without pain. But it has been honest and open and I hope that we have grown in some real shared understanding as a result. And I do want to take this opportunity of paying tribute to my colleagues in the Communion for all the dedication and the energy and steadfastness in Christian service that they show generally and that they have shown in these two demanding days.
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The Primates of the Anglican Communion and the Moderators of the United Churches, meeting together at Lambeth Palace on the 15th and 16th October, 2003, wish to express our gratitude to the Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams, for calling us together in response to recent events in the Diocese of New Westminster, Canada, and the Episcopal Church (USA), and welcoming us into his home so that we might take counsel together, and to seek to discern, in an atmosphere of common prayer and worship, the will and guidance of the Holy Spirit for the common life of the thirty-eight provinces which constitute our Communion.

At a time of tension, we have struggled at great cost with the issues before us, but have also been renewed and strengthened in our Communion with one another through our worship and study of the Bible. This has led us into a deeper commitment to work together, and we affirm our pride in the Anglican inheritance of faith and order and our firm desire to remain part of a Communion, where what we hold in common is much greater than that which divides us in proclaiming Good News to the world.
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[ACNS 2417]By Charles Sherlock The first permanent Commission of the Anglican Communion met for the first time in early December 2000 – the Inter-Anglican Standing Commission on Ecumenical Relations (IASCER). The diverse group of sixteen people – men and women, lay and ordained, parish clergy, theologians and bishops, from ten nations and five continents –
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[ACNS 2357] A new high-level working group has been announced by the Anglican Communion and the Catholic Church. Comprising prominent Church leaders from a variety of countries, assisted by specialists, the Anglican-Roman Catholic Working Group will have the task of reviewing the relationship between Catholics and Anglicans worldwide, consolidating the results of more than thirty
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Together with Cardinal Cassidy and our colleagues at our ecumenical forum, I want to say how pleased we are to be here this evening and to share in this act of worship. As you will be aware, for the first time, Anglican and Roman Catholic Leaders from around the world are meeting together in order to discuss the problems and challenges that lie before us on the road to the full visible unity of our two Churches. Of course, our two Churches have travelled a long way together during the last forty or so years and we have much in common. This evening gives us an opportunity to celebrate that fact.

Nevertheless we know that some Protestant Christians object to this theological dialogue. They fear that Reformation principles are being abandoned and gospel faith is being traduced. I reply that the journey the Roman Catholic Church and the Anglican Communion have taken since the Second Vatican Council has not been a journey away from the Christian faith but a pilgrimage together into its heart. Polemics lead to hatred and division. Partnership leads to the promise of mutual service and eventual union.
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Roman Catholic and Anglican bishops, paired from thirteen regions around the world, have begun their meeting in Canada in which they are reviewing and evaluating the accomplishment of thirty years of ecumenical relationship between Anglicans and Catholics in their areas. The pairs of bishops come from New Zealand, Canada, England, United States, Ireland, India, Nigeria, Papua New Guinea, Southern Africa, Uganda, Australia, Brazil and the West Indies.

The bishops are gathered in private session at the Queen of Apostles Renewal Centre near Toronto, Ontario, under the joint chairmanship of Archbishop of Canterbury George Carey and Cardinal Edward Idris Cassidy, President of the Vatican’s Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity. Their first day has begun with a morning of prayer and scriptural reflection. The following days will begin and end with common prayer.
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Roman Catholic and Anglican bishops from thirteen regions around the world are to gather in Canada May 14-20 to review and evaluate the accomplishment of thirty years of ecumenical dialogue between the two traditions and to reflect on how the special relationship between them has been developing in different parts of the world.

This high level meeting is happening at a time when Anglicans and Roman Catholics around the world are exploring the possibilities for further steps toward visible unity.
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Dear Cardinal Cassidy and Dr Noko,

The signing of the Joint Declaration on the Doctrine Of Justification between the Lutheran World Federation and the Roman Catholic Church is an event which encourages Christians of all traditions and is a cause of rejoicing for all who pray and work for the unity of Christ’s Church.

The significance of this agreement cannot be underestimated, dealing as it does with a question right at the heart of Christian faith and theology, the question of how we are saved. As we all are aware, this was a primary point of conflict during the Reformation period, which led not only to bitter theological disputes but even wars and Persecutions and created divisions that were exported beyond the shores of Europe through the missionary expansion of the Church.
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by J M Rosenthal, Anglican Communion News Service [ROME] While the Roman Catholic Church and Rome itself have been busy with massive campaigns of refurbishment of their great shrines, including St Peters, so too has the Anglican Centre in Rome been totally transformed. Fund-raising and awareness building programmes have been a huge success and the
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