I have always thought of Britain as a ‘community of communities.’ That has led me to understand that the Sovereign has an additional duty – less formally recognized but to be no less diligently discharged. It is the duty to protect the diversity of our country, including by protecting the space for Faith itself and its practise through the religions, cultures, traditions and beliefs to which our hearts and minds direct us as individuals. This diversity is not just enshrined in the laws of our country, it is enjoined by my own faith. As a member of the Church of England, my Christian beliefs have love at their very heart. By my most profound convictions, therefore – as well as by my position as Sovereign – I hold myself bound to respect those who follow other spiritual paths, as well as those who seek to live their lives in accordance with secular ideals.

The beliefs that flourish in, and contribute to, our richly diverse society differ. They, and our society, can only thrive through a clear collective commitment to those vital principles of freedom of conscience, generosity of spirit and care for others which are, to me, the essence of our nationhood. I am determined, as King, to preserve and promote those principles across all communities, and for all beliefs, with all my heart.

Read it all.

King Charles III is joined by senior members of the Royal Family for a vigil at the Queen’s coffin in the Palace of Westminster.

Watch live 👇

— Sky News (@SkyNews) September 16, 2022

The Queen’s repeated visits to the small Welsh mining town of Aberfan, after a disaster which killed 116 children and 28 adults, were an example of her “soft power”, which shaped the UK and its relations with the world, the Archbishop of Wales, the Most Revd Andrew John, said on Friday.

The tragedy, in 1966, when a colliery spoil tip collapsed engulfing a primary school, led to four visits to the town from the Queen — the last in 2012, to open a new school. Archbishop John said that the people of Aberfan found her “deeply consoling”.

“In her role as head of the Commonwealth,” he said, “she presided over a growing fellowship of nations, and she embraced our diverse histories, cultures, and languages, delighting in the sheer variety of this unique assembly. At times, when countries threatened to forsake each other, she displayed the skilful use of that ‘soft power’ . . . that way of exercising power that has depth and reach.

“In Wales, that skill was never more evident than when she visited Aberfan, in 1966. The community of Aberfan found her presence deeply consoling, and Her Majesty would return four more times to this community.”

Read it all (registration or subscription).

LATEST. Queen’s visits to Aberfan were an example of ‘soft power’, says Archbishop of Wales, as final leg of King’s national tour arrives in Wales

https://t.co/Okpdl4fo3c

— Church Times (@ChurchTimes) September 16, 2022

She was always reticent about her personal opinions about people and policies. She was reluctant even to divulge whether she had a favourite hymn, knowing that she would be condemned ever afterwards to hear it on every occasion.

During the Diamond Jubilee in 2012, in a speech at Lambeth Palace the Queen was explicit about her own view of the role of the Church of England in a multicultural country. ‘The concept of our established church is occasionally misunderstood and I believe commonly underappreciated. Its role is not to defend Anglicanism to the exclusion of other religions. Instead, the church has a duty to protect the free practice of all faiths in this country.’

The Queen believed that the ‘Defender of the Faith’ should be the friend and protector of all the faiths which make up the national community. She was an assiduous visitor to temples, gurdwaras and mosques. The idea, however, that you could slip the Christian anchorage in favour of a generalised benevolence to all religions was not one she instinctively favoured. To be simply a ‘Defender of Faith’, rather than the Faith, suggests that one occupies an elevated position in which all faiths are seen as more or less adequate local editions of something vaguely lying beyond them all. Spiritual progress and deeper appreciation of other traditions comes from the serious and disciplined choice of a particular way to follow. The Queen was intensely disciplined in every aspect of her life including in its spiritual dimension. Wherever she was, Sunday worship was a priority.

Read it all.

'The Queen was explicit on numerous occasions that her "inspiration and anchor" was Jesus Christ. Her words reflect a firm personal faith nourished by the experience of prayers and Bible-reading with her mother.'

✍️ Richard Chartreshttps://t.co/VkaAqT0IJI

— The Spectator (@spectator) September 15, 2022

And where did this come from? This way of being a monarch that was more about service than rule?

At her Coronation, as I’ve already heard said several times, in perhaps one of the most poignant moments of the service, she steadfastly walked past the throne upon which she would sit and knelt at the altar, giving her allegiance to God before anyone else gave their allegiance to her.

Echoing those comforting words of scripture from the Book of Lamentation, which is itself a book written out of the heart of the profoundest grief and tragedy, the Queen said this in one of her Christmas broadcasts –

“Each day is a new beginning… I know that the only way to live my life is to try to do what is right, to take the long view, to give of my best in all that the day brings, and to put my trust in God.”

And let’s not forget that today is September the 11th, a day etched into the corporate memory of the world as we remember another day of horror and sadness when so many died.

And this is what we do. As we remember, as we grieve and mourn in our families, across our world, and in the household of our nation we tell our stories. And how do we make sense of the end of life and of death? How do we live our lives well in the time that is remaining to us? Well, we can do no better than follow the example of Her Late Majesty the Queen, who each day put her trust in God. There’s nothing sensational or mystical about this. The Christian life is a life of simple discipline where each day we choose to live a certain way. Each day we choose to love our neighbour as ourselves. Each day we choose to love God.

Read it all.

Standing at the head of The Queen's coffin as she Lies-in-State is the Westminster Cross

It is the processional cross most often used at church festivals and special services in Westminster Abbey. It is made from silver gilt and was first used in the Abbey on Christmas Eve 1922 pic.twitter.com/KV8urtuQTs

— Westminster Abbey (@wabbey) September 14, 2022

That same year, it was the year of the European City of Culture for Liverpool, Her Late Majesty came to Liverpool and there was a formal lunch. I was at a table not far away from her. Also at the table with her was a Rwandan woman who had escaped the genocide but lost almost her entire family and seen most terrible horrors. At the end of lunch, the Queen invited her to come and sit next to her, and talked to her for at least 20 minutes, while some of her staff hovered, twitching. And when I spoke to her later, she said, ‘there was healing’.

Both Her late Majesty and His Majesty treat others as special because for both their faith is built on the same rock. The rock of Christ. It is a rock on which we too can stand. There is room on that rock for every human being, however important or unimportant. Our sure hope comes from the fact the monarchy is not in a person, it is in God’s loving grace that he poured upon the Queen and pours upon the King – ‘Thy choicest gifts in store, on him be pleased to pour’.

This is the faith that enabled Her Late Majesty to be such a blessing to us, and to people around the world, an example of wisdom and reconciliation. Some of us will remember seeing on television her visit to Ireland in 2011 when, at the formal state dinner, she opened her speech in the Irish language, and Mary MacAleese, the then President of Ireland, looked at her neighbour at the table and went ’wow’. Or when Her Majesty in 2012, chose quite literally to extend the hand of friendship to Martin McGuinness, despite their differences and painful history – including the very personal history for the Queen of the death of her beloved uncle Lord Mountbatten as a result of an IRA attack in 1979. She was able to offer her hand because she stood on the rock of Christ.

She knew that every person is part of the flock, she saw every one of her subjects and every person she met as part of God’s treasured people. She knew that even in the shadow of the valley of death the Good Shepherd was with here. She knew that throughout this country’s darkest days and greatest victories, the hand of the Lord seeks us out and guides us. His Majesty knows the same. We have continuity, we have stability through grace.

Her life made sense in the light of Jesus Christ, her Lord and Saviour. So does that of His Majesty.

Read it all.

An online book of condolence is available on our website where you can send a tribute to Her Majesty The Queen:

— The Royal Family (@RoyalFamily) September 11, 2022

There is a danger that we consign Elizabeth and what she represents of embodied faithfulness to the angels and to history and go forward on our atomised way as a society and a Church into an ever more individualist future, where the only mutual belonging is in our separate identity groups. Instead, let us use that sense of common loss to forge ever-stronger bonds between neighbours, classes, cultures, and nations, and resist the forces that seek to pull us apart. As King Charles said in his first speech, we must instead “help … to bring the marginal to the centre ground”; the needs of Lazarus must be at the heart of our attention. We need strong neighbourhoods and parishes to resist the pressures of globalisation, of racism and hate. The virtues and the faith of the late Queen, far from being old-fashioned and superseded, are what we need for our future, which will only be sustainable if we can co-operate, act sacrificially, and show steadfastness and loyalty.

So we clergy can wear our white vestments of hope with integrity, for in laying Elizabeth to rest and acknowledging the religious resources upon which she drew, we can affirm the value of a Christian monarchy as offering a world of many faiths and cultures a moral umbrella, in which we can imagine together a better world of real justice, peace, and co-operation.

May she rest in peace and rise in glory. And may her faithfulness inspire and steady us in the years to come.

Read it all.

"In laying Elizabeth to rest and acknowledging the religious resources upon which she drew, we can affirm the value of a Christian monarchy as offering a world of many faiths and cultures a moral umbrella." – Alison Milbank https://t.co/WnEAMOzIJD

— Ryan Haecker (@RyanHaecker) September 13, 2022

The leader of the Catholic Church in Ireland, Archbishop Eamon Martin, said that it had always been very clear to him that Queen Elizabeth II was a woman of deep personal faith, particularly through her public speaking.

“She was unafraid to be a strong, personal and courageous witness to the teachings of Christ,” he said.

“Here was a woman who lived her faith – who served the Lord at every moment of her life and who really wrote faith into everything that she thought, said and did.”

Archbishop Martin said that he always always believed the Queen was someone who practiced her faith, who regularly went to church, and was “clearly steeped in the word of God”.

Read it all.

Religious leaders reflect on the Queen's Christian faith https://t.co/wt4qExe9vD

— BBC News (UK) (@BBCNews) September 11, 2022

She was very friendly and clearly a very devout, what we would consider ‘old fashioned’ Church of England Christian.

I remember thinking during more than one Christmas broadcast, she has just preached the gospel to the nation in a way that perhaps nobody else could have done.

I was a small boy when the coronation took place, and I remember being taken down to the town square. We lived in the far north of England, and there was a ceremony. My sister and I were both given coronation Bibles, and I think we had coronation socks and a coronation mug.

I remember when she was presiding at the opening of General Synod and there was a communion service in Westminster Abbey. She expressed great surprise afterwards because the way communion was distributed was by people simply walking forward in a line and receiving communion without kneeling down, whereas she was used to receiving communion while kneeling down. Kneeling was important to her, and worshipping was something to do with your whole body.

Read it all.

#NTWright reflects on meeting #QueenElizabeth with ⁦@UnbelievableJB⁩ @profntwright⁩ “At a time when people are very inclined to sneer and poke at any inconsistencies in the behaviour of people in public life, she has set an extraordinary example.” https://t.co/YJZBQj8X6E

— Judson Taylor (@judsontaylor) September 10, 2022

…she saw the monarchy as something larger than herself, something to which her personal interests had to be subordinated.

Some of this was no doubt due to her quiet but serious Christian faith. A friend who once had the privilege of being a royal chaplain and spending a weekend at Balmoral Castle confirmed that the conversations he had with the queen revealed her to be a thoughtful, devout Christian. As a humble Christian she took her earthly vocation seriously, placing the needs of the office and of the people she ruled before her own.

Unlike most heads of state today, she was a person to whom one could point and say to one’s children and grandchildren, “When you grow up, you want to be like her.” Her reign was marked with a deep sense of the dignity of her office. She never used profane language. She never sneered at critics. A generation raised on reality TV, life-as-performance, confected Twitter outrage, and “living loud” would do well to reflect upon that. To how many other executives of the past decades can one point as a good example to follow? Maybe that is why monarchy might not be such a bad thing after all. Democratically-elected leaders often achieve their positions thanks to ruthless ambition, dirty tricks, and an overwhelming sense of their own vital importance. The queen was never burdened with such temptations, and it showed.

Read it all.

A favourite photo the Queen and Prince Philip. pic.twitter.com/ntUfe1FixU

— Mark Fox (@MarkFoxNews) September 8, 2022

“The role and the duties of monarchy also remain, as does the Sovereign’s particular relationship and responsibility towards the Church of England – the Church in which my own faith is so deeply rooted.

“In that faith, and the values it inspires, I have been brought up to cherish a sense of duty to others, and to hold in the greatest respect the precious traditions, freedoms and responsibilities of our unique history and our system of parliamentary government.

“As the Queen herself did with such unswerving devotion, I too now solemnly pledge myself, throughout the remaining time God grants me, to uphold the constitutional principles at the heart of our nation.

“And wherever you may live in the United Kingdom, or in the realms and territories across the world, and whatever may be your background or beliefs, I shall endeavour to serve you with loyalty, respect and love, as I have throughout my life.

Read it all.

Just published: front page of the Financial Times international edition Saturday September 10 https://t.co/fFNcSDDQqB pic.twitter.com/6xBPaRGOkQ

— Financial Times (@FinancialTimes) September 9, 2022

How we learn to live with the death of a loved one differs for each of us, but we must all find a way to grieve. As the theologian Tom Wright said, ‘Not to grieve, not to lament, is to slam the door on the same place in the innermost heart from which love itself comes’. We may not know the power of that love until the moment of loss, for as the writer Khalil Gibran wisely observed: ‘Love knows not its own depth until the hour of separation’.

When we are bereaved, we need to make opportunities, individually and together, to face and absorb the depth of our loss. Yet we are also invited into the healing love of God which never falters, and which is the deepest and widest perspective of our lives. It is a perspective beautifully expressed by the writer of Deuteronomy who tells us that ‘underneath are the everlasting arms’. Even in the midst of our grief we are enfolded in that all-encompassing love.

As a Christian I believe that death is not the end. That gives me hope even in the worst of times. To speak of hope is not to deny the fear, the loss and the anguish which death brings. Jesus himself stood with Martha and Mary at the tomb of his beloved friend, Lazarus, and wept, wholly undone by his grief. But in that cameo we have the assurance of God’s presence in the world’s pain and a model for our response to human suffering: God is there for us and we are called to be there for others. The words of the prophet Isaiah assure us that the Spirit of the Lord is at work and will bind up the broken-hearted, comfort those who mourn – and give them a garland instead of ashes, and the oil of gladness instead of mourning.

Read it all.

The service of Prayer and Reflection on the death of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II will be broadcast at 6pm on BBC1.

The Order of Service is available to download below if you would like to follow along. https://t.co/9dxMjFR0Cf pic.twitter.com/kRLbREvzDr

— St Paul's Cathedral (@StPaulsLondon) September 9, 2022

The Bishop of Worcester, Dr John Inge, said: “She has been on the throne since before most of us were born and has been a constant source of strength, stability, and inspiration throughout her long reign. She has been the glue which has held this country and the Commonwealth together, and I give heartfelt thanks for her life of selfless service.

“That service was undergirded and enabled by a deep Christian faith, and we now commend her to the God in whom she believed, whose love is stronger than death, as we also pray for members of the Royal Family, particularly our new King.”

The Bishop of Chichester, Dr Martin Warner, described Queen Elizabeth’s death as “a moment of bereavement for the whole nation, and for the Commonwealth”. He continued: “She will remain in our hearts and minds as an exceptional example of public duty and commitment to her high calling, carried out with unswerving faith in God. Let us come together as a nation to mark her death with dignity and pride.”

The Bishop of Oxford, Dr Steven Croft, said that her “devoted service” had given “stability to the nation throughout this Elizabethan age”. Her “deep, personal Christian faith”, had inspired him and many, he said.

Read it all.

LATEST. Church of England Bishops have paid tribute to the late Queen, describing her as a source of strength to the nation, and giving thanks for the Christian faith that sustained her during her 70-year reign https://t.co/MwTGAfmXik

— Church Times (@ChurchTimes) September 9, 2022

In times of grief, fear, or vulnerability, we can cling to the wounded feet of Christ. It is offered to all of us.

We can look out at the world, and can find that our lives can be abundant, as Her Late Majesty’s was, that our lives can find hope, even in the face of death.

We remember today especially the Royal Family in their grief. We pray for the reign of His Majesty King Charles III. He will feel especially the weight of this change.

In the Christian story of life, death, and resurrection, there is space for our grief and uncertainty. We see the wounds of Christ who died with us. But with God, the final words are abundant life and fulfilled hope. And in Her Majesty’s life we saw that and can be inspired.

Read it all.

Queen Elizabeth 1926 – 2022 @guardian #frontpagestoday #UK pic.twitter.com/azhAbIHRKo

— (@ukpapers) September 9, 2022

The day you gave us, Lord, is ended,
the darkness falls at your request;
to you our morning hymns ascended,
your praise shall sanctify our rest.

Rest eternal grant unto her.
8th September 2022 pic.twitter.com/nMEQZywK8C

— Graham Usher (@bishopnorwich) September 8, 2022

We join with Anglicans around the world in praying for Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, and her family.

We pray for God’s presence to strengthen and support The Queen, the Royal Family, and those who are caring for Her Majesty. https://t.co/hpt3mbGZk0 pic.twitter.com/FvGA1V0dd9

— Anglican Communion (@AnglicanWorld) September 8, 2022

The Bishop of Aberdeen & Orkney, the Rt Revd Anne Dyer, has been suspended from duty, it was announced on Wednesday, after two formal complaints alleging misconduct were made.

An official statement from the Scottish Episcopal Church said: “Due process will now follow, through the clergy disciplinary canon. . . The suspension will be kept under regular review. It does not constitute disciplinary action and does not imply any assumption that misconduct has been committed.”

The Bishop of Edinburgh, Dr John Armes, will serve as Acting Bishop of the diocese during this suspension, in addition to his normal duties.

Bishop Dyer’s tenure has been troubled since early in her time in office. She is the first woman bishop in the Scottish Episcopal Church, and was elected by the College of Bishops after the diocese failed to agree a candidate….

Read it all.

LATEST. The Bishop of Aberdeen & Orkney, the Rt Revd Anne Dyer, has been suspended from duty, it was announced on Wednesday, after two formal complaints alleging misconduct were made https://t.co/sXq1hcl1s4

— Church Times (@ChurchTimes) August 10, 2022

IP: I really enjoyed this book—your crisp and clear style, extremely well researched and informed, and with some nice touches of dry humour. But as you say, you are not the first person to make this argument. You make particular note of Colin Buchanan’s Cut the Connection—but I am not sure he persuaded many people. Why will the case you make do better?

JC: Thank you. There’s no knowing whether it will do any better at all (there’s a short summary here). And Buchanan was a bishop whereas I’m a mere lay academic. But you yourself well understand how important it is to keep making arguments you are convinced are true and good for the Church even when you change few minds! Buchanan’s book appeared in 1994 and is still eminently worth reading, but let me note two ways I think mine goes beyond it.

One of my core arguments is also central to Cut the Connection, namely that even the surviving remnants of Establishment amount to distracting curtailments on the spiritual autonomy of the Church. I echo Buchanan’s call for the Church to become more aware of its remaining captivity to improper constitutional ties to the state. But I couple that with a wider argument from political theology for a religiously impartial state, and I derive both from a New Testament theology of ‘church and state’, spelled out in detail in Chapter 2 (‘A Theology of Disestablishment’). Buchanan’s book does not purport to offer any extended theological arguments, so I think mine complements his in this regard. I hope Anglicans can still be persuaded by theological arguments, or at least provoked to try to rebut them theologically and not only pragmatically. There certainly are pro-Establishment theologians who could give these core arguments a good going over, and I hope they will.

The other way in which I think my book goes beyond Buchanan’s is that I devote two chapters (5 and 6) to disputing the three arguments most frequently wheeled out in defence of Establishment. The first is the ‘concession to secularism’ argument (picked up below). The second is the ‘anti-neutrality’ argument: that disestablishment would only usher in some less desirable, privileged public worldview, such as secular liberalism. I argue that one can maintain a religiously impartial state without necessarily allowing any other worldview to rush in to fill the supposed vacuum.

The third is that disestablishment would amount to an abandonment of the Church’s historic ‘national mission’. This comes in two parts. The first warns of a retreat from the Church’s pastoral openness to all comers, and a (further) lapse into ‘congregationalism’ and ‘sectarianism’. I deconstruct these loaded, polemical and frankly partisan terms and show that disestablishment need not feed either of them (or, if it does, it’s no business of state law to prevent that). Disestablishment would not prevent the Church from remaining as pastorally open to all comers as it wished, but only secure elements of its spiritual autonomy that current arrangements compromise.

Read it all.

Cannot recommend reading Jonathan Chaplin enough. He’s like a Tim Keller & NT Wright all wrapped up in one – he teaches at Cambridge- one of the best conversations ever had on God, church & the moment we find ourselves in – his clarity of thought is brilliant pic.twitter.com/FFUyaXCsJo

— Bob Roberts Jr. ن (@bobrobertsjr) July 10, 2022

Read it all.

What is your favourite quotation?

“You did not choose me, but I chose you. And I appointed you to go and bear fruit, fruit that will last, so that the Father will give you whatever you ask him in my name.” (John 15:16)

I read this verse in a Bible given to me by a dear friend when I became a Christian. When I was enthroned as ­archbishop of Canterbury, I had the same page open in the illuminated Gospels that St Augustine brought with him to England.

Which of your ancestors or relatives are you most proud of?

Either my mother, who worked for Churchill, overcame alcoholism and has always worked for prison reform; or my grandmother, who grew up in India, taught me to value other opinions, nursed in a dysentery hospital, wrote books and a million other things.

Read it all.

"We can only truly destroy our enemies by making peace with them." Justin Welby

Beautifully said.https://t.co/Qjxf8FBaJ3

— David Christianson 🕊 (@DChristianson) July 21, 2022

The Christian faith always has direct social implications. It is not a privatised religion but overflows into practical action and community transformation. This is seen clearly in the Alpha movement, which has been putting on courses for 45 years. Alpha is a global phenomenon, one of the leading brands in Christian evangelisation, created at Holy Trinity Brompton (HTB) in central London. More than 28 million people have attended the course worldwide, nearly five million in the UK, and many have become Christians as a result. Alpha’s pioneer, the former barrister Nicky Gumbel, has won plaudits as a Billy Graham for the modern age.

Alpha’s ambition, expressed in its famous catchphrase, is to see not only “lives changed” but also “society transformed”. Alpha has matured over three decades, with frequent revision of Gumbel’s books and films, and this emphasis has become increasingly explicit. For example, he suggests that to pray “Your Kingdom Come” in the Lord’s Prayer is to pray for the nation to be transformed in the areas of politics, economics, social justice, crime and education. Drawing lessons from church history, he praises John Wesley, the father of Methodism, as not only a preacher by also “a prophet of social righteousness”. Gumbel’s other heroes include campaigners such as William Wilberforce, Mother Teresa, Martin Luther King, Nelson Mandela and Archbishop Desmond Tutu.

Questions of Life, the core Alpha text, has sold more than 1.7 million copies worldwide and has been translated into more than 40 languages. Recent editions reveal a great leap forward in the maturing of Gumbel’s social theology. “We experience the Holy Spirit not just so that we have a warm feeling in our hearts,” he declares, “but so that we go out and make a difference to our world.” Another of his popular paperbacks, The Heart of Revival, was published in the late 1990s, when many churches were excitedly looking for evidence of “revival”. Gumbel wrote: “True and lasting revival changes not only human hearts but also communities and institutions. Love for God and love for neighbour go hand in hand.”

Read it all (requires subscription).

Well conceived piece by Andrew Atherstone on the maturing of the Alpha Course: "The Christian faith always has direct social implications. It is not a privatised religion but overflows into practical action and community transformation."https://t.co/tOZ1h0qOgj

— Graham Tomlin (@gtomlin) July 16, 2022

Dr Simon Eyre (Chichester), a retired GP, moved a private member’s motion on the subject on Sunday afternoon. “Hospices are suffering from a lack of funding,” he said, and linked this to a pressure to change the law to allow assisted suicide. People might choose to end their lives prematurely rather than face suffering exacerbated by poor-quality palliative care, he said.

“Sanctity of life is central to our understanding as Christians,” he said, and cited Psalm 31: “Our times are in his hands”.

Terminally ill people with depression, and people with disabilities, including learning disabilities, would be put at risk if legislation was changed, Dr Eyre said.

The Suicide Act 1961 prohibits assisted suicide, although directions from the Crown Prosecution Service published in 2010 require that any prosecution be in the “public interest”.

Several attempts have been made in recent years to introduce legislation that would permit assisted suicide in some circumstances, most recently in the form of a Bill in the House of Lords, which failed to reach a Second Reading before Parliament was prorogued in April.

Dr Eyre conceded that palliative care “sometimes fails to deliver”, but said that “the response to this should be to improve palliative care rather than make changes to the Suicide Act.”

Read it all.

“Hospices are suffering from a lack of funding.” https://t.co/opyIeRrAcA

— Church Times (@ChurchTimes) July 11, 2022

The publication of the report of the public inquiry into child sex abuse in Telford, demands a response from all organisations working with children and young people. Over a thousand girls, across decades, were subject to Child Sexual Exploitation. Not only were signs ignored, but victims went unheard and were often themselves blamed.

Church leaders and representatives can be reluctant to comment publicly on the safeguarding shortcomings of other institutions, quite simply because of the Church’s own failures to protect those who are vulnerable or to respond well to survivors and victims. But we must speak up.

There is no doubt that victims and survivors were badly failed and we should all be asking what we can learn from this important inquiry and how we can better protect children and young people in our communities.

Read it all.

Statement on Telford Inquiry report https://t.co/RfNkLo86M3

— Canterbury Diocese (@CanterburyDio) July 14, 2022

‘Leading in Evangelism’ contains free on-demand content designed to support leaders to develop a culture and plan for evangelism that suits their context .

The resource comprises a series of one hour video-supported sessions, created to stimulate conversation, planning and action within churches, which can be explored at their own pace.

It is hoped the content will help churches increase their confidence in evangelism, creating a culture where those in the church are more inclined to share their faith with others.

The series has been developed in partnership with several Anglican networks and features a range of voices from across the different traditions within the Church of England and was part funded by Benefact Trust.

Read it all.

Thanks to #synod members who came to Leading in Evangelism fringe event. We're really excited about the potential this has to raise confidence and form new leaders, throughout the church. If you missed the event or the webinar last week details here…https://t.co/Dfgev75rgd

— Owen Morgan (@owenmorgan) July 11, 2022

As this crisis worsens, I call on the Anglican Communion to pray fervently for peace and for all the people of Sri Lanka. It is only a few years since the end of a catastrophic civil war; this crisis is a reminder that reconciliation is indispensable for future stability. Reconciliation involves justice in the economy as well as healing of memories. May God bring

Read it all.

As Metropolitan Archbishop of the Church of Ceylon, I have watched the terrible crisis in Sri Lanka with horror.

I call on the Anglican Communion to pray fervently for peace and for all the people of Sri Lanka.

A message to the Church of Ceylon: pic.twitter.com/ty8PGgmpCb

— Archbishop of Canterbury (@JustinWelby) July 9, 2022

Following a debate, members backed a Private Member’s Motion (PMM) paying tribute to the ‘enormous and untiring’ efforts of health professionals working in palliative and end of life care.

They called on the Government to guarantee adequate funding and resourcing of palliative care services to ensure the highest possible standards of care for all. Members further affirmed that the law on Assisted Suicide should remain unchanged.

General Synod member Dr Simon Eyre, from the Diocese of Chichester, introducing the PMM, called for the Government to ensure adequate funding for hospices over the next decade.

He said palliative care was currently ‘insufficiently comprehensive’ with only one palliative care consultant per 100,000 of the population.

Read it all.

Synod rejects assisted dying by a large majority – via @ChurchTimes https://t.co/YXZ508Ss4b

— Religion Media Centre (@RelMedCentre) July 11, 2022

In the public square our words will often be misunderstood, misinterpreted and misquoted. People will think we’re woke, naïve, misguided, too left wing, too right wing, too liberal or too conservative. We will be applauded for taking a moral stand, and pilloried for getting involved in politics. At the same time. On the same issue. But, knowing very well that we will sometimes get it wrong, what we are trying to be, is faithful to Jesus.

In personal witness we will sometimes meet scorn, apathy, even hostility. That which means most to us, will be considered trivial, laughable and neanderthal by some. But when we do share the gospel, we will find ourselves standing on the holy ground of other people’s stories – and their pain – and often we won’t have the words to say, such as when we’re ministering to those whose lives are cut short, or taking the funeral of a child. Our hearts will be pierced, and like Mary standing at the foot of the cross, our witness will be a silent vigil and a determination to abide.

We will carry a towel, not a flag.

We will issue an invitation, not a summons.

We will, wherever possible, roll away stones.

In overseeing and resourcing the church for ministry, a responsibility that we all share, we will have to make painful and difficult decisions. In facing up to mistakes, we will be humbled, especially by our failings to safeguard the Church or to root out racism or even just to communicate well, and show kindness to each other, in these things, we will be pierced and broken.

Read it all.

The Presidential Address to #Synod from @CottrellStephen may be read here:https://t.co/Uje08XtWeV pic.twitter.com/PeuotVraJB

— General Synod (@synod) July 8, 2022

The Dean of Southwark, The Very Revd Andrew Nunn, has announced his intention to retire on 4 July 2023 following the 40th anniversary of his ordination as Deacon.

In his letter to the Bishop of Southwark, The Rt Revd Christopher Chessun, the Dean said, “I wanted to give you a year’s notice of this in order to allow you to begin the process of identifying and appointing my successor and for the new Cathedral Chapter to do the work it will need to do in order to be in a position to welcome a new Dean. It has been the most enormous privilege to serve the people of God and lead the worship of Almighty God for all these years but especially from this position.”

He continued, “There is a great deal I can do in a year. Be assured, I won’t coast towards retirement. It will be heart-breaking leaving but the time is right and I am sure you will find somebody wonderful to serve this wonderful community.”

Read it all.

We are saddened to announce that our much loved Dean, The Very Revd Andrew Nunn @deansouthwark has announced he is to retire in 2023 following the 40th anniversary of his ordination as Deacon 😢 https://t.co/NZBF6hwxfo

— Southwark Cathedral (@Southwarkcathed) July 8, 2022

The Archbishop of Canterbury welcomed the Primate of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, His Beatitude Metropolitan Epifaniy, to Lambeth Palace..[yesterday].

The Archbishop invited His Beatitude and His Eminence Archbishop Yevstratiy Zoria, Archbishop of Chernihiv and Nizhyn, to express his solidarity with the people of Ukraine and to spend time in conversation, prayer and worship.

The two leaders held a meeting with Archbishop Justin before attending the midday Eucharist in the Crypt Chapel at Lambeth Palace. During the Eucharist, Archbishop Justin knelt to receive a blessing from Metropolitan Epifaniy.

Read it all.

In our conversations, I was deeply moved by His Beatitude Metropolitan Epifaniy’s commitment to the love of Christ in the midst of the great suffering he described.

May that love strengthen them in the face of such darkness and difficulty. https://t.co/PhEqaMjAb5

— Archbishop of Canterbury (@JustinWelby) July 7, 2022

The Revd Simon Stride, Curate at Holy Trinity, Stalybridge, in Cheshire has had a passion for dance music since his early teens and his combined interests in theology and dance music have helped guide his spiritual direction through his adult life.

Since his early days as an ordinand, Simon has led DJ worship ranging from Christian clubland-style events complete with strobe lights and smoke machines for youth congregations – to ‘chill-out’ compline services, using soundscapes and atmospheric music tracks to help people meditate on scripture.

“I feel it’s part of my calling to use the skills I learnt in this area as part of worship – to enable people to connect with God through dance and electronic music,” he explained.

“We’ve also started seeing more young people bring their friends to these church events for the first time.”

Simon even ran a ‘Resurrection Rave’ with headlining DJ, Bazz Morgan (Velocity of Light).

“We wanted to create something that would attract young people to church and also communicate the Christian message and the meaning of the Resurrection,” he explained.

Read it all.

The Archbishop of Canterbury has appointed the Revd Ijeoma Ajibade as his next chief of staff, Lambeth Palace announced on Thursday.

She will succeed David Porter, who is due to stand down in November, but who will remain on the Archbishop’s staff in a part-time post focused on strategy (News, 29 April).

Ms Ajibade, who is 56, has been the regional director for Europe at the Mission to Seafarers for the past six years. She was ordained deacon in 2010 and priest the following year after training at the South East Institute of Theological Education. She also has degrees from the University of Nigeria, South Bank University, and Heythrop College London.

After her ordination, she served as a non-stipendiary minister at St Mary Abbots, Kensington, for four years. During this time she was made an honorary minor canon of Southwark Cathedral. She was granted Permission to Officiate in the diocese of London in 2014, and the diocese in Europe in 2017.

Ms Ajibade begun her career in local government, working in areas including audit and special investigations, housing advice and homelessness, and welfare benefit administration. She also spent 12 years working for the London Assembly on Assembly Scrutiny, and for two previous Mayors of London (Ken Livingstone and Boris Johnson) on economics and business policy.

Read it all.

Mission to Seafarers director to become Archbishop of Canterbury’s chief of staff https://t.co/VdEGI6ljta

— Church Times (@ChurchTimes) July 7, 2022