Wherever I go, at home or abroad, I have often noticed that those who live in the poorest communities are the most welcoming and generous in their hospitality. There is a dignity about giving, about contributing to the common good, which the poor seem to appreciate more than the well-off, because they see what a privilege it is. Jesus pointed out a poor widow putting her last mite into the offering ”“ her action put the wealthier worshippers to shame because she gave her all. It is those who have the most resources who bear greatest responsibility for bridging the gap.

We all need to rediscover the wellsprings of solidarity ”“ the unstoppable grace which hold us together as a human family.

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The Archbishop said:

“I am delighted that the Government has finally reached the right decision and will now opt in to the EU Directive on Human Trafficking. For some time I have been raising the matter with the Home Secretary calling on her to opt in to the EU Directive to ensure we have a united front across Europe tackling the evil of human trafficking.

“I am pleased the Government now acknowledges that ‘opting in would send a powerful message to traffickers that Britain is not a soft touch’. Our Government should be ensuring Britain leads the way on tackling slavery, just like it did in the days of William Wilberforce. Sex trafficking is nothing more than modern day slavery.

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John Sentamu needs to stay at York and not be sent to Canterbury, an archiepiscopal see of dubious seniority, anyway. He needs to stay at York because of the Lambeth Conference. This is a once-every-10-years get-together of all the archbishops and bishops of the world-wide Anglican Communion and the next such shindig is in 2008.

It will, however, be almost entirely a waste of time and money, a squabble over various matters, particularly homosexuality and, more specifically, bishops with same-sex partners.

It will be an occasion when we shall witness an almighty, ungodly showdown between tradionalists and liberals. And it will probably lead to the final break-up of the Anglican Communion, already seriously fractured over the gay issue.

–Michael Brown, the Yorkshire Post’s Religious Affairs Correspondent, in a column on October 19, 2006

The Archbishops of Canterbury and York and more than 30 bishops committed themselves to making young people a priority in the Church of England, when they attended a conference held in Sheffield last week.

The Regeneration Youth Summit took place at St Thomas’s, Phila­delphia Campus, on Thursday of last week, and was organised by the Church Army, the Archbishop of York Youth Trust, and a group of young people, including Sam Follett, aged 20, the youngest member of the General Synod.

More than 120 people aged from 15 to 21, and about 30 youth workers, discussed ways of better equipping the Church to reach out to young people. All delegates were invited to sign a pledge committing to the work of the Church and young people.

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As part of his Year of the Environment celebrations, the Archbishop of York today has invited people to view online how his Palace Gardens look all year round.

The section entitled ‘Springwatch at Bishopthorpe Gardens’, can be viewed here.

Springwatch is the first of four seasonal updates about the flora and fauna habitats within Bishopthorpe Palace. It is hoped that this resource will not only appeal to gardening enthusiasts and ‘twitchers’ but all those with a general interest in the environment.

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Leaders from the Church of England have gathered in Sheffield to meet over 150 young people.

The Bishop of Sheffield, Right Reverend Dr Steven Croft attended the event at St Thomas’ Church in Hillsborough alongside Archbishop of Canterbury, Rowan Williams and the Archbishop of York, John Sentamu.

The event, called ‘Regeneration’ was a summit led by young people aged between 15 and 21-years-old, giving them an opportunity to talk about how young people feature in the churches agenda.

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More than 100 young people are preparing to meet with Church of England bishops at a national summit in Sheffield where the future of the church will be discussed.

The Archbishop of Canterbury, Rowan Williams, and the Archbishop of York, John Sentamu, will be attending the Regeneration Youth Summit on March 3rd along with more than 25 bishops and 30 youth leaders.

Regeneration is being led by young people, aged between 15 and 21 years old, and offers them a unique opportunity to meet with bishops on their terms. Throughout the day they will seek to make the future generation a priority for the Church of England and discuss in small groups how the church can better equip, resource and reach young people in the UK.

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Check their website here; I will post more on this tomorrow.

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A candlelit Vigil is to be held in York Minster on Sunday 27th February to mark the 37th Birthday of Claudia Lawrence, the York chef who has been missing for nearly two years.

It will start with an informal procession from the Mansion House, St.Helen’s Square at 2.30 pm, entering the West Doors of the Minster at 2.45 pm for the short Vigil at the High Altar where candles will be lit. Both the Archbishop of York, Dr John Sentamu and the Dean of York, The Very Revd Keith Jones will officiate.

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It is estimated that as a result [of the proposed cuts] there will be a 30 million drop in the World Service’s weekly audience from 180 million people to 150 million people worldwide.
The Archbishop said:

“The BBC World Service output is much loved and respected across the globe. Not only is it the gold standard for international affairs coverage, it has a unique ability to reach into a variety of situations overseas ”“ often where democratic values and basic human rights are not being upheld.

“Just look at the way the World Service has been covering the protests in Egypt, or the way it reports natural disasters or war. There is no-one else providing the same level of insight for a global audience.

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During National Marriage Week, I suggest that as a nation we learn from Jewish people and those who have come from places where there are extended families that actually support marriage. When Margaret and I arrived in this country, we did not have children; since then, we have had them. We did not have the joy of grandparents, uncles and aunties, but we were very fortunate to be in a church life in which our children could have that extension of learning from other people. I suggest that we should explore how we can create these extended families in which marriage can be supported. In the home where I was raised, divorce was unheard of, simply because the uncles, aunties and grandparents always tried to help the marriage along the way. It would be a good thing for us to create the possibility of extended families.

Finally, marriage is a good thing. I hope that we can all celebrate the gift of marriage without giving the impression that those who are not married are less loving and less caring. Nevertheless, if you find a good cure it would be quite selfish not to sell the product and not to tell those who need this wonderful product. In England at this particular moment, marriage is one of those good things that is kept a secret because we dare not offend or sound self-righteous or as if we were pushing other things….

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The Church of England, however, has voiced its opposition. Senior Anglican officials have said the Church is unlikely to host civil partnerships, which would include religious readings and hymns under the plan.

Some critics fear the reforms could pave the way for legal challenges that would force vicars to conduct homosexual “wedding” ceremonies against their will.
Dr John Sentamu, the Archbishop of York, told BBC One’s Andrew Marr show: “I live in a liberal democracy and I want equality for everybody. I cannot say the Quakers shouldn’t do it.
“Nor do I want somebody to tell me the Church of England must do it or the Roman Catholic Church must do it because actually that is not what equality is about.”

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The General Synod agonised over the Church of England’s relationship with English society when it met at Church House, Westminster, this week.

In his presidential address on Tuesday afternoon, the Archbishop of York, Dr Sentamu, said that the C of E faced many criticisms from secular­ists, some of whom wanted to remove particular responsibilities from the national Church.

Referring to Dame Mary Warnock, who recently argued that faith had no part to play in moral discourse, Dr Sentamu said: “From where she stands, religion and morality must be prised apart.” This, he said, was “false prophesy, and potentially fatal to our social fabric”.

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The Church of England cannot expect to be “universally welcomed or applauded” for performing its “God-given duty” to re-evangelise the country, the archbishop of York has said.

At a meeting of the General Synod in London, Dr John Sentamu warned that the “counter-cultural vision” of the church mission did not promise a “life of ease, but of criticism, even persecution”.

He told the assembled clergy and laity that people lived in “fractious and uncertain times” in which the national church was “constantly questioned and attacked”.

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The Archbishop of York: The noble Lord, Lord Myners, normally speaks with great sense and clarity on matters of money, but the question is not that banking is not an honourable profession. People who work in the banks are people of good will and good respect, and they do a very good job. The first question is about bonuses. People in this country find the bonus culture indefensible. The second question is about the gambling casinos around banking. Will they get rid of those gambling casinos? Many people say they do not like them. The question that the noble Lord asked the Minister about Lehman Brothers and deposit accounts in Germany illustrated the point. Some people say that that is not the honourable business of banking. Anybody who is having a go at banking is saying not that banking is not an honourable profession or that bankers are not very able people doing a good job but that these bonuses and the gambling casinos taint the entire profession of banking.

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The 38 primates, representing Anglicans in 164 countries, will be asked to share their thoughts on two questions: What do you think is the most pressing challenge or issue facing the Anglican Communion at this time? What do you think is the most pressing challenge or issue facing your own province?

Rather than seeing this process as an attempt to sidestep the issue of sexuality, which has deeply divided Anglicans, Archbishop Hiltz sees it was a way forward. “If there’s any hope of some sense of renewed relationships with one another, it’s through conversations like these,” he said.

Reports that some primates with more conservative theological views are planning to boycott the meeting “does nothing to model for the church what it means to try and live with difference,” he added. “To simply say, ”˜I refuse to come’ is anything but exemplary of the office and ministry to which we are called.”

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There are no plans to cancel the meeting of Anglican Church leaders in Dublin this month, despite a boycott by up to a quarter of the primates, a senior Anglican has confirmed.

Up to ten of the leaders of the Anglican Communion’s 38 provinces have said they won’t attend the biennial meeting because of the presence of Katharine Jefferts-Schori, the presiding bishop of the Episcopalian Church of the United States and a supporter of gay bishops and same-sex marriage.

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That message of the angel is for each one of us: “Don’t be afraid”. Forthe missing, such as Madeline McCann, Claudia Lawrence and their parents: “Don’t be afraid!” For children in our own country who suffer at the hands of those who should care for them: ‘”Don’t be afraid!” For the downtrodden in our world: “Don’t be afraid.”

Why? Because two thousand years ago in King David’s city, a Saviour was born for us all, He is Christ the Lord. And he invites us to go and be angels in our communities till a new day dawns.

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It is important to share in both in the good times and bad times. The Bible says “laugh with those that laugh and cry with those that cry”. Well, there have been both celebrations and struggles over the last 5 years.

On Ash Wednesday I went out and met shoppers in York city centre and heard about the many challenges individuals were facing and said prayers with them. I visited Redcar to meet the workers at Corus who were facing redundancy because of the mothballing of the local steelworks. When Alan Johnston was kidnapped in Palestine and we prayed for his release ”“ and then when he was freed – it was a time of such joy.

And then when Madeleine McCann was abducted from her bedroom and Claudia Lawrence went missing on her way to work ”“ such terrible sadness and pain. I pray for the families that one day Madeleine and Claudia will be returned safely to us.

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The Bishop of Bath and Wells, the Rt. Rev. Peter Price, insisted that the Covenant process was underway well before the election of Gene Robinson in New Hampshire. He referred to an Anglican Consultative Council document, Belonging Together (1992), which had a direct influence on The Virginia Report, much of which formed the basis of Covenant drafts.

Traditional Catholics, in the persons of the Bishop of Blackburn and the Rev. Simon Killwick (leader of the Catholic Group), signalled support for the Covenant as a means to provide greater coherence and integrity in Anglicanism.

A succession of speakers aired doubts. Would the Covenant undermine the autonomy of the Church of England or its prophetic spirit? Some thought that Covenant language like “relational consequences” spells a legalistic threat. Foremost among the doubters was the soon-to-retire Bishop of Lincoln, John Saxbee, who thought a Covenant is unnecessary since “Anglicanism is a covenant.”

Canon Elizabeth Paver, a member of the Anglican Communion’s Standing Committee, introduced a note of realism: in practice the Covenant will advise, never dictate; and it is vital that the Church of England “give some leadership” on the matter.

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After a debate in which concerns about the content and implementa­tion of the Covenant were raised, all three Houses of the Synod voted overwhelmingly for the motion: “That the draft Act of Synod adopting the Anglican Communion Covenant be considered.”

In the House of Bishops, 39 voted in favour, none against, with one abstention; in the House of Clergy, 145 voted in favour, and 32 against, and 11 abstained; in the House of Laity, 147 voted in favour, and 25 against, and eight abstained.

Introducing a debate on the Big Society on Tuesday, the Bishop of Lei­cester, the Rt Revd Timothy Stevens, said that the programme had begun to unleash a new wave of energy in the Churches for practical social action. The Synod enthusiastically welcomed the con­cept of the Big Society as an opportunity for the Church and a way of emphasising work that is already being done.

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After a special service at Westminster Abbey later, the Queen is to open the Church of England’s General Synod.

The synod gets the honour of a royal inauguration because this is the established, state church and the Queen is its supreme governor.

The synod – the Church’s legislative body – is the only institution outside parliament that can make laws, even if it does have to get its decisions approved by a special parliamentary committee.

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The General Synod will debate the Government’s Big Society pro­gramme, which is to give voluntary groups a greater part in serving local commun­ities, when it meets in Westminster this month.

The debate, on a motion from the Bishop of Leicester, the Rt Revd Tim Stevens, will respond to a report by the Mission and Public Affairs Council, “The Big Society” and the Church of England (GS1804). It will take place on Tuesday afternoon (23 November), during the first of two days of sessions.

The secretary general of the Synod, William Fittall, said at a press conference at Church House on Monday that it would be “an interesting and a rather unpredic­table” debate, in the context of “very severe cuts” to public spending.

“[It is] a helpful reminder that the Synod doesn’t just sit around thinking about the organisation of the Church of England. . . It does actually deliberate on matters of public policy that the Church of England’s got something to say about,” he said. “It is natural ter­ritory for the Church.”

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I know many people today will be afraid of what the Government cuts outlined in the CSR [Comprehensive Spending Review] will mean for them and their families.

I think we would all accept that this is a difficult time for our country economically. There are difficult choices to be made, and real debates to be had about what is the best way forward. Debate, discussion and compromise can all be positive when those involved are conducting themselves in the right spirit. However we need to ensure that no-one is left behind.

The promotion of social justice should be a primary moral imperative for any government, and for every publicly funded institution. For when the government puts the promotion of social justice at its heart, we can stand together as one nation, as one people in solidarity with each other, recognizing the dignity of all, and affording all fair and equal opportunities for access and services. Freedom, fraternity and informed choice must characterise our social fabric.

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THE Archbishop of York has implored the Government to reconsider its decision to “opt-out” of a EU directive intended to clamp down on international sex trafficking.

Dr John Sentamu, a longstanding campaigner on the issue, makes the appeal in today’s Yorkshire Post in which he describes the sexual exploitation of victims to “modern day slavery”.

Dr Sentamu said he believed the decision not to opt in to the directive meant the UK would damage its ability to influence co-ordinated EU policy on the problem – particularly in relation to sex trafficking.

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Sex trafficking is nothing more than modern day slavery. This is women being exploited, degraded and subjected to horrific risks solely for the gratification and economic greed of others.

I am, therefore, stunned to learn that the Government is “opting out” of an EU directive designed to tackle sex trafficking. Generally, I am no great supporter of European directives, because of the supremacy of our Parliament, but this seems to be a common-sense directive designed to co-ordinate European efforts to combat the trade in sex slaves.

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The Anglican Church’s second most senior cleric, after the Archbishop of Canterbury, joined faith and civic leaders from across the city at a special event last night to celebrate the federation of the six towns 100 years ago.

Ugandan-born Dr Sentamu, who was the country’s first black archbishop, was guest speaker at the King’s Hall event organised to highlight the contribution of faith to the area over the past 100 years.

Addressing around 250 guests, he said: “Great people of this city may I be with you to banish fear.

“Fear has a crippling effect more than anything else. We will not be afraid.”

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The Church of England has always prided itself on its inclusiveness and its ability to accommodate a wide range of often conflicting views under one big tent. But for four days last weekend, the age-old policy failed when the General Synod met in the bleak concrete bowl of the University of York’s Central Hall to decide upon the ordination of women bishops.

The Archbishops of Canterbury and York wanted to make special provision for those members opposed to women bishops but were narrowly defeated. The failure of the measure suggests that Synod will only stretch so far and no further to accommodate minority groups.

Drs Rowan Williams and John Sentamu gambled that mainstream synod members would be reluctant to vote against them and that their intervention would help prevent the split in the Church they so desperately hoped to avoid. But this time things were different.

Huddled around tables after enjoying a generous dinner, or walking deep in conversation around the university grounds, these mainstream Anglicans, it was clear, were in defiant mood.

“The vast majority of us are in favour of women priests. You either have them or you don’t,” said one elderly lay member, adding, “We’re fed up with making allowances for the minority. The Church must move forward.”

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