A new Centre for Cultural Witness, dedicated to exploring how the Church can communicate its “profound and transforming” story to the public, is to be established on the site of Lambeth Palace this summer, it was announced on Wednesday. Dr Graham Tomlin will step down as the Bishop of Kensington in August to lead it.
“We have a remarkable story in the Christian faith that has shaped cultures over centuries in profound ways,” he said this week. “Yet, we need to find better ways to communicate that faith so that others can understand and believe it today.”
The Centre for Cultural Witness is planned to run initially as a four-year project. It will operate in partnership with theological faculties in the UK. It will be funded by donations, including grants from the McDonald Agape Foundation, an American foundation dedicated to encouraging “distinguished scholars for Christ at elite universities”, and the Archbishop of Canterbury’s Charitable Fund. Dr Tomlin will lead a full-time team, for which recruitment will begin shortly.
A key aspect of its work will be a website “explaining Christian faith in accessible terms and how it might contribute, challenge, and respond to contemporary cultural issues and themes”. The content will be produced by “both well-known names and younger, more diverse voices”.
Really enjoyed speaking to @gtomlin about new Centre for Cultural Witness which he’ll step down to run later this year. Great to see @AP_Davison on board. ‘The theological tradition of the Church is one of its treasures, but it has become a hidden one.’https://t.co/GZizbnG1Xw
— Madeleine Davies (@MadsDavies) February 16, 2022