Several weeks ago, the Rev. Canon Dr. Alison Barfoot was approached by a rector from the Diocese of South Carolina who wanted to build relationships between his parish and the Church of Uganda. It was the type of meeting ”” a “divine appointment,” she calls it ”” that moves her to awe and joy. When people ask how they can pray for her, she requests divine appointments, health and safety.
Dr. Barfoot, who completed a Doctor in Ministry from Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary in 1999, is Assistant for International Relations to the Most Rev. Henry Luke Orombi, Archbishop of the Church of Uganda.
Why are these meetings important? While in Herndon, Va., for a missions conference sponsored by the Anglican District of Virginia and Anglican Global Missions Partners on Oct. 24, Dr. Barfoot said, “I’m a matchmaker.” While Americans typically use that term for arranging romantic relationships, Dr. Barfoot’s matchmaking is in the service of a larger goal: She wants to deepen relationships among Anglicans with the Church of Uganda.
“The call that God gave to me is to see eastern Africa as a missionary force,” she told conference participants. “A mission force for the unreached ”” that’s my passion.”
Keep up the matchmaking!
http://www.churchoftheword.net
A great article about a great priest. I consider Alison Barfoot to be a friend. Among other things, I was the interim pastor of The Church of the Word in Gainesville, VA after she accepted the call to Overland Park, KS, and I got to see firsthand what fine work she’d done. Bp. Peter Lee had sent Alison to a small, discouraged new church that had never gotten off the ground with the idea that she’d help shut it down in a decent manner. Didn’t happen. God used her to revive the chrismatic congregation, and it flourishes today (part of CANA and ACNA).
FWIW, I strongly suspect that Alison had a major part in helping ++Henry Orombi write that outstanding essay on Anglicanism for [b]First Things[/b] magazine a few years ago. It has her fingerprints all over it. I’m not necessarily saying she ghostwrote it. ++Orombi is an effective communicator in his own right, but English is something like his 3rd language and he’s super busy.
And she doubtless has lots of responsibilities helping ++Orombi now that he is the Chairman of the upcoming major global conference known as “Lausanne III,” i.e., the Third Congress on World Evangelization (after the initial one in Lausanne, Switzerland in 1974, and the second one in Manilla, Philippines in 1989). That huge event will take place next year in Capetown, South Africa. Alison must be in the thick of all the countless details involved in planning and executing such a massive international event.
Thanks to Ralph Webb for this fine TLC article. And to Kendall for posting it here.
David Handy+
Like David and Robin, I am blessed to know Alison and follow in her footsteps
David Wilson
Anglican Diocese of Pittsburgh
Wouldn’t it be fantastic if Alison+ had to follow ++Henry to Lambeth? The age and timing are ideal, and there’s no better way to invigorate the Anglican Communion. ++Henry also spent years in Britain and buried a child there, so his connexions run rather deep. We’ve had too long alternating between tired old white academics and slightly less-tired old white evangelicals on the seat of Cantuar.
To turn around one of her favourite expressions … “God is good and has a plan for [i]Alison’s[/i] life.”