In his brief opening remarks, Archbishop Williams spoke candidly about the tensions and divisions within the Anglican Communion. He spoke of the grief that is ours to share because of the absence of those bishops who have chosen not to attend. \u201cWe need their voice,\u201d\u009d he said, \u201cand they need ours in learning Christ together.\u201d\u009d He went on to invite our prayers, our love, and our respect for those who are not here, observing that while we are indeed a wounded body, \u201cthe body of Christ is always a wounded body because we are a body of sinful human beings.\u201d\u009d<\/p>\n
The emphasis during our time together, he reflected, must be upon deepening our relationships, not imagining naively that building relationships alone will solve our problems but understanding that we dare not pretend to address the issues before us without first offering one another the kind of deep and loving attentiveness to relationship that Jesus in fact commands.<\/p>\n
To that end, our time together over the next several weeks will be grounded in daily prayer and bible study\u201d\u201dthe source from which our other conversations will flow. As Archbishop Williams observed, \u201cscripture gives us the language that draws us together, and we need to be fluent in that language.<\/p>\n
I couldn\u2019t agree more….<\/p>\n