Eurobishop

There has been Anglican worship in Bonn, Germany, for 175 years. On Saturday 24 June, this milestone was celebrated by St Boniface Anglican parish in the grand setting of the  Schlosskirche in the heart of the city. Ecumenical guests were present from the Roman Catholic Church as well as a representative from our sister Old Catholic Church in Germany. The Deputy Mayor of the City was also present underlying civic recognition for these years of English church presence. An excellent choir, the Bonn English Singers, led the music. The anniversary service began with a procession of thanksgiving around the Church with stations at the Baptismal Font, the Lectern and the Altar, the places where Christ's presence in his Church in the sacred liturgy is particularly symbolised. The Archdeacon of Germany and Northern Europe, the Venerable Colin Williams, the locum priest Fr Richard Costin, the Assistant Curate Fr Richard Gardiner, and Area Dean-designate Canon John Newsome, were a...

Reader Sharon Grant On Sunday 18 June, Sharon Grant was licensed as a Reader (Licensed Lay Minister) to serve the Anglican Church in the Costa Brava. The service took place in the ancient, (probably 13th century), Church of St Stephen, in Madremanya, At the festive eucharist, 5 persons were also confirmed, and one received into the communion of the Church of England. A wonderful lunch rounded off the day at the parish house in Corçà. Somehow, the parishioners found out it was my birthday, too! The Anglican Church of Costa Brava was formally constituted in 2012 and its first priest, the Revd Anne Jenkins appointed. Sharon now joins the ministry team as a licensed lay minister serving this active parish which meets in 4 different locations in the beautiful part of Catalunya. The entrance to the parish house patio The parish puts great emphasis on the welcome offered to everyone. This welcome is summed up in this statement on their website: "We are a...

Plans continue for new congregations to be planted in Northwest Germany. The project has been spearheaded by the Area Dean of Germany, the Revd Canon Ken Dimmick. Fr Dimmick reports on a recent meeting to further this development, held at the home of Archdeacon of Germany and Northern Europe, the Venerable Colin Williams: "Our big dream is for the development of quite a number of smaller worship communities, similar to house churches, ....perhaps focused on lay-led Bible Study.  From time to time we see these house groups gathering with other house groups for a more liturgical worship service, and when  priest is available, for the celebration of the Holy Eucharist." Fr Ken intends that local worship leaders be trained to lead services of the word, between priestly visits. He appeals to the 10 or so Anglican priests in Germany to assist, perhaps coming once or twice a year to spend a couple of days, visiting and celebrating the Eucharist. An "executive committe...

Canon Blair addressed the Madeira supporters Lord Patrick Cormack hosted a dinner on Thursday 8 June in the House of Lords, to launch the bicentenary appeal and programme for Holy Trinity Church Madeira. The Church n this Portuguese Island off the coast of Morocco was first opened for worship in 1822. The appeal is for €200,000 for necessary repairs and refurbishment to secure the life of the Church into its third century! Although the electoral roll in Holy Trinity is quite modest, the Church is almost always full due to the many visitors to the island, as well as the "swallows". The building is also used virtually every day of the week as a venue for concerts. The Revd Canon John Blair is the present chaplain. At the dinner he shared with the guests something of the life of this extraordinary and vibrant parish. It felt odd gathering in the House of Lords on election night in the UK. But the 70 or so who gathered for the dinner were not distracted by the politi...

Passers-by and tourists on the way to visit the Little Mermaid in Copenhagen, are often surprised when they come across what looks like a traditional English parish church, St Alban's. Although designed in the English Gothic Revival style by the great architect Sir Arthur Blomfield, visitors and tourists will, on closer inspection, see that this beautiful building is much more than an English Church, but the home to a wonderfully diverse and international Christian community. 225 persons are on the electoral roll, and they hail from more than 30 different countries around the world. St Alban's ministry to tourists is impressive. About 50 volunteers who welcome huge numbers of visitors each day from spring to autumn, with guide-notes to the Church available in over a dozen languages. Literally thousands of persons each year, who might not otherwise enter a Church building, are given a warm and friendly word from one of the volunteers, and invited to enjoy a moment of peace ...

Our dear Bishop Geoffrey Rowell, third Bishop of Gibraltar in Europe, died peacefully this morning. He had been struggling bravely with cancer, a struggle he kept very quiet as he did not want people to be alarmed or to make a fuss. We mourn the passing of a great and wise teacher of the Catholic faith, an extraordinary ecumenist, a warm pastor, one of the world's best networkers, and a beloved friend. May he rest in peace.   Posted with Blogsy

The Board of Governors of the Anglican Centre in Rome on which I serve recently had a meeting in Chicago, hosted by the Episcopal Bishop of Chicago, the Rt Revd Jeff Lee. It was the last meeting of the Board during the time of the current Director, the Most Revd Sir David Moxon, who will be stepping down at the end of June after almost 5 years in post. It was a chance for US friends and supporters of the Centre to express their gratitude to Archbishop David for his outstanding achievements in Anglican-RC relations during his time as Director. (Incidentally, the Diocese in Europe Board of Finance makes a small annual grant to the Anglican Centre. Canon Ann Turner is our Diocesan Representative). Evensong at St James's Cathedral, Chicago Christ Church Winnetka Illinois I had the privilege of preaching and presiding at one of the many flourishing parishes in the Diocese of Chicago, Christ Church, Winnetka, Illinois. There are over 50 in the choir at Christ Church, an...

The conference theme was taken from closing words in the Eucharist On the frontier of Church and world. This sums up the ministry of our Licensed Lay Ministers (a.k.a Readers). From 19 to 22 May in Cologne, Readers and those in training for this ministry from across the diocese gathered for a conference to consider the challenge of frontier ministry. Licensed Lay Ministers are in the position of having a listening ear in two camps: the Church and the world that the Church is called to serve. "Double listening" is how this was summed this up in one of our sessions. Listening to the Word and listening to the world: this is the ministry of the Reader and it is a key role in our diocese. The conference was bracketed by two liturgical moments: We began as scattered individuals around the edges of St Edith Stein chapel at Kardinal Schulte House, symbolising our dispersal across the islands and continent we serve. We came together to form community around the Word and S...