Eurobishop

  St Mark, traditionally held to be the founder of the Church in Alexandria Advent begins this Sunday. Our Director of Lay Discipleship, Dr Clare Amos, has been busy preparing some resources to help the faithful of the diocese to enter into the spirituality of this season.  This Monday 30 November, 18.00 Central European Time (17.00 GMT), Clare will lead a reflection on the Gospel of Mark. This brief overview of the emphasis that Mark lays out in his Gospel, will be helpful for us as Mark is the Gospel we will be mostly be reading from on Sundays during this "Year B" of the Common Lectionary.  Clare's reflections will be in the context of a brief liturgy called "A Service of Meditations for the Beginning of Advent". Clare is a Biblical scholar (among many other things) and a very engaging teacher. Do join us for this "Journey into Advent with Mark". The livestream is on the Diocesan YouTube channel:   

  Image by Jill Wellington from Pixabay   Today we wish a very happy Thanksgiving to the many folk across the diocese in Europe who come from the USA. In that country it is a national holiday and a day of thanks, which may have its origin back to 1621 when the Plymouth colonists and members of the  Wampanoag nation shared an autumn harvest feast, together enjoying the fruits of the earth.  In our multinational/multicultural Diocese in Europe, we rejoice in the ministry, witness, generosity and support that so many from the United States bring to our common life. We also recognise that for many of our US friends and colleagues this year's holiday will be a difficult time. Some have endured months or more of separation from loved ones. Some have lost family or friends, or are worried about those close to them who are sick. Some are concerned for values of truth and justice in their homeland. So we pray with you, the prayer for this day in the Prayer Book of the Episcopal Church, USA:

This has been a sad week in the Diocese in Europe. Two great pioneers of our work, one in Finland, and the other in Poland died in the last couple of days.  Mr Geoffrey Phillips receiving the Maundy Money in Westminster Abbey Mr Geoffrey Phillips died on 16 November after a long struggle with cancer. He served the Anglican Church in Finland for many years as a Reader (Licensed Lay Minister) in particular supporting the work of the English speaking congregation in Turku where he lived. He was an enthusiastic promotor of the Porvoo Agreement, and our good relations in Turku are due, in no small measure, to the respect with which he was held by our Church in Finland partners over the 25 years of the Agreement.  He was generous in every way to the Anglican work in Finland, and we thank God for his faithful and loving ministry, and for his kind consideration of the future of our work there. The Chaplain of St Nicholas Helsinki and Area Dean for Finland, the Revd Tuomas Mäkipää writes:  &quo

Today is the commemoration of St Martin de Porres, a Dominican friar, born in Lima, Peru in 1579, of a Spanish nobleman and a freed African slave. Because of his care for all regardless of class or colour he is considered the patron saint of race relations and social justice. Perhaps a fitting saint to be celebrated on this election day in the USA. There are many US citizens who live and work in this diocese (including a number of our clergy). Almost all I have spoken to have eagerly taken advantage of mail-in voting and have exercised their democratic right. We pray today for the USA, in the words of a collect from the Book of Common Prayer of the Episcopal Church:  Almighty God, to whom we must account for all our powers and privileges: Guide the people of the United States in the election of officials and representatives; that, by faithful administration and wise laws, the rights of all may be protected and the nation be enabled to fulfill your purposes; through Jesus Christ our Lor

St Laurence's, Lanzarote A plan to take advantage of a travel corridor still open between the UK and the Canary Islands has been cancelled: a visit to the chaplaincy of St Laurence, Lanzarote, on 14-15 November. Last Saturday night new English lockdown arrangements effective from 5 November were announced by Prime Minister Boris Johnston. Travel within the country and abroad is now not possible, unless considered essential. So, sadly, Lanzarote is added to the growing pile of cancelled pastoral visits dating back to last March. The chaplain, the Revd Canon Stan Evans was very understanding.  In Lanzarote the mission of the chaplaincy to reach out to the lost and marginalised on the island has been growing. Fr Stan is working with his Roman Catholic colleague, Fr Agustin Lasso, to look at ways to work together to serve the 600 families who are in desperate need on the island, reaching out "with the compassion of Christ as so many are hurting or are bruised at this time".