Eurobishop

  The Roman Catholic World Youth Day (which lasted a week from 1 to 6 August!) was likely the largest gathering of youth within the geographic territory of the Diocese. 1.5 million young people from around the world gathered in Lisbon for the week’s events which included times of prayer, teaching, worship, cultural activities and meetings with Pope Francis. St George’s Anglican Church in Lisbon, with their priests, Mthr Ruth Bendrey and Fr Iain Bendrey, had a vision of collaborating with a key Roman Catholic movement, the Chemin Neuf Community to host a series of ecumenical gatherings at St George’s during the week. They were assisted  by Honourary Assitant priest at St George's, Fr Steve Danzey.  The Archbishop of York, Stephen Cottrell and the Director of the Anglican Centre in Rome, Archbishop Ian Ernest, were among the key speakers invited for the week. Young adults from the Diocese in Europe joined us, from Spain, Portugal, Italy, Switzerland, France, Germany, Russi...

St George's Madrid The Chrism Mass is a key moment each year when the unity of those engaged in public ministry is manifested and renewed, and when the sacred oils of baptism, the sick and chrism are blessed for distribution across the diocese.  St James the Apostle refers to anointing the sick with oil, and the prayer of blessing asks that the Lord may free those anointed from pain and illness and made well again in body, mind and soul.  In blessing the oil of the catechumens we pray that those anointed in preparation for their baptism will be given a deeper understanding of the gospel and strength for the challenge of Christian living.  The sacred chrism, a mixture of olive oil and fragrant and aromatic essences, is blessed by the bishop and priests together, and is used after baptisms, at confirmations and ordinations, as a sign of the outpouring of the gifts of the Holy Spirit.  A translation of an ancient (sixth century) hymn O Redemptor sume carmen  is sun...

Last Wednesday 27 April, in St Swithun's Church, Headbourne Worthy, we laid to rest the Revd Ronald Corne, chaplain of All Saints Puerto de la Cruz, Tenerife, with St Martin de Porres, La Palma, Spain. Fr Ron fell ill in February, and after a brief time in hospital in Tenerife, decided to return to the UK to be close to his family. He died shortly after his return.  The moving tributes given at the funeral recalled Ron's cheeky smiles and infectious laughter, his quick witted jokes, but above all that he was a spiritual and wonderfully giving person, loved by so many. He will be sorely missed by his parishioners in Tenerife/La Palma. Many had not been aware of how seriously ill their priest was, as Fr Ron, always a private man, did not wish them to worry or fret about him.   Fr Ron wanted to be buried in St Swithun's, one of the churches in a benefice he once served in the Diocese of Winchester. His entire ministry prior to coming to the Diocese in Europe three years ago ...

On Friday 22 April, I had the great joy and privilege of presiding at the wedding of the Ven. David Sutch and Gwendolyne Thurley. Archdeacon David is a former Archdeacon of Gibraltar, and Chaplain of Costa del Sol East. The wedding in St George's Church, Brockworth Village, was also very much a Diocese in Europe event, although in the middle of Gloucestershire. The best man was the Very Revd Alan Woods, former Dean of Gibraltar (and Archdeacon of Gibraltar), with some parishioners from Fr David's Costa del Sol East parish, (the bride is from there), and a former Chaplain, Fr Alaric Lewis. Fr David, though now retired, clearly had not forgotten some of his technique honed from years as a priest in Spain: Warmest blessings to Fr David and Gwendolyne!  

Candidates for Confirmation in St Vincent's Algarve As COVID restrictions gradually have been lifting across the diocese since last autumn, parish visits have resumed. In some cases I have been catching up with visits that had to be postponed many months or longer, due to the pandemic. Although we have taken to Zoom quite well as a diocese, recent surveys in the Church of England have shown that the majority of Anglicans prefer physical gatherings for worship, over virtual services, even though the latter serve us well in our time of need.  However the sacrament of Confirmation cannot be celebrated over zoom!  Across the diocese candidates have been patiently waiting to receive this apostolic rite, in some cases having been prepared months beforehand, until such time when a physical gathering would be possible once again,  Renewal of baptismal vows are an essential part of Confirmation St Vincent's Algarve was the venue for one such service in January. In the beautiful ch...

The chapel where the first services were held, 50 years ago The Chaplaincy of the Holy Spirit Costa Blanca in Spain is among the largest in the Diocese in terms of numbers of congregations (8), the geograhical spread (about the size of Wales), the number of clergy who serve it (5) and the electoral roll. It is also celebrating its golden jubilee anniversary this year.  On the weekend of Advent Sunday, several events marked this milestone, including a confirmation service, with 11 candidates, of all ages. A splendid festive Evensong was held in the church where the first services were held 50 years ago.  Canon Marcus Ronchetti Fr Marcus Ronchetti, the Senior Chaplain of Costa Blanca, recently became an honorary canon of our Cathedral, and will be installed in Gibraltar in January. His stall will be that of St James, who is, of course, the patron saint of Spain.  

Casablanca: St John the Evangelist I often say to the congregations of the Diocese that the most important thing I do as a bishop is make new disciples and strengthen existing ones through the sacraments of initiation. In the Church of England it is a norm that the bishop presides at the baptism of adults , so that at the one liturgy the fulness of the initiation sacraments can be celebrated, as indeed they once were in the ancient Church: baptism, confirmation (or chrismation/laying on of hands) and Holy Communion. Those are very special and powerful moments indeed.  Oslo: St Edmund's But more frequently, my episcopal visits involve confirmations alone for those baptised in infancy, confirmation being the one part of Christian Initiation which has been reserved to bishops in the tradition of the Church of England. But even when separated in time from baptism, the sacrament of confirmation is understood to be a continuance of what has begun in baptism, celebrating what the Holy Spi...

It is not very often in the Church of England that we have to expand a church building in order to accommodate a growing worshipping congregation.  The fact that this should also happen in a country which is officially Muslim adds to the rarity of such an occasion. That is precisely what has happened in St John the Evangelist Church in Casablanca. Canon Medhat Sabry St John's has been home to Anglicans and other English speaking foreign Christians since 1906. In recent years the numbers of Christian migrants from all over the world has increased in this, the largest city in Morocco. Under the then Chaplain of St John's, the Revd Canon Dr Medhat Sabry, a plan was developed to build a community centre as a first phase, which was opened 2 years ago. The next phase was the extension of the actual church building, including the construction of a balcony, to be able to almost double the capacity for attendance at services. The historic church is considered to be part of the patrimony...

St George's Madrid The Diocese in Europe, even though part of the Church of England, is not very English at all. In fact, it is a particular privilege as a bishop to be able to accompany congregations as they grow and develop in response to the challenges of multicultural and multinational ministry.  Solomon Ike (left) with St George's Chaplain Canon Sabry (right) St George’s Madrid was once called "the British Embassy Church of St George". Today it is like so many of our churches in capital cities: a magnet for people from every part of the world who use English as a first, second, or even third language and who are seeking a church home.   Many years ago I had the pleasure of a meeting with a dozen or so members of the church who are originally from Nigeria. They spoke to me with great pride that one of their own compatriots was wanting to become a priest. That began a long journey of discernment and training for Solomon Ike. The ordination of Solomon in St George’...