Eurobishop

The lands of the Bible, places we know from the stories of the Patriarchs of the Old Testament, and the soil of the Middle East where our Lord Jesus Christ was born and lived and where Christianity first took root, are still ravaged by war, violence and terror. It is hard to imagine what our sisters and brothers in Syria and Iraq, two countries which border on our Diocese in Europe, have witnessed this past year, and most recently the attack on the Coptic Church in Cairo underlines the fragility of life for minority communities across the region. Terrorism has of course also touched our own continent, most recently in Berlin. Nevertheless the celebration of Christ's birth, the Prince of Peace, gives us hope. There are few finer words to summarise this hope than those of a Syrian Teacher of the Faith, St Ephrem the Deacon, (commemorated in the Church of England on 9 June). He died in 373. Here is an extract from one of his Christmas hymns: The feast day of your birth resembl...

500 people attended the Service of Nine Lessons and Carols of St Nicholas's Anglican Church in Helsinki which was held in the Lutheran Cathedral in the centre of the city. The Anglican Carol Service is a major attraction in the Advent season in the Finnish capital, and is well attended by people of all nationalities and church affiliations. In the square below the Cathedral, Helsinki's Christmas Market is held. I am certain that there are also many who attend the carol service, who have been browsing around the market and who are drawn for some reason to enter the Church. Some who may have no formal Christian connection come perhaps for aesthetic reasons to begin with, or who are tentatively exploring the Christian faith, and find at the Carol Service, a warm and welcoming space for that exploration. Our priest at St Nicholas's, the Revd Tuomas Mäkipää, deliberately keeps the format of this service very traditional, even maintaining the scripture readings from the A...

St Paul's in Monaco regularly celebrates Confirmation and usually in the season of Advent. It is an appropriate time of the year to celebrate this sacrament as the Advent message of light shining in the darkness underlines the commitment of the newly confirmed to bear Christ's light in the world. In the confirmation liturgy the candidates receive a lit candle at the conclusion of the rite, and carry that candle out into the world. This year in St Paul's I administered the apostolic rite of Confirmation to another class prepared by the parish priest, the Very Revd Walter Raymond OGS. This latest celebration has brought the number of candidates that Fr Walter has presented to me to 40 in total during his 8 years of ministry in the Principality. The spiritual life of the congregation seems in good heart! The Advent confirmations also frequently coincide with the huge charity bazaar held each year, called the Kermesse . It is a major ecumenical event as well: t...

It was very moving last Wednesday 14 December to join in a prayer vigil led by His Grace Bishop Angaelos, General Bishop of the Coptic Orthodox Church in the UK, at the Innocent Victims' Memorial at Westminster Abbey. The prayers were offered in honour and memory of the 25 Coptic Orthodox Christians, mostly women and children, who were killed in the bombing of St Peter's Church in Cairo last weekend. The Reverend Canon Jane Sinclair of the Abbey welcomed all to the prayers. Addresses were given by the Archbishop Justin Welby, Bishop Angaelos and HE Mr Nasser Kamel, the Egyptian Ambassador to the UK. As the names of the victims were read aloud, 25 red roses were laid between 25 lit candles, representing the blood that they shed for their faith, and the light they will continue to represent in the memory of their family, friends, and communities. Bishop Angaelos spoke of the tragedy of families broken apart just before the Feast of the Nativity, and of the need for faith, ...

The Readers and Readers in Training, with the Director of Reader Ministry, the Revd Elaine Labourel, (3rd from left) A  workshop for our lay ministers (Readers) was held recently. It was entitled "Pastoral Principles for Readers". It was very well attended and clearly well received. One of the participants, Simone Yallop, a reader in training in the Anglican Church in Twente, Netherlands, wrote this article: In the weekend of 28-30 October 2016 a group of 22 Readers and Readers-in-Training gathered at St Columba’s House in Woking for a Diocesan workshop on Pastoral Principles. Under the expert leadership of the Revd Elaine Labourel (Diocesan Director of Readers) and Ms Alexandra Wheeler, we learned about what pastoral care really is and how to build pastoral relationships. Using various exercises, generally in groups of two, we discovered what it is that makes a good listener as well as what to do and what not to do during a pastoral visit. Alexandra addresses the ...

From the left: Fr Nigel, Mark Mallet-White, Fr David, the Revds Vivien and Ron Larkin On St. Andrew's Eve, 29th November, the Anglican Church at Puerto Pollença celebrated 30 years of its ministry. St Andrew is the patron of this congregation. Although active for these 30 years, only a couple of years ago, the congregation moved to a new multi-purpose premises, which is well used by this active parish, led by their priest, the Revd Nigel Stimpson. The entrance to St Andrew's multi-purpose building Some parishioners from the congregation in Palma, together with their priest, the Revd David Waller, joined Fr Nigel and two clergy from the Uniting Church in Australia, the Revds Ron and Vivien Larkin, who assist under the provisions of the Ecumenical Canons. After the service good use was made of the multi-purpose building, as we shared lively conversation, lovely food and some excellent wine. Some members of the congregation present that evening had been there at the begi...

Fr Howard at Diocesan Synod 2015 It is with great sadness that I convey the news of the death of the Venerable Fr Howard Levett SSC. He died on Monday 13th December at the Royal Free Hospital in London, where he was admitted last Tuesday the 6th. He was 72. He had battled with cancer a while back and the disease had returned and spread. During his last days, he received many visitors, mostly former parishioners and clergy friends and colleagues. I visited him just hours before his death. He was already unconscious, but I was able to pray for him and for the visitors who were around his bedside, and to anoint him in the sacrament of Holy Unction. Fr Howard has had a rich ministry as a priest. Ordained in 1969, he has served in the Dioceses of Southwark, and London, as well as in Egypt as Archdeacon for 14 years. In our Diocese he was Chaplain of St George's Venice and Christ Church Trieste from 2010 to 2015. He was a member of our Diocesan Synod until his retirement. So many...

Today is the Feast of St Lucy, the young woman martyred in Syracuse in 304 AD during the Diocletian persecution. According to the Julian calendar used in Sweden until 1753, the night between the 12th and the 13th of December was Midwinter, the longest night of the year, when it was believed that extra protection was needed against darkness and evil. Hence in Sweden Sankta Lucia has become a major festival of light celebrated in churches, schools and homes. In the beautiful service St Lucy appears wearing a white gown, a crown of candles and a red ribbon around her waist as a sign of her martydom. She is accompanied by young people singing traditional Swedish songs and carols. Each year in London Swedes and their friends come together for a great celebration of Sankta Lucia , to which I am invited, along with the clergy of Porvoo sister Churches. This year's celebration was in Westminster Roman Catholic Cathedral. We witness the ongoing violence in Syria and Iraq, violent t...

In the Church of England, after ordination, (or after a priest is received into the C of E from a Church not in communion with ours) a second phase of training is compulsory. This is called IME Phase 2. Various themes are covered in this training period which lasts 3 - 4 years, to assist clergy with their great demands in terms of spiritual and parochial leadership. The Director of Ministerial Development, the Revd Canon Ulla Monberg, has recently completed directing another residential training session for our own IME Phase 2 candidates at St Columba's House, Woking. The group focussed on issues to do with observing boundaries in ministry, understanding transference and counter transference, dealing with the shadow self, safeguarding, priorities for ministry, and clergy well-being. One of the resource persons for the sessions was the Revd Canon Philippa Boardman MBE, Canon Treasurer of St Paul's Cathedral. She invited the priests and deacons from across the diocese to b...

It was a privilege on Sunday to join in a prayer service held at St Mark's Coptic Orthodox Church, led by His Holiness Patriarch Mor Ignatius Aphrem II. His Holiness is in London in these days for an apostolic visit. He is the 122nd successor to St Peter in the Apostolic See of Antioch and All the East, and the Patriarch of the Syriac Orthodox Church whose headquarters are in Damascus. His Holiness is accompanied on his visit by their Eminences Archbishop Mor Severius Hawa, Archbishop of Baghdad and Basra and Mor Theophilus George Saliba, Archbishop of Mount Lebanon and Tripoli. The service was a joyful gathering of the bishops, clergy and people from three of the Oriental Orthodox Churches, the Syriac, the Coptic and the Armenian. His Eminence  Archbishop Elisey of Sourozh, the Russian Orthodox Archbishop in London was also in attendance.  His Holiness was born in Qamishli, a city on the border of Syria and Turkey, just about 70 kilometres from a monastery I stay in ...

Anglicans continue to grow in faith and commitment on the Costa del Sol. On 30th October, the parish of Costa del Sol East hosted a joint confirmation service for their parish and the neighbouring parish of Costa del Sol West. It was an All Saints Day celebration and was held at St Andrew's Church in Fuengirola. 6 persons were confirmed that day. The Revds Adrian Low (left) and Alaric Lewis I was assisted by the priests of the two parishes, Fr Alaric Lewis (Costa del Sol East) and Fr Adrian Low (Costa del Sol West), as well as by Reader Caroline MacFarlane, also from the East. During the service two of the confirmands gave moving testimonies as to why they were taking this step in their Christian lives, to become active disciples of our Lord. The faith of all the candidates was inspiring. Hospitality is a large element in the mission strategy of St Andrew's, Costa del Sol East. It seemed natural that following the Confirmation the Church was converted into a banquet ...

The Feast of Christ the King was celebrated with great joy in All Saints Rome with four people receiving the sacrament of Confirmation and the Revd Dana English receiving a new licence as Assistant Chaplain. This past year, Dana completed the Church of England's mandatory "post-ordination training" period. Thus her status changes from being an Assistant Curate, which indicates the training phase, to Assistant Chaplain. The Revd Dana English is licensed as Assistant Chaplain; while Churchwarden James Hadley (right) looks on One of the features of this congregation is its thriving ministry to families and young persons, through Sunday School, confirmation classes, and other activities. Besides her regular liturgical, pastoral and preaching duties, Dana has particular responsibility for these Christian Education programmes, both for youth and for members of the parish in general. Many young persons are involved in the servers' guild, a good way to use their gi...

Deacon Christine engaging with the students from the University of Athens Every year groups of students from the University of Athens are welcomed to a Sunday morning service at St. Paul’s Anglican Church in that city.  They are studying History, Theology or Comparative Religion and are eager to learn about the Church of England, its roots and its place in the world today. As the service progresses the differences between an Orthodox service and an Anglican one become apparent. As well as the architecture and interior design of the church, they are particularly interested in such aspects as the role played by women in the service as lay assistants, readers or sides-persons, the broad mix of nationalities represented within the congregation and, perhaps most striking, the preparation of the sacrament at an altar which is in full view of the congregation. Another striking difference, they say, is the strong participation of the congregation through words and song and they also ...

Fr Luciano, Mother Teodora, Archdeacon Vicki and Sra Faustina Bruno For several years there have been small communities of Old Catholic Italian speaking Christians in Italy. At one time they were under the oversight of the Old Catholic Bishop of Germany, and then later under the oversight of the Old Catholic Bishop of Switzerland. In 2011, the Swiss Old Catholic Bishop wrote to this diocese to say that he was relinquishing oversight of these Old Catholic groups and that they would decide to affiliate with either the Church of England, or the Convocation of Episcopal Churches in Europe. Since 2012 I have been working with those former Old Catholic clergy and congregations who have requested formally to come within the jurisdiction of the Church of England. We have welcomed these sisters and brothers in Christ warmly, and are seeking ways, within the norms of the Church of England, for certain Old Catholic traditions to be maintained within their new affiliation, the main such t...

Trondheim Cathedral One of the realities of divided Christianity is the fact that it can take decades, even centuries, for historic divisions to be healed. Different contexts for the divisions mean that different ways of progressing towards the restoration of communion often need to happen in different parts of the world. An example of this pertains to the varied ecumenical relations between Anglican Churches and Lutheran Churches around the world. Anglican Churches in the UK and Ireland are in a relationship of visible communion with the Lutheran Churches of most of the Nordic and Baltic States, thanks to the Porvoo Agreement whose 20th anniversary is this year. In North America, there are different agreements bringing the Episcopal Church USA into communion with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) and the Anglican Church of Canada into communion with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada (ELCIC). But these regional agreements are not yet all connected! Ecum...