Eurobishop

The Chaplain of St George's Venice, the Revd Canon Malcolm Bradshaw, is just finishing his term as chairman of the  Consiglio Locale delle Chiese Cristiane di Venezia , the local council of Churches in Venice. The Week of Prayer for Christian Unity is of course a busy time for such local ecumenical bodies. In Venice the week came to a close with a liturgy in the magnificent Basilica de San Marco on Friday 25 January. I had the privilege of being the preacher at the service, which was presided by the Patriarch of Venice, Don Francesco Moraglia. Following the liturgy, seminarians from Venice were on hand to provide some refreshments for the participants. Fr Malcolm Bradshaw The Patriarch and I held discussions on Saturday 26th, particularly focussiing on the changes in Europe and Italy in these days. The Patriarch has been a strong voice in support of welcoming refugees in Italy, and urging his parishes to collaborate in concrete actions of solidarity and support, ...

St Augustine of Hippo congregation in Rabat, Morocco, is one of the newest communities in our Diocese in Europe. It was established about 5 years ago, under the leadership of the Revd Canon Dr Medhat Sabry. the Chaplain of St John the Evangelist, Casablanca. It is still served by Fr Medhat each week. The congregation is a home for foreigners of many nationalities in the capital of the Kingdom of Morocco. Rabat is about 90 km from Casablanca, the largest city. Our congregation is hosted in the chapel a school run by the Roman Catholic Filles du Cœur Immaculé de Marie.  Over the past 5 years the congregation has grown slowly but steadily. For the Feast of the Baptism of Our Lord, the congregation numbered 40, including some children in a Sunday School. The time has come to consider the next steps in the life of the congregation. Very soon I will authorising a local Church Council to form to give direction and local leadership for the ongoing development of the congregation....

Břevnov Monastery The Anglican-Old Catholic International Coordinating Council has recently concluded its meetings, which were held at the Břevnov Monastery in Prague. This was the final meeting of the Council's present mandate and much of the work was focussed on preparing the final report to the Anglican Consultative Council and the (Old Catholic) International Bishops' Conference. The AOCICC is the official instrument serving the communion between Old Catholic Churches of the Union of Utrecht and the Churches of the Anglican Communion which was brought about in 1931 through the Bonn Agreement. At the closing Mass in the Old Catholic Cathedral (in sub-zero temperature), Mrs Jennifer Knudsen, a member of the Council from the Chaplaincy of St Boniface Bonn with All Saints Cologne, and a Reader in Training in this diocese, read a lesson.  Jennifer Knudsen Of course, being Prague, the monastery produces its own beer! Below is the official communiqu é: ...

The Feast of the Baptism of Our Lord was an occasion for joyful celebration at St John the Evangelist Church in Casablanca when several members of the congregation were confirned. The services at St John's tend to be lively affairs, with much music and rhythm from sub-Saharan countries alongside western songs and hymns. During the sprinkling of the people, reminding them of their own Baptismal vows, a song composed by one of the Liberian members of the parish was sung. Fittingly, referring to God's grace, the song is called "It is Raining!" Canon Dr Medhat Sabry, the Chaplain of St John's, was joined on the occasion of my visit by the Revd Canon Joanna Udal, who is an (ecumenical) member of a religious community in Casablanca. Canon Udal was the former Secretary for Anglican Communion Affairs for the Archbishops of Canterbury, Rowan Williams and Justin Welby. Meanwhile work continues apace on the St John's community centre, which will prov...

Celia Paterson is a Reader who serves in St George's Madrid. She is also one of Europe's leaders in Godly Play , a creative and imaginative approach to Christian nurture for those in early, middle and late childhood. It is without doubt a significant movement supporting the exploration of faith by children and young people in today's Church. The diocese is justifiably proud of Celia's leadership in Godly Play internationally and ecumenically, a clear outworking of her Reader vocation to teach the faith and nurture disciples.  Here is an account from Celia of a recent event in Northern Spain: _____________________________________________________________ I was invited to take part in a Young people’s retreat run by the De La Salle brothers in the north of Spain. It was immediately after Christmas – 26th-28th December – and was held in a beautiful monastery in Bujedo in the Province of Burgos. I knew the brother organising it, Guillermo Moreno Barrero, ...

For over 400 years, since 1611, the English Church in Hamburg has been serving the English speaking community in the city. At first the congregation was made up of English residents who were largely engaged in shipping and trade. Today the Church is a multinational community; typically at the Sunday mass the congregation, which is regularly more than 100, represents over 15 nationalities. T he Church is dedicated to  St Thomas à Becket. On 9 January a window depicting the saint was blessed, having been restored, mounted and illuminated in one of the upper galleries of the building. The glass, dating from the late 19th century, was donated by Graham Dry and his wife Beate Dry-von Zerschwitz who discovered it among other stained glass in a specialist shop in London. The members of the congregation are proud to have this saint as their patron, particularly in these days when the relationship between the United Kingdom and the rest of Europe is uncertain. They know that ...

Well, it is the 10th day of Christmas - no "Lords a-Leaping",  but instead here is one account of the ecumenical impact our traditional Christmas carol services have. It is from Canon Malcolm Bradshaw, the Chaplain of St George's Venice. Not a bad testimony from the city of the Gabrielis and Monteverdi! ____________________________________________________________________________ "Spectacular, most beautiful. To see and hear those young people singing really filled my heart." Such were the remarks of Don Andrea the Roman Catholic priest of the parish in which St George’s Anglican Church, Venice, is situated. He had attended and participated in the service of Nine Lessons and Carols held in St George’s on 15th December. Immediately on returning home he sent the above words to Mr David Newbold the Churchwarden. St George’s was privileged by having the contribution of thirty six voices from the choirs of Eton College and St Paul’s Girls' school, London....