Please do pray for the bishops of the Anglican Communion as we gather in Canterbury. Bishops Gavin, Olivia, Alan and myself all aim to be present with our spouses for the whole of the conference. We will also be with Bishop Brian from Kimberley and Kuruman and Bishop Pushpa from Nandyal and around 700 other bishops from across the Anglican Communion.
Our Bible studies will be on 1 Peter. The theme of the conference is God’s Church for God’s world. The conference will see the launch of the Anglican Communion Science Commission – a new initiative to draw together scientists and senior church leaders across the Anglican Communion. There is a special focus on the environment and climate change on the Wednesday of the second week.
It will be an immense privilege to be present at the conference and to hear so many different stories. We are aware as we travel to Lambeth of the pain and hurt of many LGBTQI+ people and their families in advance of the conference, and the painful divisions in the Communion around issues of human sexuality. We welcome the announcement yesterday (see below) that there will be changes made to the draft Call on Human Dignity. We pray that every interaction around these issues will be marked by grace and love.
I’ll try and offer some updates as we go through the next two weeks but please do hold Archbishop Justin and the whole conference in your prayers.
Click here to download the official prayer guide for the event