The final three days

We spent the final three days of the Lambeth Conference discussing some of the most difficult issues before us: homosexuality; the proposed Covenant; and the Windsor Report's call for moratoria on the Consecration of gay or lesbian partnered bishops; the Blessing of same-sex unions; and cross diocesan incursions.

We have had a reasonably good process for addressing these matters in our Indaba groups. Sometimes it was very difficult and painful to listen to each other on these subjects and this certainly placed a strain on our mutual relationships. But those relationships had been made stronger for spending these last two weeks together in fellowship, worship and Bible study.

We were each invited to share something about context within which we address the issue of homosexuality. Our Indaba group did a good job of listening as each bishop responded. Still, I must note my deep disappointment that we are talking about gay and lesbian people rather than listening to them. I believe that Bishop Robinson's exclusion from this Conference profoundly diminished this process.

We addressed challenging questions about the three moratoria. In the course of our discussion, our Bible study group agreed that it is not enough for the bishops and provinces to agree to observe moratoria. Just stopping certain activities is not enough. There is no life in that. We need to know "Why?" and "For how long?" The moratoria should be in the service of a larger project of coming to a shared understanding of the Scripture, of an exploration of theological anthropology and an articulation of sexual ethics. Only by clearing space for those wider discussions will the moratoria speak life rather than threaten death (to echo the Archbishop of Canterbury) to the Communion. We hope that the Conference final statement will spell this out.

We also did a line-by-line reading of the St. Andrew's Draft of the proposed Covenant. There is broad support for the Covenant, but lots of concern and outright opposition to the Appendix.

These are large and important issues that draw a lot of deep concern and plenty of passionate rhetoric. Yet, as you have read elsewhere, the spirit of our discussions has been good, undergirded by a commitment to remain a Communion.

The distillations of those discussions have been forwarded to the writing team that is at work on the "Reflections" statement that will be presented today (Sunday) as an account of this Lambeth Conference. In addition, the hearings, self-select classes and other discussion groups have continued.

Along the way we have seen what I consider to be a very strong and positive piece on "The Bible and the Bishop in Mission." I anticipate that this will be one of the most valuable sections in the "Reflections" statement.

I have no doubt that the "Blogosphere" will be white hot as soon as we hear the Archbishop of Canterbury's final Presidential Address and the ''Reflections" document is released. There will likely be strong reactions from all sides. Everyone will find something about which to complain. No one will agree with everything.

As we consider this Conference and whatever statement it may produce, I ask that we stop, look and listen. Before we react, could we please stop, breathe and pray?

Before we react, could we look not only at the document but at the larger processes at work here? Let us look at the history of the Lambeth Conference itself. The Conference has, over time, changed its position on certain issues. The 1908 Conference, for example, opposed the use of contraception. In 1958, the Conference endorsed the use of contraception.

I am told that this Conference is a very different one from that of 1998. According to some who were present, there were boos and hisses during debates in 1998. There has been nothing of the sort in our plenary meetings here.

Although the bishops' leadership is important, this Lambeth Conference does not have the final word on several important matters that we have addressed. The Covenant process, for example, stretches out for years and years. And the observance of moratoria would, in The Episcopal Church, require the action of General Convention. And bear in mind the character of the Anglican Communion: a Communion of Churches, joined together by bonds of affection, not a juridical or legislative body.

And listen. Please listen for the still, small voice that is often drowned out by the big voices of church and society. I think that we will hear more of the Holy Spirit speaking to us not by calculating the winners and losers of Lambeth 2008, but by asking the Lord to show us who we really have to love as a result of this Conference.

We will have time to discuss all of this in the Diocese of New Jersey. Bishop Romero and I will meet with the clergy at a special Clergy Day in September. We have also planned four Convocation gatherings this fall. And we have the privilege of hosting a day of "Lambeth Reflections" for our Province, to be held at Trinity Cathedral in Trenton on October 4th.

When Jane Williams addressed the Conference last week she made three points on behalf of the Spouses. The first point remains with me. "God has not made a mistake by bringing us together in this place." I believe that. I believe that Lambeth 2008 has served God's purpose for this Communion, in ways that we cannot yet see and in ways that we may never see.

But I do see God's hand in this story. Do you know what Archbishop Williams will do when all the bishops go home? He will lead a retreat for the 50+ mostly twentysomething year-old Stewards who have been working at this Conference for the past four weeks. What an extraordinary commitment and sacrifice for the good of the Church and the future of the Communion.

A special plenary last night featured four of the Stewards who spoke of the meaning of the Conference. Their words were faith-filled, joyous and hopeful; filled with love for our Lord and confidence in the future of the Communion. They were full of light and life and they lifted up the weary and weak-hearted. One of them, from South Africa, opened her remarks with a call and response: "Bright light. Bright future. Bright future. Bright light." May it be so, to the glory of God, to the blessing of God's people and to the praise of Jesus Christ, the light of the world.

Keep praying, please.

Faithfully yours in Christ,

+George

Our Bible Study Group

Click the image to see a larger photo.

+George

Learning a bit about that word 'context'

We came. We saw. We bought the photographs. Now, let's complete a good statement and all go home, shall we?

I'm joking, of course. We enter the final three days of the Conference today. Our Bible studies and Indaba groups, self-select classes and other gatherings are going forward, all surrounded and upheld with corporate worship and in the strength of your prayers.

Today we will receive and review a fourth draft of the statement (it's not yet clear what it will be called) that will be sent out from the bishops at the conclusion of the Conference. The group that is doing the drafting of the statement is offering truly heroic service to the Conference. It is too soon to say how it will all come out, but I have respect for the process by means of which it is being prepared.

In our Indaba groups we continued our conversation of how each of us understands the issues of human sexuality in our own context. These very different and, at times, conflicting approaches have been shared in a profoundly respectful manner. We have suffered none of the fundamentalism of the right or of the left in our exchanges. We have shared a lot of pain, but we have been on holy ground.

I have been learning a bit about that word 'context.' I think I know a little about our context in the Diocese of New Jersey and in The Episcopal Church. But I have lived for almost three weeks in the worldwide context of the Anglican Communion, represented by these 650 bishops. This is the world of our Church and of its mission.

As an American, I need somehow to keep this larger context in my heart and in my thinking and acting for the sake of the mission of God, working through this Church.

I had a jolt of recognition of my own cultural captivity the other day. We have been provided with headsets for the purposes of listening to translations of the eight languages of the Conference. I have routinely left my headset in my room. I simply assume that most of what will be said on any given day will be in English. But, in one of our plenary sessions, I missed several speeches by bishops who spoke in their first language, not English.

I am struck by how that habit of thought may be seen as part of the problem: that we Americans think that the rest of the world is here to serve us; to speak our language; to do things our way; to conform to our norms and assumptions. I am afraid that this is the message that many in the Anglican Communion have also received from our Church.

I am told that we bishops of The Episcopal Church represent 22% of the bishops present at this Conference. I am glad and grateful that we are here and I hope and pray that our contributions have made a positive difference to this gathering. But our beloved Church is only two million out of the 70+ million member Communion. Can we speak softly and listen more carefully and act more respectfully than we are perceived to have acted in the past? Will we come away from Lambeth more deeply committed to that sturdy formula of "Mutual Responsibility and Interdependence in the Body of Christ"? I certainly hope so.

I am struggling with all of this, but I am also experiencing the tremendous depth of these bonds of affection that hold us together. This Conference makes me more respectful than ever of the tremendous gift of the Anglican Communion. It is the gift of our Lord. We need this gift as we need one another.

One of the voices of the Conference is the Most Rev. Winston Halapua, our Chaplain. He is from the Pacific. He thinks and prays and talks a lot about the oceans where he and his ancestors in Tonga have made their home for thousands of years. Over and over again, he points out that the oceans cannot be separated. The flow into and out of each other. They cannot separate from one another. They belong to one another on this one planet.

So do we.

Amen.

Faithfully yours in Christ,

+George

Strain, stresses, and challenges

I appeal to you, again, for your prayers for the Lambeth Conference. As we enter the final days of this gathering there are considerable pressures from without and from within to produce a certain outcome. Many of the bishops have given voice to their frustration with our slowness to engage our differences over homosexuality and to come to a clear decision. I, and many others like me, are very concerned that what some seem to want — by way of a clear decision — will present a message to our gay and lesbian brothers and sisters that they are no longer welcome in this Church. Still others (among them several bishops from India who have spoken in plenary) have made it known that their priorities lie elsewhere and that they are looking to the Conference to make clear the commitment of our worldwide fellowship to address the needs of the poor and the outcast.

Even with those tensions, however, I am impressed with the generally positive tone of these discussions and with the overall commitment of most everyone to find ways to maintain and expand respectful and life-giving connections that keep us in Communion with each other for the glory of God and for the sake of a suffering world.

In the midst of all of these strains and stresses and challenges, Archbishop Williams has charged us to find our center in the heart of God, in the eternal generosity that we see revealed in Jesus Christ. And we need to speak to each other from that center; speaking life to each other across our disagreements and differences, rather than threatening death. As someone said yesterday, in the course of a tense and difficult Indaba discussion, we need to turn our frustration into words of life.

Wednesday was another hot day in Canterbury. So many bishops in one place for so long; in often oppressively hot venues; now tired from over two weeks of program; with three days left to come to some agreement about what to say, together, about the most contentious issues in Christendom . . .  Is this "the perfect storm"? Or, is this the place where God can work through our weakness and make His glory known?

Our Bible study worked very well with the assigned passage, John 11:1-44, the story of the death of Lazarus and Jesus' raising him up and setting him free. We did a group exegesis and, as has been the case consistently over these weeks, the Word was so alive and exciting. I wish I could meet with these bishops every Saturday night for their help with my preparations for preaching on Sunday. We have developed deep bonds of affection and have reached across our disagreements to laugh and cry, to challenge and to encourage one another. I shall miss this fellowship more than anything else.

My Indaba group wrestled with the proposed agenda for yesterday's meeting and, rejecting the schedule that was suggested to us, chose, instead, to engage one another directly on the issues of human sexuality that divide us. I supported that move. It was exceedingly difficult to listen to some of what some bishops had to say. I chose to practice listening to the voices of those with whom I am in profound disagreement. As is always the case, I think better when I am with those with whom I disagree.

Yesterday, today, and tomorrow, plenary sessions are scheduled for "Conference Reflections." All of us are gathered in one venue and there are two microphones open for any of the bishops to speak for up to three minutes on the successive drafts of a statement to come out from this Conference. The wide spectrum of views are heard and noted by the group (themselves selected from the broad diversity of the Communion, including Bishop Neil Alexander of Atlanta and Bishop Geralyn Wolf of Rhode Island) who are at work to craft that statement. Next to the Archbishop of Canterbury himself, perhaps these bishops stand most in need of our prayers.

Yesterday I also had the privilege of attending a lecture by N.T. Wright, Bishop of Durham and renowned biblical scholar. He spoke on the topic, "The Bible and Tomorrow's World." It was a stimulating and challenging presentation that called the bishops to a much more serious engagement with Scripture than has often been the case in some discussions, especially in The Episcopal Church.

There is much more to say, but too little time. We are all blessed by your prayers. Keep them coming, please.

Faithfully yours in Christ,

+George

Generous love — and its cost

One of the most important features of the Lambeth Conference is our common worship. Each service is led by bishops, spouses and others from a different province of the Communion. The attendees worship together with our staff, stewards, chaplains and our ecumenical guests each day at Morning Prayer (6:30), Morning Worship (Eucharist, at 7:15), at Evening Worship (5:45) and Night Prayer (9:45). While Ruth and I have not kept the full schedule of services each day (!), we have appreciated the different languages and different music that shape our worship each day. In addition, each service includes the viewing of a short DVD of its mission.

It has been a blessing to attend services at the Cathedral, as we did again last Sunday. We were there for Eucharist at 11 and for Evensong at 4. The music was absolutely glorious. At Evensong it included several Taize chants as well as some contemporary works.

In the morning we were delighted to find that the Dean and Choir of Christ Church Cathedral in Springfield, Massachusetts were in the congregation. They had just completed a week of leading services at the Cathedral in the Diocese of St. Alban's. Ruth had sung in that choir when we lived in Western Massachusetts. We enjoyed a happy reunion with several dear friends from those years.

On Monday, the Windsor Continuation Group held a third session. They are to prepare a report, with recommendations, for the meeting of the Anglican Consultative Council in May, 2009, on how the different provinces of the Communion (and especially our Episcopal Church and the Anglican Church of Canada) are observing the directions arising out of the Windsor Report of 2004. In a packed (and very warm) sports hall, individual bishops were welcomed to speak for up to three minutes to this plenary session while the members of the WCG and the rest of us listened.

Here and elsewhere, it is my experience that many (and, I would guess, probably most) of the bishops do not understand the actions of our Church with respect to the election and consecration of the Bishop of New Hampshire and the provision, in some parts of our Church, for the blessing of same-sex unions. Not only are our actions not understood, many (maybe most) of our partners hold to a very different view of the interpretation of Scriptures and our Tradition. They remain unconvinced of the wisdom of what they view as innovations in the doctrine of the Church. To experience those views here is sobering, to say the least. Those who support these recent developments, as I do, have a lot of work ahead of us, if we desire, as I do, to remain a part of this beloved Communion.

Monday was also a day dedicated to Interfaith Relations. In my Indaba group I heard stories of Interfaith Relations in Tanzania, North India and Eastern Michigan. The key words that we wrestled with in our different contexts were "embassy" and "hospitality." These arise out of a report entitled, Generous Love, about our Anglican approach to living with and serving with neighbors of other faiths.

That same afternoon I also attended a self-select group on "Communion, Covenant and Canon Law," where I heard (and understood, I think, a little) of two talks by faithful British attorneys about the proposed Covenant.

On Monday night we were all uplifted by a lecture given to the Conference by Rabbi Sir Jonathan Sacks. I cannot begin to do justice to this important and profound presentation on the meaning of covenant. It is online here. Please read the reflections of this strong, passionate, and wise friend of our Communion.

I was very, very proud of this Conference yesterday when we took the entire morning to focus on the issue of violence directed toward women and children. The bishops and spouses sat in different sections of the big tent that is the venue for our worship. After an introduction by Jane Williams and remarks by Jenny Te Paa, we saw a drama that explored the treatment of women in the Gospel. We then engaged in a directed Bible study that focused on II Samuel 13:1-22, the story of the rape of Tamar. It was both moving and inspiring to hear the voices of the Conference reflect on this passage and the subjects of abuse in Church and society. We were encouraged to spend the afternoon discussing these matters with our spouses.

At the end of the day, following Evening Worship, Archbishop Williams gave some reflections on the Conference, thus far. He repeated his emphasis on the importance of covenant. He attempted to capture the hopes of each side of our debate about homosexuality by setting forth the voice of the "traditional believer" and the voice of the "not-so-traditional believer." And he explored the question of the costs, to each side, of being generous toward the other side, for the sake of the eternal generosity that flows toward us from our true center, who is Christ, the very heart of God.

Amen.

Keep us in your prayers, please.

+George

Photos, programs — and Amazing Grace

The Conference continued with the ordinary schedule on Friday: Bible study; Indaba; self-select classes in the afternoon and a lecture in the evening; and worship, throughout the day. Like most of the bishops and spouses, I am very glad for my small group Bible study. Like many, I have had some frustration with the Indaba group process. But the heart of the Conference continues to be the opportunity for forming relationships with other bishops as we pray and study and deepen our trust with and respect for one another. I cannot begin to list all of the bishops with whom I have entered into deep conversations over these last ten days, but they come from all over the Communion; from Madagascar to Mexico; from Tasmania to Tanzania; from Ireland to India. They all love our Lord and they all love their Church.

It has been profoundly humbling and deeply sobering to encounter bishops and spouses who minister in places of great poverty and hardship, under the threat (and, sometimes, the reality) of violence and persecution. They need our prayers and support and we need their witness to remind us all of the mission to which we are called and our oneness in that mission. Indeed, that may be all that we have in common. But our mission is of Christ, and He is all we need have in common.

Friday's program included a presentation by Professor Chris Rapley, Director of the Science Museum in London and an expert in climate change. His words were sobering, indeed, as he reviewed the great dangers we are in due to, among other things, the transforming of the atmosphere by carbon emissions. In order to "decarbonise" humankind we need worldwide action. We need moral leadership. It seems a good reason in itself to uphold our worldwide Communion — to steward the gift of creation, in which all of us are interdependent, to be sure.

In the last week I attended three "self-select" classes on "Human Sexuality and the Witness of Scripture, " led by the Rev. Dr. Richard Burridge, Dean of Kings College, London, assisted by the Rev. Canon Philip Groves, facilitator for the Listening Process on human sexuality for the Anglican Communion. Dean Burridge is the author the commentary on John's Gospel that the Archbishop of Canterbury selected for pre-Lambeth reading by all the bishops. Canon Groves is the editor of The Anglican Communion and Homosexuality: A resource to enable listening and dialogue, which was also sent to all the bishops.

These three classes included bishops from all over the Communion. The atmosphere was sometimes very tense as some bishops disagreed with the speakers and made their views known. But the classes were also places of grace and growth as we each struggled with radically different hermeneutics by means of which we interpret the Word.

On Saturday we had the traditional Lambeth photograph. As all 650+ bishops assembled on risers on a grassy field, we all sang Amazing Grace together. It was a singular moment. I was privileged to end up next to Bishop Romero. We were on the very top row, so we shouldn't be too hard to pick out!

Thursday, at our Walk for Witness, many of us received a Bible, entitled "the poverty and justice bible," in the Contemporary English Version (British and Foreign Bible Society, 2008).

I am very wary of the "theme" approach to the sales and marketing of the Scriptures, but this edition substantiates the claim that there are more than 2,000 verses of the Bible that make reference to the poor, to poverty and to justice. In fact, the editors have highlighted (in bright orange) nearly 3,000 verses that point to the concern of our God for poor and oppressed people. Tony Campolo is quoted on the cover: "Here's proof that faith without a commitment to justice for the poor is a sham, because it ignores the most explicit of all the social concerns of Scripture.”

Again, I beg you to continue to uphold this Conference and our Communion in prayer. Come, Holy Spirit. Amen.

Faithfully yours in Christ,

+George

Pray that we make our children proud

We had a glorious day on Thursday, July 24th. Ruth and I, together with Bishop Sylvestre and Eva Romero, our volunteers (including Fr. Joe and Jan Parrish), our stewards (including Allie Graham) and 1200 others all took part in a day in London. Early in the morning we assembled all throughout the campus and were all loaded onto buses. In remarkably good order we were transported to London, where we arrived in plenty of time for the Walk for Witness.

This walk was designed to demonstrate our Communion's commitment to the Millennium Development Goals of the United Nations and to raise awareness that, with respect to most (if not all) of the target dates set for the realization of each of the eight goals, we are falling seriously behind schedule. A special session of the United Nations has been called for September 25th to address these concerns.

And so we marched from Whitehall, past the Houses of Parliament and Westminster Abbey, across the Lambeth Bridge until we arrived at Lambeth Palace. It was a beautiful, if warm day. The 600+ bishops were vested in purple (or magenta) cassocks. The spouses, volunteers, stewards and others were dressed in their own smart outfits as well. We carried placards that pointed to the promise of the MDGs to, for example, Halve Poverty by 2015. There seemed to be a fair amount of news coverage. We smiled and greeted those around us and took our own photographs by the thousands.

And we sang. At one point we sang, Siyahamba ("We are Marching in the Light of God"), with South Africans. Along another stretch we sang, Tu Has Venido a La Orilla ("Lord, You Have Come to the Lakeshore"). It was wonderfully empowering to sing together as we marched.

When we all were gathered at Lambeth Palace, the Archbishop of Canterbury welcomed us and spoke about the importance of bearing witness to the compassion of God through our work on the MDGs and to the justice of God by calling upon our governments to meet the promises made at the time of the adoption of the MDGs.

He then called upon Gordon Brown, the Prime Minister, who addressed the assembly with a great passion, great command of the MDGs — the promise of them and the lack of progress toward them — and without a single note. His talk and the witness of his own commitment were very inspiring. Helen Wangusa, the Anglican Observer to the United Nations, gave a very fine response to Mr. Brown's remarks.

After lunch we were taken to Buckingham Palace where we had the privilege — all 1200+ of us — of strolling around the gardens, listening to two different military bands and observing Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip greet and welcome various bishops, spouses and ecumenical guests. Tea was served and a good time was had by all.

But the overall impact of the day lay with the morning March. It made me think again about our diocese's commitment to the MDGs and the larger picture. It made me proud to be part of a Church and a Diocese and a household that have committed to give in support of the MDGs. It made me pray for the grace of God for myself, that I might become a more creative and effective leader so that our Diocese might be a true friend and advocate for poor people in New Jersey and the world.

I have learned another song since we have been here. Thuma Mina ("Send me, Jesus") comes from South Africa and it has these simple, but deeply moving words:

Send me, Jesus; send me, Jesus; send me Jesus; send me, Lord.
I am willing; I am willing; I am willing; willing, Lord.

I want to sing this song with you. I want to live these words with you. I want to march and work and pray and sacrifice with you, that the world may know that Jesus is Lord and that we may see His reign begun here and now.

As we walked along yesterday I gave thanks, once again, for the enormous privilege of being here and of being a bishop in this Church and in this Communion. And I had one other thought: my children would be proud of us for doing this. Pray that we may strive together for justice and peace and make our children proud.

Faithfully yours in Christ,

+George

(See photos of the day here.)

This is by no means easy!

At the service of welcome for our ecumenical participants the other night, I found the following note in the program booklet:

Imagine a circle marked out on the ground. Suppose this circle is the world and that the center of the circle is God. Leading from the edges of the circle to its center are a number of lines and these represent the paths of ways of life that men can follow. In their desire to come closer to God the saints move along these lines toward the middle of the circle so that the further they advance toward the middle of the circle the nearer they approach to both God and one another. The closer they come to God the closer they come to one another; and the closer they come to each other, the closer they come to God.

Such is the nature of love. The nearer we draw to God in love for him, the more we are united together by love for our neighbor; and the greater our union with our neighbor, the greater is our union with God.

St. Dorotheus of Gaza (6th century)

In those words I believe we have a vision of the promise and the challenge of the Anglican Communion. 

This Conference is a wonderful venue and program for each of the bishops and spouses to draw nearer to God and to our neighbor. We are attempting to move along those lines that bring us closer to God and to each other as we worship and pray together; study the Scriptures and exchange viewpoints and experiences from our different contexts in Bible studies, Indaba groups and various programs. 

This is by no means easy. There are serious disagreements among us. There is frustration with aspects of the Indaba group process. There are moments of dismay and discouragement. But we are here for God and for one another and, by God's grace, we shall continue to listen to God and to each other, for the sake of Jesus Christ, who is Lord of all. 

I am gaining new insights and facing new challenges every day that I am privileged to be here. Keep me in your prayers, as I hold you in mine. And watch out: when I get back, I will have a lot of ideas to share about our mission and ministry in New Jersey! 

Faithfully yours in Christ, 

+George

Keep the prayers coming

Yesterday we continued our reflection on the "I am" sayings of Jesus in the Gospel of St. John. Each small group Bible study read and discussed John 6:14-21, giving special attention to verse 20, "It is I (or, "I am"); do not be afraid." Our group had a very candid exchange as we spoke about the things that we fear about the Conference and about being bishops at the moment in the Anglican Communion. It was sobering to share our fears. But one of our members recalled for us the remark by Archbishop Rowan Williams that the only thing he is afraid of is the failure to hope in Christ. Amen.

Later in the morning we met for the first time in our "Indaba" groups (40). In these groups we have specific tasks associated with a different topic each day. Yesterday our group did some very good work describing our understanding of the role and identity of a bishop. I felt challenged and inspired by the wisdom, vision, and commitment of my brothers and sisters.

At a later session that afternoon I chose to attend a small group discussion of how we approach Scripture as Anglicans. We are formed by Scripture. As one document puts it, "We discern the voice of the living God in the Holy Scriptures, mediated by tradition and reason" and "We cherish the whole of Scripture for every aspect of our lives, and we value the many ways in which it teaches us to follow Christ faithfully in a variety of contexts." (From The Anglican Way: Signposts on the Journey, by TEAC, Theological Education for the Anglican Communion.)

In that particular discussion group, however, some real disagreements emerged as we discussed interpretation and the authority of Scripture. It was not an easy discussion and it surfaced many of the tensions among us.

Last evening our guest speaker was Dr. Brian McLaren, an American pastor and leader in the Emerging Church movement. He spoke of our changing contexts and the need for new models of evangelism. He was very affirming of the potential for Anglicans to lead the way.

He describes evangelism as a gentle, respectful relational process. I really resonate with that definition and I commend his book, Generous Orthodoxy, which I read last year. We have a real need to become a Church that presents the Gospel in day-to-day life, not to make converts but to form disciples. I am confident that we can do this, with God's help, in ways that are gentle, generous and joyous, inviting people to share the abundant life of Jesus Christ with us in the Church that we love.

Thanks for your prayers. Keep them coming, please.

I hold you in my heart. I love this Church!

Faithfully yours in Christ,

+George

'Where love may dwell'

I grew up in a small mission congregation in La Mirada, California, in the Diocese of Los Angeles. St. Christopher's was a new church plant when my family joined in about 1960. We did not have a building, so we met in a public school cafeteria on Sunday morning. It was in that plain, secular setting where I was confirmed and came to know the 'beauty of holiness' through the Prayer Book liturgies and through service as an acolyte.

I thought of St. Christopher's (long since closed), the vicars whom I served there and all her people as I processed into Canterbury Cathedral yesterday together with 650 other bishops of the Anglican Communion. As I arrived at my seat in the Quire I looked around with awe and wonder. The beauty of holiness and the amazing grace of our God, indeed.

The liturgy was magnificent. Among the special touches were a splendid and challenging sermon; the wonderful Missa Luba (Congolese) setting of the Mass (sung with great energy by the Cathedral men and boys); and the fascinating and awesome music of the Melanesian Brothers and Sisters who, in native apparel, danced and played the Gospel procession to the crossing, carrying the Gospel book in a carved boat. It was wonderful to behold.

So a Cathedral full of Anglicans heard the Gospel of Jesus Christ proclaimed and broke bread together in his name, under the presidency of the Archbishop of Canterbury.

In the course of the liturgy, we sang the hymn, "Let us build a house where love may dwell." I was not the only one who was struck with the poignancy of the chorus as we sang it yesterday in the absence of our brother Bishop Gene Robinson: "All are welcome, all are welcome, all are welcome in this place." We sing in the hope that we are, indeed, building a house where all are welcome.

I witnessed that house being built in the afternoon, when Ruth and I were pleased to attend an outdoor Eucharist in St. Stephen's Field in Canterbury. It was a special celebration, sponsored by Changing Attitude UK and Integrity USA to affirm the gifts and ministries of gay and lesbian people in our Church. There was joy and hope as well as pain and frustration. But, we love our Church!

Yesterday afternoon there was a plenary session to present the full program of the Conference. Beginning today we will be meeting in Indaba (a Zulu word meaning sustained conversation in a time of crisis) groups of 40 each day on a different topic. Today we will discuss the role and identity of a bishop in the Anglican Communion. In addition, each evening there will be a keynote speaker on a subject related to the theme of the day. All this, while we continue in our small group Bible study and in the daily round of worship and fellowship.

The days are long, but good. The distances are long, too. But the walking across campus is also a very good thing. Above all, I am mindful of this great privilege. Thank you for your support of Bishop Sylvestre and Eva, of Ruth and me.

I hold you in my heart and in my prayers, with deep gratitude and deepest affection, in Christ,

+George

(See photos of the Eucharist at Canterbury Cathedral here.)

Worth the trip!

These last two days have been worth the trip: Bible study, meditations by the Archbishop of Canterbury, worship and singing and prayer and reflection in Canterbury Cathedral and conversation with bishops and spouses from all over the world — these are some of the blessings of the Lambeth Conference.

I have been so blessed to be in a small group (eight) together with bishops from South Africa, Tanzania, Canada, Australia, England, North West Texas and Eastern Michigan. We have engaged the Scriptures, the study materials and each other in deep and deeply moving ways. Yesterday, for example, we shared some of the challenges that we face in proclaiming the Gospel in each of our contexts; and how each of us feels like a 'voice crying in the wilderness' some of the time.

Today we continue our study of St. John's Gospel, looking at the story of the woman at the well, found in 4:6-42. The study booklet is available online as a PDF and I invite you to share in this material with us.

It has been very good to hear from the Archbishop of Canterbury in his role as leader of the Conference and, especially, as the conductor of this retreat. His meditations on the role of the bishop have been profound and given me much to ponder. I hope that they will be published so that we can talk about them together.

It has been an immense privilege to have the Cathedral and Precincts to ourselves these past two days. The bishops have been able to pray and worship and sing in these sacred spaces. We wander about this ancient site and pray where prayer has been offered since 597. It is humbling to walk in the footsteps of all of the holy people of God who have borne witness to Christ here before us.

Singing! We have been singing simple, powerful chants to open and close each session. They are heartfelt, mission-minded and joyous. Whatever our tensions and wounds as a Communion, still we lift up our hearts and sing praises to the Lord.

And we pray for those who chose not to attend. Archbishop Williams has mentioned them several times and called us to pray for them and for ourselves, that we might see Christ in them. We are diminished by their absence.

We are also, I believe, diminished by the absence of Bishop Robinson of New Hampshire. My heart goes out to him, to the clergy and people of his diocese and to gay and lesbian people everywhere. I will attend a special Eucharist, co-sponsored by Changing Attitude UK and Integrity, on Sunday afternoon. I will be there to stand in solidarity with Bishop Robinson and to bear witness and to pray in the hope that our Anglican Communion will one day offer full acceptance to all the faithful people of God.

It has been a joy to see other New Jersey folks here in Canterbury. The Reverend Joe Parrish, Rector of St. John's in Elizabeth, is here as a volunteer (as he was in 1998). And the Reverend Mary Frances Schjonberg, Associate at Trinity, Asbury Park, is at work here as a correspondent for the Episcopal News Service.

Bishop Sylvestre and Eva Romero are, they tell me, off to a good start. It was so good to sit with him and listen to the Archbishop's meditations. And Ruth is enjoying her own small Bible study group and the Spouses Conference.

Our rooms are at nearly the furthest distance from the meeting venues, so we are getting plenty (!) of exercise walking back and forth across the Kent University campus. Thank God for cool weather.

I must tell you of a gaffe that I committed the other day. I was one of a number of bishops who were invited to be part of a photo call for the media, to be part of some still and video images of the Archbishop of Canterbury welcoming bishops to Canterbury and the Lambeth Conference. We were filmed and photographed walking around the Cathedral. When this "photo op" was over, several of us were riding back to the Kent campus in a van. We were talking about the experience and I said jokingly that at least our people would see, on television, that we were at work in Canterbury. One of the bishops from the Sudan said, with a laugh, "But my people don't have televisions!" Ouch. I have a lot to learn about the Anglican world.

Keep on praying for us all, as we hold you in our hearts in prayer.

Faithfully yours in Christ,

+George

Daily briefing on Friday, July 18

New Jersey Bishop George Councell offers the following Daily Account as the bishops attending the 2008 Lambeth Conference concluded their second day of retreat July 18 in the precincts of Canterbury Cathedral.

The second day of retreat began with Bible Study, John 1: 9 – 34: "He confessed...'I am not the Messiah.'"

Everyone I have spoken with indicates that the Bible studies are going well, with the right blending of study, prayer and fellowship. In my own Bible study, I heard stories of bishops from Australia, South Africa, Canada, and Tanzania, each telling of a different context for the challenge of mission and ministry.

We walked down to Canterbury Cathedral from the University of Kent (it's a great walk). You feel like a pilgrim walking along in different configurations with different bishops from all over the world.

There is something awesome about being in that cathedral space with 650 bishops, with the Archbishop of Canterbury teaching us, directing us through his meditation. They were wonderfully insightful, spiritually very deep and profound. He began his third address on the role of the bishop as both friend and stranger. A bishop is at home among the people and yet stands apart. A bishop speaks the language of the people, but speaks the word of God.

After each of his meditations there was time to visit the various chapels of the cathedral, or to walk around the precincts. It was an immense privilege to have that space for the benefit of the bishops alone for these two days.

The fourth address began by quoting an early Christian theologian who said, a single Christian is no Christian. Our need as bishops is to be in council with other bishops. We're called to live in community and to live in communion.

The very challenging suggestion the archbishop made was to identify one other bishop about whom one feels nervous, and ask that person to pray with you. It was a very powerful challenge to us to work to restore wounded communion.

He also said the Gospel is only truthfully spread by those who are in communion.

This has been a spiritual feast and I think the right and proper grounding for the weeks ahead.

(See video of the daily account here.) 

The blogging begins

Ruth and I were happy to travel with Bishop Sylvestre and Eva Romero on Sunday, July 13th to attend the Lambeth Conference together with over 600 other bishops of the Anglican Communion.

After a beautiful day (July 14th) of sight-seeing in London (St. Paul's Cathedral, the London Eye), Ruth and I made our way via train from Victoria station to Canterbury. On our train were bishops and spouses from Panama, Pakistan and Kenya. This was the beginning of our Lambeth experience.

When we arrived at Kent University we immediately saw two friends from the Diocese of New Jersey: Allie Graham (who has her own blog), a member of Grace-St. Paul's in Mercerville; and Neva Rae Fox, a member of St. John's in Somerville. Neva Rae is Director of Media Relations for our Presiding Bishop and Allie is a graduate student at Rutgers, here to serve as a steward — an all around assistant to the Conference. These stewards are young, very helpful and wonderfully enthusiastic.

In our first minutes on campus, we also enjoyed seeing Canon Kenneth Kearon, Secretary General of the Anglican Communion and Canon Deacon Jim Rosenthal, Communications Director of the Anglican Communion, both of whom we have come to know through the Compass Rose Society.

Once we got settled into our dormitory accommodation — Ruth in her single room and I in mine — we went in search of some lunch. We were too late for lunch in one dining room, but we were sent to Darwin College where (and I'm not making this up) the bistro and bar is known as Origins. There we enjoyed lunch in the company of the Primate of Brazil and the Primate of Pakistan and his wife.

I attended an evening introductory meeting of small group Bible study leaders. The Archbishop of Canterbury welcomed us and spoke of being upheld in the prayers of others. I remembered all of those in New Jersey who have assured me of your prayers. Keep on praying, please, throughout the Conference.

Sadly, not all of the bishops of the Anglican Communion will be here, as we know. (But there are to be 57 interpreters and translators here!) After less than a few hours here, I am very excited to be among those bishops who are in attendance. It's quite a remarkable assembly and I intend to make the most of it, as does Ruth with the parallel Spouses Conference.

Last week I spent a couple of days at the Episcopal Youth Event in San Antonio, Texas where 1200 youth and advisors were gathered for their triennial program. I was proud of our NJ youth delegates, our adult advisors and, especially of Canon Kep Short and Deacon Debi Clarke. I hope we all can see and enjoy the on camera work of Kep, who was the star of a wonderful introduction and conducted an on-camera interview with our Presiding Bishop.

But it was the joy and enthusiasm, the dedication and energy of those young people that was my best preparation for this Lambeth Conference. They love our Lord and they love their Church. Their songs echo in my mind now as I write from Canterbury. God bless them for giving this bishop hope and confidence with which to face the challenges and the opportunities of Lambeth.

With love, in Christ, from Canterbury, I am,

Faithfully yours,

+George