During Holy Week from 10-14 April 2017 young adults of the Serbian minority in Croatia and of the Croatian minority in Serbia visited the European institutions. The programme included several mediation sessions which were facilitated by the Quaker Council for European Affairs.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/04/young-serbs-and-croats-visit-european-institutions (...)

Fr. Ayoob Shawkat Adwar, a priest in the Chaldean Catholic Church, was received as an Anglican priest at a ceremony in Surrey, British Columbia, Canada,  last month.

“The event was a “small but significant piece of history,” says Archdeacon Stephen Rowe, rector of the Anglican Parish of the Church of the Epiphany in Surrey, since he is thought to be the first Chaldean priest in history to have become a member of the Anglican clergy.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/04/iraqi-refugee-becomes-anglican-priest-in-canada.as (...)

Mothers’ Union has warned against a ‘weakening resolve’ in the fight for women’s empowerment and called upon the UK to do more to promote gender equality, and end discrimination against women in the workplace. Following the 61st United Nations Commission on the Status of Women [UNCSW], which focused on ‘Women’s Economic Empowerment in the Changing World of Work’, Mothers’ Union spoke out about its concern over the scaling down of rhetoric and faltering language recorded in the Agreed Conclusions from the Commission.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/04/mothers-union-warns-against-a-weakening-resolve-in (...)

Eighteen women theologians from Africa and Asia began a journey of reflection and action around the theme “Women’s Mentoring for Ecumenical Leadership” in a 20-22 April consultation in Bangkok, Thailand. The meeting was convened by the World Council of Churches (WCC) department on Ecumenical Theological Education and supported by the Foundation for Theological Education in Southeast Asia.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/04/womens-mentoring-focus-of-thailand-gathering.aspx

The Communications team at the Anglican Communion office has produced a short film highlighting the work of directors and staff. It also gives a taste of the work of the Anglican Alliance which is based in the same building in west London.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/04/new-film-shines-light-on-acos-work.aspx

The former Editor of The Tablet, Catherine Pepinster, has been appointed as the UK Development Officer for the Anglican Centre in Rome.

Catherine’s role will be to co-ordinate the fundraising activities of the Centre in the United Kingdom, working with its UK Development Committee, to plan and implement marketing and fundraising activities.  This is to ensure that annual running costs of the Centre are fully funded and to deliver The Golden Jubilee Appeal campaign to raise £3million in the UK to endow the activities of the Centre for the longer term.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/04/appointment-of-catherine-pepinster-as-the-uk-devel (...)

For most of the world’s newest nation, wracked by internal conflict, joy seems far away, and yet for Christians, Easter is still a time of hope. A recent message from the South Sudan Council of Churches (SSCC) says the Resurrection reminds us that even in this world there is “goodness and light with triumph”.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/04/where-despair-prevails,-south-sudan-churches-issue (...)

A conference has begun in Chicago, facilitated by a group of more than 60 Episcopal bishops working to curtail the epidemic of gun violence in the United States. “Unholy Trinity: the Intersection of Racism, Poverty and Gun Violence” is a three-day event grounded in scripture, liturgy and theology.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/04/conference-facilitated-by-bishops-against-gun-viol (...)

A team of Bible translators in Kurdistan, northern Iraq, working against the backdrop of civil unrest and religious persecution, has completed the first ever translation of the whole Bible into the Central Kurdish Sorani language.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/04/cms-missionaries-complete-28-year-project-to-publi (...)

Trinity Episcopal Cathedral] Trinity Episcopal Cathedral in Little Rock, Arkansas, is to hold a service of prayer and vigil ahead of the scheduled executions of prisoners on death row this week and next.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/04/prayer-vigil-at-trinity-episcopal-cathedral-in-uni (...)

Bishop Theophile Botomazava, of the Diocese of Antsiranana in Madagascar, has visited several parishes badly affected by cyclone Enawo. The cyclone made landfall in the north-east of the island last month. About 10,000 people were forced to leave their homes because of the damage. Bishop Theophile has appealed for outside assistance: "The parishes of Sambava and Antalaha are seriously affected, with 80% destruction. The poor are completely stricken, no house, no food, no rice, the harvest completely devastated; almost all the churches destroyed."

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/04/madagascar-bishop-visits-parishes-affected-by-cycl (...)

A selection of Easter Messages from Anglican Primates.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/04/a-selection-of-easter-messages-from-anglican-prima (...)

The Global Ecumenical Theological Institute (GETI) 2018 is a global ecumenical short-term study and exposure programme in accompaniment of the World Mission Conference in March 2018 in Arusha, Tanzania.

Read in full at www.oikoumene.org/en/press-centre/events/global-ecumenical-theological-institute-201 (...)

The third Bishop of the Diocese of Kajo-Keji, Emmanuel Murye Modi, was consecrated and installed on 15 January this year. On 20 January, the area was hit by the country’s brutal civil war. By the end of January, Kajo-Keji was all-but evacuated; with some 98 per cent of the population fleeing to Uganda.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/04/inside-the-exiled-south-sudanese-diocese-of-kajo-k (...)

St Paul’s Cathedral in Bendigo, in the Australian state of Victoria, is displaying an artwork depicting crucified migrants in the run-up to Easter. The cathedral’s Dean, John Roundhill, said that he hoped the exhibition would “challenge people at this Easter time to make a deep connection between events 2,000 years ago and the plight of refugees in our world today.”

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/04/crucified-migrants-sculpture-highlights-the-plight (...)

The Archbishop of York, Dr John Sentamu, will head towards England’s largest parish church on a lifeboat next month. He will be joined by a flotilla of boats from pleasure crafts to police launches for the re-classification of Holy Trinity Church in Hull as Hull Minster. Dr Sentamu will carry with him a lantern lit at All Saint’s Church in Hessle, Holy Trinity’s mother church, for the historic ceremony on 12 May.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/04/archbishops-flotilla-to-reclassification-of-englan (...)

Anglican leaders around the world have added their voices to the global wave of solidarity that followed the deadly Palm Sunday attacks on Coptic churches in Egypt. The terror group Daesh claimed responsibility for the attacks which left at least 44 people dead and many more injured. A suicide-bomber detonated one bomb inside St George’s Church in Tanta and, hours later, another terrorist detonated a bomb-vest outside St Mark’s Coptic Cathedral in Alexandria as the Coptic Pope, Tawadros II, was finishing the Mass inside.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/04/anglicans-join-global-wave-of-solidarity-after-pal (...)

Archbishop Martin Blaise Nyaboho led a delegation from the Anglican Church of Burundi in a public march of several hundred people last month, in a public demonstration against gender-based violence (GBV). Archbishop Martin was joined on the march by the Bishop of Rumonge, Pedaculi Birakengana and members of both provincial and diocesan staff and many school children.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/04/burundian-anglicans-march-against-gender-based-vio (...)

At least 44 people have been killed after terrorists linked to Daesh detonated bombs at two Coptic churches in Egypt. The blasts took place yesterday (Sunday) – a day when both eastern and western Christian traditions celebrated Palm Sunday.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/04/palm-sunday-massacre-44-dead-as-daesh-targets-copt (...)

The property division of the New Zealand Diocese of Christchurch has defended itself over allegations that it has dragged its feet over the future of the iconic cathedral, which was all-but destroyed in the 2011 earthquake. The Church Property Trustees (CPT), which has responsibility for 280 church and commercial properties on behalf of the diocese, hit out after Philip Burdon used an opinion piece in the city’s The Press newspaper to claim that the Great Christchurch Buildings Trust (GCBT) had been “the victims of sham negotiations”.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/04/decision-edges-closer-on-future-of-christchurch-ca (...)

The Archbishops of Canterbury and York have set up a working group to examine the governance of the Church of England’s cathedrals. The group has been established at a time when a number of English cathedrals are facing financial and other difficulties. One of its tasks will be to advise the Archbishops’ Council on whether the Cathedrals Measure – the 1999 legislation that sets out the regulations that cathedrals must follow in their administration – needs to be revised.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/04/archbishops-launch-review-of-english-cathedrals-go (...)

The World Council of Churches (WCC) General Secretary,  the Revd. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit,  has called for a cultural shift as he expressed deep sympathy to the families of the victims of  a suspected nerve gas attack in Idlib province in Syria.

Multiple news sources have confirmed that more than 70 people have died, including 20 children, in the village of Khan Sheikhoun.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/04/wcc-urges-end-to-culture-of-impunity-in-syria.aspx

The Bishop of Leeds, the Rt Revd Nick Baines, has this week hosted a group of international Bishops for a retreat in the north of England.

The diocese of Leeds has Anglican partnership links with Sudan, Tanzania, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, USA (Southwestern Virginia), and international ecumenical links with Lutherans in Sweden (Skara) and Germany (Erfurt).

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/04/international-gathering-of-bishops-in-northern-eng (...)

Episcopal Migration Ministries – the refugee resettlement programme of the US-based Episcopal Church – is to cut its 31-member affiliate network by six next year. The move is because of changes in US immigration policy which will reduce the number of refugees resettling in the USA by more than half.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/04/tec-to-cut-refugee-support-network-after-us-immigr (...)

It is almost exactly a year since the Anglican Consultative Council met for ACC-16 in Lusaka, Zambia. So much has been happening across our Communion since then. Let me tell you about just a few things to give you a taste of how active and lively our Communion has been in the last few months.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/blogs/2017/04/vitality-and-growth-across-the-communion.aspx

Lambeth Palace is pleased to announce the appointment of the Rt Revd Tim Thornton, the current Bishop of Truro, as the new Bishop at Lambeth. Bishop Tim will take up this post in September, replacing the Rt Revd Nigel Stock, who is retiring.

His duties at Lambeth will include supporting the Archbishop of Canterbury’s work in the House of Bishops, General Synod and the Archbishop’s Council. He will also be heavily involved in the Lambeth Conference 2020, and take on the role of Bishop to the Forces.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/04/lambeth-palace-announces-new-bishop-at-lambeth.asp (...)

The Anglican Church in Peru has established the ‘Help us to help Others’ commission,’ to mobilise financial support for the most vulnerable and neglected communities amid ongoing floods and mudslides. During the first months of 2017 the “Niño” phenomenon has brought heavy rains to the Andean regions of Peru.  More than 100 people have been killed and an estimated 118,000 have been seriously affected. Over 28,000 homes are either severely affected or uninhabitable and much of the country’s infrastructure is damaged.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/04/anglican-church-in-peru-calls-for-aid.aspx

At a day-long “creation care fair” held at St. Cuthbert’s Anglican Church in Toronto’s Leaside neighbourhood, Anglicans and community members had a chance to ask church and secular leaders about how they were responding to the challenge of climate change.Front and centre were questions about whether or not the Anglican Church of Canada will divest from fossil fuel companies.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/04/climate-change-discussed-in-toronto.aspx

The Archbishop of Sydney's Anglican Aid has launched an appeal for the victims of Cyclone Debbie in North Queensland.

One of the most powerful cyclones ever to hit Queensland devastated a large swathe of the coastline on Tuesday and caused further damage as it moved inland.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/03/anglican-appeal-for-cyclone-victims-in-australia.a (...)

A three day conference of international theologians has taken place – with the organisers in Jerusalem but the participants taking part via the internet.The intercontinental webinar of theologians from the global south was hosted from St George’s College. It was led by Bishop Graham Kings, Mission Theologian in the Anglican Communion and Dr Muthuraj Swamy, Associate Professor in Theology & Religion in Pune, India.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/03/conference,-hosted-in-jerusalem,-links-up-theologi (...)

Anglican delegates attending the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women in New York have returned home pledging to ‘change the world’ after what they described as a life-changing time at the UN.

The group, drawn from more than 20 countries, said UNCSW61 --which focused on women’s economic empowerment – had been “an invaluable experience of spiritual and political benefit to us and to our communities”.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/03/anglican-women-pledge-to-change-the-world-after-un (...)

The Church of South India leadership has stated in unequivocal terms that it is committed to gender equity in society. Speaking on the occasion of the inauguration of the two-day orientation to representatives from the different CSI dioceses covering the five southern states in India,  the CSI Moderator,  The Most Revd. Thomas K Oomen,  said that the Church has always been committed to gender equity and will continue to do that in both society and in the Church.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/03/csi-recommits-to-gender-equity-in-society.aspx

The Anglican Communion’s Mission Theology Project convened a three-day conference of theologians via the web. The conference, which met March 27-30 through St. George’s College in Jerusalem, was led by the Rt. Rev. Graham Kings, mission theologian in the Anglican Communion, and Muthuraj Swamy, associate professor in theology and religion in Pune, India.

Read in full at livingchurch.org/plugged-theology

Ten more homes in the First Nations community of Pikangikum in Northern Ontario will have clean drinking water by the end of 2017 as a result of a joint effort by the Primate’s World Relief and Development Fund (PWRDF), Habitat for Humanity Manitoba, and grassroots Anglican group Pimatsiwin Nipi.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/03/pwrdf-assists-with-water-supply-for-first-nations- (...)

A group of Anglican clergy working in the Lusitanian Church of Portugal and the Episcopal Church of Spain have held a Lenten retreat in the Spanish city of Salamanca.

The gathering was led by the Revd Deborah Chapman of the Diocese of London who also works in Barcelona as an assistant to the English chaplain. Revd Deborah described it as “a time of grace and a gift of God for all involved on the way to Easter.” The themes were:  fellowship and prayer in the Christian ministry and  mutual trust, respect, love and faith in God.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/03/international-meeting-of-anglican-clergy-of-spain- (...)

The demand for water is expected to increase 55 percent by 2030 and at the same time global water resources may only meet 60 percent of the world’s needs. “Africa, India, the Middle East and Australia already are in crisis,” said Maude Barlow, a former United Nations senior advisor on water, and an author, political activist and policy critic. Some say “the solution to the water crisis is to commodify water,” she added, during a March 23 session on “Waters: Commons or Commodity” during Water Justice,  a global conference taking place at Trinity Church Wall Street in New York City and webcast worldwide March 22-24.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/03/water-global-conference-at-trinity-church-wall-str (...)

Speaking in Britain’s Upper Chamber, the House of Lords, about the attack in Westminster on Wednesday, the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, has paid tribute to victims and first responders, speaking of the “deep values" in British society. An attacker drove a car into pedestrians on Westminster Bridge and then stabbed to death a police officer, PC Keith Palmer.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/03/archbishop-of-canterbury-speaks-in-house-of-lords- (...)

Theologian Dr Mike Higton, a professor in the Department of Theology and Religion at Durham University, has presented the fourth Dr Rowan Williams Annual CUAC Lecture, sponsored by Colleges & Universities of the Anglican Communion. It was given at Trinity College, Toronto, earlier this month.

In a lecture exploring how universities can be “good” – in the Christian sense – while also being good at the many other things expected of them, Dr Highton defended universities against charges they are seedbeds of “political correctness”

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/03/theologian-defends-universities-against-charges-th (...)

The Archbishop of Canterbury and leaders of the Church of England have offered prayers for those affected by the attack in Westminster which left four people dead and many injured. The attacker mowed down pedestrians with his car on Westminster Bridge then rushed at the gates in front of the Houses of Parliament, stabbing a plain-clothes policeman before he was shot by armed officers. The Archbishop of Canterbury tweeted: “Deeply shocked and saddened by events in Westminster.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/03/church-leaders-offer-prayers-after-deadly-attack-i (...)

More than forty students from Japan, Korea and the Philippines have taken part in an international learning programme at Trinity University of Asia in Quezon City in the Philippines organised by CUAC – the Colleges and Universities of the Anglican Communion, a world-wide network of Anglican colleges and universities.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/03/international-anglican-student-gathering-in-the-ph (...)

The Primate of the Anglican Church of Canada, Archbishop Fred Hiltz, has described the former Archbishop of Toronto,Terence Edward Finlay, who has died at the age of 79, as “one of the Canadian Church’s most widely and highly respected leaders.” 

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/03/the-primate-of-the-anglican-church-of-canada-leads (...)

The Secretary General of the Anglican Communion, Archbishop Josiah Idowu-Fearon, has told the Church of Pakistan it has something to offer to the Communion because of its experience of being a minority church in a Muslim Country.  The eight Bishops of Pakistan, during a 3 day retreat in England, were questioning how their Church and the Anglican Communion could co-operate. Archbishop Josiah said their experience “could be passed on: to help other countries like Sudan, the latest province of the Communion as well as northern parts of Nigeria, Egypt and other Arab speaking countries.”

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/03/secretary-general-briefs-bishops-of-pakistan-durin (...)

An appeal has been launched for the restoration of St Paul’s Anglican Pro-Cathedral in Malta. Towering 200 feet over the seaward approach to Valletta, St Paul’s is a vital part of Malta’s rich cultural heritage. It pays homage to St Paul who was shipwrecked there in about AD 60 and brought Christianity to Malta. 

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/03/appeal-for-restoration-of-malta-landmark.aspx

A service of Thanksgiving for the life and ministry of the  first bishop of Paraguay, the Rt Revd Douglas Milmine, has taken place in England after his death at the age of 95.  British born, Douglas Milmine served as a missionary in South America for more than 30 years.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/03/thanksgiving-service-for-first-anglican-bishop-of- (...)

THE Archbishop of Canterbury will spend 12 days in the Holy Land in early May, Lambeth Palace has announced.

He will travel to Jordan and spend time in a camp for refugees from the Syrian civil war, before moving on to the capital, Amman, where he hopes to meet King Abdullah.

Read in full at www.churchtimes.co.uk/articles/2017/24-march/news/uk/welby-visit-will-span-middle-ea (...)

The Anglican leaders of the Church in Ireland have issued statements on the death of Martin McGuinness, the ex – IRA leader turned politician who has died aged 66.

Martin McGuinness worked at the heart of the power-sharing government following the 1998 peace settlement. He went on to become deputy first minister of Northern Ireland for a decade from 2007, working initially  alongside his former bitter foe, Protestant politician, Ian Paisley.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/03/statements-from-the-primate-of-all-ireland-and-the (...)

Training new ordained ministers is a "critical need" in many Indigenous communities—but not one traditional seminary education can easily fill, says Bishop Lydia Mamakwa, of the Indigenous Spiritual Ministry of Mishamikoweesh.

"Seminarians are not coming to live among our people, and they are not trained to serve in a remote, isolated little reserve," Mamakwa explained. "We need to look at alternative delivery of ministry." Mamakwa’s comments came at a February gathering hosted by the national church in Niagara Falls, Ontario, to discuss the future of the theological education in Canada.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/03/critical-need-to-train-new-ordained-ministers-in-c (...)

The Anglican Board of Mission, which is the national mission agency of the Anglican Church of Australia, has called on Anglicans to support partners in Jerusalem and Australia to give the gifts of health and education this Easter.

In remote Australia, Aboriginal Christians require much needed training and support as they seek to witness Christ in their communities but travelling to and from remote communities is time consuming and expensive which isolates ABM’s partners from the broader Church.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/03/anglican-board-of-mission-makes-twin-track-easter- (...)

USPG is a church based charity working in direct partnership with Anglican churches around the world. Its Programmes Co-ordinator, Anne Bonger, has  visited an education programme run by the Church of Ceylon:

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/03/uspg-supports-education-programme-in-sri-lanka.asp (...)

The former Primate of the Anglican Church of Burundi, Archbishop Bernard Ntahoturi, has been appointed as the Representative of the Archbishop of Canterbury to the Holy See and Director of the Anglican Centre in Rome. He succeeds Archbishop David Moxon who retires in June.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/03/new-director-for-the-anglican-centre,-rome.aspx

The Primate of the Anglican Church of Australia, Melbourne Archbishop Philip Freier, has issued a statement, as the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse begins its final hearing with the Anglican Church in Sydney. Archbishop Freier said there was a pronounced appetite for change in the Anglican Church and “we eagerly await the Royal Commission’s conclusions.”  

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/03/australian-primate-issues-statement-on-royal-commi (...)

Key Anglican campaigners for peace and justice in war-torn South Sudan have told a meeting at the United Nations in New York about the vital role women and the church have been playing in peace building and supporting the victims of conflict.

Harriet Baka Nathan, from the Episcopal Church of South Sudan and Mothers’ Union, and Joy Kwaje Eluzai, a member of the country’s national assembly, were speaking to a packed meeting at the UN Commission on the Status of Women.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/03/women-donate-themselves-to-help-find-peace-in-sout (...)

The Church of Ireland’s Refugee Working Groups have launched a new resource on supporting asylum seekers and refugees in the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. The 14-page document summarises how the Church of Ireland has supported asylum seekers and refugees in recent years and highlights opportunities for members of the Church to become more involved in this area of ministry and service.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/03/church-of-ireland-refugee-working-groups-launch-re (...)

The Anglican Bishop of the diocese of Newcastle, in Australia, Greg Thompson has announced his resignation.

Bishop Thompson served the Diocese for three years and has been a strong advocate for survivors of child abuse during his tenure.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/03/bishop-thompson-in-new-south-wales-announces-resig (...)

Another milestone in relations between Canterbury and Rome took place in the Vatican on Monday as a traditional Anglican Choral Evensong was celebrated for the first time in St Peter’s Basilica.

Anglican and Catholic bishops and clergy – including one female chaplain, Rev Dana English from the Anglican Church of All Saints Rome - gathered together at the altar below Bernini’s great bronze sculpture encasing the relics of the Chair of St Peter. Sunshine streamed through the giant alabaster window depicting the Holy Spirit as a dove, while the renowned choir of Merton College, Oxford, sang motets by the English Renaissance composer William Byrd, as well as some more contemporary works and well-loved Anglican hymns.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/03/anglican-evensong-in-st-peters-basilica.aspx

Optimism, enthusiasm and expectation filled the air as Anglican, Episcopal and Women’s Union delegates from more than 20 countries around the world gathered for the opening day of the 61st session of the UN Commission on the Status of Women in New York on Monday.

This year’s theme, “Women’s economic empowerment in the changing world of work”, will look at issues such as how to promote equality and how to give women better access to education. Thousands of people are attending the two-week event – many representing faith groups, NGOs and various UN groups. Hundreds of other events will be taking place in parallel.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/03/anglicans-hopes-high-as-un-conference-on-economic- (...)

Anglicans and Lutherans from around the world have prepared 42 biblical reflections which are suitable for a Lenten study programme, to mark together the 500th anniversary of the Reformation.

The authors represent a balance of global Anglicanism and Global Lutheranism, and include both ordained and lay people, women and men.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/03/anglicans-and-lutherans-invite-participation-in-da (...)

Members of the US-based Episcopal Church have marched in Washington DC in a “Native Nations Rise demonstration” called to protest at the Dakota Access Pipeline project.

The event was led by the Standing Rock Sioux tribe, which has been involved in a longstanding dispute with authorities over the pipeline’s construction; Sioux tribal leaders have repeatedly expressed concerns over the potential for an oil spill that would damage their water supply and the threat the pipeline poses to sacred sites and treaty rights.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/03/episcopalians-march-in-washington-to-protest-pipel (...)

The Anglican Communion has announced that Sudan will, in a few months from now, become a separate Province is its own right. Currently, Sudan is an internal province within the Anglican Church of South Sudan and Sudan.

The Secretary General of the Anglican Communion, Archbishop Josiah Idowu-Fearon, described it as a “welcome development” that will help connect Christians there with Anglicans in the worldwide Communion. The Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, will travel to Sudan for the inauguration of the new Province on July 30th.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/03/sudan-announced-as-a-new-province-within-the-angli (...)

The Lambeth Design Group has been meeting this week at the Anglican Communion Office in London, to plan for Lambeth 2020. The group, coming together for the first time, has been chaired by the Archbishop of Capetown, Thabo Makgoba, who described the initial sessions as “very encouraging.” An early decision was to fix the venue for Canterbury, starting in the last week of July, 2020.

Among those taking part was the Bishop of Nairobi, Joel Waweru Mwangi, the Bishop of Sabah, Melter Jiki Tais, the Bishop of Dallas, Dr George Sumner, the Moderator of the Church of North India and Bishop of Amritsar, Pradeep Samantaroy, the Revd Dr Robert Heaney of Virginia Theological Seminary, Mrs Josephine Mujawiyera from Rwanda and Ms Cathrine Ngangira, a member of the Community of St Anselm at Lambeth Palace.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/03/lambeth-design-group-puts-down-foundations-for-lam (...)

In a twist on the traditional practice of giving something up for Lent, Anglicans across Canada are pledging to make personal lifestyle changes to reduce greenhouse gas emissions—and challenging the federal government to match them by pursuing policy changes to fight climate change.

Fourteen Anglican churches have agreed to participate in Give it up for the Earth!, a campaign organized by Citizens for Public Justice (CPJ), a national faith-based organization lobbying for a greater emphasis on justice in Canadian public policy, to “increase climate justice in Canada.”

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/03/anglicans-in-canada-pledging-to-make-lifestyle-cha (...)

Durham University has achieved its highest ever number of subjects in the QS World University Subject Rankings 2017, with eight in the Top 50 and three in the Top 10. 

Theology & Religion at Durham has been ranked third in the world, in the first year that QS has included rankings in this subject area. Archaeology has also increased its global ranking to fourth in the world, up one place on the previous year.

Read in full at www.dur.ac.uk/news/newsitem/?itemno=30776

Archbishop Mouneer Anis and Bishop Samy Fawzy are currently visiting North Africa, Tunisia and Algeria, for a pastoral visit. The aim of the visit is to introduce the new Area Bishop for North Africa to the churches there as well as ecumenical partners. One of the responsibilities of the area bishop is to be able to engage with the authorities; this visit allowed formal introduction between the two parties for fruitful future communications.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/03/archbishop-mouneer-anis-and-the-new-area-bishop-in (...)

The Church of England's first female diocesan bishop has spoken of her hope of helping women ex-offenders rebuild their lives and self esteem in a new short film recorded to mark International Women's Day earlier this week.

Bishop Rachel Treweek talks in a film released by the Church of England about her passion to see every person know that they are made in the image of God and loved, valued and precious.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/03/bishop-rachel-treweek-releases-film-to-help-women- (...)

To coincide with International Women’s Day, the Mothers Union has issued a statement urging more involvement for women in peace negotiations:

We live in a fundamentally unequal world. People’s quality of life, the opportunities they have and their experiences of the world differ dramatically based on factors such as their place of birth; economic standing; age; marital status; disability; sexuality and gender.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/03/mothers-union-calls-for-womens-voices-to-be-heard- (...)

The Church of England's first female diocesan Bishop, the Bishop of Gloucester, Rachel Treweek, has marked International Women’s Day with an event to promote gender equality.  The gathering, at Britain’s Upper Chamber of parliament, the House of Lords, was hosted by Bishop Rachel in partnership with Christian Aid and Restored - an international Christian alliance working to transform relationships and end violence against women.

The event gave guests and parliamentarians a deeper insight into faith leaders’ commitment to secure a more gender inclusive world and aimed to inspire each person to engage actively with this issue.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/03/the-bishop-of-gloucester-raises-issue-of-gender-eq (...)

King’s College London Theological Trust, of which the Secretary General of the Anglican Communion,  Archbishop Josiah Idowu-Fearon has just become a trustee, awards a scholarship each year to a student from overseas who has been accepted to study in the Department of Theology and Religious Studies.  There are no geographical limitations but the Trustees aim to award the scholarship to a student who is unable to obtain an education at this level in their own country and whose own financial situation would make study in London difficult.   On completion of their studies, overseas scholars are expected to return home to make a significant contribution to the religious life of their country through the medium of one of the Christian denominations.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/03/scholarships-available-to-enable-anglicans-from-th (...)

The Anglican Primates of Oceania, who have been meeting in Australia, have warned of the threat to their region from climate change. In a joint statement, the five Primates said :

“We agreed that as whole nations of ocean people lose their island homes, climate justice advocacy and action must become the most urgent priority for Oceanic Anglicans.”

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/03/anglican-primates-of-oceania-speak-out-on-climate- (...)

Presiding Bishop, Michael Curry, of the US based Episcopal Church has met leaders of the Protestant Christian Church in China and government officials, during his first official visit as presiding bishop and primate to Asia and Southeast Asia.

 “At its root, the Christian way is a way of relationship in Christ. Jesus said wherever two or three gather together in my name, there I am,” said Bishop Curry, in an interview with Episcopal News Service in Shanghai, when asked why it’s important for the Episcopal Church to maintain close ties with China."

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/03/episcopal-bishop-stresses-importance-of-close-ties (...)

The start of Lent saw the beginning of a new international campaign – Renew Our World – in which tens of thousands of Christians from six countries will join together in prayer and action to try to tackle climate change.

Renew Our World is campaigning for clean renewable energy and sustainable agriculture for the world’s poorest communities. Christians are being urged to join in prayer to help the world’s poorest people to flourish. This long-term campaign aims to mobilise and inspire churches around the world to beat hunger, poverty and injustice, starting with climate change. The campaign is taking place in the UK, USA, Australia, Zambia, Peru and Nigeria. 

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/03/lent-campaign-of-prayer-and-action-for-climate-jus (...)

Presiding Bishop Michael Curry, of the US based Episcopal Church, has paid tribute to a “growing” Anglican church in Hong Kong, during his first official visit to the Anglican Province of Hong Kong Sheng Kung Hui.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/03/bishop-michael-curry-says-hong-kong-represents-the (...)

Bishop James Odico of The Gambia has expressed thanksgiving for a peaceful outcome after the tensions surrounding a Presidential election in December.  The poll marked the first change of presidency in The Gambia since a military coup in 1994.  Bishop James said the Christian community resorted to intense prayer after the election result was challenged by the incumbent Gambian leader,  Yahya Jammeh,  a week after admitting defeat to Adama Barrow.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/03/gambia-bishop-gives-thanks-for-peace-after-electio (...)

Twenty five Bishops and their teams from the northern half of The Church of England led by the Archbishop of York, Dr John Sentamu, have taken part in four days of mission and celebration called ‘Talking Jesus.’  The Bishops and their teams went out into communities in all corners of the Diocese – talking about Jesus at more than 450 community events.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/03/tens-of-thousands-of-people-have-been-involved-in- (...)

The market square market in Kingstown, the capital of St Vincent and the Grenadines, became the venue for an Ash Wednesday service this week.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/03/lenten-ashes-distributed-in-vegetable-market-in-th (...)

In a service held in Durham Cathedral, twenty five Bishops and their teams from the northern half of The Church of England have been commissioned by the Archbishop of York, Dr John Sentamu to ‘Go out and spread the word’ in communities across the Diocese of Durham.

The service marked the start of four days of mission and celebration called ‘Talking Jesus’ during which the Bishops and their teams will go out into communities in all corners of the Diocese – talking about Jesus at more than 450 community events.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/03/weekend-of-mission-by-bishops-in-north-of-england. (...)

The Anglican Board of Mission - the national mission agency of the Anglican Church of Australia - has launched an emergency appeal as the crisis worsens in parts of East Africa due to extreme drought. It hopes to raise 50,000 Australian dollars.  In a statement the ABM said: “Our partners, the Episcopal Church of South Sudan & Sudan and the Anglican Church of Kenya are responding to this urgent humanitarian emergency.  Famine has been declared in parts of South Sudan (and other countries like Somalia, Ethiopia, Yemen) due to protracted drought. The people mostly affected are Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) and the communities where they are hosted. More than three million people have been forced to flee their homes and nearly 7.5 million people are in need of humanitarian assistance and protection as a result of the ongoing conflict.”

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/03/anglican-board-of-mission-makes-emergency-appeal-f (...)

The Anglican Diocese of Chichester in southern England is assisting with urgent relief efforts in the drought hit Kenyan Diocese of Nakura. An emergency grant of 5000 pounds is being sent directly to the Diocese, which, in partnership with the Anglican Church of Kenya’s Development Services, will buy and distribute foodstuff and other essential supplies in the most affected areas.

Chichester’s World Mission Officer, the Rev’d Canon Ian Hutchinson Cervantes, has mobilised funds to try to avert a tragedy following an email from Bishop Joseph Muchai requesting assistance.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/02/english-diocese-assisting-with-urgent-relief-fundi (...)

The Anglican Church of Burundi, in conjunction with Christian Aid and its partners, has initiated an emergency programmeto support some of the many vulnerable people facing severe famine across the country.

Local emergency committees have now been set up in the regions of Makamba and Rumonge to identify the most vulnerable people and distribute food and other items. The first distribution took place at Gatwe Parish in Makamba Diocese.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/02/anglican-church-in-burundi-takes-action-to-help-fa (...)

The Primate’s World Relief and Development Fund (PWRDF) is committing a total of 50,000 US Dollars  for famine and drought relief in South Sudan and Kenya – $25,000 for each country.

The  funds will be made available through ACT Alliance, a coalition of church-based aid agencies.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/02/pwrdf-pledges-emergency-relief-funding-for-south-s (...)

As the new university academic year begins, Anglican bishops have warned that a “militarised presence” on some university campuses creates “a false sense of calm...  which conceals the potential for renewed violent confrontation.”

The Archbishop ofCape Town, Thabo Makgoba, said the Anglican Church's Synod of Bishops was appealing to university managements to scale back to normal levels the presence of security guards on campuses.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/02/south-african-anglican-bishops-warn-of-false-sense (...)

Senior bishops from seven countries with partnership links to the Diocese of Leeds in northern England will meet together for the first time next month.

Bishop Nick Baines has invited the church leaders from Sri Lanka, Sudan, the USA, Tanzania, Sweden, Pakistan and Germany to spend ten days in the diocese.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/02/global-gathering-of-bishops-in-northern-england.as (...)

A service of rededication has taken place at St Saviour’s Church, in Acre in northern Israel, which was closed in the late 1940s. This rededication follows the re-opening and re-dedication of St Paul's Church in West Jerusalem in 2011 – which was closed around the same time. There are also plans to begin the renovation of a third church closed in the late 1940s - St. Peter's in Jaffa-Tel Aviv.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/02/anglican-archbishop-in-jerusalem-rededicates-a-chu (...)

Bishop John Inge of Worcester in the English Midlands, whose diocese has longstanding links with Peru, has travelled there this week to meet the new diocesan Bishop, the Rt Revd Jorge Aguilar and suffragean Bishop Alejandro Mesco. They will be exploring how they can support and learn from one another in the exercise of episcopal ministry in such different circumstances. Bishop John will also be inviting them to attend his diocesan clergy conference this September in England.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/02/bishop-of-worcester-in-peru-to-meet-new-diocesan-b (...)

The Archbishop of Canterbury has spent the day in Kenya as he concludes his visit to a number of  countries in the region. He met the Primate of the Anglican Church of Kenya,  Archbishop Jackson Ole Sapit, who was elected last year as well as provincial staff. He also met the Chair of CAPA (the Council of Anglican Provinces of Africa), Archbishop Albert Chama; themes under discussion included the drought situation in Kenya, strife in South Sudan and radicalisation of youths in the region. Archbishop Justin then visited the All Saints Cathedral in Nairobi where he was briefed on preparations for centenary celebrations later this year. Archbishop Justin and Mrs Welby then spent time with the Primate at his official residence.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/02/archbishop-of-canterbury-in-kenya-on-last-leg-of-a (...)

The Anglican Archbishop of Cape Town, the Most Revd Thabo Makgoba, has appealed to the South African government to end moves to develop nuclear energy and instead to spend the money on education, training and other development initiatives.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/02/archbishop-of-cape-town-calls-on-south-african-gov (...)

An interfaith gathering will come together at St Paul’s Cathedral in Melbourne on Thursday to coincide with the first visit to Australia of a serving Prime Minister of Israel, Mr Benjamin Netanyahu. Representatives from the Christian, Jewish and Muslim faiths will pray and light candles for Jerusalem, the Holy City sacred to all three faiths.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/02/interfaith-prayers-for-the-peace-of-jerusalem-to-b (...)

Presiding Bishop Michael Curry of the US-based Episcopal Church has led a reconciliation pilgrimage for bishops and Episcopal Relief & Development supporters to Ghana. The pilgrims visited cities and sites critical to understanding the transatlantic slave trade and the efforts of Episcopal Relief & Development partners and programmes working to improve Ghanaians’ lives.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/02/ghana-reconciliation-pilgrimage-a-homecoming-says- (...)

The Anglican Alliance has today hosted a conference call with SUDRA, the relief and development arm of the Episcopal Church of South Sudan and Sudan, after the UN and the government declared a famine in parts of South Sudan. It's the first famine to be announced in any part of the world in six years. 

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/02/anglican-alliance-hosts-conference-call-to-south-s (...)

Pope Francis will make a historic visit to an Anglican Church in Rome on Sunday. He’ll join the congregation at the Church of England chaplaincy of All Saints for a short Choral Evensong service; it will include the blessing of a specially commissioned icon and the twinning of All Saints with the Catholic parish of Ognissanti, a Rome church with strong ecumenical ties.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/02/pope-francis-to-visit-anglican-church-in-rome.aspx

A day conference is taking place this Friday based on a new academic study into growth and decline in the Anglican Communion over recent decades. The conference, at the University of Roehampton in southern England, follows the recent publication of a new book, “Growth and Decline in the Anglican Communion – 1980 to the Present.” The publication was prepared by an international team of researchers based across five continents; the study provides a global overview of Anglicanism alongside twelve detailed case studies of Anglican churches in Australia, Congo, England, Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, Singapore, South Africa, South America, South India, South Korea, and the US. It was edited by the Revd Dr David Goodhew, director of ministerial practice at Cranmer Hall, part of St John's College at Durham University.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/02/conference-on-growth-and-decline-in-the-anglican-c (...)

The Archbishop of Canterbury has been visiting Burundi and Rwanda over the weekend as part of a week-long visit to Africa.

His first stop was Burundi, to pray with the new primate. Archbishop Justin and Mrs Welby were greeted on their arrival at Bujumbura International Airport by all the Bishops of the Province and the Permanent Secretary of Foreign Affairs.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/02/archbishop-of-canterbury-prays-with-new-primate-of (...)

A tree planting programme for London’s churches supported by the Mayor of London, is aiming to make neighbourhoods greener and more attractive for bees. The Conservation Foundation’s Trees for Sacred Spaces project is enabling churches in the London, Southwark, Chelmsford and Rochester dioceses to plant trees that support bees and other pollinators as part of the Mayor’s ambition to make London one of the greenest cities in the world. The tree plantings will also offer an opportunity for churches to organise events and ceremonies that involve members of other faiths in their parishes to celebrate and help to enhance the environments that people of all faiths and no faith share.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/02/churches-across-london-planting-trees-to-make-neig (...)

The Archbishops of Canterbury and York have written to members of the General Synod of the Church of England setting out the next steps following this week’s vote at Synod not to “take note” of a report on Marriage and Same Sex Relationships. The report by the House of Bishops’ had stated that there should be no change in the church's teaching while calling for a “fresh tone” on the issues.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/02/archbishops-of-canterbury-and-york-issue-letter-af (...)

The Anglican Diocese of Adelaide has issued a statement in response to a damming report by the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse in Australia. A statement issued by Bishop Tim Harris said the report made for “shocking reading” and “the failures of the past have been “clearly identified.” Bishop Harris reaffirmed the diocese’s “sincere apology” to all who suffered and said the diocese was resolved that “such failings must never happen again.”

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/02/statement-by-the-anglican-diocese-of-adelaide-on-r (...)

The Revd Tim Harford, Director of Fundraising and Communications for USPG, describes how the Anglican Church in Malawi is taking a multi-faceted approach to mission:

Every day at USPG – at our international head office in Southwark – we are grappling with the meaning of mission. It’s not a simple thing to define – and our Anglican partners around the world hold many different perspectives and priorities – but one thing we would generally agree on is that mission is ‘holistic’, which means multifaceted, addressing body, mind and soul. I hope the following story might offer an idea of what holistic mission looks like in practice:

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/02/uspg-devotes-its-lent-appeal-to-the-many-challenge (...)

Resolving issues around human sexuality within the Anglican Communion is like threading a needle – and there is no one solution in sight at present, the secretary general of the Communion has told the Church of England Synod.

Archbishop Josiah Idowu-Fearon said the disagreements and struggles facing the Church of England were not unique to it but could not easily be resolved in some institutional or structural fashion.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/02/no-easy-solution-to-same-sex-marriage-issue,-secre (...)

The Archbishop of Canterbury has said that Bishops will go on thinking after the Synod vote on their report on marriage and same sex relationships. Archbishop Justin said the vote was "not the end of the story, nor was it intended to be. As bishops we will think again and go on thinking, and we will seek to do better. We could hardly fail to do so in the light of what was said."

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/02/statement-from-the-archbishop-of-canterbury-after- (...)

A South Sudanese Anglican Bishop has accused government soldiers of raping women and young girls. The Rt Revd Paul Yugusuk, of the Anglican Diocese of Lomega, quoted by local media, says he's met several women who claim they were raped by government troops. "We do not know the exact number of women who were raped but we have five women and girls here in Juba Teaching Hospital," he told reporters after visiting the victims earlier this week. "Most of them are underage girls and women."

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/02/south-sudan-bishop-accuses-army-of-mass-rape-and-t (...)

The Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, has addressed the rise of far-right politics, the election of President Trump and Britain’s decision to vote to leave the European Union, in his presidential address at the start of the Church of England’s General Synod. 

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/02/archbishop-of-canterbury-calls-on-churches-to-be-p (...)

Archbishop Mouneer Hanna Anis, Primate of the Anglican Province of Jerusalem and the Middle East, has described President Trump’s decision to restrict entry to the United States from seven Muslim-majority nations as a “naive” solution based on “generalisation and discrimination.” He also criticised the decision to prioritise the refugee applications of Christians in the Middle East: “I was very sad to hear about President Trump’s decision, and fear it will not contribute to the security of the United States in any way. I appreciate the right of the government to protect the nation from terrorism, but this will not happen by preventing Muslims from coming to the country. The Oklahoma City bombing, we recall, was conducted by an American, not a Muslim.”

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/02/archbishop-mouneer-criticises-us-immigration-restr (...)

The Diocese of Jamaica and The Cayman Islands is appealing for donations after a boys’ home that it ran for more than fifty years was completely destroyed by a fire.  The cause of the blaze, at the Clifton Boy’s Home, in Westmoreland, is unknown. Immediately after the fire, last month,  the 29 residents of the Home were housed in temporary accommodation at the nearby St. John’s Church, where they worship regularly.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/02/diocese-of-jamaica-and-the-cayman-islands-launches (...)

Delegates from 11 countries gathered in the Cypriot town of Larnaca last week for a synod meeting of the Diocese of Cyprus and the Gulf under the of theme “Intentional Discipleship”. The subject was a theme of the Diocesan Bishop, Rt Revd Michael Lewis, in his opening charge.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/02/synod-in-cyprus-reflects-on-intentional-disciplesh (...)

Royal Commission examining allegations of child sexual abuse in Australia has delivered a damning verdict on a system which enabled a culture of abuse to flourish.

The report by the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse comes after public hearings into how the Church of England’s Boys’ Society (CEBS) and the Anglican dioceses of Tasmania, Adelaide, Brisbane and Sydney dealt with claims of abuse.  The hearings, in Hobart, Tasmania, were told of allegations of abuse by lay people and clergy associated with CEBS in the 1970s and 1980s.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/02/damning-verdict-on-response-to-child-abuse-in-aust (...)

Former BBC World Service journalist, Bernadette Kehoe, has taken over as the new editor of the Anglican Communion News Service (ACNS). Bernadette succeeds Gavin Drake who had been interim editor since late 2015.

Bernadette worked as a producer, reporter and editor with BBC News for more than 25 years. More recently she worked in diocesan communications in Birmingham, UK. She will also take over the editorship of Anglican World magazine from interim editor, Rachel Farmer.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/02/new-editor-for-acns.aspx

The Archbishop of Canterbury has said he is shocked and saddened over a government decision to end a scheme to let unaccompanied migrant children in to the UK. Archbishop  Justin said the UK had a "great history of welcoming those in need" and hoped the government would reconsider its decision.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/02/the-archbishop-of-canterbury-expresses-shock-over- (...)

The Anglican diocese of British Columbia has called on the government of Canada to increase its targets for refugee resettlement to allow at least 7,000 more refugees to enter the country this year.  In a statement, the diocese noted that Canada has set a target for 25,000 refugees to be resettled in 2017, compared to the previous year’s target of 44,800.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/02/diocese-of-british-colombia-urges-canadian-governm (...)

The Archbishop of Canterbury is encouraging Christians of all denominations to join in with a ten day global prayer initiative “Thy Kingdom Come” from Ascension Day to Pentecost.   What began  last year as an invitation from the Archbishops of Canterbury and York to the Church of England has grown into an international and ecumenical call to prayer. Last year more than 100,000 people joined in and in 2017 it’s expected to be on a bigger scale. Launching the initiative, which runs from 25 May to 4 June, Archbishop Justin said:  “When the wind of the spirit is blowing, hoist the sails and go with the wind. It’s not a Church of England thing, it’s not an Anglican thing, it’s a Christian thing.”

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/02/archbishop-of-canterbury-calls-on-christians-to-jo (...)

The Most Rev David Chillingworth, Primus of the Scottish Episcopal Church has announced he will retire at the end of July. Bishop David was consecrated as Bishop of St Andrews, Dunkeld & Dunblane in 2005 and was elected Primus four years later.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/02/primus-of-scottish-episcopal-church-announces-his- (...)

Thy Kingdom Come is a global prayer movement, which invites Christians around the world to pray between Ascension and Pentecost for more people to come to know Jesus Christ. What started out as an invitation from the Archbishops’ of Canterbury and York in 2016 to the Church of England has grown into an international and ecumenical call to prayer.

Read in full at www.thykingdomcome.global/

The Archbishop of Canterbury and His All-Holiness Bartholomew of Constantinople have pledged to fight modern slavery in its various forms.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/02/archbishop-of-canterbury-and-ecumenical-patriarch- (...)

For the first time ever, Anglican Choral Evensong will be celebrated at the altar of the Chair of St Peter in St Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican next month. The music will be sung by the renowned Choir of Merton College, Oxford.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/02/anglican-choral-evensong-to-be-celebrated-at-the-v (...)

The Archbishop of Cape Town, Thabo Makgoba, has said the problem of water supply and sanitation illustrates why South Africa “is one of the most unequal countries in the world.” The Archbishop also described the problem of drought as one of the biggest risks facing South Africa’s businesses – causing food shortages, price increases and the loss of jobs for casual workers.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/02/archbishop-of-cape-town-speaks-out-about-water-ine (...)

The International Anglican Family Network (IAFN), has appointed a new Co-ordinator, Deacon Angela Morrison, who will be taking over from Dr Sally Thompson, recently retired from the role after a quarter of a century.

The role of the UK based Co-ordinator involves facilitating the exchange of news, information and resources among those within the worldwide Anglican Communion who have a passion for promoting the well-being of families and their communities.  

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/02/new-co-ordinator-for-the-international-anglican-fa (...)

Cathedrals and churches on four continents have come together to raise awareness and activism about water by launching the JustWater website.   It’s an international initiative organised by St George's Cathedral (Cape Town); St Paul's Cathedral (London); St Paul's Cathedral (Melbourne); and Trinity Church Wall Street (New York). The project aims to draw attention to the issues around water  - whether these challenges are flooding, drought, rising tides or access to fresh water and sanitation.  The Primate of Southern Africa, Archbishop Thabo Makgoba, is the keynote speaker at the launch of the initiative tonight (Monday) in London.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/02/anglican-churches-around-the-globe-launch-justwate (...)

The Anglican Church of South Africa is calling on parishioners to urgently conserve water. Ahead of Archbishop Thabo Makgoba’s launch of an international water initiative (see above), Bishop Margaret Vertue sent out a pastoral letter recently to be read in all parishes in the diocese of False Bay, warning that the situation with water levels has reached a crisis, with the authorities warning there are less than 100 days of water left in local dams. Bishop Vertue called on everyone in the diocese to take action: “Let us all work together consistently and seriously to use much less water and to invent ways to save water in the home. Our use and conservation of water not only during crisis times, but always, forms part of our stewardship of God’s bountiful resources. Let us as Anglicans take the lead in showing Christian responsibility in the use of water.” 

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/02/anglican-congregations-in-south-africa-being-urged (...)

Bishop Emmanuel Murye Modi of the diocese of Kajo-Keji has made an appeal for practical assistance amid ongoing security concerns. Bishop Modi says that the situation locally has calmed after a recent spate of violence, but over 90 percent of people in several districts had fled to Uganda for refuge. Over 70 percent of the people in other local districts had sought safety within internally displaced camps: “The church is encouraging people to stay, even if it means gathering into churches for security and other services” he said. Bishop Modi appealed to the international community for food and medical supplies for the internally displaced and the “remants” of Kajo-Kehi as well as logistical support to help the Diocese be mobile around Kajo-Keji and to assist in refugee camps in Uganda.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/02/south-sudan-bishop-calls-for-urgent-food-and-medic (...)

An electrical fault is the suspected cause of a blaze which destroyed the education secretariat of the Diocese of Gboko in Nigeria last Friday. The neighbouring office of the bishop was undamaged. A service, which was underway in the nearby St Mark’s Cathedral, continued as nearby people tackled the fire.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/02/fire-destroys-anglican-education-secretariat-in-ni (...)

Bishop Esteban Sabawil of Northern Luzon in the Episcopal Church of the Philippines, has died at the age of 61, just over a year after being consecrated. Bishop Sabawil was ordained in 1983 in his hometown in the northern Province of Kalinga. Initially destined to be sent to Hawaii, in response to a request by the diocese there to take care of a congregation composed mostly of Filipinos, he was instead sent to a very remote congregation in the northern Philippines – Adams, in the province of Ilocos Norte. He recalled arriving to his new posting in rain and hiking for three hours uphill and along a winding road. His ministry involved going, on occasion, on foot for five or six hours.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/02/tributes-paid-following-death-of-filipino-bishop-e (...)

Bishop Philip Huggins of the Anglican Diocese of Melbourne has called on the Australian Prime Minister, Malcolm Turnbull, to bring asylum seekers still languishing in offshore detention to Australia – following days of speculation surrounding a US resettlement deal which had been struck with the Obama administration last year.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/02/australian-bishop-calls-for-asylum-seeker-amnesty. (...)

Nearly 30 new Anglican Bishops from around the world are spending today in London, visiting Lambeth Palace and the Anglican Communion Office, as part of a course at Canterbury Cathedral, to teach them the ropes of being a Bishop.  It’s an annual event revolving around a programme of talks and presentations as well as a chance to build networks across cultural and geographical divides. The members of this year’s group hail from Australia, Canada, India, Congo, Gambia, Guyana, Japan, Kenya, Mozambique, South Africa, South Sudan, Solomon Islands, Tanzania and the USA.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/02/new-bishops-visit-anglican-communion-office.aspx

An international gathering of Anglicans, Lutherans and Buddhists took place in January in Myanmar – and a joint statement has now been issued which sets out the aim of future joint collaboration on projects of common concern; intentional fostering of Christian Buddhist dialogue at the leadership and grassroots levels; and greater engagement between Buddhist and Christian academic and religious institutions.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/02/anglican,-lutheran-and-buddhist-dialogue-and-colla (...)

Several Anglican mission agencies have put out a joint statement expressing “profound concern” at President Trump’s executive order on immigration – barring immigrants from seven Muslim-majority countries and blocking all refugees from Syria.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/02/anglican-mission-agencies-united-against-us-immigr (...)

The Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby has written to every primate in the Anglican Communion to set out his hopes for the next Primates’ Meeting, which will take place in Canterbury in October.  He also gave details of last week’s report by the Church of England’s House of Bishops on human sexuality. In the letter, Archbishop Justin sets out his vision for the meeting in Canterbury as an opportunity for relaxed fellowship and mutual consultation. He invites the primates to submit items for the agenda and says he’s aware of the pressures under which many of them live. 

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/02/archbishop-of-canterbury-sets-out-vision-for-2017- (...)

A Greek Orthodox Church-run hostel for unaccompanied child refugees in Greece has been given a lifeline following a cash injection from Anglican and ecumenical Christian agencies. The Hestia Boys Hostel in Athens has been providing accommodation and training for child refugees from Afghanistan, Congo, Iraq, Pakistan and Syria since 2011. But a restructuring by the European Union meant that its funding had been suspended. Now, the Diocese in Europe’s Athens’ chaplaincy has stepped in to keep the centre open, with the support of the Anglican mission agency USPG and the British ecumenical agency Christian Aid.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/01/christian-agencies-rescue-child-refugee-hostel-aft (...)

Bishop William Franklin of Western New York has called on people to join in opposition to the executive order issued by US President Trump on Friday limiting the ability of immigrants and refugees to travel to the United States. President Trump’s executive order suspends the entire US refugee admissions program for 120 days, indefinitely bans Syrian refugees, and suspends entry to the US by all nationals from seven Muslim-majority countries.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/01/churches-wade-in-on-us-immigration-row.aspx

A blog reflecting on a recent trip to Cairo by Canon Philip Mounstephen, Executive Leader of the Church Mission Society. 

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/blogs/2017/01/the-indelible-faith-of-the-garbage-people.aspx

The Dean of St Paul’s Cathedral in Blantyre, part of the Central African Diocese of Southern Malawi has advised Christians to emulate the life of Paul if they want to get an everlasting life and enjoy the fruits of being holy before the Lord. In the Anglican Church of Central Africa, St Paul is commemorated on 25 January. In a homily for St Paul’s Day, the Very Revd Canon Auster Kalilombe said true Christians need not worry about instant rewards because the real reward is received after human life.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/01/malawians-asked-to-emulate-life-of-saint-paul.aspx

The longest-serving Archbishop in the Anglican Communion, Dr Barry Morgan, is stepping down this week as leader of the Church in Wales, as he marks his 70th birthday.  More than 500 people attended an emotional farewell service at Llandaff Cathedral in Cardiff, in celebration and thanksgiving for the contribution made by Dr Morgan during his years at the helm - nearly 14 as Archbishop and 17 as Bishop. In his  sermon, the Archbishop told the congregation it had been an “enormous privilege” to have served them and he thanked people for their support. He, in turn, was thanked warmly for all his ministry and given a standing ovation.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/01/farewell-service-for-the-archbishop-of-wales.aspx

The new Archdeacon of France has encouraged Anglicans to be part of the public debate in the country and to make a distinctive contribution to the communities where they serve. The Venerable Meurig Williams, during a service in Paris marking his new ministry, spoke of the challenges and opportunities for Anglicans in France, at a time when the political status quo is being questioned and the public place of religion is becoming more prominent following recent the recent deadly attacks in Paris, Nice and St Ettiene de Rouveray.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/01/anglicans-in-france-told-to-help-shape-debate-abou (...)

The Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby has urged people to resist a “post-truth” culture “at every level and in every conversation and debate”. He made his comments in a speech at a memorial service in Westminster, London, last night (Thursday) in advance of Holocaust Memorial Day. Each year on 27 January – the anniversary of the liberation of Birkenau-Auschwitz – the international community reflects on the holocaust and other genocides.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/01/holocaust-memorial-day-archbishop-welby-warns-agai (...)

Bishop Philip Huggins, the Vicar-General of the Anglican Diocese of Melbourne, has called for a fresh approach to the growing problem of youth crime in the state of Victoria. His comments come after a spate of riots and violent crimes by young offenders over many months and a mass breakout from a youth justice centre earlier this week. The authorities have announced plans for a new high security juvenile prison that will be built for the state’s worst youth criminals. 

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/01/anglican-church-in-melbourne-intervenes-in-debate- (...)

The bishops of the Church of England have ruled out any change to the Church’s doctrine on marriage and sexuality; while calling for a “fresh tone” in the way the issue is handled. In a report on behalf of the House of Bishops published today (Friday) ahead of next month’s meeting of the General Synod, the Bishop of Norwich, Graham James, said that Anglicanism has always been “a contested tradition” where different views are held together; and he suggests that that this approach should be extended to sexuality. The bishops propose that existing law and guidance should be interpreted with “maximum freedom” without changes to the law, or the doctrine of the Church. 

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/01/english-bishops-call-for-fresh-tone-to-sexuality-d (...)

The David M. Stowe Fund for Mission Research is intended to support visiting researchers who come to the Yale Divinity Library to use its missions and world Christianity-related collections.  This year they have announced that $5,000 is available to subsidize the travel and accommodation expenses of individuals whose research would benefit from using the resources available at the Yale Divinity Library.  

If you would like to be considered for an award from the Stowe Fund, please send a statement to martha.smalley@yale.edu indicating your area of research and the specific holdings of the Divinity Library that are of interest to you.  The library's catalog is available at http://orbis.library.yale.edu and guides to their Special Collections are available from http://web.library.yale.edu/divinity/special-collections. 

Read in full at

The Episcopal Church in South Sudan and Sudan has warned of the deteriorating security situation in the town of Kajo Keji within the past week. It says three violent incidents have prompted local people to flee their homes and head for refuge in neighbouring northern Uganda.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/01/bishop-calls-for-restraint-as-warring-sides-clash- (...)

Christians from different churches took to the streets of the Pakistani city of Peshawar in December for what the local diocese called a “mega Peace Rally.” Christians in the region have suffered from numerous terrorist attacks in recent years. So last month the Diocese of Peshawar and Campus Crusade organised a march through the provincial capital to stress the significance of the coming of the Prince of Peace.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/01/christmas-peace-rally-promotes-the-prince-of-peace (...)

The presiding bishop of the US-based Episcopal Church and the director of Episcopal Migration Ministries both spoke out in concern for the plight of refugees, in anticipation of President Donald Trump’s actions on immigration. In addition, the Episcopal Public Policy Network issued a policy alert offering Episcopalians ways to become advocates on immigration and refugees. Those efforts came on a day when President Trump signed executive orders to begin construction of a US-Mexico border wall and block federal grants from immigrant-protecting “sanctuary cities” – which refuse to deport undocumented immigrants.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/01/episcopal-church-leaders-in-the-united-states-spea (...)

While reaction to President Donald Trump’s  actions yesterday (24 January) designed to move forward both the Keystone XL and Dakota Access pipelines was swift, the immediate impact of his memoranda remained unclear. Nothing in Trump’s memorandum on the Dakota Access Pipeline appears to force approval of the project but would try to speed the US Army Corps of Engineers’ ongoing environmental review process.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/01/trump-signs-dakota-access-pipeline-memo-to-speed-p (...)

A State Memorial Service is expected to be announced soon after a rampage by a driver in Melbourne’s Central Business District left five people dead and more than 30 people injured last Friday (20 January).

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/01/tributes-and-prayers-after-melbourne-car-attack-le (...)

The Church of England’s Diocese in Europe has begun exploring the implications that Britain’s decision to leave the European Union (EU) might have on British-national clergy deployed to the continent. At present, as members of the EU, British nationals – including clergy – can travel, reside, and work in any of the other 27-member states without requiring visas or work permits. That may change when Britain leaves the EU. There are also questions about whether the reciprocal health-care arrangements for citizens of EU member states will also continue to apply to British nationals once the UK completes the withdrawal process.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/01/european-diocese-explores-implications-of-post-bre (...)

The former Primate of Kenya, Bishop Eliud Wabukala, has been sworn in as the new chair of the country’s Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC). The judiciary’s chief registrar, Anne Amadi, conducted the brief swearing-in ceremony in Kenya’s Supreme Court, witnessed by Chief Justice David Maraga and Attorney Githu Muigai. The EACC exists to “combat and prevent corruption and economic crime in Kenya through law enforcement, preventive measures, public education and promotion of standards and practices of integrity, ethics and anti-corruption.”

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/01/former-archbishop-sworn-in-as-head-of-ethics-body. (...)

The Anglican Church of Canada has acknowledged that it played a role in creating the conditions that led to the suicides of two young girls in Wapekeka First Nation, a remote Oji-Cree community in Ontario, earlier this month. In a statement on Friday (20 January), Archdeacon Michael Thompson, general secretary, said the church “helped create a legacy of brokenness in some First Nations communities” through the actions of one of its former priests, Ralph Rowe, who abused many Indigenous boys in communities across Northwestern Ontario throughout the 1970s and 1980s.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/01/church-of-canada-vows-to-address-youth-suicide-cri (...)

Carrying signs reading “The Episcopal Church is Here” and “The Episcopal Church Cares About This,” the Revd LeeAnne Watkins and other Minnesota Episcopalians joined thousands of marchers in St Paul on Saturday (21 January), sparking “a miserable day of puddles and ice” into the beginnings of a movement.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/01/episcopalians-join-global-movement-of-womens-march (...)

Ecumenism, the Anglican Communion, and legislation will dominate next month’s meeting of the Church of England’s general synod; but it is a “take-note” debate on human sexuality that is likely to dominate the headlines. On ecumenism, the Synod will consider the first draft of new legislation designed to simplify the way the C of E relates to other churches; and will also debate a motion on the 500th anniversary of the Reformation. The secretary general of the Anglican Communion, Dr Josiah Idowu-Fearon will address the Synod. And the House of Bishops will report back on their deliberations on human sexuality.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/01/agenda-published-for-c-of-e-general-synod-meeting. (...)

The first woman to be ordained as a bishop by the Church in Wales has described her consecration at the weekend as “awe inspiring.”  Joanna Penberthy remarked : “I didn’t think at the beginning of my ministry that I would ever see women in the episcopate but you had to keep believing. What was important was living out the calling that we had at that time and by doing so, opening people’s eyes to the fact that God doesn’t just call men, God calls all of us to his ministry in a way which fits our own particular gifts and talents.”

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/01/cheers-as-wales-ordains-first-woman-bishop.aspx

David Goodhew examines why some parts of the Anglican Communion are growing fast and others are not.

Read in full at www.churchtimes.co.uk/articles/2017/6-january/features/features/a-story-of-growth-an (...)

The Anglican Episcopal Diocese of Egypt has announced a landmark partnership with the Bibliotheca Alexandrina (Alexandria Library) to advance co-operation in the art, science, culture, peace-building, dialogue and the combating of extremism. The Bibliotheca Alexandrina is a modern organisation designed to “recapture the spirit” of the ancient library of Alexandria – one of the world’s earliest such institution.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/01/egyptian-anglicans-in-peace-building-partnership-w (...)

The Government of Uganda and the country’s Anglican Church will join forces next month for a major commemoration to mark the 40th Anniversary of the assassination of Archbishop Janani Luwum. Archbishop Luwum was murdered by Uganda’s then-president, Idi Amin, on 16 February 1977. He is remembered on the anniversary of his martyrdom in the liturgical calendars of many Anglican provinces around the world. The date is now an official holiday in Uganda.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/features/2017/01/plans-unveiled-for-archbishop-janani-luwum-40t (...)

Wales is consecrating its first woman bishop this weekend.   The Revd Canon Joanna Penberthy is being consecrated as Bishop of St Davids at Llandaff Cathedral on Saturday, by the Archbishop of Wales, Dr Barry Morgan, with the five other Welsh bishops. The Church took the decision to ordain women bishops in 2013.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/01/consecration-of-first-woman-bishop-in-wales-this-w (...)

Representatives from more than six Asian countries have gathered in Myanmar to try to develop stronger ties between Anglicans, Lutherans and Buddhists. The consultation has brought people together from Korea, Japan, Taiwan, Singapore, India and Sri Lanka. One of the key short term aims is to work towards a publication which could serve as a guide book for developing Buddhist-Christian relations. Longer term, it’s hoped the gathering will encourage the Anglican Consultative Council, the Lutheran World Federation and other institutions to support growing positive relations with Buddhists across the world.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/01/anglicans-lutherans-buddhists-forge-links-at-myanm (...)

The Presiding Bishop of the US-based Episcopal Church, Michael Curry, will lead a week-long Episcopal Relief & Development pilgrimage focused on reconciliation to Ghana from Friday (20 – 28 January), visiting cities and sites critical to understanding the trans-Atlantic slave trade and Episcopal Relief & Development partners and programs working to improve Ghanaians’ lives.

Read in full at sts.kcl.ac.uk/adfs/ls/?username=&wa=wsignin1.0&wtrealm=urn%3afederation%3aMicrosoftO (...)

The Archbishops of Canterbury and York have called on Christians to repent of the divisions between churches. In a joint statement issued to mark the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, the two primates of the Church of England, Justin Welby and John Sentamu, reflect on the 500th anniversary of the Reformation. They say that while it directly contributed to “great blessings” felt by many Christians, it also caused “lasting damage . . . to the unity of the Church, in defiance of the clear command of Jesus Christ to unity in love.”

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/01/archbishops-call-on-christians-to-repent-of-differ (...)

The funeral has taken place in England of Jill Saward,  who, after being attacked as a young woman, became a campaigner on behalf of survivors of sexual assault. Jill, whose husband, Gavin Drake, is ACNS interim editor, died suddenly aged fifty one. 

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/01/hundreds-of-mourners-attend-funeral-of-inspiration (...)

Eighty delegates representing twenty institutions and ten countries met at historic Madras Christian College over the past week to discuss the common challenges they face in promoting an Anglican vision of education in an increasingly secular world. It was the Ninth Triennial of Colleges & Universities of the Anglican Communion (CUAC), a global network linking 140 institutions with historic ties to the Church of England and the Episcopal Church USA. 

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/01/ninth-triennial-of-colleges-and-universities-of-th (...)

The Archbishop of Cape Town, Thabo Magkoba, has called for  a day devoted to education  next month - “Education Sunday”  - to be marked not only through special events at churches but also ecumenically in schools and on campuses.  Archbishop Thabo described Sunday 5 February as a time to pray for educators, learners and institutions of learning.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/01/abp-thabo-speaks-out-on-crisis-at-universities-in- (...)

The head of the Scottish Episcopal Church says the Church is “deeply distressed” at the offence caused by the reading of a passage from the Koran in a Glasgow Cathedral.   The Primus, the Most Revd David Chillingworth, also condemned a subsequent wave of abuse received by St Mary’s Episcopal Cathedral. Police have confirmed they are investigating offensive online messages received by the cathedral.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/01/church-distressed-at-koran-offence-says-primus.asp (...)

Some 700 mourners have attended the funeral of Archbishop Brown Turei, one of the leaders of the Anglican Church in New Zealand, Aotearoa and Polynesia, The service  marked the end of a six-day traditional Maori funeral rite – a tangi -  which took place across three locations.   Archbishop Brown, who was highly respected for his ability to relate to people across all races and cultures, was the oldest Primate in the Anglican Communion. He died at the age of 92.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/01/archbishop-brown-turei-laid-to-rest-overlooking-ne (...)

The involvement of Washington National Cathedral and its choir in the upcoming inauguration of President-elect Donald Trump has stirred concern in parts of the US-based Episcopal Church. The Cathedral Choir accepted an invitation to perform during the musical prelude to next Friday’s (20 January) inauguration ceremony.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/01/episcopal-leaders-address-churchs-part-in-trumps-i (...)

Church leaders from the diocese of Madras distributed food parcels and other aid to some of the thousands of people displaced by Cyclone Vardah. The cyclone hit Chennai on 12 December last year, killing 10 people. It was the strongest storm in the region for two decades. Trees were uprooted, cattle killed and buildings damaged. Even modern buildings like the Hyatt Regency hotel were severely affected – with many windows blown out of the structure. Many huts and asbestos homes lived in by poorer people were destroyed.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/01/church-responds-to-devastating-cyclone-vardah.aspx

The Archbishop of Jos in the Anglican Church of Nigeria has spoken about how Christians are finding refuge in God “in the face of turbulence, persecution and wickedness” in the north of the country. Archbishop Benjamin Kwashi made the comments at the opening service at the annual retreat of Anglican bishops in the province, which is being held at St Peters Chapel at the IBRU International Ecumenical Centre in Agbarha-Otor. He said that the “forces of evil are still at work but Jesus has already defeated powers of hell, of darkness of wickedness and of evil.”

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/01/god-provides-refuge-in-face-of-persecution-archbis (...)

The President of Portugal, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, this week (Monday 19 December) became the first President of the Republic to visit St Paul’s cathedral in Lisbon. The cathedral is the seat of the Lusitanian Church – the Anglican Communion in Portugal.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/12/historic-visit-of-portuguese-president-to-the-angl (...)

The Anglican Alliance says that the ongoing conflict in Yemen is causing one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises, and is encouraging Anglicans to respond to emergency appeals by Christian agencies working in the country. “More than 7 million people in Yemen do not know where their next meal will come from,” the agency said. “Children are dying from malnutrition. 500,000 children are starving and 3 million people have fled their homes. Now half of the population – 14.4 million people – require help with food.”

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/12/pray-for-peace-and-peace-builders-as-half-a-millio (...)

Police and security services in Australia say that they have foiled a Christmas Day terror attack that had been planned against Melbourne’s Anglican Cathedral. In a joint operation involving more than 400 heavily armed officers, the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation (ASIO), the Australian Federal Police and Victorian State Police arrested six men and one woman as they executed five warrants in the north of the city.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/12/security-services-foil-christmas-day-cathedral-ter (...)

The future of the partially-demolished earthquake-ravaged cathedral in Christchurch, New Zealand, remains uncertain after an expected pre-Christmas announcement was delayed. Cathedral and diocesan officials had wanted to demolish the remains of the building, which was severely damaged in the 2011 earthquake, and build a new cathedral. But a series of legal and political challenges followed from opponents who are pushing for the previous building to be effectively restored.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/12/decision-on-future-of-christchurch-cathedral-delay (...)

A new peace centre is being established in Bunia by the provincial youth department of the Province de L'Eglise Anglicane Du Congo (the Anglican Church of Congo). It is providing care to girls and women who have been raped as part of the ongoing conflict in the region, and also to young people. Rebels are using rape as a weapon of war. The majority of the 79 women and child rape victims being cared for by a member of the church in Bavi are aged between 13 and 15; but the youngest is just three-and-a-half-years-old and the oldest is 60. Some have needs that the church is unable to help with.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/12/rape-as-a-weapon-of-war-congo-anglicans-providing- (...)

The Queen has approved the nomination of the Reverend Prebendary Dr Woyin Karowei Dorgu, MBBS. BA, MA, to the Suffragan See of Woolwich.

Read in full at www.gov.uk/government/news/suffragan-bishop-of-woolwich-dr-dorgu

The Church of England has selected a Nigerian to be the next Bishop of Woolwich in the Diocese of Southwark, it was announced today. The Revd Prebendary Dr Woyin Karowei Dorgu will be the first Nigerian to be a stipendiary bishop in the Church of England when he is consecrated in Southwark Cathedral on St Patrick’s Day, 17 March 2017; and the first black person to be appointed bishop in the province for 20 years. Today’s announcement follows the appointment of the Revd Yaqoob Khushi as the first Pakistani priest in Wales, and the Very Revd Miguelina Howell as the first Hispanic Dean in the US-based Episcopal Church; and highlights the wide cultural diversity in the Anglican Communion.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/12/cultural-first-appointments-highlight-diversity-of (...)

Bishops from the Church of England and the US-based Episcopal Church with responsibility for churches in Europe have responded to last night’s terror attack on a Christmas market in German’s capital Berlin. A Polish lorry driver was shot and killed and his lorry used to plough into the crowds enjoying the festive market, killing 12 people and injuring many more.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/12/bishops-respond-to-christmas-market-terror-attack. (...)

The planting of trees to mark special occasions like confirmations, baptisms and weddings is an increasingly popular practice in many areas of southern and central Africa, after it was suggested and promoted by young Green Anglicans. But the Province of Burundi is going a step further and is looking to plant one tree for every one of the 10 million-strong population of the country. The church hopes to reach its “One Person, One Tree” goal within the next five years.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/12/anglican-church-of-burundi-to-plant-10-million-tre (...)

The way the Revd Christopher Bishop tells it, it took just one pivotal conversation for him to feel a powerful calling to travel to northern Iraq as an unofficial Episcopal ambassador to displaced Christians, whose lives have been threatened by the rise of the group known as [Daesh]. Bishop likens his awakening to the crisis to the moment years earlier when he suddenly felt called to become an Episcopal priest. In each moment, his life and labours took a sharp turn onto a new spiritual path.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/12/us-priest-rallies-support-for-displaced-iraqi-chri (...)

The US-based Episcopal Church is planning a series of revival events over the next two years to “to stir and renew hearts for Jesus, to equip Episcopalians as evangelists, and to welcome people who aren’t part of a church to join the Jesus Movement.” The multi-day events will feature “dynamic worship and preaching, offerings from local artists and musicians, personal testimony and storytelling, topical speakers, invitation to local social action, engagement with young leaders, and intentional outreach with people who aren’t active in a faith community,” the province’s public affairs department said in a statement.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/12/us-based-episcopal-church-plan-revival-events-to-s (...)

The coadjutor Bishop of Raiwind, Dr Azad Marshall, has been honoured by the government of Pakistan for his work on human rights. He was one of 40 recipients of awards last weekend to mark International Human Rights Day. Bishop Azad received the Presidential Award for Human Rights from the President of Pakistan, Muhammad Mamnoon Hussain, during an award ceremony at the President’s House.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/12/pakistan-president-honours-bishops-human-rights-wo (...)

This article by David Goodhew looks at the question of 'Is Anglicanism Growing or Dying? Statistcs, the C of E and the Anglican Communion.'

First published in Covenant.

Read in full at livingchurch.org/covenant/2016/12/16/is-anglicanism-growing-or-dying-statistics-the- (...)

The Dean of St Mark’s Pro-Cathedral in Alexandria has joined the Archbishop of Canterbury’s Task Group, set up in response to the Primates Gathering and Meeting in January. The Very Revd Canon Dr Samy Fawzy Shehata, who is also the principal of Alexandria School of Theology, replaces the Moderator of the Church of South India, Bishop Govada Dyvasirvadam. The Task Group was requested by the Primates, and is tasked with restoring relationships, rebuilding mutual trust, healing the legacy of hurt, and exploring the deep differences that exist within the Anglican Communion.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/12/new-member-for-archbishops-anglican-communion-task (...)

The Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, took part in a vigil at Westminster Abbey last night in honour of the victims of Sunday’s bomb attack on the Coptic Cathedral compound in Cairo. He was joined by the general bishop of the Coptic Orthodox Church in the UK, Bishop Angaelos, the Egyptian Ambassador, Mr Nasser Kamel, as well as numerous other faith leaders, diplomats, and members of the UK’s Coptic Orthodox community. The vigil took place at the Abbey’s Innocent Victims’ Memorial.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/12/archbishop-justin-welby-in-london-vigil-for-coptic (...)

People have been reduced to eating toxic locusts as a result of the food shortages affecting Madagascar, Malawi and Zimbabwe. The Anglican mission agency USPG, which is supporting local Anglican churches respond to the crisis, say that the extensive hunger has been caused by a combination of drought and erratic rains across the region.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/12/starving-communities-in-africa-reduced-to-eating-t (...)

The Archbishop of Burundi, Martin Nyaboho, has taken part in a Mothers’ Union-organised campaign against gender violence. The Archbishop joined hundreds of men and women in a procession and rally as part of the Anglican Church of Burundi’s contribution to the international 16 Days of Activism to end Gender Based Violence.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/12/burundian-anglicans-campaign-for-society-without-g (...)

A major new oil and gas pipeline through the British Columbia region of Canada has received government backing despite protests from indigenous peoples groups. The Tsleil-Waututh First Nation described this week’s decision as “the beginning of a long battle” to stop the project. Last month, the Anglican Church of Canada’s Council of General Synod (Cogs) passed a resolution by consensus in which they expressed “their support for Indigenous peoples and their desire to grow and deepen that trust both within the church and without; in asserting and advocating their right to free, prior and informed consent concerning the stewardship of traditional Indigenous lands and water rights, and in acknowledging and responding to their calls for solidarity.”

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/12/church-supports-first-nation-canadians-in-battle-a (...)

Episcopalians in the path of catastrophic wildfires that have destroyed a large swath of the foothills of the Great Smoky Mountains in the south-eastern US are working to help their communities in the aftermath. “Several of our parishes are working with local fire and police departments to begin to collect items that are of need as we move through the rescue phase of the response to the fires,” Diocese of East Tennessee Bishop George Young said on Tuesday.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/12/episcopalians-helping-in-south-eastern-us-fire-rec (...)

Anglicans across the Communion are marking World Aids Day on 1 December 2016 to raise awareness of HIV/Aids and help end the epidemic. Joining this year’s UNAIDS HIV prevention campaign, Anglicans have held events and church services, released videos and shared photos to bring attention to the need for further action to reach targets and eradicate HIV/Aids by 2030.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/12/anglicans-worldwide-raise-awareness-on-world-aids- (...)

The Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, has announced the imminent arrival of two new senior staff members at Lambeth Palace. The Revd Dr Will Adam is to be the Archbishop’s ecumenical adviser while Ruth Mawhinney is to become the new head of media relations. Veteran journalist Jonathan Petre had previously been announced as the new head of media relations, but withdrew his acceptance of the post and will remain as religion correspondent with the Mail on Sunday.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/12/more-staff-changes-at-lambeth-palace.aspx

The US-based Episcopal Church’s solidarity with the Standing Rock Sioux Nation remains resolute after nine days of emotional events in the ongoing effort to protect the tribe’s land and water supply. The latest string of events began on Sunday 20 November when some of the hundreds of people who tried to remove burned-out vehicles blocking the Backwater Bridge on Highway 1806 on the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation in North Dakota were hit with rubber bullets and doused with fire hoses in sub-freezing temperatures. The bridge had been blockaded since a confrontation on 27 October.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/11/standing-rock-sioux-nations-protest-camp-hit-by-sn (...)

Wellington Cathedral has been closed since New Zealand’s devastating earthquake over fears that a neighbouring building could collapse on top of it. So the Bishop of Wellington had just two weeks to find another venue for a planned ordination service.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/11/bishop-of-wellington-ordains-in-hope.aspx

The Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, has spoken of his “deep concern” over the situation in South Sudan, after a meeting with a delegation of the country’s church leaders. The ecumenical delegation from the South Sudan Council of Churches called on Archbishop Justin at Lambeth Palace last week, a month after their visit with Pope Francis at the Vatican.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/11/archbishop-of-canterburys-deep-concern-over-south- (...)

The Bishop of Uruguay has delivered a critical presidential address to his diocesan synod, in which he said that parishes had failed to engage with “the basics” of mission and evangelism. Bishop Michele Pollesel used the example of a new priest who received complaints that he had used the same sermon three week’s running. “Yes, it´s true. I have preached the same sermon every week for three weeks now. I know what I'm doing. . . When you begin to live out this sermon, I will go to the next one.”

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/11/bishop-issues-hard-hitting-challenge-to-proclamati (...)

The Iglesia Española Reformada Episcopal(the Reformed Episcopal Church of Spain) has stepped up its welcome to pilgrims undertaking the Camino de Santiago by dedicating its cathedral in Madrid as a welcome centre. The Church’s Bishop, Carlos López-Lozano, consecrated a symbolic tile adjacent to the cathedral’s door on Saturday night as a sign of welcome for pilgrims. The move is seen as a step on the Church’s own journey to build an Anglican centre in Santiago.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/11/bienvenido-todos-anglicans-in-spain-welcome-pilgri (...)

 After weeks of preparation, Anglicans around the Communion are getting involved in prayer, reflection and action for the 16 Days of Activism against gender-based violence. The 16 Days of Activism campaign runs from today (25 November), the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, and runs to Human Rights Day on 10 December. The annual campaign sprang from the first Women’s Global Leadership Institute in 1991.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/11/anglicans-join-16-days-of-activism-against-gender- (...)

The Patriarch of Antioch was in London yesterday (Thursday) for the consecration of Britain’s first Syriac Orthodox Cathedral. The Prince of Wales, Prince Charles, was the guest of honour at the service, which was attended by a number of senior Anglicans from the Church of England, including the Bishop of London, Richard Chartres; the Bishop at Lambeth, Nigel Stock; and the Bishop of Ebbsfleet, Jonathan Goodall, the former ecumenical secretary at Lambeth Palace.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/11/britains-first-syriac-orthodox-cathedral-consecrat (...)

The stories of Christians from Mozambique and Angola who have “been quietly getting on with building and being the church” will be published over the next four weeks as part of an Advent campaign by Manna – the Mozambique and Angola Mission Association. Their #StoriesOfLoveComing social media campaign is a follow-up to their Lent campaign this year when they published 40 stories from the region using the hashtag #Good2BAnglican.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/11/advent-focus-on-christians-of-mozambique-and-angol (...)

A group of Anglican and Roman Catholic bishops have acknowledged both churches’ failure to protect children, women and indigenous peoples. In a statement issued by the International Anglican Roman Catholic Commission for Unity and Mission (Iarccum) today (Friday) following the group’s historic meeting in Canterbury and Rome last month, they call on the Chuch to repent and seek justice for victims. They say that, “at the foot of the Cross we, as bishops, have reflected on an ‘ecumenism of humiliation’. We lament our failures and share the brokenness of our church communities.”

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/11/bishops-say-church-has-failed-children-women-and-i (...)

The Primate of Australia, Archbishop Philip Freier, has called for constitutional recognition for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, saying it is “vital” if the country’s indigenous people are to flourish. Archbishop Freier expressed concern that the political debate about the introduction of same-sex marriage and parliament’s rejection of a plebiscite on the issue should not be used to prevent a referendum on indigenous recognition. He said that the issue had “dropped increasingly below the Federal Government’s radar”.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/11/church-calls-for-constitutional-recognition-of-ind (...)

London’s Westminster Abbey will be lit up in red tonight in an act of solidarity with people around the world who are persecuted for their faith. It is one of a number of religious buildings that are joining the #RedWednesday campaign by the Roman Catholic charity Aid to the Church in Need (ACN). As part of the campaign, one of London’s iconic red busses is taking part in a faith-buildings tour today, to spread the “Stand up for Faith and Freedom message”.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/11/faith-communities-unite-on-red-wednesday-for-victi (...)

The Anglican Church of Burundi has celebrated the 50th anniversary of its first diocese – Buye – with a special service led by Archbishop Martin Nyaboho. The first Anglican presence in Burundi was established by CMS missionaries in the 1930s. The church grew rapidly as a result of the East African Revival and its first national bishop was consecrated in 1965 with his see at Buye, which at that time covered the whole country. Fifty years on, the country is now served by seven dioceses.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/11/burundians-celebrate-half-a-century-of-its-first-d (...)

The slogan on the conference bag read: “Episcopal Evangelist. It’s not an oxymoron.” While some people might think that an Episcopal evangelist is a rare breed, more than 400 evangelism veterans and fledgling practitioners spent Friday and Saturday (19-19 November) being inspired, finding camaraderie and learning new ways to live up to that slogan during the Evangelism Matters conference at Church of the Transfiguration in Dallas, Texas.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/11/episcopal-evangelist-is-not-an-oxymoron.aspx

The Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby has defied official advice to fly to Pakistan in a solidarity visit to meet victims of anti-Christian terror attacks. During his visit the Archbishop met local Christians at St Thomas Church in Islamabad and Christ Church, Youhanabad. He met survivors of the 2013 Peshawar church bombings and the 2015 Youhanabad bombs – both Christians and Muslims. The visit – the first time any Archbishop of Canterbury has visited Pakistan more than once – was hosted by the moderator of the Church of Pakistan, Bishop Samuel Azariah, who today praised the Archbishop for his visit.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/11/archbishop-justin-welby-meets-pakistan-terror-vict (...)

Black clergy from across the US-based Episcopal Church and parts of the Anglican Communion spent more than four days in Houston, Texas, last week, exploring how to reclaim the Episcopal Church’s membership in the Jesus Movement.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/11/reclaiming-the-episcopal-churchs-membership-in-the (...)

Last year’s Paris agreement on climate change is “irreversible and unstoppable”, the world’s political leaders said as they met in Marrakech for this year’s climate change conference (COP22). As they gathered, a significant number of Anglican leaders signed a joint inter-faith statement describing the agreement as an “unprecedented global consensus.”

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/11/faiths-applaud-unprecedented-global-consensus-on-c (...)

The Revd Dr Will Adam will take up the combined role of Ecumenical Adviser to the Archbishop and Ecumenical Officer at the Council of Christian Unity. 

Read in full at www.archbishopofcanterbury.org/articles.php/5810/new-ecumenical-adviser-to-the-archb (...)

THE Archbishop of Canterbury had made a critical diagnosis of what ails the European Union, home to what he calls the “biggest debtor’s prison in European history”.

Read in full at www.churchtimes.co.uk/articles/2016/25-november/news/uk/welby-cites-greece-as-exampl (...)

Clergy and lay leaders from Anglican churches in south Asia are taking part in a pioneering programme designed to increase culturally sensitive theological training. Modelled on the Ecumenical Institute at the Château de Bossey near Geneva, in Switzerland, the Asian Theological Academy (ATA) was created to help Asian Christians think together about theological issues in a local context. “This is a chance to explore different ways of thinking,” Dr Rienzie Perera, the founder and director of the ATA said. “It is about interaction. Yes, we live in Asia, but there is [currently] no cross-fertilisation between us.”

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/11/new-academy-facilitates-theological-studies-south- (...)

Reconciliation is the theme of the latest edition of Anglican World, which contains an in-depth interview with Canon Sarah Snyder, the Archbishop of Canterbury’s new advisor for reconciliation. The quarterly magazine of the Anglican Communion also has interviews with the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Lahore and the Anglican Bishop of Sialkot, two of the pairs of 19 bishops sent out for mission by Pope Francis and Archbishop Welby last month. It also takes a look at Arkan (corners), a cultural centre located in St Mark’s Anglican / Episcopal Pro-Cathedral in Alexandria, Egypt’s second city, which is helping to “draw together young people of different faiths and enable them to build bridges through the creative arts.”

You can preview the issue here: http://www.anglicancommunion.org/media/anglican-world-magazine.aspx 

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/features/2016/11/anglican-world-focuses-on-reconciliation.aspx

Christians are being invited to get more out of the Bible with Justin Welby through a new free online course which is being made available during Advent. The Advent course is being made available by ChurchNext, a company which “creates online Christian learning experiences that shape disciples” and is supported by the Presiding Bishop of the US-based Episcopal Church and the Bible in the Life of the Church project.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/11/archbishop-of-canterbury-in-online-advent-course.a (...)

The Primates of Kenya and All England, Archbishop Jackson Ole Sapit and Archbishop Justin Welby, have met at Lambeth Palace in London for fellowship and prayer. During their meeting on Wednesday (16 November), the two leaders spoke about how the Anglican Communion can serve wider society.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/11/archbishops-of-kenya-and-canterbury-meet-for-fello (...)

Christians across the world are being invited to celebrate the season of Advent through an interactive, multi-lingual online calendar. The website adventword.org goes live on Advent Sunday (27 November) in nine languages including, for the first time, Arabic. It allows people around the globe to create together an advent calendar with images shared by their mobile phones.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/11/online-advent-calendar-created-by-the-world.aspx

Two people have been killed and many more injured following a 7.8 magnitude earthquake that struck the New Zealand town of Kaikoura this week. There have been almost 2,000 after-shocks since the main quake, which struck at two minutes past midnight on Monday (14 November) NZDT (11.02am, Sunday 13 November, GMT). A number of church buildings have been affected. And an estimated 80,000 to 100,000 landslides since Monday is combining with heavy rain to worsen the effects of the initial quake.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/11/churches-damaged-by-new-zealand-earthquake.aspx

The people of Madagascar, Malawi and Zimbabwe are facing the risk of death as erratic weather, drought and crop failures have resulted in chronic food shortages. Hundreds of people have already died from malnutrition and that figure is set to rise substantially. One young person being confirmed in the diocese of Toliara in Madagascar collapsed in the arms of Bishop Tod McGregor as a result of dehydration.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/11/millions-face-starvation-as-famine-hits-southern-a (...)

An international network of faith-based organisations committed to working together to fight for gender justice is continuing to expand. When it launched in July last year, Side-by-Sideinvolved 17 churches and Christian organisations, including the Anglican Communion and the Anglican Alliance. Since then a number of regional consultations have taken place in Latin America and the Caribbean, east Africa and southern Africa, and the number of member organisations now total 35. That could increase this week as a regional seminar and conference takes place in Copenhagen, Denmark.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/11/nordic-faith-communities-expand-faith-based-gender (...)

Priests and Rabbis serving similar local areas in England are being encouraged to explore mutual concerns and opportunities for shared action. The initiative, In Good Faith, was launched yesterday at Lambeth Palace by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, and the UK’s Chief Rabbi, Ephraim Mirvis, who both delivered significant speeches. The joint social action initiative is “Modelled on [the Archbishop’s and Chief Rabbi’s] own well rooted friendship,” a Lambeth Palace spokesperson said.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/11/priests-and-rabbis-work-together-on-the-common-goo (...)

A new academic study into growth and decline in the Anglican Communion will be marked by a day conference and the publication of a new book. Edited by the Revd Dr David Goodhew, director of ministerial practice at Cranmer Hall, part of St John's College at Durham University, Growth and Decline in the Anglican Communion – 1980 to the Present, is described by publishers Routledge as “the first study of [the Anglican Communion’s] dramatic growth and decline in the years since 1980.”

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/11/new-study-explores-growth-and-decline-in-the-angli (...)

Tens of thousands of Christians from across southern India joined moderators, bishops and other dignitaries from around the world at a huge celebration to mark the bicentenary of Madhya Kerala diocese on Saturday (12 November). The gathering, at the Nehru Stadium in Kottayam, was the culmination of four years of events and projects to commemorate the arrival in the southern state of Kerala of the first CMS missionary, Thomas Norton, in 1816.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/11/huge-crowds-celebrate-bicentenary-of-south-indian- (...)

Hundreds of refugees held in Australian detention centres on the islands of Nauru and Manus could be resettled in the US under plans announced yesterday by Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull. The Archbishop of Melbourne, Philip Freier, has welcomed the announcement but has called on the government to go further. The conditions on Nauru and Manus have long-been criticised; and earlier this year official files released to the Guardian newspaper revealed the “shocking and saddening” conditions faced by those detained in the off-shore centres.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/11/primate-welcomes-refugee-resettlement-plan.aspx

The Bishop of Argentina, Greg Venables, has been re-elected as the new Primate of the Anglican Church of South America. He succeeds Bishop Tito Muñoz of Chile who came to the end of his second three-year term – the maximum permitted under the province’s canons. Bishop Greg was the House of Bishops’ unanimous choice to be the new Presiding Bishop – or Obispo Presidente – of South America when they met at the weekend. His appointment was confirmed at the provincial Synod this week, and he took office on Wednesday (9 November) at a combined service of installation and welcome.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/features/2016/11/bishop-greg-venables-is-new-primate-of-south-a (...)

A shortage of trained evangelists, lay readers and deacons in the West African diocese of the Gambia is being tackled by priests seconded from Ghana and Zimbabwe. A priest from Accra and another from Harare will spend three years in the Gambia helping to train and support vocations amongst clergy and laity. The initiative is part of the Anglican mission agency USPG’s Exchanging Places programme.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/11/church-swaps-help-gambia-train-local-evangelists.a (...)

A two-minute silence has been held at 11 am this morning (Friday) in many parts of the world in commemoration of those who died serving their countries in times of war. The 11 November commemorates Armistice Day – the day when the guns fell silent at the end of the First World War at the 11th hour on the 11th day of the 11th month. In the US, it is known as Veterans Day. Further commemorations will take place on Sunday when churches and local communities hold special services for what has become known as Remembrance Sunday.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/11/anglican-and-catholic-irish-primates-in-joint-reme (...)

Delegations of Sunni and Shia Muslims and Catholic and Anglican / Episcopal Christians have said that hatred, humiliation and persecution based on distorted understandings of the Bible or Qur’an “offends God.” The statement is contained in the Call to Action, issued by the Fourth Session of the Christian – Muslim Summit, which met this week in the Iranian capital Tehran. In it, the religious leaders condemn “aggressive tendencies and criminal acts against nations, groups, and individuals.”

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/11/christian-and-muslim-leaders-condemn-aggressive-te (...)

The phrase “fear not” appears in the Bible 365 times, the Primate of Nigeria, Archbishop Nicholas Okoh said, one for every day of the year. He made his comment as he urged the faithful in Nigeria to remain calm despite “being confronted with fear on a daily basis.” He said that that God remains unchanging, despite the political unrest, insurgency, kidnaping, and herdsmen attacks taking place in Nigeria.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/11/fear-not,-says-nigerian-primate,-despite-the-churc (...)

The overseas development arm of the Anglican Church of Canada is helping to save the lives of new-born babies in Mozambique through the provision of “solar suitcases.” One nurse in the country reported using the light from a mobile phone held by her mouth to deliver babies born at night in health centres that did not have electricity. The solar suitcases contain 80 watts solar panels, a 12 Ah lithium ferrous phosphate battery, medical lights, battery chargers and a foetal Doppler.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/11/solar-suitcases-bring-light-and-life-to-mothers-an (...)

The Journal of Ecclesiastical History is pleased to announce a new World Christianities Essay Prize of £500, funded in part by a generous donation from the Cambridge Centre for Christianity Worldwide. The prize will be awarded each year to the author of an original research article on any subject relating to the history of Christianity outside Europe and North America since the year 700. Contributions are welcome from any historical subdiscipline and with any chronological or geographical focus within those parameters. Contributions will be assessed anonymously and are open to any author regardless of seniority or background. Entries from junior scholars are warmly encouraged.

Read in full at www.cambridge.org/core/journals/journal-of-ecclesiastical-history/world-christianiti (...)

The Bishop of Johannesburg, Dr Steve Moreo, has criticised controversial South African politician Julius Malema after he appeared to call for the murder of white people. Malema, who leads the opposition Economic Freedom Fighters party, said on Monday (7 November) “We are not calling for the slaughtering of white people – at least for now” during an emotionally charged speech to his supporters.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/11/bishop-criticises-south-african-politician-over-ra (...)

A church-run secondary school in Kuala Lumpur is the first government aided school in Malaysia to be equipped with a state-of-the-art hospitality and culinary arts centre. St Mary’s All Girls’ Secondary School now has a hot kitchen, patisserie, store room, hospitality suite, indoor dining hall and an al fresco dining space which will be used to teach culinary and hospitality courses.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/11/malaysian-church-school-equipped-for-catering-and- (...)

The Duke and Duchess of Cornwall were the guests of honour at a service in Oman’s Bait al Noor church in Ruwi, Muscat, held to mark the 125th anniversary of the final missionary journey of Bishop Thomas Valpy French. The bishop arrived in Muscat in February 1891 to establish an Anglican church; but he fell ill and, despite the care of Portuguese Catholic missionaries, he died after a prolonged fever in May 1891, aged 66.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/11/royal-visit-for-anniversary-of-missionary-journey. (...)

The Revd Isabelle Hamley will take up the role of Archbishop of Canterbury’s Chaplain at Lambeth Palace in January. 

Read in full at www.archbishopofcanterbury.org/articles.php/5801/archbishop-announces-isabelle-hamle (...)

The Archbishop of Canterbury’s representative to the Holy See and director of the Anglican Centre in Rome (ACR), Archbishop David Moxon, is to retire in June next year after for years in the post. Archbishop Justin Welby and the governors of the ACR have begun the search for an Anglican bishop to succeed him for the combined post, which has been dubbed “the Archbishop of Canterbury’s Spymaster General.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/features/2016/11/applications-invited-from-bishops-for-post-of- (...)

The arrival of the Church Mission Society’s Thomas Norton and other missionaries in the southern Indian town of Alleppey, Kerala, 200 years ago is being marked with a major celebration in the state’s Nehru sports stadium in Kottayam. More than 50,000 people are expected to attend the celebration, which will include a presentation from the surviving grandchildren of the original missionaries.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/11/celebrations-mark-bi-centenary-of-cms-missionaries (...)

The Bishop of several West Indies islands hit by Hurricane Matthew last month has spoken of how the diocese “fared relatively well”. But Bishop Laish Boyd said that several church and school buildings were damaged and said that “the struggle is real.” In a pastoral letter read in churches in the diocese of the Bahamas and the Turks and Caicos Islands last Sunday, Bishop Boyd said that “God is mightier than Hurricane Matthew and all of the damage and displacement caused. Whatever the damage and disruption that Matthew has wrought, God can and will do ten times that amount in healing, recovery and restoration.”

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/11/hurricane-matthew-effects-on-bahamas-schools-and-c (...)

Ministers in the Australian diocese of Sydney receive compulsory training in domestic violence (DV) as part of the diocese’s attempt to provide the best pastoral care for victims of DV. Last year the diocese convened a Domestic Violence Task Force, which has now produced its first report to the Synod, in which they explain the prevalence of domestic violence and the state of training.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/11/sydney-diocese-tackles-domestic-violence.aspx

For many Americans, next Tuesday’s general election (8 November) can’t come soon enough, and not because they’re excited about it. More than half (52 per cent) of American adults report the 2016 election is a very or somewhat significant source of stress, research by the American Psychological Association shows. Democrats (55 per cent) and Republicans (59 per cent) are statistically equally likely to say the election is a very or somewhat significant source of stress.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/11/churches-at-cutting-edge-of-helping-americans-with (...)

The Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, has led a delegation of Anglican leaders to the Muslim Council of Elders at a meeting in Abu Dhabi. The meeting, dubbed the Council of the Wise, was held to discuss integration, religious freedom and flourishing societies, and was the continuation of a series of meetings that began in 2002.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/11/anglican-leaders-advocate-for-christians-in-muslim (...)

A Chicago priest has become the first black woman to be elected as a diocesan bishop in the US-based Episcopal Church (TEC). Bishops Barbara Harris and Gayle Harris were the first black women to serve as suffragan bishops within TEC; but after Jennifer Baskerville-Burrows receives the necessary consents from the wider church, she will become the first black woman diocesan bishop when she is consecrated in April.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/11/historic-appointment-breaks-episcopal-barrier-for- (...)

The Church in Wales has elected its first female bishop, a little over three years since the Province passed legislation opening the episcopacy to women. The Revd Canon Joanna Penberthy, currently the Rector of Glan Ithon in Llandrindod Wells, in the Diocese of Swansea and Brecon, was elected as the next Bishop of St Davids on the second day of an Electoral College that was locked inside the diocese’s historic cathedral. Wales joins a growing list of Anglican provinces to have appointed female clergy to the Episcopate.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/11/church-in-wales-appoints-first-female-bishop.aspx

The Anglican Church of Canada’s international development arm, the Primates’ World Relief and Development Fund (PWRDF), has a number of safeguards in place to ensure donations are well-spent. PWRDF said that the safeguards include on-the-ground assessments and regular inspection of partner agencies’ documents.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/11/canadian-relief-agency-reassures-donors-after-red- (...)

The executive director of the Anglican Church of Australia’s international development body has been honoured by the country’s aid agencies. The Revd John Deane, executive director of the Anglican Board of Mission – Australia (ABM) and a trustee of the global Anglican Alliance, received the Australian Council for International Development’s (ACFID) award for “Outstanding Contribution” to the sector at their annual meeting last week.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/11/australian-aid-agencies-honour-anglican-missions-c (...)

A court in Egypt has postponed a hearing to determine whether the Episcopal / Anglican Diocese of Egypt with North Africa and the Horn of Africa can regain its independence. Today’s hearing was the first stage of a legal claim to overturn a previous decision which says that the diocese should be considered part of the Evangelical Church Association, a Presbyterian denomination.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/11/diocese-of-egypts-legal-recognition-case-adjourned (...)

More than 50,000 Christians from Gujarat and around north India are expected to attend a Gospel Convention Shanti Sammelan (peace conference) in the state next Tuesday (8 November). The event – the first such gathering organised by the Church of North India (CNII) – is part of a triennium of mission evangelism agreed by the CNI Synod in 2014.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/11/50,000-north-indian-christians-gather-for-gospel-c (...)

A weekly Wednesday-night soup-kitchen run by Exeter Cathedral to feed the city’s homeless will switch to another location this week, because the building and its environs remain closed following a serious fire. The Wednesday night feeding facility is part of a weekly rota of soup-kitchens providing hot food each day. A local mosque in Exeter will provide the food tomorrow night, which will be served from the nearby Crosslines charity.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/11/mosque-steps-in-to-feed-homeless-as-fire-forces-co (...)

One third of the population of Lebanon are refugees from other countries, an Anglican delegation heard this week as they met with the Middle East Council of Churches in Beirut. The meeting came as Anglican members of the Anglican-Oriental Orthodox International Commission (AOOIC) took advantage of the group’s annual meeting, taking place in the city, to see for themselves how the region was responding to the refugee crisis.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/10/anglicans-hear-of-middle-east-churchs-work-with-sy (...)

Following an August retreat in Panama with representatives from the different regions of Latin America and the Caribbean, Episcopal and Anglican leaders in theological education are clear that training must include analysis of regional problems so that clergy can perform quality pastoral work. The Commission of Theological Education for Latin America and the Caribbean (CETALC) is clear that it wants to carry out pastoral work responding to the needs of each region. To achieve this, the first challenge lies in the preparation of clergy and lay members, say the commission’s members.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/10/latin-american-seminaries-reflect-on-local-needs.a (...)

The Archbishop Emeritus of Burundi, Bernard Ntahoturi, joined a delegation from the World Council of Churches (WCC) last week in a solidarity visit to churches in Ethiopia. The delegation, led by WCC Central Committee Moderator Dr Agnes Abuom, from the Anglican Church of Kenya, met leaders of member churches, an interfaith body and political leaders, including the Ethiopian President, Dr Mulatu Teshome.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/10/churches-stand-in-solidarity-with-ethiopian-christ (...)

Archbishop Nicholas Okoh, the Primate of Nigeria, has said that large communities of people need “a recognisable Anglican presence”. But he said that Anglican churches “have has not come to compete with any Church, because God is one.” He made his comments at the dedication of a new Anglican Church in Galuywi, Abuja. The new St Silas’ Church was planted by the congregation of All Saints’ Anglican Church in Wuse, Abuja.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/10/every-community-needs-a-church-nigerian-primate-sa (...)

An Australian bishop has spoken out after it was announced that the Australian Football League (AFL) will next year stage its first match to be played on Good Friday. The Etihad Stadium in the docklands area of Melbourne is the pre-eminent football stadium in Australia, and the home of the AFL. The full fixtures for the 2017 season will be published tomorrow (Thursday) but the AFL have already confirmed that North Melbourne will take on the Western Bulldogs at the stadium on 14 April.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/10/bishop-speaks-out-after-first-good-friday-afl-matc (...)

For the first time in centuries, scientists have exposed the original surface of what is traditionally considered the tomb of Jesus Christ. Located in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in the Old City of Jerusalem, the tomb has been covered by marble cladding since at least 1555 A.D., and most likely centuries earlier.

Read in full at news.nationalgeographic.com/2016/10/jesus-tomb-opened-church-holy-sepulchre/?utm_sou (...)

Australia’s faith communities should be allowed to help settle and provide care for those asylum seekers still being held in offshore detention centres on Nauru and Manus Island, the National Council of Churches in Australia (NCCA) has said.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/10/australian-churches-say-let-us-help-on-migrant-cri (...)

The coming winter and changing attitudes on the part of some Dakota Access Pipeline project opponents and law enforcement officials near the Standing Rock Sioux Nation are changing the US-based Episcopal Church’s ministry in that part of North Dakota.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/10/evolving-standing-rock-protests-expand-episcopal-c (...)

Complaints of church-based sexual abuse in Australia’s internal province of Victoria will be investigated by an independent body with its own board of directors. The dioceses of Melbourne and Bendigo have already approved the new structure, which will be considered by the dioceses of Wangaratta, Ballarat and Gippsland next year. The new body is being established by the Church but is separate from the dioceses and their archbishop. It will work across a number of dioceses.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/10/independent-body-to-investigate-sex-abuse-complain (...)

A hymn written by the Dean of St Christopher’s Cathedral in Bahrain has been selected as the winner of a hymn competition to mark the 40th anniversary of the Diocese of Cyprus and the Gulf. The competition was announced last year by the diocese’s standing committee, who said that “whilst not as auspicious as a fifty-year jubilee, it is nevertheless an achievement to be proud of.”

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/10/bahrain-dean-wins-cyprus-and-gulf-hymn-competition (...)

A simple act of solidarity with the people of Aleppo by a parish of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland has turned into a global initiative supported by several Anglican churches. On 12 October, the parish of Kallio in Helsinki, began ringing its tolling bell at 5 pm each evening. The tolling bell, usually ring at funerals and to mark periods of mourning, was rung to mark the thousands of people killed during the military onslaught in Syria’s besieged city of Aleppo. A social media campaign, #BellsForAleppo, encouraged other churches to join in with the initiative, culminating today (Monday 24 October) – the United Nations Day.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/10/bells-toll-for-the-dead-of-aleppo.aspx

The 50th anniversary of the Aberfan disaster, in which 116 children and 28 adults were killed, is being remembered across Wales and elsewhere in the United Kingdom. At 9.15 am on Friday 21 October 1966, some 150,000 cubic metres of water-saturated spoil heap broke free from the side of side of Mynydd Merthyr, the sandstone ridge on which it had been deposited, and moved at high speed towards the South Wales village of Aberfan, where it enveloped Pantglas School.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/10/wales-remembers-116-children-buried-alive-by-the-n (...)

South Africa’s church leaders have said that the country is facing a constitutional crisis. In a joint letter, 31 church and other-faith leaders – including the Archbishop of Cape Town, Dr Thabo Makgoba, primate of the Anglican Church of Southern Africa – say that the “fees must fall” university protests are just one aspect of a much wider crisis facing the country.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/10/church-leaders-south-africa-facing-constitutional- (...)

The primate of the Anglican Church of Canada has presented the province’s Anglican Award of Merit to Anglican Consultative Council member Suzanne Lawson. The Anglican Award of Merit is the highest honour given to lay people by the Church of Canada. Suzanne Lawson was one of five recipients of this award in 2016. The others were Jennifer Henry, an ecumenical social justice advocate; Trevor Powell, a church archivist; David Stovel, a portfolio manager and trustee for a number of church benefit plans; and Peter Whitmore, a judge and former chancellor of the diocese of Qu’Appelle.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/10/anglican-award-of-merit-presented-to-accs-acc-memb (...)

Food, water and shelter is being provided for approximately 520 families staying on church properties in Haiti’s southern peninsula following last week’s devastating Hurricane Matthew. Reports cite the death toll as being somewhere between 500 to more than a 1,000. Episcopal Relief & Development (ERD), the relief agency of the US-based Episcopal Church, is providing direct support to the families in addition to assisting in wider relief efforts.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/10/episcopal-agency-working-in-haiti-and-south-east-u (...)

The Church in Wales has joined five other UK Christian churches in calling for an end to the fighting in the Syrian city of Aleppo. They have called for those responsible for “the targeting and killing of civilians” to be held to account for war crimes. They say that the targeting of civilians “can never be passed off merely as a consequence of war” and say that “aerial strikes on homes, hospitals and aid convoys are never acceptable, under any circumstances.”

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/10/aleppo-hospital-bombing-constitutes-war-crime,-say (...)

The Anglican mission agency Mission to Seafarers (MtS) is linking up with its German counterparts in a ground-breaking initiative to provide support for the maritime community in the British ports on the River Tees. The Deutsche Seemannsmission (DSM) – or German Seamen’s Mission, part of the Evangelical Church in Germany – has had chaplains in the Tees and Middlesbrough ports for some time. Now, the two DSM chaplains in the area will oversee the MtS mission centres on both sides of the River Tees.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/10/mission-to-seafarers-link-with-german-counterparts (...)

The Church of Pakistan has designated 22 September – the anniversary of the deadliest terror attack against the country’s Christian community – as the Day of the Christian Martyrs in Pakistan. Twin suicide bombers killed 127 people and injured more than 250 others when they attacked All Saints Church in Peshawar on 22 September 2013. There have been numerous other attacks – included an attempt to attack the Warsak Christian compound in Peshawar last month. A resident was killed foiling that attack.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/10/church-of-pakistan-remembers-its-martyrs.aspx

The Archbishop of Pec, Serbian Patriarch Irinej (named after Saint Irenaeus), has made an official visit to the UK. His visit, which was hosted by the Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby, marked the centenary of the first Orthodox Christian to preach from the pulpit of London’s St Paul’s Cathedral. It was “an occasion of significant conversation and warm fellowship between [the Archbishops] and their delegations, which signals a renewal of the longstanding and close relationship between the Church of England and the Serbian Orthodox Church,” a spokesperson for Lambeth Palace said.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/10/patriarch-of-serbia-visits-the-archbishop-of-cante (...)

Anglicans from the Church of South America’s Diocese of Chile will join thousands of Christians from other denominations in a public celebration of faith later this month. They will take part in a “March for Jesus” on Reformation Day – 31 October – which is designated as a public holiday in the country. The day marks the anniversary of Martin Luther nailing his 95 theses to the door of the church in Wittenburg.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/10/chilean-anglicans-to-march-for-jesus-on-reformatio (...)

The release of 21 schoolgirls who had been held by Islamist terror group Boko Haram has been met with “delight, relief and optimism” by the Anglican Church of Nigeria. The 21 were amongst 276 students kidnapped from the north-eastern Nigerian town of Chibok in April 2014. A spokesman for Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari said that the Swiss government and the International Committee of the Red Cross had acted as mediators with Boko Haram. Talks are said to be on-going for the release of the remaining 83 girls who are still thought to be being held.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/10/nigerian-primates-delight-at-release-of-chibok-gir (...)

Bishops from all six Episcopal dioceses in California have lent their support to moves to abolish the death penalty. A state-wide referendum on whether the death penalty should be abolished in California will take place in November. If passed, the proposed amendment – known as Proposition 62 – would replace the death penalty with a punishment of life in prison without the possibility of parole as the maximum punishment for murder.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/10/california-bishops-support-abolition-of-death-pena (...)

The Anglican cathedral in Liverpool has donated the proceeds of its visitors’ collection boxes to its Roman Catholic neighbour, whose own collection jars were destroyed by burglars. The Anglican Dean of Liverpool, the Very Revd Pete Wilcox, stressed that the donation was not an act of charity but of solidarity. The two cathedrals – at either end of Hope Street – have had a very strong relationship since the era of Bishop David Sheppard and Archbishop Derek Worlock in the Mid 1970s.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/10/anglican-solidarity-after-roman-catholic-cathedral (...)

It is 10 months since the World Health Organisation (WHO) declared that the two-year Ebola outbreak in west Africa was at an end; but the aftermath of the two-year health crisis will take many years to resolve. The effects of the Ebola crisis are wide ranging; and include damage to infrastructure, barren farmland leading to food insecurity, significant school drop-out and teenage pregnancy – on top of the 11,000 lives lost in the outbreak. Now, the Anglican churches in the region have developed a five-year mission plan to help the affected countries recover.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/10/west-african-anglicans-plan-five-year-post-ebola-m (...)

The Primate of Canada, Archbishop Fred Hiltz, will visit London, England, in December to take part in the Mission to Seafarers annual Christmas carol service. This year’s service will be followed by a celebratory reception to mark the Anglican mission agency’s 160th anniversary. The service, at the mission’s home church – St Michael Paternoster Royal in the City of London – will take the form of a Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/10/canadian-primate-helps-mission-to-seafarers-160th- (...)

The rise of right-wing political movements across Europe is hampering efforts to provide a coherent approach to refugees across the European Union, two bishops have said. The Bishop of Gibraltar in Europe, Robert Innes, and the suffragan Bishop in Europe, David Hamid, made their comments at the conclusion of a Diocese in Europe consultation on the refugee crisis jointly organised with USPG and the Anglican Alliance.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/10/rise-of-the-right-hampers-care-for-refugees.aspx

Asia Bibi, the Christian woman on death row in Pakistan after being convicted of blasphemy in a row over drinking water, will have to wait for her Supreme Court appeal after a hearing due to take place today was adjourned. Justice Iqbal Hameed-ur-Rehman, one of the panel of three judges due to hear the appeal, recused himself saying that there was a conflict of interest.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/10/fresh-setback-for-asia-bibi-as-supreme-court-appea (...)

It is one of the most influential, and most stolen, works ever. But for centuries, the origins of the Ghent Altarpiece have been shrouded in mystery. Now a restoration is revealing the truth about this masterpiece

Read in full at www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2016/oct/12/ghent-altarpiece-restoration?CMP=Share_ (...)

The priest on the front line of the Anglican church’s work with refugees in Europe has told a consultation in Cologne how he first became involved in this aspect of his ministry. “I was going to do the Wednesday service at St Paul’s Church and passed through the central square in Athens,” the city’s Anglican chaplain, the Revd Canon Malcolm Bradshaw, said. “To my surprise I saw an encampment of 200 Syrians.” After taking the service, he said, “I walked back and wondered through the encampment and began to speak to them; and this was the first sight of this great movement of refugees into Europe.”

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/10/diocese-in-europe-hosts-consultation-on-refugee-cr (...)

Being proactive, building links and bringing peace to a world in turmoil – those are the main tasks ahead for the Anglican Communion and its leaders, according to the chair of the Anglican Consultative Council, Archbishop Paul Kwong.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/features/2016/10/acc-chair-sets-out-his-vision-for-the-communio (...)

A Canadian Anglican has been chosen to head one of the world’s most prestigious universities. Stephen Toope, who has served on a number of high-profile church bodies, was recently nominated as vice-chancellor of the University of Cambridge, according to the University of Toronto’s U o T News. Assuming the appointment will be approved by the university’s governing body, Toope will begin in his new role on 1 October 2017. He will be the 346th vice-chancellor in the university’s 800-year history, and is believed to be the first non-Briton to serve in the position.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/10/canadian-anglican-to-head-cambridge-university.asp (...)

Representatives from Anglican churches and agencies across the Middle East gathered in Cyprus last month, for the first Anglican Alliance consultation in the region. The four-day meeting, which took place from 19-22 September 2016, saw delegates sharing their top priorities for development, relief and advocacy, including the ongoing refugee and migrant crisis, increasing instability and violence, and the lack of economic opportunities, particularly for young people.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/10/anglican-alliance-consultation-builds-relationship (...)

Episcopalians along the southeast coastal United States are assessing the damage wrought by Hurricane Matthew. Some still cannot return to their homes because of severe damage in their communities or because rain-swollen rivers and creeks are still flooding. The storm killed more than 1,000 people in Haiti by the estimate of the Reuters news service. Officials there have begun burying people in mass graves.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/10/episcopalians-take-stock-of-hurricane-matthews-dam (...)

Anglicans around the world are continuing to serve in the front-line of assisting refugees and asylum seekers through a mixture of advocacy and practical care. The Primate of Australia, Archbishop Philip Freier, will hold a “public conversation” on the issue in the early hours of Wednesday morning. Anglicans from across Europe are gathering today for the start of a consultation on refugee care. And Anglicans around the world are invited to take part in an Anglican Alliance “Webinar” on Thursday.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/10/anglicans-at-forefront-of-global-refugee-crisis.as (...)

Hurricane Matthew brought devastation as it swept through the Caribbean last week. Over two million people have been affected in Haiti, the most severely impacted country. Episcopal Relief & Development are already working with the Diocese of Haiti and ecumenical partners on the response. The Anglican Alliance is also in touch with the churches in Haiti, the Bahamas and Cuba, holding them in prayer and offering coordination of Anglican support.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/10/call-for-prayer-and-support-for-those-in-the-path- (...)

Primates, clergy and laity from the Global South group of Anglicans have spent the past week meeting in Cairo and discussing a range of issues from evangelism, inter-faith dialogue and same-sex relationships. Under the theme “. . . found faithful”, the delegates “were able to share, discern, pray, study, worship and take counsel together . . . about matters that are affecting our beloved Anglican Communion and our world,” they said in a post-conference communiqué, the Sixth Trumpet.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/10/global-south-anglicans-discuss-great-human-sufferi (...)

This year’s Anglicans Ablaze held in Cape Town, South Africa, was an opportunity to explore and discuss various spiritual and social issues pertaining to the Anglican Church and the country as a whole including inequality and poverty. But it was the themes of education and leadership that formed a constant thread throughout the four days conference. The conference itself took place at a time of growing unrest and protests for free university education in some of South Africa’s notable universities which has prompted several institutions to temporarily close, just when students are preparing for end-of-term exams.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/10/anglicans-ablaze-education-and-leadership-key-for- (...)

The Bishop of Colombia has appealed for prayer after the citizens of the war-torn country narrowly rejected a peace deal between the government and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC). The Diocese of Colombia, part of the US-based Episcopal Church, was a strong supporter of the peace process and had offered its facilities as “spaces for exercises in reconciliation.” But last week, in a referendum, the peace deal was rejected with 50.2 per cent of the population voting against and only 49.8 per cent supporting it.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/10/prayer-urged-after-colombians-reject-farc-peace-ag (...)

The Irish Prime Minister, or Taoiseach, Enda Kenny, has told pupils at the first Church of Ireland voluntary secondary school to open since the formation of the state to “dream big dreams.” Mr Kenny told the 400-strong student body of Temple Carrig school to “be what you want to be.” He was at the school, in Greystones, County Wicklow, to officially open the school this morning.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/10/irish-premier-tells-church-of-ireland-school-pupil (...)

Pope Francis has this morning (Thursday) held a meeting with the Archbishop of Canterbury and other Anglican Primates and bishops at the Vatican. The Pope told them that ecumenism was “never an impoverishment, but a richness” and he said that during the past 50-years of closer relationship between Anglicans and Catholics, “the certainty has deepened that what the Spirit has sown in the other yields a common harvest.”

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/10/pope-francis-and-archbishop-justin-pray-for-unity. (...)

Thousands of Anglicans – mostly young people from Southern Africa and around the world – are meeting in Cape Town, South Africa for the biennial Anglicans Ablaze conference. The primary focus this year is to “open the way to a decade of intentional discipleship and disciple-making.”

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/10/young-people-at-anglicans-ablaze-in-cape-town.aspx

The Irish Prime Minister, or Taoiseach, will tomorrow (Friday) open the country’s first Anglican voluntary secondary school to be founded in Ireland since the creation of the state in 1922. Prime Minister Enda Kenny will perform the opening ceremony at Temple Carrig School in Greystones at 11am. The Archbishop of Dublin, Dr Michael Jackson, will dedicate the building.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/10/church-of-ireland-opens-first-anglican-voluntary-s (...)

Pulpit swaps, shared retreats, joint action on social issues and regular meetings between clergy are just some of the ideas for local expressions of unity between Anglicans and Roman Catholics taking shape during an ecumenical summit in Canterbury and Rome. This afternoon, during a service in the monastery church of San Gregorio al Cielo, Pope Francis and the Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby will commission 19 pairs of Anglican and Roman Catholic bishops to implement local expressions of unity in their dioceses around the world.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/10/anglican-roman-catholic-unity-takes-shape-in-cante (...)

The Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby and Pope Francis have commissioned 19 pairs of Anglican and Roman Catholic bishops from across the world to take part in united mission in their local areas. The bishops, selected by the International Anglican Roman Catholic Commission for Unity and Mission (Iarccum) were “sent out” for mission together by the Pope and Archbishop from the same church were Pope Gregory sent Saint Augustine to evangelise the English in the sixth Century.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/10/anglican-and-roman-catholic-bishops-sent-out-for-u (...)

The Archbishop of Canterbury has appointed Rt Revd Anthony Poggo, currently Bishop of Kajo-Keji in South Sudan, as his new Adviser for Anglican Communion Affairs. 

Read in full at www.archbishopofcanterbury.org/articles.php/5781/archbishop-of-canterbury-appoints-a (...)

The Primate of Kenya, Archbishop Jackson Ole Sapit, has commended the country’s government and opposition leaders for working together to ease tensions ahead of the 2017 general elections. In a “Letter to the Nation” issued at the end of the province’s standing committee meeting, Archbishop Sapit said that the church was “committed to promoting a just and cohesive society where all citizens enjoy their constitutional rights while living in peace, love and unity.”

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/10/kenyan-primate-urges-calm-ahead-of-2017-general-el (...)

Archbishop Justin was presented with a Cross of Nails to mark Lambeth Palace becoming the 200th partner of the Community of the Cross of Nails.

Read in full at www.archbishopofcanterbury.org/articles.php/5783/lambeth-palace-becomes-200th-partne (...)

The provincial synod of the Anglican Church of Southern Africa has voted against the introduction of blessing services for same-sex marriages. The motion, from the Diocese of Saldanha Bay, required a simple majority in all three houses of the synod (laity, clergy and bishops) along with an overall two-thirds majority of the whole synod. But it was rejected in all three houses and failed to get anywhere near the two-thirds overall majority.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/10/southern-africa-rejects-blessings-for-same-sex-mar (...)

The new members of the Community of St Anselm, the international new-monastic community for young people based at Lambeth Palace, have been commissioned by the Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby. The Community of St Anselm provides an opportunity for young people aged 20 to 35 to “spend a year in God’s time” in a residential and non-residential new-monastic community with a shared rule of life focused on prayer, study and service to the most vulnerable in society.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/10/community-of-st-anselm-welcomes-new-members-for-it (...)

Thirty-six Anglican and Roman Catholic bishops from 19 countries are in Canterbury at the start of an historic week-long summit marking closer ties between the two traditions. Events will include a service in Rome on Wednesday (October 5) jointly led by the Archbishop of Canterbury and Pope Francis at which the bishops will be formally commissioned to work together in pairs.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/10/bishops-begin-historic-canterbury-rome-pilgrimage. (...)

The historic first public meeting between a Pope and an Archbishop of Canterbury since the Reformation, which took place 50 years ago in Rome, will be celebrated by the current Pope and Archbishop when they meet next week in Rome. It was a milestone in ecumenical relations when Archbishop Michael Ramsey paid an official visit to Pope Paul VI in 1966. The visit sent shockwaves around the world when Pope Paul presented Archbishop Ramsey with his episcopal ring. Next week’s meeting between Pope Francis and Archbishop Justin will be the third meeting between the pair – a sign of how normal the relationship between the two churches have become.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/features/2016/09/archbishop-justin-welby-and-pope-francis-celeb (...)

The Provincial Synod of the Anglican Church of Southern Africa (ACSA) has agreed in principle to divest from fossil fuels. But they face a problem with putting this into practice because there are currently no fossil fuel-free portfolios available in South Africa’s financial markets. The motion approved by the Synod empowers ACSA to negotiate with financial institutions to create investment portfolios that exclude fossil fuels. If successful, the church could pave the way for a new ethical investment sector in the country.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/09/southern-african-anglicans-seek-fossil-fuel-free-i (...)

A 24-hour prayer vigil is taking place at St George’s Cathedral on the Windward Islands as the people of the diocese are asked to pray for their “parish, archdeaconry, diocese and nation.” Beginning at 6 am AST (10 am GMT) today (Friday), the cathedral is asking people to pray for different themes during the different hours, with several hours dedicated to praying for evangelism and mission.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/09/windward-islanders-pray-for-nation,-vocations-and- (...)

More than 700 new believers were baptised at a celebratory service held to mark the 70th anniversary of the Church of South India. The Moderators of the Church of South India (CSI) and the Church of North India (CNI) were both present at the service in St George’s Cathedral, Chennai, as was the Metropolitan of the Mar Thoma Church and other senior clerics. There were more than 1,000 people in the congregation.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/09/mass-baptisms-mark-70th-anniversary-of-church-of-s (...)

Sometime before he was about to embark on his bicycle ride across the province of Saskatchewan this June, Bishop Rob Hardwick, of the diocese of Qu’Appelle, in the Anglican Church of Canada, was approached by someone wanting to know what the point of it was. Hardwick responded that the nine-day, 723-km (449-miles) ride was to be a pilgrimage for prayer and worship with parishioners, with the goal of raising $10,000 [CAD, approximately £5,800 GBP] to support mission and the Bishop’s Discretionary Fund. The man, Hardwick says, then handed over a cheque for $10,500 on behalf of his family.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/09/news201609bishops-provincial-bike-ride-raises-13,0 (...)

Glimpses of how the Anglican Church in Southern Africa is implementing its Provincial vision and mission priorities. Produced for Archbishop Thabo Makgoba courtesy of Trinity Church Wall Street (Duration: 20'13").

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/multimedia/anchored-in-the-love-of-christ.aspx

Five young women are beginning a year-long monastic journey as part of a new Companions on the Way program. They were commissioned earlier this month by the Coadjutor Bishop of Huron, Linda Nicholls, and will spend the next 12 months living alongside members of the Sisterhood of St John the Divine (SSJD) at their convent in Toronto, Ontario.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/09/canadian-women-begin-monastic-journey-as-companion (...)

The Anglican mission agency Mission to Seafarers is once again running its innovative Woolly Hat Day fundraising campaign by urging people to wear a woolly hat on Friday 14 October. The Mission to Seafarers is the world’s largest maritime welfare charity and is held in high regard by the international shipping communities for the support it provides to seafarers across the world. They have raised thousands of pounds through previous Woolly Hat Days and hope to raise 15,000 through next month’s event.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/09/mission-to-seafarers-launch-woolly-hat-fundraising (...)

The Archbishop of Cape Town, Thabo Makgoba, has appealed for calm after violent protests gripped universities across South Africa. After a major series of protests last year, students are once again protesting against course fees. The latest discord came after education minister Blade Nzimande said that tuition fees will rise by eight per cent next year – even though students from low- and middle-income families will be exempt from the rise.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/09/archbishop-calls-for-calm-after-violent-university (...)

Bishop Alinafe Kalemba of the Anglican diocese of Southern Malawi, part of the Church of the Province of Central Africa, has challenged that unless budgets for youth activities are taken seriously, there will be little progress both at church and nation level.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/09/bishop-urges-churches-to-invest-in-young-people.as (...)

The Archbishops of Armagh and Canterbury have issued a joint statement welcoming the negotiated end of a three-year stand-off between a protestant group and Roman Catholic residents. The loyalist Protestant Orange Order is organised into local lodges; and, by tradition, they have an annual march from their lodge hall to a local church, normally in July. But these are seen as provocative by residents in the republican Catholic residential areas the marches pass through.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/09/archbishops-welcome-northern-ireland-parades-agree (...)

The Presiding Bishop of the US-based Episcopal Church has delivered an impassioned speech in support of the Standing Rock Sioux community. Bishop Michael Curry told them that their stand against a controversial oil pipeline could become as important in US history as the 1965 civil rights stand in Selma, Alabama. Selma is considered a turning point in racial equality in the US after a peaceful protest by African Americans demanding the right to vote was met with police violence.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/09/standing-rock-oil-pipe-protest-may-become-the-new- (...)

“The world’s greatest women’s group” – that’s how the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, described the Mothers’ Union at a celebration in the UK to mark its 140th anniversary on Thursday.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/09/mothers-union-simply-the-best-says-archbishop-welb (...)

An Anglican-run clinic on the island of Big Ngella in the Central Solomons has turned to the sun to solve a problem of the lights going out at night. A new one-kilowatt solar power unit has been installed on the roof of Saint Clare’s Clinic. The photovoltaic cells will provide enough power to also keep the medicine fridges running – and will provide power 24-hours a day.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/09/sun-provides-night-time-light-to-solomons-clinic.a (...)

A training course for pioneer ministry run by the Church Mission Society (CMS) has attracted its largest number of students for the new academic year. The Pioneer Mission Leadership Training programme began as a pilot in 2010. It was approved as a pathway for ordained pioneer ministry in the Church of England two years later. It now offers individual modules, a certificate, diploma and an MA.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/09/record-numbers-join-pioneer-ministry-course.aspx

The global Anglican agency Mission to Seafarers has come to the aid of stranded crew members working for Hanjin Shipping. The South Korean company operates one of the world’s largest shipping lines, but filed for receivership in August. As a result, some 97 of its container ships with 2,500 seafarers on board became stranded at sea as port managers refused them entry in case creditors used legal powers to seize the ships. With the financial status of the company in doubt it was questionable whether the money existed to pay for the ships to be unloaded.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/09/seafarers-mission-comes-to-aid-of-hanjin-crew-memb (...)

The UK-based Christian environmental charity A Rocha is expanded its already-successful Eco Church award scheme and is now looking to recognise Eco Dioceses. Dr Ruth Valerio, A Rocha’s director of churches and theology, outlined the scheme last week at a breakfast seminar attended by Christian conservationists and more than 50 Anglican bishops. Three of them – from Chichester, Birmingham and Canterbury – signed on the dotted line to begin the process for of registering their sees as Eco Dioceses.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/09/bishops-begin-journey-towards-eco-diocese-status.a (...)

Anglicans have welcomed the New York Declaration for Refugees and Migrants, which was agreed by world leaders at the UN General Assembly’s High Level Meeting on Monday. The declaration “expresses the political will of world leaders to protect the rights of refugees and migrants, to save lives and share responsibility for large movements on a global scale,” the UN said as they summarised the agreement.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/09/strong-welcome-for-un-refugee-agreement-but-action (...)

The Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby and the Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew joined Pope Francis in Assisi yesterday (Tuesday) to lead an assembly of religious leaders in prayers for peace. More than 500 Christian, Jewish, Islamic, Buddhist, Jain, Shinto and Zoroastrian leaders from around the world had gathered in the birthplace of St Francis for the World Day of Prayer for Peace event, which attracted around 12,000 participants.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/09/archbishop-welby,-pope-francis-and-patriarch-barth (...)

More than 3,000 members of the Mothers’ Union will gather from all corners of the globe tomorrow (Thursday) to celebrate the mission agency’s 140th anniversary. The Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby, the patron of the MU, will preside at a service of celebration and thanksgiving in Winchester Cathedral in southern England – the burial place of the MU founder Mary Sumner.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/09/mothers-union-returns-home-for-140th-anniversary-c (...)

Anglicans in Hong Kong will share successful evangelism and mission strategies with each other when they gather this weekend for a provincial Mission Conference. Organised by the Hong Kong Sheng Kung Hui – the Anglican Church in Hong Kong – the conference will bring together church members from across the province to learn how to do evangelism better.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/09/hong-kong-anglicans-share-evangelism-tips.aspx

The World Council of Churches and the Roman Catholic Church have identified peacebuilding and the protection of migrants and refugees as core areas for joint work. The focus was agreed at the two bodies’ Joint Working Group, which met last week at the Château de Bossey in Switzerland for its annual meeting.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/09/wcc-and-roman-catholics-to-focus-on-peacebuilding- (...)

A temporary injunction to prevent construction of a controversial pipeline through indigenous burial grounds has been imposed by a US federal appeals court. The injunction – which covers construction within 20 miles on either side of Lake Oahe – will give the court more time to consider whether a permanent injunction should be imposed. The indigenous American Sioux group at the nearby Standing Rock reservation are protesting against the construction. They have the support of the US-based Episcopal Church and also the neighbouring Anglican Church of Canada.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/09/presiding-bishop-steps-up-support-for-sioux-over-p (...)

The C of E is seeking to increase the number of candidates selected for ordained ministry from around 500 each year to 750. And they are targeting a “substantial increase” in the number of both young, and black and minority ethnic (Bame) ordinands. They say that the increase is both “necessary and achievable”

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/09/church-of-england-needs-50-per-cent-increase-in-or (...)

The Archbishop of Central Africa has told the UN secretary general, Ban Ki-moon, that “hospitality, reconciliation and love are our most formidable weapons against hatred and extremism.” The comment was made by Archbishop Albert Chama, chairman of the Anglican Alliance, in a letter ahead of today’s UN General Assembly summit on Large Movements of Refugees and Migrants. The letter, which was written at the request of Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby, sets out some of the experiences of Anglicans around the world who are working to support refugees.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/09/un-hears-of-anglicans-refugee-and-migrant-experien (...)

The Archbishop Emeritus of Cape Town, Desmond Tutu, has turned to social media to thank well-wishers after he was once-again hospitalised. Archbishop Tutu was discharged from hospital on Wednesday after a three-week stay, which included surgery to treat a series of recurring infections. On Saturday he was re-admitted as a precaution after signs of infection around the surgical wound.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/09/re-hospitalised-archbishop-desmond-tutu-thanks-wel (...)

Campaigners for a young Christian Pakistani woman on death row for breaking the blasphemy law have urged members of the Anglican Consultative Council to step up their efforts to get her released.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/09/call-for-acc-members-to-step-up-asia-bibi-campaign (...)

Two major international events will be held next week to improve the lives of refugees and asylum seekers. On Monday, the UN General Assembly will hold a day-long high-level summit to address large movements of refugees and migrants, with the aim of bringing countries together behind a more humane and coordinated approach. And on Tuesday, the US President Barack Obama will host a “Leaders’ Summit on Refugees” alongside Canada, Ethiopia, Germany, Jordan, Mexico and Sweden, with an appeal to governments to pledge significant new commitments on refugees.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/09/international-focus-on-refugees,-asylum-seekers-an (...)

The Dean of Auckland’s Holy Trinity Cathedral in New Zealand, the Very Revd Jo Kelly-Moore, has been appointed to the senior archdeacon’s role in the Church of England. When she takes up her new role as Archdeacon of Canterbury early next year, Kelly-Moore will – in addition to the usual role of an archdeacon – be responsible for installing all new diocesan bishops in the C of E’s southern province.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/09/canterbury-finds-its-new-archdeacon-on-the-other-s (...)

A host of dignitaries were present at the installation of the new Archbishop of the Province de L'Eglise Anglicane Du Congo – the Anglican Church in the Congo – yesterday. Archbishop Masimango Katanda, the Bishop of Kindu, was elected in July. He succeeds Archbishop Henri Isingoma who stood down for a health improvement break and return to theological academia.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/09/large-crowds-witness-installation-of-new-archbisho (...)

The Bishop of Davao, in the Philippines, Jonathan Casimina, has led a candlelit memorial service at the site of last week’s terrorist attack at the Roxas Night Market. Some 14 people were killed and around 70 injured when two improvised explosive devices were detonated as people enjoyed the city’s vibrant night life. The market is home to street stalls and cafes selling a range of merchandise and food and is a popular destination on the island.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/09/candlelit-service-for-davao-night-market-bomb-vict (...)

The Task Group set up after the Primates’ Gathering and Meeting in January to “maintain conversation” has met for the first time and stressed its determination to work together. But it acknowledged the process would take time and could not be rushed.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/09/anglican-communion-task-group-holds-first-meeting- (...)

The Selwyn Foundation has announced it will open a new state of the art elderly care facility at St Andrew’s Retirement Village in the Waipa District town of Cambridge, on New Zealand’s North Island, next year.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/09/elderly-care-facility-named-after-archbishop-moxon (...)

The fifteenth anniversary of the world’s deadliest terror attack will be remembered in special services and events in New York City this weekend. Some 2,996 people were killed in the September 11 attacks in 2001 when terrorists flew hijacked planes into New York’s World Trade Centre and the Pentagon in Washington. A forth plane crashed in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, as passengers tried to regain control of the plane.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/09/services-mark-15th-anniversary-of-911-terror-attac (...)

More Church leaders have added their voice to the chorus of welcome for last weekend’s announcement that both China and the US – the two largest emitters of greenhouse gasses – have ratified the Paris Agreement on climate change. Amongst them, the chair of the Anglican Consultative Council, Archbishop Paul Kwong of Hong Kong, who said that he was “very happy” to welcome the ratification.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/09/further-welcome-for-movement-on-climate-change.asp (...)

The second permanent large-scale installation here by internationally-acclaimed artist Bill Viola is unveiled in St Paul's Cathedral. Mary will be inaugurated in the North Quire Aisle on 8 September 2016 - to coincide with the Feast of Mary.

Read in full at www.stpauls.co.uk/news-press/latest-news/bill-violas-major-new-work-for-st-pauls-cat (...)

The Bishop of Davao in the Philippines has condemned “in unequivocal terms” a bomb attack in the city’s night time market on Friday that killed 14 people – one of them a pregnant woman. Bishop Jonathan Casimina said that the island of Mindanao had “suffered long enough from the shadow of war”. He said that Friday’s blast, which targeted the many people attending roadside food and merchandise stalls in the popular Roxas Night Market came at a time of “bated optimism on the prospects of sustainable peace.”

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/09/bishop-condemns-night-market-bomb-terror.aspx

The world has focused on refugees arriving in the EU from the Middle East but there is a story seldom told about refugees in Ethiopia – and how God is moving through them. Bishop Grant and Dr Wendy LeMarquand visited the Church Mission Society offices in Oxford, England, this summer and provided an inside view of what’s happening in the Gambella region, in the far west of Ethiopia, near the South Sudan border.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/features/2016/09/god-in-gambella.aspx

The secretary general of the Anglican Communion, Dr Josiah Idowu-Fearon, has moved to clarify any misunderstanding among Anglican provinces around the world after news emerged at the weekend of the first English Bishop to declare that he is gay and in a relationship.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/09/secretary-general-clarifies-view-after-gay-english (...)

A security guard at a church in a Christian colony in Peshawar foiled a major terror attack this morning; before being killed in a subsequent gun-battle. Four suicide bombers entered the colony, on the city’s Warsak Road, at 5.50am local time (12.50am GMT). The security guard, Samuel Masih, raised the alarm, alerting nearby police and army forces. He then challenged the terrorists and was killed as a result of gunfire.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/09/security-guard-dies-foiling-peshawar-terror-attack (...)

After 20 years of prayers, hopes and fund-raising, a new Women’s Mission Centre will open in Seoul, Korea, this weekend. The idea for the centre was first mooted in a resolution from the Anglican Church of Korea’s Women’s Forum in 1993. The project itself was launched in 1995 but it has taken until now for the centre, in the Shinyoungdong district of Seoul, to be ready. It will be blessed at a special celebration event on Sunday.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/09/two-decade-wait-finally-over-for-korean-womens-min (...)

The Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, will take part in an online question and answer session using the social media platform Twitter on Monday (5 September). The event will be the first time Archbishop Welby has hosted a public Q&A session on Twitter – and he has chosen the subject of prayer as the theme.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/09/tweeters-invited-to-askjustinwelby-on-prayer.aspx

The Church of England’s Diocese in Europe, supported by the Anglican mission agency USPG, is actively involved in supporting refugees who are arriving in Europe from Syria, Afghanistan and other trouble-spots. Father Malcolm Bradshaw is the senior Anglican chaplain in Athens and last weekend spoke at the Greenbelt Christian arts festival about the work of the Church in Greece. USPG’s Mike Brooks was there and sent this report for ACNS.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/features/2016/08/refugee-crisis-economic-injustice-and-opportun (...)

Christians around the globe are uniting in a World Day of Prayer for Creation today (Thursday 1 September) – a move which was started by the spiritual leader of the Orthodox churches. The day of prayer – and the Season of Creation that runs from today to the Feast of St Francis of Assisi (4 October) – was launched by the Ecumenical Patriarch Dimitrios in 1989. Last year Pope Francis called on Catholics to join in; and the Anglican Consultative Council – while not specifying any particular period – has repeatedly called on Anglican Provinces to set aside a liturgical season of prayer for creation and the environment.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/features/2016/09/christians-unite-in-world-day-of-prayer-for-cr (...)

A year of celebrations marking the 175th anniversary of the West Indies’ Diocese of the North Eastern Caribbean and Aruba (DNECA) was launched on Sunday. The DNECA was under the jurisdiction of the Archbishop of Canterbury when it was formed in 1842. It was disestablished in 1869 and gained its “independence” when the Anglican Province of the West Indies was formed in 1883. Today the diocese serves the 12 islands of Anguilla, Antigua, Aruba, Barbuda, Dominica, Montserrat, Nevis, Saba, St Barths, St Eustatius, St Kitts, and St Maarten.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/09/dodransbicentennial-anniversary-for-12-island-dioc (...)

In this article for Premier Christianity, Sam Hailes meets the young people who have spent the past year shunning materialistic culture by living a monastic life at Lambeth Palace.

Read in full at www.premierchristianity.com/Topics/Church/Mission/A-Year-in-God-s-Time-Why-these-you (...)

A book about faith and dementia has been awarded this year’s Michael Ramsey Prize by the Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby. The Michael Ramsey Prize was launched in by the former Archbishop of Canterbury, Rowan Williams, in 2005 to celebrate “the most promising contemporary theological writing from the global church.” The prize is awarded every two-to-three years and this was the first time that Archbishop Welby presided over the prize.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/08/michael-ramsey-prize-awarded-to-dementia-study.asp (...)

One of the oldest Anglican mission agencies has returned to its historic name USPG. The 315-year-old charity, which was briefly called United Society (Us) has responded to calls from its supporters to reclaim its former name, which it re-launched this weekend at the Greenbelt Christian arts festival in Northampton, England.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/08/three-centuries-old-mission-agency-uspg-launches-n (...)

Christians from many denominations joined together in the Samarahan district of Sarawak for a united prayer service ahead of Malaysia’s National Day tomorrow.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/08/borneo-christians-unite-in-prayer-for-malaysias-na (...)

A trio of pan-European church bodies have endorsed the upcoming World Day of Prayer for Creation and the Season of Creation that follows it. The Roman Catholic Council of European Bishops’ Conferences (CCEE), the ecumenical Conference of European Churches (CEC) and the European Christian Environmental Network (ECEN) have issued a joint statement calling for “common prayers and to strengthen ecumenical work to care for creation.”

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/08/pan-european-church-groups-endorse-season-of-creat (...)

The Primate of the Anglican Church of Canada and the province’s national indigenous Anglican bishop have given their support to the Sioux people of Standing Rock as they protest against the construction of a major oil pipeline through ancient burial grounds and the Missouri River. Their support follows a statement yesterday from the Presiding Bishop of the US-based Episcopal Church in which he too gave his support.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/08/canadians-lend-support-to-standing-rock-sioux-prot (...)

The Council of Churches of East Asia (CCEA) Youth Forum was held in Hotel Transit, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia from 27 July until 1 August 2016 with the theme “Rise for God and Service to Neighbours through Christ”. A total of 93 young people from nine different countries participated in this event. They were from Malaysia, Myanmar, Japan, Korea, Australia, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Singapore and the Philippines.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/08/east-asia-youth-forum-heralds-call-to-full-time-ch (...)

The Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby has said that he would love to see young people “being disciples of Jesus, being witnesses to Jesus and being servants of the Kingdom.” He made his comments in an editorial in the latest edition of the UK’s Premier Youthwork magazine, which is celebrating its 25 anniversary.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/08/archbishop-welbys-vision-for-youth-discipleship,-e (...)

The chair of the Anglican Consultative Council, Archbishop Paul Kwong of Hong Kong, has called on Anglicans around the world to pray for the people of Italy and Myanmar after separate earthquakes struck the two communities yesterday (Wednesday). Official figures put the death toll in Italy at 247 – a figure that is expected to rise as the search operation in central Italy around the town of Amatrice continues. The death toll in Myanmar is much smaller – with four people confirmed to have died.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/08/anglicans-called-to-pray-after-earthquakes-in-ital (...)

Cathedral choirs from around east Africa descended on Kigali, Rwanda, last week for a celebration of Christian music and to enhance “regional peace, integration and cooperation.” Kigali’s St Etienne Cathedral was host to 10 cathedral choirs for the One Song festival, which took place in the cathedral and the nearby Petit Stadium. The first East Africa Cathedrals Choral Festival (EACCF) – to give it its formal name – was held in Nairobi in August 2009.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/features/2016/08/east-african-choirs-unite-to-support-regional- (...)

The Primate of the US-based Episcopal Church is supporting people from the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation as they protest against the construction of a major oil pipeline through ancient burial grounds and underneath the Missouri River. “A rupture in its infrastructure could wreak untold havoc on the Sioux and catastrophically pollute the Missouri River, a sacred tributary that the Sioux people depend upon for their daily water,” Presiding Bishop Michael Curry said.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/08/presiding-bishop-supports-sioux-protests-over-oil- (...)

The Anglican Diocese of Accra, in the Province of West Africa, has won the backing of the US government for its ambitious programme to tackle modern-day slavery and child trafficking. The US Ambassador to Ghana, Robert Jackson, was in Accra last week for the launch of a five-year project that will culminate in the creation of “Hope Community” – a place where rescued children can “become what they were ordained by God to be.”

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/features/2016/08/us-ghana-partnership-to-tackle-child-slavery.a (...)

Asia Bibi, a Christian women sentenced to death after drinking water meant for her Muslim colleagues, will have her appeal heard by Pakistan’s Supreme Court in October. Bibi was accused of Blasphemy after the incident and has been held in custody since June 2009. In November the following year she was sentenced to death. There has been international pressure calling for her release, including from the Anglican Consultative Council. At its meeting in Lusaka in April, the ACC called for a a fresh investigation into her case, leading to her “honourable acquittal.”

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/08/date-set-for-asia-bibis-supreme-court-blasphemy-ap (...)

Prince Hassan of Jordan, a Muslim, has teamed up with Dr Ed Kessler, the Jewish interfaith expert, to issue a joint denunciation of the persecution of Christians in the Middle East. Writing in a joint opinion piece in the UK’s Daily Telegraph, they denounce as “incredible” claims by Daesh that Christianity is a Western import to the region. “Christianity has been part of the essential fabric of the Middle East for two thousand years”, they say, “. . . it was born here and exported as a gift to the rest of the world. Christian communities have been intrinsic to the development of Arab culture and civilisation.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/08/jordanian-prince-and-jewish-academic-decry-plight- (...)

The oldest Primate in the Anglican Communion, Archbishop William Brown Turei of the Anglican Church of Aotearoa, New Zealand & Polynesia, will retire at the end of March 2017 at the age of 92. Archbishop Turei is one of three equal-status Primates in the Province. He will step down as Te Pihopa ki Te Tai Rawhiti (Bishop of Tairawhiti) at the end of this year; and as Te Pihopa o Aotearoa (Archbishop responsible for the Maori Tikanga, (cultural stream) of the Church) at the end of March 2017. At the time of his retirement, Archbishop Turei will have served for more than 65 years in ordained ministry.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/08/maori-archbishop-to-retire-in-march-2017.aspx

A remote controlled flying drone equipped with a video camera is to be used to identify maintenance requirements of historic churches in Yorkshire, England. The Church of England’s dioceses of Sheffield and York are to take part in a pilot programme organised by the National Churches Trust. The scheme will be funded by a grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund – a grant-making body distributing funds from the UK’s National Lottery.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/08/drones-deployed-to-protect-ancient-churches.aspx

The longest serving Primate in the Anglican Communion, Archbishop of Wales Dr Barry Morgan, will retire at the end of January on his 70th birthday, it was announced today (Tuesday). Dr Morgan has served the Church in Wales as a bishop for 24 years – the last 14 of them as Archbishop.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/features/2016/08/archbishop-of-wales-to-step-down-in-january.as (...)

The new Archbishop of Burundi, the Most Revd Martin Blaise Nyaboho, was installed on Sunday at a service in which legal formalities were mixed with a sense of real celebration. Archbishop Nyaboho was elected as the as the fourth primate of the province in June. He succeeds Archbishop Bernard Ntahoturi, who has retired after 11 years in the post.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/features/2016/08/formalities-and-celebrations-as-burundis-new-a (...)

The opening of the Bishop Selwyn Chapel yesterday (Sunday) marked the physical completion of Auckland’s Holy Trinity Cathedral and the commencement of its journey to consecration in October 2017. Bishop Augustus Selwyn arrived from England in 1842 and the following year purchased the land for a Cathedral. The foundation stone was laid in 1957 and two years ago the Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby was present as the first sod was turned for the new chapel.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/08/bishop-selwyn-chapel-is-major-step-towards-consecr (...)

A Church-of-England sponsored play about the plight of a refugee stuck in France while trying to reach the UK has been nominated for two prestigious awards. Several million people have made their way to Europe in recent years fleeing persecution and conflict in their homelands. More than half of them come from Syria, Afghanistan and Iraq, according to figures from the UNHCR. Some are trying to reach Britain, leading to the creation of an ad-hoc refugee camp known as the Jungle in the northern French port of Calais.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/08/church-sponsored-play-about-a-refugee-in-line-for- (...)

Anglicans in Myanmar are opposing the construction of the proposed Myitsone Dam, saying it will displace thousands of people. The developers – China Power Investment Corporation, the Burmese government’s ministry of electric power and the Asia World Company – intend to build the dam at the source of the Irrawaddy River, at the confluence of the Mali Hka and Nmai Hka rivers.

Read in full at www.missiontheologyanglican.org/siteadmin/mod_news/news_edit.php?id=321

Hundreds of indigenous Guarani-Kaiowá and Terena people have been violently evicted from their homes in the central western state of Mato Grosso do Sul. The vacated land is being used for agricultural businesses, including soya plantations and cattle raising. Now, the Igreja Episcopal Anglicana do Brasil (IEAB – Episcopal Anglican Church of Brazil) is joining with other churches to in a co-ordinated ecumenical campaign to fight for the rights of indigenous peoples.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/08/brazils-anglicans-protest-destruction-of-indigenou (...)

All Saints Cathedral in Juba was the setting for an ecumenical prayer service yesterday (Thursday), organised by the South Sudan Council of Churches. The congregation was welcomed by the Anglican Bishop of Rejaf, the Rt Revd Enoch Tombe Stephen, who on behalf of Archbishop Daniel Deng Bul, who was out of the country, thanked a group who had travelled from Nairobi in Kenya to join in the service, led by former Archbishop Dr Eliud Wabukala.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/08/south-sudanese-christians-unite-in-prayer.aspx

The Anglican Church in Southern Africa is to consider blessing same-sex civil unions when its provincial synod meets next month. But the motion, proposed by the Diocese of Saldanha Bay, would not permit clergy to solemnise same-sex marriages. The motion says that clergy should be “especially prepared for a ministry of pastoral care for those identifying as LGBTI” but that “any cleric unwilling to engage in such envisioned pastoral care shall not be obliged to do so”

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/08/southern-african-synod-to-consider-blessing-same-s (...)

A number of churches, mosques and other religious temples in Kenya are being painted yellow as part of an initiative to bring people of different faiths together. The Colour in Faith project is “an art orchestration that creates a space for the expression of faith in humanity and universal values.”

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/08/kenyan-churches-join-colour-in-faith-project.aspx

The leaders of Africa’s Anglican churches have expressed their “deep concern” that the continent has yet to achieve a sustainable peace. In a communiqué issued at the end of last week’s meeting of the Council of Anglican Provinces of Africa (Capa) in Kigali, Rwanda, the continent’s primates said that they “decry the numerous lives lost and futures and hopes destroyed in meaningless wars.” They were challenged by Rwandan government minister Francis Koboneka to use their influence “to contribute to building cohesive, peaceful and thriving communities” on a continent that is “deeply wounded and needs healing.”

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/08/african-anglicans-concerned-by-lack-of-sustainable (...)

Churches in India held a “black day” of protest last week against the continuing discrimination faced by Christians and Muslims in the country’s caste system. Indian society has, for centuries, operated the caste system of social stratification; with the population assigned to four specific groups. At the top are the Brahmins, or poet-priests; these are followed by the Kshatriya, or warrior-chiefs; the Vaishya, or traders; and then the Shudras, or servants. The Dalits, or untouchables, are seen to be below the Shudras and are often excluded from education and employment.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/08/equality-demanded-for-dalit-christians-and-muslims (...)

A group of anti-Islam protestors dressed as Muslims and interrupted a church service in New South Wales, Australia, yesterday. The group, from the far-right Party for Freedom movement, walked into Gosford Anglican Church as the Rector, the Revd Rod Bower, was delivering a sermon. They played Quranic verses through a bullhorn and mocked Islamic prayers while shouting anti-Islamic slogans.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/08/anti-muslim-protestors-disrupt-church-service.aspx

The Anglican priest serving the island of Madeira has spoken of the resilience of local people as they battled severe fires which ravaged the community. Three people were killed in the blazes, which are thought to have been caused by arsonists. The fires were so big that firefighters were flown in from the Azores and the Portuguese mainland to help bring them under control.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/08/chaplain-impressed-by-resilience-as-fires-ravage-m (...)

The silencing of abuse victims is itself a form of abuse “as bad if not worse than the first betrayal,” the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, said. The Archbishop made his comments in a forward to the current issue of Crucible, which bills itself as the journal of Christian social ethics. Its current issue focuses on safeguarding children and vulnerable adults.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/features/2016/08/archbishop-welby-abuse-victims-must-be-heard.a (...)

The generous response by Australian Anglicans to a disaster relief fund enabled the Diocese of Tasmania to provide its flood-hit community with emergency care packs. The diocese had already established a permanent Disaster Fund following a bush fire in 2013; so it was able to offer help to those affected by the floods within 24 hours. An emergency appeal raised around $60,000 Australian dollars (approximately £36,000 GBP).

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/08/flood-of-generosity-opens-mission-doors.aspx

Leaked documents about Australia’s detention of asylum seekers on the island of Nauru are “shocking and saddening”, the country’s Primate, Archbishop of Melbourne Philip Freier, said. The documents, which were published by the Guardian newspaper, “paint a picture of successive Australian governments abandoning vital moral principles and treating refugees with callous cruelty to send a message of deterrence,” Archbishop Philip said, adding: “It is always wrong to use people as a means to another end.”

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/08/primate-demands-action-after-nauru-detention-files (...)

The Primate of Brazil has given a warm welcome to the athletes and visitors of the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, while criticising the games’ administrators for serious mismanagement. Archbishop Francisco de Assis da Silva said that the Olympic Games “bring together the peoples of the world through healthy competition in several individual and team sports” and provides the opportunity to “encounter, learn, and share the world’s diversity.”

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/08/archbishop-welcomes-olympic-sportspeople-but-criti (...)

A group of armed men fired bullets into the house of the assistant bishop of the Diocese of Juba in the early hours of Sunday Morning as they tried to forcefully enter the residence. But they were interrupted by Bishop Fraser Yugu’s pet dog and fled as the dog’s barking raised the alarm.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/08/gunmen-attack-bishops-house-in-juba.aspx

The Archbishop of Central Africa, Albert Chama, has been elected as the new chair of the Council of Anglican Provinces of Africa (Capa). He will be assisted by the new vice-chair, Archbishop Stanley Ntagali from Uganda. Capa brings together all 12 Anglican Provinces in Africa as well as the Diocese of Egypt with North Africa and the Horn of Africa from the Province of Jerusalem and the Middle East to “coordinate and articulate issues affecting the Church and communities across the region.”

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/08/archbishops-chama-and-ntagali-elected-to-head-coun (...)

Building on the success of the Church in the Province of the West Indies third Provincial Youth Gathering, held in Grenada from 16 to 23 July, the Province and the Anglican Alliance hosted two in-depth training events for 30 young people from across the West Indies.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/08/young-west-indies-anglicans-to-be-agents-of-change (...)

The secretary general of the Anglican Communion, Dr Josiah Idowu-Fearon, has urged Anglican leaders in Africa not to “fall in line” with “socially progressive” views and programmes “which suggest that the Bible is wrong”. Speaking to members of the Council of African Provinces of Africa (CAPA) during their meeting in Rwanda, Dr Idowu-Fearon said that the Church “will not crumble or bow the knee to a godless secular culture that despises the Bible and what it teaches” and urged the Churches in Africa to remain focused on serving the people of the continent.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/features/2016/08/african-churches-urged-not-to-be-distracted-by (...)

The deans of Australia’s cathedrals have expressed grief at hurt and trauma caused by clergy and church workers after hearing reports about the country’s Royal Commission on Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse and the newly established Royal Commission into the Child Protection and Youth Detention Systems of the Northern Territory.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/08/cathedral-deans-express-grief-over-clergy-led-abus (...)

On 31 July, farmers from across Canada and the United States came together in Austin, Manitoba, to make history and raise money for the Canadian Foodgrains Bank.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/08/threshing-to-end-global-hunger.aspx

“Peace is not only the silence of guns and bombs; peace is much more than that - it is rebuilding an entire social fabric that has been torn for more than 50 years. Peace is a fundamental right, and we have to rebuild it to guarantee a decent life [for people],” said Diocese of Colombia Bishop Francisco Duque in an interview with the Episcopal News Service regarding the peace process that is developing in his country.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/features/2016/08/colombia-seeks-peace-after-50-years-of-war.asp (...)

Rwanda’s capital city Kigali was festooned with blue and white decorations on 31 July as the Anglican Church of Rwanda [Province de L’Eglise Anglicane au Rwanda] Mothers Union (MU) celebrated a 50th jubilee. Joyous singing and dancing poured forth from a ceremony at the Anglican Kibagabaga Parish. Archbishop Onesphore Rwaje, a member of the World Council of Churches (WCC) Central Committee, led the congregation in song. Rwaje is also the husband of MU-Rwanda president Josephine Rwaje.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/08/rwandan-anglicans-celebrate-role-of-mothers-in-reb (...)

The Primate of Australia, Archbishop Philip Freier, has welcomed a Royal Commission investigation into youth detention in the Northern Territory. Some 97 per cent of young people held in detention in the area are Indigenous, despite Aboriginal and Torres Strait islander people comprising only 17 per cent of the total Northern Territory population. Archbishop Philip described this continually rising figure as “deplorable”.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/08/primate-welcomes-investigation-into-youth-detentio (...)

The Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia had admitted its involvement in forced adoptions in the 20th Century. Archbishop Philip Richardson, who, as one of the church’s three primates, has responsibility for the Tikanga Pakeha – the part of the Church representing the descendants of European settlers – has welcomed calls for an official inquiry and said that the church is ready to open its record books.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/08/inquiry-call-into-forced-adoptions.aspx

The Church of Bangladesh is helping women out of poverty, in an area where child marriage was rife, by providing accommodation for female students. The Diocese of Kushtia has two women college hostels – one in Rajshahi and the other in Meherpur – providing accommodation for some 21 students, aged between 17 and 19. The students are mainly from districts within the Bollovpur deanery, where very few girls previously received a good education.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/08/church-tackles-female-poverty-and-child-marriages- (...)

The Archbishop of York, Dr John Sentamu, has repeated his call for the President of Zimbabwe, Robert Mugabe, to step down. Dr Sentamu famously cut up his clerical collar during a live BBC television interview with Andrew Marr in December 2007. He has vowed to not wear a collar again while President Mugabe remains in power.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/08/archbishop-sentamu-renews-call-for-zimbabwes-presi (...)

The Bishop of Yokohama in the Nippon Sei Ko Kai (the Anglican Communion in Japan) has expressed his concern that the murder of 19 people at a care home in Sagamihara last week could result in negative attitudes towards people with mental illness.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/08/concern-for-mental-health-stigma-after-sagamihara- (...)

When the refugees arrived from Burundi last year, the first places they sought sanctuary were the churches in the Diocese of Western Tanganyika (DWT). The people of the diocese are often poor themselves, but they responded with loving generosity to the strangers in their midst with food and clothing. “If you have five shirts, give one to the refugees,” Bishop Sadock Makaya encouraged his people.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/features/2016/08/caring-for-stranger-and-neighbour-%E2%80%93-th (...)

The Garo people (the Mande [hill people]) are a vibrant ethnic minority group, and in the Northern Mymensingh district they form the backbone of the Church of Bangladesh. But they miss out on government assistance and are not included in human rights legislation because the government will not classify them as indigenous. (The Garo are categorised as aboriginal, with all the connotations of backwardness that that phrase implies.)

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/features/2016/08/climate-change-brings-food-insecurity-to-bangl (...)

The Church of England is the fastest growing religious group in Finland, growing by 20 per cent over the past year; the Suffragan Bishop in Europe, the Rt Revd David Hamid, has said. But, writing on his Eurobishop blog, Bishop David explained that much of the growth is the result of the continuing arrivals of refugees – many of whom are Anglican – from Sudan and South Sudan.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/08/refugees-turn-c-of-e-into-fastest-growing-religiou (...)

Bishop Richard of Monmouth will Commission the new Holywell Community, a new monastic community following the Rule of St. Benedict, based in Abergavenny at a Festal Eucharist at 11am in the Priory Church on the Eve of the Feast of The Blessed Virgin Mary (August 14th).

Read in full at holywellcommunity.wordpress.com/2016/08/02/new-community-to-be-commsioned/

The relief agency of the Episcopal Church of South Sudan & Sudan, Sudra, is distributing relief items to hundreds of people who took refuge in churches in response to last month’s violence. Tens of thousands of people fled their homes when government and opposition forces clashed in and around Juba.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/08/anglican-agency-sudra-distributes-aid-to-hundreds- (...)

Experts are today assessing damage to the metropolitical church of the Province of Southern Africa after part of the roof collapsed on Friday. Officials at the Cathedral of St George the Martyr in Cape Town had been concerned about the condition of the roof for some time and had launched an appeal to replace the roof and its 40,000 tiles. But after heavy rains last week, part of the roof gave way.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/08/roof-collapse-at-cape-towns-st-george-cathedral.as (...)

Muslims across France have attended Catholic Mass in a gesture of solidarity after the murder of a priest on Tuesday.

Read in full at www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-36936658

Anglicans in Sudan are waiting to hear if they will become a new, separate province of the Communion after a team led by the secretary general visited the country on a fact-finding trip. Currently, Sudan is an internal province with the Anglican Church of South Sudan and Sudan.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/07/sudans-anglicans-await-decision-on-province.aspx

After a 12-year translation project, the New Testament is finally available in chiLambya, one of the languages of northern Malawi; and the Old Testament is expected to be completed in 2018. ChiLambya is one of 13 languages spoken in Chitipa region; and is also used by the Ndali, Banyika, BaMambwe, BaNamwanga and BaBandya across northern Malawi, south Tanzania and western Zambia.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/07/malawians-welcome-chilambya-bible-translation.aspx

With less than a week before hotly contested local elections, church leaders in South Africa have appealed for calm and asked political leaders of all political parties to help contain dissent. The run-up to the elections on 3 August has been marred by recurrent bouts of violence, intimidation and even political assassinations.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/07/south-african-church-leaders-appeal-for-calm-ahead (...)

There are a number of different scholarships available for those from developed or developing commonwealth countries.

Read in full at cscuk.dfid.gov.uk/apply/

A three-day youth festival in the Anglican Diocese of Juba came to an abrupt end as hundreds of young people were forced to flee a gun battle that erupted without warning. The three-day open air outreach at the Munuki suburbs, in the out skirts of the city, attracted close to 1000 young people aged between 18 and 28. Many of whom gave their life to Jesus.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/07/gun-battle-ends-south-sudan-youth-festival.aspx

The Iglesia Española Reformada Episcopal (IERE) – the Reformed Episcopal Church of Spain – is proposing to build an Anglican Centre at Santiago de Compostela in north-west Spain; considered by many to be the third holiest pilgrimage site after Jerusalem and Rome. Santiago de Compostela has been a major international destination for pilgrims since at least the ninth century and is said to be the burial site of Jesus’ disciple Saint James.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/07/new-anglican-centre-proposed-for-santiago-de-compo (...)

A play written by the former Archbishop of Canterbury and Wales, Rowan Williams, about the “lost years” of celebrated English playwright Williams Shakespeare has opened in a theatre in Wales. Shakeshafte is set in 1581 and depicts Shakespeare as a Roman Catholic at the time of Elizabeth I’s suppression of the “old religion.”

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/07/former-archbishop-turns-tables-on-william-shakespe (...)

Church leaders have been responding to yesterday’s murder of French Roman Catholic priest Father Jacques Hamel. Father Hamel was killed by supporters of Daesh as he and a small congregation celebrated Mass at the Church in Saint-Etienne-du-Rouvray in Normandy. The assailants were subsequently shot and killed by French security forces.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/07/church-leaders-respond-to-martyrdom-of-father-jacq (...)

Advocating for the rights of indigenous people is one area where the Anglican Church of Canada might have much to offer its Brazilian cousin, the primate of the Episcopal Anglican Church of Brazil [the Igreja Episcopal Anglicana do Brasil] said earlier this month.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/07/brazil-seeks-canadas-knowledge-on-indigenous-advoc (...)

The Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, has announced the appointment of Sarah Snyder as his new advisor for reconciliation. She takes over from Canon David Porter who moved into his new role as chief of staff and strategy to the Archbishop at the beginning of May.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/07/archbishop-of-canterburys-new-advisor-for-reconcil (...)

French anti-terror police are investigating an attack on a Roman Catholic church in Saint-Etienne du Rouvray this morning, in which the priest was killed and another worshiper seriously injured. The French President, François Hollande, visited the church and said that the Middle Eastern terror group Daesh was behind the attack. This was confirmed by the group itself who described the two perpetrators as its soldiers.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/07/france-at-war-with-daesh-as-catholic-priest-murder (...)

The Bishop of Western Massachusetts in the US-based Episcopal Church has appointed a Rabbi in Residence for the diocese’s Christ Church Cathedral. From 1 September, Rabbi Mark Dov Shapiro will take adult education classes and will also “preach periodically in the Sunday liturgy.”

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/07/rabbi-in-residence-for-new-england-cathedral.aspx

Two bishops responsible for Anglican and Episcopal churches in Europe have responded to Friday’s deadly shooting attack in Munich. Nine people were killed and 16 others injured by 18-year-old student David Ali Sonboly, who shot people near a McDonalds restaurant in the city’s Olympia shopping centre. Sonboly then killed himself before he could be captured by the 2,300 armed police deployed to the city as the incident occurred. He had an interest in mass killings and is not thought to be linked to terror groups.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/07/bishops-respond-to-deadly-attacks-in-germany.aspx

The Primate of Nigeria, Archbishop Nicholas Okoh, has called on Christians in the north of the country to remain faithful despite an onslaught of persecution. Speaking at a service of consecration of three new bishops and the presentation of the new provincial Dean, and the new Archbishop of Lagos, Archbishop Okoh urged Christians to follow the biblical example and defend their faith even against threats of death.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/07/primate-calls-on-persecuted-christians-to-remain-f (...)

Anglican provinces across East Asia are staging a cross-provincial youth forum to encourage potential new leaders and to “ignite the fire of revival” in the region. The forum, which begins on Wednesday, will bring together around 100 young adults, under the age of 30, from the Anglican provinces of Japan, Korea, Hong Kong, Myanmar, the Philippines, South East Asia and Australia; and from the US-based Episcopal Church’s Diocese of Taiwan.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/07/east-asia-youth-forum-to-ignite-fire-of-revival.as (...)

It’s hard to miss the ministry that’s growing outside St Alban’s Episcopal Church in Indianapolis. Heading up Emerson Avenue past 46th Street, any passer-by – whether nourished or hungry, devout or spiritually unsure, striving to heal or prone to violence – is confronted by a sight both grim and hopeful: dozens of white crosses stand as a memorial to the dead while surrounded by the bounty of God’s Earth, crops that eventually will provide fresh food for a neighbourhood in great need of it.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/features/2016/07/from-swords-to-plough-shares-in-indianapolis-p (...)

Researchers from the BBC’s history unit have identified a north Cumbrian church – in the extreme north west of England – as being on the site of the first ever recorded settlement of African people in Britain.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/07/cumbrian-church-is-site-of-britain%E2%80%99s-first (...)

The Diocese of Northern Uganda has been praised by the country’s armed forces for its crisis response in support for the thousands of refugees streaming into the country from South Sudan.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/07/army-praises-anglican-diocese-for-refugee-crisis-m (...)

The area around the edge of the Sydney basin is becoming one of the city’s fastest growing new suburbs, thanks for development by the New South Wales state government. And the Diocese of Sydney is determined to be a part of the new communities as they plant new churches to cater for up to one million new residents.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/07/church-plants-cater-for-one-million-new-sydney-res (...)

Families and local churches have been urged to house Syrian refugees by the Archbishop of Canterbury who said they are “treasured human beings made in the image of God” who deserve the “opportunity to flourish”.

Read in full at www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/07/19/churches-and-families-urged-to-house-syrian-refu (...)

Churches throughout India are stepping up protests against the country’s discriminatory caste system which disadvantages Dalit Christians and Muslims. The caste system is a Hindu-based status system that grades different groups of people on a social scale.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/07/indian-christians-step-up-caste-protests.aspx

The Caribbean is a “paradise” but it is “very, very fragile” and under threat from environmental damage, the Archbishop of the West Indies said. Archbishop Holder, the Bishop of Barbados, made his comments at the third provincial youth gathering, taking place in Grenada.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/07/archbishop-of-west-indies-we-live-in-paradise,-but (...)

The Anglican Church of Southern Africa will launch a Decade of Intentional Discipleship at its biennial renewal conference, Anglicans Ablaze, later this year. It follows the call from the Anglican Consultative Council, at their meeting in Lusaka in April (ACC-16), for “every province, diocese and parish” in the Anglican Communion to “adopt a clear focus on intentional discipleship” as part of a “season of intentional discipleship” to run for the next nine-or-so years.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/07/southern-africa-launches-decade-of-intentional-dis (...)

The congregation of St Mark’s church in Stoke-on-Trent are in tears. The old walls are amplifying a booming version of the traditional Christian hymn Thanks to God as an hour-long baptism ceremony draws to a close. It’s a powerful, emotive rendition, yes, but the tears are for something else.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/07/growing-number-of-ex-muslim-asylum-seekers-baptise (...)

The Archbishop and Primate of the Anglican Church of Canada has acknowledged the “deep divisions” in the church about same-sex marriage. The Most Revd Fred Hiltz made his comment in a pastoral letter (see below) following last week’s decision of the province’s General Synod to give first reading approval to an amendment to the marriage canon to permit same-sex marriages.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/07/canadian-primate-acknowledges-deep-divisions-over- (...)

Bishops responsible for European churches for the US-based Episcopal Church and the Church of England have urged people to pray following last night’s terrorist attacks in Nice. The call to prayer came as it emerged that the Anglican priest who serves as chaplain in Nice was working in New York at the time of the 9/11 attacks and in London during two bombings on the Underground train service.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/07/prayers-for-nice-following-terror-attack.aspx

The Bishop of Angola, Andre Soares, has warned that his country’s economy has taken a huge hit because of the collapse in the price of oil. He says basic essentials are no longer available. Speaking at Chatham House – the renowned international affairs think tank – during a visit to the UK, he gave an example of going to hospital and finding there were no syringes available for a malaria test. He said this was exceptionally serious because of the rise in deaths from malaria and yellow fever.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/07/bishop-asks-world-for-prayers-as-angola-economy-sl (...)

There has been a church on the site of St Paul’s Cathedral in London since AD 604; but the current famous domed building is just over 300 years old. And the cathedral’s oldest member of staff has been alive for a third of that time. Maurice Sills has worked in the cathedral’s school, educational visits department, and library; but is listed in the staff directory simply as “Cathedral Treasure”.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/07/the-human-ancient-treasure-at-londons-st-pauls-cat (...)

Anglicans from around the world have made a new commitment to fight for climate justice. The commitment was made at the conclusion of an international consultation in Fiji organised by the Anglican mission agency United Society.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/07/international-consultation-concludes-with-renewed- (...)

Charge by the Most Revd Jackson Ole Sapit at his enthronement as the sixth Archbishop of Kenya at All Saints Cathedral, Nairobi, on 3 July 2016.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/features/2016/07/let-your-kingdom-come.aspx

One of the world’s oldest Anglican newspapers, the Church Times, hits a major milestone tomorrow when it publishes its 8,000th edition. The newspaper was founded in 1863 but is not the world’s oldest Anglican periodical – that honour falls to the Church of England Newspaper, which was founded 35-years-earlier in 1828.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/07/church-times-publishes-its-8,000th-edition.aspx

In a stunning reversal, a recount of the vote to allow same-sex marriage in the Anglican Church of Canada showed that while the motion was originally reported to have failed by one vote in the order of clergy, it had, in fact, passed by one vote there.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/07/voting-error-reveals-canadian-synod-did-approve-sa (...)

The Diocese of Madurai-Ramnad in the Church of South India (CSI) has opened a new peace centre in Mandapasalai, on the border of the “ever sensitive” Virudhunagar and Ramanathapuram districts. The diocese says that they are working for peace and reconciliation at a time when “the media, both print and visual media, sensationalises the news of conflict everywhere fanning further divisions among groups, communities and peoples.”

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/07/south-indian-diocese-opens-new-peace-centre.aspx

Thousands of people in Juba have fled their homes and are seeking sanctuary in the city’s Anglican and Roman Catholic cathedrals and other places of worship as fierce gun battles rage around them.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/07/cathedral-provides-sanctuary-as-thousands-flee-jub (...)

The Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby has issued an impassioned appeal for the leaders in South Sudan to cease hostilities immediately and accept mediation.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/07/archbishop-calls-for-end-to-violence-in-south-suda (...)

A resolution to change the marriage canon (church law) to allow for the solemnisation of marriages of same-sex couples failed to pass by a fraction of a percentage point at the Anglican Church of Canada’s General Synod last night (Monday).

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/07/canadian-anglicans-reject-same-sex-marriage-by-one (...)

The former Presiding Bishop of the US-based Episcopal Church, Edmond L Browning, died yesterday (Monday) at the age of 87, the Church’s Office of Public Affairs has announced. Bishop Browning served as Presiding Bishop between 1986 and 1997. His election to the post was seen as a reflection of the Church’s broadening diversity due to his extensive international and multi-cultural experience.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/07/death-of-former-episcopal-church-presiding-bishop- (...)

The vice president of Zambia will be the guest of honour at an ecumenical prayer service for prisoners and inmates in Lusaka’s Cathedral of the Holy Cross next week. The event, which has been organised by Christian leaders across the denominations, will mark the launch in Zambia of the “Nelson Mandela Rules” – a UN-promoted standard set of minimum rights for prisoners.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/07/government-and-christians-pray-for-prisoners-in-za (...)

Plagued by violence, disease, and severe food shortages, South Sudan will not have a formal celebration of its fifth year of independence on Saturday.

“We need to spend the little that we have on other issues,” a government minister told reporters last week.

Read in full at www.churchtimes.co.uk/articles/2016/8-july/news/world/south-sudan-struggles-to-celeb (...)

The Bishop of Kindu, Masimango Katanda, has today (Monday) been elected as the next Primate and Archbishop of the Province de L'Eglise Anglicane Du Congo – the Anglican Church of Congo. He will succeed Archbishop Henri Isingoma.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/07/bishop-masimango-katanda-elected-archbishop-of-con (...)

Prayer services have been held throughout north Texas following Friday’s atrocity in which 12 police officers were shot – five of them fatally. The incident occurred when a gunman with links to far-right groups opened fire on police officers guarding a protest rally. The protest was being held in response to the deaths of two black men who were shot and killed by police in separate incidents earlier in the week in Minnesota and Louisiana.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/07/christians-respond-to-us-shootings-with-prayer.asp (...)

The secretary general of the Anglican Communion, Dr Josiah Idowu-Fearon, addressed the General Synod of the Anglican Church in Canada on Saturday during their meeting in Ontario.

This is the text of his address.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/07/anglican-communion-secretary-general-addresses-can (...)

Gambia's President Yahya Jammeh has told lawmakers to introduce legislation to ban child marriage.

Read in full at www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-36746174?ocid=socialflow_twitter

The visit by Michael Curry, the Presiding Bishop of the US-based Episcopal Church, to the Episcopal Diocese of Ecuador Litoral last week was meant to show that the people hard hit by the 16 April earthquake and its aftermath are not alone.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/07/presiding-bishop-brings-message-of-hope-to-quake-r (...)

A drone has been used got get up to date information about the damage to the interior of New Zealand’s Christchurch Cathedral. The Cathedral suffered extensive damage in the February 2011 earthquake. On-going aftershocks are causing more masonry to fall down, some weighting up to half a tonne.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/07/drone-assesses-christchurch-cathedral-earthquake-d (...)

The Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby has described the campaign leading up to the UK’s Brexit vote as “unacceptable”. And he said that events in the United Kingdom since the country voted in a referendum to leave the European Union, had led to “some of the most traumatic and dynamic changes that we have known.”

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/07/archbishop-welby-speaks-of-traumatic-and-dynamic-c (...)

The Bishop of Melbourne, Philip Huggins, has been installed as the eighth president of the ecumenical group the National Council of Churches in Australia (NCCA). The NCCA brings together 19 Christian denominations, including Anglican, Catholic, Orthodox, Methodist, Lutheran, and Congregational churches.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/07/anglican-bishop-appointed-ecumenical-president.asp (...)

Anglicans from around the world are gathering in Fiji this week for an international consultation on climate justice. The event, organised by the Anglican mission agency United Society, is designed to help Anglican leaders “grapple more vigorously” with the challenges of climate change.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/07/encountering-god-in-the-storm-anglicans-consult-on (...)

Some 160 young people from across the West Indies will meet in Grenada next week for the third Provincial Youth Gathering. The theme for this premier youth event of the Anglican Church in the Province of the West Indies is “Anglican Youth – Co-workers with Christ: Living the Faith.”

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/07/caribbean-youth-discuss-five-marks-of-mission.aspx

Thousands of Anglicans from Kenya and beyond yesterday (Sunday) attended the enthronement of their new archbishop, the Most Revd Dr Jackson Ole Sapit at the All Saints Cathedral in Nairobi. Archbishop Ole Sapit becomes the 6th archbishop of the Anglican Church of Kenya (ACK) and the 4th Bishop of All Saints Cathedral Diocese.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/07/new-archbishop-of-kenya-enthroned.aspx

Seven years after the first Consultation of Anglican Bishops in Dialogue was held at the Anglican Communion offices in London, England, in 2010, a record 24 bishops – including four primates – came together in Accra, Ghana, from 25 – 29 May to learn about the unique contexts and challenges different parts of the African, North American and English churches are facing.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/07/bishops-consultation-helps-keep-communion-together (...)

Ambitious plans to recruit 1,000 new missionaries to follow in the footsteps of pioneers like William Wilberforce and Samuel Crowther have been unveiled by the Church Mission Society (CMS). The Free.In.Deed campaign is “based on the belief that all Christians are called by God into mission”, the Anglican mission agency says as it seeks to identify a “new generation of Christian missionaries who will cross cultures and even continents to bring change, hope and freedom to the world.”

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/07/anglican-mission-agency-seeks-1,000-new-missionari (...)

The next World Mission Conference of the WCC will take place in Arusha, Tanzania, in March 2018, it was announced last week. The decision was one of a number taken by the ecumenical body’s Central Committee on a myriad of themes during its recent meeting in Trondheim, Norway.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/07/mission,-refugees,-and-peace-in-the-holy-land-addr (...)

The launch of a comprehensive textbook on mission marks an important moment in the life of the Commission for World Mission and Evangelism of the World Council of Churches.

Read in full at www.oikoumene.org/en/press-centre/news/world-council-of-churches-launches-textbook-o (...)

The next World Mission Conference is to be held in Arusha, Tanzania, 8-13 March 2018.

Read in full at www.oikoumene.org/en/press-centre/news/wcc-approves-2018-world-mission-conference-in (...)

The increasing tensions in Indonesian West Papua has attracted the attention of both the World Council of Churches’ Central Committee and the Bishops of the Anglican Church in Papua New Guinea.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/06/churches-express-solidarity-with-west-papua-indepe (...)

Two Anglicans will serve on the executive committee of the World Council of Churches, following elections this week at a meeting of the ecumenical body’s Central Committee in Trondheim, Norway.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/06/anglicans-elected-to-world-council-of-churches-exe (...)

A bilateral ceasefire was agreed last week between the Colombian government and the FARC guerrilla movement. Fr Francisco de Roux SJ describes how the Peace and Development Programme of Magdalena Medio, a CAFOD partner organisation, has been working on the ground for many years to facilitate peace in one of Colombia’s most notoriously violent regions, and looks forward hopefully to further transformation of the country.

Read in full at www.thinkingfaith.org/articles/tensions-between-peace-and-violence?utm_source=Thinki (...)

Last night’s terror attack at Istanbul International Airport has been met with a wave of prayer from Anglican and other Christian leaders. “Our hearts cry out in prayer for the victims and families of the terrible attack in Istanbul,” the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, said on Twitter. “In prayer and faith we also commit to resisting the evil of violence and religious extremism.”

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/06/prayer-response-to-turkey-airport-terror-attack.as (...)

The government of Chile are today beginning the process of sifting through 83,000 individual responses after a consultation on a new constitution for the country closed yesterday. The Archbishop of Chile, Héctor Zavala, Primate of the Anglican Province of South America, has called on church members to “participate and actively be involved” in drawing up the new constitution.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/06/archbishop-urges-christians-to-help-write-new-chil (...)

The Anglican Archbishop in Jerusalem, Suheil Dawani, has spoken of his “delight” at news that a mine clearance charity has secured permission to de-mine the area around the West Bank of the River Jordan on the approach to the traditional site of Jesus’ baptism.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/06/delight-at-de-mining-operation-at-site-of-jesus-ba (...)

The Synod of the Anglican Church in Japan, the Nippon Sei Ko kai (NSKK) has issued a public apology for their part in the isolation and inhumane treatment of people with Hansen’s Disease (leprosy).

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/06/church-apologises-for-inhumane-treatment-of-lepros (...)

Church leaders have criticised the rise in racist abuse and attacks in the UK following last week’s historic referendum decision to withdraw from the European Union. Members of ethnic minority communities and immigrants from across the EU have reported being told to “go home – we voted to leave” and other forms of abuse.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/06/call-for-unity-as-brexit-vote-sparks-racist-attack (...)

Christian leaders in the Philippines have undergone public HIV tests as part of a campaign against the stigmatisation of people with HIV/Aids. The Revd Rex Reyes Jr, general secretary of the National Council of Churches in the Philippines (NCCP), told a press conference at the World Council of Churches’ Central Council meeting in Trondheim, Norway, this afternoon that it was part of an “aggressive educational awareness programme.”

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/06/church-leaders-undergo-public-hiv-test-in-battle-a (...)

In a special commissioning service at Lambeth Palace last week, the Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby prayed for the first members of the monastic-inspired Community of St Anselm as they came to the end of their “year in God's time.”

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/06/first-community-of-st-anselm-members-finish-their- (...)

The Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby and the Archbishop of York John Sentamu have issued this joint statement today after the UK voted to leave the European Union.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/06/eu-referendum-statement-by-archbishops-of-canterbu (...)

Responding to the UK’s EU referendum, the Primate of the Southern Province of the Church of Ireland, the Most Revd Dr Michael Jackson, Archbishop of Dublin and Bishop of Glendalough, issued the following statement.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/06/eu-referendum-statement-by-the-archbishop-of-dubli (...)

The Primus of the Scottish Episcopal Church, the Most Rev David Chillingworth, Bishop of St Andrews, Dunkeld and Dunblane, has responded to yesterday’s EU referendum in the UK with the following statement.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/06/eu-referendum-statement-by-the-primus-of-scotland. (...)

The Bishops of the Church in Wales have responded to yesterday’s EU referendum in the UK with the following joint statement.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/06/eu-referendum-statement-by-the-bishops-of-the-chur (...)

Following yesterday’s referendum on the UK’s membership of the European Union, Bishop Christopher Hill, President of the Conference of European Churches, has issued this statement.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/06/eu-referendum-statement-by-cec-president,-bishop-c (...)

The Church of Ceylon has launched an emergency response to devastating floods in Sri Lanka that have claimed over 100 lives and left thousands homeless and without resources. As floodwaters recede, agencies are taking stock. Communities require emergency assistance, and there is an urgent need to prevent the spread of disease through environmental clean-up and waste management.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/06/church-in-sri-lanka-responds-to-devastating-floods (...)

The Nippon Sei Ko Kai (NSKK), the Anglican Church in Japan, is offering young Anglican academics the opportunity to undertake a fully funded 18-month research fellowship in Tokyo. Applications are particularly sought from Anglicans in the developing countries of Asia, Africa and Latin America.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/06/young-anglican-academics-offered-research-fellowsh (...)

The Bishop of Makamba, the Rt Revd Martin Blaise Nyaboho, has been elected as the fourth Archbishop and Primate of the Anglican Church of Burundi. Bishop Martin will succeed Archbishop Bernard Ntahoturi, who has led the church since 2005, when he is installed on 21 August.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/06/bishop-martin-nyaboho-elected-as-next-archbishop-o (...)

The only secondary school Umdorain County, in Sudan’s South Kordofan state, has been destroyed in on-going fighting between government forces and the opposition Sudan People’s Liberation Army in the Nuba mountains. Grace Secondary School, built by the Diocese of Kadugli in 2008, is one of a number of casualties of the on-going conflict.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/06/prayer-call-over-nuba-mountains-warfare.aspx

The former Bishop of the Church of England’s Diocese of Guildford, the Rt Revd Christopher Hill, has condemned an assassination attempt on Patriarch Ignatius Aphrem II Karim of the Syriac Orthodox Church.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/06/assassination-attempt-on-syriac-orthodox-church-pa (...)

Anglican churches throughout Canada have been asked to stage a public recitation of the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples today – the National Aboriginal Day of Prayer. The Anglican Church of Canada designated 21 June as the National Aboriginal Day of Prayer in response to the 48th Call to Action from the country’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/06/national-aboriginal-day-of-prayer-2016.aspx

The Conference of European Churches (CEC) has launched a consultation on the future shape of the continent and the role played in it by the churches. The CEC brings together 114 Orthodox, Protestant, Anglican, and Old Catholic churches from across the European Continent, including the Church of England, Church of Ireland, Church in Wales and the Spanish Reformed Episcopal Church.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/06/ecumenical-body-consults-on-a-new-vision-for-europ (...)

The number of people displaced from their homes by war and persecution hit a record-breaking 65.3 million people by the end of 2015, the UN said today in a report released to mark World Refugee Day. Not only is the total number of refugees at record levels, but the year-on-year increase is also extraordinary – at the end of 2014, the figure stood at 59.5 million – another record-high.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/06/anglicans-mark-world-refugee-day.aspx

The poor, women and children, suffer most in the aftermath of disaster. In Ecuador, where a massive earthquake killed more than 650 people and displaced more than 30,000 in April, in addition to trauma, grief and emotional wounds inflicted, women and children have experienced increased rates of domestic violence, and hunger has led to an increase in gastrointestinal and respiratory illness in children.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/06/revisiting-ecuador,-two-months-after-a-devastating (...)

Nearly 24,000 people have said that they will attend a candlelit vigil for the victims of last Sunday’s shooting at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando, Florida, in which 49 people were killed and a similar number injured.

http://www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/06/orlando-shooting-more-vigils-and-prayer-services-for-victims.aspx

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/06/orlando-shooting-more-vigils-and-prayer-services-f (...)

A new archive in the Diocese of Kigali is allowing Anglicans the opportunity to learn more about the history of the church in Rwanda.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/06/history-of-anglicanism-in-rwanda-preserved-in-new- (...)

The long-planned Holy and Great Council of the Orthodox churches is getting underway in Crete; despite the absence of a number of churches over un-resolved differences. The Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, has urged Anglicans to pray for the gathering.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/06/orthodox-churches-gather-for-holy-and-great-counci (...)

Australia’s Anglican Overseas Aid and the Australian Board of Mission have teamed up with more than 50 aid and development agencies to campaign against significant cuts to the country’s aid budget.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/06/australian-anglicans-protest-aid-budget-cuts.aspx

Three indigenous Anglican priests were ordained as bishops in Argentina last week, becoming the latest of a very small number of indigenous Anglicans ever to have become bishops in the province of South America.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/06/three-indigenous-bishops-ordained-in-argentina.asp (...)

The Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, has set out his support for Britain’s continuing membership of the European Union. Voters in the UK will vote in a referendum on 23 June to decide whether the country will leave or remain in the 28-member political and trading union. Opinion polls show the nation is evenly divided on the issue and Archbishop Welby says that there is no official Christian or church line on which way to vote. “Voting is a matter for each person’s conscience,” he said.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/06/archbishop-welby-on-britains-eu-referendum.aspx

The Bishop of Central Florida, the Rt Revd Gregory Brewer, has responded to this weekend’s shooting at an Orlando night club by acknowledging that “words of condolence have little value”. The Bishop, whose Cathedral of St Luke is just 1.5 miles (2.6 km) away from the scene of the shooting, said: “all we can do is grieve, pray and support the families of those who have died the best we can.”

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/06/orlando-shooting-words-of-condolence-have-little-v (...)

The Anglican Diocese of Accra is planning to establish pharmacies in some of its parishes to tackle the problem of sub-standard and counterfeit medicines. The multi-billion-dollar global counterfeit drug trade is thriving in Africa, with disastrous consequences. Last year the American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygienereported that counterfeit anti-malarial tablets claim the lives of more than 122,000 African children under the age of five every year.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/06/campaign-against-sub-standard-medicines-in-accra.a (...)

The New Zealand Prime Minister has announced today that his government will increase the annual quota of refugees that it will accept from 750 to 1,000. But Archbishop Philip Richardson says that the 250 increase shows that the country is failing to act as “a responsible global citizen” and says that the country can do more to help in the current global crisis.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/06/refugee-quota-increase-shames-new-zealand-says-arc (...)

A thousand church schools are set to become ‘green schools’ over the next year as part of an ambitious environmental plan by the Church of South India (CSI).

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/06/1000-green-schools-plan-by-church-of-south-india.a (...)

Archbishop Desmond Tutu has endorsed the nomination of Palestinian political prisoner, MP Marwan Barghouthi, for the Nobel Peace Prize.

In the nomination letter sent by the Archbishop Emeritus to the Norwegian Nobel Committee he said, “I decided to support this Campaign alongside seven other Nobel Peace Prize laureates as a reflection of our belief that freedom was the only path to peace… I hope the Nobel Committee will take a bold decision bringing us closer to the day this holy land, charged with unique symbolic value, can stop being a living testimony of injustice and impunity, occupation and apartheid, and can finally be a beacon of freedom, hope and peace.”

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/06/archbishop-tutu-endorses-nomination-of-palestinian (...)

After almost 50 years in New Zealand, the Anglican Franciscan brothers at the Friary of the Divine Compassion have decided they need to close.

For almost 15 years the Friary has been a spiritual anchor for Te Ara Hou, which is the Anglican social service community in Hillcrest, Hamilton. But time has caught up with the brothers.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/06/new-zealands-only-anglican-friary-to-close.aspx

A drop-in centre’s criticism of its former host church has sparked controversy, concern and debate among Anglicans in Montreal and across Canada over how churches should relate to the homeless and marginalized.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/06/canadian-church-split-over-its-care-of-the-homeles (...)

A group of Nigerian Anglican bishops, led by the Primate of Nigeria, the Most Revd Nicholas Okoh, discussing recent killings by herdsmen in the South East of the country and issues of security at a private meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari, last week.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/06/nigerian-bishops-discuss-recent-killings-and-secur (...)

The social justice arm of the Anglican Church in Australia has launched a campaign called ‘leave no-one behind’ to promote the cause of the vulnerable in the run-up to the country’s elections on July 2.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/06/australian-churches-call-for-justice-in-pre-electi (...)

A new link between the Church of Pakistan and Christians in China started last month with the very first visit to the neighbouring country by an official delegation led by the Moderator Pakistan Church.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/06/church-of-pakistan-forges-new-links-with-china.asp (...)

More than one million Christians, including Anglicans and Catholics, from all over the world converged at Namugongo village in central Uganda last week (3 June), to commemorate the killing of 45 martyrs 130 years ago. Speaking at the event, the Ugandan Prime Minister, Dr Ruhakana Rugunda, described the village as ‘a centre of heroism’.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/06/africa-joins-ugandans-to-celebrate-martyrs-day.asp (...)

27 young Anglican seminarians and newly-ordained clergy from across the world visited the Anglican Communion office in London.

The visit is part of the two-week Canterbury Scholars Programme at Canterbury Cathedral. The programme, which is now in its 14^th year, provides opportunities for Anglicans and Episcopalians from around the Communion to pray study and live together in community. It is also a chance to explore and share different aspects of faith in different cultural contexts and reflect on serving the Anglican Communion in various parts of the world.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/06/seminarians-and-newly-ordained-from-around-world-v (...)

Priests in the Diocese of Venezuela are getting on with everyday pastoral work in the middle of the political chaos, the violence and food shortages which have beset their country.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/06/how-the-diocese-of-venezuela-is-helping-its-commun (...)

For the last week all roads in Uganda have been leading to the Namugongo Anglican site where more than 20 Anglican Christians were brutally murdered over a century ago. Thousands of pilgrims have made the journey over hundreds of miles to reach the shrine of the Christian martyrs killed over 100 years ago and remembered on the anniversary today (3 June).

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/06/anglicans-walk-hundreds-of-miles-to-remember-marty (...)

The congregation at a church in Malawi had a surprise visitor bearing gifts last Sunday when the country’s President Arthur Peter Mutharika arrived for the service bringing 1 million Kwacha (approx. $1,400) and 100 bags of cement.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/06/malawi-president-delivers-100-bags-of-cement-to-ch (...)

A centre to encourage peace and reconciliation among young people is to be built in the heart of a country racked by conflict in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). Anglican youth leaders, trainers and government officials meeting last month in Goma in the Diocese of Bukavu, plan to set up the centre to promote peace-making and train young people in a range of areas from protecting the environment to income generating skills.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/06/plans-for-peace-making-centre-for-drc-youth.aspx

Representatives from Anglican and Salvation Army churches across Africa met in Cape Town last week to share insights and build a common vision on how to tackle human trafficking and modern day slavery.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/06/equipping-churches-to-respond-to-human-trafficking (...)

The traditional Anglican initiation rite of Confirmation has “lost its pivotal role” for many Anglican churches in New Zealand, a report to this month’s General Synod of the Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia said. But proposals to replace it with a new rite of The Laying on of Hands for Affirmation, Renewal and Reception, were postponed to allow further consultation.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/05/debate-continues-on-confirmation-in-new-zealand.as (...)

Urgent repairs to the decaying Church of the Nativity yield an unexpected revelation.

Read in full at news.nationalgeographic.com/2016/05/Greeks-Geographic-exhibit-ancient-treasure-Agame (...)

The Archbishop of Uganda, the Most Revd Stanley Ntagali, has warned against syncretism – the practice of merging different religious beliefs. The warning came after a prominent Christian politician made a public visit to her ancestral shrine to give thanks for her re-election – a practice in line with the country’s traditional religions.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/05/primate-of-uganda-warns-against-syncretism.aspx

A cross made from wood taken from a boat used by refugees crossing the Mediterranean as they sought sanctuary in Europe is to grace the altar of the Anglican Centre in Rome. The cross was made by artist Franco Tuccio on the Italian island of Lampedusa and resembles a pastoral staff given by the artist to Pope Francis when he visited the island two years ago.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/05/lampedusa-cross-at-the-anglican-centre-in-rome.asp (...)

The Church of Ceylon has implemented its disaster management plan in response to devastating floods that have displaced around 225,000 people and seriously impacted a further 200,000 people. Heavy rains have resulted in the confirmed deaths of 92 people; and a significant number of injures. Scores of people remain missing.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/05/church-implements-disaster-strategy-after-devastat (...)

The Bishop of Eastern Zambia, the Rt Revd William Mchombo, has expressed his “great concern” about the rise in political violence ahead of the country’s tripartite general election which is due to take place on 11 August. Britain and the US have warned their citizens to be careful of political violence when visiting the country, and now the head of the tourism body says that visitor numbers are beginning to fall.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/05/bishop-concerned-by-rising-political-violence-in-z (...)

A partnership between the Anglican Church of Burundi and the United Nations’ children’s agency Unicef is helping to tackle poverty and strengthen peace by financing small-scale cross-community agricultural projects. It comes at a time that the UN warns that the troubled country has been plunged into “civil unrest, growing insecurity, indiscriminate violence and sharp economic deterioration.”

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/05/tackling-poverty-and-conflict-through-microfinance (...)

The Bishop of Kericho, the Rt Revd Jackson Ole Sapit, has today been elected to serve as the sixth Archbishop and Primate of the Anglican Church of Kenya and Bishop of the Diocese of All Saints’ Cathedral.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/05/bishop-jackson-ole-sapit-elected-as-next-archbisho (...)

The Presiding Bishop of the US-based Episcopal Church, Michael Curry, brought his message of the Jesus Movement to the 21st Global Episcopal Mission Network (GEMN) conference in Ponce, Puerto Rico, during a keynote address on 18 May.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/05/pb-michael-curry-shares-his-vision-for-mission.asp (...)

Moves towards the mutual recognition and acceptance of Anglican and Methodist ministers in New Zealand have been delayed by at least two years after the General Synod of the Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia heard that the Province’s Council for Ecumenism had not considered a report from the Anglican-Methodist Dialogue Group.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/05/anglican-methodist-ministry-exchange-delayed.aspx

The Archbishop of Canterbury was joined by thousands of Christians around the world today for his first live Bible study on Facebook. Archbishop Justin Welby discussed John 1:35-42 with the Revd Chris Russell, the archbishop's advisor for evengalism and witness, and answered questions from viewers.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/05/thousands-join-archbishop-welby-for-online-bible-s (...)

The Bishop of Melbourne has stepped in to offer prayer space to Muslims from Geelong, Victoria, whose mosque was destroyed in a suspected arson attack in the early hours of this morning (Wednesday). The fire, in a former church building, is the fifth suspicious fire to hit places of worship in Geelong in recent months.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/05/anglicans-offer-prayer-space-for-arson-hit-muslims (...)

The Primate of Brazil has criticised the suspension of President Dilma Rousseff and the imposition of Vice-President Michel Temer pending Rousseff’s impeachment trial; and warned of a growing social movement to “reclaim” the country’s democracy. The Most Revd Francisco De Assis Da Silva had previously criticised the impeachment process. Today he described the process as “a show of sad cynicism”.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/05/primate-of-brazil-mobilises-to-reclaim-our-democra (...)

The Anglican Church in Japan is drawing on its experience of the 2011 tsunami to respond to the powerful earthquakes that struck the island nation last month. Twin earthquakes of 6.5 and 7.3-magnitude on 14 and 16 April caused extensive damage in Kumamoto prefecture on Kyushu, the southern island of Japan, killing over 65 people and injuring nearly 1,600.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/05/japanese-anglicans-open-support-centre-following-e (...)

The Primate of Australia, Archbishop Philip Freier, has increased the pressure on Pakistan over their continued detention of Asia Bibi under the country’s much criticised blasphemy laws, by writing to Pakistan’s High Commissioner to Australia, Naela Chohan, and Australia’s Foreign Minister, Julie Bishop, about the case.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/05/fresh-call-for-release-of-asia-bibi.aspx

Tomorrow (Saturday 14 May) marks four weeks since the 7.8-magnitude earthquake struck Ecuador causing the death of more than 650 people, injuring more than 4,600 and displacing some 30,000. Recovery from the loss of life and the estimated $2 to $3 billion [USD, approximately £1.4 to £2.09 billion GBP] in damages will take years.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/05/support-continues-for-ecuador-earthquake-victims.a (...)

The President of Nigeria, Muhammadu Buhari, has today made a visit to Lambeth Palace, the London home of the Archbishop of Canterbury, where he met Archbishop Justin; the secretary general of the Anglican Communion, Dr Josiah Idowu-Fearon; and the Bishop of Guildford, Andrew Watson.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/05/president-of-nigeria-visits-lambeth-palace.aspx

A review of faith-based organisations’ work on gender justice in Southern Africa has resulted in a commitment by fifty church leaders from ten countries to work together to overcome barriers that is limiting the churches’ response. The commitment was made at a Gender and Faith Symposium organised by Christian Aid and Sonke Gender Justice as part of the growing international Side by Side Movement.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/05/gender-justice-we-need-to-believe-in-the-miracle-o (...)

The Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia has postponed a decision on whether or not to permit the blessing of same sex marriages until 2018. The proposal had been made by the Church’s “Way Forward” group which had been mandated by it’s the 2014 General Synod with coming forward with proposals; but after days of discussion at this year’s Synod, the decision has been delayed.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/05/new-zealand-postpones-decision-on-same-sex-blessin (...)

The Anglican Church of Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia is to establish a “clear resilience strategy” to strengthen its response to future natural disasters in the Pacific islands. The move, adopted at the Province’s General Synod, came as researchers announced that five pacific islands have completely disappeared and a further six are experiencing “severe shoreline recession” as a result of rising sea levels.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/05/church-to-develop-disaster-strategy-as-pacific-isl (...)

There has been a sharp increase in the number of attacks on people with albinism in Malawi – including murder and mutilation – leading to the Bishop of the Upper Shire to plead that the “barbaric behaviour” has to stop. “This makes me sick as we cannot comprehend the level of inhumanity and evil Malawians have become,” Bishop Brighton Vita Malasa said.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/05/call-for-action-to-stop-attacks-on-people-with-alb (...)

Jerusalem’s vocation is as a city of peace, the Archbishop in Jerusalem, the Most Revd Suheil Dawani, has said. The seemingly incongruous statement was made in a speech at the Carter Centre in Atlanta Georgia in which he spoke about the Church’s role as peace-builder in a multi-faith context.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/05/jerusalem-the-city-of-peace.aspx

An Anglican seminary is to open in the Arctic as the Arthur Turner Training School (ATTS) re-opens, almost a decade after it closed. When it re-opens, the ATTS will operate from its new home at St Jude’s Cathedral in Iqaluit, thanks to a $50,000 CAD (approximately £26,750 GBP) return from the Anglican Church of Canada’s Resolution Corporation.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/05/anglican-seminary-re-opens-in-the-arctic.aspx

The completion of a 25-year translation project has resulted in the first Éxnet Sur Bible translation for the Southern Enxet people, an indigenous group from the Gran Chaco region of western Paraguay. The work is the result of a collaboration between the Anglican Church of Paraguay, the Church Mission Society (CMS) Anglican mission agency, and the Paraguayan Bible Society.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/05/first-bible-for-exnet-sur-people-of-western-paragu (...)

Churches throughout England have responded to a call from the Archbishops of Canterbury and York for a “great wave of prayer” in the week leading up to Pentecost Sunday for the re-evangelisation of England. Dubbed, Thy Kingdom Come, from the words of the Lord’s Prayer, the week will see parish churches and cathedrals hold 24/7 prayer rotas, open prayer times and special services.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/05/churches-throughout-england-gear-up-for-great-wave (...)

The Primate of the Anglican Church of Canada, Archbishop Fred Hiltz, has asked for “the prayers of the whole church” in response to a major wildfire in Alberta that has resulted in the town of Fort McMurray and neighbouring communities being subjected to an enforced evacuation as firefighters predict that much of the town will be destroyed.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/05/anglicans-respond-to-canadian-towns-wildfire-evacu (...)

More than 4,000 people packed into St Barnabas’ Provincial Cathedral in Honiara, on Guadalcanal, one of the Solomon Islands last month, for the enthronement of the Most Revd George Takeli as the sixth Archbishop of Melanesia.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/05/enthronement-of-new-archbishop-of-melanesia.aspx

A Pakistani provincial government minister for minority religious affairs has been shot and killed in the northwest of the country. Sardar Soran Singh was a member of the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa provincial assembly; holding one of the seats reserved for religious minorities. In 2013 he was appointed special advisor on minorities affairs to the Chief Minister of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pervez Khan Khattak.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/05/bishop-laments-murder-of-minister-for-religious-mi (...)

More than six thousand people from across Zimbabwe heard the Archbishop of Canterbury pay tribute to their church’s faith, courage and persistence in the face of difficult times.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/04/thousands-join-archbishop-welby-for-zimbabwe-celeb (...)

 A lay canon of England’s Liverpool Cathedral has been elected unopposed to serve as vice-chair of the Anglican Consultative Council. She joins the Archbishop of Hong Kong, the Most Revd Dr Paul Kwong, who was elected last week as chair of the body; and five new members of the Standing Committee.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/04/new-leaders-elected-for-worldwide-anglican-communi (...)

Youth projects in the Anglican provinces of Kenya and Rwanda have been chosen by African Anglicans to receive the first of a new set of Anglican Communion awards in recognition of their success in youth discipleship.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/04/international-recognition-for-kenyan-and-rwandan-a (...)

LUSAKA, Zambia — Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby used his presidential address to urge Anglicans to look outwards, “seeking to serve the work and mission of God in the world.” He called for decisive action on religiously motivated violence and climate change, which he described as “major, global conflicts with a very clear religious content.” The address followed Choral Evensong at the Anglican Consultative Council meeting in Lusaka, as delegates began to turn their attention to a series of resolutions that will guide the Communion’s life and work for the next three years.

Read in full at livingchurch.org/welby-time-act-climate-violence?platform=hootsuite

The Archbishop and Primate of Hong Kong, the Most Revd Dr Paul Kwong, has been elected as the new chair of the Anglican Consultative Council – the legally constituted body that brings together Anglican churches from around the world. Dr Kwong will take on his new role at the end of the current meeting of ACC-16 which is being held in the Cathedral of the Holy Cross in Lusaka, Zambia, until Tuesday.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/04/primate-of-hong-kong-elected-as-new-chair-of-angli (...)

The Primates’ Meeting, and the “consequences” for the Episcopal Church in the United States set out in the January communiqué, were addressed on the first day by the Archbishop of Canterbury. He reiterated that the Primates had “no legal authority over Provinces”, but argued that, “because of their positions as senior bishops in their Provinces, [they] have an enhanced responsibility”.

Read in full at www.churchtimes.co.uk/articles/2016/15-april/news/world/acc-complies-with-primates-i (...)

Members of the Anglican Consultative Council, meeting in Lusaka, Zambia, will elect a new chair tomorrow and will have the choice of two candidates with significant knowledge of global Anglicanism: Professor Joanildo Burity from Brazil and Archbishop Paul Kwong from Hong Kong.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/04/two-candidates-for-chair-of-anglican-consultative- (...)

When members of the Anglican Consultative Council discussed the most pressing issues facing the world [during their current meeting in Lusaka], the challenges presented by the migration of peoples, violence in all its forms, climate change, evangelism and discipleship, and income inequality emerged as the major themes.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/04/acc-members-outline-issues-facing-the-world.aspx

Father Tony Currer, officer responsibile for Anglican Relations at the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity (PCPCU), brought a message of greeting to all the participants of the 16th Anglican Consultative Council Meeting, in Lusaka (8 to 19 April) from His Eminence Cardinal Kurt Koch, President of the PCPCU.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/04/ecumenical-greetings-to-acc-16-from-roman-catholic (...)

The Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby preaches at the opening eucharist for ACC-16 at the Cathedral of the Holy Cross in Lusaka, Zambia.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/multimedia/acc-16-archbishop-justin-welby-preaches-at-opening-e (...)

The Primate and Archbishop of Hong Kong, the Most Revd Paul Kwong, has emphasised that the Anglican Consultative Council (ACC-16) is an important platform which can help “foster growth and better relationships within the Anglican Communion.”

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/04/acc-16-is-a-chance-to-foster-growth-and-better-rel (...)

The Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby met the President of the Republic of Zambia, His Excellency Edgar Lungu, this morning, accompanied by the Archbishop of Central Africa, Albert Chama and the Bishop of Eastern Zambia, William Mchombo.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/04/archbishop-welby-meets-the-president-of-zambia.asp (...)

A delegation up of bishops, an official welcome from a government minister, a group of journalists, and an 80-strong choir of Mothers’ Union members greeted the Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby when he arrived in Lusaka on Tuesday for a meeting of the Anglican Consultative Council’s (ACC) standing committee ahead of the start, on Friday, of ACC-16.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/04/warm-welcome-for-archbishop-welby-in-zambia.aspx

Around 200 Christians, Muslims and Hindus gathered yesterday (Sunday) at the site of last weekend’s horrific Easter Day bomb attack for a united act of solidarity and sympathy for the victims of the attack.

The death toll from the attack rose to 76 on Friday as Pakistan officials said that some of those who had been injured in the attack did not survive. Over 300 people were hurt and several dozen are still understood to be undergoing treatment in hospital. Some of these are in a serious condition.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/04/multi-faith-vigil-for-lahore-easter-bomb-victims.a (...)

The Archbishop of Cape Town, Thabo Makgoba, has called for a “tsunami of truth-telling” after the President of South Africa, Jacob Zuma, lost a court battle brought by campaigners who alleged he benefitted from state funding of R246 million (South African Rand, approximately £11.65 million GBP) for improvements to his private home, Nkandla, under the guise of security.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/03/primate-calls-for-tsunami-of-truth-telling-after-s (...)

It has been five years since the start of the Syrian conflict, which has displaced over 11.4 million people – half the country's pre-conflict population. Responding to the needs of children with disabilities who have fled with their families to neighbouring Jordan, the Holy Land Institute for the Deaf (HLID) has been working in the Za'atari Refugee Camp since 2012, with the support of Episcopal Relief and Development.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/03/bringing-hope-to-disabled-syrian-children.aspx

When members of the Anglican Consultative Council meet in Lusaka next month for its 16th meeting (ACC-16), they will discuss – in the context of intentional discipleship – issues ranging from gender justice, refugees and migration, the environment and reconciliation; and they will do so against a backdrop of prayer, Bible study and worship.

And members of the Anglican Communion throughout the world are being invited to join with them as they explore the Book of Ruth in a series of daily Bible studies.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/03/the-book-of-ruth-is-focus-for-acc-bible-studies.as (...)

The Prime Minister of Pakistan has said that the heart of every Pakistani was broken and that the whole nation was in the state of grief and sorrow during a televised address to the nation following the horrific Easter Day bomb attack in Lahore that left at least 72 people dead and more than 300 injured.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/03/church-of-pakistan-consoles-nation-where-every-hea (...)

Pakistan is at breaking point, the Moderator of the Church of Pakistan, President Bishop Samuel Azariah, has said in response to the Easter Day massacre at the Gulshan-e Iqbal Park in Lahore.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/03/enough-is-enough-moderator-laments-pakistan-bombin (...)

Muslims are a minority in Norway and a majority in Pakistan. From 12-15 March, these roles changed at a conference hosted by The Church of Pakistan in Lahore, Pakistan.

The conference, themed “Pilgrimage of Life towards Reconciliation,” brought together representatives from all dioceses in Pakistan, as well as several international partners.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/03/church-of-pakistan-hosts-muslims-and-christians.as (...)

The Primate of Brazil, the Most Revd Francisco De Assis da Silva, has appealed for calm in the country as continuing protests take place about alleged government corruption. Archbishop Francisco said that the protests “must not pass the limits of constitutional rights and liberties” and said that the corruption allegations must be dealt with by the “republican, democratic law” which was “soaked in the blood of men and women who gave their lives fighting for liberation in a fair, inclusive and peaceful society.”

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/03/primate-urges-rule-of-law-in-brazils-corruption-cr (...)

A scheduled Chrism Mass at the Diocese in Europe’s pro-cathedral in Brussels went ahead this afternoon in an “act of defiance” against the terrorists who killed at least 34 people and injured 198 more in a series of bomb attacks in the city’s airport and a metro station.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/03/brussels-pro-cathedrals-chrism-eucharist-an-act-of (...)

A draft report detailing theological resources for times of persecution has been published by the Anglican Inter Faith Network. The report, “Out of the Depths – Hope in a time of suffering” is “an Anglican contribution to ecumenical engagement” and will be discussed during next month’s meeting of the Anglican Consultative Council in Lusaka, Zambia.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/03/theological-resources-on-persecution-published-for (...)

A Communion-wide call to pray for the crisis-torn country of Burundi and the role that the Anglican Church of Burundi plays in in bringing peace and reconciliation has been issued. The call to pray – from Holy Week and through the Easter season – is being backed by the Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby. The Archbishop of Burundi, Bernard Ntahoturi, has said that the local church has been strengthened by the prayers of Anglicans and other Christians.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/03/call-to-prayer-for-burundi.aspx

The European Union’s political leaders are gathering in Brussels for two days of talks on the refugee crisis; and five Christian ecumenical organisations have used the occasion to write to the EU’s leaders calling for stronger action.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/03/churches-urge-action-from-eu-leaders-on-refugee-cr (...)

The World Council of Churches’ commitment to child rights and gender justice is manifested by its support for Together for Girls’ Every Hour Matters campaign, which was launched last week. The campaign aims to increase awareness of the critical importance of quickly accessing post-rape care.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/03/wcc-supports-new-campaign-against-sexual-abuse.asp (...)

The Archbishop of Cape Town, Thabo Makgoba, has called for South Africans to stop chanting “this must fall” and “that must fall” and instead work together to “create a deafening chorus of what must rise.”

Archbishop Makgoba, the primate of the Anglican Church of Southern Africa, made his remarks at the opening of a new Socio-Economic Future of South Africa (SEFSA) initiative which is being led by religious, civil society, business and community-based organisations.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/03/archbishop-makgoba-calls-for-renewed-vision-for-so (...)

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/03/archbishop-of-congo-steps-down.aspx

The Eglise Anglicane du Burundi (Anglican Church of Burundi) reports on the recent solidarity visits to the country by Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby, the World Council of Churches and its general secretary the Revd Dr Olav Fykse Tveit, and the All Africa Conference of Churches.

This report notes Justin's emphasis on Reconciliation and Healing.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/03/burundi-christians-need-to-plant-a-seed-of-love-in (...)

Worshipping God and proclaiming the Good News of Jesus Christ is integral to being a Christian, the Archbishop of Canterbury had said. Speaking at an event in Lambeth Palace to promote sports ministry within the C of E, Archbishop Justin Welby said that everything else the church does is “decoration”.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/03/proclaiming-the-gospel-is-integral-to-being-a-chri (...)

The Anglican mission agency USPG (United Society Partners in the Gospel) is looking for Anglicans with a passion for mission and the world church to become trustees.

As a number of USPG’s existing trustees complete their tenure, this is a rare opportunity to engage in global mission through an organisation that has been working in mission for over 300 years since its foundation in 1701.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/03/mission-agency-seeks-anglicans-with-a-passion-for- (...)

The Archbishop of Canterbury visited a refugee camp in Rwanda on Sunday, after a three-day visit to Burundi to show solidarity with Anglicans and pray for peace and reconciliation.

Read in full at www.archbishopofcanterbury.org/articles.php/5682/archbishop-of-canterbury-visits-rwa (...)

Elaine A. Heath, a theologian, preacher, teacher and writer, will be the next dean of the Duke Divinity School at Duke University, North Carolina, President Richard H. Brodhead and Provost Sally Kornbluth announced Tuesday 8th March 2016.

Heath is currently the McCreless Professor of Evangelism at Southern Methodist University’s Perkins School of Theology in Dallas. She succeeds Ellen Davis, who has served as interim dean since the retirement of Richard Hays in August 2015. 

Read in full at today.duke.edu/2016/03/divinityschooldeanannouncement-march-2016

Anglican Bishops, priests and laity from across the world will gather in Lusaka next month for the 16th meeting of the Anglican Consultative Council (ACC-16). Members will discuss a range of issues around the theme “Intentional discipleship in a world of difference” – how Christians can be faithful to the Gospel in all aspects of their lives in the different cultures and situations that Anglicans find themselves in. The Anglican Communion Office is now inviting applications for media accreditation for journalists who wish to attend ACC-16.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/features/2016/03/draft-programme-for-anglican-consultative-coun (...)

Football may be a religion for some, but it is also a universal language. One clergyman from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has a vision to transform lives and he believes football can play a part in bringing reconciliation to his war-torn country.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/03/reconciliation-and-the-beautiful-game.aspx

The Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby is visiting Burundi to show solidarity with local Anglicans and to pray for peace and reconciliation. His visit comes hot on the heels of a solidarity visit by a delegation from the World Council of Churches, including Dr Agnes Abuom, the moderator of the WCC Central Committee and a member of the Anglican Church of Kenya.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/03/archbishop-justin-welby-and-wcc-visit-burundi.aspx

The Anglican Communion has appointed former BBC journalist Adrian Butcher as its new director for communications. He will take up the post immediately after Easter.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/03/new-communications-director-for-anglican-communion (...)

The city of Yangon in Myanmar is home to the Mission to Seafarers’ newest port facility. The Anglican mission agency’s newest mission centre was dedicated yesterday (Sunday) during a service at Holy Trinity Cathedral in Yangon (formerly known as Rangoon).

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/02/mission-to-seafarers-expands-with-new-centre-in-my (...)

[ACNS] The Archbishops of Canterbury and York have called for a “great wave of prayer” for the evangelisation of England. In an “unprecedented step”, Justin Welby and John Sentamu have written to every parish priest in the Church of England, inviting churches across the country to take part in the focused prayer initiative in the week leading up to Pentecost Sunday.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/02/archbishops-of-canterbury-and-york-pray-for-evange (...)

From the Anglican Communion News Service: Successful and emerging discipleship work with and by children and young people within the Anglican Communion will be recognised with two new awards. The new Youth and Children Ministry Award will be presented for the first time at this year’s Anglican Consultative Council meeting in Lusaka, Zambia, in April. 

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/02/anglican-communion-recognises-youth-and-children-d (...)

From ACNS, a profile of the newly installed Archbishop of South East Asia, the Most Revd Ng Moon Hing.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/features/2016/02/in-profile-archbishop-ng-moon-hing-of-south-ea (...)

Women from more than 20 countries around the Anglican Communion will be at the United Nations in New York next month to press for greater economic empowerment for women across the globe.

Delegations from the Anglican Communion and the Mothers’ Union will be attending the 61st session of the UN Commission on the Status of Women.There will also be 20 delegates from the US-based Episcopal Church. Representatives of the member states, various UN entities, Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) and faith groups will attend the session which runs from March 13 to 24.  Mothers’ Union has consultative status with the economic and social council of the United Nations, and attends UNCSW annually.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/02/anglican-women-to-make-case-for-economic-empowerme (...)

The Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, has spoken about the significance of last month’s meeting of Anglican leaders from across the global communion, noting also the significance of Vatican support for the crucial encounter.

This article includes an interview with Graham Kings, the Mission Theologian in the Anglican Communion.

Read in full at en.radiovaticana.va/news/2016/02/19/anglican_leader_notes_vatican_support_for_primat (...)

Could the Anglican Communion be a “broker” for global mission?

This question was raised by the Rev. Dr. Wonsuk Ma, director of the Oxford Centre for Mission Studies, at the most recent seminar of the Mission Theology in the Anglican Communion project, held a Lambeth Palace.

Read in full at livingchurch.org/covenant/2016/02/15/pentecostalanglican-cooperation-new-horizons-in (...)

Three West African bishops have briefed members of the Church of England’s General Synod lastweek on the Ebola crisis and the role played by the church in tackling it. The Bishops of Bo, Freetown, and Guinea were joined by representatives from the Anglican mission agency United Society, which organised the fringe meeting, and the Anglican Alliance.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/02/west-african-bishops-give-ebola-briefing-to-c-of-e (...)

The Carbon Fast for Lent developed by the Anglican Communion Environmental Network (ACEN) is generating a lot of interest this year.

The on-line and downloadable Carbon Fast calendar invites participants to take 40 small, achievable steps during the 40 days of Lent to reduce their environmental footprint by reducing energy and water usage, waste and travel, and to consider the environmental impact of food.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/02/a-carbon-fast-for-lent-living-for-a-change.aspx

Leaders of the Coptic Orthodox Church and other major Christian denominations in Egypt gathered at All Saint’s Anglican Cathedral in the centre of Cairo this weekend for a united act of worship in which the leaders delivered short messages on rolling the stone together. The service, in which the leaders and congregation shared bread together, has been described as an example of “loving, passionate, and world-changing unity.”

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/02/rolling-the-stone-and-breaking-bread-together.aspx

The Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, has used his presidential address to the Church of England’s General Synod to update members on last month’s Primates Meeting and Gathering in Canterbury. He also gave his impression about the current state of the Anglican Communion.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/02/archbishop-justin-welby-unpacks-primates-communiqu (...)

Life in the Gambella region of southern Ethiopia is getting back to normal after a recent surge in tribal tensions, the Bishop for the Horn of Africa reports. The Rt Revd Dr Grant LeMarquand, an area bishop in the diocese of Egypt with North Africa and the Horn of Africa, says that “buses have started running, banks and shops are open again” but he asks for continued prayers for the region.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/02/gambella-life-returning-to-normal.aspx

When Muslim bus passengers thwarted an attempt by Al Shabaab terrorists to single out and massacre Christian passengers in Kenya in December last year, they not only saved lives; but they may have also “given terrorism-weary Kenyans new inspiration to defy Al Shabaab and pursue peace,” the new issue of the Christian Muslim News Digest, produced by the Anglican Communion’s Network for Interfaith Concerns (Nifcon) suggests.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/02/digest-majority-of-muslims-seek-to-follow-the-way- (...)

The Church of England’s Diocese of Europe has held the first of a number of one-day training conferences to teach Anglicans how to combat human trafficking. The event at Holy Trinity Church in Brussels at the end of January followed a diocesan-wide survey which identified a pool of potential volunteers willing to take action against human trafficking if they received appropriate training and local service opportunities.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/02/european-anglicans-train-to-combat-human-trafficki (...)

The Moderator of the Church of South India, the Most Revd Dr Govada Dyvasirvadam, has spoken out against continuing caste-based discrimination in schools and higher education institutions after meeting the mother of Rohith Vemula, a research student at Hyderabad Central University, who killed himself following “heinous” discrimination.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/02/moderator-demands-end-to-caste-discrimination.aspx

Anglicans in Ethiopia are asking for prayer following an increase in tribal tensions between the Nuer and Anyuak ethnic groups. Local Anglicans have acted as human shields by escorting students from one tribe through the territory of the other, with the support of the security services.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/02/anglican-human-shields-in-ethiopian-conflict.aspx

Some of the newest bishops in the Anglican family from around the world are spending the day in London as part of the Anglican Communion’s New Bishops’ course. Some 28 bishops from 17 countries across all five continents are spending the morning at the Anglican Communion Office before heading to Lambeth Palace for a meeting with Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/02/welcome-for-anglican-familys-new-bishops.aspx

Video autobiogrpahy about the life and work of Rev. Canon Dr. Moses Njoroge, the Former Principal St. Andrews College Kabare. Produced by his son, Elijah Mwangi.

Read in full at www.youtube.com/watch?feature=youtu.be&v=mCL3SgzNOhc&app=desktop

The Primate of the Anglican Church of Canada, Archbishop Fred Hiltz, has said that Sunday night’s shooting at a mosque in Quebec has left “a neighbourhood traumatised, and a nation horrified.” Six people were killed and others were injured when gunmen opened fire in the Grande Mosquée de Québec in the Sainte-Foye area of the city as around 50 Muslims were saying prayers at around 8.00 pm EST on Sunday 29 January (1.00 am, Monday 30 January GMT).

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/01/mosque-shooting-leaves-a-nation-horrified.aspx

This address by the Most Rev. Josiah Idowu-Fearon, Secretary General of the Anglican Communion, was delivered at the study day (January 29, 2016) before the seating of the Rt. Rev. Peter Eaton as Bishop of Southeast Florida. 

Read in full at livingchurch.org/covenant/2016/01/30/perspectives-on-the-primates-meeting/

The charity Open Doors, which has been supporting the persecuted church since it was founded by Brother Andrews 50 years ago, has published its annual World Watch list of the top 50 most dangerous countries to be a Christian. It is, once again, topped by North Korea. Their research shows that persecution against Christians has increased so dramatically that persecution has risen even in those countries that have dropped out of its top 50.

See also: Video: The five most dangerous places to be a Christian

Open Doors, the charity founded 50 years ago by Brother Andrew to support the persecuted Church, has published its World Watch list – the countries where it is dangerous to be a Christian. In this video they outline the top five which, for the 14th consecutive year, is topped by North Korea.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/features/2016/01/persecution-of-christians-on-the-increase.aspx

A unique role has opened up as PA to the Mission Theologian in the Anglican Communion. 

The Executive PA to the Mission Theologian is a full time role of 35 hours a week, with a starting salary of £26,275 per annum and a generous pension scheme contribution. The role will be based at the SPCK offices in Westminster, London.

Read in full at jobs.churchtimes.co.uk/jobs/2016/7975/executive-pa-to-the-mission-theologian-in-the- (...)

Pope Francis has apologised for behaviour towards Christians from non-Roman Catholic churches that “has not reflected Gospel values.” The Pope made his comments during a Vespers service in the Basilica of St Paul Outside the Walls in Rome last night attended by the Archbishop of Canterbury’s Representative to the Holy See, Archbishop Sir David Moxon.

See also Comment: Unexpected Blessing

Archbishop David Moxon, director of the Anglican Centre in Rome, was invited to share the blessing with Pope Francis and Archbishop Gennadios of the Ecumenical Patriarchate during a service to mark the conclusion of the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity. Here, Archbishop David reflects on the unprecedented moment.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/01/pope-francis-apologises-for-treatment-of-non-catho (...)

Anglicans and other Christians are being challenged to take enjoy a candlelit dinner as part of a series of challenges for a “carbon fast” during Lent. The initiative comes from the Anglican Church of Southern Africa and is being supported by the Anglican Communion’s Environmental Network (ACEN).

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/01/protect-the-environment-with-a-candlelit-dinner.as (...)

“You can’t create peace and security by doing things to [people], you have to be alongside, doing things with people,” the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, said this evening.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/01/peace-and-security-comes-by-doing-things-with-peop (...)

The Church Times reports on the Primates' Meeting 2016.

Read in full at www.churchtimes.co.uk/articles/2016/22-january/news/uk/the-canterbury-tale

Last week the Primates of the Anglican Communion gathered in Canterbury for a week of prayer and discussion. You might well have been following the events in the media. I want to share some thoughts of my own here about what took place last week – which was without doubt one of the most extraordinary weeks I have ever experienced.

Read in full at www.archbishopofcanterbury.org/articles.php/5659/archbishop-justin-reflects-on-the-p (...)

The Revd Canon Philip Mountstephen, executive leader of the Anglican mission agency CMS, reflects on the Primates’ commitment to “proclaim the person and work of Jesus Christ."

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/comment/2016/01/the-primates-call-to-evangelism.aspx

When the senior archbishops of the Anglican Communion gathered in Canterbury Cathedral last week they did so against a backdrop of complex disagreements. But despite what the Archbishop of Canterbury described as “quite difficult” discussions; the leaders agreed to “walk together” and the Archbishop of Hong Kong said that the atmosphere during the week-long meeting “couldn’t be better.”

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/01/archbishops-reflect-on-primates-meeting.aspx

The Roman Catholic Church has loaned the head of the pastoral staff associated with Pope Gregory – who sent Augustine on his historic mission to England in the 6th century – to Canterbury where Anglican Primates will gather next week.

Read in full at www.primates2016.org/articles/2016/01/06/ancient-crosier-be-display-cathedral/

The full text of the Primates’ communiqué
Canterbury Cathedral, England. 11-15 January 2015

Walking Together in the Service of God in the World

The Primates received their time together as a gift from God and experienced many signs of God's presence amongst us. They appreciated the personal care and humility shown by the Archbishop of Canterbury especially in his chairing of the meeting. We leave our week together enriched by the communion we share and strengthened by the faithful witness of Anglicans across the world. The Primates deeply appreciate the prayers of many throughout the world over our time together.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/features/2016/01/communique-from-the-primates-meeting-2016.aspx

A week-long meeting of senior leaders of the Anglican Communion is drawing to a close.

Read in full at www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-35319022

‘You are more precious than you dare believe’ - The founder of the L’Arche movement, Jean Vanier, spoke with members of the Community of St Anselm at Canterbury Cathedral this morning.

Vanier, 86, yesterday addressed the week-long gathering of Anglican Communion Primates at Canterbury Cathedral that concludes today.

“The big thing is to trust oneself. It’s about listening to the inner voice. Listening to something that’s inside each one of us, which is a compass to make us more human, and more in tune with things of God.”

Read in full at www.primates2016.org/articles/2016/01/15/you-are-more-precious-you-dare-believe-jean (...)

The Community of St Anselm, the new religious community of 36 young men and women from around the world, are in Canterbury this week to pray for the Primates of the Anglican Communion as they continue their deliberations.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/01/praying-for-the-primates.aspx

In this video, the Community of St Anselm, the young Christian community founded by Archbishop Justin Welby, talk about being a praying presence for the week-long meeting of Anglican Primates at Canterbury Cathedral, 11-16 January 2016.

Read in full at www.primates2016.org/articles/2016/01/13/praying-presence-community-st-anselm-primat (...)

Professor Lord Williams of Oystermouth will deliver the 2016 Hulsean Lectures on the subject of 'Christ and the Logic of Creation' at the Divinity Faculty, University of Cambridge. All are welcome.

Lecture 1: A Mediaeval Excursion: Aquinas's Christology and its aftermath (12 Jan, 2016)

Read in full at sms.cam.ac.uk/media/2154439

The 2016 primates gathering will live to see its second day, with all participants scheduled to return to the Canterbury Cathedral crypt on Tuesday, 12 January 2016

Read in full at www.anglican.ink/article/first-day-report-2016-primates-gathering-canterbury?utm_con (...)

The Call and Purpose of God for Global Anglicanism: A Day of Reflection after the Primates' Meeting.

For more information and to register, contact Paul Coward paul.coward@roehampton.ac.uk  

This study day will take place at Whitelands College, Roehampton University, SW15 4JD. Whitelands traces its history as an Anglican College back to 1841. ‘Open Anglicanism’ study days are intended to bring together Anglicans of various traditions to learn together and to listen to one another. 

We are privileged that two senior Anglicans with a unique overview and experience of the Anglican Communion have agreed to lead our discussion:

The Most Reverend Sir David Moxon, the Archbishop of Canterbury’s Representative to the Holy See and Director of the Anglican Centre in Rome.   Archbishop David was formerly the Bishop of Waikato, Senior Bishop of the New Zealand Dioceses, and an Archbishop of the Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia. He is co-chairman of the Anglican-Roman Catholic International Commission (ARCIC).

The Most Reverend Josiah Idowu-Fearon, Secretary General of the Anglican Communion.  Archbishop Josiah has served as Archbishop of Kaduna in the Church of Nigeria, where he earned a global reputation in the Church for his expertise in Christian-Muslim relations.  He was also Director of the Kaduna Anglican Study Centre.

Read in full at

The Church should “re-commit and re-dedicate itself to do all for the freedom of those enslaved and trafficked, so that they may have life and have it more abundantly,” the general secretary of the Synod of the Church of North India has said.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/01/church-called-to-fight-for-victims-of-slavery-and- (...)

The Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby said this morning that a formal schism in the Anglican Communion would be a failure; but he told BBC Radio Four’s Today programme that such a scenario “would not be a disaster” because “God is bigger than our failures.”

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/01/archbishop-welby-schism-would-be-a-failure-but-not (...)

This week, in celebration of Epiphany, we will be publishing a series of poems by Bishop Graham Kings, originally included in Andrew Wheeler’s Desire of Nations: The Magi, their Journey and the Child (2015).

Read in full at livingchurch.org/covenant/2016/01/11/terror-unleashed/

The Communion is uniquely precious - and vital for our shared Anglican mission, writes the Bishop of Lynn, Jonathan Meyrick. 

Read in full at www.primates2016.org/articles/2016/01/11/holding-our-communion-vital-our-anglican-mi (...)

The partnership between Derby diocese and the Church of North India has been a powerful reminder of 'our interdependence as the Body of Christ', writes the Revd Anita Matthews.

Read in full at www.primates2016.org/articles/2016/01/11/anglican-links-remind-us-body-of-christ/

The Colleges and Universities of the Anglican Communion (CUAC) network have announced that their second Distinguished Fellowship has been awarded to the Revd Dr Spurgeon Maher, chaplain of Madras Christian College in Chennai, India. Dr Maher was inducted to the fellowship in his college’s Bishop Heber Chapel on Sunday, where he was joined by his friends and family, and members of his Tamil-speaking congregation; as well as members of the CUAC network, who were in Chennai for their ninth international triennial conference, which was taking place at the college.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/01/cuac-induct-chennai-chaplain-as-its-second-disting (...)

ON JANUARY 11th, 38 leaders of Anglican provinces around the world will begin a five-day meeting in Canterbury, the spiritual home of the global Anglican communion. They have been invited by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby (pictured wearing his mitre, above), in what observers are calling a last-ditch attempt to save the third-biggest Christian denomination in the world, with some 85m followers. Why is this meeting so important for Anglicans and what is likely to happen?

Read in full at www.economist.com/blogs/economist-explains/2016/01/economist-explains-6?fsrc=scn/tw/ (...)

Archbishop Brown Turei, one of the leaders of the Anglican Church in Aotearoa New Zealand and Polynesia, has died.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/01/archbishop-brown-turei-dies-at-92.aspx

The Archbishop of Canterbury tries to save the Anglican Communion

When he was an undergraduate at Cambridge, Justin Welby, the Archbishop of Canterbury, was cox of a Trinity College rowing eight. Perhaps coincidentally, rowing metaphors flowed in September when he announced that he had invited all 37 global Anglican primates to Canterbury for a conference starting on January 11th, in what some see as a last-ditch attempt to save the Anglican Communion.

Read in full at www.economist.com/news/britain/21685472-archbishop-canterbury-tries-save-anglican-co (...)

This week, in celebration of Epiphany, we will be publishing a series of poems on the Magi by Bishop Graham Kings, originally included in Andrew Wheeler’s Desire of Nations: The Magi, their Journey and the Child (2015).

This is the third poem in the series.

Read in full at livingchurch.org/covenant/2016/01/08/on-the-magi-feigning-faith/

The new religious community for young Christians founded by Archbishop Justin Welby at his residence in London will be supporting the Primates’ meeting in prayer next week.

Seventeen members of the Community of St Anselm, which was launched at Lambeth Palace in London last year, will be praying in Canterbury Cathedral through the week as discussions take place between the Primates of the Anglican Communion.

Read in full at www.primates2016.org/articles/2016/01/08/young-christian-community-will-be-praying-p (...)

Archbishop Justin Welby has invited the founder of the L’Arche movement, Jean Vanier, to visit Canterbury next week during the gathering of Anglican Primates.

Vanier, 86, is a Roman Catholic philosopher and social innovator who founded the L’Arche Communities - where people with and without learning disabilities share life together, living and working in community - in 1964.

Read in full at www.primates2016.org/articles/2016/01/08/archbishop-justin-welby-invites-jean-vanier (...)

This week, in celebration of Epiphany, Covenant is publishing a series of poems on the Magi by Bishop Graham Kings, originally included in Andrew Wheeler’s Desire of Nations: The Magi, their Journey and the Child (2015).

This is the second poem in the series.

Read in full at livingchurch.org/covenant/2016/01/07/on-the-magi-through-centuries/

Christians around the world are praying for next week’s Primates Meeting taking place in the grounds of Canterbury Cathedral. The Primates Meeting is one of the Anglican Communion’s four Instruments of Unity and provides an opportunity for the leaders of the independent but interdependent Anglican Churches to gather for “leisurely thought, prayer and deep consultation.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/01/global-prayer-for-primates-meeting.aspx

On January 11-16, the Primates of the Anglican Communion will discuss its future in Canterbury. From their extremes, Martyn Percy and Peter Jensen want the meeting to choose between The Episcopal Church (TEC) and GAFCON, and fear that the Primates will find some centrist way to evade the dilemma. Archbishop Welby has countered such polarisation with a vision of Communion so accepting of disagreement for the sake of its mission to a complex world that no such choice need be made.

Read in full at www.fulcrum-anglican.org.uk/articles/high-stakes-three-facts/

Over the next week, in celebration of Epiphany, Covenant will be publishing a series of poems on the Magi by Bishop Graham Kings, originally included in Andrew Wheeler’s Desire of Nations: The Magi, their Journey and the Child (2015).

Read in full at livingchurch.org/covenant/2016/01/06/on-the-magi-farcical-journey/

The crozier of the sixth century Pope who sent Augustine to England to begin the conversion of the Anglo-Saxons will be in Canterbury as the Primates of the Anglican Communion gather for their meeting in the city next week.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/01/crozier-of-pope-who-initiated-the-conversion-of-en (...)

An evangelism course produced by an Anglican church in London has proved a hit with prisoners, as more than 20,000 inmates completed the course over the past 12 months.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/01/london-church-evangelism-tool-reaches-20,000-priso (...)

The Durham Proverbs, a selection of Anglo-Saxon bons mots, show that medieval daily concerns and popular wisdom still have resonance today, says Eleanor Parker.

Read in full at www.historytoday.com/eleanor-parker/speak-well-and-act-accordingly

The Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, has declared his support for the Archbishop of Cape Town, Thabo Makgoba, in a dispute with the South African president.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2017/01/abp-justin-backs-abp-thabo-in-church-v-state-row.a (...)

Iranian Pastor, Farshid Fathi, has been released today (21 December 2015) after five years in prison for his faith.

Read in full at www.elam.com/article/farshid-released

Middle-eastern couple seek refuge this Christmas

Read in full at www.theosthinktank.co.uk/comment/2015/12/21/middle-eastern-couple-seek-refuge-this-c (...)

The Kingdom, the Power and the Glory: Why the Baby in a Manger Threatened Caesar

Read in full at www.abc.net.au/religion/articles/2015/12/21/4376532.htm

A young Anglican from Central Africa has said that the Anglican Consultative Council-16 (ACC-16) which will be held in Lusaka, Zambia in April next year, “is a unique opportunity for young people to fully express themselves and shine.”

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2015/12/acc-16-is-an-opportunity-for-young-people-to-shine (...)

75 years after Coventry Cathedral was destroyed in an aerial bombing campaign that blitzed the city around it; the Bishop of Coventry has warned against the “unintended consequences” of both physical and ideological collateral damage. The Rt Revd Dr Christopher Cocksworth made his comments in the House of Lords – the upper house of the UK’s Parliament – during a debate over whether or not Britain should expand its anti-Daesh campaign in Iraq to also include targets in Syrian territory. The Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, spoke in the debate earlier.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2015/12/bishops-express-concern-at-extension-of-uks-anti-d (...)

The Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, has said that the “Just War” criteria have been met to justify military action against Daesh (IS, ISIL, ISIS) in Syria; but warned that merely bombing Daesh targets would “confirm their dreadful belief that what they are doing is the will of God.” He called for a holistic approach to tackling Daesh, which should include a “global theological component”.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2015/12/archbishop-of-canterbury-speaks-on-uks-anti-daesh- (...)

British and Irish Association for Practical Theology (Mission Studies Special Interest Group)
and Leeds Trinity University

Guest speaker: Dr Joshua Broggi, University of Oxford

Date: 12 April 2016, 11.00am-3.30pm

Theme: Why do readers from different cultures produce divergent readings of the Bible? In view of the global character of Christianity, this has become a prominent question. When Christians read scripture, traditions supply concepts that shape what counts as normal, good, and true. But what is the effect of Christian commitments on rationality? How have readers decided on a correct interpretation?

This day conference organised by the British and Irish Association for Practical Theology and Leeds Trinity University is an opportunity for a dialogue with Dr Joshua Broggi, University of Oxford. His book Diversity in the Structure of Christian Reasoning (Brill 2015) deals with just these issues, using illustrations from central Africa and southern India. Broggi offers a fresh strategy for relating tradition and reason that reconfigures the hermeneutical picture developed by Martin Heidegger and Hans-Georg Gadamer.

Booking: Please register your attendance by email to admin@biapt.org.uk .

Cost: £10.00. Includes refreshments and sandwich lunch. Payable on the day.

Refreshments served from 10.30am and available after 3.30pm.

Read in full at

If you wish to see something launched with style, fervour and commitment then you could do no better than have been in Lusaka Cathedral yesterday (29 November) when the Province of Central Africa launched the preparations for the 16th meeting of the Anglican Consultative Council (ACC-16), which will take place in Lusaka next April.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2015/11/let-love-lead-the-anglican-communion-childrens-pra (...)

The Pope has made a visit to the Anglican shrine to the Ugandan Martyrs in Namugongo, and spoke of the “ecumenism of blood”. Pope Francis looked visibly pained and shocked as Archbishop Stanley Ntagali, Primate of the Anglican Church of Uganda, explained how the martyrs were put to death on the orders of the King of Buganda in the late 19th Century for refusing to renounce their faith.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2015/11/pope-francis-ugandan-martyrs-continue-to-proclaim- (...)

The Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, has backed the use of military intervention in the fight against Daesh (also known as ISIS, ISIL, or IS). His backing came during a debate at the Church of England’s General Synod this week on a motion about the refugee crisis.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2015/11/archbishop-of-canterbury-backs-military-in-fight-a (...)

The first Anglican theological college in Ethiopia, named after Saint Frumentius, has been officially opened by the Archbishop of Jerusalem and the Middle East, Mouneer Anis. Ethiopia is part of Archbishop Mouneer’s diocese of Egypt with North Africa and the Horn of Africa.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2015/11/archbishop-mouneer-anis-opens-ethiopias-first-angl (...)

Queen Elizabeth II has opened the 10th five-year-term of the Church of England’s General Synod with an address which spoke of major advances in Christian unity and the need for prayer for January’s Primates Meeting.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2015/11/queen-elizabeth-speaks-on-christian-unity-and-prim (...)

The Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, has spoken of the “utterly heart-breaking” attacks in Paris earlier this month, during an interview for the BBC television worship programme Songs of Praise.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2015/11/archbishop-welby-speaks-of-heartbreak-following-pa (...)

The United Nations climate change conference – Cop21 – begins next week in Paris, and there will be a large Anglican and ecumenical presence at the two-week event to lobby for a fair deal for the world’s poorest people – those most affected by catastrophic changes in the world’s climate.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2015/11/week-to-go-before-un-climate-talks-start.aspx

The Secretary General of the Anglican Communion, the Most Revd Josiah Idowu-Fearon, is inviting everyone to pray daily for the Bishops and Archbishops who will be getting together in Canterbury, 11-16 January.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2015/11/prayers-for-2016-gathering-and-meeting-of-primates (...)

A new book by the Anglican theologian Dr Elaine Storkey, Scars Across Humanity, documents her extensive research on gender-based violence against women and the role that the church plays – for good or ill – in the struggle against the global problem. It is being launched today in the Speaker’s rooms at the House of Commons in London.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2015/11/theologian-documents-global-scale-of-gender-based- (...)

Church leaders around the world have offered prayers and messages of solidarity after the series of terrorist attacks in Paris last night which left at least 127 people dead and many more fighting for their lives.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2015/11/prayers-and-solidarity-after-paris-attacks.aspx

Around 50 pilgrims have set off from central London this morning at the start of a 200-mile journey to Paris where they will call on world leaders from 190 nations at the UN Climate Change Conference – COP21 – to agree “a fair, ambitious and binding” agreement on tackling climate change.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2015/11/climate-justice-pilgrims-begin-200-mile-journey-fr (...)

A new Anglican congregation in Rabat has held its first confirmation service in what is believed to be the first such service in the Moroccan capital.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2015/11/history-made-with-first-anglican-confirmation-serv (...)

This was the first time that the Anglican and Reformed Communions have met in a formal dialogue at the global level since 1984, when the dialogue finalized its agreement statement, God's Reign and our Unity.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2015/11/communique-of-the-international-reformed-anglican- (...)

[Focus Magazine, Diocese of Southern Queensland] It’s been about one year since Bishop Daniel Abot answered a call from God to return to northern Africa to bring spiritual help and peace to a war-torn country.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2015/11/the-hell-from-whence-he-came.aspx

A global consultation on discrimination, persecution and martyrdom facing Christians in different parts of the world, that took place Albania this week, has been described as “significant” by the Bishop of Woolwich, a member of the Anglican Communion’s Network for Interfaith Concerns (NIFCON) management group.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2015/11/bishop-welcomes-significant-global-discussion-on-d (...)

The refugee crisis in Europe is the “largest crisis that Europe has had to face since World War II,” the Church of England’s suffragan Bishop of Europe, the Rt Revd David Hamid, told ACNS this week. And the bishop warned that churches, governments and agencies need to prepare for a “medium- to long-term situation” that is “not going to go away quickly.”

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2015/11/refugee-movement-is-largest-crisis-that-europe-has (...)

The overarching theme for the next year’s Anglican Consultative Council (ACC-16) meeting in Zambia, “Intentional Discipleship in a World of Differences”, has been chosen by the Standing Committee of the Anglican Communion as a response to daily Christian challenges.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2015/11/anglican-consultative-council-theme-highlights-cur (...)

Over a hundred lay people, priests and bishops will gather next April in Zambia for the 16th meeting of the Anglican Consultative Council (ACC).

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2015/11/one-hundred-lay-and-ordained-faith-leaders-to-meet (...)

The Episcopal Diocese of Jerusalem and the Middle East serves Jordan, Palestine, Israel, Syria and Lebanon. In this article, the Archbishop of Jerusalem, the Most Revd Suheil Dawani, reflects on the situation for refugees in the area.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/comment/2015/11/reflection-by-the-archbishop-in-jerusalem-on-th (...)

Bishop Graham Kings, Mission Theologian in the Anglican Communion, preaches during Solemn Evensong at Saint Thomas Church Fifth Avenue, New York.

Listen to his sermon here.

Visit the website of Saint Thomas Church Fifth Avenue, New York to see a full order of service.

Read in full at www.saintthomaschurch.org/calendar/events/worship/15258/solemn-evensong

Local communities in South America, who are facing an increasing battle to preserve their common lands from powerful corporations, are turning to practical theology to assist them in their struggle; as church leaders pledge to be “doers of the Word, not merely hearers of the Word."

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2015/10/practical-theology-is-tool-in-south-america-land-s (...)

The plight of refugees and the global issue of migration is the focus of a Lent study course produced by the Anglican mission agency United Society (Us).

The free five-week course, for Lent 2016, features stories from Brazil, Malawi, Myanmar and Zimbabwe, under the heading “Migration and Movement”; and also looks at the lives of Filipino migrants living in London.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2015/10/plight-of-refugees-is-examined-in-lent-study-cours (...)

The first woman to sit as a bishop in Britain’s parliament has taken her seat.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2015/10/all-eyes-on-bishops-benches-in-house-of-lords-as-f (...)

The lecture by Prof Galgalo, vice-chancellor of St Paul’s University in Limuru, Kenya, was the first in a new series of seminars organised by the Mission Theology in the Anglican Communion project.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2015/10/mission-theologian-in-the-anglican-communion-lectu (...)

The Diocese of West Malaysia in the Province of South East Asia has been implementing a special focus on discipleship, or Christian living, for the past six years and has now held a seminar for faith leaders to look back on and share good practice.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2015/10/making-real-life-disciples-in-malaysia.aspx

As representatives from almost 200 countries conclude their final round of negotiations in Bonn, Germany, this week, ahead of December’s UN-led international conference on climate change in Paris; a number of leading Anglicans and Episcopalians have put their name to a statement calling for an ambitious climate agreement.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2015/10/anglicans-join-interfaith-group-in-pushing-for-act (...)

We, the Primates and representatives of twelve Global South Provinces of the Anglican Communion, met in Cairo between the 14th and 16th of October. We represent the majority of the active membership of the Anglican Communion.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2015/10/communique-of-the-global-south-primates-cairo-egyp (...)

Graham Kings, the Archbishop of Canterbury’s Mission Theologian, is reaching out to the church’s ‘Global South’, writes Bess Twiston Davies.

Read in full at www.thetimes.co.uk/tto/faith/article4587996.ece

Women from the Anglican and United Churches of South Asia share achievements in their work with women and girls and explore challenges in seeking gender justice in their region.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2015/10/women-from-the-anglican-and-united-churches-of-sou (...)

Anglican churches are “deeply involved” in reconciliation work in conflict zones around the world, the Archbishop of Canterbury has said.

Speaking at the Council on Foreign Relations in Washington [yesterday, Tuesday 13 October], Archbishop Justin Welby said more than half of Anglican provinces are facing persecution or are in post-conflict or actual conflict.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2015/10/anglicans-have-reconciliation-in-our-dna-says-arch (...)

To quarrel is human, but God calls us to reconciliation.  It was a remarkable week last week therefore for Anglicans, when theologians from one of the oldest families of Christians, the Oriental Orthodox, came to together with Anglican representatives to try to settle some of their outstanding differences. 

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/comment/2015/10/to-quarrel-is-human,-but-god-calls-us-to-reconc (...)

A scheduled meeting of the bishops of East Asia has been cancelled, so that the budget can be spent instead on a gathering of young people from the region – such was the effect of the young people’s participation in the Full Assembly of the Council of Churches of East Asia (CCEA) last week.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2015/10/east-asia-young-peoples-message-of-hope-on-poverty (...)

Corruption is one of the main reasons the world’s poor stay shackled in extreme poverty – and churches and church leaders are in a “unique position” to help change that.

That was the challenge that Sir Anand Satyanand placed in front of the 400 people at the 2015 Missions Conference yesterday.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2015/10/missions-conference-time-to-set-the-wheels-in-moti (...)

It is worth hearing what God is telling us as a Church in this region amidst the issues of human suffering brought about by poverty, migration and human trafficking. These are life and death issues that the Church cannot afford to ignore if indeed it is a sacrament of hope and change in the world.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2015/10/behold-i-make-all-things-new.aspx

The Archbishop of South East Asia, the Most Revd Bolly Lapok, has called on Malaysia’s new education minister to apologise for “divisive and incendiary remarks” he made recently about Christians and Jews.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2015/10/bishop-critcises-malaysian-education-minister-over (...)

Almost 400 people jammed into the arena which is at the heart of King’s College Otahuhu on Tuesday for the powhiri [Māori welcoming ceremony] that launched the 2015 Common Life Missions Conference.

They came from all walks, and from all corners – including Africa, Australia, England and the Middle East – to reaffirm their convictions that mission involving every person in the Communion, is at the heart of Anglicanism.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2015/10/god-has-a-church-for-his-mission-anglican-mission- (...)

The Primate of Brazil has welcomed the United Nations’ new programme of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and has called on churches in the Province to adopt them so that they can “help to shape our communities into agents of transformation."

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2015/10/brazilian-primate-endorses-uns-sustainable-develop (...)

In this Episcopal News Video recorded during the Episcopal Asiamerica Ministries’ 30 Sept – 5 Oct international consultation in Seoul, the Most Revd Nathaniel Makota Uematsu, Primate of the Nippon Sei Ko Kai (The Anglican Communion in Japan), explains ways in which his church is living a call to reconciliation.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/multimedia/video-japanese-anglicans-live-out-a-call-to-reconcil (...)

This original photo shows a summer picnic, which, as the reverse of the photograph records, took place on 21 June 1873. The photograph includes Samuel Crowther (c.1807-1891), the first black Anglican bishop, consecrated bishop of Western Africa in 1864.

Read in full at lambethpalacelibrary.wordpress.com/2015/10/02/samuel-crowther-the-first-black-anglic (...)

[Episcopal Anglican Church of Brazil] As a dream come true, the youth of the Episcopal Anglican Church of Brazil (IEAB) gathered in Brasilia on 4-7 September 2015 for the National Meeting of the Anglican Youth Union (ENUJAB).

With the participation of 250 young people from all Dioceses and from the Missionary District, Portugal, Mozambique, Honduras and Dominican Republic, the 4-day meeting allowed participants to encounter God and to commit with strengthening the work of the provincial youth. 

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2015/10/focus-on-marks-of-mission-at-brazil-youth-congress (...)

First we need to welcome and help refugees.

In order to do this we need to put more and more pressure on governments in developed countries to accept more refugees. Lebanon, such a small country, with a population of 5 million people and a weak economy is hosting 1.5 million Syrian refugees. The rest of the neighbouring countries did the same.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/comment/2015/09/our-calling-welcome-refugees,-support-developme (...)

The first mission theologian in the Anglican Communion was commissioned during evensong at Canterbury Cathedral on Sunday September 13. The preacher, Archbishop Josiah Idowu-Fearon, the secretary general of the Anglican Communion described The Rt Rev Dr Graham Kings, formerly Bishop of Sherborne, as the right man to be given this assignment because of his experience in Kenya, Sudan, Bangladesh and the Philippines.

Read in full at anglicanmainstream.org/mission-theologian-commissioned-to-encourage-global-south-the (...)

The Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby has announced that he will open up the doors of Lambeth Palace in London, where he resides, to at least one or two refugee families. The Anglican leader reminded followers that Jesus Christ Himself was a refugee fleeing war and persecution.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2015/09/archbishop-welby-to-welcome-refugee-family-at-lamb (...)

[Diocese of Egypt] If the Islamic State is uprooting civilization, one response is to plant a tree.

At Palmyra in Syria, religious fanatics took an axe to the witness of generations past.

At Ismailia in Egypt, religious leaders take a shovel to secure a witness for generations future.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/features/2015/09/helping-peace-take-root-in-egypt.aspx

[Lambeth Palace] Archbishop Justin Welby commissioned the first members of the Community of St Anselm in a special service at Lambeth Palace [on Friday]. 

Thirty-six young men and women from across the UK and around the world [on Friday] became the first members of the Archbishop of Canterbury’s new monastic-inspired community at Lambeth Palace.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2015/09/archbishop-of-canterbury-launches-monastic-inspire (...)

[Anglican Alliance] The Anglican Alliance is encouraging the Provinces of the Communion to join in the call for the ambitious implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in all countries, for all people.

World leaders will meet 25-27 September in New York to adopt the SDGs to replace the Millennium Development Goals which expire at the end of 2015.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2015/09/anglican-communion-urged-to-join-movement-for-glob (...)

The Most Revd Josiah Idowu-Fearon, Secretary General of the Anglican Communion, has assured Bishop Graham Kings of support and prayers for his ministry as Mission Theologian in the Anglican Communion.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2015/09/mission-theologian-commissioned-for-ministry.aspx

The John Stott London Lecture: Intertwined Roots: Nourishing Radical Discipleship in Today’s Global Church and World

12th November 2015, 18:30 - 21:00, All Souls Langham Place
Lecturer: Ruth Padilla DeBorst.

In a world bent on limitless and unsustainable growth, in which leaders and churches are enticed to pursue status, wealth and image, the challenge facing followers of Jesus from North and South, East and West is to nourish the intimate, intertwined roots of radical discipleship as citizens of God’s kingdom and promoters of God’s justice.

Read in full at www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/intertwined-roots-nourishing-radical-discipleship-in-todays-g (...)

To many people, last weekend’s beatification of Benedict Daswa, a school teacher from the far north of South Africa killed for his rejection of witchcraft, was surprising. Anthony Egan SJ introduces Daswa and explains why the decision to make him South Africa’s first Beatus was somewhat controversial. What might be the significance of this beatification for the Southern African – and global – Church?

Read in full at www.thinkingfaith.org/articles/beatification-benedict-daswa

In a historical day for the Anglican Church of Tanzania, the Rev. Canon Hilda Kabia was installed as the first female principal of a theological college in the country.

Read in full at episcopaldigitalnetwork.com/ens/2015/09/16/tanzania-installation-of-first-female-the (...)

The Archbishop of Canterbury today wrote to all 37 Primates inviting them to attend a special Primates’ gathering in Canterbury to reflect and pray together concerning the future of the Anglican Communion.

Read in full at www.archbishopofcanterbury.org/articles.php/5613/archbishop-of-canterbury-calls-for- (...)

“The guns have to go silent, so that people have the time to reflect, heal and move forward toward a path of peace,” said Fr James Oyet Latansio, general secretary of the South Sudan Council of Churches (SSCC).

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2015/09/south-sudan-churches-providing-safe-spaces-for-dia (...)

The former Archbishop of Canterbury reflects on the politics of Pope Francis.

Read in full at www.newstatesman.com/politics/religion/2015/09/pope-masses-francis-really-people-s-c (...)

The Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, spoke in the House of Lords today in response to the Prime Minister's statement on Syrian refugees and counter-terrorism.

Read in full at www.archbishopofcanterbury.org/articles.php/5608/archbishop-speaks-in-house-of-lords (...)

The Standing Committee of the Anglican Consultative Council (ACC) is meeting 3-6 September at the Anglican Communion Office (ACO) in London. [The members of the Standing Committee can be seen at http://bit.ly/1hWqdwV.]

The committee approved the theme “Intentional Discipleship in a World of Differences” for ACC-16.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2015/09/2015-standing-committee-bulletin-day-3.aspx

The Standing Committee of the Anglican Consultative Council (ACC) is meetingt 3-6 September at the Anglican Communion Office (ACO) in London. [The members of the Standing Committee can be seen at http://bit.ly/1hWqdwV.]

The Standing Committee focused on finances, administration and strategic planning on the final day of its 2015 meeting.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2015/09/2015-standing-committee-bulletin-day-4.aspx

The Standing Committee of the Anglican Consultative Council (ACC) is meeting 3-6 September at the Anglican Communion Office (ACO) in London. [The members of the Standing Committee can be seen athttp://bit.ly/1hWqdwV.]

The committee also heard about the role of the new Mission Theologian in the Anglican Communion in the service of the Church Mission Society, the Theology Department of Durham University and the Archbishop of Canterbury. The aim is to develop capacity with CMS and the University of Durham to engage more fully with theologians in the global South. The committee agreed that the Secretary General will explore how to partner in this area, making the link with ACO theological work.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2015/09/2015-standing-committee-bulletin-day-2.aspx

The Most Revd Dr Josiah Idowu-Fearon was commissioned as Secretary General of the Anglican Communion on Friday, 4 September, in the Chapel of St Andrew at the Anglican Communion Office in London.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2015/09/new-anglican-communion-secretary-general-commissio (...)

Meet the Most Revd Josiah Idowu-Fearon, the new Secretary General of the Anglican Communion.

What was a defining moment in your ministry up until now?

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/features/2015/09/called-to-be-a-bridge-builder-for-the-lord.asp (...)

Anglican Archbishop Eliud Wabukala of Kenya, said churches should be proactive in lobbying for quick responses to global warming.

“Climate change is to blame for conflicts over resources and new epidemics,” said Wabukala.

“There will be no peace if we do not act to protect communities from negative impacts of climate change like hunger, water scarcity and loss of natural beauty,” added Wabukala.

Read in full at ncronline.org/blogs/eco-catholic/kenya-s-council-churches-launches-climate-change-ca (...)

The Primate of the Anglican Church of Southern Africa, Archbishop Dr Thabo Makgoba, emphasises the importance of training Anglicans for ministry.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2015/08/historic-move-towards-indigenous-province-within-a (...)

An interview with Archbishop Josiah Idowu-Fearon.

Read in full at www.christiantoday.com/article/meet.the.man.whos.in.charge.of.leading.85.million.chr (...)

Us (formerly USPG) is sending emergency funds to support the Anglican Church in Ethiopia as it reaches out to refugees fleeing war in South Sudan.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2015/08/ethiopia-anglican-church-continues-to-support-sout (...)

The Archbishop of Kenya, Dr Eliud Wabukala, presided at a “farewell” Eucharist at All Saints’ Cathedral in Nairobi yesterday (Sunday) ahead of his formal retirement on 26 June. Dr Wabukala, who has served as the Province’s Primate for seven years, received warm plaudits for his ministry and his fight against corruption as chairman of the National Anti-Corruption Campaign Steering Committee.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/05/primate-approaches-retirement-with-call-to-trust.a (...)

During a meeting with South Sudanese church leaders, including Archbishop Daniel Deng Bul of the Episcopal Church of South Sudan and Sudan, Pope Francis said that he wanted to visit the world’s newest country. South Sudan has been hit by wave after wave of violent conflict after it gained independence from Sudan in 2011. Yesterday (Thursday), Archbishop Daniel joined his Catholic and Presbyterian counterparts, Archbishop of Juba Paolino Lukudu Loro, and Moderator Peter Gai Lual Marrow at the Vatican for a private audience with Pope Francis.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/10/pope-francis-wants-to-visit-south-sudan.aspx

The Primates of the Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia have established a working group to identify “structural arrangements” which would allow all those with differing views on same-sex relationships to remain in the Church. The working group was requested by the Province’s General Synod earlier this year when it postponed a decision on the A Way Forward report until the 2018 Synod.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/10/structural-arrangements-sought-to-keep-sides-in-sa (...)

Following an August retreat in Panama with representatives from the different regions of Latin America and the Caribbean, Episcopal and Anglican leaders in theological education are clear that training must include analysis of regional problems so that clergy can perform quality pastoral work.

Read in full at episcopaldigitalnetwork.com/ens/2016/10/26/cetalc-considers-regional-issues-in-theol (...)

The official dialogue between the Anglican Communion and the Oriental Orthodox Churches have reached further agreement on the theological understanding of the Holy Spirit. The Anglican Oriental Orthodox International Commission met last week in Lebanon, Beirut, to consider their consideration of the Holy Spirit, which began last year in Wales.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/10/anglicans-and-oriental-orthodox-theologians-reach- (...)

Commemorations of next year’s 500th anniversary of the Reformation – which led to the separation of protestant churches from the Catholic Church – have begun with a combined prayer service in Lund Cathedral, Sweden, attended by Pope Francis and the Revd Dr Martin Junge, general secretary of the Lutheran World Federation. The participation of Pope Francis at the start of the year of commemorations is hugely significant and symbolises the growing ecumenical thaw which has been taking place over the past 50 years.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/10/catholics-and-lutherans-commemorate-the-reformatio (...)

The importance of investing in young people for the future of the Church was one of the messages to emerge from the Anglicans Ablaze conference, held earlier this month in Cape Town, South Africa. The Anglican Communion News Service (ACNS) has now published two videos by African journalist Bellah Zulu which go behind the scenes of the biennial event. Organised by the Anglican Province of Southern Africa, Anglicans Ablaze is now attracting visitors from around the world.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/10/jesus-christ-is-unique-selling-point-in-churchs-nu (...)

Members of the US-based Episcopal Church are being asked to stand in solidarity with the Standing Rock Sioux Nation in their opposition to the Dakota Access Pipeline construction project. Clergy and laity from across the Episcopal Church have been invited to stand on the banks of the Missouri River in North Dakota on Thursday (3 November) as protests continue. The plea was issued as the Standing Rocking Sioux Nation tribal chair, Dave Archambault II, asked the US Attorney General Loretta Lynch to investigate “potential civil rights violations” involving law enforcement’s response to the protests.

Read in full at www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/10/church-called-to-stand-with-standing-rock-sioux-na (...)