September ~ 2014 ~ Anglican-Roman Catholic news & opinion
King Richard III ruled for two short years, between 1483 and 1485, before he was defeated by the future Henry VII during the Battle of Bosworth, according to Biography. The usurper’s son, Henry VIII, was the king who severed his country’s ties with papal authority, creating the Church of England which is now known around the world as the Anglican Communion. Historical sources suggested Richard was buried in the Grey Friars church, close to the battle site but far from his ancestral home in York. The church was destroyed in the 1530s and Richard’s gravesite remained lost for nearly 500 years. Two years ago, his bones were discovered in a Leicester parking lot. Richard is currently the only English monarch without a marked grave. Now, centuries later, Catholic and Anglican clergy are working together to give the last king of England’s Plantagenet dynasty a proper funeral.
Church of England cricketers beat a Vatican team on Friday in a historic match in support of a joint initiative to wipe out modern slavery and human trafficking. The Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, congratulated both sides and presented the trophy to winning captain Stephen Gray after the match, played in the shadow of Canterbury Cathedral at Kent County Cricket Ground. The match was organized to raise awareness and funds for the Global Freedom Network, a joint initiative between religious leaders including Pope Francis and the Archbishop of Canterbury which is committed to eliminating modern slavery and human trafficking across the world.