Scanning is becoming easier

Scanning is becoming easier. The earliest scans in this archive were made in 2008 using a flatbed scanner. 18,000 individual JPEGs were later inserted into PDF files for posting. By 2013, when scanning at the Anglican Centre in Rome, I was able to use a photocopier directly to create a PDF, but these scans had only 200 dpi resolution and no colour or lighting correction.

In 2016, I used a DSLR camera in the Lambeth Palace Library to photograph 1,200 pages of documents. These later needed to be cropped and inserted into PDFs; however, the JPEGs were of high quality, and colour correction was a little easier. The quality was sufficient for the new Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software to produce some full-text, but there was significant proofreading required.

In 2019, I spent a weekend at the Anglican Centre in Rome, where I experimented with Adobe Scan on a tablet. Adobe Scan includes automatic lighting and colour correction, deskewing, OCR, and PDF creation. The only problem was that it took much longer to scan each document and to transfer it to my backup disk.

In 2024, I scanned numerous documents at the Anglican Communion Office using a Toshiba photocopier onto a flash drive. I scanned at 600 dpi in black and white, directly to PDF. In many cases, the documents could be fed through the sheet feeder, allowing scans of many double-sided pages quickly. The Toshiba scanning algorithm adjusts lighting better than Adobe or any of the earlier scanning techniques. Toshiba can also include OCR during the same scan, but their OCR is not as advanced as Adobe Acrobat.

I am now loading each PDF in Acrobat Pro, and then using the Compress features to optimise, deskew, OCR, and compress the files. It only takes a few moments, even for long documents. Hopefully, this will make the PDF texts easier to search using online tools such as Google. It does make it easier to copy text from these documents, although proofreading is always necessary, especially for older documents using unfamiliar fonts.

Pope reaffirms commitment to ecumenical, interreligious dialogue

During a special audience with religious leaders who came to Rome for the inauguration of his papal ministry, Pope Leo XIV vowed to continue working towards Christian unity and promoting dialogue among all religions.

“Now is the time for dialogue and building bridges,” the pope said May 19 as he met with the leaders in the Clementine Hall of the Apostolic Palace.

His guests included Orthodox Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople, Orthodox Patriarch Theophilos III of Jerusalem, and Catholicos Awa III, patriarch of the Assyrian Church of the East, as well as Anglican, Methodist, and Lutheran leaders. Representatives of the Jewish, Muslim, Buddhist, Sikh, and Jain communities also attended.

Priority to Seek ‘Full’ Communion

“As bishop of Rome,” Pope Leo told them, “I consider one of my priorities to be that of seeking the reestablishment of full and visible communion among all those who profess the same faith in God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.”

Full Christian unity must be based on unity in faith, he said, noting how his election took place in the year that Christians are celebrating the 1,700th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea, which “represents a milestone in the formulation of the Creed shared by all churches and ecclesial communities.”

The late Pope Francis had been planning to travel to Iznik, Turkey, site of the ancient city of Nicaea, to commemorate the anniversary with Patriarch Bartholomew. A Vatican official said planning is underway for Pope Leo to make the trip.

“Unity has always been a constant concern of mine,” the new pope told his guests, pointing to the motto he chose when he became a bishop in 2014: “‘In Illo uno unum,’ an expression of St. Augustine of Hippo that reminds us how we, too, although we are many, ‘in the One — that is Christ — we are one.’”

‘Pray, Work Together to Reach Goal’

Pope Leo told the Christian leaders that “the more faithful and obedient we are” to Jesus, “the more united we are among ourselves. We Christians, then, are all called to pray and work together to reach this goal, step by step, which is and remains the work of the Holy Spirit.”

“As bishop of Rome,” he said, “I consider one of my priorities to be that of seeking the reestablishment of full and visible communion among all those who profess the same faith in God the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.”

“Aware, moreover, that synodality and ecumenism are closely linked, I would like to assure you of my intention to continue Pope Francis’ commitment to promoting the synodal nature of the Catholic Church and developing new and concrete forms for an ever stronger synodality in ecumenical relations,” he said.

Pope Francis and many ecumenical leaders focused on how synodality — literally “walking together,” listening to one another and valuing the gifts and talents of all — could help Christians see how much they have in common and how they must work together to bring the Gospel to world.

Everyone Is a Child of God

Pope Leo also praised Pope Francis’ emphasis on how, since everyone is a child of God, they are brothers and sisters to each other.

“The witness of our fraternity, which I hope we will be able to show with effective gestures, will certainly contribute to building a more peaceful world, something that all men and women of goodwill desire in their hearts,” the pope told the religious leaders.

“In a world wounded by violence and conflict,” he said, “each of the communities represented here brings its own contribution of wisdom, compassion and commitment to the good of humanity and the preservation of our common home.”

Working together “and free from ideological and political conditioning,” he said, “we can be effective in saying ‘no’ to war and ‘yes’ to peace, ‘no’ to the arms race and ‘yes’ to disarmament, ‘no’ to an economy that impoverishes peoples and the Earth and ‘yes’ to integral development.”

Jewish and Muslim Representatives

Pope Leo had special words of gratitude for the Jewish and Muslim representatives and pledged to continue the dialogue that began with their communities 60 years ago with the publication of the Second Vatican Council’s document, “Nostra Aetate,” on relations with other religions.

The document, the pope said, “emphasises the greatness of the spiritual heritage shared by Christians and Jews, encouraging mutual knowledge and esteem.”

“The theological dialogue between Christians and Jews remains ever important and close to my heart,” he said. “Even in these difficult times, marked by conflicts and misunderstandings, it is necessary to continue the momentum of this precious dialogue of ours.”

The “growing commitment to dialogue and fraternity” between Christians and Muslims is also important, he said. The dialogue, “based on mutual respect and freedom of conscience, is a solid foundation for building bridges between our communities.”

Through papal funeral, Christ proclaimed living Saviour for all

Bishop Philip Freier was Anglican Archbishop of Melbourne, Australia from 2006 until February 2025.

I thought that travelling to Thursday Island in the Torres Strait was a big trip to make when I responded to Bishop Keith Joseph’s invitation to preside at the Easter services at the Old Cathedral of All Souls and St Bartholomew this year. Little did I realise that just a few days after Easter I would receive a request from the Anglican Communion Office to be part of the Anglican representation at Pope Francis’ funeral in Rome the following weekend.

Planning had to proceed quickly, and I flew out on the Wednesday on flight legs that added up to around 24 hours in the air before arriving in Rome on the Thursday afternoon. Our delegation, led by the Primate of Brazil, Archbishop Marinez Bassotto, assembled at the Anglican Centre, Rome before we were taken to St Peter’s Basilica to pray where Pope Francis’ body lay in state in an open coffin.

From my discussions with people and our group as we’d gathered at the airport, I could sense the mix of solemnity and celebration as people remembered Pope Francis and anticipated his funeral. I met Pope Francis 10 years ago when on a visit to the Anglican Centre in Rome I attended one of the regular Wednesday papal audiences in St Peter’s Square, along with Archbishop David Moxon, the then Director of the ACR.

I was introduced to the Pope, and he was keen to ask for my prayer. I thought that this was a humble response from someone who had such a public and international role. It has certainly given all the members of ARCIC III, the international theological dialogue between Anglicans and Catholics that I co-chair, encouragement to carry out our work in the knowledge that the leaders of our respective Communions approach the hurts and divisions of the past as wounds to be healed and to treat them as ones that can be overcome by love and shared Christian discipleship.

The ARCIC meeting that was intended to be hosted in Melbourne this month needed to be deferred to October on account of the death of the Pope and the then subsequent vacancy in the See of Rome. So significant is the sense that we carry out our work on behalf of the whole church that the period of sede vacante puts such discussions on hold. This was even more significant since this was the first time since 1691 that both sees of Rome and Canterbury had been vacant at the same time.

I was glad that our group that gathered to represent the Anglican Communion included the chair and deputy chair of the Anglican Consultative Council, the General Secretary of the Communion, the Archbishop of York and the Bishop of London amongst others. I was also pleased we could be joined by the new Director of the ACR, Bishop Anthony Ball and the Bishop in Europe who co-chairs IARCCUM, an international enactment of journeying together between Catholic and Anglican pairs of bishops across many regions and nations.

The scene from our seats on the dais level of St Peter’s Square was truly breathtaking. To our right were crowds of people that seemed to defy numbering, filling the square and as far down the Via Della Conciliazione as the eye could see. Ahead of us international leaders, Monarchs, Prime Ministers and Presidents filed in and took their places. Immediately to our left were the bishops and cardinals of the Catholic Church, I was glad to speak with Archbishop Timothy Costelloe of Perth and Bishop Joe Caddy of Cairns as the crowds dispersed after the funeral. Swiss Guards still wearing their Medici coloured uniforms of blue, yellow and red were in ceremonial attendance and the whole atmosphere was electric for the duration of the requiem Eucharist. The committal prayers were led by the eastern-rite Catholic prelates including Cardinal Mykola Bychok of Melbourne.

All this was on account of the life and death of just one person, Pope Francis. Certainly, he held the highest office in the Catholic Church, but I think foremost in the hearts of many in attendance, there was a recognition that he lived and spoke Christ’s love and mercy. Thankfulness to our Lord was evident in the responses of the many people with whom I spoke. I was glad to see a Christian man so amazingly honoured and through that Christ proclaimed as a living Saviour for all people and in all times.

A Statement from the Director of the Anglican Centre in Rome and the Archbishop of Canterbury’s Representative to the Holy See

Together with our Roman Catholic siblings and other Christians in Rome and around the world, Anglicans enthusiastically, welcome the ‘gaudium magnum’ announced yesterday from the balcony of St Peter’s Basilica: the election of His Holiness Pope Leo XIV as the 267th Bishop of Rome.

We offer our heartfelt prayers and support as the new Holy Father begins his singular Petrine ministry in service of the global Church, particularly in this age of war, poverty, mass migration, division and distrust, in which those who suffer most are the innocent and most vulnerable among us. We are encouraged by the first words of his papacy: ‘La pace sia con tutti voi! [Peace be with you all!] This is the peace of the Risen Christ: a disarmed and disarming peace, a humble and preserving peace. It comes from God – God, who loves all of us, without any limits or conditions.’

Giving thanks for his wide international pastoral experience and dedication to social justice, we are grateful for Pope Leo’s call! for a Church of bridgebuilders. Such a vision has motivated the mission and ministry of the Anglican Centre in Rome for nearly 60 years. This call serves to renew our commitment to our long-standing and friendly collaboration with the Catholic Church, building bridges through ecumenical dialogue towards that full, visible unity to which Christ calls us.

As we begin this new chapter in our ecumenical mission in Rome, I am excited for the journey ahead, embracing and affirming the words of Pope Leo XIV: ‘Therefore, without fear, united, hand in hand with God and with one another, let us go forward!’

Bishop Anthony Ball
9th May, 2025

Biography of Pope Leo XIV, born Robert Francis Prevost

Prior to his election as Pope Leo XIV, Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost was Prefect of the Dicastery for Bishops. Here is the biography of the 267th Bishop of Rome.

The first Augustinian Pope, Leo XIV is the second Roman Pontiff – after Pope Francis – from the Americas. Unlike Jorge Mario Bergoglio, however, the 69-year-old Robert Francis Prevost is from the northern part of the continent, though he spent many years as a missionary in Peru before being elected head of the Augustinians for two consecutive terms.

First Augustinian Pope

The new Bishop of Rome was born on September 14, 1955, in Chicago, Illinois, to Louis Marius Prevost, of French and Italian descent, and Mildred Martínez, of Spanish descent. He has two brothers, Louis Martín and John Joseph.

He spent his childhood and adolescence with his family and studied first at the Minor Seminary of the Augustinian Fathers and then at Villanova University in Pennsylvania, where in 1977 he earned a Degree in Mathematics and also studied Philosophy.

On September 1 of the same year, Prevost entered the novitiate of the Order of Saint Augustine (O.S.A.) in Saint Louis, in the Province of Our Lady of Good Counsel of Chicago, and made his first profession on September 2, 1978. On August 29, 1981, he made his solemn vows.

The future Pontiff received his theological education at the Catholic Theological Union in Chicago. At the age of 27, he was sent by his superiors to Rome to study Canon Law at the Pontifical University of Saint Thomas Aquinas (Angelicum).

In Rome, he was ordained a priest on June 19, 1982, at the Augustinian College of Saint Monica by Archbishop Jean Jadot, then pro-president of the Secretariat for Non-Christians, which later became the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue and then the Dicastery for Interreligious Dialogue.

Prevost obtained his licentiate in 1984 and the following year, while preparing his doctoral thesis, was sent to the Augustinian mission in Chulucanas, Piura, Peru (1985–1986). In 1987, he defended his doctoral thesis on “The Role of the Local Prior in the Order of Saint Augustine” and was appointed vocation director and missions director of the Augustinian Province of “Mother of Good Counsel” in Olympia Fields, Illinois (USA).

Mission in Peru

The following year, he joined the mission in Trujillo, also in Peru, as director of the joint formation project for Augustinian candidates from the vicariates of Chulucanas, Iquitos, and Apurímac.

Over the course of eleven years, he served as prior of the community (1988–1992), formation director (1988–1998), and instructor for professed members (1992–1998), and in the Archdiocese of Trujillo as judicial vicar (1989–1998) and professor of Canon Law, Patristics, and Moral Theology at the Major Seminary “San Carlos y San Marcelo.” At the same time, he was also entrusted with the pastoral care of Our Lady Mother of the Church, later established as the parish of Saint Rita (1988–1999), in a poor suburb of the city, and was parish administrator of Our Lady of Monserrat from 1992 to 1999.

In 1999, he was elected Provincial Prior of the Augustinian Province of “Mother of Good Counsel” in Chicago, and two and a half years later, the ordinary General Chapter of the Order of Saint Augustine, elected him as Prior General, confirming him in 2007 for a second term.

In October 2013, he returned to his Augustinian Province in Chicago, serving as director of formation at the Saint Augustine Convent, first councilor, and provincial vicar—roles he held until Pope Francis appointed him on November 3, 2014, as Apostolic Administrator of the Peruvian Diocese of Chiclayo, elevating him to the episcopal dignity as Titular Bishop of Sufar.

He entered the Diocese on November 7, in the presence of Apostolic Nuncio James Patrick Green, who ordained him Bishop just over a month later, on December 12, the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, in the Cathedral of Saint Mary.

His episcopal motto is “In Illo uno unum”—words pronounced by Saint Augustine in a sermon on Psalm 127 to explain that “although we Christians are many, in the one Christ we are one.”

Bishop of Chiclayo, Peru,  from 2015 to 2023

On September 26, 2015, he was appointed Bishop of Chiclayo by Pope Francis. In March 2018, he was elected second vice-president of the Peruvian Episcopal Conference, where he also served as a member of the Economic Council and president of the Commission for Culture and Education.

In 2019, Pope Francis appointed him a member of the Congregation for the Clergy (July 13, 2019), and in 2020, a member of the Congregation for Bishops (November 21). Meanwhile, on April 15, 2020, he was also appointed Apostolic Administrator of the Peruvian Diocese of Callao.

Prefect of the Dicastery for Bishops

On January 30, 2023, the Pope called him to Rome as Prefect of the Dicastery for Bishops and President of the Pontifical Commission for Latin America, promoting him to the rank of Archbishop.

Created Cardinal in 2024

Pope Francis created him Cardinal in the Consistory of September 30 that year and  assigned him the Diaconate of Saint Monica. He officially took possession of it on January 28, 2024.

As head of the Dicastery, he participated in the Pope’s most recent Apostolic Journeys and in both the first and second sessions of the 16th Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops on synodality, held in Rome from October 4 to 29, 2023, and from October 2 to 27, 2024, respectively.

Meanwhile, on October 4, 2023, Pope Francis appointed him as a member of the Dicasteries for Evangelization (Section for First Evangelization and New Particular Churches), for the Doctrine of the Faith, for the Eastern Churches, for the Clergy, for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life, for Culture and Education, for Legislative Texts, and of the Pontifical Commission for the Vatican City State.

Finally, on February 6 of this year, the Argentine Pope promoted him to the Order of Bishops, granting him the title of the Suburbicarian Church of Albano.

Three days later, on February 9, he celebrated the Mass presided over by Pope Francis in St. Peter’s Square for the Jubilee of the Armed Forces, the second major event of the Holy Year of Hope.

During the most recent hospitalization of his predecessor at the “Gemelli” hospital, Prevost presided over the Rosary for Pope Francis’s health in Saint Peter’s Square on March 3.

A message of encouragement from the Secretary General on the election of Pope Leo XIV

The Secretary General of the Anglican Communion, the Rt Revd Anthony Poggo, has shared a message of encouragement on the election of Pope Leo XIV. The statement reads:

With great joy, we welcome the election and appointment of Pope Leo XIV, the 267th Pope and Bishop of Rome.

On behalf of the worldwide Anglican Communion, we share our prayers, celebration and encouragement as His Holiness takes up his global ministry in service of the Church.

May he lead with faithfulness, vision and courage, embodying the Christian values of peace and justice in service of mission and evangelisation.

At this point in history, the world and the Church face significant challenges. Crises of mass migration, war, poverty and division press upon us all. As ever, the most innocent and vulnerable in our societies suffer most severely.

We welcome Pope Leo’s commitment to building bridges through dialogue, and his summons to all the faithful to visible unity without fear.

The Anglican Communion remains committed to our collaboration with the Catholic Church in the friendship of Jesus, sustained by our formal ecumenical institutions and the pioneering ministry of the Anglican Centre in Rome.

The Anglican–Roman Catholic International Commission (ARCIC) and the International Anglican–Roman Catholic Commission on Unity and Mission (IARCCUM) help us to think and grow together. Anglicans and Roman Catholics look to these commissions — and the friendships that they enable —  in the spirit of Saint Augustine’s summons to the Communion of Love, founded in the whole Christ.

We pray that God will grant Pope Leo the strength to lead wisely and we assure him of our open arms in return. May we meet the Lord together again, as he comes to us and bids us not to be afraid (John 6:20).

Amen

WCC congratulates Pope Leo XIV

The World Council of Churches (WCC) extended ecumenical greetings to Pope Leo XIV and an assurance of continuing engagement with the Roman Catholic Church in the era of its new pontiff.

WCC moderator of the central committee, Bishop Prof. Dr Heinrich Bedford-Strohm, expressed joy and hope. “As successor of Pope Francis, he will move in a strong tradition,” said Bedford-Strohm. “I expect him to continue Pope Francis’ witness of love towards all people, especially those most vulnerable, and of love for nonhuman creation.”

Bedford-Strohm noted that a strong global voice for human dignity and overcoming violence is urgently needed. “I am confident that the new pope will be such a strong voice,” he said. “As the WCC, we work together with the Roman Catholic Church with great mutual friendship and appreciation. I am looking forward to many encounters both with the new pope and all others who strive for a visible unity at the churches in reconciled diversity.”

WCC general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Jerry Pillay said that the WCC global fellowship gives thanks to God that the Roman Catholic Church has, through its cardinals, concluded the process of choosing a new pope. “We recognise that this is no easy task and one that requires prayer, discernment, and wisdom to elect such a spiritual leader who is, indeed, not merely limited to the Roman Catholic Church but looked upon by the world for wisdom and leadership,” said Pillay. “We congratulate the new pope and pray God’s blessings, health, strength, and wisdom upon him as he assumes this holy office.”

Pillay added: “We trust that he would continue to strengthen ecumenical collaboration, Christian unity, justice and peace in the world. We live in a world of multiple crises; together we can make a difference through the transformative power of the Holy Spirit. The WCC remains committed to praying, walking, and working together with the Roman Catholic Church, all Christians, different faiths, and all people of goodwill in our endeavour to bring God’s peace and love on earth.”

The Roman Catholic Church is not a member of the WCC, but the instrument of the Joint Working Group, established in 1965, has fostered close cooperation. Delegates and observers are exchanged at the time of major meetings, and the Catholic Church is formally represented in such WCC-administered bodies as the Faith and Order Commission and the Commission on World Mission and Evangelism.

Bishop Anthony Ball commissioned as the director of the Anglican Centre in Rome in Eucharist service

A Holy Eucharist service was held in Rome to mark the commissioning of the Rt Revd Anthony Ball as the director of the Anglican Centre in Rome. It was held on May 6, 2025.

The Anglican Centre in Rome is the permanent Anglican Communion presence in Rome. It embodies the Anglican Communion’s commitment to the full visible unity of the Church, with a particular focus on building trusted relationships with the Catholic Church and advancing shared ecumenical priorities.

As director, Bishop Anthony Ball will lead the Centre alongside his role as the representative of the Archbishop of Canterbury to the Holy See, playing a key role in the interface between the Anglican Communion and the Catholic Church.

The commissioning service gathered people of many Christian traditions in the chapel of Saint Augustine of Canterbury at the Anglican Centre in Rome. Bishop Anthony reflected on the service, observing that “Perhaps inevitably, I have a sense of trepidation coming into the role at such a time. The service helped dispel some of that – it felt like a family coming together to encourage one of their own.”

During the service, the Most Revd Flavio Pace, of the Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity, offered a greeting on behalf of the Holy See and was followed by representatives of other groups with which the Centre works.  The Chairman of the Governors of the Centre, The Rt Revd Michael Burrows of the Diocese of Tuam, Limerick, and Killaloe, gave the address.

Bishop Michael Burrows stated in his sermon, “We heard much at the papal funeral about the importance of building bridges rather than walls. […] In a very special way, the Director of this Centre builds and reinforces bridges on behalf of all Anglicans between Canterbury and Rome […] and he’s just the person to make the very best and most exciting use of a genuinely, strangely, blank canvas.”

Commenting on the position he will be taking up, Bishop Anthony told the Anglican Communion News Service, “I carry my many ideas, hopes, and dreams for the future into my position at the Anglican Centre in Rome. I feel excited now to have been commissioned and to start on this journey, on this pilgrimage, with a family around me.”

Bishop Anthony began a period of transition in January this year when his predecessor, Archbishop Ian Earnest, stepped down. During this time, he was instrumental in assisting the Anglican Communion delegation through the events of Pope Francis’ funeral last month. At the time of the Pope’s death, he stated, “The Anglican Centre in Rome and those we represent have particular cause to be grateful for his generosity of spirit and commitment to fostering greater unity and collaboration.” Bishop Anthony will be moving to live full-time in Rome later in the year as this transitional period concludes.

About Bishop Anthony Ball

Bishop Anthony was born in Southern Africa and joined the [UK] Diplomatic Service after studying at the University of Durham. Whilst posted with the British Embassy in Damascus, he was the Archbishop of Canterbury’s representative to the heads of the Orthodox Churches in Syria and Lebanon. He has held positions in the Middle East, Spain, Egypt, and England, many of which involved responsibility for ecumenical relationships.

He served for a time at Lambeth Palace, where he held responsibility for advising on Anglican Communion, ecumenical, interreligious, and international relations before serving as the Archbishop’s Chaplain. Bishop Anthony had been serving at Westminster Abbey as Canon Steward and Archdeacon of Westminster and as the Bishop of the Diocese of North Africa in the Province of Alexandria, having previously been an Assistant Bishop in the Diocese of Egypt.

In his current role at Westminster Abbey, he has oversight of hospitality and welcome to visitors and pilgrims and responsibility for pastoral care as well as being the lead clergy person for the Abbey’s interreligious relationships. Previously, he held roles of Canon Rector, Rector of St Margaret’s Church, Almoner, and Sub-Dean. Before coming to the Abbey, he was Rector of Worth, Pound Hill, and Maidenbower in West Sussex, also holding the role of Anglican Chaplain at Worth School.

Bishop Anthony has held several roles in the charity and education sectors, including Chair of Trustees of the Christian development charity ‘Embrace the Middle East’; the Chair of Governors of Westminster City School; a Trustee of the United Westminster and Grey Coat Foundation; a Trustee of the Christian-Muslim Forum; and Co-Chair of the Council of Christians and Jews’ Central London Branch. He currently chairs the Jerusalem and the Middle East Church Association and serves on the UK Advisory Board of the Abraham Initiatives.

Read about the work of the Anglican Centre in Rome.

11,000 people take part in consultations for the next Archbishop of Canterbury

More than 11,000 people have participated in the consultations for the next Archbishop of Canterbury – carried out online, by post and in person between February and March this year.

The public consultation was a unique opportunity to influence the future of leadership within the Church, helping to discern the gifts, skills and qualities required in the 106th Archbishop of Canterbury to meet the needs of the Church today and in the years to come.

The themes that emerge through this consultation will sit alongside the ‘Statement of Needs’ produced by the Diocese of Canterbury, as well as other information provided by the National Church and Anglican Communion. This information will inform the Canterbury Crown Nominations Commission of the needs of the mission of the Church of England and the wider Anglican Communion.

At a glance

1. Secretaries’ Consultations – the Archbishops’ Secretary for Appointments and the Prime Minister’s Appointments Secretary met with over 350 individuals during the consultation period, including representatives of other Christian traditions and non-Christian traditions, parliamentarians, leaders from public life, and those who minister, work and worship across the Church of England and the Anglican Communion.
2. Children and Young People Consultations – over 1,200 children and young people participated in consultations conducted by the National Society for Education and the Appointments Secretaries.
3. Online Public Consultations – the online consultation form received over 9,600 responses.
4. Written Public Consultations – over 160 pieces of written correspondence (e.g. emails and letters) were received.

Bishop voices ‘sadness’ at continuing eucharistic separation

Week of Prayer for Christian Unity

The fact that Anglicans and Catholics are not able to receive the Eucharist together yet is a matter of sadness,” the Bishop of Ossory Niall Coll said at the start of the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity.

In his homily at an Anglican Eucharist in St Canice’s Cathedral, Kilkenny last weekend, Bishop Coll said the Church of Ireland liturgy, as well as his attendance at a meeting of the International Anglican-Roman Catholic Commission for Unity and Mission last year, were the “most moving experiences” of spiritual communion for him.

He told the congregation he hoped they would be “a further impetus to continue our ecumenical journey together so that we might one day break bread together around the same altar”.

Read the rest of this article in The Tablet

Anglican Communion starts ‘long process of resolution’

The Anglican Communion is moving “from a season of raw and antagonistic division to one of reckoning with what will likely be a long process of resolution”, the Inter-Anglican Standing Commission on Unity, Faith and Order (IASCUFO) has said.

The body met in Kuala Lumpur from 6 to 12 December, and released a communiqué on 18 December in which it wrote that members had “wrestled” with their divisions, and felt that “we may now be able to face our theological differences and associated fractures more productively, as we seek responsible and creative ways to remain together, albeit to varying degrees.”

The body has an advisory position in the Communion, and is formed of 18 members, drawn from six continents. About two-thirds of the members come from countries considered to be part of the global South.

Read the rest of this article in Church Times

IASCUFO Communiqué: ‘Facing our theological differences more productively’

A meeting of the Inter-Anglican Standing Commission on Unity, Faith and Order (IASCUFO) gathered in Kuala Lumpur from 6-12 December. Hosted by the Right Revd Steven Abbarow and the Diocese of West Malaysia, the meeting was also attended by the Secretary General of the Anglican Communion, the Right Revd Anthony Poggo.

IASCUFO is supported by the Anglican Communion Office and chaired by the Right Revd Dr Graham Tomlin of the Church of England. It is one of the main places where the Anglican Communion does its theological and ecclesiological reflection. Its membership is composed of a diverse group from across the Anglican Communion, incorporating a range of viewpoints from Africa, Asia, South and North America, Europe, and Australia.

IASCUFO’s Kuala Lumpur gathering followed the recent publication of the paper The Nairobi-Cairo Proposals: Renewing the Instruments of the Anglican Communion on December 6, 2024. They are the result of a long-term piece of work, commissioned at the Anglican Consultative Council (ACC-18) in 2023 to explore “structure and decision-making to help address [our] differences in the Anglican Communion.”  A draft of the paper was discussed at the Primates’ meeting in April 2024, and will be considered at the 19^th meeting of the Anglican Consultative Council in 2026.

• Read the full IASCUFO Communiqué 2024
• Read the news announcement about The Nairobi-Cairo Proposals
• Learn more about The Nairobi-Cairo Proposals

During the meeting, the Commission discussed plans to aid the reception of The Nairobi-Cairo Proposals around the Anglican Communion. A communiqué summarising the meeting and its hopes reports that the Commission “sensed that the Communion may be moving from a season of raw and antagonistic division to one of reckoning with what will likely be a long process of resolution. We may now be able to face our theological differences and associated fractures more productively, as we seek responsible and creative ways to remain together, albeit to varying degrees.”

The communiqué goes on to say that “IASCUFO’s entire membership, which includes members of Churches of the Global South Fellowship of Anglican Churches (GSFA), welcomes the GSFA’s commitment to stay within the Anglican Communion. We value its voluntary intensification of fellowship within the Communion as a potential source of renewal and fresh missional energy, the fruits of which may inspire others (see Nairobi-Cairo Proposals, §§8, 56, 68-69). Despite our divisions, the Anglican Communion needs to find ways for the contribution of the GSFA to be more fully recognised and received within its wider life and mission.”

Following the meeting, Bishop Tomlin said: “We give thanks for the work that we have done together and that we are still engaged in, seeking common ground on ways forward in handling differences within our common life as Anglicans. Our discussions have been an opportunity for learning from one another, as well as wrestling with challenging questions around Anglican identity and unity. It is our heartfelt prayer that the Holy Spirit will use the Nairobi-Cairo proposals to build bridges across our divisions, to strengthen our life in Christ together, in order to serve the mission God has called us to in his world.”

In a recent comment about The Nairobi-Cairo Proposals, Bishop Poggo said: “The Anglican Consultative Council commissioned IASCUFO’s work in 2023. The Nairobi-Cairo Proposals are the result of international collaboration, representing diverse voices from around the Communion. They are offered to strengthen our global Anglican family. I pray that they will be received with prayerful consideration in the months ahead.”

Living Ecumenism: Communion in Mission | One Body

The years following the closure of the Second Vatican Council in 1965 witnessed an explosion of bilateral ecumenical dialogues between various churches. Among these is the International Anglican-Roman Catholic Commission for Unity and Mission (IARCCUM), which traces its origins to a consultation of Anglican and Roman Catholic bishops in May 2000. It holds a unique place which may offer hope for renewed ecumenical progress.

Mississauga Consultation

Pope St. John Paul II and Archbishop of Canterbury Dr. George Carey signed a Common Declaration when Carey visited Rome in December, 1996. In response to that declaration, Carey and Cardinal Edward Cassidy, President of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity (PCPCU), invited pairs of Anglican and Catholic bishops from around the world to gather at a retreat house in Mississauga, ON. Chosen by their fellow bishops to represent their respective Anglican Province or Episcopal Conference, they met to evaluate the state of Anglican-Roman Catholic relations and to chart a course for the future.

Grounded in prayer, the consultation began with a time of retreat, a shared meditation on conversion, communion, and a renewal of baptismal promises. On alternate days, the Eucharist, Morning Prayer, and Evening Prayer were celebrated according to the tradition of each communion. Making use of a theological reflection model based on experience, the gathering was designed with a minimum of input from other presenters at the consultation. Among the goals identified by the planning committee, it was hoped that the bishops would have an experience of exercising their episcopal ministry together during the consultation and continuing after, which might encourage commitment to a more regular exercise of shared ministry locally. With this in mind, a questionnaire was forwarded to the countries of the participating bishops prior to the conference. Responses to the questionnaire provided a kind of “map” of the state of current relationships, examples of ongoing joint witness, and issues which should be addressed together.

Read the rest of this article in the One Body blog on Salt+Light Media

Annual Anglican-Catholic Informal Talks

On 3 and 4 December 2024, representatives of the Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity and the steering committees of the Anglican-Roman Catholic International Commission (ARCIC) and the International Anglican-Roman Catholic Commission for Unity and Mission (IARCCUM) were hosted by the Anglican Communion Office in London, United Kingdom, for the annual Anglican-Catholic Informal Talks. The DPCU was represented by the Secretary of the Dicastery, Archbishop Flavio Pace, and the official responsible for relations with the Anglican Communion, Fr Martin Browne OSB. On Tuesday 3 December, the group attended Choral Evensong at St Paul’s Cathedral, London.

Along with updates on the work of ARCIC and IARCCUM, the meetings provided an opportunity for informal conversations about current developments and challenges within and between the two communities. The incoming Director of the Anglican Centre in Rome, Bishop Anthony Ball, kindly welcomed the group to meet at his residence in Westminster Abbey, where he currently serves as a canon. He will succeed the current Director, Archbishop Ian Ernest, who retires in January 2025. The next meeting will take place in Rome on 10 and 11 November 2025.

Participants:

Anglican Communion

Bishop Anthony Poggo, Secretary General of the Anglican Communion
Archbishop Philip Freier, Co-Chair, ARCIC (participated online)
Bishop Robert Innes, Co-Chair, IARCCUM
Bishop Anthony Ball, incoming Director, Anglican Centre in Rome
Revd Neil Vigers, Anglican Communion Office
Dr. Christopher Wells, Anglican Communion Office

Catholic Church

Archbishop Flavio Pace, Secretary, Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity
Archbishop Bernard Longley, Co-Chair, ARCIC
Archbishop Donald Bolen, Co-Chair, IARCCUM
Revd Martin Browne OSB, Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity

“Making room for each other”: IASCUFO paper explores Anglican Communion identity

Renewing the Instruments of the Anglican Communion is the focus of a new paper called The Nairobi-Cairo Proposals released by the Inter-Anglican Standing Commission on Unity, Faith and Order (IASCUFO). Commissioned by the 18th meeting of the Anglican Consultative Council (ACC) in 2023, a draft of the paper was presented to the Primates’ Meeting in Rome in April 2024, and was revised in conversation with the Primates’ Standing Committee, the Archbishop of Canterbury, and the whole of the Standing Committee of the ACC. It has now been published as an offering to the Anglican Communion and for the consideration of the 19th meeting of the Anglican Consultative Council in 2026.

IASCUFO Propoals Commissioned by the ACC

IASCUFO is supported by the Anglican Communion Office and chaired by The Right Revd Dr Graham Tomlin of the Church of England. Its membership is composed of a diverse group from across the Anglican Communion, incorporating a range of viewpoints from Africa, Asia, South and North America, Europe, and Australia.

The report represents two years of work by the commission. ACC-18 asked IASCUFO to “explore theological questions regarding structure and decision-making in the Anglican Communion.” The ACC resolution underlined “the importance of seeking to walk together to the highest degree possible and learning from our ecumenical conversations how to accommodate differentiation patiently and respectfully.”

The work also carries forward the call of the 2022 Lambeth Conference to review the Instruments of Communion, and to seek to answer two questions: “To what extent are the Instruments fit for purpose? To what extent might some (or all) of the Instruments be reconfigured to serve the Communion of today and the future?”

The Instruments of the Anglican Communion are the Lambeth Conference, the Anglican Consultative Council, the Primates’ Meeting, and the Archbishop of Canterbury. Each emerged at a different point in history, as the Anglican family of churches has sought to articulate and deepen its faith and order, in service of wider Christian unity.

The Proposals

The Nairobi-Cairo Proposals urge the churches of the Anglican Communion to reclaim their oldest ideals, founded in Scripture and the ancient faith of the Church, and to respond properly to God’s gift and call of unity in Christ, even when that unity is wounded by disagreement and division. The paper seeks to help Anglicans speak “honestly and directly” and to consider several structural adjustments “to encourage a more sustained equality, mutuality, and flourishing of all member churches.”

The longest section of the paper describes anew the vocation of Anglicanism with reference to the four ancient marks of the Church as One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic. This frames the two principal proposals of the paper, which seek “to account for changes of the last century and to encourage a maximal sharing in leadership that reflects [Anglican] identity and ideals.” The proposals are presented together by IASCUFO and the Standing Committee of the ACC.

The first proposal offers an updated statement (for the first time since 1930) of the nature and status of the Anglican Communion, a statement that reflects the “maturing of the 42 sister churches of the Communion.” The proposed hopeful description states that (1) the churches of the Communion seek to uphold and propagate the Catholic and Apostolic faith and order, as set forth in the Book of Common Prayer; (2) they are properly autonomous, rooted in their various localities; and (3) they remain bound together in four respects: “through their shared inheritance, mutual service, common counsel in conference, and historic connection with the See of Canterbury.” The latter four characteristics “capture the present reality and ideals of the churches of the Communion, by which they seek to foster the highest degree of communion” with one another and with all churches and communities of the Universal Church.

The second proposal suggests broadening how the meetings of the Instruments of Communion are called, convened, chaired, and presided over, in order to diversify the face of the Instruments of Communion. In particular, the paper proposes “a rotating presidency of the Anglican Consultative Council between the five regions of the Communion, elected from the membership of the Primates’ Meeting by the same; and an enhanced role for the Primates’ Standing Committee in the calling and convening of both Primates’ Meetings and the Lambeth Conference.” These suggestions “fit with the identity and ideals of the Anglican Communion in a post-colonial era. The leadership of the Communion should look like the Communion.”

This second proposal is partly presented to “assist and broaden aspects of the Archbishop of Canterbury’s ministry in the Communion,” especially by drawing on the Regional Primates who form the Primates’ Standing Committee. Since at least 2016, primates have taken turns chairing sessions of the Primates’ Meeting, and the Primates’ Standing Committee has helped to shape the agendas in advance.

The paper argues that the See of Canterbury, the first see of the Anglican Communion, “stands as a symbol of the apostolic character of the Anglican Communion and serves as a touchstone of Anglican unity, for which reason the Archbishop of Canterbury is rightly understood as an Instrument of Communion.” The archbishop’s ministry is personal and pastoral, as he or she seeks to “serve, encourage, and persuade, as a brother or sister among siblings and peers, particularly in the college of the Lambeth Conference and the Primates’ Meeting.”

The paper observes that “the binding character of historic connection to Canterbury that all Anglicans share is experienced in countless contexts and relationships.” For this reason, constitutions and canons of churches of the Communion are free to specify their own commitment to “communion with the See of Canterbury.” Such communion “ought not be expected in any provincial constitution or canon nor need it be affirmed univocally by all member churches. Some degree of latitude is fitting and appropriate.”

Beginning a new conversation

IASCUFO emphasizes that the proposals are offered “not as an end but as the beginning of a new conversation.” They provide “suggestions for next steps to all four Instruments of Communion for their consideration and wise response.”

They are also written in direct address of the Global South Fellowship of Anglican (GSFA) Churches, the contributions of which are encouraged as “outworkings both of provincial autonomy and the mutuality of ‘common counsel,’ in hopeful service of the unity and faithfulness of the Anglican Communion.” The communiqué of the 2024 Primates’ Meeting addressed the GSFA when it expressed a “desire for conversation and mutual discernment of the way forward together,” including “discernments about the faith and order of the Communion.”

In the Foreword to the paper, The Right Revd Dr Graham Tomlin writes: “The varied input that we have received has reflected the breadth of perspectives that may be found in the Anglican Communion on the issues that divide us, and the composition of our own Commission reflects the same breadth. Accordingly, we have sought in our meetings to speak frankly, to protect one another’s conscience, and to cultivate a patient charity in discerning next faithful steps. All together, we present the following paper as the product of deep listening and honesty across theological and cultural difference. It proposes a way forward that all members of the Commission are able to commend. I am grateful to the members of the Commission for the generosity of spirit and resilience that they brought to our discussions.”

The Most Revd Dr Samy Shehata, Primate of the Province of Alexandria and a member of the commission, said: “As we navigate the complexities of our future as Anglicans, we will do well to remember the importance of empathy, understanding, and collaboration. IASCUFO’s Nairobi-Cairo Proposals is a historical document for such a time as this. It lays the groundwork to continue in fellowship. Even in moments of disagreement, there is always an opportunity for dialogue and mutual respect. I pray for open hearts and minds in seeking common ground and solutions that benefit us all.”

The Revd Dr Katherine Sonderegger, Professor of Theology at Virginia Theological Seminary and a member of the commission, said: “The Nairobi-Cairo Proposals exhort us as churches and as a Communion to ‘wait for one another,’ and to seek, under the Spirit’s guidance, the highest form of communion possible among us. The proposals give us the next steps forward, a glimpse of a new, more diverse Communion that will nurture our churches in the midst of serious division. May it be a sign of healing, of reconciliation, and renewal!”

The Right Revd Anthony Poggo, Secretary General of the Anglican Communion, said: “The Anglican Consultative Council commissioned IASCUFO’s work in 2023. The Nairobi-Cairo Proposals are the result of international collaboration, representing diverse voices from around the Communion. They are offered to strengthen our global Anglican family. I pray that they will be received with prayerful consideration in the months ahead.”

The paper anticipates the election of a new Archbishop of Canterbury, which will happen through the Church of England’s usual Crown Nominations Commission.

With reference to the proposed revision to the Constitution of the Anglican Consultative Council, which will be presented to ACC-19, IASCUFO and the Standing Committee express a “hope that the next Archbishop of Canterbury will welcome the development, and that the Primates’ Meeting will take up the proposal to elect from among its membership a first President of the ACC, from one of the five regions of the Communion.” They also express a “hope that the next meeting of the Lambeth Conference will devote sustained attention to the identity and vocation of the Anglican Communion, to advance our shared understanding and deepen our collective commitment.”

In the lead up to the 2024 Primates’ Meeting, the Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby said: “I welcome the proposals that will be discussed by the primates in Rome. I have long called for the structures of the Anglican Communion to be reimagined for the 21st century — as have my recent predecessors as Archbishop of Canterbury. This is an ongoing conversation, and I pray it will lead to greater unity — and to a more accurate reflection of the diversity of global Anglicanism.”

For more information

To find out more and download the report, visit the Anglican Communion office website here.

Final synod document is magisterial, pope says

Doubling down on the centrality of synodality in the Catholic Church, Pope Francis said that it is now up to local churches to accept and implement proposals from the final document approved by the Synod of Bishops on synodality.

Approved by the pope, the synod’s final document “participates in the ordinary magisterium of the successor of Peter, and as such, I ask that it be accepted,” the pope wrote in a note published by the Vatican Nov. 25.

“Local churches and groupings of churches are now called upon to implement, in different contexts, the authoritative indications contained in the document, through the processes of discernment and decision-making provided by law and by the document itself,” he wrote nearly a month after the synod’s close.

The final document outlined key priorities for the church, including increased participation of laity through new ministries and adjusted governing structures, greater transparency and accountability among church leadership and creating space for previously marginalized groups.

After synod members voted to approve the final document, Pope Francis announced that he would not write the customary apostolic exhortation after the synod but would instead offer the document to the entire church for implementation.

With the exceptions of the first synods convoked by St. Paul VI in 1967 and 1971, all ordinary assemblies of the Synod of Bishops have been followed by an exhortation on the synod’s themes and discussions by the pope.

In his note, Pope Francis clarified that while the document is “not strictly normative” and must be adapted to contexts where it is applied, it still obligates “local churches to make choices consistent with what was indicated” in the document.

He also underscored the need for time to address broader churchwide issues, such as those assigned to the 10 study groups he set up in the spring to explore issues raised during the synod, including women’s ministry, seminary education, relationships between bishops and religious communities, and the role of nuncios. More groups may be created, the pope said.

The conclusion of the general assembly of the Synod of Bishops “does not end the synodal process,” he wrote.

Quoting his 2016 exhortation, “Amoris Laetitia” on marriage and family life, the pope wrote that “not all doctrinal, moral or pastoral discussions must be resolved by interventions of the magisterium,” rather the bishops of each country or region can seek “more encultured solutions” to issues involving local traditions and challenges.

He added that the final synod document contains recommendations which “can already now be implemented in the local churches and groupings of churches, taking into account different contexts, what has already been done and what remains to be done in order to learn and develop ever better the style proper to the missionary synodal church.”

“In many cases it is a matter of effectively implementing what is already provided for in existing law, Latin and Eastern,” while in other contexts local churches can proceed with the creation of “new forms of ministry and missionary action” through a process of synodal discernment and experimentation.

Pope Francis also specified that during bishops’ “ad limina” visits to Rome, each bishop will be asked to discuss what choices have been made in his local church regarding what has been indicated in the final synod document, reflecting on the challenges and the fruits.

Meanwhile, he said, the General Secretariat of the Synod and the various dicasteries of the Roman Curia will be tasked with overseeing the synodal journey’s “implementation phase.”

Implementing Bluesky

As the IARCCUM.org website has developed, I have been adding little features that enhance the resources and assist people in sharing the material with colleagues and friends. A few years ago, I added social media links to each news post and, eventually, to each document as well. The social media links are supported by some back-end coding to ensure that Facebook, Twitter, and other sites can properly identify the titles and feature images for each page.

More recently, I have had misgivings about promoting the use of Twitter/X and even removed it from the site for a long period. I have now replaced it with Bluesky, a similar service that has no advertising and uses robust content controls.

On each page, there should be a Bluesky butterfly among the social icons. Clicking this link will open a Bluesky compose window where users can compose their own posts if they have a Bluesky account. Similarly, the Facebook, Messenger, Pocket, Email, and WhatsApp icons open their respective websites. These seem to be the most helpful icons at this time.

Note: Bluesky is still in development. One feature that does not yet work fully is the “compose link” that appears on this website. When clicking on the link a new window successfully opens, and the text box is populated with the URL of the target news story. However, Bluesky does not immediately convert this into a photo and a description or caption (known as a link card). However, if you type a blank space immediately before the URL, the search for the link card will initiate. Bluesky is apparently working on this.

The Archbishop of Canterbury has issued a statement announcing his resignation

The Archbishop of Canterbury has issued a statement announcing his resignation. The statement was made at 2.00 pm UK time and reads:

Having sought the gracious permission of His Majesty The King, I have decided to resign as Archbishop of Canterbury.

The Makin Review has exposed the long-maintained conspiracy of silence about the heinous abuses of John Smyth.

When I was informed in 2013 and told that police had been notified, I believed wrongly that an appropriate resolution would follow.

It is very clear that I must take personal and institutional responsibility for the long and retraumatising period between 2013 and 2024.

It is my duty to honour my Constitutional and church responsibilities, so exact timings will be decided once a review of necessary obligations has been completed, including those in England and in the Anglican Communion.

I hope this decision makes clear how seriously the Church of England understands the need for change and our profound commitment to creating a safer church. As I step down I do so in sorrow with all victims and survivors of abuse.

The last few days have renewed my long felt and profound sense of shame at the historic safeguarding failures of the Church of England. For nearly twelve years I have struggled to introduce improvements. It is for others to judge what has been done.

In the meantime, I will follow through on my commitment to meet victims. I will delegate all my other current responsibilities for safeguarding until the necessary risk assessment process is complete.

I ask everyone to keep my wife Caroline and my children in their prayers. They have been my most important support throughout my ministry, and I am eternally grateful for their sacrifice. Caroline led the spouses’ programme during the Lambeth Conference and has travelled tirelessly in areas of conflict supporting the most vulnerable, the women, and those who care for them locally.

I believe that stepping aside is in the best interests of the Church of England, which I dearly love and which I have been honoured to serve. I pray that this decision points us back towards the love that Jesus Christ has for every one of us.

For above all else, my deepest commitment is to the person of Jesus Christ, my saviour and my God; the bearer of the sins and burdens of the world, and the hope of every person.

For more information visit the Lambeth Palace website here.

Anglican Centre in Rome announces new Director

The Board of Governors of the Anglican Centre in Rome has announced the appointment of a new Director. Bishop Anthony Ball will take over the leadership of the Centre when Archbishop Ian Ernest steps down at the end of January 2025. There will be a transition period of a few months, as Bishop Anthony takes up his responsibilities in Rome and concludes those of his current roles.

The Anglican Centre in Rome is the permanent Anglican Communion presence in Rome. It embodies the Anglican Communion’s commitment to the full visible unity of the Church, with a particular focus on building trusted relationships with the Roman Catholic Church and advancing shared ecumenical priorities.

As Director, Bishop Anthony Ball will lead the Centre and be the Archbishop of Canterbury’s Representative to the Holy See, playing a key role in the interface between the Anglican Communion and the Roman Catholic Church.

Bishop Anthony will also play a major role as a public face of Anglican ecumenical commitment, liaising with the Archbishop of Canterbury and the Unity, Faith and Order team at the Anglican Communion Office.

Bishop Anthony is currently serving at Westminster Abbey as Canon Steward and Archdeacon of Westminster and as the Bishop of the Diocese of North Africa in the Province of Alexandria, having previously been an Assistant Bishop in the Diocese of Egypt.

In his current role at Westminster Abbey, he has oversight of hospitality and welcome to visitors and pilgrims and responsibility for pastoral care as well as being the lead clergy person for the Abbey’s inter-religious relationships. Previously, he held roles of Canon Rector, Rector of St Margaret’s Church, Almoner and Sub-Dean. Before coming to the Abbey he was Rector of Worth, Pound Hill and Maidenbower in West Sussex, also holding the role of Anglican Chaplain at Worth School.

He has held several roles in the charity and education sectors, including Chair of Trustees of the Christian development charity ‘Embrace the Middle East’; the Chair of Governors of Westminster City School; a Trustee of the United Westminster and Grey Coat Foundation; a Trustee of the Christian-Muslim Forum; and Co-Chair of the Council of Christians and Jews’ Central London Branch. He currently Chairs the Jerusalem and the Middle East Church Association and serves on the UK Advisory Board of the Abraham Initiatives.

He was born and lived for many years in Southern Africa. After studying at the University of Durham, he joined the Diplomatic Service. He had overseas postings in the Middle East and Spain during which time he was ordained as a priest. During a posting with the British Embassy in Damascus, he was the Archbishop of Canterbury’s representative to the Heads of the Orthodox Churches in Syria and Lebanon. From there he moved to join Archbishop Rowan Williams‘s staff at Lambeth Palace where he variously held responsibility for advising on Anglican Communion, Ecumenical, Inter Religious and International relations before serving as the Archbishop’s Chaplain.

Speaking of the appointment, Bishop Anthony Ball said:

“It is an extraordinary privilege to be offered this opportunity to serve the Anglican Communion, the Archbishop of Canterbury and the cause of Christian unity. As a long-time supporter of the Anglican Centre in Rome I am hugely excited at the prospect of contributing to its leadership and building on the work of Archbishop Ian Ernest and his predecessors. I look forward to developing further the connections and collaboration with institutions, organisations and all those, within our Communion and beyond, committed to education, pilgrimage, encounter and deepening mutual understanding. Establishing friendships was core to the founding vision of the ACR and is as vital today as it was nearly sixty years ago – I relish the chance of sharing in this endeavour.”

Announcing the appointment, Bishop Michael Burrows said:

“Bishop Anthony Ball is someone of energy, vision and rich experience whose many gifts will be a source of blessing to the ACR. Ecumenism, diplomacy, administration and liturgy are examples of areas where he is proficient. In particular he knows how to network fruitfully, to be given to hospitality and to deepen dialogue. The Governors of the ACR, rejoicing at the news of his appointment, know that he will be a worthy successor to Archbishop Ian Ernest, who over the last five years has developed the profile and agenda of the Centre, in and beyond Rome, quite immeasurably.”

The Most Reverend Justin Welby, the Archbishop of Canterbury said:

“Throughout his ministry to date, Bishop Anthony Ball has served God’s church in several contexts. This has imbued him with a deep commitment to the unity of the church and the value of ecumenism. I know that he will play a vital role in growing the Anglican Communion’s relationship with the Holy See, as together we celebrate our warm friendship and collaboration in mission.”

The Right Revd Anthony Poggo, the Secretary General of the Anglican Communion, is also a Governor on the Anglican Centre in Rome. Speaking of the appointment he said:

“The Anglican Centre in Rome is a unique institution in the Anglican Communion, given to embodying the spirit and commitments of ecumenism. It is hard to think of the fruitfulness of Anglican-Catholic dialogue in the last almost- 60 years without thinking of the ACR as a place of personal encounter and friendship. In April 2024, it played an important role in hosting the Anglican Primates’ Meeting, which included an historic meeting with Pope Francis. I look forward to all that Bishop Anthony Ball will do as Director and share our prayers and support. We also give thanks for the service and tremendous ministry of his immediate predecessor, Archbishop Ian Ernest.”

An opportunity to remember Christian unity’s connection to world peace

Pope John Paul II once observed that ‘the modern ecumenical movement is the world’s most important peace movement’. Certainly, at the time of its origin at the end of the First World War many Christians shared the pressing awareness that they had a clear responsibility to make the most positive contribution possible to the cause of world peace. The moral imperative to help ensure that the devastating catastrophe of world war would never happen again was obvious.

With this goal firmly in view, as early as 1920 the Eastern Orthodox churches proposed the formation of some kind of international ‘fellowship of churches’ similar to the League of Nations.

Somewhat ironically, the inauguration of the World Council of Churches, which about 100 member churches had agreed to set up in 1937/38, had to be postponed because of the outbreak of World War II!

It was not until 1948 that the WCC finally came into existence. This international fellowship now comprises some 352 national or regional churches.

From the start, however, the Council suffered from the major defect that the Roman Catholic Church stood aloof from it, and even tended to regard it with suspicion. This is not to say there were not voices within the Roman Catholic fold that earnestly expressed a desire to pursue the cause of Christian unity.

Also in near proximity to the end of the First World War, Pope Pius XI explicitly approved conversations with the Anglicans that were held at Malines in Belgium between 1921 and 1926.

Successive Popes encouraged prayers for unity, and were supportive in particular of the ‘Week of Prayer for Christian Unity’. Pope Pius XII went a step further in an Instruction of 1950 in which he expressly supported the ecumenical movement, emphasizing that it originated in the action of the Holy Spirit.

However, there was a sense in which, from the perspective of Rome, the goal of unity was imagined only in terms of the return to Rome of the Orthodox churches of the East and, in the West, the return of those who had departed in the course of the 16^th-century Reformation.

It was not until John XXIII called the Second Vatican Council which began its work in 1962 that things began to change dramatically.

On 21 November 1964 the Council promulgated its Decree on Ecumenism, Unitatis Redintegratio, which stands as one of the most momentous events of the twentieth century.

Those of us who were alive at the time will remember something of the excitement that reverberated around the world when Unitatis Redintegratio passed in the Council by an overwhelmingly positive vote of 2137 bishops in favour, with only 11 in opposition.

This decree brought the Roman Catholic Church formally into the ecumenical movement as a key player by signalling an unqualified commitment to the search for Christian unity. Indeed, in its opening statement it declared that the restoration of unity among all Christians was one of the principal concerns of the Second Vatican Council.

The document states in its introduction that, “Christ the Lord founded one Church and one Church only”, and forthrightly declares that division contradicts the will of the Lord, “scandalizes the world and damages …the preaching of the Gospel.”

Certainly, the text of Unitatis Redintegratio breathed a new generosity of spirit. It forthrightly reversed a long-held Roman Catholic position effectively of claiming to be the only true Church of Jesus Christ. This was achieved by openly affirming the validity of baptisms administered by other Christian churches and ecclesial bodies.

Then, instead of claiming that the Roman Catholic Church simply is the Church of Jesus Christ, a follow-up Vatican II document on the Church, Lumen Gentium, affirmed that the Church of Jesus Christ “subsists in” the Roman Catholic Church – without denying that in varying degrees it subsists in other churches and ecclesial bodies which validly offer salvation in Christ to their adherents.

In 1969 the unequivocal ecumenical commitment of Unitatis Redintegratio was put into practice when the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity was set up as a permanent Vatican department. Clearly, ecumenically speaking the Roman Catholic Church really meant business. Soon after, with the generous help of the Doria family, the Anglican Communion responded by establishing a permanent diplomatic presence – the Anglican Centre in Rome.

Multiple unilateral dialogues then systematically addressed issues that were identified as having previously been contentious and divisive across the Christian spectrum. Individualised dialogues were established between Rome and the Orthodox churches, the Anglican Communion, the World Lutheran Federation, the Reformed churches and Pentecostal churches.

In deepening relations with the Anglican Communion, in the decade between 1971 and 1981 the Anglican-Roman Catholic International Commission produced agreed statements and “elucidations” on the eucharist, ministry and ordination, and the exercise of authority in the Church.

A second phase of this dialogue addressed salvation (1987), the Church as Communion (1991), morals (1994), and in 2006 reached agreement in an irenic and deeply spiritual document Mary, Grace and Hope in Christ, on the place of Mary in the theology and devotion of the Church. It even proposed an enlightening, agreed understanding of the formerly divisive Vatican dogmas of the Immaculate Conception (1854) and Bodily Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary (1950).

Clearly, when measured in terms of this output of agreed statements, the flow-on effect of the Vatican Decree on Ecumenism of 21 November 1964 has been enormous.

Understandably, the 60th anniversary of the Decree is to be celebrated with gusto at St George’s Anglican Cathedral Perth on Sunday 10 November when current Anglican Archbishop, Kay Goldsworthy will preside at a commemorative Evensong, at which her Catholic counterpart, Archbishop Timothy Costelloe will preach the sermon. An appropriate party is planned outside the cathedral afterwards.

The date of this celebration was chosen with the consideration of predominating practicalities in mind, given the need to find space in busy diaries as close to the actual date of the 60^th anniversary as possible.

However, by a stroke of providence 10 November falls on the eve of Armistice Day, thus happily reviving the original connection with the theme of world peace that provided the initial stimulus for the twentieth century ecumenical movement in the first place.

Alas, perhaps at this time in the history of this tragically divided and troubled world, the churches may take the opportunity to expand their vocation to work together so as, at the very least, to uphold the possibility of dialogue before their sister world religions of the tradition of Abrahamic monotheism – Judaism and Islam.

World peace is once again a moral imperative.

The Most Reverend Dr Peter Carnley was Anglican Archbishop of Perth from 1981 to 2005, and primate of the Australian Anglican Church from 2000 to 2005.