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The Lambeth Conference is one of the global Anglican Communion's Instruments of Communion. It takes place every ten years at the invitation of the Archbishop of Canterbury and is an occasion when bishops can meet for worship, study and conversation. Archbishops, diocesan, assistant and suffragan bishops are invited.
Also invited are bishops from other churches 'in communion' with the Anglican Communion, bishops from United Churches and a number of ecumenical guests.
In a parallel gathering, the spouses of the participating bishops are invited by the Archbishop of Canterbury's wife to an independent Spouses' Conference.
The Lambeth Conference runs from 16th July to 4th August. Traditionally, bishops attending Lambeth visit English dioceses for a few days before going to Canterbury and this year the Diocese of Lichfield and our companions in Malaysia, South Africa and Canada, and in the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Mecklenburg in north-east Germany, have planned the highlight of CrossTalk, their two year mission-prayer twinning programme, to coincide with these pre-Lambeth visits.
From 1-15 July churches in towns and villages across the Lichfield Diocese will host visitors (and bishops) from their prayer-link churches. The visits will culminate in the international CrossTalk Conference, the CrossTalk Festival, a youth conference and a special pre-Lambeth international service of friendship and partnership in Lichfield Cathedral. Lambeth Conference Briefing DayBelieving & Belonging
- the church before the watching worldThe Bishop of Lichfield is hosting a major pre-Lambeth Conference day conference - a briefing day for churches and Christians in the diocese of Lichfield to prepare for and pray about the issues surrounding this important gathering of Anglican leaders. The day will explore the key issues facing the Lambeth Conference at a critical time in the life and history and our global church and will feature expert speakers who have been involved in planning Lambeth and who have been speaking and writing on current Anglican issues. The day will include workshops for more in depth focus and provide briefing packs to help local churches engage with the expected interest from the media. The Lambeth Conference comes at a defining moment in the life of the Anglican communion and will be held under the full glare of media publicity. We need to be prepared for it and to know how to respond to people's questions. This is a day designed to equip the local church to understand the issues better, to pray and to share what believing and belonging means in an age like ours. It will take place on Saturday 26th April from 10.00am to 3.45pm at at Staffordshire University's Stafford Campus. Churches are invited to send representatives for a registration fee of £10 per delegate. Please make full use of the valuable day. Book now to be sure of your place. For booking forms and more details contact: Jane Instone at the Ministry Training office - jane.instone@lichfield.anglican.org or call 01543 306227.
CrossTalk
CrossTalk is the most exciting international programme
in the Diocese of Lichfield since The Feast or HarvestTime!
CrossTalk is the name of a project linking churches or parishes in the Diocese of Lichfield with a church in one of our companion dioceses overseas via the Internet, so that they can pray with real understanding for each other, compare parish mission programmes and reflect prayerfully together on their strengths and their ‘growing points’. This July, when their own bishops are coming to Lichfield before going on to the Lambeth Conference, representatives from the CrossTalk churches overseas will come to share with their partners here: visiting about fifty churches across the diocese, in 30 parishes, teams or deaneries. But just because your church isn’t part of this pilot project doesn’t mean you can’t share in the excitement, meet the visitors, hear their story and be inspired by their vision and witness. A number of CrossTalk events are open to the whole diocese:
CrossTalk Conference
The Hayes Conference Centre, Swanwick, Derbyshire
from 7-9 July (lunchtime to lunchtime). Cost £95.
A unique opportunity to meet bishops and people from our companion dioceses and to share in discussion with them about key issues affecting the life and mission of the church where we are! You can download a booking form by clicking here.
CrossTalk Festival
Trinity Church, Stafford,
Saturday 12 July from 2.00-4.30. Entry by ticket only: £3.00 (students, children, unwaged £2.00) Rejoice in our diversity and our common calling with friends from around the world: learn about the challenges they face, experience their joy in worship and the vitality of their faith: meet them in song, dance, audio visual presentations and inspirational address. Festival meal
An optional add-on after the CrossTalk Festival (5.30-7.30). £12.00 per person. Join some of our overseas guests and their bishops for a superb Chinese meal in a local restaurant. CrossTalk Companionship Service
Lichfield Cathedral, Sunday 13 July, 6.30pm. Celebrate our links with bishops and people from around the world in this CrossTalk service, as we worship together and commit ourselves to share in God’s global mission.
Saving the World! - The CrossTalk Youth Conference
Dovedale House, Ilam,
18-20 July. Cost £50 unwaged, £70 waged. Open to all young adults between the ages of 16 and 35 (yes, 35!) Join young people from across the world concerned to explore what more they can do to address the major issues and challenges facing our churches, our communities and our planet. A weekend of fellowship and fun: of discussion and Bible study, joyful worship, and a range of indoor and outdoor activities to suite all tastes – including archery, canoeing and walking – in Lichfield’s superbly equipped youth centre on the edge of the beautiful Derbyshire Peak District and the Staffordshire Moorlands For more information or booking forms contact the Lichfield World Mission Office: phone 01922 445844 fax 01922 491948 email lichfield.wmo@btinternet.com Anglican Communion Global Bible Study
An Anglican Communion Global Bible Study on the Gospel of John will be taking place from 11th February leading up to the Lambeth Conference.
In the Bible Study groups at the Conference, Bishops and their spouses will be studying the "I AM" statements made by Jesus in John’s Gospel. It has been suggested that studying the whole gospel together across the Communion during the five months prior to the Conference would be a helpful preparation and a way of bringing the whole Anglican Communion together in Bible Study. A reading plan and Commentary is being offered for reflection by Richard Burridge and the Bible Reading Fellowship.
The reading plan suggests five passages for use over five days each week, starting in February 2008. This programme eventually takes us to the final resurrection appearance and Jesus’ commissioning of Peter and the Beloved Disciple, with his final call to ‘follow me’, at the start of the week when the bishops are likely to commence travelling to Lambeth.
Clergy and Laity who wish to join the Bishops in this study can find the ‘Special Lambeth Edition’ in Christian bookshops or direct from the Bible Reading Fellowship brf.org.uk
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