A
Pilgrimage to Witness @ Lambeth
From the Windsor Report forward we have heard calls for
what is called "The Listening Process," meaning a deep, Communion-wide
attentiveness to the lives of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered (LGBT)
people. We believe belief that forwarding the listening process is a
work that needs to be engaged by all of us who think it would be valuable,
rather than for us to wait for someone else to so this work for us. We also
believe our Witness @ Lambeth needs to encompass the full range of
issues currently confronting our church.
Toward this end, we invite you to participate in the
Witness @ Lambeth program. Through this
effort, Anglicans from around the Communion have been invited to make a
pilgrimage to Canterbury, the site of the Lambeth Conference in 2008. While
there we hope on weekdays you will have time to join us for morning prayers, and
then join in the "Alongside Lambeth" program of Bible
study;
small groups focused on the same topics the bishops are considering;
and afternoon speakers. In the evening you can attend Evening Prayer at
St. Stephen's Church and then
more on to Lambeth
Conference's fringe festival events" that are open to the
public. Along the way you will be serving as a Witness @ Lambeth,
living the kind of inclusive and welcoming faith life we hope will one day be an
option for all Anglicans. Out goal is to reflect the Christian character of our
lives and provide you with an opportunity for a meaningful Pilgrimage to
Canterbury and Witness @ Lambeth.
You can join us without leaving home by
reading our blogs, studying
scripture along with us, or making a
contribution to help us pay our bills. You can also meet some of Pilgrims to
Canterbury during Lambeth here.
If you are a visiting Canterbury during the Lambeth
Conference, please join us for part or all of the day. Please be aware the
Canterbury Cathedral will be reserved for use by the bishops during Lambeth.
The Episcopal Church's Presiding Bishop,
Katharine Jefferts
Schori, predicts this will be a quiet session. We hope so and support this
goal. The Archbishop of Canterbury has made clear his intention and expectation
that this Lambeth Conference will not be a "legislative session." We applaud him
for proposing a conference that gives bishops time to study the Bible, build
understanding among themselves and consider serious issues confronting Anglicans
around the world. While inclusion of all God's people in God's church is an
important issue, we're glad bishops will also examine concerns ranging
from protection of God's creation to engaging with a multi-faith world, living
under scripture and evangelism. We are working to reflect the range of concerns
the bishops will consider in the activities we offer to Lambeth pilgrims.
At this point, however, we’re looking for people – lay
people, priests, deacons, bishops, seminarians – who are willing to be Lambeth
pilgrims and serve as a Witness
@ Lambeth. If as an Anglican you are interested in this pilgrimage, please use
this online form to advise us of your interest, We
hope to encourage a diverse array of Anglicans to go to Lambeth and converse
with those who are interested in learning what our lives are like. We do not
have funds to bring everyone who deserves to participate but we can help with
advise, sample fund raising texts, and other kinds of logistical information. If
you cannot go to Lambeth but still want to participate, you will soon can
make an online donation through
Oasis California which we will use
as a scholarship to help someone make this pilgrimage.
Six
Episcopal Bishops Endorse
Witness at Lambeth
The Rt. Rev. Marc Andrus of the Diocese
of California, the Rt. Rev. John Chane, the Rt. Rev Gregory
H. Rickel, Diocese of Olmpia; the Rt. Rev. George Wayne Smith of the
Diocese of Missouri, the Rt. Rev. S. Todd Ousley of the
Diocese of Eastern Michigan and the Rt. Rev. Otis Walker of
the Diocese of Long Island have joined in endorsing
Witness at Lambeth. We appreciate their support.
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Rt. Rev. Marc Andrus |
Rt. Rev. John Chane |
Rt. Rev Gregory H. Rickel |
Rt. Rev. George Wayne Smith |
Rt. Rev. S. Todd
Ousley |
Rt. Rev. Otis Walker |
Whether
in Canterbury or at home, you can be present in spirit at Lambeth through this
Bible study series.
This special series from the Anglican Communion - focusing on St John’s
Gospel - complements the Bible studies in which the bishops and their spouses
will take part during the Lambeth Conference 2008. We hope that people
throughout the Anglican Communion will use this series as a way of being present
in spirit at the Lambeth Conference, supporting their bishops before, during and
after this important gathering. The studies are structured so that they can be
used either by groups or by individuals.
They can form the basis of personal devotions, a church study group or
perhaps a diocesan meeting. We have made the study guides as accessible as
possible, using a series of questions in each case as the basis of the study.
You may download this and print it as a smaller or larger booklet.
Downoad a PDF of the smaller booklet to print yourself
Download a PDF of the larger booklet to print yourself
On this site you can get an idea of
who we are, what we plan to do, and
contribute to support someone in their Witness @ Lambeth here.
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